Category Uncategorized

May 23 2011

Roger Ek’s speech

Roger Ek

5:53pm May 17

I testified for LD1534 this afternoon. The hearing was supposed to run from 1 PM to 3 PM. The first two hours were legislative speeches. Some of the citizens wishing to speak had to leave before they got a chance to speak. Here is my testimony:

“In 1940 we had 6,250,000 acres of pasture and cultivated land in Maine. Today we have just over a million. In my lifetime we have gained an average of 77,000 acres of forest per year. Yes, gained. The forests are taking over. Yet the environmental industry claims we are losing our forests. They lie.

The legislature that created LURC four decades ago may have had good intentions at the time, but LURC has been infiltrated by individuals and groups who wish to kill Maine’s economy. They have been successful. The long term net effect of LURC has been reduced property values, depressed economic opportunity and poverty.

Rogue elements within LURC and our legislature have made it unprofitable to own forested land in Maine for the long term. Those rogue elements within LURC created something they call “The Comprehensive Land Use Plan”. They have implemented their CLUP and the legislature keeps amending the new Maine Forest Practices Act, better known as “Son of COMPACT”.

The result is that there is not one single acre of “paper company land” in Maine today. It has all been sold. Their goal has been described as rural cleansing. It is like ethnic cleansing in such places as Bosnia, but with a lower body count.

Economic opportunity in Maine has been crushed by this. For example, two retired teachers in Prentiss wanted to open a seasonal take-out restaurant to serve lunches to hunters in September, October and November each fall. LURC told them they can’t do that. Why not? LURC said their property wasn’t in the commercial zone. They asked, “Just where is the commercial zone in Prentiss?” LURC replied, “There isn’t one and there isn’t going to be one.” As I said, the end result of LURC has been poverty.

Back in 1772 General Gage governed all of the English territories in the Americas. He wrote to London, “Democracy is too prevalent in America, and claims the greatest attention to prevent its increase. A large part of the problem arises from the vast abundance of cheap land. The people themselves have gradually retired from the Coast and are, already, almost out of reach of government. It is in the interest of Great Britain to confine the Colonists on this side of the back country.”

Ladies and gentlemen, I submit to you today that Maine has established a new unelected aristocracy to rule General Gage’s “back country”. That ruling class is called LURC. Their goals are the same as General Gage’s; “to confine the Colonists on this side of the back country.”

I have spoken to the majority of county commissioners all across Maine. They want their freedom back. Coastal counties want their islands back. The people want their freedom back and Maine needs to recover from four decades of slavery. We need the authorities in Maine to get out of the way and let Maine people prosper again. We need to pass this bill and just retire LURC to the dust bin of history.

May 16 2011

PROPAGANDA PUPPET

When this column goes to print, the fate of LD 1333 will have been decided in some way or another.  As it stands at this point, Republicans have the votes in the Senate to pass this necessary and monumental health insurance reform.  This means that as of May 16, 2011 Mainers should be able to buy a health insurance policy customized to their needs instead of a one-size fits all plan.  A male in the state of Maine will no longer be required to carry maternity leave and, I have to say, I’m positively giddy about that.  Men will no longer have to deal with the emotional frustration of facing those insurmountable obstacles to qualify in order to utilize this portion of their health plan.  Happy days are here again!

This is in no way a done deal.  The weak-kneed moderate wing of the Republican Party has a tendency to run cowering into the corner every time the Democrats throw a temper tantrum.  May 17, 2011 will give an interesting revelation to the ability of leadership to lead.

The Democrats have been entertaining, to say the least.  This columnist has read with interest the many…well…lies that the left has been spewing out through the media.  It’s ironic that LD 1333 was modeled after legislation put forth by a Democrat, but since it’s Republican now, to the Party of “No”, it can’t be good.  They have offered some compelling arguments, none of which are grounded in fact, but who needs facts when you have the Maine media.  This columnist has stated on many occasions that the major plank on the Democrat’s platform is lies, deceit and diversion.  After the latest behavior of the Party whose symbol is an ass, I stand corrected.  Lies, deceit and diversion are not merely a plank; it is their whole support system.  So here are the support beams.

Lie #1:  This law would deny coverage to cancer survivors due to “pre-existing conditions”.

