We all hear and complain about Maine being the highest-taxed state in the union; we are also hearing how the Taxpayer Bill of Rights is going to save us. Has anyone asked, “Why are Maine’s taxes so high? Does everyone just assume that all Democrats are greedy and don’t care what happens to our state?”

We all love Maine. We love her because she is rural, she has a lot of room to move around in, and there is not a mass of humanity to distrub her tranquility. Except, of course, for the tourists who come up and help us with our economy.

So why are our taxes so high? Could it be that is there was a mass of humanity living in Maine there would be more people to pay the bills. Of course they would have to live somewhere, so our property would have to be reduced to one-quarter acre per family. Would your taxes go down? Look at all the facts before jumping into a river of half-truths and downright lies.

TABOR will keep our taxes at their current level, not cut them. All TABOR will do is make it harder to get the salt and sand for our rural roads, keep our small schools open, and keep our small-town economies from going bust. Vote No on Question One on Nov. 7.

Jean Diethrich, Strong