Vote Yes on 2

I’m writing in support of Question 2 on the statewide ballot in November.

If we pass the referendum, developers will be allowed to build a harness racetrack, hotel and slots facility in Biddeford; and the Passamaquoddy Tribe will be allowed to build a racino in Washington County, along the Canadian border.

I believe in free enterprise, and I believe that adults are smart enough to make their own decisions on how to spend their money. People are going to gamble. I would rather see them spend at facilities in Maine, run by companies that are owned by Mainers, rather than in Connecticut or Massachusetts.

Another reason to support Question 2 is that it will help preserve Maine’s working farms and open spaces. Every horse needs hay, grain and other supplies. Those jobs support businesses like mine, and the people who work for us.

It makes good economic sense to vote yes on 2.

George Hall, owner

Hall Implement Co., ?Windham

Time to recycle

Windham area residents should be proud that we are No. 4 in the state for the amount of electronic waste we recycle. From the previous four events we have properly collected and recycled over 124,000 pounds of electronics.

Windham Hill United Church of Christ is sponsoring another recycling day on Saturday, Oct. 22,, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Windham Mall (near Friendly’s). Church volunteers will be available to transfer your electronics from your vehicle into tractor-trailers from “e-waste of Maine” who will properly sort, reuse and recycle your electronics.

Items accepted for recycling include: televisions, computer monitors, computers, laptops, printers, phones, VCR and DVD players, audio equipment, stereos, speakers. Please note that no household appliances can be accepted.

There are no fixed charges; however, monetary donations are gladly accepted to help continue the preservation of the historic Windham Hill Church. Questions, call Dick at 892-9661 or Judy 653-5989. Thank you for thinking green.

Richard W. Clark, Trustee

Windham

Cebra wrong to attack MPA

I am writing in response to last week’s guest column allegedly written by Rep. Rich Cebra who represents Naples, Casco and part of Poland. The title “Protestors Stirring Up Trouble” described in detail how a group of “roughly 50 people” wearing “hooded sweatshirts pulled over their heads” and “raising their fists in defiance, reminiscent of the mobs that recently plagued the streets of London,” entered the lobby of the Bank of America in Brunswick “waving signs and voicing their rage through a bull horn, intimidating bank tellers.” Mr. Cebra goes on to say that this “exercise in disruption called a ‘flash protest’ was produced by a group of professional malcontents known as the Maine People’s Alliance (MPA).”

I am sure that the intent of Mr. Cebra’s inflammatory article was to terrorize older people and demonize the Maine People’s Alliance.

Well, Mr. Cebra has a right to say or imply anything he wants, but I, as a member of the MPA, was so shocked by this article and its detailed accusations of a “mob assault” on a Maine bank, that I called the manager of the Bank of America where this alleged “terrorizing” took place.

I read to him verbatim the description of this event as written by Mr. Cebra. The manager stated that nothing like that had occurred. Yes, a group of people had come into the bank lobby. They were asked to leave and did so. Staff and customers may have been momentarily surprised but “intimidated” – probably not. Unfortunately, Mr. Cebra or whoever the author of this article was (staff at the Maine Heritage Policy Center, most likely) have forgotten that Americans have a right to peaceful assembly to protest when they believe injustice exists or their rights are being compromised. The manager of the bank fully understood this right.

Yes, the Maine People’s Alliance is an active and visible advocacy organization in Maine. It represents the interests of everyday working people, families, the young and the elderly and advocates for legislative policy that protects their rights and interests. However, Mr. Cebra and the Maine Heritage Policy Center would have you believe that they are rabble-rousing usurpers of Maine’s peace and wellbeing. Apparently, anyone and everyone who disagrees with the Maine Heritage Policy Center is portrayed in this light.

In summary, all Mainers (Republican, Democrat, Green and independent) do need to work together to make this state a place where the well-being of all citizens is respected and protected. Writing inflammatory articles is Mr. Cebra’s right and publishing them is the right of this newspaper. Finally, it is the right of the Maine People’s Alliance AND its members/volunteers to advocate for just public policy for all Maine citizens. And it is my right to stand up to Mr. Cebra (and the Maine Heritage Policy Center) to tell the truth about what really happened at that Bank of America in Brunswick.

Maurie Hill

Standish

Can we survive?

Barack Obama and the extreme far-left Democrats who predominate in Congress, such as Barney Frank, Nancy Pelosi, Chellie Pingree and countless others, are so wedded to their Socialist central planning dogma that under no circumstances will they deviate from the destructive radical policies that are causing so much pain for tens of millions of Americans.

As the crony capitalism that infects every facet of this administration’s policies continues unabated, America’s economy keeps dwindling toward a financial abyss.

In their staggering ineptness, the Obama team has tried every crackpot scheme coming down the pike to address the nation’s numerous critical economic challenges. They have tried temporary tax cuts, public works, cash for clunkers, cash transfers, preferential loans to favored companies, plus two rounds of what’s known as “quantitative easing,” a.k.a. money creation.

They’ve sent money to states to prevent layoffs of public sector workers. They’ve entangled the government in GM and Chrysler and further immersed it in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. All the country has to show for this insane spending and interference in the marketplace is another $5 trillion in debt, massive unemployment, the dependence on government handouts for the tens of millions of Americans who desperately need jobs, and the collapse of the American Dream.

The recent Solyndra scandal is a prime example of the gross incompetence of this president and the Chicago thugocracy that he has surrounded himself with.

Against overwhelming opposition from financial experts, the administration awarded a $535 million loan guarantee to the Solyndra company, in the process rewarding big campaign donors and further buying off the radical green movement, where much of the Democrats’ support comes from. It has been reported that the Democrats in Congress are scurrying to shovel another $10 billion in loan guarantees out the door to numerous green companies before the American public rises up in disgust and demands a halt to the fiscal insanity that is so rife in our nation’s capital.

I do not believe that America can survive another five-plus years with Barack Obama occupying the White House.

Robert Howe Jr.

Bridgton

Question of survival

As you prepare to vote on Question 2 next month, please remember that this referendum could very well decide whether harness racing in Maine survives.

If Mainers say no, Scarborough Downs, my employer for the past 24 years, will likely be forced to close. The 100 employees we have at the peak of the racing season will be out of work. It would also have a crippling impact on farmers who grow hay, grain dealers, fuel depots, blacksmiths, veterinarians, repair shops and countless other small businesses that are tied to harness racing.

Did any of you enjoy a horse race at the fairs this year? They would be gone, too.

It may sound dramatic, but I understand the industry about as well as anyone. My mother is Sharon Terry, the owner and operator of Scarborough Downs.

I started scooping ice cream at the track when I was 16 years old, and worked my way to becoming vice president of finance. Now I have kids of my own, and they want to be part of the family business. How can I explain that our future is promising, but only if the voters of Maine approve?

The proposal is simple: We want to move our racetrack to Biddeford, as part of a $120 million entertainment complex. The people of Biddeford have welcomed us, voting overwhelmingly last fall in favor of the Biddeford Downs proposal.

I know for a fact that Sharon Terry and Ocean Properties will make the State of Maine proud of what Biddeford Downs will be. Please vote yes on 2.

Denise Terry

Buxton