The Maine Legislature will soon be considering several bills regarding gun safety. The passage of such laws has been infrequent at best, as many of our representatives from both political parties and occupants of the Blaine House have been reluctant over the years to embrace the cause. Witness the watering down of a fairly strong […]

The lack of adult dental coverage among much of Maine’s workforce contributes to systemic racism. These immigrants and lower income families are worthy of holistic, inclusive health care. As a social worker, I have had clients affected by the lack of dental coverage. One client lost her teeth to devastating abuse in a refugee camp. […]

With the introduction of LD 1639, “An Act To Protect the Health and Welfare of Maine Communities and Reduce Harmful Solid Waste,” the future of construction and demolition debris recycling in Maine has been brought to the forefront, and that future is grim. To focus just on “out-of-state” CDD waste, as LD 1639 does, means […]

Cal Thomas’ column attacking the IRS (“The Infernal Revenue Service,” May 12) reminded me of an excellent May 4 Washington Post editorial by former IRS commissioners who represented both parties and all administrations from Reagan to Obama. There is a real opportunity right now for bi-partisan actions to improve the IRS. Legislation proposed by President […]

The past year living with the COVID-19 pandemic has shown how important access to affordable health care is for all Maine people. Imagine if COVID testing or vaccines were limited to only some of our Maine residents, and others were excluded from these tests and vaccines based on their immigration status. Excluding people from MaineCare […]

Central Maine Power’s false statements continue in perpetuity, because of our weak Public Utilities Commission and our lack of research. Smart meters were efficient money savers. Wrong. Truth comes out: over budget and zero savings. We have no billing issues. Wrong. Media outlets show many cases, and state gets involved. No customer service issue campaign. […]

I propose that candidates who run for any and all public offices not be allowed to accept campaign contributions over $1,000. And these contributors would be made public. What is happening is, not only are candidates enriching their own campaign accounts, but in return are expected to support their special interest donors’ agendas, often not […]

I believe the primary reason some people question the integrity of our last election is because of the lies of the former president and other Republicans who are afraid to speak out against the lies. These lies have given Republicans in some states the opportunity to propose and pass restrictive voting laws to make it […]

Walter Perry is an upstanding South Paris resident who cares deeply for the well being of our community. As a teacher he is well aware of many of the issues we face, and he has a lot of experience working with many people toward positive outcomes. Walter has practice with listening for understanding and skills […]

A year plus into this pandemic, with over 570,000 Americans dead because of it, I’m still astonished that some Republicans in the Maine Legislature are crying “poor me” about the small loss of their civil liberties — i.e., mask requirements — rather than joining the fight for the greater good against the pandemic. Have they […]