For as excited as the world seemed to be that Captain Kirk finally made it to space, it was a prince who provided the proper perspective.
Approximately a quarter-century ago, when the only things going viral were viruses, the smooth-as-molasses drawl of William Jefferson Clinton saw us through numerous crises, including the first World Trade Center bombing and mass murders at the Oklahoma City Federal Building and Columbine Hi…
“We won’t go.”
For much of the past year, the Vermont Climate Council – formed as a result of the enactment of the Global Warming Solutions Act in 2020 – has been hard at work crafting a plan for Vermont that will achieve the state’s statutory goal of dramatically reducing climate pollution. This work will…
On his voyage across the Atlantic in 1630, John Winthrop, one of Massachusetts’s founders, wrote a sermon in which he described the colony they were establishing as “a city upon a hill.” He was quoting the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus likened his followers to a lamp on a hill that gives l…
We better come to terms with solar panels soon.
Given the multiple volumes revealing the previous administration’s willingness to circumvent protocol, regulations and even laws, the inherent danger of these Books of Revelation is that, as the outrageous becomes commonplace, our tendency is to file it all under “bad” without absorbing prec…
In the introduction to “The World-Ending Fire: The Essential Wendell Berry,” there is a quote from writer Paul Kingsworth: “In patience, in slowness, there is hope. In the places where we often deposit our hopes, meanwhile, there is less.”
Back when telephones still had dials, I attended one of those 1960s junior highs that reformers like to slap around, where teachers focused on content, disruptive students were sent to the offices and middle schools hadn’t yet enabled American students to excel in math selfsesteem while they…
I don’t know about you, but lately I’ve been experiencing whiplash from the ethical and moral hairpin turns becoming so common in the public life of our country. Just a few of them: Vaccination, who should be required to get it and who (if any) should be exempted? How should the subject of s…
A Sept. 30 front-page story in this newspaper reported on a meeting eight local legislators and business leaders had with a representative of an executive search firm. The purpose of the gathering was to identify important qualities in the first president of Vermont State University.
What does the world’s drift toward authoritarianism tell us about the nature of humankind? It gives us an indication that mankind is more comfortable when told what to do than when making its own decisions.
Monday this week, like the two days before it, was gray and drizzly. It was also the Feast of St. Francis, that cheerful, optimistic, 13th-century Italian friar who’s most often pictured with birds on his shoulder, animals around his feet and a halo about his head. The day before in church, …
Recently, hundreds of equestrian lovers, historians and many others gathered at the UVM Morgan Horse Farm in Weybridge to celebrate the centennial of “Figure,” a statue of the Morgan horse. Vermonter Justin Morgan, who owned Figure in the late-1700s, created the Morgan breed with Figure as i…
A new survey is confirming what we already know to be true: COVID is taking a toll on our households.
Vermont is experiencing, first-hand, the far-reaching impacts of climate change and the global nature crisis. Winter temperatures are rising and snowfall totals are dropping, while many species of wildlife are shifting their ranges further to the north and higher in elevation if they can, or…
As I first push off, the water meets along my spine, like a theater curtain closing after the final act, reminding me September is dwindling and however fiery the trees along the bank, the lake is losing heat each day. The inevitable drop in temperature combines with dwindling light of early…
There’s been a lot of discussion in recent months about what United States history should teach. I thought about some of the furor — which is nothing new — and about what’s actually taught in most classrooms. I taught U.S. history many times over the course of my career.
We are witnessing a stunning global loss of biodiversity that some are calling the Sixth Great Extinction.
Thirty years ago, the movie “Stand and Deliver” told the story of poor, mostly Hispanic, potential dropouts and their teacher, Jaime Escalante. In the film, Mr. Escalante’s students progressed from not knowing arithmetic to mastering advanced placement calculus in a single term, largely beca…
America #1 — The year is 2031. The folks in charge are contemplating what happened to America.
