Letters
Walking the plank
In his letter of Nov 19, Tom Bulger added a mildly amusing twist to a tired old script which, as usual, was remarkable for what it did not say.
First, he stopped short of naming even one other country to which he would gladly emigrate to take advantage of its cheap and efficient health care system. At least he avoided the trite "rest of the developed world."
Second, he piled on those evil insurance companies for shaking us down and killing people in the streets. He forgot to mention that in the early 1990s, the Legislature imposed a set of "reforms" on the health insurance industry in Maine: guaranteed issue, no refusing pre-existing conditions, one price fits all. Sound familiar? It should to anyone who is paying a little attention to what's happening in Congress. Most insurance companies packed up and left and the remaining few homogenized their policies and started hiking premiums every year to pay for those goodies.
Third, he implied the "public option" will heal all ills. The omission? Here in Maine, we have this scheme under the name Dirigo Health. It has been an incredibly expensive failure, by any definition of that word except, of course, the governor's. In one way, it has been a rousing success: It killed off what little competition remained from the earlier reforms.
The pirate twist is very apt. The American taxpayer is walking the plank and the sword at our back is held by Congress and the Obama administration.
Michael LeBlanc, East Wilton
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Displaying comments, from newest to oldest
verified Back in August, President
Back in August, President Obama said the following:
"My answer is that if the private insurance companies are providing a good bargain, and if the public option has to be self-sustaining…then I think private insurers should be able to compete. They do it all the time. I mean, if you think about it, UPS and FedEx are doing just fine, right? No, they are. It's the Post Office that's always having problems."
The Postal Service posted a $3.8 Billion lose for fiscal year 2009 which ended in September. Can we trust the same government to run health care?
Other "consequences" of
Other "consequences" of passage of Health Care Reform:
The second amendment will be revoked, except for Illegal Mexican Immigrants.
Not only will same sex marriage be legalized, but mandatory for everyone.
Anyone who works for an insurance company will be forced to amputate their right arm.
Bank of America will get 1 trillion dollars.
Sarah Palin's other daughter will get knocked up
Keith Olbermann will be made Bishop of America.
Did I miss any?
verified You also forgot drive-thru
You also forgot drive-thru abortion clinics.
______________________
Franklin D. Roosevelt
verified fish is considered brain
fish is considered brain food, in your case eat a whale
verified Whales are not fish, but
Whales are not fish, but that's okay.
______________________
Franklin D. Roosevelt
verified You forgot the coronation of
You forgot the coronation of Michelle as our queen.
Fear not the enemy at the gate, for it is the enemy within that will devour you.
verified The parrot wants to know why
The parrot wants to know why the American people are willing to turn 1/6 of the U.S. economy over to the Federal government so that 30 million people can be provided with medical insurance coverage. This, coming from a fairly dumb parrot: "Isn't there an easier and less expensive way to insure these 30 million people?"
Well, considering we spend
Well, considering we spend 15% of our GDP on health care, which is the most in the industrialized world, I would ask your parrot if he's referring to the current system.
I don't have an issue with
I don't have an issue with that number that's where reform should come to play. But this bill has nothing to do with lowering cost.
In France and other European countries are having this issue. http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE5863CN20090907
Also take note that they are running in deficits with health care.
verified He sez the current system
He sez the current system needs fixin'; not a trade in. The 15% figure is probably due to our GDP being too damned low. At least 30 % of those unemployed, don't wanna work.
Also, 15% of GDP may be partly due to SSI and Medicare having evolved into welfare programs.
verified queenie, try to concentrate.
queenie, try to concentrate. It is illegal in Maine for a health insurance company to deny coverage for pre-existing conditions. If you live in another state where that's not the case, please find a newspaper forum where you can discuss local issues. If you live in Maine and you or someone you know has been denied coverage, contact your state representative Democrat (but I repeat myself) and complain - he'll help you if you promise to vote for him. If you're just blathering about the national condition, why waste you breath? The DNC is working 24/7 to convert our country into the latest incarnation of the glorious socialist workers' paradise. Be patient and try to figure a nice way to tell your grandchildren that you favor enslaving them to pay for your bennies.
verified Gone through the avenues
Gone through the avenues honey. Wouldn't have stated it if it wasn't the case and if I wasn't living in good ol' Maine.
Can anyone tell me why people have to be so darn rude!?! There is no compassion? No understanding? Just too quick to judge. Shall I be specific!?!
verified Insurance companies do deny
Insurance companies do deny help for pre-existing conditions and I feel that is not right. Especially for people with heart issues. Its a scary thing.
Its always easier for someone to blame/find a scapegoat in Obama (not considering he has a mile long list of what to fix after Bush fudged things up.
