In this week's mailbag we received several requests for letters to be published without signatures. The subjects of the letters ranged from a complaint about sporting events, a complaint by one merchant about a neighboring merchant and a letter opining about the St. Paul's situation.

Apparently, some readers don't understand our policy about printing "name withheld" letters, so we're going to restate it. In order for us to use a letter without a signature, the author must provide a clear reason why the use of their name in the letter would harm themselves or their family. It's not enough for a letter author to feel reluctant for others to know their views. And in fairness, if a letter is attacking other residents, such as the organizers of the sporting event, or a neighboring businessperson, it seems unfair to do so without signing one's name. We hope that in those cases the letter writers decide to discuss their grievances with the other parties privately, instead of using the letters column to do so.

Meg Morgan Norris

Publisher