I'm not sure why you aren't able to find the link. It's here: http://www.sunjournal.com/news/lewiston-auburn/2012/04/26/student-attack...
We reported this story on Thursday, including information about three arrests, and the link has been intact since publication. You were able to find it on boston.com because they picked up our original story. No one is reporting who started the fight; since all involved are juveniles it is unlikely that police will release that information and it won't be available from the courts under state law, which guards juvenile court proceedings.
Hope that helps.
AG Schneider's office prosecuted this case. And, if you'll read all the way to the bottom, he made sure to give credit to cooperating police agencies and investigators who assisted in prosecution.
Perhaps we should have noted the political persuasions of those supporting the 2007 legislation. Rep. Babbidge, who proposed the 2007 bill to shrink the Legislature, is a Democrat. As is Rep. Hayes, who supported citizen consideration of that proposal.
All is not a conspiracy, Dan.
Robert: There are two sidebars that accompany this story, plus a 10-year timeline and a chart with details of general assistance spending that includes a comparison of spending for the Somali population and spending for the remaining population. Those sidebars and chart include the information you're seeking, and can be found at: http://www.sunjournal.com/somalidecade
I agreed that we certainly do have a choice in what we fund locally, which is what makes our votes in selecting state reps so important because they hold our purse strings. But, I was responding to a post that suggested the Constitution didn't empower government to take money from our paychecks and give it to someone else, and it does. The Feds take plenty from our paychecks, between income tax and FICA, and use that money to fund federal social service programs, like refugee resettlement programs, disability and the like. Then, of course, the state takes its share from our paychecks too, to fund additional programs and to pay the state's share of federally-mandated programs, such as MaineCare.
Hi Dan,
As frustrating as it is for many people, the Constitution actually does give government the right to remove money from your paycheck and give it to someone else.
Article I, Section 8 reads, in part: "The Congress shall have the power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States." The phrase "general welfare" means the health and well-being of the American people, so Congress can impose taxes and use those funds to pay for social services. That doesn't diminish your opinion that perhaps government is taking too much, but it's lawful for Congress to do so.
You are incorrect in your assumption about the error. It was mine and not Rep. McKane's. If you can't accept that truth, I don't believe there's anything I can say to convince you. I will acknowledge skewing public discourse here in support of truth over innuendo. I apologize if that fact upsets you.
It was hardly censorship. I corrected an editing error in the original letter, which I take full responsibility for. So, never mind that your comment pointing out the error just didn't make sense any more, leaving your disparaging comment against the letter's author would have been irresponsible since he carries no fault. Are you suggesting that I should have left your hurtful and incorrect accusation stand? That doesn't seem very nice, or at all fair.
I deleted a couple of comments that referred to an error in the letter above. It was an editing error and no fault of the author. The letter has been edited to correct the error.
Link was not dropped
I'm not sure why you aren't able to find the link. It's here: http://www.sunjournal.com/news/lewiston-auburn/2012/04/26/student-attack...
We reported this story on Thursday, including information about three arrests, and the link has been intact since publication. You were able to find it on boston.com because they picked up our original story. No one is reporting who started the fight; since all involved are juveniles it is unlikely that police will release that information and it won't be available from the courts under state law, which guards juvenile court proceedings.
Hope that helps.
AG Schneider's office
AG Schneider's office prosecuted this case. And, if you'll read all the way to the bottom, he made sure to give credit to cooperating police agencies and investigators who assisted in prosecution.
Perhaps we should have noted
Perhaps we should have noted the political persuasions of those supporting the 2007 legislation. Rep. Babbidge, who proposed the 2007 bill to shrink the Legislature, is a Democrat. As is Rep. Hayes, who supported citizen consideration of that proposal.
All is not a conspiracy, Dan.
More information online
Robert: There are two sidebars that accompany this story, plus a 10-year timeline and a chart with details of general assistance spending that includes a comparison of spending for the Somali population and spending for the remaining population. Those sidebars and chart include the information you're seeking, and can be found at: http://www.sunjournal.com/somalidecade
Feds and state
I agreed that we certainly do have a choice in what we fund locally, which is what makes our votes in selecting state reps so important because they hold our purse strings. But, I was responding to a post that suggested the Constitution didn't empower government to take money from our paychecks and give it to someone else, and it does. The Feds take plenty from our paychecks, between income tax and FICA, and use that money to fund federal social service programs, like refugee resettlement programs, disability and the like. Then, of course, the state takes its share from our paychecks too, to fund additional programs and to pay the state's share of federally-mandated programs, such as MaineCare.
Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution
Hi Dan,
As frustrating as it is for many people, the Constitution actually does give government the right to remove money from your paycheck and give it to someone else.
Article I, Section 8 reads, in part: "The Congress shall have the power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States." The phrase "general welfare" means the health and well-being of the American people, so Congress can impose taxes and use those funds to pay for social services. That doesn't diminish your opinion that perhaps government is taking too much, but it's lawful for Congress to do so.
I'm not going to argue with you.
You are incorrect in your assumption about the error. It was mine and not Rep. McKane's. If you can't accept that truth, I don't believe there's anything I can say to convince you. I will acknowledge skewing public discourse here in support of truth over innuendo. I apologize if that fact upsets you.
Censorship?
It was hardly censorship. I corrected an editing error in the original letter, which I take full responsibility for. So, never mind that your comment pointing out the error just didn't make sense any more, leaving your disparaging comment against the letter's author would have been irresponsible since he carries no fault. Are you suggesting that I should have left your hurtful and incorrect accusation stand? That doesn't seem very nice, or at all fair.
Error
I deleted a couple of comments that referred to an error in the letter above. It was an editing error and no fault of the author. The letter has been edited to correct the error.
Correction
The vote is Sept. 13, not the 3rd.
Sorry about the confusion.