I would say enough of the 'pirate' talk already. Its driving me insane!
verified If your house burns down,
If your house burns down, should you be able to buy fire insurance at that point?
verified if you have not met the
if you have not met the deductible then let the living room burn before the fire dept starts to put it out.
verified Cut him some slack. Certain
Cut him some slack. Certain people of undeveloped mental faculties sometimes use literary crutches in order to communicate effectively. Obviously he needs some heavy duty lifting, but he may improve once he gets out of school.
verified That's no way to talk about
That's no way to talk about our President, T...shame shame.
verified 1. obama's had a year to fix
1. obama's had a year to fix the things "Bush fudged up". Next Pres. will take 20 years to undo obma's mess.
2. The pirate talk will continue; whether you go insane or not is your choice.
3. Have a nice day.
Fear not the enemy at the gate, for it is the enemy within that will devour you.
verified There is a direct
There is a direct relationship between AIDS and the bloated monstrosity of a "reform" bill in the Senate. If it passes, it will destroy all research, development and innovation in all areas of "health" treatment. If you or anyone you know has AIDS, you better hope to God that existing drugs and other treatments will help you, because there won't be anything new coming along. For AIDS read any other medical condition. But you demanded and voted for that hopey-changey codswallop - don't start whining when you realize it's a bitter pill.
verified As we know, AIDS is an
As we know, AIDS is an excellent example of market failure -- but only under Republican administrations. When the ostensible leadership of the nation panders to a primitive constituency comprised free-market zealots and right-wing theocrats, don't be surprised when AIDS fatalities increase.
Judging by the vastly reduced frequency of AIDS stories in the media under Democratic leadership, and applying my rotated multilogit quadratic extraction matrices to the pertinent data, we can only conclude that Republicans and AIDS form a cause-and-effect relationship. Does this mean that Republicans are homosexual? Possibly, as their hostility towards gay rights might be an attempt to mask their own repressed leanings. But then, I am not a psychologist. I am only a (very talented) economist.
You are quite correct to state that the costs of AIDS fall on taxpayers. (And although I am not a physician, it is my understanding that AIDS can also have health consequences for taxpayers who are not yet infected.) And, of course, no one chooses to get AIDS.
And we can say the same thing about many other things. Though it is somewhat beneath me, let me provide you with a non-technical analogy.
The other day, I was driving on the New Jersey Turnpike to Princeton, which is where I work. Out of nowhere, my car broke down, and I came to a dead halt in the left lane. Now, I am not a car mechanic; I am only a (legendary) economist. And so, I sat in the left lane, listening to traffic reports of congestion to the George Washington Bridge, and thinking about how I was (somehow) losing money by waiting for assistance. And that's when I realized that:
A) My car's failure is imposing costs on everyone else.
B) "Free to choose" is all wrong here.
C) No one could say that anyone rationally wanted to be in this situation.
And so, I am suing the New Jersey Turnpike Authority for one hour of my very valuable time.
In other words, almost everything we do has some externalities, and we are often the victims of unintended circumstances. Therefore, it is axiomatic that the government should provide a universal "safety net" for everyone for every misfortune.
verified The parrot, who can be
The parrot, who can be pretty dense at times, wants to know what AIDS has to do with Mr. Leblanc's LTTE.
"Therefore, it is axiomatic that the government should provide a universal "safety net" for everyone for every misfortune". That is precisely what govt. tries to do. And, look around at just how screwed up we are as a society. Everybody turns to govt. for every little blip on their radar. Sick lot, indeed. We need more pirates (the seagoing kind), not the mangy lot that Bulger and Leblanc referred to.
Lower AIDS deaths and fewer
Lower AIDS deaths and fewer stories because the demos are in power, have you lost your mind? In 1985, I gave birth to a son in what became an unexpectedly complicated life threatening delivery requiring the transfusion of many units of blood. This was at a time before the blood supply was being tested, when we were just learning how AIDS was transmitted, it was headline news every day. We were not sure of the consequences of that birth even when I had my second child in 1988, when my family banked blood in preparation in the event of another emergency. Our understanding of AIDS had not progessed by 1988 for there to be confidence in the blood supply, to understand AIDS could lay dormant for years undetected, and we still were not at the "safer" sex understanding. We certainly were not teaching our children because we did not know. I am not even sure if there was one anti-viral available at that point.
You do not read AIDS horror stories every day now because the blood supply is carefully tested to prevent transmission to hemophilliacs and others usuing blood products on a regular basis as well as accident victims, those undergoing surgery, chemotherapy or other medical procedures. The population as a whole is aware of the need to protect oneself from blood and body flood exposure. Anyone, whether emergency worker or passer by these days is pretty savy when it comes to coming to the aid of an injured person. From senior citizen to pre-teen if not younger understand "safer" not safe sex practices and thankfully self preservation instincts are working and people are abstaining from risky behaviors, choosing wisely and practicing "safer".