Fact:  LD 1333 clearly forbids insurance carriers from denying coverage.

Lie #2:  It will force cancer survivors to pay higher rates for health insurance.

Fact:  LD 1333 is based on strategies from other States that have already proven to lower costs for every one including the sick or elderly.  This law maintains current Maine law, which forbids different premiums based on health.

Lie #3:  Requires patients in rural areas to seek care in urban areas.

Fact:  Remember, Rule 850, this law simply removes constraints and allows patients to choose where they want to receive care.  This gives Mainers an opportunity to lower care costs.  There are no geographical mandates in LD 1333.

Lie #4:  more uninsured cancer survivors

Fact:  By lowering premiums, more people can afford their own healthcare plans.  It is called simple math.

Lie #5: less access to cancer treatment

Fact:  The removal of geographical restrictions and lowering the premiums means more access….that….is ….simple math again.

Lie #6: unreasonable rates for health insurance

Fact:  This legislation is based upon the Idaho model.  In a comparison of the same health plan, a 40-year-old Maine man pays almost $900 while an Idaho male pays just over $200.  By the Maine Bureau of Insurance’s own analysis, this plan will result in a reduction of premiums across the board.  Did I mention simple math?

The greater question that remains is this; how is it that such blatant lies can be foisted upon the residents of this great State without question or encumbrance to their validity?  Is it because the media of Maine, which purports to be a fact-finding entity, is merely a propaganda puppet for leftist agendas?  These questions must be answered and addressed if there is to be any hope of a brighter future for Mainers.

May 8 2011

THE NEW PARTY OF “NO” (Rule 850)

For years this columnist worked alongside his father in the woods logging.  To be honest, I hated it.  Not because of the strenuous labor, I have made my vocation construction, which is just as strenuous.  Not because of the rigors of working outdoors, I love the outdoors.  It’s because we never made any money.  Repeated equipment breakdowns seemed to constantly drain the weekly income leaving very little for a discouraged father and son logging team to divvy up.  But I found it difficult to hold a grudge against my father because he was there working shoulder to shoulder beside me sharing the forestry hardships.   He didn’t send me out alone to work in the frigid winters.  He was sweating right along with me in the midst of humid August heat beneath layers of protective clothing and sloshing knee deep in mud during the spring thaw.  It’s easier to ask people to make sacrifices when you are making the same.

For forty years the Democrats have asked Mainers to sacrifice more and more personal freedoms preaching their dogged liberal mantra that this is for the betterment of the collective good. It is no secret that this columnist is a Conservative.  I have nothing in common with liberals politically and will to my dying breath ardently decry the destructive policies of socialism and liberalism.  That said, as a resident of this great State, I would find personal sacrifice much more palatable if those who were demanding those sacrifices were active participants in the same.  Yet as the Democrats have been forced to endure a hiatus from the majority, the uncomfortable light of scrutiny has begun to unveil the unseemly shroud of duplicity that cloaks the Democrat party.

The Republicans have finally passed a health insurance reform bill through the House.  That, in itself, is a pleasant surprise as Republicans have seemed to be more concerned that the Governor not offend the pretentious than in doing the people’s business, but I digress.  This is a good bill and in this bill the Republicans have repealed Rule 850.  This rule prevented patients from seeking healthcare outside of their areas.  Ironically, the Democrats voted to exempt themselves from Rule 850.  By repealing the rule, Republicans are allowing all Mainers to have the same rights to healthcare as Government employees have, the right to choose the most affordable place to have treatment and go there.  Fifteen of the Democrats, starting with their fearless leader Emily Cain and the wily John Martin who voted to exempt themselves from this constraint, voted this past week to deny their constituents that same exemption http://www.mainegop.com/2011/05/press-update-on-ld-1333-democrats-voted-to-exempt-themselves-from-rule-850-in-2005/. In a blatant display of autocratic obstructionism, the Democrats have clearly stated what is good for the goose should be kept from the gander and affordable healthcare is only for the gentry and definitely not the common folk.

