After reading the comments by the Acadia National Park Advisory Commission (“Acadia may ban gliders,” BDN, Feb. 6), I didn’t know whether to laugh or shake my head. Do these people live in a closet in fear of what might happen if they venture outside? The commissioners (11 of the 12) are afraid hang gliders might pose a safety risk to motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians who could be distracted. “There’s a safety factor in having such a large, obvious distraction,” said Commissioner Tom Sidar.

Has any driver ever taken his or her eyes off the road when they observed The Cat come screaming up Frenchman Bay? Is it possible the 963-foot QE2 might be a large, obvious distraction? How about the ocean and the mountain vistas?

I’ve got some ideas on how we can make Acadia safe for all its inept and distractible visitors. Start by closing the roads, paths and trails to all but foot traffic. Then put up three rows of fence on all these roads and paths. Make these one way and just far enough apart for an average person to squeeze through. The perimeter fence would keep everyone safe from the many dangers lurking just outside and the fence in the middle would keep folks from inadvertently bumping into each other. Now we need to cover this aberration so no one will climb out to pick some berries, become distracted and fall off a cliff.

Dean Mallar

Dover-Foxcroft