truckmen of Bucksport, ME Richard H., you have a right to be angry but don't blame Middle Easterners; do some research on the subject and look at the supply-and-demand issue(s). Also, consider that we 300,000,000-strong United States are only a part of the entire Earth, and there are 2, much larger countries just getting off the ground with a newly-strengthened economy. Each of them with over a billion civilians want the things we, Americans have been enjoying for generations...and they are just recently achieving their dreams. Their energy needs are among the reasons for the increased demand; that issue coupled with our reluctance since the 1070s to build new refineries are our problems. I am sure there are more issues I have not mentioned. Please research it and respond with new and updated info so that we all may be better informed.
truckmen@yahoo.comreport abuse

janice of Fairfield, ME With just a few comments to this article we already see the anger developing from those of us feeling powerless to do much about the high costs of energy. And we see the concern regarding the sluggishness of a state responding to a crisis that will be with us in 3-4 months.

Float a bond, train technicians, obtain the
equipment and material and go to work. If the planners cannot look forward, look back to Jimmy Carter, energy tax credits, and the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA). We have gone through this before.

We need a large trained and dedicated work force, furnished a reasonable wage. Is our National Guard available. or all in Iraq? Can we utilize FEMA in some constructive manner. Have we any leaders that can manage such an effort?
Why not immediately seek town and city governments to conduct a housing/insulation assessment to pull together the information needed to determine which homes will be insulated.

Who the hell is in charge?report abuse

reader of Portland-Boston, ME "Neighborhood teams would fan out this summer to winterize 5,000 homes in Maine"


--For the past 5-7 years a volunteering church group from Bridgewater,MASSACHUSETTS had been quietly traveling up to Northern Maine to winterize Maine homes,repairing roofs. Havent heard or read about this group lately,maybe they got sick of Massachusetts people getting badmouthed by Mainers.report abuse

Richard Hertz of Vassalboro, ME In this country? America, the strongest country in the world, we need warming shelters due to oil prices! We are being driven back into the stone age by a bunch of middle eastern hoodlums! Why don't we find a few caves and burn wood? This American congress is a bunch of A55holez for allowing this to happen and the voters that put them there are STUPID!report abuse