It must be abundantly clear to the proponents of the name change for the Franco American Heritage Center that the change to Riverfront will not succeed. The resistance to this change is overwhelmingly united in its opposition, which is well placed. The Franco Center has been a living monument to Lewiston-Auburn’s proud French heritage. The […]
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.
Posted inLetters, Opinion
Deanne Danforth: FOX News wily, deceptive, true to its name
In 2022, University of California at Berkeley got hundreds of FOX News and CNN viewers to participate in a study examining the effects of viewing Fox News programming on a regular basis. FOX’s fake, phony news makes its viewers less informed about science, social issues and politics than those who watch no news at all. […]
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Posted inLetters, Opinion
Jennifer Charboneau: Franco Center’s traditional name reflects family
I wonder how select members of the Franco American Heritage Center board would feel if their family had a vision. A vision of creating a business, whether it be a market, bottle redemption and beverage warehouse or laundromat. Their family worked tirelessly to raise money to build this business and spent years making it better […]
Posted inLetters, Opinion
Maura Murphy: Franco Center demonstrates importance of names
In these times of sensitivity to matters of identity and culture, how can it be that the ultra-generic name “Riverfront” honors the meaning and significance of the gifts Franco Americans have given to Lewiston and the wider world better than “The Franco Center” does? While it has been argued that names are not important, anyone […]
Posted inLetters, Opinion
In rebuttal: Edmund Lewis: ‘CMP is not the enemy’
I write in reply to a letter by John Neal of Greene (“Our Power initiative deserves Mainers’ support,” March 11). John’s letter condemns Central Maine Power for its recent “egregious and painful” rate hike. I feel it is necessary to disagree and point out to Mr. Neal and many other fellow Maine CMP customers that […]
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Rich Lowry: Shakespeare is not about whiteness
Yes, instead of standing in the line of literary giants such as Dante, Chaucer, and Goethe, Shakespeare is to be associated from now on with the likes of the 19th century French apostle of scientific racism Arthur de Gobineau, George Wallace, and — why not — the Oath Keepers.
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Mikki Rice: Don’t weaken Maine’s Good Samaritan Law
If LD 714 passes as written, it will add unlawful trafficking, unlawful furnishing and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person to the crimes that someone can be charged with at the scene of an overdose. People are often charged with trafficking or furnishing even if they are not trafficking or furnishing their drugs to others, simply because of the amount of drugs they have in their possession.
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Cal Thomas: SVB not anyone’s fault?
At a time when retirees and others are seeing their stock market investments decline and polls showing there is dismay about the country’s financial future, Congress has an obligation to step in and hold accountable the policies and the people responsible for the SVB collapse, and to prevent new ones from occurring.
Posted inOp-Eds, Opinion
Froma Harrop: Before DeSantis, Miami was fun
For Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, spending grown-up time on a threat to the Western alliance might seem an unwanted distraction from his main theme of waging a comic-book war against “woke.” For example, his administration has just revoked the Hyatt Regency Miami’s alcohol license because it hosted “A Drag Queen Christmas.”