To suggest that the absence or prevalence of AIDS horror stories is somehow related to which political party is in the majority is not only wrong, but dangerous. Resent reports indicate a rise in sexually transmitted diseases; AIDS is a terrible disease that we must not forget lest we forget to teach prevention and see its return as well. Shame on you for suggesting anything other than knowledge, education, and practices are responsible for relieving humanity of AIDS as a daily horror.
you are a very talented and
you are a very talented and legendary idiot. you could have saved yourself time and a few brain cells if you just would have wrote the last part "Therefore, it is axiomatic that the government should provide a universal "safety net" for everyone for every misfortune." and ended it.
Hmm sounds like to me that
Hmm sounds like to me that you should have had preventive maintenance done, then again maybe this analogy has nothing to do with control as it is in this Bill, or maybe you should have paid more taxes when you bought that car then just maybe it wouldn't have happened. That's a conclusion the dem's seem to say about their tax and control health bill in which is not about reform.
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verified on "PUC staff: No go for energy firms’ wind deal"
Enron's Bastard Son, First Wind, Caught!
Docket 2011-170, feb 2, 2012 (see it all at http://www.windtaskforce.org)
"By filing their coordinated “exceptions” and letter, First Wind and APUC attempted to subvert the intention and effect of this rule. Therefore, the Examiners correctly excluded APUC’s and First Wind’s filings.
The Petitioners’ actions give rise to particular and very serious concerns.
Petitioners have deliberately attempted to inject new evidence into the record “through the back door,” long after the record closed on December 9, 2011 and at that point in the proceeding where other parties are not afforded a chance to respond, test the evidence through cross examination, engage in discovery, present witnesses, or otherwise have the benefit of the procedural safeguards of an evidentiary record Their Exceptions, containing these new facts, were filed in blatant disregard of at least two of the Commission’s rules and in direct violation of the Examiners’ January 19 Scheduling Order, and in an obvious attempt to influence the outcome. The rules violated are rules of integrity, fundamental fairness and substance, not mere housekeeping rules designed to advance administrative efficiency"
GET THEM OUT OF MAINE!
Petitioners violated Chapter 110 section 760-A(a) and (d~ of the Commission’s Rules. The filing of “exceptions” by APUC and First Wind violated the Ex Parte rule under Section 760-A(a) Petitioners’ subornation of these filings, as evidenced by the references to the filings in Petitioners Exceptions, also violates Section 760-A(d) which reads
No party in a proceeding shall request, encourage, suggest, or provide any assistance to any other person to make a communication that would violate subsection (a) of this section.
8Petitioners chose to engage in coordinated, concerted action with First Wind and APUC to assist them in an improper attempt to have a non-party influence the Commission after the date for filing exceptions, and to inject non-record information into evidence, and to couple this with a direct violation by commingling the prejudicial material into Petitioners own Exceptions. Petitioners deliberately cited to, quoted from, and indeed made such filings a part of their own January 23, 2012 Exceptions. Their awareness of procedural issues is revealed by the first footnote in their Exceptions. Petitioners’ actions were willful, ~vith the expectation that opposing parties would have no opportunity to respond,7 and for the primary purpose of influencing this Commission’s decision.
verified on "PUC staff: No go for energy firms’ wind deal"
Enrons's Bastard Son Caught!
see Feb 2 , 2012 docket 2011-170!!!
ELECTRONICALLY FILED ON FEBRUARY 2,2012
STATE OF MAINE
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
BANGOR HYDRO ELECTRIC & )
MAINE PUBLIC SERVICE COS. )
Re: Request for Exemptions and for )
Reorganization Approvals )
Docket No. 2011-170
MOTION FOR DISMISSAL
AND SANCTIONS WITH
INCORPORATED MEMORANDUM
February 2, 2012
Now come the Office of the Public Advocate, Houlton Water Company, the Industrial Energy Consumer Group (“I7ECG”), and Boralex, Inc. (“Boralex”)(collectively, the “intervenors”) by and through their respective attorneys and move to dismiss these proceedings or to enter judgment against Bangor Hydro Electric Company and Maine Public Service Company (“Petitioners”) based upon the recommended findings of the Examiners~ Report.
I. INTRODUCTION
Petitioners have intentionally and recklessly violated the Commission’s Rules of Practice and the Examiners’ January 19, 2011 Scheduling Order by filing Exceptions tainted by prejudicial non-record information and by assisting and/or encouraging First Wind Holdings, LLC (“First Wind”) and Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (“APUC”) to file unauthorized comments doing the same. According to the Examiners, these exceptions have been reviewed by the Commissioners. As described herein, further consideration of the case at this point would violate fundamental principles of due process and would be unduly prejudicial to the intervenors in this case. Of equal importance is the fact that the actions of the Petitioners, First Wind and Algonquin Power have damaged the integrity of the adjudicatory process by intentionally exposing the Commissioners and their advisors to information outside of the record that, even if the Commission can ignore, undermines public confidence in the process. Dismissal with prejudice orjudgment against Petitioners are the appropriate remedies and sanctions for Petitioners’ violations of the Commission’s Rules and the January 19 Schedul
verified on "Lewiston's Bob Stone: New face on MTA board"
Well this was fun to read.
Well this was fun to read.
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