If Gov. Paul LePage is sincere in his belief that “everyone” should be equally sharing the pain of balancing the budget, where is the proposal to take an equal percentage out of the 401(k) programs of privately insured Mainers?

Do public employees work less? Is their work less valuable to the state?

Obviously, the public would be outraged at any suggestion that private retirement accounts be raided. But the governor and corporate welfare advocates (such as the Maine Heritage Policy Center) have managed to convince some people that work is somehow less valid if it’s done by state employees.

I would be interested to hear him say that directly to the school teachers, state workers and Maine National Guardsmen enrolled in the Maine State Retirement System.

Compensation for workers is not welfare; it is earned income. For current retirees, the state has already received the benefits of their labor. And now, when they cannot have those years of work back, the state is going to decide to pay them less for it?

None of us would accept that from any private business; the business would be promptly sued, and rightfully so.

Perhaps we need to rethink the argument when the governor expects to do the exact same thing to state employees.

Adam Masterman, New Portland