Maine winters are not theoretical. There are propane tanks that need filling, heating oil deliveries budgeted months in advance and electric bills that spike during the deep freezes. Energy costs are already one of the most significant expenses for families across Maine. That context matters when we talk about LD 1870, the so-called “climate superfund” […]

Victoria Hugo-Vidal’s March 15 column, “Wasting money and killing children, for what?” was one of the best explorations of the president’s war on Iran I have read. Both empathetic and angry, it wasted no time with the disclaimers that are too often included in condemnations of the decision to take our country to war. It […]

I recently met Hannah Pingree, candidate for governor, at a meet and greet in Portland. I came away thinking: “How could you have a more sincere, trustworthy, service-oriented candidate than Hannah?” She spoke at length on issues confronting Mainers. She has an impressive track record, 25 years of addressing the issues we all face here: affordable […]

Victoria Hugo-Vidal (“America’s number crunchers confirm what my generation already knows,” March 22) seems to believe that the federal government is only now beginning to recognize the financial stresses on the Social Security and Medicare systems. Is she so inwardly focused that she has not been aware that the trustees of these systems have been […]

Each time I read about another deportation from the United States, my heart breaks a bit more. Each time, I’m reminded that the repercussions of deportation will remain with families for generations to come. For at least three generations in my own family, it’s been this way. My maternal grandparents, Charles Purinton and Flora Silva […]

I flew into Portland last week and carried my bags to the parking garage, where I couldn’t get the elevator to work. I climbed to the second floor and found that, at age 78 — and with two bags — I didn’t want to climb any more. I was out of breath and looking for […]

While reading the March 15 letter to the editor “Trump has America on a success path,” I thought I was reading a letter from Donald J. Trump himself. It was so full of gushing praise, plus comparisons to actual successful past presidents like Roosevelt, Eisenhower, even Abe Lincoln! It was so similar to what we’ve […]

In her Feb. 24  letter, Valerie Dornan offers that the National Health Service in the U.K., despite chronic underfunding, often outperforms the U.S. system. A Commonwealth Fund study, comparing the two, showed that the U.K. comes out ahead by most measures. The NHS is an example of socialized medicine. The facilities are owned and operated by the […]