The typical modus operandi is a wind developer or a wind investor comes into a town, tells total lies, makes ridiculous promises - all quietly behind the scenes to landowners and town officials. Everything is done behind closed doors under the cloak of secrecy. By the time the project is announced, it is very far along. When people then start to investigate and object, the wind developer or investor labels them as NIMBY's.

Selfish people who do not want to have a 400' tall turbine that gives off jet engine noise that harms human health in their backyard. The nerve! How dare they interfere with the financial plans of the farmer who wants to sell out his neighbors.

In Vinalhaven, we have a new twist to this story. In Vinalhaven, where three such massive turbines recently began spinning as part of a "Community Wind" project, virtually the whole town bought in. So they cannot be called NIMBY's.

However, now that the turbines are turning and island residents realize they were LIED TO, people realize their lives have been ruined.

There's a must-see video of these folks interviewed at:

http://www.youtube.com/user/windactionorg.

This was apparently excerpted from an even longer interview by a radio station.

From the a Vinalhaven former wind supporter writing in the "Working Waterfront"

http://www.workingwaterfront.com/online-exclusives/Opinion/13571/

"Although our group overwhelmingly supported the project, we now live with the daily presence of turbine noise, 24/7. As one of the Fox Islands Wind Neighbors (FIWN) recently noted, "We support the windmills, but not the noise." The noise is as constant as the wind, building in intensity according to wind speed and direction. It can be a low rumbling, whooshing, grinding background noise that one can just hear above the sound of the trees or it can build to an in-your-face noise, like jet engines roaring combined with a grinding and pulsating sound that echoes in your head, keeps you awake at night, and beats on your house like a drum.

As neighbors of the wind turbines, we find ourselves in the midst of an unexpected, unwanted life crisis. When GE flipped the switch and the turbines began to turn, island life as we knew it evaporated".

Think twice Jackson. Think twice Island Falls. Think twice Sherman. Think twice Stacyville. Think twice Benedicta. Think twice Maine. If it sounds too good to be true it probably is.

Moreover, respect thy neighbor.

It is great to see a community be concerned enough about its future, its town character, and the well being of its citizens to take time to deliberate about how they, as a community, want to deal with such an intrusive presense as an industrial wind site. Bully for Jackson. Extend the moratorium.

There is simply too much of a mad rush into permitting these projects, as a result of the unconstitutional "Expedited Wind Permitting" statute pushed through byBaldacci and Big Wind.

Sue GE.

I hadn't realized that there were other million dollar investments pounding down the doors in Jackson. Take a note from Belfast who wanted to keep business out, look how successful that has been.

Unbelievable!

Wind Power corporations - the new "Enron" for the 2010s. Former Enron employees, politicians, and crooks. All looking to cash in on this once in a lifetime federal government cash give away. Mark my words, as soon as First Wind, et al, do their IPOs, they'll cash it in and split, leaving these useless 400' eyesores for the residents of Maine to have to tear down with state and town tax dollars. Without all the current federal, state, and local subsidies, these wind power projects would not exist. As soon as the subsidies are diminished, these crooks will be gone in a flash. Let the state put them on public lands if they're so wonderful - we haven't seen any mention of that have we? Three or four dozen would look great on top of the Katahdin ridgelines. How about a couple dozen on the Camden Hills, or casting their shadows on Sebago lake from it's western shores? Why not, too much resistance from the well healed. They instead choose to put them in small rural towns that don't have the resources to oppose them. That's changing, people are educating themselves on the subject. Even the dyed in the wool "greenies" have started opposing these projects. It's nothing but a huge money grab for out of state corporations who will disappear into the night as quickly as they appeared once the Federal dollars are used up. Come-on Mainers, you're to smart to have these snake oil salesmen steal your views and ridgelines forever for projects that make absolutely no economic sense to anyone - except for the people getting rich erecting them.

"you're to smart to have these snake oil salesmen steal your views and ridgelines forever"

i thought diamonds were the only things that are "forever"? regardless, it's a silly statement nonetheless

There is a green bubble forming. We had the dotcom bubble and the housing bubble.

Now we have these incredible government subsidies inflating a green bubble and luring all the subsidy sucking pigs to the trough.