Rather than engaging in meaningful dialogue, the Democrats are throwing the proverbial “hissy fit” and screaming “no” without truthful reasons just temper tantrums.  When it becomes obvious that things are not going their way, they then resort to violent rhetoric; such as, Representative Cynthia Dill suggesting that she and her fellow Democrat legislators should each purchase a “. 38 special” as a more “efficient” way to deal with their “whale sized”, “stupid” and “angry radical” opponents. http://asmainegoes.com/content/senate-candidate-cynthia-dill-angry-whale-sized-and-stupid-are-measures-american-authenticit.  I wonder what Representative Gabby Giffords and her husband would think of the comments of Ms. Dill and the Maine Democrat Party she represents.  One would think in light of the threatening nature of her comments that an investigation into her psychological stability would be warranted.  But perhaps Representative Dill and the Democrat Party she represents are exempt from standards of decent debate and discourse as well.

For forty years the Democrats have said “no” to us on jobs.  They have said “no” to us on prosperity.  They have said “no” to our children’s futures.  Well, now it is time to say, “yes” for us and lay hold of our freedom and not let it go.  This is our time.  Let’s not let the Democrat Party stand in the way of our future.

Apr 30 2011

FACTS AND DEFINITIONS

It’s rumpled and wrinkled from forty years of over use, yet Democrats are determined to drag their tired, tattered cloak of fiscal policy out once again…tax the rich.  While Liberals can garner points for predictability and zealous adherence to dogma, the results of their forty-year tenure is not a lesson in productivity.  We have less rich to tax, more poor to redistribute to and not much wealth left to spread around.  But the Democrats are shining example of redundancy and once again they wield the “millionaire tax” heralding its financial curative powers.  Unfortunately for Maine, the amount of individuals whose income broke the million-dollar mark in the last decade has fluctuated from 400 to 750 people.  This means the millionaire tax “healing” money stream would have a varied flow of somewhere between zilch and not so much.

So how do we pay for the Democrat big government template with so few rich to tax?  What if poverty was the new wealthy?  Thanks to our liberal friends, Maine has a very low threshold for what is considered rich.  It’s around $20,000 and just under $40,000 for households.  Through that prism, I guess we’re all rich….who knew?  While Democrats manipulate definitions and look for more ways to increase taxes on a cash strapped State (that’s code for wealthy to Democrats), let’s look at the facts of Governor LePage’s budget proposal.

Tax relief; yes that is a concept, of $203 million across the board not just for the rich.  Well, I guess we’re all rich now, so tax relief for all of Maine’s “rich”.  Gas tax indexing will end in the second year.  Tax deductions and exemptions will be brought up to the federal level and bonus depreciation will help in job creation.

The Governor will increase education funding by $63 million.  It would seem the Governor has his priorities in order.  He is cutting back on frivolous things and concentrating on important things, a somewhat unique and foreign concept for Augusta.

Welfare will get some much-needed reform.  A common sense five-year limit will be set in place with the elimination of instant eligibility.  This is absolutely necessary to encourage lifestyle changes for those who have become accustomed to government as their primary provider.  This will also help to stem the flow of out of State opportunists who travel to Maine to capitalize on its exorbitant welfare system.  This has reached epidemic proportions.

Our pension system is now $4.3 billion in debt.  It is simply unsustainable.  We must make drastic changes now before our children are faced with ballooning out of control payments that destroy their livelihoods.

Democrats claim that a millionaires tax will save Maine, but they fail to acknowledge the devastation such a tax has had on the economies of other States.  Research by the Maine People Before Politics’ executive director Jason Savage shows that there are thirteen States who now impose a top marginal tax rate for higher income earners. These States are also responsible for 53% of the $112 billion in State deficits nationwide.  So for Democrats, not only is poverty the new wealthy but fiscal apocalypse is the new fiscal solvency.

There is a way we can help.  The aforementioned Maine People Before Politics has established a link that connects you directly to all the members of the Appropriations Committee that is debating the Governor’s budget.  The link is http://www.mainepeoplebeforepolitics.com/contact-the-joint-standing-committee-on-appropriations-and-financial-affairs/.  Please take the time to support the Governor and send a message to Augusta.

While others are playing word games, this Governor is working.  While some hide behind diversion and deception, this Governor is starkly honest.  Perhaps the Democrats should see to the job at hand rather than throwing temper tantrums such as desecrating memorials to Maine’s hallowed fallen heroes.