Letter to the editor: You had a choice, State Port Pilot

State Port Pilot, 08.13.25

Based upon my words and actions, no one would doubt that I bled “blue” for many years in support of a professional baseball team and political party—circa 1955 World Series and 1960 Presidential Election, respectively. 

The only exception occurred ~20 years ago when the writer was serving on the Brunswick County (BC) Planning Board. The Chairman of the BC Board of Commissioners – see his name on the main building in the county complex – was supported during the election. His corporate experience and administrative skills were needed during the update of a very important document, the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO). 

Let’s suppose that BC voters had an opportunity during the past 10-12 years to choose a commissioner with planning board experience and a graduate degree in science. Would there have been a recent need for a private company to provide a free water purification system to a BC citizen or would BC be developing a plan to provide clean water to ALL citizens? (Note: The state does not provide grants for utility upgrades to wealthy counties like BC). Would commissioners currently be suing the company overseeing the building of a $167 million water purification system for “subpar performance,” or would a new system already be providing clean water to BC citizens? 

Oh! Voters did have a choice and overwhelmingly rejected the scientist with planning board experience. Hopefully, they will learn before the traffic crisis that “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing (voting) over and over again while expecting different results.” 

William Flythe 

Southport