Review and respond to our current questions

This week, ClickBack asks readers to submit questions they would like to ask candidates in the 1st Congressional District primary races. Six Democrats — Michael Brennan, Adam Cote, Mark Lawrence, Steve Meister, Chellie Pingree and Ethan Strimling — are seeking their party’s nomination. On the Republican side, Dean Scontras and Charlie Summers are vying for their party’s nod.
If you could sit down with the candidates, what policy questions would you ask? Here are some topics to consider:

The Penobscot Indian Nation has threatened to sever ties with the state after Gov. John Baldacci’s veto of their plan to install 100 slot machines on Indian Island. The tribe has said it might install the slot machines anyway. Should it? The tribes in Maine say they are sovereign nations and should be treated as such. Should they? How would this work since they are an inte-gral part of Maine? What would the state lose if the Penobscot Nation ceased relations with Augusta?

A petition has been filed to repeal the upcoming tax increase on beer, wine and soda. Would you sign it? If it were successful, the people’s veto would end funding for the state’s Dirigo Health insurance program. How should that program be paid for? Or should those covered by Dirigo simply go without insurance?

Maine truckers went to Washington, D.C., to protest high diesel prices. Farmers worry that high fuel prices will put them out of business. Blueberry growers fret about the cost of burn-ing their fields to promote growth. What is the solution? Should the U.S. drill for oil in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge? What about areas off the New England coast? Should gas-guzzling SUVs be banned?

Landowners are upset about proposed changes to the plan governing the state’s 10 million-acre Unorganized Territory. Where does a landowner’s right to do what he wants with his land end? Should the state, through the Land Use Regulation Commission, restrict what happens in the North Woods? Is there a place for nonmotorized recreation? Where?

State and municipal employees had Monday off, but mail was delivered and most banks were open. For most people Patriot’s Day was just another work day. Is the holiday commemorating the start of the Revolutionary War outdated? Only Maine and Massachusetts celebrate it and to a diminishing extent. Is it time to retire this holiday?

American colonists were urged to dump their tea into Boston harbor to oppose a British tax. A Maine newspaper wondered if readers should dump their soda, beer and wine to protest a new state tax on the drinks. Does wasting beer this way make sense? Will the tax encourage you to drink less? Should lawmakers have raised the cigarette tax instead?

Is the U.S. flag so sacred that it can’t be used in art projects? A University of Maine at Farmington student made American flags out of plastic and duct tape on the floor of the school’s student center. She asked people to either step on the flags or walk around them. The project led to a protest by a veteran’s group. The student said the point was to make people think about how they feel about the flag. Are there better ways to get people thinking? Did the protesters miss the point?

An Italian landowner has proposed a major resort for the Schoodic Peninsula. Are hotels and a golf course next to a section of Acadia National Park appropriate? Will ecotourism like this bring sorely needed jobs to Down East Maine? How should local officials balance the need for jobs with protecting the scenic landscape that brings tourists to the area?

Our pets are full of potentially harmful chemicals, stores are pulling plastic bottles off their shelves for fear of the chemicals they contain. Is our world too toxic? Maine lawmakers recently passed a law requiring closer attention to a host of chemicals. Is it too late? Or are we overreacting to chemicals that have been used for generations?

From reader Richard: Overcrowded airports, massive delays, airlines going out of business, ever increasing fares, whole fleets being taken out of service for failure to perform inspections. Has deregulation really improved service?

The state is considering raising the cost of hunting and fishing permits to help fund the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and the Maine Warden Service. The proposed increase is modest - $2 - but why stop there? Why not raise permits to $100 per year for residents? Many Mainers pay that much to play a couple of rounds of golf or to ski for a day. The proposal raises related questions: Should kayakers be required to
register their boats (for a fee)? Should hikers be required to buy a day permit?

From reader Vaughn Anthony: The latest Maine moose assessment says that the animal's population has doubled in the past decade while the moose browse has declined by 25 percent to 75 percent and parasites are now killing moose in significant numbers. The
scientists say the herd should never be greater than 60 percent of its carrying capacity, which it now may be. The current permit system allows a removal rate of only 5 percent

Presidential candidates such as Republican Steve Forbes ran on the flat tax proposal in 1996 and 2000. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee raised the idea again in his campaign. Is it possible to create a flat tax and not gore any income group? Or should the tax burden be shifted to the more wealthy or to corporations? How about a national sales tax?

As the Olympic torch makes its way across the globe, it has drawn protests from people advocating for China to end its occupation of Tibet. Some have called on President Bush
to boycott the opening ceremonies in Beijing this summer. What is the connection between the Olympics and world affairs? Should the sports event be free of political overtones? Or is it legitimate to bring human rights concerns to the attention of the host nation?

Autum Aquino died last week at 23. Many remember her as the little girl from Ban-gor with AIDS, featured in newspapers and on TV news programs in the late 1980s and early 1990s. She contracted the disease from her mother. If Aquino was the face of AIDS in Maine, former NBA star Magic Johnson is the national face of AIDS, and he seems to be healthy. Is AIDS now overlooked in this country? Do young adults think it has been cured, and take sexual risks because of that belief? Is enough research being done to cure the disease?

