Discover More from This Category: Opinions

Outstanding questions

October 23, 2015
Dear Editor, It’s been some time since I last wrote. I’ve been waiting for answers to my questions. The question seems to be simple: why does the town of Killington have two sets of books for financials? I’ve asked our town manager in the beginning of this barrage of letters to the editor, his first…

Killington concerns addressed

October 23, 2015
Dear Editor, There have been several issues before the Select Board recently, both old and new that I would like to continue to update the community on: Road signs and maintenance as well as the search for a new town manager. First, as we have all probably heard by now, our town manager Seth Webb…

Pittsfield Select Board hears from concerned citizens on FEMA buy-out properties

October 23, 2015
By Wendy Reese As an appointed Pittsfield Select Board member, one of my greatest concerns in our town is dissemination of information, particularly when it comes to town business. While we post about meetings in three public locations and we have the minutes and agenda on the town website, you have to be proactive to…

Vermont connected

October 15, 2015
By Gov. Peter Shumlin When I came to office in 2011, I made expanding broadband Internet access to every last mile a priority. No one thought achieving that goal would be easy, especially since previous governors had set similar goals, only to fall short in the end. The same features that make Vermont an ideal…

Tuitioning towns do not need to give up choice in mergers

October 15, 2015
By Deborah T. Bucknam, Esq. Act 46, the new state law which provides for mergers of school districts into larger districts, protects forever all school districts’ present systems, whether the district tuitions its students or operates its own school, or a combination of both. The State Board of Education has interpreted Act 46 to mean…

State created dangers a result of bureaucrat’s inaction

October 15, 2015
Dear Editor, I support David Rosenblum who called out leaders on road safety. Rosenblum is a stalwart volunteer for the town and I fully understand his frustration with paid bureaucrats’ inaction. I’d wager things would play differently if said bureaucrats resided in the town locale. Municipalities get sued all the time for avoidable tragedies. We…

Dam removal vs. hydropower in Vermont: a developer’s view

October 15, 2015
Dear Editor, I got interested in hydroelectric power in an instant on Dec. 26, 2008. While driving and listening to an NPR news piece regarding the skyrocketing price of oil, I had an epiphany. I live in a mill town and there are five dams within one mile of my home. I was deeply disturbed…

Getting home safe

October 8, 2015
By Gov. Peter Shumlin Last week, the Vermont Highway Safety Alliance held a rally for safe roads on the state house lawn. In attendance were bicyclists, motorists, equestrians, motorcyclists and pedestrians and more than a few who could claim to be all of the above. The rally was a reminder of the recent tragedies we’ve…

We face real challenges to representative democracy

October 8, 2015
By Lee H. Hamilton People who care about the United States’ place in the world often fret about challenges to representative democracy from other countries. I’d contend that the more formidable challenge comes not from abroad, but from within. For starters, it’s hard to make American representative democracy work. Our country is large, growing, and…

Marijuana legalization in the media

October 8, 2015
Dear Editor, Virtually all media coverage depicts marijuana legalization as a done deal, just waiting for Shumlin’s signature in 2016. Vermont’s lawmakers and officials have stepped right in behind Shumlin and the paid marijuana lobby to make us believe this. So far, it appears that those who defend legalization of social marijuana are those who…

Killington town management has been negligent with road signs

October 8, 2015
Dear Editor, In February of this year the stop sign and attached street sign at West Park Road and Killington Road was knocked down, allegedly by a town snow plow. The sign and the post lay in the snow for several weeks until they disappeared. During at least two successive Selectboard meetings I brought the…

Shumlin provides update on Vermont Health Connect progress

October 8, 2015
Gov. Peter Shumlin, representatives from Vermont’s insurance carriers, and officials and staff from Vermont Health Connect (VHC) gathered Thursday, Oct. 1, to offer an update on the health insurance marketplace’s progress. The governor announced that the technology upgrade necessary for a smooth open enrollment has been delivered and tested and would be deployed starting that…

Bill’s LLC on track with original plans, owners down to three

October 8, 2015
Dear Editor, As most Killington residents are aware, in 2012 a group of Killington businessmen embarked on a mission to purchase Bill’s Country Store to create a Welcome Center and home for what is now Killington Pico Area Association. Through a combination of private and public funds, the former store front is now a beautiful…

Making the fight against opiate addiction more difficult

October 2, 2015
By Gov. Peter Shumlin A year and a half ago, I stood up before Vermonters and devoted my State of the State address to speaking about the opiate and heroin crisis affecting our state. Despite our best efforts since, this is not a battle we are winning. Now the Food and Drug Administration is recklessly…

Wind turbine noise: what you can’t hear can harm you

October 2, 2015
By Brian Dubie What do you think of when you think of an industrial wind project? Wind developers want you to think of free, green electricity. People who live near industrial wind turbines think of noise. Let’s see why. An industrial wind project in Swanton proposes to install seven 499-foot tall wind turbines along 6,000…