The hemorrhaging-heart society for the propagation of special interests, a.k.a. the Maine Legislature, is in the process of passing new legislation that will carry more severe penalties for assaults on the homeless.

We have special considerations for crimes against people of color and other minorities. These are now called hate crimes and warrant more aggressive prosecution, although the list of violent crimes not committed out of one form of hatred or another is an extremely short one.

Maine now offers special protection for gays and lesbians in matters of housing, employment, etc., even though existing laws already afforded them the same protection as the rest of us in these matters.

We witness the choicest parking spots in any given parking lot being reserved for individuals who drive better cars, don’t believe all the nasty things that have been said about the dangers of cigarette smoking, and suffer from physical afflictions that remain undetectable to the naked eye. One can only wonder where those with the real physical handicaps are parking.

Now, in their cornucopia of divine wisdom, our legislators want to make it a more serious crime to assault a homeless vagrant than to assault one’s spouse or next door neighbor, regardless that all three crimes are already against existing laws.

What’s next?

Paul St. Jean, Lewiston