Comments on: This Week at South Berwick Town Hall http://the236diner.com/2008/08/04/this-week-at-south-berwick-town-hall-17/ Life in South Berwick, Maine Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:20:59 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.1 By: guest http://the236diner.com/2008/08/04/this-week-at-south-berwick-town-hall-17/#comment-2381 guest Thu, 07 Aug 2008 03:55:24 +0000 http://the236diner.com/2008/08/04/this-week-at-south-berwick-town-hall-17/#comment-2381 Someone brought cows to the cove. It was a big deal. They built the kings highway and took away the tall pines. Back in my day farmers harvested in the fall, reclaimed and cleaned seeds, and planted in the spring. In 1980 the US Supreme Court allowed a company to patent seeds. Seeds. The genetic repository of the food we eat. Farmers who purchase roundup ready seeds are required to sign an agreement promising not to save the seed after harvest; they need to buy new seed every year. That's just odd. Should we have local control over the local economy or big business control over an economy that is increasingly globalized? Is it elitist to say that we do not always embrace what is in our best interest? Should we be able to determine the terms and conditions on which goods, services, and financial assets are made and traded? The answer is yes. Box stores promote consumer culture. Things arrive magically in container ships from other continents: plastic cups, a fourth pair of blue jeans, a lawn mower. Sixty five percent of the American economy is based on purchasing objects. To call this consumption is a bit misleading because we don't eat these things; we throw them into landfills when we are done with them. In Europe less than half the economy is based on purchasing things. Do you want to facilitate the sale of commodities? Do you want to open up a racquetball club? A hardware store? An organic farm with an indoor playground? Talk to the neighbors first. Do something fun. Life is too short not to be creative. Have a vision. And once you have it, remember § 140-50 related to amusement centers. A. In addition to automobile parking spaces required in this chapter, all amusement centers shall provide facilities for the parking of bicycles. Bicycle racks shall be located off the sidewalk or other pedestrian way, and away from automobile traffic lanes. A minimum of one space for every two amusement devices shall be provided. Take the time to read the fine print. Before they are enacted, make sure the laws say what you want them to say. Someone brought cows to the cove. It was a big deal. They built the kings highway and took away the tall pines. Back in my day farmers harvested in the fall, reclaimed and cleaned seeds, and planted in the spring. In 1980 the US Supreme Court allowed a company to patent seeds. Seeds. The genetic repository of the food we eat. Farmers who purchase roundup ready seeds are required to sign an agreement promising not to save the seed after harvest; they need to buy new seed every year. That’s just odd.

Should we have local control over the local economy or big business control over an economy that is increasingly globalized?

Is it elitist to say that we do not always embrace what is in our best interest? Should we be able to determine the terms and conditions on which goods, services, and financial assets are made and traded? The answer is yes. Box stores promote consumer culture. Things arrive magically in container ships from other continents: plastic cups, a fourth pair of blue jeans, a lawn mower. Sixty five percent of the American economy is based on purchasing objects. To call this consumption is a bit misleading because we don’t eat these things; we throw them into landfills when we are done with them. In Europe less than half the economy is based on purchasing things.

Do you want to facilitate the sale of commodities? Do you want to open up a racquetball club? A hardware store? An organic farm with an indoor playground? Talk to the neighbors first. Do something fun. Life is too short not to be creative. Have a vision. And once you have it, remember § 140-50 related to amusement centers. A. In addition to automobile parking spaces required in this chapter, all amusement centers shall provide facilities for the parking of bicycles. Bicycle racks shall be located off the sidewalk or other pedestrian way, and away from automobile traffic lanes. A minimum of one space for every two amusement devices shall be provided.

Take the time to read the fine print. Before they are enacted, make sure the laws say what you want them to say.

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