A threat to the community

Great comment D Wilson
VOTE YES for Tabor#2

I'm voting for TABOR. The Dem controlled Blaine House and Legislature have had chance after chance, through good times as well as bad, to signficantly reduce spending (either responsibly or not) and have simply refused to do it. Putting a limit on the increase in spending (which is NOT a cut, no matter how some try to portray it), while allowing additional spending IF permitted by voters, seems reasonable to me. If higher spending is critical, government can make its case and let us decide. I have faith in the citizens that they will approve what is necessary. Why do the anti-TABOR individuals have such little faith in citizens, but such great faith in State and local governments that continually fail to operate more responsibly?

D Wilson,
All true and I've seen it since I moved here is 1982, but those facts don't support voting for TABOR. In fact they confirm what a dumb idea it is.
Police department workload is not a function of the number of people in town. Its a function of the laws they must enforce, the economy of the community (the worse the economy the more police protection is needed), and all the other factors that lead people to commit crimes. So if you will compare the police logs from 1980 to today and then add in all the time required to meet lawful requirements, I might listen. Otherwise TABOR is a terrible idea.
First, it replaces our representative form of government, you know where who wins the election governs, with a formula.
Second, the formula is stupid. It uses CPI to inflate spending when governments do not buy what consumers do. Government spending is therefore not related to the CPI.
Third, we are now spending a recessionary low levels. These are emergency levels. TABOR will force us to spend at these artificially low levels forever costing us thousands of jobs.
Fourth, TABOR does not respond to economic cycles. Should the Rumford mill be purchased by someone who wants to exploit its potential and they invest millions and hire thousands unless those workers move into town TABOR will not allow the spending to increase. It doesn't allow for increased revenue, spending, economic growth or anything that a rational group of townspeople would take into concideration in changing times. Instead they have to live with a artificial and wrong formula.
Vote NO o 4
Jon Albrecht Dixfield

I guess you have not notice Paul, but Maine,s population has actually declined over the past 40 years and dramarically, we will find out just how dramatically in the past 10. Some communities such as Rumford have less than 50% of the people they had in 1980. =n addition to declining overall population, Maine's population is a senior population with 1/3 some say closer to 1/2 the population is over 65. However, our police departments instead of merging with neighbor towns and sharing resources have grown to staggering tax payer budget breakers. I will use Rumford for my example though it is far from alone. In 1980, Rumford had over 8000 fulltime residents and hundreds of connstruction, seasonal residents and visitors with a police depart ment emplying 14 fulltime personnel. In 2009 there are barely 4000 fulltime residents, no costruction workers, tourists stop at the information booth long enough to use the free restroom and driv on through and the seasonals are rare. While the number of people served and the active criminal population has shrunk by extreme proportions the Rumford police department has grown to 16 fulltime personnel while at the same time transfering what were previously rvenue generating services to the coulnty for us to pay for in addition. The people of Maine have given the politicians and bureaucrats every opportunity to manage well and spend wisely with a blank check. The voters passed on TABOR last time with all the fear mongering dooms day threats on police, crime, schools and the rest. We were promised that all of you would get the people's business in order and TABOR was not necessary and would be harmful. We listened, we voted and WE WERE WRONG.

You have not gotten the peoples business in order. You have not got spending under control. You still feel we tax payers are your never ending personal money trees funding whatever whim, fancy, raise or pipe dream you can come up eith while we turn of one item after another in our homes to pay our taxes. We are going without TV , going without telephones, going without internet for our children to study and without computer to do homework and jobs, we are sitting in the dark to cut our electic bill, turning the heat now down from 68 to 62 and soon it will be what? off. We go without meals, essential medicine and medical care for our seiors, our children and ourselves to fund your budgets. TABOR may not be perfect but IT IS TIME FOR TABOR. =[ is time to set limits, to give you solid guidance that says, this is what you have to work with, make the most of it. We are not asking you to do anything we do not do. We all have a certain amount coming in and that is all we can spend. We must live within our means. ON NOV. 2 MAINE PEOPLE WILL DEFINE THE MEANS WITHIN WHICH THE POLITICIANS AND BUREAUCRATS MUST LIVE AND OPERATE FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY.