No place for vulgarity

In the editorial we ran last week, we described the actions of Governor Paul LePage as "cringe-worthy," "childish" and "embarrassing."

As our readers have since pointed out, those same descriptors could be applied to our own writing.

Specifically, readers highlighted our use of profanity in the editorial as a particularly poor decision.

We absolutely agree.

We stand by our opinion and argument, but the way we communicated it was inappropriate and offensive.

We launched into a missive about civility, respect and moderation without demonstrating any ourselves.

By doing so, we did a huge disservice to our readers and our own integrity.

We want our opinion page to be a space for civil debate and discussion.

We owe it to our readers to maintain a respectful tone in order to encourage future discourse.

The Advertiser Democrat Editorial Board