Youthful Poor Elijah was a Boy Scout. Scouting meant everything from dragging a sled in the Klondike Derby to wearing knee socks and garters. Both were less than complete successes, one owing to an open winter and a landscape of rocks, and the other due to the less than robust appearance of …
U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders made remarks at a rally with People’s Action at the headquarters of the pharmaceutical industry’s D.C. lobbying operation to protest the drug companies’ pursuit of profits. His remarks follow.
Here is something we never thought we’d have to have an opinion on: We are for unplugged toilets.
When we were small boys, during the war, we rarely failed to make it to the Washington Avenue armory in Albany when we heard there was to be a muster of fresh recruits. As the young men marched vigorously down past the state capitol, turned briefly right at Eagle Street, and then on down the…
Vermont, like much of our country, has a serious problem with affordable housing. This has recently been in the news in our state because with the end of COVID-related unemployment and federal supplemental checks, the gap between Vermont’s low wages (ability to pay) and the actual rental cos…
The Washington Post recently tackled the question a lot of people have been talking about. The headline read: “Why America has 8.4 million unemployed when there are 10 million job openings.”
Climate change is all around us and yet, at times, can be hard to see clearly. The Earth’s climate is a complex, noisy system and is influenced by many factors, including human activities. Because of this, changes in our climate can feel small, or far away, while other threats feel more imminent.
We needn’t look very far to find controversy over the American flag. Although raised triumphantly by U.S. Marines on Iwo Jima’s Mount Suribachi; proudly flown over victory parades as Johnnies came marching home, (the original ANTIFA); and wondrously planted on the moon in 1969; where, when, …
“You may ask yourself, ‘Well, how did I get here?’”
Having been shamed, beaten up, humiliated and bullied by the best Catholicism had to offer, I developed a unique perspective on religion, especially how dangerous it can become in the wrong hands, and it was always in the wrong hands. The nuns, priests and brothers of various orders sects an…
Two hundred forty years ago, a British army found itself engaged in a campaign against a rebel insurgency where it was winning most of the battles but losing the war. Faced with that reality, the British burned all but their most essential supplies and headed for a coastal town to be evacuat…
A recent piece by anti-renewable energy crusader Annette Smith asks, “Is Electrifying Everything a Climate Solution?” For those of us concerned about the changing climate’s increasing number of floods, wildfires, hurricanes and record-breaking temperatures, the answer is yes!
In our interactions around the state, we have seen “that guy.”
Bad things don’t always happen after 3 p.m.
20 years later
We are fortunate in Vermont to have so many locally owned food co-ops, grocery stores, farm stands and farmers’ markets, which offer fresh produce, meats, milk, cheeses and more throughout the year. But at most supermarkets and convenience stores where the majority of people buy their food, …
The past few weeks have seen the word “unprecedented” beaten like a rented mule. I’ve wielded the whip myself too often to cast aspersions toward others but collectively, we’ve all been habitually categorizing what should have been predictable as a surprise. Not having seen it coming doesn’t…
Ten years ago I was driving home from attending the North River Blues Festival outside Boston. When I left that morning around 10:30, the trees were bending over from the wind. Watching the weather on TV with my friends and producers of the festival, John Hall and Ellie Johnson, it was clear…
No one knows for sure what percentage of the population needs to be vaccinated to achieve herd immunity for our nation. However, the figure of at least 80% may be a good estimate. But there are some experts who feel we may never achieve true herd immunity, still your own personal health will…
As we marked the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, we can honor the victims by saving Afghan lives from hunger.
