The explosion of two large pots of fireworks that some clowns just lit outside my front door, at 11:30 on a Thursday night, blasting me and my family out of bed, offers me the perfect opportunity to state my opinion on an important matter:

Reinstate the fireworks ban now.

Additional Photos

With fireworks sales legal, Maine has sacrificed its signature peacefulness, says a writer who was recently “blasted out of bed” by the noise of fireworks. 2012 Staff File Photo/Gordon Chibroski

For generations, people from near and far came to Maine to enjoy a peaceful and quiet life. Now, with the legal sale of fireworks, we have made a deal with the devil, sacrificing a decent night’s sleep for a few tax dollars and jobs, not to mention the burns and injuries that are sure to become common, and the additional workload and expenses incurred by our police and fire personnel as they respond to incidents like the one my neighbors and I experienced tonight.

However, one good thing has come from the sale of fireworks. This libertarian experiment, spearheaded by the Republican Party, offers a glimpse of what we can expect if they continue in power. Their attempts to make Maine better destroy the things that make Maine great.

Jim Frederick

South Portland

Romney’s stated beliefs contradict his ambition

If Mitt Romney really believes, as he constantly says: one, that it’s the private sector and not the federal government that makes jobs; and two, we should cut jobs in the bureaucracy, why has he given up a very lucrative private-sector career to seek a job at the top of the federal bureaucracy?

And, adding insult to injury, if he succeeds in this contradictionary quest, I’ll have to help pay his salary!

Norman Abelson

Moody

Fox News, not China, is greater threat to America

Fox News and Mitt Romney love to scare us about China. They tend to position it as the economic leader in the world today. What nonsense!

China has four times the population of the U.S., yet its gross domestic product is one third of ours. The Heritage Foundation has calculated that it takes eight Chinese workers to equal the manufacturing output of one American worker. China’s only advantage is extremely low slave wages.

Fox promotes the belief that China practically owns the U.S because of our debt. Well, that is more Fox News bull. In fact, our debt to China equals 8 percent of our national debt, hardly a scary number. We owe the vast majority of the national debt right here in America.

China is planning to put men on the moon; we did that more than 40 years ago. Pardon me for not fearing their technical prowess.

In my opinion, Fox is far more of a threat to America and our values than China.

Robert Ricker

Melbourne, Fla.

King a Democrat in an independent’s clothing

Angus King, the former governor, speaks with forked tongue.

King says he’s an independent, yet we all know he is a staunch Democrat and he showed it while governor.

Mainers, remember the Kings were too good to live in the Blaine House?

The way I see it, there was no change when he was governor, running the state that has been Democratic-running for the last 30 years. And now he wants to be senator? Come off it!

We had enough of the Kings in politics. Let’s elect someone into the Senate who will run to help the state, not the one who will run for his own ego.

Richard C. Campbell

South Portland

Someone’s missing Bible’s facts on same-sex marriage

This is in reply to a letter written by Lane Parrish titled “Count on Dill to advocate for all Mainers’ freedoms” (June 2).

In her letter, Parrish says she was raised by a Christian family but never came across a suitable argument against same-sex marriage. She also says that she goes by facts and the only fact she can find is a quote from the Bible claiming that homosexuality is an abomination.

The only fact? Does it not then follow that since homosexuality is an abomination, same-sex marriage must be even more so?

Jesus gave us the true facts when he said, “God made them male and female and for this cause a man shall leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife and the two shall become one flesh.”

Parrish also says Dill has recognized this lack of facts in her fight for civil rights for all Mainers.

Do these quotes from the Bible sound like a lack of facts regarding where God stands on gay marriage?

The real cold hard facts are that homosexuality is impinging on society in an immoral, unwanted manner. For where there is sin, there are consequences.

One example, among many, is that gay sex spawned the deadly AIDS virus and became its biggest carrier. It has taken a terrible toll in lives.

A vote for gay sex is a vote for an ever-increasing crescendo of the same.

As a Christian, I cannot, will not, vote for anyone like Dill who is in complete rebellion against God’s word and would direct future generations toward a fate such as this!

Philip E. Kennard

Windham

Immigrants try in vain to get legal representation

Since Nov. 15, 2006, our experience living in the United States of America has been a nightmare.

Once a year, we see an immigration judge in Boston, the Honorable Paul Gagnon. Judge Gagnon is insistent that we have a lawyer represent us.

We have tried several times to get legal assistance from the Immigrant Legal Assistance Project in Portland, Maine, where we live. Unfortunately, they do not have the capacity to take our case.

We need Social Security numbers in order to work in the USA legally, and in order to do that, we need Judge Gagnon to rule quickly on our behalf.

We believe that the Constitution affords us equal protection and equal treatment under law.

We are raising a son who was born in the USA, and we want to work legally and contribute our fair tax obligations.

Fulgencio de Jesus Hernandez

Portland

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