Poetry and I have a complicated relationship. As a child, I adored poems. I had a bookshelf stuffed with Shel Silverstein, and a mom who freely and frequently recited poetry – mostly Ogden Nash animal poems – as she moved throughout her day. It was more than just the rhyming stuff, though: Walt Whitman, Byron, Shelley, Wordsworth […]

State lawmakers have approved a bill designating the second Monday in October as Indigenous Peoples Day, instead of Columbus Day, and it’s awaiting the governor’s signature. As an educator and leader of Maine’s largest and most diverse school district, I applaud this change. It’s the right thing to do. For too long, we have taught […]

I agree with columnist John Balentine’s conclusion that Central Maine Power Co.’s proposed power line will reduce energy costs and utilize a cleaner power source from Canada. However, I disagree with his assertion that this New England Clean Energy Connect project is some kind of “poison pill.” NECEC is the biggest contribution Maine can make […]

I moved to South Portland in January and was genuinely shocked to see a smoke/e-cigarette/vape shop across from Mahoney Middle School. In plain view, with neon signs flashing. Are there no zoning laws to protect our schools and children from this kind of exposure? What was the rationale for allowing a store like this in […]

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King wrote “when we are met by physical force we must respond with soul force.” Just where does an American look to models of this higher plane of consciousness? The U.S. is the largest arms dealer in the world. We have the biggest navy in the world, we have more […]

We learned a great deal about the opioid crisis at a presentation March 24 at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church and hope others can attend the next two programs in the series “Responding to Maine’s Opioid Crisis.” Many thanks to Falmouth Police Chief John Kilbride and the other presenters at the first session for their clear, […]

Over the past 20 years, I have heard many compelling arguments from people who believe physician-assisted suicide is a choice they want to have at the end of life. But the most trivial and frankly uninformed reasons for anybody to argue in support of suicide, as preferable to hospice care, is in the “Taking the […]

We received notice that the Cumberland brown tail moth spraying program will commence in early May. The “safety sheet” for Conserve, the chemical used, states it is toxic to bees. We know that the “hairs” from the moth can cause considerable discomfort, but we can’t afford to lose bees. We further can’t believe that the […]

John Balentine’s recent column on the proposed CMP corridor for HydroQuebec power has some regrettable errors of fact and troubling implications. He implies that Maine had an abundance of hydropower before environmentalists pushed for dam removal and that we would have power to sell if the dams had not been removed. Not true. Maine in […]

John Balentine takes issue with the Interstate 95 “Welcome Home” sign, laments the removal of the former “Open for Business” sign, and makes a blanket remark about Democrats “forgetting” the lessons of the last recession (“Here’s Something: Boos and Bravos,” April 3). We haven’t forgotten, just as we haven’t forgotten that whenever a Republican governor […]