Dear Editor, Blaming OneCare for the high cost of health care and the sluggish pace of reform grabs headlines, but it does not serve the public or advance understanding of our health care system and its impact on our lives and economy. OneCare establishes per capita contracts, disburses funds, and aggregates and analyzes data in…

Dear Editor, In the May 13, 2021, issue of the News & Citizen, Dave Yacovone informed us that the Vermont House of Representatives voted 146-0 to ban “forever” chemicals. One of the reasons he cited for the ban was the adverse health effects on fetal development. If he’s truly concerned about protecting fetal development, why…

Dear Editor, As a university student in Germany in 1966-67, I learned that teaching the history of Nazi Germany in German schools was strictly prohibited, much to the outrage of the younger teachers and their secondary school students. Students born during the Nazi regime and after were asking their parents, particularly their fathers, the painful…

Dear Editor, This is an important time in history, a tipping point. The view of adversity and divisiveness is fogging the lens. A refocusing of our attention may change the view so we can see the light in the shadows.  The restructuring of our country at this critical time requires a more expanded view of…

Dear Editor, The scarcity of animal meat caused by the Covid-19 pandemic will keep our outdoor grills safer this Independence Day. Folks who grill hamburgers and hot dogs face a nasty choice. The U.S. Meat and Poultry Hotline advises grilling at high temperature to avoid food poisoning by E. coli and Salmonella bacteria. But the…

Dear Editor, It’s been a tough year for all of us, but kids in particular have been significantly impacted by a year of remote or hybrid learning, disrupted routines and a lack of socialization and normal activities. Anxiety and depression have skyrocketed, social-emotional skills have taken a hit and many children have fallen behind in…

Dear Editor,  I am writing this letter in honor of Juneteenth, a day that commemorates June 19, 1865, when the last enslaved people in Texas were freed from captivity.  In many ways this represented a transition in our country. It was the final act to physically abolishing slavery. But that did not mean the legacy…

Dear Editor, Congratulations to Avery Provin, Jeannette Langston and everyone responsible for organizing Pride in Rutland! I lived in Rutland for most of my adolescence, graduating from Rutland High School in 1966.  During all that time I could not recognize that I was gay, having recently survived some horrific bullying in the small New Hampshire…

Dear Editor, “A rose by any other name would smell the same,” wrote William Shakespeare. Not so apparently, in the Raider vs. Raven standoff here in Rutland. The cancel culture has reached Rutland in the form of challenging the racist implication of the Raider team mascot, an arrowhead. Symbols have meaning, it is true. But…

Dear Editor, If anyone has the right to hold a soft spot in their heart for the Raiders, it is the extended family of Roger Laird. In the 1920s, as a Raider, Roger suffered a traumatic brain injury on the football field behind the high school on Library Avenue; one that would take his life…

Dear Editor, During my 35-year career as a naturopathic physician I noticed that the natural treatments that had been successful in keeping people healthy in the 1980s became less and less effective. During these years the toxic load of chemicals in the environment has increased drastically. One group of fluoride containing chemicals known as PFAS (perfluoroalkyl and…

Dear Editor, It’s hard for people to understand there is more to life than pop culture, because that is the thing we are engaged in almost every minute of the day. Our particular society, unlike many others, spends an infinite amount of time and resources on two aspects of that culture: glorifying celebrities and evaluating…

Dear Editor, Are the fractures and divisions in America today worse today than they were in the 1960s? In the 1960s no one questioned whether Vietnam existed or claimed that the military casualties were really crisis actors. No one claimed that China and Venezuela had manipulated the presidential election. No one claimed that lizard people were behind the…

Dear Editor, Nearly half of the governors—23 and counting—have decided to end federal supplemental unemployment benefits for workers in their states. Evidently, they never heard the old adage: "Don’t cut off your nose to spite your face." In these bizarre times, I guess we have to be grateful that Governor Scott was raised with more…

Dear Editor, Kids’ Kingdom is a destination playground. Countless families, including my own, have become acquainted over the years at Kids’ Kingdom. Words that are often heard exclaim joy, admiration, and envy of such an amazingly fun, well built, and creative structure. Upon meeting new friends, my own children proudly proclaim, “This is OUR school.” It is outrageous…