Opinions

Dear Editor, I have been thinking since Earth Day about modern technology and our environment and how much they are out of touch with each other.  Last summer, my wife and I traveled to Fairbanks, Alaska, for a wedding. While there, we went to the Museum of the North at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks. It…

Dear Editor, We’re heading north and so excited. We’re moving full time to Vermont! For decades we’ve been snow birds, like my parents, spending half the year in Bradenton, Florida. But now our Florida house is up for sale — a 1929 Spanish Mediterranean brimming with beauty and charm. A young family we hope will…

Dear Editor, On April 10, the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, H.R.22, passed the US House and is on its way to the Senate. The League of Women Voters of Vermont (LWVVT) opposes the SAVE Act because it requires American citizens registering to vote or updating registration information to present in-person proof of citizenship.…

By Leslie Burg Editor’s note: Leslie Burg, Manchester, is a community member of the Rutland Head Start Policy Council and an emerita professor of literacy and disabilities at Northeastern University. Show the state and the country that Rutland will not stand by while its most vulnerable residents are abandoned. Rutland is a city that represents…

By Vermont Senator Anne Watson In a recent op-ed about the Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA), Vermont’s cornerstone climate policy, Secretary Julie Moore accused legislative leadership of being “content” with “unattainable” climate pollution reduction requirements. As chair of the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Energy, I feel compelled to respond, as I would not…

Dear Editor, I commend Gov. Scott and his efforts to make Vermont affordable through financial common sense and accountability to taxpayers. Gov. Phil Scott’s recent vetoes of the budget adjustment bill signals the end of one-sided policy-driven bills forced through the Vermont Legislature. With Vermont voters deciding last November to eliminate the Democrat/Progressive supermajority in…

Dear Editor, Last week, the Senate Education Committee got to work on H.454, the education reform bill that recently passed the House. While the Senate’s new draft preserves many of the bill’s broad goals, it also reflects a troubling shift in priorities, particularly when it comes to holding independent schools that receive public dollars to…

By Angelo Lynn Editor’s note: Angelo Lynn is the publisher of the Addison Independent, a sister publication of the Mountain Times. When federal agents from Trump’s “big-brother” government descended on the Pleasant Valley Farms dairy in Franklin County this past Monday, they arrested eight migrant workers in their homes and placed them immediately into the Northwest State…

By Miro Weinberger Editor’s note: Weinberger is currently the executive chair of Let’s Build Homes. He was raised in Hartland and served as mayor of Burlington from 2012-2024. If you’ve turned on a podcast, watched a late-night show, or scrolled social media in the past month, you’ve probably heard something about “Abundance,” the new book…

Dear Editor, VSBA supports the bill as a more thoughtful and phased approach than Governor Scott’s rushed, five district proposal. Grounded in a more realistic timeline: H.454 is the most grounded and actionable proposal developed during the 2025 session. It acknowledges the operational realities education leaders face every day. The implementation timeline is more manageable…

Dear Editor, At the special election on May 28, I am running for the 2-year seat on the Killington Select Board. An incredibly diverse group of people call Killington home; my partner Mary Furlong and I included. After years of renting a ski house, we purchased our first Killington home in 1995. In 1997 we…

By Stanley McChrystal Editor’s Note: Stanley McChrystal, who is retired from the Army, is the former commander of U.S. and International Security Assistance Forces in Afghanistan and the former commander of Joint Special Operations Command. He is the author of the forthcoming book “On Character: Choices That Define a Life.” This commentary was first published…

By Jenney Samuelson, secretary Agency of Human Services Vermont has long been a leader in treatment for addiction and substance use, particularly through its Hub and Spoke model, launched nearly a decade ago to address the opioid epidemic. This approach brought treatment into mainstream, integrating into doctor’s offices and expanding access to services through regional…

By Anson Tebbetts, Vermont Agriculture Secretary By the end of the month, we’ll have a clearer picture of how Vermont’s sugar makers view this season. How was the yield? What will prices look like? Where will the markets be? In June, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will release the official results of its annual…

Dear Editor, If you’re wondering what Gov. Phil Scott and Sec. Zoie Saunder’s education plan will be like in practice, I can tell you­— our family lived through it in Florida. My family relocated to Vermont from Florida just a couple of months after Saunders and her family. Unlike Saunders, we moved to Vermont to escape Florida’s…