Both Political Parties in Maine Choose Global Capitalism Economics Over Environment !

TWEET THIS USING THIS SHORT LINK http://goo.gl/i1bNrZ

I created this statutory timeline- which includes targeted research of the 2013 Maine Legislative session to try to develop cash flow from my unpaid research efforts on this blog, as far as that intention goes, the statutory Time Line is a resounding failure.

The Upside is that I am now more informed that I would have been if I had not created the timeline- it's very useful in political debates because I know exactly where to go to get the facts in support of my own argument- which is this timeline- which you can receive by sending a contribution ( suggested $10.00 but whatever you can afford- more or less) to mackenzie@andersenstudio.com via PayPal.

That said when I saw this article in the Portland Press Herald- I just took it to be nothing more that partisan politics because I know that both sides put the interests of business above the interests of the environment and the general public:

(The Partisan Political Group) Maine League of Conservation Voters spends $400k for contrast ad

So I don't have much time these days to write for this blog, but the timeline comes in handy for that too. In response to the partisan politics by the Maine League of Conservation, I am posting this from my timeline, which shows that the business interests of Maine State Inc trump all in this state with both parties and independents.

My timeline shows an even distribution of all parties including Independents since 1979 and to present where in every administration has advanced the construction of a corporate state working in the interests of global capitalism- because that's where the big bucks are! I can be so blunt because I am so completely independent in publishing this blog!

That said I think Steve Mistler has shown integrity in reporting this as a partisan politics endorsement- which it is- and I am not endorsing anyone but I hate it when I see the environment used as a tool of partisan politics.

The Following Is An Exerpt From A maine Citizen's Journey Through The Statutes of Transformation 

Emulating Comrade China’s Road Map to Success

2013 JOINT RESOLUTION AFFIRMING THE FRIENDSHIP BETWEEN THE STATE OF MAINE AND THE REPUBLIC OF CHINA

Beginning with this statement:

WHEREAS,  the United States and the Republic of China, known as Taiwan, share a most important relationship supported by our common values of freedom, democracy, rule of law and commitment to a free market economy; and…….

Commentary: It goes on to list the economic reasons-and to establish that,  China is on board with “climate change” (actually “pollution”- which is not the same as climate change) -China,having  risen to the top of global economic status by offering companies cost-savings in the form of minimalistic environmental and health considerations, is now changing its tune:

Combating pollution has shot up the agenda of the ruling Communist Party, which for years pushed for rapid economic development with little concern about the environmental impact. Under public pressure to reduce the air pollution that blankets Beijing and cities across China, the country’s leaders are rebalancing their priorities. China Declares War on Pollution-NY POST

Meanwhile  China is making hegemonic moves on the Pacific Rim. Hegemony is a common value that Maine State Inc shares with The People's Republic of China.

Assistant secretary of state for East Asia, in February labeled China’s claim to almost all of the South China Sea, hundreds of miles from its shoreline, as “inconsistent with international law.Danny Russel”

Admiral Harry Harris, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, told an Australian audience on April 9: “I am concerned by the aggressive growth of the Chinese military, their lack of transparency, and a pattern of increasingly assertive behavior in the region.” Bloomberg News Apr 22, 2014

2013, May An Act To Implement the Recommendations of the Right To Know Advisory Committee Concerning Public Access to Records Relating to Public-private Partnerships

Sponsored by : Senator Millett
Co-Sponsored by: Senator Langley, and Representatives Daughtry, MacDonald, Malaby, Nelson, Parry, Pouliot, and Sirocki

SUMMARY

This bill implements the majority recommendation of the Right To Know Advisory Committee.

Current law requires that the Department of Transportation submit to the Legislature a bill that authorizes the agreement that implements a public-private partnership for the development of a transportation facility. This bill requires the department to publish public notice on the department's publicly accessible website or in newspapers when it has determined that a public-private proposal and agreement meets the standards of the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 23, chapter 410, subchapter 5 and to wait at least 30 days after the public notice has been published to submit the bill.

This regards a conflict of interest between the communities right to know and freedom of access to information concerning toxic and hazardous substances vs business advantages to the Department of Transportation and public-private relationships in attracting large corporations to the state by keeping the confidentiality provision on as it is - protected as a trade secret pursuant

to 1985  Part 3: 487, §11 Chapter 271: HEALTH PROGRAMS:Subchapter 2: COMMUNITY HEALTH INVESTIGATION AND INFORMATION§1696-F. Provision of information; trade secrets (1989 ) ( See David Hastings Testimony)

Testimonies:

Bellows, Shenn	Maine ACLU
Hastings, David	Right to Know Committee/7th Annual Right To Know Report

QUOTE from 1985  Part 3: 487, §11 Chapter 271: HEALTH PROGRAMS:Subchapter 2: COMMUNITY HEALTH INVESTIGATION AND INFORMATION

The Legislature determines that it is in the public interest for the State to examine its emergency response mechanisms and procedures for accidents involving hazardous materials, to establish a comprehensive program for the disclosure of information about hazardous substances in the community and to provide a procedure whereby residents of this State may gain access to this information.[1985, c. 494, §2 (NEW).]

