If this outbreak of Eco-Whackoism had been quarantined in Shapleigh, the disease might have died out. But the germs spread to Newfield, and positive tests are showing up in places as widely scattered as Wells, Hancock, and Lamoine. Now, there's a bill in the Legislature that would allow any municipality to ignore the Constitution in deciding how to deal with an application from a water-bottling company — or any other corporation conducting any other type of business.
You don't need a law degree to figure that if this measure passes, it's going to have a difficult time surviving a legal challenge. And you don't need a medical-school degree to diagnose EW. All you need to do is read this comment Rick Burns, a former legislator and author of the anti-corporate measure, gave to the Portland Press Herald.
"This is a bill that welcomes any business that wants to come into any municipality in the state of Maine," Burns said. "It lays out the groundwork that the first order of business is respect for the community you come into."
You could understand why a corporation that heard that twisted take on the bill's intent might decide it would be healthier to set up shop elsewhere.
Like Saudi Arabia.
If seemingly healthy people can be convinced by political sickos to deny constitutional rights to water bottlers, how long will it be before these extremists go after other targets, such as loggers, resort developers, franchise-business owners, and farmers (only the non-organic ones, of course)?
If Germany in the 1930s was any indication, not long.
If you think I'm all wet, e-mail me at aldiamon@herniahill.net.
