To the editor:
On April 16 the Union Leader published an important op-ed (https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/op-eds/len-turcotte-accessory-dwelling-unit-is-a-deceptive-term-for-rental-unit/article_5f118354-fb30-11ee-ac55-b76c0966900a.html) by Rep. Len Turcotte of Strafford County.
It has never been more applicable than it is today, with dozens of bills proposed by those attempting to remove local control of zoning with "death by a thousand cuts."
Turcotte compared this to Chairman Mao Zedong's attempt to control everything centrally in China. I've compared it to the Bolshevik Revolution, also known as the October Revolution, which was led by Vladimir Lenin and his Bolshevik Party. The Bolsheviks, a faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, seized power in 1917, ending the Czarist regime and ushering in a new era of Communist rule in Russia. They too imposed central control of housing.
The sad news is that many elected NH Republicans are enabling Democrats to pass these bills, and our Governor, a supposed Republican, has been signing them. She thinks the government's job is to solve a non-existent 'housing crisis'.
Never mind that Gov. Ayotte vowed not to "MASS Up NH", that is exactly what these bills will do. We need to appeal to her to VETO these dangerous bills that are being forced through stacked committees and sent to voice votes.
If town officials and voters do not fight this push to change the face of NH, in 5-10 years we will not recognize New Hampshire as being the state with the "New Hampshire Advantage."
- Jane Aitken,
Bedford