Dear Editor, Farming, like most human activity, impacts the environment. During the last two decades — and particularly since 2016 — Vermont has taken progressive and calculated steps to reduce one such environmental impact: nutrient loss from farmland. On Aug. 19, Sen. Patrick Leahy hosted U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack at ECHO, Leahy Center…

By John McClaughry Editor’s Note: McClaughry, vice president of the Ethan Allen Institute, a free-market oriented public policy research and education organization. A large insurance company has been flooding the television channels with an advertising slogan “Only Pay for What You Need.” It’s an interesting exercise to apply that idea to various public spending issues.…

By Shaun Christean Dear Editor, Everyone living in the Northeast has heard the warnings time and time again: always be vigilant for ticks after spending time outdoors. Tick habitat has increased substantially as higher latitudes are unlocked by warming climates, allowing ticks to edge further north every year. Tick-borne illnesses like Lyme disease, babesiosis, and…

By Jennifer Mayhew Editor’s note: This commentary is by Jennifer Mayhew, executive director of the Turning Point Center of Addison County. September is both Recovery Month and Suicide Prevention Month. An increase in overdose and suicide deaths across the country is shining the spotlight on how the Covid-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected those already struggling…

By Walt Amses Editor’s note: Walt Amses is a writer and former educator who lives in Calais. The last few weeks have seen the word “unprecedented” beaten like a rented mule. I’ve wielded the whip myself too often to cast aspersions at others, but collectively, we’ve all been habitually categorizing what should have been predictable…

By Reagan Bissonnette You have likely heard about the supposed death of recycling in recent years. But have you heard that recycling is actually thriving again? If this comes as a surprise to you, you’re not alone. I recently read a local article with outdated and inaccurate information about recycling markets. So I thought I’d…

By Cary Brown, Meg Smith, Rhoni Basden, Jessica Nordhaus and Aly Richards Editor’s note: Cary Brown is the executive director of the Vermont Commission on Women; Meg Smith is the director of the Vermont Women’s Fund; Rhoni Basden is the executive director of Vermont Works for Women; Jessica Nordhaus is the director of Change The…

Dear Editor, Forest ecologists estimate that if you let a New England farm field go fallow, it takes natural succession about 120 years to re-establish a healthy soil biome, but even that will be but a pale shadow of the mature complex food web that once existed under the bowers of the ancient giants. The…

Dear Editor, One of my dearest writer friends in life passed away early in the pandemic. She lived in an upscale senior community that provides care on every level. I wonder which worker or health provider may have carried Covid to her locked room? Everyone was restricted to remain in their apartment or room. Might…

By Lt. Governor Molly Gray A year and a half after the onset of the pandemic, Vermont remains in the midst of ongoing recovery efforts. While there is so much uncertainty about the future, one thing we can be sure of is that our state is in a unique position to emerge from this pandemic…

By Royal Barnard, Editor Emeritus I am saddened to learn that the Killington Region has lost a wonderful and important person. I, and other “pioneer” Killington residents and visitors, met Claude Blais when he became chef at the once popular Alpine Inn on the Killington Road in the mid 1960s.  Claude migrated to Killington from…

Dear Editor, Julie Wasserman recently laid out a wise series of questions that we should be asking in assessing Vermont’s current healthcare reform efforts. Among them: “What portion of school budget increases are attributable to the rising cost of health care?” Good question. But why limit it school budgets? Healthcare costs also contribute to budgets for police,…

Dear Editor, Yep! You read it right! The 2021 ride itself raised $32,000 and then it was matched by a generous anonymous donor! So total benefit to Teen Challenge is $64,000! Thank you! Thank You! and again Thank You! Your kindness and generosity will obviously go a long way in helping to change lives from…

Dear Editor, Many of us in Vermont do not look forward to the bear hunt that begins Sept. 1 and runs through mid-November. It’s one of the longest in the country. Vermont allows bears to be pierced with arrows, shot from trees, hunted with packs of hounds, just to name a few horrors. Females with…

Dear Editor, I read with interest and disappointment your lead article on the controversy at the Bridgewater Select Board meeting. The disappointment is that we did not expect our local government to emulate what sadly enough we are seeing on the national scene. One would think that the simplicity of the issues and the immediate…