I have been listening to Irwin Gratz on Maine Public for 40 years. Irwin makes my morning. He informs, he is a master at bringing in NPR’s news nationally and from around the world. He’s also pretty good, with his friend Lew McNally, on the weather. I depend on Irwin and his colleagues at Maine […]

I recently listened to a Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) program on NPR. One segment of the program was an interview with a transgender person who had just graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy. After spending four years training to become an officer in the service, this person could not be commissioned, by order of […]

It is estimated that about half of Maine’s population is of Canadian ancestry. Since Canada’s last election in April, news from predominantly web-based sources seems to indicate that Canada may be disintegrating. The rural province of Alberta is taking serious steps to secede from Canada. This is due to the past mismanagement of the mostly […]

On June 12, Alex Padilla, the senior senator from California, was forcibly removed from a press conference held by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, forced to the ground and handcuffed. Padilla’s “crime” was interrupting Noem to ask a question. Noem went on Fox News to say that the senator did not identify himself, […]

It’s urgent to draw more attention to a very harmful short phrase in the federal budget bill currently undergoing review in the U.S. Senate. It would essentially make the president a king, suggesting he couldn’t be prosecuted with an enforceable contempt citation in the usual manner. So far, our courts have been the main backstop […]

A recent article addressed the impact of planned federal funding cuts on the nonprofit sector, with particular concern for the likely impact on small nonprofits in rural areas (“Maine nonprofits try to navigate funding cuts, unclear rules and an uncertain future,” April 29). One commenter suggested that local communities can just pick up the slack. […]

In a recent article (“Despite fears, most Maine districts OK school budgets,” June 12), a voter asked, “Why in hell should I be paying school tax when I don’t have students in school?” We don’t pay taxes to have our own children go to school. We pay taxes so we can have an educated society. […]

I’m writing to thank the newspaper for its continuous publishing of letters and articles on transgender student-athletes and the bills pending in the Legislature. Your unbiased coverage is much needed. Transgender young people have enough issues and situations to deal with in their lives. There are solutions to the situation. Publicity-seeking legislators are not among […]