As the debate heats up over banning sweet snacks from school vending machines in Maine, it may be worth noting that Coca-Cola Co. has just awarded a grant of $1 million to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry for the fight against tooth decay among children. Coming soon – Pointed Stick Inc. teams up with the National Eyepatch Foundation.

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Remember Almon Braswell, the businessman whose last-minute pardon by Bill Clinton was one of the most controversial after it was discovered he’d paid the president’s brother-in-law $200,000 for “help” with his case?

Now, he’s under arrest again, this time for conspiracy to avoid $13 million in federal income taxes, and faces up to 51 years in prison. Do you think trying to take that $200,000 as a deduction was a red flag for the IRS?

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Speaking of red flags, the 2003 version of the Maine Economic Growth Council’s annual “Measures of Growth” report contains plenty of those warning signs, and a few gold stars for progress. The downside includes such things as low personal income and percentage of jobs that pay a livable wage, high household debt, high local and state tax burdens, high cost of health care. The upside includes the number of people using the internet and the amount of land conserved for recreation. The report notes that Maine’s overall economic standing is virtually unchanged since 1994, suggesting that policy-makers may have taken that red flag about all work and no play a bit too seriously.

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Members of the Legislature’s Education and Cultural Affairs Committee believe the state poet laureate should be reimbursed for travel expenses to schools to spread the word about poetry. Rather than make an appropriation for this purpose, however, the committee voted to establish a fund to accept private donations from the public. That’s putting your money where their mouth is.