The next time you're really bored, as in "I think I'll watch a rerun of George W. Bush's second inaugural speech" bored, take a stroll through the Republican Campaign Platform for the state of Maine. ( http://www.mainegop.com/PlatformMission.aspx )Maine doesn't make the news too much. Aside from Bush Sr.'s summer home in Kennebunkport, the Clay-Liston fight in 1964 and the recent prominence of Senator Olympia Snowe (Am I the only one who thinks Olympia Snowe looks like Ichabod Crane's kid sister?) Maine has remained a quiet bastion of Yankee moderation. There is, however, a quixotic nature to these cold weather nor-Easters. In 2006 the Green Party won 9% of the vote in the gubernatorial election. Sadly, most Americans would barely shed a tear if the entire state were traded to Quebec for season tickets to the Canadians.
What we didn't know was that under all that moderation is a state mad as hell and unwilling to take it anymore. Seriously, according to Republicans, Maine is so angry they are prepared to join with their states-rights compatriots in the South. We should have seen this coming. Ross Perot (remember him?) did better in Maine than any other state. Mainiacs, or whatever they call themselves, are apparently headed for the barricades of what they see as an insidious, over-reaching, liberal government. The list of grievances in the GOP platform would make you think that the Pine State had been relocated to central China or Myanmar.
The platform owes much of its rhetoric to the founding fathers. In fact if the estates of Jefferson or Madison were thinking of suing for copyright infringement, they would have a reasonably strong case. Phrases like "In the course of a nation's history..." and "we the people" might cause readers to wonder where they might have heard those words before. The good news for Republicans is that, given their ages, there's an even chance their members were around when the words were first written.
Maine is apparently besieged on all sides by the sinister forces of "one world Government" and opponents of "Austrian Economics" (For an explanation of Austrian Economics see http://mises.org/etexts/austrian.asp I'm not doing your homework for you!) There are firmly stated objections to several United Nations agencies, global treaties and any agreement that surrenders the sovereignty of America. Wow! Who would have guessed the Laws of the Sea Treaty and the Treaty on the Rights of the Child could stir the blood of the good people of Maine?
Domestically, the threats come in bunches. The Maine GOP is opposed to any attempt to restrict a citizen's right to own a gun. Mainers feel so strongly about this, it's mentioned twice. (Never mind that no attempt has been made by the administration or anyone else to confiscate so much as a single firearm and that every court decision in the recent past has supported the senseless and unnecessary ownership of guns. I guess you can never be too careful.) Maine's Republicans are also opposed to motor-voter laws, political correctness (Mainers like to call a spade a spade), amnesty ("ever") for illegals and (this is a new one!) any attempt to allow foreigners to vote. Man, there is some insidious s--t going on in Maine.
There are a string of anti-incumbent/term limit provisions along with a serious wish list of stuff elected officials can and can't do. These folks not only hate their elected officials they hate the people they haven't elected yet. There is actually a "read the bill" clause for congresspeople. No one mentions if there will be a test. Naturally, no gay marriage, no abortion, no bail-outs and no cap and trade (The document actually refers to the "global warming myth".) Yeses include: prayer in schools, zero based budgeting, and parental corporal punishment for children.
In an interesting nod to Ron Paul, patron saint of the Libertarian Right, Maine seeks to eliminate the Federal Reserve. All those who think the average Maine farmer has the slightest idea of the role of the Fed, signify by saying Yeah, right!
Maine's Republicans are particularly unhappy with the healthcare bill and the penalties for being uninsured. Taxes for Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare as well as federal income taxes don't seem to bother Mainers much but,healthcare has them pulling down Old Betsy from over the fireplace. "Healthcare is not a right. It's a service. Clearly the authors of this platform missed the "inalienable rights" of "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" in their plagiaristic meandering.
How can a society that has been given so much be so unfeeling regarding the simplest effort to care for others?People who donate kidneys to strangers will leave the hospital to protest the concept of medical for all.
Maine's Republicans are right about one thing: we are under attack. We are under attack by people who see compassion as weakness. We are besieged by a relatively small but vocal group of scared, old people who want simple answers and Glenn Beck solutions. The complexion of America is changing. Securing the border (even if it were possible) won't change that. We have enemies; people who mean us harm. Shredding the Constitution will not stop attacks like Times Square and we need to stop acting and talking like it will. Wailing about your right to own a gun ignores the fact that too many people own guns and too many people die because of it. We need to stop hunting for ghosts under the mattress and stop listening to politicians who pander to our
basest fears. We're a big, strong country. We can tolerate a little chaos. What we can't tolerate is a return to Austrian Economics...whatever that is.
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