Recently Governor Lepage of Maine held a town hall meeting in Newcastle to discuss tax reform as well as many other topics. During his discussions with the great people of Maine, somebody brought up the fact that a planned route for a bypass to heavily congested route one, is being blocked by the Federal Government over an eagles nest. When asked about this one of the Governors remarks were that “People pay taxes, Eagles Don’t”. I would like to applaud the governor for this statement. It is about time someone in our government realizes that there comes a point where you have to be for the people. 

Please do not take this as I am a destroyer of nature or anything of that sort. I love nature, but I love progress to. If we were talking about a hundred eagles nests then maybe we could talk about an alternative route or some other contingency plan. In this situation though, we are talking about a single lone nest, and we are talking about moving the nest not destroying the nest. The implications of this would effect one Eagle, or thousands of daily commuters, who do we side with? I would like to believe this is a rhetorical question, but the problem is many people answer this question in an obscene manner. They will pick the Eagle!!!

We as tax-payers have a right and a duty to ensure that what government does provide to us is top notch. One of the realms that we expect government to take care of for us is Transportation, specifically the road networks in this country. A new Route 1 bypass will not only create short term jobs for the construction crews, but will also enable already employed citizens to get back and forth from work in a much easier and more timely manner. A side note to this new road is that it may in fact reduce the Gas usage in the State of Maine, as cars will be spending much less time idling on Route 1.

Lets get behind the Governor and keep in mind, that we need to start caring more about our citizens. We need to learn that there is a balance between protecting nature and protecting man, and we must strive to find it. On this note, I think Mainers deserve to be placed in a higher spot on the list than a single Eagle!! Thank you for making that clear to the world Governor Lepage, Keep up the great work!!

Abortion laws and “rights” are in the news again. I am beginning to understand the sad fact that it does not look like abortion is going to be outlawed any time soon, and this is an issue in of itself that will be discussed in the future. But this week I noticed that one piece of legislation being discussed in the Maine Legislatures Judicial Committee covers parental consent for minors to receive an abortion. I saw this and can you guess wheat my first response was? It was something like “HOW IS THIS NOT ALREADY REQUIRED?” This scares me. Is this truly the first time someone has had the idea that a parent should be aware of their child’s doings? If a child does not show up to school it is the parents who get a call and are expected to repair the situation, but as a parent I don’t need to have a say in whether or not my daughter receives an abortion. What kind of sense does that make to anyone? How can I be held responsible for my child but not be given any consent in certain medical procedures for that same child!

LD 1457 would require minors to obtain parental or guardian consent, written and notarized, before having an abortion. Minors could circumvent this requirement by obtaining a court order after signing a statement that there is “a pattern of physical abuse, sexual abuse, or neglect” in her relationship with her parents or guardians. 

This is a great start, and I can not understand how groups who claim to have a child’s best interest at hand can disagree with the proposed law. Present during committee hearings were people from many fields of work, and some of the dissenters included social workers, nurses, and women’s rights activists. Social workers should have a child’s best interest at hand, and is that not having involved parents. These people tell parents we are not involved enough, but seek to take a law requiring our involvement away from us.  Nurses want to protect the medical aspect of this law, and I believe this law takes care of that, by taking out of consideration acts that will be committed in order to protect the mothers life, i.e. Cases of medical emergency. It also takes out of consideration the procedure if it is conducted with intent to Save or preserve the life of the fetus, if it is to remove a deceased fetus caused by spontaneous abortion(miscarriage, etc.) and to remove an ectopic pregnancy. I believe this covers the medical aspect of the law, and does everything possible to protect the mother while maintaining a maximum of parental involvement. 

Women’s rights activists should be happy to see such a law as LD 1457. This law is protecting the rights of  Mothers, whom I believe are mostly women. They say that this law will be a detriment to years of forward moving on the front of women’s rights, but I believe this law is actually a continued step forward. We are not talking about adult women with this law, we are talking about children. Is it not a women’s right to take care of her child as she sees fit? If a mother does not wish to consent to “abortion as birth control”, what kind of women’s right activist are you when you tell her that is not a decision for her to make. How about you become a real women’s rights activist and actually stand up for a WOMENS rights!! A pregnant 15 year old who became careless and irresponsible is not a women, she is a misguided girl who needs assistance, not independence. Independence is what very well could have gotten her into the situation she is in. 

