Editor:



With $30,000,000 of debt and our population equals 22,000, that is only
$1,363 per person. Because my three kids and wife don’t have their
$1,363, that leaves me to come up with total $6,800. And the housing
project behind us probably don’t have theirs so that (11 apartments at
three people per unit) is an additional $44,979 giving me a total of
$51,779. Our friends Joy and Lee and their kids can take their $5,452
plus Red Bank tenants, whose rent is subsidized, and my neighbor Jeff
can take his $2,726 plus Brick Hill.



How depressing. The point being that who is capable of paying? These
per capita numbers must be reasonably evaluated. I know it’s tough
because we all had public educations and our educators sit on the City
Council.



When looking at this debt one needs to ask oneself if the procurement
is an expense or an investment. Investments produce a revenue stream.
Expenses typically are a cost of execution/consumption. For example:
when we had our driveway paved we wrote a check for $1,200. It is nice
to have a paved driveway but the family does not need it to exist. When
we purchased an apartment complex we borrowed money for the mortgage
and repairs including a new parking surface.



The income stream from rental incomes paid the mortgage, including
improvements, operational cost such as plowing etc.. and funded future
projects such as roof replacement while leaving a net income of several
thousand dollars.



An example of an income stream was the State of Maine liquor Stores.
Another is Mega Bucks. When Governor Baldacci wanted to sell the future
earnings of Mega Bucks to balance his budget it struck me clearly that
we have severe financial issues. Would you sell your next year’s wages
today so that you could catch-up on a bills that you have allowed to
pile up. And then what? Eat bark and live in the garage.



Essentially, our great city has used their credit card to purchase
street paving because they could not manage to set aside money for
future work. Fiscal discipline is required. Are these streets going to
need to be repaved before the bonds are retired?



Dirigo Health Care is a mess also. The “collective” may work for the
Borg but not for Maine. Baldacci also wants free internet access for
northern Maine. Why? So they can sit home and watch porn. If they need
the internet they can get wireless access from Hughes/Directv and pay
for it themselves.



Be sure to vote.

Jim Hoy

South Portland