Time to stop moose hunt?
It is amazing to us that we live in a state that shoots one of its prime tourist attractions. Chris Young, a Moosehead guide, is right when he says we need to pay attention to the moose herd and not increase permits in his area. Moose are declining all over their usual habitat — Minnesota, New Hampshire — and there is no reason to believe Maine will not be next. The Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife even did a collar study recently, which showed a 30 percent mortality rate.
The modern day moose hunt only began in 1980. Before then, the herd had been built up since the ’30s and was healthy and plentiful. Times have changed. Maybe it’s time to go back to no hunting.
We summer in an area where we have reliably seen moose over many years, except last summer. There were very few sightings in June and July and none thereafter. Incredible, scary and alarming.
We wish the biologists could get over the glory and cash of the moose hunt and start preserving our valuable resource. The canary is singing.
Bob and Hope MacDonald
Millinocket
Bridge war protest
On March 19, 2003, the United States invaded Iraq. The U.S. already invaded Afghanistan, where troops still remain. A group of Aroostook County people, who opposed the war and its cost and waste in lives and resources, immediately began a weekly protest on the Aroostook River bridge in Presque Isle, part of the Bridges for Peace movement.
This March 19 marked the end of the 12th full year of war protests on the bridge. Rain or shine or snow, heat or cold and always wind, a group has been there to exercise its right to speak out against government folly. Through declarations of victory and success, through increasing body counts, through surges and other policy fiascoes, the group on the bridge has been a consistent voice against the folly of war.
Consider the costs. These figures are for the U.S. only. More than 6,800 soldiers have been killed in combat. Thousands of civilian contractors have been killed as well. Somewhere between 106,000 and 137,000 wounded, injured or medically evacuated, and $4.4 trillion, including projected benefits to disabled and other veterans.
The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are not over. They continue to be waged at great cost to the people of this country — and certainly the peoples of Iraq and Afghanistan — costs that will continue for many decades in caring for soldiers physically and psychologically wounded by these wars.
Imagine if everyone in Aroostook who thinks we’ve had enough war were to turn up on the bridge. So we invite you to join us, any Sunday, from noon to 1 p.m., on the Aroostook River bridge in Presque Isle.
Steve DeMaio
Easton
Ambulance service question
This correspondence is in response to the March 17 BDN article, “Ambulance Service Lacks Volunteers.” According to John Labrie, the director of Ambulance Services Inc., in order for an ambulance to be garaged in a specific community, it is necessary to have qualified attendants on call 24 hours a day. My question to Labrie is this: Is there an ambulance garaged in any town in this area that does not have licensed attendants on call 24 hours a day?
Sandra Connors
Saint Francis
Raise minimum wage
According to recent polls, most Americans favor an increase in the minimum wage. Additionally, the Department of Labor reports that the majority of small business owners agree, as it would put more money into the pockets of consumers.
The minimum wage in Maine has been $7.50 since 2009, which, for a full-time worker, translates to $15,600 a year, $4,190 below the federal poverty level. By contrast, the living wage for a single individual without children is estimated at $15.00 an hour.
Who are these low-wage workers? Nationally, their average age is 35. They are, disproportionately, women; 78 percent of them have graduated from high school; 33 percent have had some college education; and 10 percent are college graduates.
Opponents argue an increase in the minimum wage would not target poverty and could increase unemployment. Yet, 26 percent of those who would benefit from a national increase in the minimum wage come from households that make less than $20,000 a year, according to a recent article in the New York Times. Furthermore, evidence suggests raising the minimum wage does not affect unemployment. While I agree with those who say an Earned Income Tax Credit would do more to help the poor, I also agree with the majority of Americans: The working poor deserve a raise.
Rep. Gina Melaragno’s, D-Auburn, proposed bill LD 843, which would increase the minimum wage to $12 an hour over five years. Please encourage your representative to support legislation to increase the minimum wage in Maine.
Rebecca Paine
Bar Harbor
Clean air threat
As physician, I am truly dismayed U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin voted in favor of The Secret Science Reform Act of 2015 and The EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act of 2015. These bills are opposed by the American Lung Association and American Thoracic Society because they would undermine public health, transparency and the credibility of our scientific leaders when it comes to clean air safeguards.
The Secret Science Reform Act of 2015 is a sneaky attack designed to eliminate entire bodies of peer-reviewed science from consideration by the EPA, likely resulting in weak and misguided policy outcomes. It essentially will require the EPA to reveal confidential medical information from study participants in order to use these studies. Among other things, the EPA Science Advisory Board Reform Act of 2015 will create a special place for polluters on the EPA’s science advisory panels.
I can only hope that in the future, Poliquin will prioritize the health and well-being of his constituents ahead of party politics and the business interests of big polluters. I urge Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King to stand against these bills and stand up for the clean air safeguards that protect Maine’s residents. It is more important than ever to show that America’s health is nonnegotiable.
Paul Shapero
Bangor