In your Feb. 24 editorial regarding Rep. Diane Russell’s trip to Madison, Wis., to show support for the teachers there, I would have to agree with you that she left her job here to go off and support people that did not elect her. That’s certainly something she can be chastised for.

But to say that “Mainers may wish she’d liked it enough to stay” seems a bit harsh for missing a few days of work back home. It was kind of mean-spirited and partisan — a little surprising coming from you guys.

Now, on the other hand, if you want to talk about an elected official taking an unpaid vacation and leaving Mainers holding the bag, you could talk about our new governor. He seems to be heading off into outer space quite a bit and saying weird things over his shoulder on his way up. The latest was this little whopper concerning bisphenol-A, a chemical that volumes of scientific studies suggest could pose serious health risks and the use of which eight states, Canada and the European Union have restricted.

Gov. Paul LePage, in his apparent quest to put businesses concerns and profits first, has questioned whether the controversial chemical is as dangerous as all these silly scientists claim. He went on to say (probably somewhere between Mars and Pluto) that some women (Maine women), might grow “little beards” due to BPA exposure.

Ha, ha, ha. Another funny one that I’m sure the entire country is getting a kick out of. Earth to LePage, Earth to LePage: It’s time to come home and start acting like a governor, not a space cadet AM talk show host.

Biff Higgison
Brunswick

 

After reading your article and editorial concerning Rep. Diane Russell’s trip to Wisconsin, I felt compelled to write. I find it extremely disconcerting that our elected representatives do things because they have a “gut” feeling.

Is this how they determine what is best for our state and its population? What is happening in Wisconsin is not class warfare or the rich against the poor. They are broke! We are broke!

Gov. Scott Walker is attempting to prevent thousands of layoffs. I won’t bore you with data since it seems to make no difference when one has a “gut” feeling.

Benjamin Franklin and Franklin D. Roosevelt both warned that the public sector should never unionize. It creates a system that is ripe for corruption and favoritism.

The public sector is for the benefit of the people, not of the unions. Why not unionize the military? They make less than the teachers and have a lot less free time. Hey, we could unionize Congress next!

Suzanne Pratt
Cumberland

 

“Selfishness” (in your Feb. 24 editorial)? Do you read your own paper? The same day in the “In Focus” article, you printed: “The governor’s plan would strip most public employees of their collective bargaining rights ” That is the much bigger issue that has caused the furor in Wisconsin!

Just how does destroying collective bargaining balance a budget? The governor of Wisconsin is clearly attempting to push through his anti-union/anti-middle-class agenda under the very thin guise of “balancing a budget.” Yes, we all face budget woes; and who caused them? “Selfish” public employees? If you think that, you haven’t been reading your own paper for quite a while!

As for public employees being expected to deal with cuts to pensions as many in the private sector have, you might have a case if public employees had also been enjoying the same salaries and benefits as those in the private sector!

Public employees have indeed been facing what you call the “realities” for some time now — settling for meager raises if any, even pay freezes and furlough days — because of the economic turmoil caused by others.

And remember public employees in Maine have shouldered more than their share of the burden before when a previous governor and Legislature raided the retirement system in order to balance the budget!

“Selfishness”? Gov. Scott Walker and others like him need some anti-bullying training!

Grace Leavitt
Raymond

 

Where did Rep. Diane Russell go last week? She wasn’t in Augusta representing her constituents as she was elected to do.

She was traveling to Wisconsin to stick her nose in someone else’s business.

She should be docked her pay for the time she has missed for not being present for Maine’s business.

Russell is a Maine representative for all the people, not trying to make a name for herself. Maybe she should resign and stay in Wisconsin if she’s so interested in what’s going on there — as she isn’t here for Maine state business.

Richard Campbell
South Portland

 

By suggesting that Wisconsin state employee unions were unwilling to make sacrifices to balance state budgets, your Feb. 24 editorial was either misinformed or sought to misinform readers. State workers unions in Wisconsin did agree to Gov. Scott Walker’s cuts.

Your editorial fails to mention that Walker seeks to essentially divest the unions by removing collective bargaining rights for select employee unions. This is the reason their protests are taking place, not because of proposed cuts. And, Walker’s attack on collective bargaining rights will not improve Wisconsin’s financial matters.

A democratic society depends upon the media to examine all relevant aspects of issues and to present this information in a balanced manner, not to present simplistic, superficial conclusions.

The story in Wisconsin is much more complex than your editorial suggests. Walker is targeting certain unions while not touching others; the cuts asked of employee unions are similar in size to recent tax breaks Walker gave to big business interests; a lack of clarity regarding Wisconsin’s actual budget status actually. Educate your readers.

There are obviously budget problems in Maine, as well as across the country. In order for us to address these problems, and to develop long-term solutions to the causes of these problems, we need to attempt to have some objective understanding of the issues.

Instead of relying on extremist positions of the right or left, our communities need accurate information, forums for exchange, and critical, yet respectful dialogue.

Half-researched stories, partisan blame, vague generalizations, and stoking the fires of fear will do nothing to bring our communities together to understand our challenges or to find common solutions.

More than ever, our local media must play a constructive role in informing the public, promoting productive dialogue, and helping to identify potential solutions for the common good.

Markos Miller
Portland

 

I would like to comment on the government officials who left the state in Wisconsin to avoid a vote on a budget bill. I was a supervisor for a company for many years, and many times I disagreed with upper management’s way of doing things.