Maine is a friendly, trusting place. So what’s wrong with giving drivers licenses to people who may or may not live in the Pine Tree State? Regardless of the state’s problems with the federal Real ID plan, should Maine require more proof of residency for those seeking drivers licenses? Could such requirements be easily faked? Does it matter?

Do your next door neighbors have a 1,500 watt street light hanging from their garage? Does it bother you? A group on Mount Desert Island believes Maine should keep the night sky dark. A satellite image shows the state, east of the Penobscot River and north of Bangor, to be one of the few places on the East Coast without light pollution. Is this something to be proud of, or should we be embarrassed that there is so little activity here?

Lawmakers passed a bill banning smoking in cars with kids in them. The governor is expected to sign it into law later this week. This follows a ban in Bangor. Is this necessary or does Maine risk becoming a nanny state, keeping too close a watch on its residents and their activities? What about children, do they have a right to not breathe cigarette smoke?

The latest Maine moose assessment says that the animal's population has doubled in the past decade while the moose browse has declined by 25 percent to 75 percent and parasites are now killing moose in significant numbers. The scientists say the herd should never be greater than 60 percent of its carrying capacity, which it now may be. The current permit system allows a removal rate of only 5 percent of the population while 20 percent is required to merely stabilize the abundance. Would you favor increasing the moose permits to 20 percent, at least in some areas, to stabilize the abundance?

Many people who love and empathize with wildlife have taken to feeding deer this winter, especially as the deer struggle to survive the deep snow that has eliminated their access to food. Yet state biologists say the practice of providing deer with grain and other food is ultimately bad for the herd. In the past, bills proposed in the Legislature to ban such feeding have not won support. Should such a ban on feeding deer be reconsidered?

The Maine Legislature appears, at least as of late Monday, to be on the verge of adopting a supplemental budget. Now that this critical work is done, what should legislators focus on for the duration of the spring session? Further refining school and jail consolidation? Rethinking the state's social service philosophy? Downsizing the number of state employees?

The federal government has taken the unprecedented step of backing JPMorgan's buyout of investment firm Bear Stearns. Should the federal government be bailing out private banks? And if so, should U.S. taxpayers benefit if the company recovers and flourishes?

Vice President Dick Cheney, when told by a morning news TV show host that most Americans viewed the invasion of Iraq as a mistake, replied: "So?" He later said the public opposition was not a surprise, and that decisions as serious as going to war should not be based on opinion polls. Do you agree? Should decisions by government take into consideration public opinion? When it is it appropriate and when is it not?

State lottery officials are hoping to boost annual revenues from $50 million to $60 million, and are using focus groups to learn how to lure more people to buy lottery chances. Scratch tickets are more popular than the Tri-State Megabucks, and research has
found that the design of the scratch tickets affects their popularity. Online lottery use is also a growing sector. Which lottery form are you most likely to participate in, if any?
Can - and should - the state lottery commission work to increase sales?

With all the snow days used by Maine schools this winter, many won't close for summer vacation until June 20. Should the state waive the snow days and end school at the usual date? Or is it important that students get in a full school year? Extra credit question: should the U.S. go to year-round school?

With predictions of a deep and long national recession looming, are the financial needs here at home reason enough for the U.S. to withdraw troops from Iraq?
The fifth anniversary of the invasion will be marked on Wednesday. The U.S. has spent $3.3 trillion to invade, occupy and police Iraq, substantially more than the $50 billion the
Bush ad-ministration estimated in 2003. Whether or not the mission is noble, is there a point at which pressing financial needs in Maine and the U.S. are more critical, and
dictate a reallocation of the money?

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is being criticized for statements made by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, the pastor of the church he attends in Chicago. Rev. Wright
report-edly gave sermons that "damned" the United States. Is it fair to link Sen. Obama with Rev. Wright? Where do you draw the line? If a candidate's auto mechanic is charged with sex abuse, is the candidate implicated?

Last week, the state Department of Education announced the nominees for the Teacher of the Year honor, and none were from schools north of Lewiston; should central and northern Maine be insulted? Each individual school is encouraged to forward the name of one teacher to the superintendent, Education Commissioner Susan Gendron has said, and superintendents
then forward a nominee to the state department. But what happened then? Why are there no nominees from our neck of the woods? Were financially strapped school districts in

The Hancock County prosecutor doesn't want Travis White, who served six years in prison for molesting young boys, to return to his parents' home in Bucksport so he's been living at a homeless shelter. Is this safe for the community? Where should sex offenders go when they get out of jail?

Magnesium chloride, a kind of liquid road salt that has been shown to not corrode
vehicles, costs more than the calcium chloride now in use. Would you agree to a plan to
raise vehicle excise taxes by $20 to pay for the less corrosive salt? Or should road crews
return to using salted sand instead of the brine? Or should vehicle manufacturers learn to
make vehicles that resist corrosion?

For the first time since the mid-1980s, the University of Maine men's hockey team didn't make the play-offs. If you had been the coach, what would you have done differently? Which players would have seen more ice time? Who would have been benched? Should underclass-men have been given more ice time last year? What about next year?

As state lawmakers struggle to close a $200 million budget gap, the governor and
legislators are considering cutting funding to local schools and social service programs,
and working toward merging state agencies to save money. How would you slice and dice it? What programs get the ax and why?