I am pretty angry that Paul Violette gets to have his embezzlement debts paid by the taxpayer, through his pension of $63,000 a year. And in addition, also at taxpayer expense, he could get free room and board as a guest of the state prison for another five years.

All this, while the governor cuts benefits for law-abiding people trying to get by on regular jobs, such as taking tolls on Interstate 95.

I have a better idea — let Paul Violette spend the next five years on the night shift at the tollbooth. Pay him the usual salary for the position, and then garnish his wages to repay his debt.

He can provide his own room and board at the local shelter and get food and a hot meal at the local food pantries and other resources. That is what all the other criminals in the state have to do when they are released from prison.

There is something wrong with our system of justice when white-collar crimes are treated so differently from other types of crime. Let us not reward Paul Violette while we punish all the rest so severely.

Liane Giambalvo

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Scarborough

I am writing regarding the escapades of Paul Violette, former executive director of the Maine Turnpike Authority. First, the authority settled with Violette for $155,000 of his money as partial restitution for $430,000 that he owed. He claimed that the $155,000 was his net worth.

I refuse to believe that. Here is a man making $130,000 a year, and as he approached retirement, his net worth is slightly more than one year’s pay? The public deserves far more information than has been provided so far.

Did he transfer assets within the past five years? Has the authority attached any state retirement monies Violette will collect in the future? Does Violette have a 401(k) or other equivalent retirement plan? I want a detailed explanation, and I want Violette impoverished.

And now Violette will be allowed to plead guilty to felony theft from the turnpike, a charge that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years but which, so far, has been negotiated down to eight years with at least three years suspended. This is not justice.

I want Violette put on trial, and I want all the former leadership in Augusta to be put on the stand and made to testify under oath as to what they knew, when they knew it, and how much, if any, did they benefit from Violette’s largesse.

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Those people should include former Gov. John Baldacci. You remember him, the failed governor who fled the state the day after he left office and is currently collecting more than $3,000 a week doing a job he has no qualifications for.

The Democrats ran the state for more than 30 years. They have some answering to do. Remember the old saying: “Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

I want real justice, no pleas, no suspended sentence.

Harry White

Scarborough

Administration praised for birth control coverage

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Thanks to a recent Obama administration decision, American women will soon have access to affordable birth control as part of their preventative care. That means real savings — from $15 to $50 a month — for the most common forms of birth control.

The Obama administration adopted the nonpartisan Institute of Medicine’s recommendation that birth control be covered as a woman’s preventative service because it is fundamental to improving women’s health and the health of their families. In addition, the administration rejected efforts to further expand the refusal provision in the birth control coverage benefit.

As a result, millions of hardworking women will have access to affordable birth control, including women who are employed by a religiously affiliated hospital, university or other religiously affiliated organization that serves the broader public.

Planned Parenthood believes all women should have access to affordable, quality preventative care — regardless of their health plan or employer. This is a huge step forward for women in Maine and throughout the country.

Layne Gregory,

board member, Planned Parenthood of Northern New England

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Falmouth

Taxing the wealthy the way to make economy more fair

I must say that I disagree totally with your Jan. 22 editorial (“Obama, LePage offer versions of us vs. them”) as it relates to President Obama.

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett upped a challenge he announced recently to congressional Republicans in an interview with Bloomberg TV’s Betty Liu, saying he would donate 15 percent of his 2011 income to the national deficit if 10 percent of Congress does the same.

When Obama calls for across-the-board sacrifice to reduce the debt and deficit, he means that everyone should sacrifice, not just the poor and middle class. Taxes on the super-wealthy are at an all-time low, and that is truly ridiculous given the terrible financial problem the country is facing.

For the super-wealthy to be paying income taxes at a lower rate than many hardworking middle-class Americans is an absolute outrage.

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Ralph Rodway

Old Orchard Beach

To prevent domestic abuse, start with adjusted attitude

This year, instead of the same old resolution of giving up smoking or losing weight, why not make a resolution to become a “better husband and father, better wife and mother”? Your marriage will become stronger and your children will benefit.

Men and women, boys and girls, pay close attention to these words.

Woman came out of a man’s rib, not from his feet “to be walked on,” not from his head “to be superior” but from the side “to be equal,” under the arm “to be protected” and next to the heart “to be loved.”

This kind of thinking will only cut way back on domestic violence.

Joseph Riitano Sr.

Sangerville


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