QUOTE from 1987 Maine Development Foundation, Maine Economic Growth Council -Findings & Intent:

There is a need to establish is a new basis for a creative partnership of the private and public sectors for economic development, a partnership which can capitalize on the interests, resources and efforts of each sector, but which does not compromise the public interest or the profit motive. The state's solitary burden to provide for development should lessen through involving the private sector in a leadership role. [1977, ( emphasis mine)

Ought Not to Pass Pursuant To Joint Rule 310, May 23, 2013

Current Status of Section on Confidentiality:

10-A. Confidential information.   Information submitted to the department relating to a public-private partnership proposal under this subchapter is confidential and not a public record under Title 1, chapter 13, subchapter 1 if the private entity submitting the information designates the information as being only for the confidential use of the department and if:

A. The information is a trade secret as defined in Title 10, section 1542, subsection 4; or [2013, c. 208, §3 (NEW).]

B. Disclosure of the information would result in a business or competitive disadvantage, loss of business, invasion of privacy or other significant detriment to the private entity to whom the record belongs or pertains. [2013, c. 208, §3 (NEW).]

If legal action is filed to gain access to the information designated as confidential under this subsection, the private entity must defend its designation and the department shall release the information in accordance with the order of the reviewing court. Failure to defend the designation under this subsection constitutes a waiver of confidentiality by the private entity and the department shall release the information.

[ 2013, c. 208, §3 (NEW) .]

2013 Confucius Institute installed at the University of Southern Maine- The Confucius Institute partners with  the Dongbei University of Finance and Economics. which features a departmental focus on globalism: , International Cooperation Office , School Of International Business, International Institute of Chinese Language and Culture, Global Institute of Management and Economics

McDonnell said banned topics and questions of academic freedom were never an issue in USM's negotiations with Hanban, and the university made no agreements about topics that could not be discussed."Our (program) is really designed with our school of education to teach Chinese language, so we're not confronted with those issues," he said.Hanban, which provides the instructors and materials, also gave USM $150,000 in startup funds, and will provide about $100,000 a year to administer the institute, depending on the level of programming it offers, McDonnell said There is no cost to USM, which has struggled with deep budget cuts in recent years that have led to the elimination of some programs and instructors. Maine leaders laud wisdom of Confucius Institute PPH

Pursuant to 1995  Part 1: GENERAL PROVISIONS Chapter 1: GENERAL PROVISIONS S10. Education Research Institute. The Joint Steering Committee has jurisdiction over educational matters.I can’t locate a steering committee, which is said to be a sub-committee of the standing committee.  Here is a list of members of the Joint Standing Committee for Education 126th Legislature 2013

Education and Cultural Affairs

Senate: Rebecca J. Millett, Chair (D-Cumberland)

Christopher K. Johnson (D-Lincoln)

Brian D. Langley (R-Hancock)

House: W. Bruce MacDonald, Chair (D-Boothbay)

Mary Pennell Nelson (D-Falmouth)

Helen Rankin (D-Hiram)

Matthea Elisabeth Larsen Daughtry (D-Brunswick)

Brian L. Hubbell (D-Bar Harbor)

Victoria P. Kornfield (D-Bangor)

Peter B. Johnson (R-Greenville)*

Joyce A. Maker (R-Calais)

Michael D. McClellan (R-Raymond)

Matthew G. Pouliot (R-Augusta)

Madonna M. Soctomah (Passamaquoddy Tribe)

Here is a description of the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee’s authority- interesting to note that it includes jurisdiction of Maine Public Broadcasting - How Banana Republic !

Education and Cultural Affairs.  Department of Education; State Board of Education; school finance, governance and administration; school budgets; school facilities; curriculum, instruction and assessment; teachers and administrators; special education and child development services; education of deaf and hard-of-hearing students; career and technical education; alternative education, school choice and home schooling; truancy and dropouts; educational services at juvenile correctional facilities; adult education; Maine Education Policy Research Institute; University of Maine System; Maine Community College System; Maine Maritime Academy; post secondary education finance and governance; student assistance programs at Finance Authority of Maine; and cultural affairs, including Maine Arts Commission, Maine State Library, Maine State Museum and Maine Public Broadcasting Corporation.

Commentary: The rhetoric used to sell the Confucius Institute switches between “its a school of Chinese language and culture”- and “it is good for our economic development relationships with China” depending on the context in which the rhetoric is being delivered

UPDATE JUNE 2014

LePage, Loring officials heading to China for talks with company US

penalized in 2003 for arms deal with Iran

Norinco, a conglomerate that manufactures products, including military weapons

systems and firearms, was sanctioned in 2003 by the U.S. government for allegedly

providing ballistic missile systems to Iran. In the 1990s, it was sanctioned and

prohibited from selling its firearms in the United States after being implicated in a sting

operation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. That ban expired

in 2007.

In May, the organization Human Rights Watch reported the company’s name was found

on canisters of chlorine gas allegedly used in a chemical attack in Syria, which the

company denied, according to Bloomberg. Bangor Daily News