To the Editor:
I am active in the Republican Party, serving as my precinct chair. That, so far as I can determine, is not a punishable offense. And yet, each of the first two Romney/Ryan signs I posted this election season disappeared within 24 hours, a third was defaced and this morning a fourth in my front yard was smeared with excrement, perhaps by one of the many dog walkers who parade up and down our street, plastic baggies in hand.
It would be reasonable to speculate that this attempt to abridge free speech did not come from a fellow Republican. Whoever it did come from might be well-advised to reflect on where such small steps against basic rights and common civility can lead. Hopefully local Democratic leaders will join me in denouncing this admittedly modest assault on a basic constitutional right and continue to make Obama/Biden signs available to those who wish to peacefully advocate an alternative viewpoint.
Neil Currie
Potomac