Well, Chris Busby’s done his fully expected hatchet job on Ethen Strimling [“The Portland Mayoral Horse Race,” October 2011], but the question left unanswered is why everyone who really knows Strimling, anyone who’s been a student at Learning Works or has been on staff there, for instance, is an enthusiastic Strimling supporter. As to why people who really don’t know him can sometimes see him differently, I really don’t know for sure, but I think it’s that people have difficulty accepting high achiever and good looks in the same package. Get over it.

In the City Council election Chris Busby refers to, Strimling, against a lot of strong advice, because there were causes he believed in, took on a seemingly entrenched conservative Democrat who was said to be unbeatable, and came within 24 votes of beating him. Strimling’s campaign discovered a number of disputed ballots that were clearly marked for him but because the hassle of sorting it all out would not have been good for the city, Strimling made the decision to drop the matter. That’s it. That’s the real story.

One could go on, but any thought of Chis Busby’s piece being a fair and balanced political analysis is completely dispelled by the mere fact that in almost half a page of copy he didn’t even mention that Strimling is the CEO of Learning Works, which, even his critics generally acknowledge, Strimling transformed from the troubled social services agency it was when he took it over to the dynamic organization it is today. One of those difficult space limitation decisions that an editor faces, I guess.