By Lee H. Hamilton The presidential election is 16 months away, but already we’re smack in the middle of the usual media scrum of campaign coverage, prognostication, and strategizing by many who have nothing much to do with the real campaigns. I’ve been following the rhetoric of both parties, and there are a few points…

By Larry Abelman I have a lot of time to think on my morning two mile walks I take with my dog Tyler on the roads of Shrewsbury. With what’s been going on in South Carolina I couldn’t help but think about my own associations with race growing up in D.C., where my family took…

By Frankie L. Trull The fight against rubella, the deadly German measles, has finally paid off. The eradication was possible by one of modern medicine’s most indispensable tools—routine vaccination. Global health authorities say the terrible disease has been eliminated in the Americas. It’s a rare dose of good news in the fight against the debilitating…

By Governor Peter Shumlin Last week I traveled to Toronto to attend the Climate Summit of the Americas, which brought together Pan-American governmental, advocacy, energy, and climate change leaders to share ideas on how we can work together to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and capitalize on a cleaner energy economy to grow jobs and opportunity.…

Dear editor, The musical performances at the Killington Library on Thursday evenings in an informal setting are meant to provide entertainment and enjoyment to locals and visitors alike. There were several groups in attendance at last Thursday’s event who coalesced into a larger group who appeared to come for the purpose of socializing rather than…

Dear Editor, The Solar Energy Industries Association recently stated there are 72 solar companies in Vermont. Looks like they are swooping in buying up land and desecrating our environment with these ugly panels and their hardware. When there are no siting standards to speak of in Vermont, anything goes, when it comes to solar placement. It’s…

Dear editor, Thanks to all who attended the Rutland Meals Challenge at Rutland Bowlerama and to those who gave donations to our bowlers! This event raised an amazing $1,126 for the Rutland Meals Challenge, which will provide 4,504 meals to food shelves in Rutland County. Please visit https://vtmealschallenge.wordpress.com to learn more about the Rutland Meals…

Dear Editor, In response to the article “Experts predict bad mosquito season for area” in the May 28-June 3 edition: This year, it is so obvious that something is different in respects to the horrific amount of mosquitos out, not just during the evening hours, but, all day long.  I have not been able to…

By Bill Mathis Few education policy proposals have been adopted as widely and enthusiastically as preschool education. With near universal agreement, early education has been embraced across the political spectrum. This consensus was forged from “gold standard” research, conducted over decades, which almost universally found both academic and social benefits. One of the most attractive…

By Brad Ferland I read with interest a recent media report about Vermont being on the verge of a big increase in the use of fracked gas from Canada, and how our utilities plan to buy even more power from Seabrook, the nearest nuclear power plant to Vermont now that Vermont Yankee has closed. Several years ago…

As we work to make sure Vermont’s economy works for every Vermonter, our focus has to be on growing jobs and opportunity statewide, especially in more rural parts of the state that were hit hardest by the Great Recession. That’s why I was so proud this week to stand with the leadership of Vermed, a…

By Erin Mansfield, VTDigger.org An oversupply of milk is bringing down prices in the Northeast and driving large dairy cooperatives to dump their product in manure pits, experts say. Although low prices for milk products can be a short-term positive for consumers, the low prices are causing a hard time for farmers who otherwise enjoyed…

Dear Editor, I have a serious question for the town on an issue that has been left out of the Town Report — in fact it never made it into the financials of the 2014 Town Report, but is clearly stated in the Auditor’s Report. On page 9 of the Audior’s Report it states that…

By Lisa Chalidze The world is a messy place. We ask our police officers to keep cleaning it up. It’s a hard job to do well, and easy to do poorly. Often it’s the poor choices that make the news. This presents us with a difficult choice of our own: Do we respond to the…

By Sarah Olsen, VTDigger.org That Coke now costs a little more. A 6 percent sales tax on sugary drinks went into effect July 1. The Vermont Legislature and Gov. Peter Shumlin approved the extension of the sales tax to soda and other sweet drinks as part of a tax package passed last session. Tina Zuk,…