Dear Editor, I was disappointed when I learned that solar wasn’t a fit for my home. Here in Montpelier, the city has launched a Net Zero initiative—meaning we will reduce our dependence on fossil fuels by investing in renewable energy. I wanted to be a part of that movement. I wanted to do my part…

Dear Editor, The inexorable march towards eliminating the West Hill Road slip lane advanced further at the Aug. 4, 2015, Select Board meeting wherein Chet Hagenbarth, town facilities and road manager, introduced his "West Hill Road signage package," which included removing the West Hill Road street sign from the top of the slip lane and…

Dear Editor, My second question about transparency in Killington was what are the town’s plans to fix the issue that the auditor pointed out about not having enough funds to sustain government operations for approximately two months? The response we received back from Killington Selectboard Chair Patty McGrath in her letter in last week’s edition…

Dear Editor, Concrete and asphalt do not constitute progress. Progress is having the vision to reserve fertile and open land for any number of agricultural purposes. Progress is assisting former vibrant downtowns to become healthy again by focusing economic activity and workers and customers in these already existing downtown centers. Think Randolph and Bethel. Progress…

Dear Editor, I would like to reply to Richard Kropp’s letter to the editor from June 17. Mr. Kropp suggests our town is not using the options tax money to reduce taxes as Rutland Town does and questions the golf course debt, as well as the repair and maintenance of assets such as the pool…

By Frankie L. Trull Blind mice are famous in nursery rhymes—and maybe soon, in scientific laboratories. A team of Swiss scientists recently restored sight in blind lab mice by injecting new, light-sensing cells into their eyes. They’re working to develop a cure for acquired blindness in people. Today, millions of mice are bred for medical…

By Deb Markowitz, Secretary of Vermont Agency of Natural Resources When Vermonters see a problem, we work to fix it. That is why earlier this year Vermont signed onto two historic climate agreements which will strengthen our state’s resolve to combat carbon pollution and transition to a new clean energy economy. In April, Governor Shumlin…

Dear Editor, My letter to the editor in the July 16-22 edition was a simple question of transparency. I asked why the auditor’s report showed (on page 9) a $815,491 debt from Irene. Nowhere did I mention this money was due to an outside entity. In Selectboard Chair Patty McGrath’s response last week (the July…

Dear Editor, On June 2, 2015, Governor Shumlin signed into law Act 46 of 2015. This landmark education legislation calls on school boards and administrators to lead changes in their districts and supervisory unions that will result in greater opportunities for students, increased efficiency in delivering services, and more sustainable governance structures. Act 46 provides…

By Rob Roper We need to lower the cost of health care in Vermont, and the state, dealing with a structural budget deficit, doesn’t have the capacity to raise more taxes. So, what can we do? One simple, cost-free solution is to repeal Vermont’s Certificate of Need (CON) laws. What are CON laws? Basically, a…

Dear Editor, The Affordable Care Act, despite its name, is not making health care affordable. One in five people in Vermont are struggling with medical bills. Meanwhile, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont, as a “non-profit,” will receive a tax break of over $15 million this year, while ten of its executives are paid up…

Dear Editor, I am writing to respond to the questions Jim Haff raised in his letters to the editor recently about our Irene flood reimbursements. These questions he raised have been addressed by the Selectboard at several public meetings and in letters to citizens, but I am glad to have the opportunity to address them again…

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…