Unlimited Maine/LePage Hilarity Thread

[AFK]

Well, technically speaking, only 39% of us voted for LePage.  38% of us voted for the right guy, Eliot Cutler.  The other 23% are indecisive assholes.

And the portion of that 23% who couldn't read the fucking writing on the wall and voted for Libby Mitchell anyway, well, there is a special place in hell for those morons.

RWHN,
not pulling the punches. 

[Jenne]

See, apathy begets assholes.  Just saying.

I know that's an unpopular opinion around here, but there are assholes, and there are ASSHOLES.  Apathy really scores you some awesomeness in the asshole category in politics.   

[AFK]

A Republican State Senator is introducing legislation that would remove language in Maine law that prohibits restaurant owners from claiming ownership of tips and gratuities.

http://www.sunjournal.com/state/story/981024

AUGUSTA — Stefanie Veneziano is a senior at the University of Maine who waits tables part time at the 99 Restaurant in Bangor. She says the tips she earns help her pay for college and living expenses.

So Veneziano had a lot of questions for Sen. Brian Langley, R-Hancock, when she noticed he was sponsoring a bill that would remove language from state law prohibiting restaurants from claiming ownership of tips and allowing establishments to determine when wait staff should pool gratuities.

"I was pretty worried when I saw it on the legislative calendar," said Veneziano, who is interning for the Maine Senate Democrats. "I didn't know what to think of it."

Neither do Democrats and labor advocates, who are alarmed that Langley's proposal will strip protections added to Maine's minimum wage law in 2007.

Langley, who owns the Union River Lobster Pot in Ellsworth, said his bill is meant to align Maine law with federal law and to allow restaurant owners like himself to determine when wait staff can pool their tips and distribute them evenly at the end of a shift.

And of course as we can see, he has a vested interest in this legislation coming to pass.  Elsewhere in the article it mentions that the big lobbying firm for restaurants in Maine put some pressure for this legislation to be offered. 

Wait staff get paid dirt on the idea that they are going to make money on the tips they receive.  This would put that seriously in doubt. 

Christ, what an asshole. 

[AFK]

LePage dismisses BPA dangers; 'worst case is some women may have little beards'

http://www.sunjournal.com/approved/story/990639

AUGUSTA, Maine — The political debate over bisphenol A is heating up in Maine after Gov. Paul LePage's recent comments questioning whether the controversial chemical is as dangerous as many scientists claim.

And LePage's unusual quip about some women growing "little beards" from exposure to BPA likely will add another wrinkle to an issue on track to be one of the most contentious of the legislative session.

In his comments last week, LePage said he has yet to see enough science to support a ban on BPA, a common additive to plastics that some research suggests may interfere with hormone levels and could cause long-term problems. LePage said until scientists can prove BPA is harmful, the state should not rush to restrict its use.

"Quite frankly, the science that I'm looking at says there is no [problem]," LePage said. "There hasn't been any science that identifies that there is a problem."

LePage then added: "The only thing that I've heard is if you take a plastic bottle and put it in the microwave and you heat it up, it gives off a chemical similar to estrogen. So the worst case is some women may have little beards."

That last comment prompted a strong reaction from Mike Belliveau, executive director of the Environmental Health Strategy Center, a Maine-based advocacy group.

"It displays shocking ignorance for the science and a callous disregard for children's health," Belliveau said.

Other researchers bristled at the governor's dismissal of what they insist are volumes of scientific studies indicating that BPA could pose serious risks to fetuses and developing children.

"BPA is one of the most well-studied chemicals, and it is just ludicrous to ignore the science," said Susan Shaw, a toxicologist at the Maine Environmental Research Institute who has been studying the effects of toxics on humans and animals for more than three decades. "There is a large body of evidence about the hazards of BPA that is irrefutable."
....

This guy is making my brain hurt. 

[Luna]

Wonder how he'd react if he was handed a study that proved that BPA causes impotence and significant testicular shrinkage in men.

[AFK]

I dunno, but I'm sure he'd react in a way that is embarrassing and reflects poorly on our State.  I mean, he seems to be doing that pretty much non-stop.

[Requia ☣]

http://www.wcsh6.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=146428&catid=2

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) -- A legislative committee will hear the pros and cons of making whoopie pies Maine's official state dessert.

Republican Rep. Paul Davis of Sangerville takes his bill before the state and Local Government Committee on Monday.

University of Maine Foundation President Amos Orcutt says other states have official desserts. Massachusetts, for example, has the Boston cream pie. And Maine's named Moxie the state's official soft drink.

Orcutt says he wants Maine to act quickly before Pennsylvania claims credit for the whoopie pie -- creamy frosting sandwiched by a pair of chocolate cakes.

Davis' bill has drawn some editorial flak. The Sun Journal of Lewiston wonders what a session of the Maine Legislature would be without the occasional "nutty, pointless, irrelevant bill" making its way into law.

Not even close to true insanity.  Utah's official state snack food is Jello.

At least they didn't include the shredded carrots though.

[Luna]

Orcutt says he wants Maine to act quickly before Pennsylvania claims credit for the whoopie pie -- creamy frosting sandwiched by a pair of chocolate cakes.

Too late.  Pennsylvania started 'em.  If Maine claims them as their state dessert, those of us from the REAL birthplace will take it as a compliment, and an admission that y'all can't come up with anything better.    

[AFK]

It may have been invented in Pennsylvania, but it was PERFECTED in Maine. 

[Luna]

It may have been invented in Pennsylvania, but it was PERFECTED in Maine. 

What significant change was made?

Note that I've had them made, fresh, by the Amish down the road from where I grew up.  Utter heaven, the crap they wrap in plastic and sell is NOT the same.

[AFK]

Well, if you are ever in Maine, you should enjoy a whoopie pie made by the Isamax company based out of Richmond Maine.  They make them daily and ship them to local grocery store chains. 

I highly recommend the Oatmeal Cookie Whoopie Pie.

[LMNO]

It may have been invented in Pennsylvania, but it was PERFECTED in Maine. 

What significant change was made?

More batshit insanity, apparently.

[Luna]

Well, if you are ever in Maine, you should enjoy a whoopie pie made by the Isamax company based out of Richmond Maine.  They make them daily and ship them to local grocery store chains. 

I highly recommend the Oatmeal Cookie Whoopie Pie.

Heresy.  Rank heresy.

And, until you've had one still warm from an Amish kitchen, you haven't had one.

[Adios]

I just read this entire thread. Now I am laughing hysterically.

[AFK]

Try living here.