opinion Archives - The Portland Press Herald

Commentary: Hard week for right whales emphasizes urgent need for better tech

by Philip Hamilton and Amy Knowlton Special to the Press Herald January 14, 2023January 13, 2023

The correct technology can support a vibrant fishing industry while saving one of the world’s rarest species from extinction.

Op-eds, Opinion

The humble Farmer: How to have a wild day without even getting out of your own dooryard

by Robert Skoglund January 14, 2023January 13, 2023

I am not the man I once was – but you try telling my wife that.

Times Record Opinion

David Treadwell: Bingeing on Charles Dickens

by David Treadwell Guest column January 13, 2023January 11, 2023

When my mother was a teenager in Exeter, New Hampshire, she’d sometimes respond to a potential suitor’s request for a date with the line, “No thank you, I’d rather stay home and read Dickens.” When I was a ninth grader in Parkersburg, West Virginia, my English teacher Ms. Pettigrew seemed taken right out of a […]

Times Record Opinion

Giving Voice: The spirit of Brunswick

by By Abigail Abbott Oasis Free Clinics Board of Directors January 13, 2023January 12, 2023

I was born in Brunswick, went through the town’s public school system, attended Bowdoin College, and am now raising my three children here. I love this town. Growing up, neighborhood friends of my parents acted and felt like aunts and uncles. My classmates’ moms and dads would bring over lasagna dinners if someone in the […]

Times Record Opinion

Daniel Kany: Brunswick’s ‘Many Stitches’ mural is more harm than charm

by Daniel Kany Guest colummn January 13, 2023January 12, 2023

I was alarmed and extraordinarily disappointed to have learned about the large-scale mural that is slated to go up on Fort Andross in Brunswick. I certainly have nothing against murals. We have great ones in Maine. The South Solon Meeting House is a high point of American fresco. The Portland Museum of Art and the […]

Maine Voices, Opinion

Maine Voices: Where Portland’s workforce housing falls far short

by Kelley McDaniel Special to the Press Herald January 13, 2023January 12, 2023

Eligibility rules mean that anybody who needs a leg up to buy their own home cannot avail themselves of the ‘decent, safe and affordable housing’ our city ‘works to ensure.’

Op-eds, Opinion

Commentary: Bedrock constitutional principles trampled by Maine’s indigent defense crisis

by Amber L. Tucker and Tina H. Nadeau Special to the Press Herald January 13, 2023January 12, 2023

Dozens of accused people, presumed innocent, are languishing in Maine jails without an appointed attorney. An immediate influx of funding is required.

Editorials, Opinion

Another View: McCarthy’s House rules could weaken ethics oversight

by Los Angeles Times Editorial Board January 13, 2023January 12, 2023

In its first act, the House has moved to make it harder to investigate corruption by its members. So much for a ‘government that is held accountable.’

Times Record Opinion

Phil Kerpen: More debt without spending reform is dirty

by Phil Kerpen Guest column January 12, 2023January 12, 2023

Before Republicans agreed to elect Kevin McCarthy Speaker House, a handful of his colleagues demanded the implementation of a fiscal framework to rein in federal spending. The threat of spending reduction has launched a full debt ceiling “default” panic. The spending interests are trying to cast conservatives as unreasonable and spendthrift Democrats as saviors of […]

Times Record Opinion

The Maine Idea: ‘Relief’ provided, now we can get down to business

by Douglas Rooks The Maine Idea January 12, 2023January 11, 2023

A month after it was put on the docket, the Legislature swiftly passed and Gov. Janet Mills signed a “Winter Energy Relief” bill on its regular opening day, Jan. 4. The $474 million spending proposal, LD 3, was a curious production, about which more in a moment. It was also curious how it became law. […]