Editorials

Published
December 7, 2010

Our View: Added penaltiesalone won’t end drunken driving

About once a week, on average, someone is killed in Maine in a drunken-driving accident. Sometimes it's the driver, sometimes a passenger. Sometimes it's someone whose only mistake was getting in the way of a driver with so little concern for his own or anyone else's safety that he got behind the wheel when he shouldn't. Maine has made tremendous progress battling drunken driving, with stiffer penalties and public education efforts. In 1983 135 people died as a result of alcohol-involved crashes. Last year, it was 54, which is an improvement but still too high.
Published
December 7, 2010

Our View: Pearl Harbor survivors dwindle, but memory won’t

Each year that passes leaves fewer who were there, but the history of valor won't fade.
Published
December 6, 2010

Our View: Debt commissionfalls short – or did it?

One of the attractions of eating at a buffet is that diners can fill their plates with the stuff they like and leave the unappetizing dishes alone. So, one patron can load up on ribs and ignore the cauliflower and broccoli, while the person next in line can say, "Oh, good! I've been starving for lima beans!" and leap on the legumes. The problem with the recommendations made by the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility is that they are a buffet. The 18-member commission was charged by President Obama to find effective ways to reduce the national debt, and their plan, released Friday after a two-day extension of the original deadline, contains a wide variety of options.
Published
December 6, 2010

Another View: Pingree’s take on tax cuts assumes all money belongs to D.C.

'Repealing Bush's tax cuts' is in reality raising current tax rates by a substantial amount.
Published
December 5, 2010

Our View: Fixing Maine’s roads a major challenge

We are not collecting enough in gas tax revenue to maintain the state's infrastructure.

Published
December 5, 2010

Another View: LePage right to listen to all sides on transition matters

An editorial criticizing an outspoken critic of government on a panel smacks of elitism.
Published
December 5, 2010

Our View: New legislative leaders open session on the right note

Maine voters said they want change, and they have given the Republicans an opportunity.
Published
December 4, 2010

Another View: If Maine has hope of recovery, Baldacci had nothing to do with it

Crediting a person with prudence who boosted spending and unfunded obligations is wrong.
Published
December 4, 2010

Our View: Rangel’s censure was an appropriate penalty

The long-serving congressman failed to act responsibly in a post that absolutely requires it.
Published
December 3, 2010

Our View: Bypass plan has more than one problem

An eagle's nest is not all that should get in the way of a project that the state can't afford.