Does it make sense for Portland’s taxpayer money to pay the salary and expenses of a park ranger in a pick-up truck to use fossil fuel, depreciate a vehicle and pollute the air while “policing” for dog-off-leash violations in a completely deserted park in the rain and fog?

That was the case for my wife who had voice command of our very obedient dog.

While alcoholics, drug addicts, litterers, and graffiti “artists” are left to pose potential risks to property and person, money is spent on this endeavor. It is little wonder that libertarianism is making a strong comeback in this country.

Steven B. Kurtz

Portland

 

Congress a stepping stone to prestigious private job

 

Former New Hampshire Sen. Judd Gregg deserves congratulations for his recent hiring as an “international adviser” for the Goldman Sachs firm. Yes, the same Goldman Sachs firm that took billions in bailout money that then-Sen. Gregg coincidentally voted to give them.

Don’t think that this is a Republican/Democrat issue. Former Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana upon his retirement from the Senate was handed a position with Apollo Global Management, a multi-billion-dollar private equity firm.

Bayh and Gregg are not unique. Most political insiders upon leaving the government payrolls eventually find lucrative employment either lobbying their former colleagues on Capitol Hill or in well-placed positions at some of the nation’s largest corporations.

Both sides of the aisle are playing both sides of the fence at our expense, yet even those astute enough to ignore the tabloid news sideshow seem more concentrated on trivia than substance.

Conservatives remain pathologically obsessed with the president and antiquated Cold War conspiracies, while progressives wring their hands over murals or whether a tiny percentage of the population can have a wedding or join the military.

As the sideshows continue, business as usual goes on behind the curtain and it appears that most of the audience has fallen asleep.

Jeremy Smith

Old Orchard Beach

 

Senators should oppose NAFTA-style trade pacts

 

As a labor organizer and a human rights advocate I am deeply troubled by our state’s U.S. senators unwillingness to publicly oppose the pending NAFTA-style free trade agreements with Korea, Panama and Colombia. Most appalling is their silence on the Colombia FTA.

Colombia is the world capital for violence against workers, with more labor organizers killed every year than in the rest of the world combined. Nothing in the pending trade agreement requires Colombia to end the murders or bring the perpetrators to justice.

To date only 6 percent of the more than 2,600 labor murders have ever been prosecuted. This says nothing of the terrible working conditions for millions of workers who labor at pennies to the dollar without the minimal safety standards awarded to workers here.

Mainers meanwhile are struggling to keep jobs here at home. Expanding the NAFTA model to a country with such a horrific humans rights record is a ludicrous proposition. Please join me in calling on Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins to oppose the Colombia Free Trade Agreement and to denounce the violence against our Colombian brothers and sisters.

Anthony Zeli

Portland

 

Decision on subdivision deserves quick compliance

 

We are writing to praise every member of the Scarborough Planning Board for their sound decision on a proposal they considered on June 20.

The Beachwalk subdivision, a nine- lot beachfront neighborhood across from the Lighthouse Motel in Pine Point, was approved five years ago amid a great deal of controversy.

The original developer agreed to work with the people of Pine Point to place permanent restrictions on the subdivision, restrictions that are not uncommon or unreasonable. Among those were height restrictions of 42 inches on all vegetation and fences in order to preserve public scenic vistas of the dunes, beach and Saco Bay.

Recently, however, the Beachwalk requested these height restrictions be lifted to protect residents’ privacy. It wanted to increase the height of a fence that already had been in violation for over a year and tried to get approval for trees that would grow to 35 feet, according to a local arborist.

The Planning Board listened to members of the public who recounted the history of the development and stressed the importance of honoring agreements made in the past. The increase on height restrictions was unanimously denied by the board, honoring the work of the 2006 Planning Board.

The lesson for the citizens is we must be vigilant and keep a watchful eye always, and be ready to help our elected and appointed officials know the truth.

Now that the board has denied the Beachwalk’s request, we expect the fence will be removed immediately.

Judy Shirk and Dianne McLellan

Scarborough

 

Fluctuating TV volume remains unsolved problem

 

Growing up in the ’50s and early ’60s was a great time to mature. We didn’t have all the technological gadgets we have today and life was simple. The cars I had beginning with a ’51 Ford convertible were rudimentary compared to today.

We were shown and told predictions of what was in the future and did not believe it was possible. Now we have computers and their chips that do the unbelievable and more than exceeded those predictions.

It’s incredible how far we have progressed and the technology we have to do all these things. We have sent people to the moon and landed “rovers” on other planets. So, with all this technology, how come we cannot (or won’t) transmit a TV signal that can maintain the volume at a consistent level?

Stan Goldberg

Wells

 

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