Jon Reisman

I ended the winter with a trip to Portland for the climate alarmist conference. I dragged my retired tweeds out of the back of the closet and joined several hundred (at least) very concerned and committed climate alarmists determined to pursue policies that raise our energy prices, have an adverse disparate impact on the poorer and more rural 2nd Congressional District, and avert no global warming/climate change whatsoever. 

I'm afraid I was something of a skunk at the garden party, although I did manage not to get thrown out for disruptive behavior (the tweeds and the University of Maine at Machias conference ID badge probably helped).

I started the trip with a stop in Brunswick to visit Linda, the widow of my best friend, Frank Heller. Frank was an entrepreneur, baker, computer geek, political operative, and school choice advocate. He served as my campaign treasurer for my ill-fated 1998 congressional challenge to John Baldacci. I miss him badly. I do a weekly Zoom with Linda.

After spending Wednesday afternoon with Linda, I drove down to Portland and met Karen Konicki, my late wife Ernestine’s best high school friend and maid of honor at our wedding 47 years ago. Karen and I also hold a weekly Zoom, and she agreed to join me at the climate alarmist conference for companionship, moral support, and security — my columns and political advocacy have produced some threats from the red-green alliance of environmentalists, socialists, and Islamists. 

Karen is short, but fiery, a York County Mainer who made a go of it as a fashion/clothing entrepreneur in New York City for more than 30 years. Her friendship and support have been important parts of adjusting to being a widower.

I met fellow skunk-at-the-garden-party Jim Labrecque at the Thompson’s Point brick meeting building/warehouse. Jim and I have been communicating for some time as a consequence of his Wednesday morning appearances on WVOM to speak on climate and energy policy. I have joined Jim in his support for GOP gubernatorial candidate Bobby Charles and a sane climate energy policy. We agreed to continue to work together and possibly do some joint WVOM appearances over the coming months.

I’ve been to political events for both the left and right recently, and noticed an interesting difference. Leftist-oriented events (Graham Platner town halls and the climate alarmist conference) with tightly controlled recording, requiring anyone wishing to do so to get permission and consent to some rules. I have observed no such restrictions at Republican/right-leaning events.

I pressed some of the climate alarmist speakers, including the president of Central Maine Power and the Efficiency Maine hucksters (my heat pump electricity bill from Eastern Maine Electric Cooperative is no bargain), to recognize the damaging consequences of policies that raise our energy prices, have an adverse disparate impact on the poorer and more rural second CD and avert no climate change whatsoever. I had hoped to question some of the eminent climate policy experts on the matter, but it was not to be.

I paid $3.79 a gallon for gas on the drive home. Thank you, climate alarmists, for pursuing higher energy prices without any climate benefit. The virtue signaling benefit must be substantial.

Jon Reisman is an economist and policy analyst who retired from the University of Maine at Machias after 38 years. He resides on Cathance Lake in Cooper, where he is a Statler and Waldorf intern. Mr. Reisman’s views are his own, and he welcomes comments as letters to the editor here or to him directly via email at jreisman@maine.edu.