Awesome letter to the
governor. Sign me up as a parent of five. How do I protect them against
possible abuse by a friend's parent, a coach, etc. since I can't follow
them around all the time? I raise them to be resisters!
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This bill is a
classic case of hysterical over reaction. I hear proponents sanctimoniously
say that if the bill saves only one child it will be worth the enormous
cost. Given that the federal government classifies student abuse in schools
as "statistically insignificant, one child saved is probably about
what we can expect from this law. If this is the case, and we save one
child, then this law will be a monument to government inefficiency that
would make the military's $5000 toilet seats look like a blue light
special! If the Department of Human Services were given the money that
would be spent fingerprinting teachers, they would be able to save bus loads
of students. Allen Graffam |
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Congratulations on your
web site. Keep up the good work. I know we will win this fight. Sincerely, Joanne Twomey (state legislator) |
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Thanks for the work you
have done and are continuing to do to make this a state we can be proud to
live in instead of the shame and despair we feel now. Perhaps people will
be awakened from their stupor by the news this is generating and realize
they might be next. Ron Franklin |
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Linda, Great! Put me on the list. I'm a parent and I oppose this invasive and unnecessary law. Don Tarbet |
Excellent choice of words. I am furious about this entire ordeal. It is about time we stood up
and fought back. Being a mother of three and a school staff member as well, I fully agree that
this is a violation of my privacy. Keep up the great job.
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I am a school bus driver of 20 yrs +. Although I have submitted to the fingerprinting, I am
totally against it and will support any meaningful movement to rid us of this blight as it
stands now. Carleton Greely |
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I am a parent of a second grader and a kindergardener to be. Fingerprinting teachers is a
violation of their most basic rights and is an ill-advised, irrational and overly swift
response to the fears of our society. Lest we forget, this is horribly reminiscent of the
beginnings of the Nuremburg Laws that culminated in the Holocaust. Anne Richardson |
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Thank you for your interest and support. This has been quite a startling revelation to me about
how much the State of Maine (as well as the nation) has changed over the past 25 years or so. I
lived in the Bath area back in the late '70's, while my former husband served in the military. I
fell in love with Maine and left with great regret when we were transferred. I subsequently
finished my BA and MA degrees in History, and began a career teaching in the community college
system of North Carolina. All the while, I kept alive a hope that someday I might find an
opportunity to continue my career in Maine, my favorite place to be. Imagine how thrilled I was
to be hired at MSSM. I happily left my full-time college position to come and teach Maine's kids.
Little did I know that a fairly substantial number of people in power in this state had taken
leave of their senses, and would pass a law requiring me to be fingerprinted like a suspect in a
criminal case. Not only that, but the law would even apply to people already teaching in the
system, no matter how many years of faithful service they had given the state. Maine seems to
have lost its long and honorable heritage of respect for liberty, and especially for the civil
liberties of the individual. I am profoundly saddened by that. And had I known how much liberty
in this state has eroded over the years, I would have stayed where I was. As it is, having
invested everything I had in coming back to Maine, and being of an age where finding any
appropriate employment is a serious problem, I am in a difficult position, and hope with all my
heart that the legislature will come to its senses on this and approve an amendment that would
at least give people like me a bit of breathing space before we have to present ourselves to the
police (! ! ! ! !) to be fingerprinted, or lose our jobs. My household is single income; I'm
it, and there are people who depend on me. And living in northern Aroostook County, there isn't
much alternative employment available. I love my work, I love my kids, and I have obligations to
my family. I've never harmed anyone in my life. I just want my liberties to be honored and
respected, as the Constitution promised they would be. I am prepared to go to court over this,
which at the very least would be an expensive nuisance for the State of Maine. Please pass that
amendment, and override Gov. King's inevitable veto. He won't be governor forever; why should he
be allowed to impose this on the teachers of Maine? (letter written to Rep Joanne Twomey) Ann McHugh |
I have two sons and am wondering how this law will actually protect them while they are in
school. Will it stop future abusers who have no record? Will it stop past abusers who have not
record? I think not. Why can't the state address the problems of abuse in the State of Maine.
Stop accusing the innocent and get to the heart of the problem.
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Although I'm a teacher and a refuser, I'm also the stepfather of a high school girl. Repeal
fingerprinting! Bernie Huebner |
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Thank you for providing this forum for concerned parents and students to express their views.
Parents must remember that any rights taken away now will be hard for your children to get back
later and may never be regained. You need to protect children now but not at their future
expense. Ron and Barbara Franklin |
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