By Senator Bernie Sanders President Trump’s budget is morally obscene and bad economic policy.  It would cause devastating economic pain to tens of thousands of Vermonters, making it harder for our children to get a decent education, harder for our working families to get the health care they desperately need, harder to protect our environment,…

Dear Editor, I write as the executive director of the Community of Vermont Elders (COVE), an organization that represents older Vermonters’ interests on the state level and has done so for more than three decades.  Given the economic realities of today, many older Vermonters struggle to live lives with dignity and respect in which their…

Dear Editor, Many thanks to the parade committee of the 53rd Loyalty Day parade: Sam Gorruso, Gerry Garrow, Dick Blongy, Bruce Baccei, Mark and Jean Prouty, Bill Flory, Don Choiniere, Jim Mills, Sharon Corey, Bonnie Burke, Suzanne Houston, Shella Mills, Tony and Donna Manfredi, Ron Senecal, Marie Fallon, Howard & Hurley Cavacas, Donnaleen Farewell and…

Dear Editor, Are you, too, fighting mad about Trump pulling the U.S. out of the Paris climate accord? Then let’s fight back three times a day by adopting an eco-friendly plant-based diet. Yes, our diet is pivotal. A 2010 United Nations report blames animal agriculture for 19 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, 38 percent of land…

Dear Editor, President Trump’s call to abandon the Paris Climate Agreement, slash federal funding for clean air and water, and reduce protections for threatened and endangered species have made national headlines and created grim reading for those who care about protecting the health of our people and our environment. But, as is often the case,…

By Larry Williams As the numbers of people who participated in the climate march recently showed, Vermonters and Americans across this country are concerned about climate change. Millions of Americans want action. And while the president and his cabinet are busy denying the science behind climate change, states, cities, businesses and individuals are tackling climate…

Dear Editor, Thank you to the farmers who grew the food we served for our first Vermont Farmers Food Center Incubator Kitchen dining event held the weekend of May 20-21. Thank you also for the hard work of our volunteer kitchen crew who are helping the VFFC incubator kitchen promote the consumption of local food…

Dear Editor, The fiscal year 2018 federal budget proposed by the Trump administration would be devastating for the 48 million Americans who face hunger. In Vermont, this would have serious implications on the food security of the 1 in 4 people in our state who turn to the Vermont Foodbank for assistance each year. The…

Dear Editor, The Vermont State Labor Council AFL CIO unequivocally supports the Vermont National Education Association (NEA) in their struggle to protect collective bargaining rights. While Governor Scott’s administration has put forward a radical “plan” to save taxpayers a projected $26 million, this plan appears to be a cousin to Trump’s skinny budget proposal, half-baked…

By Lee H. Hamilton I’ve had a number of conversations recently that convince me our country is divided into two political camps separated by a deep and uncomfortably wide gap. No, I’m not talking about liberals and conservatives, or pro- and anti-Trump voters. I’m talking about people who believe in politics and our political system,…

By Jon Margolis, VTDigger We have seen the enemy: teachers. They are bankrupting the state. They make too much money. Their benefits are too generous. They have too much political power. So, at least, one might think from some of the speechifying and commentating that accompanied the recent (and to be continued) flap over where…

Dear Editor, The sun broke through on our world around 6 a.m., April 16. A glorious day had dawned upon a continuing Killington celebration. On behalf of the Ecumenical Planning Committee for the Easter Sunrise Service last month, I want to express our sincerest gratitude for all the support for this annual event at the…

Dear Editor, It takes a community to raise a child. Ludlow has been that community for generations. When my daughter began thinking about high school, Black River was her first choice even though we live in Springfield. Black River is a school that her grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins have attended. She visited for…

Dear Editor, As a long-time Pico & Killington pass holder I am excited to learn of the millions of dollars being invested at Killington. But what are you doing for Pico? I first skied PicoPeak in the winter of 1959 and have raised my children and now grandchildren on those slopes. They eventually moved over…

By Mike Smith Race fans at Talladega Superspeedway call it “the big one.” It usually happens toward the end of a NASCAR race when drivers are tense, emotions are high, and the cars are tightly bunched, vying for a win. And then: a wrong move by one driver starts a massive chain reaction crash that…