Opponents of the Republicrat Axis of Evil rightly grumble that neither major party can be trusted with the public weal.Thus do they call for a third party that would mind the Constitution.More optimistic observers suggest voting for the lesser of the two evils (Republicans, conservatives believe), rather than “throwing your vote away” on a third […]

What’s the fastest growing American military mission overseas?Hint: It’s the very mission the Bush administration once disdained the most.The U.S. military is getting ever more enmeshed in peacekeeping, peace enforcement and nation-building around the world. There are 150,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, 11,500 in Afghanistan, and several thousand more in Bosnia and Kosovo. And, as […]

Mexico has agreed to a cooperative arrangement with Rumford that could be a real lifesaver.Rumford’s ladder truck is out of service until sometime in August. Until then, Mexico’s truck, along with one firefighter, will answer calls for structure fires in the neighboring jurisdiction. Once on the scene, the mutual aid agreement between the two towns […]

Speaking the truth shouldn’t get the milkman into trouble. But that’s close to what’s happened to Oakhurst Dairy.Bio-technology giant Monsanto is suing the dairy in U.S. District Court in Boston and demands that Oakhurst stop advertising its milk as free from artificial growth hormones. According to Monsanto, the producer’s advertisements and labels are deceptive because […]

TUCSON, Ariz. – Death, from even just a little distance, seems so complete on this waterless, siccative land, so unmistakable. But it’s a mirage.The Sonoran Desert, it turns out, is simply ablaze with life. And not just life itself but also the remarkably tenacious will to live. Here where the summer sun feels like hell’s […]

Congress is due to reauthorize Head Start this year, and President Bush is advocating some big changes through legislation currently being considered by the House of Representatives.The legislation seeks to increase coordination between state programs and Head Start, emphasize the basics of reading and math, increase the number of early childhood educators with college degrees […]

Let us consider the word no.It’s an easily defined term used, according to my dictionary, “to express refusal, denial, disbelief, emphasis or disagreement.” Acceptable substitutes include “No way,” “Not a chance,” “Not interested,” “Not going to happen.”There is nothing difficult about no. It is capable of being understood by human beings of all stripes: police […]

“What’s a granny worth?” The question, if not necessarily granny, is worth a free lunch on Washington, so the house was packed for a symposium at the American Enterprise Institute. The organizers not only ran out of seats, but out of knives and forks at the buffet table as well as copies of the institute’s […]

Health care is a hot topic, maybe so hot we’ve been blinded by assumptions.Pick up the paper or turn on the news and the debate about America’s health is all over the place. From Maine’s new Dirigo initiative, to Congress’ attempt to add prescription drug coverage to Medicare to amazing medical advances and procedures – […]

California, once the envy of the nation for its great public schools and gleaming highways, now sets the pace when it comes to budget meltdowns. The state faces a $38 billion hole over two years in a general fund that will spend about $160 billion over the same period. That means California is short about […]