I am not saying all women’s rights activists are bad, many truly have a woman’s rights in mind, but these ones do not. This law is moving in the right direction, a child needs a parents consent to go on a Field Trip at school but not for an abortion? This has too long been the case and must be rectified in the quickest of ways!

Good Morning to all of my readers, I appreciate your reading the blog and look forward to more comments and concerns. It has been a very  busy  few weeks, as we have confirmed our meeting with Governor Lepage, and have spoken with a number of potential donors and have more meetings with potential donors in the coming days. 

In recent weeks a federal judge ruled in favor of Maine’s Governor Lepage on the matter of removing a “pro-worker” mural. What seems to be jumping out at me is the fact that there are actually people siding against the governor on this one, and people brining a law suit against this governor. First of all, if any sort of case can be made that it is even remotely effecting business in Maine, it needs to be removed. We are living in a State that has enough issues with jobs and funding, we do not need to exasperate those issues with a mural. The second thing that jumps out at me, is that one of the biggest arguments against taking this mural down is that the state would have to pay $60,000 back to the federal government. But to those of you involved in this lawsuit, what about the funds that the State now has to divert to fund its defense against this preposterous lawsuit. Lets divert our energy and efforts to getting more business in Maine, and making all of New England more business friendly. On these efforts I would like to thank  Mr. Matt Jacobson of Maine and Company. Thank you for the continued efforts of you and your team!!!

For a state that prides itself on such mottos as “Don’t Tread On Me”, the state of Vermont is doing an awful lot of treading on its people. The state legislature this week approved a measure that result in $24 million in new taxes to its residents. The tax increase package includes a 27-cent increase in the cigarette tax, this to help fund a state sponsored healthcare plan. 

I could spend days talking about my disagreements with state run healthcare, but I will save that for another day. Today we are concerned with this outrageous abuse of powers in the State house.  We were a nation founded in part due to outrageous taxes, and here we are reverting to the original reasons for revolt. Why are we raising taxes and increasing spending at a time when the opposite needs to be happening. I understand the argument that this is form of “sin tax”, that is a tax on something the general public sees as being unhealthy. But this is unfair, the constitution is based on the fact that an individual has the right to do as they please with there body, barring it impedes on someone’s rights to life, liberty, or the pursuit of happiness. Our supreme court has said that a women has the right to take an unborn Childs life because that child is within the women’s body, but we oppose an adult using tobacco should they please. We tax these individuals unfairly, while we offer up no “abortion tax”. Why are we punishing a person for making a free choice to do as they please to their body, not to mention boosting our national economy, while not punishing another person for taking an unborn Childs life. I digress, this is about the unfair raising of taxes among an already heavily taxed society.  We have been shown time and again that raising taxes hinders the economy,  yet we continue to raise taxes.

I know what you are thinking,. “This is a tax on a small item that effects a small portion of society.” Well this is not only a false premise, but a dangerous one as well. This is how we become a totalitarian society, one new tax and law at a time. Each step sets a dangerous precedent for the next. This does not even take into consideration the effects on the economy. When someone steps into the corner market to buy there pack of “smokes”, they are giving money to that business owner, and in the rural communities that dominate New England, that is most often a small business owner.  When they make their purchase, they often make other purchases as well. Often times I see an individual buy there cigarettes and maybe a soda with it. Or a candy bar. These may seem like small purchases, but when this routine is followed 200 times a week, that is a regular stream of revenue for these small business owners. By raising taxes on something as simple as cigarettes you are encouraging people to quit, and while it may be better for that individuals health, they have made the conscience choice to disregard the health concerns. Now you are not only punishing the smoker but the business owner. Now that smoker may not be able to afford that extra soda or candy bar. That is revenue no longer coming in to the business owners, and what if they quiet smoking all together? Yet another serious loss of income. Should these losses continue to mount, this may force layoffs at these small stores and cost a person their employment. That is one more person now relying on the state for sustenance, and therefore more money being drained from the state coffers. And that smoker who quiet? That is lost revenue from this tax so you have not only decreased revenue, but increased cost. Now where does this scenario make sense to you? I am having a hard time making sense of it myself.

