Fast forward to 2019. This actually is a very accurate picture of how things were in 2008. Maine finally got smart and elected governor Paul Lepage. The Liberals foamed at the mouth, as the liberal Democrat strongholds (economy)over the state was starting to melt for the first time in 30 something years: not to mention LePage had a rather...crude way of talking, often getting in hot water with the press etc(despite the fact that everyone who whined about his manner of discourse, most likely spoke like that or worse) Lepage literally turn the economy around, and by the time he left office after two terms, there was a sizable surplus, and consumers & the mood in th estate was positive for the 1st time in a long time(except for those who live within a victim-oriented mindset)
Unfortunately, there were enough left-leaning liberals in the state to have elected Janet Mills, who has not only squandered that huge surplus away already, but is literally working hard to turn our state into an eastern version of California, which is so very very unfortunate.
Maine is an absolutely beautiful state, with our coastline topping the list for me. The fall season is spectacular as well. Our cold season is very long, and very hard, and is what causes a lot of people to give up after moving here from somewhere else., and is also a good part of the overhead of living in Maine, financially speaking. The heating costs can be high; our roads are treated with salt and sand for many months, and this is why our vehicles suffer horribly. We have an annual state inspection, which can be maddening for the struggling middle-class, as we work to keep our cars & trucks patched up..
Our vehicle excise taxes which are paid yearly, are obscene, and in my opinion, immoral. Example: if I buy a 30-year-old BMW 7 series , fix it up and register it, I am going to pay excise tax based on the original MSRP, which could be a few hundred dollars, which is obscene for a car that could be falling apart.
Maine has gotten a little too good at tapping into any possible revenue stream. Maybe Government mandated permits are the same everywhere, but an example here would be in my town, my wife wanted to do private music lessons in the home, so of course a permit is required which is $60 a year. We also had to apply for a dig permit to put in a mandated crushed gravel turn around, which would have cost us several hundred dollars. It can be deflating and frustrating... and more so, now that we have a governor who seem hellbent on squandering what she was handed.
The outcry against her leftist policy has been SO bad, that Paul Lepage is actually looking at coming back from Florida, and running again for governor, to try & reclaim the once thriving state... If this happens, and he wins again, my hope and that of many others , will be rekindled, and I will delay/give up any thoughts of potentially moving out of state, which would be somewhat depressing for me.(a financially-driven decision solely)
BTW, she recently passed a bill that mandates ALL vaccinations before anyone can attend ANY school in Maine(even on-line!), or work in a healthcare facility.
There is a serious citizen-driven backlash to this, and a significant effort has been mounted to get a peoples veto question on the ballot. Many children here would be forced into either homeschooling, or forced to leave the state as a result of this draconian bill.
Portland is of course our major city, and much is said and written about it. It has become a very hipster and immigrant-friendly city. As Maine's most populous city, it is of course completely dominated by a liberal paradigm, and they clearly run the show in Portland. Our current governor has expressed that the immigrants coming are necessary to achieving a diverse workforce & economy, etc. etc. but she’s really talking about illegal immigrants, and from what I see, that segment is not working very hard at assimilating into our culture(raise yer hand if you're shocked). She appears to want to increase the size of the welcome mat for “refugees“, but the Maine people are already very highly taxed, so I’m not sure how that is going to work out over the next decade or so.
I worked in Portland in IT for20+ years, The last 16 were commuting from Lewiston/ Auburn area. The traffic started to get really bad toward the end(295 between Portland & Yarmouth), as more people came and bought homes outside of the city and commuted in.
Speaking of salaries, Maine is all over the map, depending where you are. I’ll take the IT industry, since it’s the one I know. You might be a hot shot in IT, and make $70-$90,000-$100k+ in Portland. You might drive an hour up the turnpike, and that salary typically will drop by $10-$40,000 +/-. Drive another hour, and you’re looking at possibly a 50% drop in salary for the same skill set. The hospitals tend to pay fairly well, except if you get too far out of Portland, they fall off dramatically, though to be fair, so do the housing prices.
Maine has a long & rich history of rugged folk. We are known for our independence , and semi-stoic nature. We are hearty, & long-suffering, but we do a fair share of complaining about it. :)
Like most places that see folk move from more urban places, we traditional/conservative types chafe at the leftist policies that creep into our communities/schools etc. The liberal collectivist/Statist mindset is set against our way of thinking by & large: though that's changing with the more liberal folk who make their home here.
Food? umm 2 words: "Lob-Ster"...
ok 2 more: "Whoopie-Pies"
Beer? Plenty
Music? Portland is of course the hub.. fairly diverse range to be had
Outdoor Sports? Are you kidding?
Arts? Very vibrant arts
Religious life? It's all here
Weather? if you don't like it...wait 5 minutes
Cost of living? High
Friendliness? We're friendly: especially as you get into the smaller towns... sometimes you just have to get to know folk a little, then you see how warm we can be
Business friendly? hmm was getting that way with LePage...we'll see what the stats bear out as we bump along with Mills...I'm not hopeful however..
Crime? yeah, we've got that
Drugs? Yup..see above
Jobs? Seems like there are a lot of open IT positions most times..again, outside of the "big" cities...wages drop off sharply
Bottom line: I'm content to live here until I die, if that be the Lords will.
So far, it's been worth it, even having to scrape by at times, maybe not have all the toys/big house on acres...to then be able to drive the family to the coast, and stand on the beautiful Atlantic shoreline...
Hope this helps
rich |
Auburn, ME |
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