Big picture: They've taken your money and your children''s money and your granchildren's money. Then cretins like Chellie Pingree "award" some of it back, like the $40 million stimulus gift she gave to corporate welfare leech First Wind. (Despite the fact that this moron's liberal caucus is vehemently opposed to corporate welfare!) Now all these subsidies are inflating the bubble bigger and bigger and not only are our usual politician lampreys getting their suction teet on it, but so is the little man - towns like Sherman, Patten and Stacyville have signed up 40 landowners -- people who they found who were willing to sell out their neighbors.

Well guess what? BUBBLES ALWAYS BURST.

For Maine, that means thhe production tac vredits are not renewed. This is not a matter of if, it's when. And the days for industrial wind's production tax credits are very numbered. They are given out for 10 years which is why the thieving companies and investors set it up so they get maximum profit in the first 10 years.

Then, the landowners and towns are stuck with the decommissioning and the lawsuits.

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Wind power for thee but not for me

IF a wind turbine is placed in Jackson, I'm pretty positive it will be owned by the TOWN OF JACKSON. Little detail not many people know.

"The two petitions were delivered to the town earlier this month. One was signed by about one-third of the town’s 389 registered voters, the other by 32 voters." ... Ask the voters who signes... half of them will say they were 'lied to'. They thought they were signing on the side for the turbines.

Deanhornblower- It is great isn't it? People need to have faith in their town government sometimes...

The town will be voting on BOTH ordinance. SO there is no refusal, hence the second petition. Dishonest... right. And you would be?

Do your homework a little more before you make ignorant slanderous statements against the people who have been running this town for a VERY VERY long time without conflict or incident.

Do your homework a little more before you make ignorant slanderous statements against the people who have been running this town for a VERY VERY long time without conflict or incident.

Unfortunately, the selectpersons of Jackson cannot counter what has been a year-long and continuous assault on their reputations. There have been vicious and unfounded accusations from the beginning when the "subcommittee" began its meetings, and continuing in the "Fair Wind" pamphlets that have been mailed to everyone in the town. The subcommittee and Planning Board did a lot of research and came to some useful conclusions, but those have been tainted by the hysterical attacks based on nothing more than a perception of themselves as noble saviors and all who have a different viewpoint as evil and corrupt. There is no way that a selectperson can counter these venomous assailants, there is no way to prove that what is constantly alleged has never occurred. As for innocent until proven guilty, it looks like part of the approach of those opposed to wind development in Jackson is to demonize anyone with a longer-range view of the possibilities for the Town land. This does not have to be anything like the present development proposals, it could be something entirely different, and should not be made impossible in the future. But those who originally said they wanted to see the town of Jackson "united" have done everything they could to polarize the people of Jackson, including skating on the very edge of libel and slander. They might be surprised to know the angry response townspeople speak of between themselves, and to know how much they have undermined their own credibility and cause with this hate-filled campaign.

Amen! Jackson always has been "united" until now. Select-people cannot defend themselves against the attacks. People from other towns and all over the county are in shock of what's been said. Anyone who knows them knows better. It IS slander, but what do you do? Sue and make yourself look like worse then some of your 'citizens' have already made you look, even though that would be the right thing. Fair Wind was nothing but a cry for attention and another resident back lashed with their own letter. I myself never received a copy of Fair Wind, conveniently enough.... They are intimidated. The select-people have been proven right time and time again and these hate mongers are chasing their tail trying to come up with new attacks. The whole situation has gotten out of hand. There are also personal attacks on other locals who are not in office, friends, family and supporters of the select-people. I am the daughter of senior selectman John Work. I'm sure that makes me just as evil. I've lived in this town my whole life, my father has, my grandmother was BORN in this town 80some odd years ago. He has played a VERY large role in this town for a VERY long time, but suddenly unfounded attacks on his reputation have surfaced. It's absolutely disgusting.

Everybody got along fine until BigWind came knocking on the door. Al Queda does the same thing in Yemen. They target rural communities and make partnerships. They seek to divide and thereby conquer. The final result is a spreading of radical philosophy which would never have happened had the communities been left alone. Wind terrorists ...go away and leave Maine alone.