A controversial legacy
Gov. Paul Lepage no doubt will go down in Maine history as one of our most controversial governors. His growing laundry list of scandals has surpassed his political adversaries’ wildest hopes and dreams. But beyond that, it has forced a wedge between Maine’s Republicans, creating a division that no doubt will prove difficult to mend in future elections.
Maine is intriguing politically because it almost appears as its own microcosm, separate from the seemingly insane national politics. During an era in which the American people are the most politically polarized, Maine continues to surprise amateur analysts, such as myself, with its healthy contingent of political moderates and independents.
Whether LePage allegedly abused his executive authority is ultimately unimportant, as his office has spent every cent of political capital in the legislative battleground and surrounding mire of controversy.
Where does this leave us for future elections? Will LePage’s tenure as governor be a cautionary tale for radical conservatism or a rallying cry for the Mainers he supposedly represents? I personally would hope the past five years push Mainers toward the center, no matter whether they’re a bleeding-heart liberal or a red-blooded conservative.
The American people witnessed partisan politics shut down the entire nation for nearly three weeks in 2013. A healthy dose of communication, and the compromise that inevitably comes with it is a refreshing ideal that should serve as an example for state governments across the country and the federal government itself.
Matthew Raymond
Augusta
Acts of charity
I have heard that I should not give to the homeless who hold signs and ask for money because the money only goes to drugs and alcohol. And yet we are taught to judge not. It isn’t about the dollar handed out the window; it is about the act of kindness. If we try to believe for a moment that our money is wasted and we stop giving, then we are creating an “us” and “them” scenario.
Addiction is not just a homeless or low-income problem. Addiction is a social problem. One only needs to look in the halls of Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Overeaters Anonymous and addiction centers across the country to find addicted lawyers, ministers, priests, doctors, judges and maybe neighbors.
On the other hand, kindness can be given without even thinking twice about where that is being spent. If I give an ounce of kindness, it can stretch further than any of us can imagine. I recently encountered an acquaintance who complained of lazy welfare recipients taking all his hard-earned money. Why? It is easier to look down on “them” than to feel like “them.” But, ultimately, we are “them.”
In reality, corporate welfare wastes more than the welfare given to the poor in billions of dollars in wasteful spending and loopholes. If corporations paid their due taxes, there would be fewer taxes for everyone.
The next time I hand that dollar out the window, I will do it with the biggest, warmest smile I can — because ultimately it isn’t really about the dollar, it’s about “us.”
Nancy Rotkowitz
Dover Foxcroft
Congrats, grads
There is some excitement in Maine surrounding this new phenomenon called “virtual education.” For example, the five students who just graduated from the Maine Connections Academy recently were recognized on the front page of the Bangor Daily News. Because traditional education still predominates, we also should praise the achievement of those hundreds of other students across the state who earned a high school diploma this spring.
Congratulations!
As a high school teacher, I have some idea of how hard these students have worked during the last four years: the tests taken, the presentations given, the questions asked, the topics researched, the essays written. Their high school diplomas were not given to them; they were earned. Four years of real work undertaken and completed resulted in a real graduation.
For four years these students arose every morning — fall, winter and spring — to attend a real school with real teachers teaching real subjects in periods and blocks that began and ended in real time. They learned real math, real science, real history, real geography, real literature and real composition. There was nothing virtual about it.
Yes, they put in the effort, they put in the time and that is why they hold in their hands a document that admits them to an exclusive community — a community of educated people. That is why they have really, truly, meaningfully graduated. And that is why, again, I sincerely congratulate them. Good luck in the years ahead.
William J. Murphy
Belfast
Dark political times
Our esteemed governor may have stepped over a line — even in this era of “let’s look forward and not dwell on the past” easy pardons for the powerful — when he threatened to withhold public funding from Good Will-Hinckley unless the nonprofit school rescinded its choice for president, Democratic House Speaker Mark Eves. The blackmail worked, and Eves is out of the job.
In today’s newspeak, that’s called hard-ball politics and fiscal realism. Forget principled action on the part of any of the parties involved: the governor, Good Will-Hinckley and the Harold Alfond Foundation. It remains to be seen whether common decency and justice will prevail, as the governor’s lawyers — as distinct from the Maine attorney general — are rubbing their hands and trumpeting “bring it on” in response to talk of a pending lawsuit.
Dysfunction in Augusta and U.S. politics in general is a product of ruling dystopian values: lies are facts, common stupidity is reasoned judgment and perverse realpolitik is justice. In her March 31 rambling discourse on civility in politics, Sen. Susan Collins failed to mention the many elephants in the room, including the foregoing and the takeover of democracy by corporate interests. It seems a prerequisite to becoming a veteran politician is to be well-adapted to blindness.
Those who cheer on such madness and the public officials who champion or fail to resist it are a measure of the stupidity of dark times.
Tom Boothby
Montville