It is easy to invent lies on the web, since they can come from anyone, anywhere in the world with no fact-checking. Lies can be more creative than the truth, and they attract 10 times more readers; and this brings billions in advertising profits to the websites. The webs of lies about the CO…
Earlier this week, the State Department reported that more than 23,000 Afghan refugees deemed to be “at risk” have arrived in the United States. By all accounts, that represents more than one-sixth of all the evacuees airlifted out of Kabul in the past two months, a State Department represen…
Perhaps it was during the Former Guy’s macabre inauguration speech that we realized he wouldn’t be able to tie his own shoes without focused assistance; or maybe it was in the aftermath, as a glowering Sean Spicer memorably touted, “The biggest crowd in history ...PERIOD”, despite photograph…
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Five Questions With
Just over three months ago we started “Five Questions With ...” to put a human face to this pandemic. Today marks the final installment in this stage of the project, but it will continue with a new set of questions more focused on Vermont’s recovery. Here, Paul Costello, of Montpelier, offer…
Marlee Brunton, of Middlesex, talks about the pandemic and its effects on her family.
Marlee Brunton, of Middlesex, talks about the pandemic and its effects on her family.
Alayna Martel, of Barre Town, is a registered nurse at UVM Medical Center. She talks about how, as a frontline workers, her life has been affected by the pandemic.
Gayle Townsend-Lang, of Rutland, works full time wearing many hats for the Rutland City Public Schools as “Miss Gayle.” Here she talks about how she has been affected by the pandemic.
Stefanie Schaffer, of Rutland, talks about how she has been coping with self-isolation and dealing with the pandemic.
Stefanie Schaffer, of Rutland, talks about how she has been coping with self-isolation and dealing with the pandemic.
Yankee Notebook columnist Willem Lange, of East Montpelier, talks about how he has been affected by self-isolation and the pandemic.
CPA Thomas Lauzon, of Barre, discusses how his life has been affected by the pandemic and self-isolation. Earlier this spring Lauzon was named to the governor’s Economic Mitigation & Recovery Task Force.
Chrispin White, of Rutland, discusses how he has been adapting to self-isolation and how the pandemic has been affecting him.
Christina Sweet, of Rutland, discusses how she and her family have been affected by the pandemic and self-isolation over these months.
Educator and Vermont Mountaineers General Manager Brian Gallagher, of East Montpelier, discusses how the pandemic has affected his life. Earlier this spring, the Mountaineers’ organizers announced they would cancel the 2020 season.
Cat Heatley, of Rutland, talks about how her life has been affected by the pandemic in recent weeks.
Cat Heatley, of Rutland, talks about how her life has been affected by the pandemic in recent weeks.
Salon owner and fitness instructor April Rogers Farnham, of Plainfield, talks about how she has been affected by self-isolation.
Barre Partnership Executive Director Tracie Lewis talks about self-isolation and how the pandemic has been affecting her life.
Montpelier writer Thomas Greene discusses how he has been affected by self-isolation and the pandemic.
Drew Smith, of Rutland, talks about self-isolation and how the pandemic has affected his life.
Jessica Van Orman talks about her experience in self-isolation and how the pandemic has affected her life.
Artist Jen Rondinone, of Rutland, reflects on self-isolation and how the pandemic has affected her and her family.
Mark Breen, the "Eye on the Sky" guy from the Fairbanks Museum in St. Johnsbury, shares his thoughts in self-isolation and how the pandemic has been affecting his life.
Senate President Pro Tem Tim Ashe discusses how self-isolation and the pandemic have affected his life.
Executive Director of the Paramount Bruce Bouchard, of Rutland, talks about how his life has been affected by the pandemic and its consequences.
Stay-at-home mom and low-income advocate Roni Lynn Shrout, of Montpelier, discusses how the pandemic has affected her family.
Carrie Allen, of Rutland, explains how she has been coping with self-isolation and what she hopes will come from it after the pandemic is over.
Vermont cartoonist Tim Newcomb provides a bit of levity to his answers about self-isolation and how he is coping.
Recovery Vermont’s Melissa Story, of Montpelier, shares her thoughts on self-isolation and how it has affected her.
Major Jackson is a poet and professor at the University of Vermont. He lives in South Burlington.
Former governor Jim Douglas shared his thoughts on self-isolation.
Danziger: Five Questions With