It is extremely important for us to pay attention to what is happening in D.C. Many of the government and quasi-government agencies and departments we depend on have been, or are being, taken apart, or are at risk of being destroyed.

Do Mainers want to lose services that we depend on? For example, the Department of Education, Postal Service, Social Security, National Science Foundation, National Institute of Health. All are at risk.

I can’t address all of these here, so people should just consider the education department, which is responsible for allocating monies for and monitoring special education and its services, like early intervention, including Title 1, and Head Start. It also is the vehicle that administers student loans for higher education.

Another important role is administering and monitoring civil rights, tracking educational progress and involvement in research. These are some of the most important roles the department fills.

OK, some of this seems difficult to understand. However, the loss of direction, supervision and all or some of the monies for special education and Title 1 (which supports poorer and rural schools) will need to come from somewhere. This means that our taxes will need to support these programs.

And the loss of reasonably priced loans means that many of our graduates who would like to pursue a college education will have to use private bank loans, which are more expensive and difficult to get. Many young people will be forced to forgo any thought of pursuing college.

Is this what we want?

Nancy Gilbert, Durham