I offer these diverse thoughts, after reviewing the May 7 Portland Press Herald editorial page:

• Re: “Our View: Maine legislators wise to put FairPoint subsidy request on hold”:

As a former administrative director of the Maine Public Utilities Commission, I agree 100 percent with the position taken in the lead editorial that FairPoint Communications’ request for a $67 million subsidy from the Maine Universal Service Fund should be carefully scrutinized and reduced, and any subsidy should go into maintaining landline service to all Mainers, regardless of location.

FairPoint had every opportunity to research Maine geography, population settlement patterns, demographics, economics and other relevant factors before purchasing Verizon’s New England operations in 2008.

• As a former member of two Maine governors’ staffs, I believe that journalist Bill Nemitz provides a vital public service in his coverage of the shameful, continuous, incompetent, partisan, harmful shenanigans of the administration of Gov. Paul R. LePage, despite the views expressed by Robert Blanchard of Portland (“Another View: Nemitz’s attack on general violates acceptable boundaries”).

• The sentiment of letter writer Jean Rosenblum of Falmouth – to the effect that gubernatorial candidates Mike Michaud and Eliot Cutler have a “responsibility” to ensure that the result of the gubernatorial election of 2010 is not repeated in 2014 (again resulting in the election of a bona fide, extreme partisan as governor of Maine, despite the disapproval of 62 percent of Maine voters) – is an extremely valid and important concern.

Perhaps Michaud and Cutler should privately agree that if either one of them is polling under 25 percent, with just 10 days remaining in the campaign, that trailing candidate would then publicly withdraw from the race and endorse the other, for the welfare of the residents of the state of Maine.

Charles Gould Roundy

Palmyra

 

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