To the editor: To save Vermonters, vote Republican Nov. 5

Many residents of Windsor County and all of Vermont are struggling. I am one of them. My property taxes went up by another $800 this year. Woodstock residents saw a 30 percent increase in their education property taxes.

Similarly, there was a 34 percent increase in Bridgewater, 26 percent in Thetford and 16.6 percent in Norwich. In my experience, the exodus of Vermonters has reached a 30-year high. Far too many long-time friends and neighbors have been forced to leave the state they love because they simply cannot sustain a home here. My own two daughters are leaving state and will probably never return because they just cannot afford to live here.

As a member of my local fire department and rescue squad, I have witnessed firsthand the destruction that the opioid epidemic has inflicted on Vermont families. Every day, news outlets report on Vermont’s failing public schools, our failing hospitals, the tragedy of rampant homelessness, and a rising crime rate that has spiraled out of control. When I was a young man, I could have never imagined that Vermont would fall victim to such institutionalized dysfunction at the hands of the Vermont legislature, the vast web of departments and agencies that has created a ‘permanent Montpelier,’ and the billion dollar non-profit sector that acts as a shadow government.

• Are you looking forward to another $1,000 increase in your property taxes next year?
• Are you looking forward to another two-digit hike in your health insurance premiums next year, and the year after next?
• Are you looking forward to new laws that will further reduce your take-home pay?
• Are you looking forward to losing your income as an independent contractor or tradesman?
• Are you looking forward to selling the farm or small business that has belonged to your family for generations?
• Are you looking forward to leaving your aging parents behind when you’re forced to relocate to another state?
• Are you looking forward to living thousands of miles from your children because they cannot build a future in Vermont?

If you are, then vote for Democratic Party candidates this November. If, however, you are sick of losing your retirement savings, a future of financial security, and your close social circle, then why not try something new this election? Even if you depend on government assistance, there is no guarantee that the government can continue to help you. Ask the survivors of Hurricane Helene.

This election, let’s turn the tide on Vermont’s managed decline. I urge you to join me in voting for Andrea Murray, Jack Williams, Jonathan Gleason, and every Republican candidate on the ballot that has not created the problems that plague our state. Instead, let’s elect new faces that want all Vermonters to thrive in vibrant communities.

Stu Lindberg
Cavendish