Editorials
Last summer, when a new, deadly wave of COVID-19 infections gripped the nation, the only solace during that dark time was that a vaccine seemed possible, if not probable, within the year. It was the light in the proverbial tunnel, as distant and weak as it may have appeared at the moment.
A report issued (last) week shows just how challenging the rental market in Vermont has become. In order to afford a modest two-bedroom apartment at the Fair Market Rent in Vermont, full-time workers need to earn $23.68 an hour, or $49,258 annually, according to Out of Reach — a report relea…
President Biden and other world leaders are on the brink of an extraordinary agreement that could curb the maddening — and until now, seemingly insoluble — problem of corporate tax evasion. Success would mean hundreds of billions of dollars in new revenue for fixing crumbling infrastructure,…
As we celebrate this July Fourth while still tentatively emerging from the worst throes of the COVID-19 outbreak, it’s hard not to feel the weight of this year’s challenges. Foundational elements of the American experiment have been questioned from multiple directions. Rightly, the murder of…
First came the discovery of more than 200 unmarked graves at a burial site on a former Indian boarding school property in British Columbia. Then, just weeks later, came an even more appalling revelation: another 751 graves found at another former Indian school in Saskatchewan.
As much as political leaders and pundits like to cite scientific consensus as unarguable fact, consensus can change. New classification schemes can emerge. New information can shake loose even the most firmly held beliefs as the scientific method is impartial to politics or patronage. This f…
On the Fourth of July, we often invoke the founders, reflecting on their vision for America and how we might carry it forward into the future toward a more-perfect union. On this Independence Day, however, America must look in the mirror and acknowledge the recalcitrant structures that imped…
The record-breaking heat wave baking the West Coast is another painful sign that climate change is here, and we have to adapt.
The Department of Justice is supposed to be above politics.
Congratulations, Vermont. We did it. We moved the needle back to “normal.” First in the nation to do so.
Internal Revenue Service data obtained by ProPublica and published last week shows in black and white just how rigged toward the rich the U.S. tax code has become.
Last week, Connecticut joined the ranks of states that declared racism a public health crisis.
Columnists
Unless you count NPR, I haven’t listened to the radio in this century. Probably wouldn’t have started listening now, if iTunes hadn’t wiped out my 7,000-plus songs while syncing with my computer the other day, but we won’t go into the evilness of that here.
Covid precautions have been relaxed in Vermont and we’re hearing about transmission rates increasing in every state. Be thankful you live in Vermont. I traveled down to Georgia and I can honestly tell you that in this state they don’t give two hoots.
While CRT (Critical Race Theory) is getting headlines these days, CTS is really what’s going on.
There could not have been a better growth environment for Robinhood, the popular retail investment app, than the last two years.
First, it is essential to understand how the current crisis concerning homelessness and related matters far predates the current COVID-19 pandemic, where there have been large numbers of persons living unhoused and are, once again, being abandoned to reside on the streets, underneath bridges…
As right-leaning states become ever more extreme in their social policies and make life more difficult for residents who don’t share their political leanings, liberal states may want to begin planning for a political in-migration. For places like Vermont, this could be a boon to our economy;…
We really needed the rain … but did we need that much? I was riding my bike on Route 30 the other day and the ground is so saturated that it was pushing out of the cracks in the road. That’s a lot of water! But other than feeling like a passenger aboard the Titanic on day four of its maiden …
While companies scramble to find talent amid perceived “skills gaps” and “labor shortages,” their job postings exclude millions of qualified Americans. These applicants do not face this dispiriting experience because of race, ethnicity, gender, age or disability — these reasons would be ille…
Vermont pension plan participants are upset, and rightfully so!
When anyone alleges that they have a deal for me that seems to be too good to be true, it usually is (too good to be true) and sometimes the deal is not just a bad idea for me but has a broader impact.
“No greater opportunity, responsibility, or obligation can fall to the lot of a human being than to become a physician.” — Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine, 1950.
If you live here you have to be feeling moist. We’ve had rain for days and days on end. We got a one-day reprieve which was marvelous. We were able to get a quick road trip in on the one nice day, but that was about it. My significant other and I spent part of that evening mowing the lawn be…
Housing. It’s a topic on all of our minds lately. Whether I’m observing online conversations about COVID-related migrations and home prices jumping, debates around how to continue to help our houseless neighbors, or the morality of renovating old spaces into more expensive dwellings, the con…
Letters to the Editor
To the editor: Most people in our community know where I stand where the Windham Elementary School is concerned ("Windham Elementary closure up for vote," July 15), but I will happily say it again. I am an avid supporter of the school (remaining open) regardless of current numbers. Public ed…
To the editor: Frank Mazur’s letter ("The division continues ... getting wider," July 16) is a rambling diatribe covering over 20 topics in only 200 words. Nothing is supported with any fact or evidence. He uses recycled phrases from the Cold War about “protecting our way of life” designed t…
To the editor: As Tyler Resch notes (“Bill Scully’s advice to Vermont: Go hydro,” July 15), hydropower development is neglected in Vermont nowadays. It was not neglected a few decades ago, when small hydro power was rejuvenated in such places as rural Rockingham (Brockways Mills) on the Will…
To the editor: It was with great sadness that I learned, yesterday, of the recent passing of William Alan Hodson. “Dr. WAH,” as he was affectionately nicknamed, was my professor and advisor while I was an undergraduate student at the former School for International Training here in Brattleboro.
To the editor: The article you published on July 14 ("Windham Elementary closure up for vote"), which included people criticizing the Windham Elementary School program, is unbalanced. We hope that a follow-up article could include views from principal/teacher Mickey Parker-Jennings and admin…
To the editor: I was disappointed to read in the July 15 article in the Reformer ("Windham Elementary closure up for vote") that some people in Windham have submitted a petition to close the local elementary school. Of the 38 people that signed this petition, it is my understanding that only…
To the editor: You may have seen some of your neighbors in front of TDBank on Bonnet Street (Route 30 in Manchester), holding signs. (Similar protests have been held in front of the Brattleboro branch of TDBank). You may have asked yourself: “Why are they there? What are they protesting? Wha…
To the editor: Regarding the op-ed column, “American patriotism should start with fair tax laws” by Morris Pearl on July 7.
To the Editor: I am surprised that you printed the opinion letter from Frank Mazur on Friday ("The division continues ... getting wider"). He begins with a criticism of the current President based on “alternate facts” in a number or easily-checked categories, then turns to his main topic cri…
To the Editor: My heart and mind have been in South Africa this week. Monday I awoke to an avalanche of news from my friends and members of former congregations in Durban and Johannesburg about the country ‘going up in flames’ due to mass protests, looting, arson, vandalism, and violence of …
