Dear Editor, The article “Senate OK’s marijuana legalization bill” by Elizabeth Hewitt and Mark Johnson in the March 2-8 edition of The Mountain Times certainly grabbed my attention! With full disclosure, I admit (and apologize) today for having been a part of that late ‘60s college “culture” that probably began this snow-balling predicament. The slogan…

Dear Editor, There is a problem with the ski industry, and it is the way ski areas pay their snow sports instructors. They only pay them for when they are interacting with a student. So what that boils down to is they require you to be at work at a certain time and if no…

Dear editor, This is an open letter to Governor Peter Shumlin. We request that you (Shumlin) request the immediate resignation of Commissioner of Vermont Department of Health, Dr. Harry Chen, for his attempt to influence voter decision on fluoridation by sharing misinformation in a Rutland Herald commentary dated Saturday, Feb. 20 on the issue of…

By Rick Davis The recent Picus report on Vermont’s education spending suggests the state can save money by reducing spending on special education. While I agree generally with that statement, we need new thinking about how we get there. Artificial spending targets or extra tutors aren’t the answer. If we want to reduce spending and…

By Jim Riley My name is Jim Riley and I am running to serve on the Rutland City Board of Aldermen to be involved in our beautiful, friendly and historic city. I am looking for an opportunity to work for the benefit of our children, neighbors and the Rutland community at large. I want to…

By Richard Mazza, Robert Starr, and Peg Flory In recent years, the political winds of promised change have blown in and out of Vermont like a nor’easter. But as the dust has settled, we seem to be falling short, in some important areas, of the open, pragmatic, well governing Vermont that we all know and…

Dear Editor, I have read and studied in detail Mr. Haff’s interpretation of the town report numbers and his plan for the town. There is so much lack of accuracy and misinformation. Town report numbers from past years show it was Mr. Haff’s years in office when the can was truly kicked down the road.…

Dear Editor, Something’s missing. Your Vermont General Assembly is back in full swing and once again the body is forced into a posture of reaction—reacting to continued drops in student population, the highest health care premiums in the United States, rampant drug use, stagnating wages and ongoing budget deficits. Montpelier has shown its ability to…

Dear Editor, As the current President of the Killington Pico Area Association, I would like to thank everyone for the efforts in making 2015 a great year. How did we get there, you may ask? We accomplished it by working together; the business community, Killington Resort and the town. Most significantly, we transitioned the Chamber…

By Jim Haff, Killington Candidate for Select Board My plan is to once again get our town back to running the core departments of our municipality, which include highway/roads, recreation, library, fire safety and police. Included in recreation should be maintaining our golf course capital and our swimming pool. Included in the fire safety and…

By Deb Markowitz, Secretary, Vermont Agency of Natural Resources When I was first elected to public office at the age of 37, I was lucky enough to have a mentor, Tom Lehner, who had spent most of his career in public administration. I first met him when I was a young law clerk to Supreme…

Dear Editor, Accuracy and truth matter. I read with a certain amount of both disdain and amusement Mr. Haff’s letter, who is running for Killington selectman. First he insinuates that I do not pay attention to the nuts and bolts because I am more interested in economic development. Nothing is further from the truth. Both…

Dear Editor, At the annual meeting of the town of Ludlow, Vt., Article 4 will be presented for consideration. The article deals with the renewal of tax-exempt status of the property located at 22 Buttermilk Falls Road, owned by the Ludlow Masonic Building Association a.k.a. Black River-Lafayette Lodge #85 F & AM. The Brethren of…

Editor’s note: This commentary is by Joe Fusco, who is a vice president of Casella Waste Systems Inc. He served as a member of the Vermont Climate Change Economy Council. He is also co-chair of the Advisory Board for the University of Vermont’s MBA program in sustainable entrepreneurship. Over the past year, as the Vermont…

The epidemic of drug addiction and overdoses gripping Vermont, and our country at large, cries out for reform. We must change the perception that jail is an effective treatment for the disease of drug addiction, and give mental health issues the attention and funding they deserve, an opinion I know many Vermonters share. But the…