In the August 21 edition of this paper, I spoke of the violation of my rights as a private citizen. Now it seems that I have no rights as a member of the public.

I would like to thank the Dukes County commission, especially commissioners Carlene Gatting and Tristan Israel as well as our county treasurer Noreen Mavro Flanders, our previous county manager Russell Smith

The following letter was sent to Gov. Deval Patrick from Cape and Islands Rep. Timothy Madden and Barnstable Fourth District Rep. Sarah K. Peake.

Regarding the Vineyard Gazette’s opinion piece from Oct. 12 titled Fatal Attraction, I must agree with the authors that we have entered a new era in which the viability of shark tournaments must be seriously reconsidered.

There has recently been a call by Oak Bluffs voters for thoughtful discussion around the many issues surrounding the Monster Shark Tournament. During last week’s selectman’s meeting, selectman Michael Santoro suggested that the town should consider asking for a portion of the gambling payouts called Calcuttas as a way of generating town funds to offset the increased security costs associated with sponsoring the shark tournament.

In denying the 10-person petition to place on the April ballot a resolution that the Monster Shark Tournament become a completely catch-and-release event, the Oak Bluffs selectmen have actually done the opponents of the event a favor. Now they must gather signatures of at least 10 per cent of the Oak Bluffs registered voters, and therein lies an opportunity.