Dear Editor:

Passage of the minimum wage law helps the working elderly and young families. Most of us tip for great service not knowing we have been paying half of the minimum wage salary — saving the owners a lot of money and making the tip not the "extra" income you had wanted to give. Eight states are doing it right and Maine makes nine. Local Ma and Pa restaurants are forced to pay the full minimum wage or higher as space for customers are too small to generate large minimum pay tips. LePage uses the "poor elderly” to challenge the legislature to do no harm implying any proposed budget changes would do harm to the elderly. The truth is most proposed budget items do harm to the elderly and young families.

As an American. I do not identify with any negative names tossed about including ideologue, liberal, socialist, rubber stamper, etc. Negative names shut down conversations causing elected officials to shut down their ears, hearts and brains, leaving most Maine citizens under-represented. This defies previous history when we did not do that to each other and managed to be leaders in budgets passed representing majority views.

Food funds cut for children “do no harm to the elderly?” Between food access to the elderly or the young, I opt for food for the young. Without food access we cause children permanent brain damage. Cutting income tax revenues and education funds harms elderly property owners. 

“Do no harm to elderly” requires minimum wage increases as cost of living grows. That is the math that supported the parents who went before us and is needed to benefit today's workers and retirees. Budgets include access to medical care. Cost of medical access hit the elderly and young families as salaries became lower and benefits were reduced in many non-union shops. Elderly were encouraged to stop annual physicals causing more ER visits with higher treatment costs.

Perhaps we need to stop using the elderly as a shield for harmful budgets and create budgets that do no harm to the majority of our citizens.

Jarryl Larson

Edgecomb