Producing fewer college graduates is a worrisome sign for a state with an undereducated work force trying to compete in a high-tech economy. But that is exactly the situation Maine finds itself in. Enrollment in the University of Maine system has dropped 9 percent since 2002, according to a story in Sunday’s Portland Press Herald, […]
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Vote Paradis to re-set election clock
Lewiston mayoral candidate Mark Paradis understood that citizens are angry about a lot of things, and he was determined to do his part to lead the city away from that anger and toward solutions. His public announcement Wednesday that he had been diagnosed with cancer seemed to cement that determination as he vowed, if elected, […]
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A look back at the week’s news
Cheers to the efforts of U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud to introduce a bill that would allow Maine students to — once again — get help in managing their student loans. Anyone who has ever applied for a student loan knows how overwhelming the process can be. But, since 2010, Maine students have not had access […]
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Region’s health should be asset to New England
As employee health becomes a bigger factor for employers, New England should be selling itself against Sun Belt states as the healthiest region in the country. The differences are stark, according to the 2011 rankings established by the United Health Foundation. Vermont, New Hampshire and Connecticut are the three healthiest states in the U.S., while […]
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An evaluation of public benefits, private insurance
Maine’s Department of Health and Human Services is facing a $120 million deficit, a gaping and largely unanticipated financial hole that must be filled if taxpayers hope to avoid funding yet another supplemental budget for this agency. According to DHHS Commissioner Mary Mayhew, the agency is now going through a thorough review to restructure and […]
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Scratching the surface; finding an abused child
I used to do the weekly grocery shopping, back when my wife and I were raising our young children in Ohio. I enjoyed clipping coupons and looking for bargains. But I hated the grocery store crowds, so I would go very early in the morning when the store was nearly empty. On those early morning […]
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L-A changing an ugly myth by changing reality
There’s something irresistible about a ranking. We love to see that our income is in the middle, or that our quarterback is the second from best. That we are slimmer than most or that our car is tops in its class. It’s just fun to compare, especially when you find your community favorably compared to […]
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Occupiers need to pull up stakes and get organized
Many Americans are sympathetic to the sentiments expressed by the Occupy Wall Street movement, but the group’s chief tactic — encampments in U.S. cities — has outlived its usefulness. The Occupy movement in the U.S. began in September in Zuccotti Park in New York’s financial district to protest income inequality, unemployment, greed and the disproportionate […]
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Judge holds Citigroup to a higher standard
It is interesting to think what might have happened had federal regulators acted 10 years ago against swindler Bernie Madoff. Perhaps they could have stopped him before his Ponzi scheme became the biggest financial fraud in United States history and cost investors $18 billion. The real scandal is that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission […]
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Report compares our health system to other countries
Give Americans credit for one thing — a healthy perception of our own health. And when we say healthy, we mean healthy. Among developed countries, more Americans report they are healthy than any country in the developed world. Ninety percent of Americans say they are in good health. This despite a host of health indicators […]