Letters to the editor, Week of November 3, 2016

Glowa working for Maine’s environment

To the editor:

Representative Tim Theriault says in his ad, “We have a duty to protect our outdoor traditions and Maine’s great natural resources.” Yet the nonpartisan group Maine Conservation Voters gave Theriault an abysmal 22 percent rating, meaning that 4/5 of the time he voted against conservation of our natural resources. In contrast, the other Republican in our district, Sen. Roger Katz, received a 100 percent score from Maine Conservation Voters.
I am tired of politicians saying one thing in their ads, then voting just the opposite. On Election Day, I will be voting for John Glowa, who has a 30-year record of working for Maine’s environment, to represent me in the Maine House.

David Preston
China Village

Glowa respectful, honest, and open

To the editor:

Letter to the people of the communities of Maine House District #79, China, Albion and Benton,
It is a pleasure to be able to want to write a letter in support of a local candidate for the Maine House of Representatives for District #79; Mr. John Glowa. I’ve lived here for close to 40 years and love my community. It has been sometime since I’ve felt positive enough about a candidate to want to write a public letter in support of a person running for office.

I have lived in the China, raising my sons and building a home and life with my wife. I have worked as a local business owner as well as volunteering and being involved in the school system as a parent and later as an educator.

I have not known John Glowa long, but in that time I have come to respect him for having all the best qualities for someone to represent the district and the real interests of the people and community rather than any ideology.

Especially important are his respectfulness, considerateness, ability to listen with integrity, honesty, openness and the ability to use critical thinking, not emotional reaction, or party-line political policies when evaluating an issue. I actually had no idea whether he was a Democrat or Republican for some time. What I saw, was a person open to discussion and listening to the concerns of the people he wanted to serve. The impression I got was someone who was running for office to serve the peoples’ interest with integrity and not to promote an agenda for one party or the other. He seemed to have the strength of character necessary to endure politics and the realities of the state assembly. Some of his primary concerns were of interest to me; people’s welfare, the environment and long-term investing in the future through educational reform.

I know there have been some very negative letters written about Mr. Glowa’s campaign. All I can say is what I have seen about his integrity and forthrightness. I will say, that if you are a [Donald] Trump and [Gov. Paul] LePage supporter of racism, bullying and lying, then John is not your candidate and you should consider someone else who will toe the party line and take their voting orders from the party bosses.

For all of these reasons, I am happy to support and vote for John Glowa. It is time for a change in leadership and representation of the community after the ineffective representatives and incumbent who have served us over the past ten years.

It is time for a change in Augusta! Please consider supporting Mr. John Glowa for District #79

John Soifer
China

Advice to candidates

To the editor:

Just a reminder to all those running for office:

• Women, get a nice hairdo, get nails manicured, use lots of make up and don’t dress up looking manly (pantsuits, etc.).
• Men, get a haircut, trim beards, trim nose and ear hairs, take showers, etc.

Think I’m kidding writing this? In my humble opinion, voters in Maine are like voters everywhere: they carefully consider all the assault ads, baloney, and then go into the booth and vote for the best looking candidate.

Frank Slason
Somerville

Check voting records

To the editor:

For those readers who are planning to vote next Tuesday, you may want to check the following web sites to get a clear picture of how district state and federal legislators have voted over the past year. If you have concerns about the future of Maine’s economy, health care, education, and environment, I strongly encourage you to check the following sites to find out how your elected officials have – or have not – represented you:

Ballotpedia:

https://ballotpedia.org/Maine;
https://ballotpedia.org/Maine_House_of_Representatives_elections,_2016;
https://ballotpedia.org/Maine_State_Senate_elections,_2016;

Specifically:

https://ballotpedia.org/Chellie_Pingree;
https://ballotpedia.org/Bruce_Poliquin;
https://ballotpedia.org/Roger_Katz;
https://ballotpedia.org/Timothy_Theriault;

American Conservative Union Foundation:

http://acuratings.conservative.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2016/04/Maine_2015_web.pdf;

Maine Conservation Voters:

http://www.maineconservation.org/assets/Scorecards/2015mcvscorecard.pdf;

Maine AFL-CIO:

http://www.maineaflcio.org/assets/files/Scorecards/2015%20Legislative%20Scorecard%20ME_AFLCIO%20web.pdf.

If your incumbent politician(s) is not voting on your behalf – does not represent your values – then it may be time to consider making a change. Whatever your decision, please be sure to exercise your right vote!

Jayne Winters
South China