Cutting waste
During the recent election, politicians of all stripes promised to reduce the federal budget by “reducing waste,” but few proposed concrete examples. I have two; both were recently chronicled by Bloomberg but, unfortunately, seem to have escaped the attention of the mainstream press.
Both have to do with a politically driven military procurement procedure that can best be described as dysfunctional.
The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter was intended to save money by providing the same basic airframe to each of the services. Unfortunately, this Swiss Army knife approach to aircraft design has produced only prototypes, enormous cost overruns and what looks to be a seven-year delay.
The Navy also is guilty, according to Bloomberg, citing the San Antonio class of amphibious warships. Top brass recently declared these ships incapable of performing their only mission: delivery of U.S. Marines to a hostile shore. According to one article, cost overruns are greater than the original contracted price, and there appears to be no end in sight.
The late Everett Dirksen has been credited with observing, “A billion here and a billion there, and pretty soon you’re talking real money.” He was, of course, talking about taxpayer money. Yours and mine.
My suggestion: Let Bath Iron Works fix the ships. They have a history of doing that sort of thing while somehow staying within the budget. Cut the losses on the F-35 and go for the Eurofighter Typhoon. Of course, neither will happen.
Truly carving out waste is always politically unpalatable.
John D. Rule
Lubec
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Nurse perspective
I am an RN with many years of employment at EMMC. I feel very fortunate to have full-time work in a specialty I love.
In 1980, the nurses formed the first professional nursing union in Maine through the Maine State Nurses Association. We strove, through contract negotiations, to perfect our practice and working conditions and to determine the highest quality standards for our patients. Many of today’s nursing administrators have been, at one time, members of our union. When we negotiate, we should not be seen as the enemy — our goals should be to provide the best environment for the patient and the employee.
Unfortunately, thousands of EMMC dollars are being spent for very large informational pages in the BDN that have been misleading. This is being done at a time when economic times are tough for hospitals.
What the public is not aware of is that, due to cuts and early retirement, we have 92 fewer nurses than we did in October 2009. Nurses want to negotiate in good faith and only desire input into what we know best — and that is quality bedside patient care in the best working environment possible.
Nurses at EMMC hope and pray we can negotiate and avoid a one-day strike. EMMC will have to pay a huge amount of money to bring in nurses for three days. Our issues are minimally economic. With more than 600 nurses out of more than 800 nurses voting for this, it is evident that we are strong in our resolve and very hopeful that we can meet in good faith.
Pat Martin
Bangor
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Daydream believer
In the Nov. 12 BDN, an article titled “Study finds daydreaming makes people unhappy” astonished me. A researcher concluded that “wandering minds lead to unhappiness.” Excuse me? This octogenarian finds that his wandering mind brings great pleasure.
We cope with the “rocks and shoals” of daily living as best we can. Eventually, reality wanes, as do the requirements of family and workplace. Then, with scant warning, we are senior citizens. If lucky, we live at home; if not so lucky, in an assisted-living or nursing home.
Reality becomes aging with trifocals, hearing aids, canes, wheelchairs and perhaps even Meals on Wheels. No more traveling to exotic places or visiting the grandkids — they come to grandpa and grandma now. That’s when nature compensates — it goes to its bench.
Our personal archives are chockablock full of the joys of living. Unhappy memories are deleted to a limbo of forgettable experiences. Happy memories limited? Access nature’s gift — a flight of fancy. You can travel anywhere, even to the moon, or sink an elusive hole-in-one. Be the smartest kid in your class, build a big business and give your money away like the generous person you would like to be. Marry the prettiest girl in school and live happily ever after.
The next time grandpa is snoozing or daydreaming, don’t disturb him; he may be hitting a home run for the Red Sox or winning the Boston Marathon. As for me, I’m going to my recliner to “let my mind wander” where a trove of adventures await to add a little pizzazz to my golden years.
Paul A. Lucey
Old Town
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Hitler not elected
In her column “Only fools would reward Pelosi’s weakness with power” (BDN, Nov. 10), Pat LaMarche refers to the recent election and says, “And when I look at our current situation I see at worst Weimar Germany — Hitler was democratically elected, you know.”
She’s wrong about Adolf Hitler (see William Shirer’s book “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich”). Hitler ran for the presidency of Germany in 1932 but was defeated by national hero Paul van Hindenburg. Hitler and some supporters then engaged in a series of plots and demands aimed at persuading Hindenburg to appoint Hitler as Chancellor of Germany. Hindenburg had legal authority to do so but resisted at first. He finally made Hitler the chancellor on January 30, 1933, but only on condition that he obtain backing of a majority in Parliament. Since Hitler lacked such support at the time, he asked Hindenburg to dissolve Parliament and call new elections. Hindenburg did so, after signing an emergency decree.
March 5, 1933, was the day of the last democratic elections in Germany during Hitler’s lifetime. Only 44 percent of the total vote went to the Nazi Party, which had to form a coalition with the Nationalist Party in order to achieve a small majority in Parliament. Hitler then used a combination of persuasion, falsehoods and arrests of some opponents to get a large majority of Parliament to give him dictatorial powers.
Hitler certainly had a large public following, but he was never elected democratically.
Karl K. Norton
Bangor