Dear Mr. and Mrs. Maine,
I write this open letter to you to ask you some basic questions. I am sure you are smart enough to answer them, contrary to the apparent mindset of a certain political party and their 70-odd adjuncts that exist only because of our tax dollars.
Are you paying too much in taxes, fees, healthcare costs and insurances, or can you stand further increases?
Are you satisfied with how our education system spends our dollars, or is it in need of a major overhaul?
Are you glad your children want to leave the state because of the lack of decent jobs and the exorbitant cost of starting and running a business? Or would you rather see them stay closer to home?
Are you sick of negative comments and outright lies about campaign issues and candidates while intelligent discussions of the real issues are avoided? Or are you satisfied with the way things are?
Are you tired of unelected organizations telling you how you are going to vote come Nov. 7? Or do you like other people telling you what to do, even though their facts are wrong?
I have recently talked with some former teachers that are running for office. My impression from them is that the Maine Education Association (MEA) does not care about educating our children so much as it does about its political influence and turf.
I have seen letters written by the Maine Municipal Association (MMA) trying to intimidate the Maine Oil Dealers Association (MODA) regarding their position on issues that directly affect our taxes and our control over them (Taxpayer Bill Of Rights).
I have seen outright lies posted as truth in advertisements and letters to the editor on issues and candidates, some of them run multiple times despite the falsehoods being exposed.
So I ask you again, are you satisfied with this?
I saw a great sign recently that said words to this effect: Insanity could be defined as doing the same thing over and over again, each time expecting a different result. Is it not time for us to do something different than we have done for the last 30 years with the same consistently poor results? Let us not have these famous words spoken over us that were uttered by Lt. General Russell Honore in New Orleans after the great hurricane last year: “What are you, stuck on stupid?”
Let us change this government, and let us put our taxes back into our hands. Let us get out and VOTE FOR CHANGE. It is our money, after all.
Your proponent for change,
Gregory Swift
Casco
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