A Maine Citizen on LePage

A little while back, we were talking about Maine Governor LePage’s intention to repeal environmental laws, including their first-in-the-nation electronics waste recycling program. It was the source of many comments on LinkedIn, Twitter, our blog and our emails.

Later, we published a response to LePage from state rep. Melissa Walsh Innes, who brought us a scathing criticism of the newly appointed governor.

Today, we bring you a different perspective, this time from an independent contractor from the state.

As always, we’re keen to hear your thoughts, be it on email, Twitter, or in the comments box below. Now, here’s Peter Brown.

My biggest concern with regard to your question is the potential setback to business’ adopting the precautionary principle which requires anticipating and assuming the cost of adverse effects that may result from its decisions. This is something I doubt the governor has the depth of intelligence to consider. Obviously he lacks any sort of precautionary principle in making decisions about his personal conduct and its impact on Maine and its citizens. I expect to see that all of his decisions will have an ultimate agenda that is a set back to any progress we’ve made in solving the puzzle of how we are going to sustain ourselves in a world of ever scarce resources.

With respect to Rep. Innes’s comments I would add that there is more than the jobs directly created through product stewardship programs at stake. A great deal of the citizens and businesses in Maine would agree that these programs make good sense all the way around. The better businesses will have voluntary programs any way just in the spirit of good corporate citizenship, a trait that customers are appreciating to ever increasing levels.

Rep. Innes does not make a secret of her low opinion of LePage, but who can blame her? He’s a down right embarrassment to the state of Maine!