Maine is largely rural and is in desperate need for social workers. LD 632 would incentivize new master of social work graduates to stay in Maine by assisting in loan repayment and help assure that underserved people in Maine are getting the care they need and deserve.
Alex Lear
Staff Writer
Alex Lear is a lifelong Mainer who has spent 25 years in journalism -- the first 20 as a reporter for newspapers in Damariscotta and Falmouth, then as Opinions section editor for the Sun Journal and now a digital producer with the Maine Trust for Local News. His long-running “Learics” column won first place in the Maine Press Association’s 2023 Better Newspaper Contest. He and his wife Lauren are kept young by their 9-year-old daughter Alaina. Send feedback and suggestions to Alex.
Rev. Richard Killmer: Why did the Biden administration approve a huge oil drilling project in Alaska?
The Biden administration owes us an explanation and a road map that shows how the nation will transition away from fossil fuels. Any new plans for fossil fuel extraction needs to be put in the context of achieving a 50% to 52% reduction by 2030.
Austin Bay: Biden’s Afghanistan lies are a crime against the American people and honest history
In honest future history — and honest histories will be written about Biden’s fiasco, because it was bloody, inept and has huge consequence — the Reuters report will foreshadow the Biden administration’s epitaph: Even though it’s an outright falsehood, we must project a pro-Biden picture and babble a pro-Joe narrative because because because.
Froma Harrop: Do you worry that your bank is too liberal?
Should I worry that my bank is too woke, whatever anyone means by “woke” these days? Right-wingers are peddling the argument, tailored for the rubes, that when financial institutions factor such concerns as the environment, social equity and governance (ESG) into their business, they are endangering themselves.
Cal Thomas: Politics then and now
Kindness and praise for one’s political opponent can affect others, especially voters. As Abraham Lincoln said about the South: “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.”
Al Fereshetian: Choose life, reject Maine abortion bill
We are living in a culture of death. Teen suicides are at all-time highs, and thousands are dying from drug overdoses. Birth and fertility rates across the nation are at all-time lows. We have an aging population, and many younger people choosing to start families later in life or not at all. What kind of […]
Scott Harriman: MaineCare access bill deserves support
I support of LD 199, “An Act to Improve the Health of Maine Residents by Removing Exclusions to the MaineCare Program.” This bill would ensure that all Mainers can access MaineCare regardless of their citizenship status. I speak as someone who has benefited personally from expanded MaineCare coverage. Before I qualified for MaineCare I was […]
Siiri Cressey: ‘Humans need shelter’
Housing costs too much here in Lewiston. I don’t really know why. I know a couple who are losing their home because of increased rent. I’ve seen someone crying on the sidewalk because they can’t afford rent anymore and will likely become homeless again. I know a couple who sleep in a tent in the […]
Bob Neal: The Countryman: Ethics in high places
Our public servants need to deserve our trust. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey do not. Both should resign.