When I read that Graham Platner had used the word “retarded” in old Reddit posts, it reminded me why disability history needs to be taught in schools. As someone with a disability, who was called that word growing up, I know how deeply it hurts. Children repeat words they don’t understand — but education can […]

It occurred to me this past Sunday that I very much miss Amy Paradsz and her highly entertaining “Society Notebook” of photographs and editorial, covering so many of our worthy nonprofit events. It was not only entertainment but an informative way of keeping up on the many benevolent organizations bring these supportive groups in Maine […]

“Antifa” is a shortened form of the term anti-fascism. Fascism is an ideology developed and implemented by Benito Mussolini’s regime in Italy from 1922-1943. Fascism is a centralized, right-wing extremist form of government, dictator-led and paramilitary-backed. Fascist dictators promote racism, violence and genocide and suppress the rights of free speech and free press.  In the […]

In Jim Fossel’s recent column on Question 1, he again shows his talent for making distasteful right-wing policies seem palatable. As he skillfully argues that there is nothing to fear about the upcoming referendum, he pierces his veil of reasonableness when he tells us that a vague “they” could have been more draconian in further […]

I’m sure it got no press but go to YouTube and check out the video President Trump posted on No Kings Day of himself wearing a crown, flying a fighter jet and dropping feces on protesters. Before Trump supporters laugh at these kinds of videos, maybe they could please try and imagine how they would feel […]

At my school, we train 12-year-olds to throw their laptops at active shooters in order to buy themselves time to run away. There is widespread awareness of school shootings, and schools take measures to address this. My school’s budget includes $99,213 on safety, including purchasing Crisis Alert, a “wearable mobile panic button for rapid incident […]

 I recently attended a performance at the Chocolate Church Arts Center in Brunswick. Schooner Fare staged its 47th appearance at CCAC. I remember the first time they came to CCAC in the early 1970s, when we were working to bring audiences back to the historic Chocolate Church. Schooner Fare represents the best of Maine music, […]