Letters

Published
March 23, 2015

Letter to the Editor: Vaccine ‘facts’ pocked with inaccuracy

Pat Truman’s March 16 letter, “Vaccination ads an affront; it’s parents’ place to decide,” was outrageous in its twisted logic and outright falsehoods. • “According to U.S. Centers for Disease Control records, while no one has died of measles in the last 12 years …” That’s because vaccines had all but eliminated measles from the United […]
Published
March 23, 2015

Letter to the Editor: Cashes Ledge must be protected from fishing

Cashes Ledge is an undersea mountain about 100 miles southeast of Portland. It has been front-page news in the Portland Press Herald and other publications over the past several months. Cashes Ledge is currently afforded the protection and conservation measures of the Magnuson-Stevens Act. Public hearings have been held throughout New England to help decide […]
Published
March 23, 2015

Letter to the Editor: There’s a big gap between wage, salary increases

The federal minimum wage increased by 70 cents per hour between 2008 and 2009. Congressional salaries increased by $8,800 over the same period! Who knew there was such a different monetary application to “wage” and “salary”? R.J. Berard Sr. Windham
Published
March 23, 2015

Letter to the Editor: Call for Downeaster probe ignores harsh winter’s effect

Re: “Lawmaker seeks probe on Downeaster finances” (March 13): Is Sen. Stan Gerzofsky still living on this planet? He claims he received “several” complaints about Amtrak service from passengers. How many persons is “several”? What were their specific complaints? Nervy people to complain about travel during the worst winter in 50 years. Does he know […]
Published
March 23, 2015

Letter to the editor: Physician sees long-lasting benefits of pre-kindergarten

As a retired pediatrician and a former school board member, I have had the opportunity to personally see the remarkable benefits of a well-designed and effectively administered pre-kindergarten program. These benefits extend well beyond the first few years of a child’s elementary education. Teens and even adults who have been enrolled in pre-kindergarten programs demonstrate […]

Published
March 22, 2015

Letter to the editor: Retired teachers in Maine aren’t ones who gain most

Your March 15 Maine Sunday Telegram front-page story on state pensioners returning to work after retirement (“Are public workers who double dip unfairly criticized?”) was fairly well researched and written, but you missed a whole part of it: the triple dippers! I suggest you look into retired military with benefits, who then retire from a […]
Published
March 22, 2015

Letter to the editor: State could use federal help to fully welcome immigrants

Bravo to Charles Lawton for highlighting again how Maine’s future economic health depends on attracting more people to our state through immigration (“Maine must welcome immigrants,” March 15). While I generally agree with Lawton, Maine cannot solve this issue alone. What we really need are more imaginative federal policies to help states where population growth […]
Published
March 22, 2015

Letter to the editor: Criticism of double dippers overlooks penalized retirees

In response to the March 15 article concerning educators who “double dip” (“Are public workers who double dip unfairly criticized?”), I’d like to add information that was not mentioned. It is true in Maine that all state employees pay into a pension plan with benefits that can be withdrawn depending on age and years of […]
Published
March 22, 2015

Letter to the editor: Raw milk produced correctly offers benefits

Re: Kevin Miller’s March 12 article “Raw milk sales gain support in Maine Legislature”: Pasteurization is not about killing bacteria, minerals and vitamins only but foremost about killing the enzymes that represent vital forces. Nothing else happens in milk depleted of enzymes during the pasteurization (including heat-treating) process. Enzymes in raw milk work like catalysts […]
Published
March 22, 2015

Letter to the editor: Sen. Willette tarnishes Maine and should give up his post

Much has been written about state Sen. Michael Willette’s recent Facebook postings concerning President Obama. I think most Mainers can agree that they were ill-informed, racist, intolerant, fear-mongering and just plain dumb. Almost as disturbing was Willette’s weak apology – that, basically, we have all regretted posting some things online. He did not say he […]

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Letters