Many times I would have liked to have just “picked up my ball and gone home.” But I had good people working for me and it was my job to keep on going and working to try to keep the playing field fair for these good people.

Also, there is the fact that if I left, I would have been fired. I think these so-called heros who left the state should be ashamed to draw a paycheck for not doing the job that they are getting paid for.

What will happen now? Will the Democrats or Republicans take off every time they might lose a vote?

This is still a great country, but we need to have strong people running it. In my opinion, the people hiding out should just stay hidden and voters should find others who will not be so apt to run home with the ball when they are losing.

Stephen Sweeney
Portland

 

The Press Herald’s Feb. 24 editorial, “Lawmaker goes AWOL, ends up in Wisconsin,” severely understated the significance of Rep. Diane Russell’s recent trip.

In traveling to Madison, Russell did not abandon her post. On the contrary, she helped draw attention to coming attempts by Republicans across the country to undermine workers’ time-honored rights.

With budget hearings under way in Augusta, our own state will soon be at the forefront of this struggle — and Russell’s actions have helped ready Maine’s working people for the coming fight. We applaud Russell for standing up for our values, and look forward to her continued leadership on this important issue.

Chris Korzen
Co-founder, www.MainesMajority.org
Portland

 

I cannot ignore and not object to your biased and narrow-minded assessment of the conflict in Wisconsin.

You blame teachers, firemen, policemen and other public servants for objecting to their rights being taken away. You ignore the history of the struggle, the lives lost, the suffering and sacrifices made during the early part of the last century by workers to earn the right to bargain for fair wages and fair treatment.

You make no mention of the conversation Gov. Scott Walker had during the crank phone conversation with a fake David Koch.

The super-rich have taken over our country. The conservatives on the Supreme Court have given them the right to control our elections with negative ads.

Many of the ads show up so close to an election that the victim of the lies and exaggerations has no chance to make the truth known.

I know Diane Russell and I admire her strength and courage for traveling to Wisconsin to stand up for what she strongly believes in.

Nancy Willard
Bryant Pond

 

The editorial castigating Rep. Diane Russell for her trip to Wisconsin was a low blow. Plenty of legislators — Democrats and Republicans alike — took time off during the holiday week, as did many other working Mainers. I suspect that many of them were engaged in far more frivolous activities than supporting the working people of Wisconsin.

At a time when a class war is being waged against teachers, nurses, police, firefighters and other middle-class Americans, I am proud to have a lawmaker who will act in support of those who seek to do their work, raise their families and retire with dignity.

Patricia J. Washburn
Portland

You have to give the Republicans and their conservative fellow travelers credit. They certainly know how to stick to their talking points. From the Republican governors and congressional officials to mayors to our own Portland Press Herald editorial staff, the confrontation in Wisconsin is portrayed as government asking the public employees to share in the sacrifice required to balance budgets.

The editorial in The Press Herald Feb. 24 repeats the distortion that Gov. Scott Walker and the Republican-led Legislature in Wisconsin are just being responsible managers and the public employee unions are angry and demonstrating against being required to take pay cuts and pay more for their benefits.

That conveniently overlooks the fact that the unions have agreed to these demands. No, the unions are not protesting the financial concessions, they are protesting being stripped of nearly all their rights to collective bargaining.

Did you see this mentioned in the editorial? No, because it was somehow overlooked. But then, if it had been mentioned, it would weaken the stance taken by Walker and the conservatives around the country, who are embarked on a nationwide public employee union-busting campaign.

Public employees and their unions did not cause the financial mess we are in; Wall Street banks, corrupt mortgage brokers and the inattention of government regulators did. But that fact doesn’t support the union-busting campaign, now does it?

David Larsen
Portland

 

AWOL is a military term with legal consequences. No Maine member fits that description so far as I know.

So, Rep. Diane Russell went to Wisconsin when The Press Herald believes she should have been in Augusta representing her Portland constituents. Perhaps she should have stayed here.

Or maybe she was acting in a preventive action in defending hard-fought rights won for collective bargaining. Or was she acting as the United States claims, that we are fighting wars in far-off places before hostilities come to our shores? I don’t know.

I do know that a number of ministers lost their positions while others were applauded by their congregations for going south to buttress the cause of civil rights. Conscience was at play then. Is there a place for it now?

The Rev. Philip Shearman
Gorham

I cannot believe Gov. Scott Walker seriously defended his plan to break up unions as the whole country watched him ignore the thousands of people in Madison.

The governor does not have to use working-class people as a prop to strip workers of their bargaining rights. Workers never claimed they weren’t willing to make concessions. They’ve made plenty across the country already, $100 million from the Wisconsin teachers’ union alone!

This scares me for Maine. It scares me for the people of Wisconsin too, but I am so optimistic seeing the thousands and thousands willing to fight for their rights and speak up. Are we willing to show that same zest here in Maine when the fight comes to us?

We know 61 percent of Mainers didn’t vote for Gov. Paul LePage, but what about the state Legislature? Most of those races were also won with slim margins and legislation like this should only be acted upon with a mandate from the people.

I don’t think most Mainers support that type of radical governing. I think most workers like having the right to collective bargaining or enjoy the benefits they get from those who do and will fight for that right.

Does the Maine Legislature really think following Wisconsin is a good idea? I hope the smart people of Maine have the same commonsense passion as the Wisconsin constituents sleeping in the Capitol have shown.

Sandra Rumery
Boothbay

 

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