To the Editor:
I am angry and it is not the heat!
For the third time this year the mailbox of my tenants has been destroyed by vandals. The ugly path of destruction along Green Hill Road bore witness that they were not the only victim. This time it was particularly hurtful because the wrecked box replacing the previous pray was made by a friend who insisted that the vandals would not touch it because they will respect an artisan’s work and leave it alone. It is truly sad that the sculptor’s belief in the goodness of mankind has been smashed to smithereens along with his work of art.

I wondered once again what kind of pathetic twisted mind would find pleasure in the obliteration of a mailbox. I concluded, also once again, that I can not fathom such inane behavior. Could it be a mentality that might find pleasure in torturing a pet, per se?

What I do know is that these cowardly acts, performed in the protective shadows of darkness, have to be the work of depraved individuals lacking even the most modest amount of morality and ethics. Some say that these are harmless pranks carried out by a few rowdy teens trying to proof their macho and that no one gets hurt by this incipient contest of daring. I beg to differ. Mischief is jamming toothpicks into doorbells in apartment houses or decorating shrubbery with toilet paper on Halloween.

Mail Box Bashing, aside from the repeated replacement costs has troublesome consequences. The old gentleman, clutching his cane, struggling to make his way down a rugged embankment to retrieve his floating mail from the creek was at risk to break his fragile bones. The loss of medicines and social security checks caused serious hardship until replacement could be wrenched from red-tape agencies.

Computer illiterate shut-ins without means of transportation depend on communication from the outside world. A note from a relative or a friend is vital for keeping depression at bay. My ninety-eight year old aunt tells me "Phone-calls are wonderful, but on a sleepless night you can re-read letters like a book." Parents are urged to discuss smoking, drugs and sex with their kids. A mailbox-awareness talk should be added to the list so that this repulsive trend has a chance to cease.

Romy C. Schultz