So as has been proven time and again, higher taxes hurt the economies of our states, and we need to fight these higher taxes. Let your elected officials know that we want nothing to do with these economy busting taxes. Let your elected officials know, “Don’t Tread on Me!!”

I would like to applaud Maine State Senator Debra Plowman for her proposed bill reducing the restrictions on teen labor in the State of Maine. She proposed a bill that would allow teens, ages 16-18, to work for up to 32 hours a week, instead of the previous limit of 20. As a teen in Maine, I was only allowed to work 20 hours a week and saw this as a hindrance to my development as a productive member of society.  I was only allowed to work up to 4 hours a day on school nights, and 6 on weekends and summers. This restriction was nothing more than a roadblock for potential employers. I mean why hire two 16 year olds when you can hire one 19 year old to do the same work, with half the paperwork and none of the scheduling difficulties. 

The fact that there is an outrage to this bill shows how far this nation has regressed since our founding days. Don’t take these statements out of context either, I am NOT for child labor, I.e. 7 year olds sewing soccer balls for  pennies. This is not what I am defending, what I am defending is the ability of a young adult to be able to work with out restrictions, or at least without debilitating restrictions. Allow these young men and women to get out there and work, this experience will help them further on down the line. Lets face it, not every kid is going to Harvard or Yale, so let some of these fine young hardworking Americans get out there and earn a wage, and build a resume. We have become a society that has forgotten lessons learned. We have forgotten what many European nations have known for many years. Not all young men and women are able or willing become college educated. Many people are better suited for doing the more “menial” jobs. I put the term “menial” in quotations because this is quite the misnomer, these people are critical to the functioning of a structured society. Just try and imagine a world with no garbage men, or laborers. Not a pleasant thought is it, so why are we holding these young Americans back? Why are we not allowing them to start working in there trade of choice early, so that we may one day again have the most productive society in the world. We need these vital cogs in our American Machine, and we need them to be as skilled at their task as possible. Let them get there training now!

This is not to say that young men and women who want to go to college would not be able to take advantage of this opportunity. As many of us know when you go to college and are on your own, you may need to attend classes and work as well. Why make young adults wait until college to start learning the skills associated with this multi-tasking? Lets set them up for success in college as well.  Lets make them master the skills of time management  in High School, while they still have room for error, because in the real world, to err is to end up on another government handout being paid for by you and I.

Under the current laws and restrictions we are hurting our youth, not helping them. There is no need for all for all of these restrictions, they hurt the youth, they hurt business, and they hurt our Nation. Lets implore our kids to get off there butts and work, stop coddling the youth to the point that they are defenseless when they enter the real world, out from under the protection of mom and dad. Help make New England great again, and tell your elected officials to stop holding back our youth!!

On a business note I would like to keep everyone up to date on the proceedings of the NECC. This week was  a big one for us, as we have finalized our official Logo. We will be unveiling it in the coming days and look forward to this event.  We are also in the planning stages of an email campaign in support of not only State Senator Plowman’s bill, but also in support of Governors Malloy and Lepage’s state budgets. I would like to thank you Governors for seeing that cuts need to be made, and budgets need to be reeled in. Lets show the free spenders in the Federal government how it needs to be done, lets lead by example, lets bring New England back to the forefront of successful political doctrine!!

We will also be adding a Directors Podcast in the near future. I am excited to bring this feature to you, with not only updates on what we are doing, but also on the many events and occurenses throughout New England.This feature will be available on iTunes, so that you can download it to your iPod and listen to it on the go. Making our orginization that much more accesible to you the people.