Thibodeau outstanding leader
Senate President Mike Thibodeau is an outstanding example of integrity among our elected representatives, as showcased in the Sept. 27 BDN article, and he deserves to be commended for his leadership.
He demonstrated a true understanding of the concept of the separation of power in government, such as the duty of the legislative branch to make the laws and the duty of the executive branch to carry out the laws.
Regardless of political leanings, he is an outstanding example for all in positions of public trust.
Debbie Dufton
Hampden
Pay taxes instead of buying more
Many people think we live in a time of excessive taxation, not only locally but also at the state and federal levels. Many think they are taxed too much, and the predictable result is now fact: decreased services such as maintenance of infrastructure, dropped programs at cash-strapped schools. The list goes on.
Here’s a suggestion: Instead of buying another snowmobile, wave-runner, satellite TV service and indulging in a present whim, stop and think about how what you do or don’t do affects those around you. Could you afford to pay a slightly larger local, state or federal tax if you didn’t give in to the constant drum beat of “buy, buy, buy”?
In the “old days” they used to call it “temperance,” and it meant much more than moderation in alcohol use.
Benjamin Franklin once observed, “The taxes are indeed very heavy; and if those laid on by the government were the only ones we had to pay, we might more easily discharge them; but we have many others, and much more grievous to some of us. We are taxed quite as much by our idleness, three times as much by our pride, and four times as much by our folly; and from these taxes the commissioners can not ease or deliver us by allowing an abatement.”
John Greenman
Orland
Make it harder to buy guns
Once again, we face the issue of how to end mass killings in America. On one side, some say we should pass stiffer gun laws; on the other side, some say gun possession is a constitutional right and that firearms should only be kept out of the hands of the mentally ill.
Without approaching questions of privacy issues over a registry of people who have a mental illness, we need to ask how we would assess the mental state of someone who tries to buy a gun. The process would take an exorbitant amount of time and money. The fact is that a person, whatever his or her mental condition, could always acquire a gun from a friend, a straw buyer or theft.
If we are to interpret the U.S. Constitution’s mandate of not abridging the right to bare arms as applying only to those who are of sound mind, why cannot we then refine the definition of “arms” to only those in use at the time of the Constitution’s writing because it does not say “all arms.” That is, we have a right to single-fire guns, not those that can spray a hurricane of lead in a matter of seconds.
In considering these arguments, each of us should ask how we would feel if someone we loved were killed in a public place along with a dozen others. Whatever the shooter’s mental state, however he or she got the gun, I expect we would say our loved one would still be alive if it were harder to acquire a gun.
Steve Colhoun
Addison
Too late, Carly and Hillary
America has had a female president since Barack Obama was elected in 2008. Her name is Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to Obama and the unofficial first female president.
She has been successfully leading through the disguise of Obama. She is by his side much of the time, and he consults her on everything, including allowing her to represent him at high-level meetings at the White House and beyond. She has been successful in spreading her values to Americans.
So wake up, ladies. There’s no need to get behind a woman in the 2016 presidential race. There’s no glory here for women.
It’s been done and, I might add, quite successfully.
Judy Carter
Cherryfield