Imagine the Red Sox win the World Series in a clean sweep. But the defeated team pressures Major League Baseball to change the rules and retroactively apply them.

Under the new rules, the victory is overridden, and the other team declared the winner.

But there is another twist — for all future games, the umpires will not be trained employees of MLB, but politicians who will ultimately pick winners based on their personal preferences.

Insane, right? But something similar is happening right here in Maine.

For the last five years, the backers of a transmission line to bring inexpensive, clean hydropower to our power grid have been diligently following all the rules and securing all the permits and approvals needed to advance the project.

But opponents of the project are seeking to change the rules and apply them retroactively in the form of Question 1 this November. If the referendum passes, it will ban the project. And the referendum also says that for future major transmission lines, politicians will decide whether they get approved.

This is not only wrong and unfair — it also sets a terrible precedent for Maine. When companies consider investing in Maine, they need to know that they will be treated fairly. This referendum, if passed, will destroy that essential confidence, and tell businesses that Maine is not a place that can be trusted.

Those who support fairness should vote no on this referendum. The team that wins four World Series games wins. Period.

Jim Cyr, Auburn