The grass was green, the trees were flowering and the sun was shining yesterday, all of which left us with nary an editorial complaint. Just a few quibbles.
Free breakfast for all
At first, the announcement that Auburn schools will offer free lunches to all students, not just those who qualify by family income, raised an eyebrow.
Ah, another expansion of the social welfare state!
But, after looking at the details, we think not. Realizing that a hungry child is unlikely to learn, the federal government has for years offered free lunches to students from lower income families.
Some children, the district found, were too embarrassed to participate.
In Auburn, 54 percent of the students qualify for free or reduced-cost meals but only 17 percent were using the program.
The district can work the cost into the existing state and federal budgets, plus remove the stigma.
While it’s a good program, we did find the selection of breakfast cereals, which included — on the day we visited — Frosted Flakes, Kix, Coca Puffs, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Apple Jacks, Trix and Golden Grahams disturbing.
Clearly, not the healthiest of selections, but let the labels speak
Cheerios: 1 gram of sugar, 3 of fiber and 3 of protein.
Frosted Flakes: 11 grams of sugar, less than 1 of fiber and 1 of protein.
We think a truly hungry child would eat a nutritional cereal and be far better prepared to learn. Plus the choice would teach better eating habits.
Transparency in Augusta
Gov. Paul LePage signed a bill last week encouraging greater financial disclosure by public officials.
The Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting revealed that between 2003 and 2010 the state paid nearly $235 million to organizations run by state officials or their spouses.
That doesn’t mean there was necessarily something nefarious going on, although some legislators portrayed it that way.
Legislators were simply not required to disclose those associations and they did not.
The bill’s passage shows two things. First, that shoe-leather journalism still matters and is in the public’s best interest.
This bill simply would not have come about without the Center’s work and the cooperation of the newspapers that give voice to that work.
Second, that the governor and Legislature fulfilled, at least in this case, on their pledge for greater public transparency.
Next year we hope legislators find the courage to bring transparency to the state’s Tree Growth tax-break program, which will take a bit more backbone.
Safe and sound in Maine
Finally, New England — and Maine in particular — were recognized for what should be a significant economic advantage: we live in the most peaceful region in the nation.
That means businesses can spend less on security, which can be a significant economic advantage over other areas.
More over, a lower crime rate is correlated with a variety of social outcomes, including healthier and better-educated workers, which are important to employers.
Perhaps we can add this to the signs at our state’s borders. “Maine, the way life used to be: safe, peaceful and productive.
And, yes, that will require slightly larger signs.
The opinions express in this column reflect the views of the ownership and the editorial board.
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