Maine news, sports, weather from Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram, Portland, Maine

March 24, 2012

Letters to the editor, March 24, 2012
Senators should back product testing

(Continued from page 1)

Brees has also broken many records with the Saints and he to, has won only one Super Bowl.

Our quarterback, Tom Brady, on the other hand, has broken many records with our New England Patriots and he was able to secure three Super Bowls in a four-year span and was also the most valuable player in two of those. He has also shown a lot of class and has restructured his contract many times so the Patriots could afford to sign talented players and to stay competitive.

As I write this, they are reporting that Manning could make up to $40 million dollars per year and the Saints want to pay Brees at Brady's level. It is about time the Patriots give Brady some payback and make him the highest-paid quarterback in the league. What do you think?

Randall Hocking

Rockland

One problem we can solve: money's hold on politics

As Karl Marx has predicted, capitalism has led to the state of affairs where the income gap between the rich and poor has reached an uncomfortable difference, so opposition groups in the U.S. and around the world are revolting.

The Arab world's youth have finally realized that they have not had an even break in their societies. Equally, the Western world's youth have not been able to keep up financially with their fellow "whiz kids" or even to support a life of bare survival, or to make enough to support a family.

What solutions are there in the 21st century? Communism has been tried in Russia, but with the bad managers of Lenin and Stalin. It never was very appealing to the U.S., especially with Sen. Eugene McCarthy.

In Europe, fascism certainly has not worked. Various forms of socialism have been tried in Germany and Scandinavia with fair success. But what would fit in the U.S.?

In order to prevent chaos, there is a solution that might work to overcome our principal problem of the moment: money in politics. There always have been some money or illegal influence in Washington, but never to this degree. The high cost of running an election is given as the excuse. The race for equal dollars with your opponent is always present and there's never enough. The starting line is so far from being the same, and the fairness of an even race is never present when money is involved, as it is currently.

Philip Thompson

Portland

Piece of paper reminds us that state governs marriage

As the marriage equality debate heats up, I am reminded of the wedding of a very good friend that almost did not take place.

A hurricane was scheduled to make a direct hit on their planned outdoor wedding. Friends and family scrambled to find an indoor venue (a church) and work through associated details on extremely short notice.

What almost brought the wedding to a screeching halt, however, was not the impending storm. The morning of the big day, the minister refused to perform the ceremony. This was not on religious grounds or due to a question of faith, commitment or (perish the thought) sexual orientation.

In all the hoopla, my friends had neglected to get a marriage license. Without this blessing from the reigning government entity, the church official was unable and unwilling to unite this devoted heterosexual couple.

So much for all those arguments that say marriage is a contract with God. The truth is that marriage is a government-sanctioned union.

As such, let us go forth and skip the argument that marriage is only for those of a chosen religious faith who have the potential to procreate. Marriage is a right that should be available to all regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation or political party.

Ann Thayer

Yarmouth

Tweet