Dear Editor,
Thorne council has recently decided to extend voting to cottagers, via registered mail. Any landowner or resident of Thorne has always been able to vote, but in the past, one had to actually show up to vote. With elections commonly held in the fall, most cottagers are back home where they live most of the year.

At first glance, this may appear to enhance democracy, by giving part-time residents a vote in municipal affairs. There are other aspects of this, that may not be immediately apparent.
As a full-time resident, I know that there is a lot which goes on year-round in this rural municipality. Summer-timers don’t necessarily follow these events, attend council meetings or subscribe to local media, so they may not know that Thorne council has been allocating funds for parties in neighbouring municipalities, sending delegates to far-away conferences with little or no relevance to the well-being of Thorne or especially the frivolous lawsuits dragged along for years, with no positive result and at tremendous expense to local goodwill.
Aside from that, the cost of sending out registered letters to distant part-timers is considerable; estimates run into the thousands of dollars.
This step is not an enhancement to democracy, because it gives part-time residents two votes; one in Thorne and another in the municipality where they actually live. Those of us who live here year-round, shovel snow and keep buildings heated, have only one vote and it’s all about where we live. So, double-voters, please make yourselves acquainted with all the issues of life in Thorne and carefully consider who should gain your trust in the elections coming this fall.
Robert Wills, Thorne, Que.