The most striking thing about the collapse of the Kabul government isn’t so much that it fell, but the almost impossible speed at which it fell. When South Vietnam fell, the North Vietnamese were backed by the military and material might of Soviet Russia, Red China, the Eastern Bloc states, Cuba and various and sundry […]

A recent editorial (“Our View: This is not your father’s inflation,” July 23) assures us that circumstances today are different than in the 1970s, when inflation became a major problem, and that we shouldn’t worry about recent price increases. Actually, there are important similarities between then and now. Then, as now, the focus of both […]

I’m responding to the Aug. 15 Maine Voices column, “All Mainers face unfairly inflating property tax burdens,” by Berry Manter, who said that “residential real estate prices … defy Portland’s Plan 2030, the 2017 city comprehensive plan promising equitable, sustainable and fair choices in the best interests of its citizens.” I’m a Portland native and […]

I thank heaven the Biden administration is requiring vaccines of workers in long-term care. It’s long overdue. I have no sympathy for someone who thinks they should be allowed to work in a building full of highly vulnerable people, often providing intimate care, without being vaccinated in the midst of the pandemic. Since when do […]

University of Maine Law School professor Anthony Moffa’s heart is in the right place in urging action on climate change (Maine Voices, July 27), but suing manufacturers won’t help and is counterproductive. What we need for this shared challenge is an all-in, inclusive approach. Trying to blame climate change on energy companies started 20 years […]

Brunswick School Board member Elizabeth Sokoloff’s highlighted statement favoring the Brunswick indoor mask mandate is a statement I embrace (“Brunswick schools institute indoor mask mandate for all,” Aug. 20, Page B3). Ms. Sokoloff said, “When you have a choice that you make that affects other people around you, that’s not a choice that should be […]

The average U.S. household spends 2 to 3 percent of their income on electric bills every year, according to the website ElectricChoice.com. Mainers pay a higher percentage than the residents of all but two other states. It’s expensive to fuel our homes. The Clean Energy Corridor (New England Clean Energy Connect) will provide some much-needed […]

Not much is new in Afghanistan: Since pre-history, peace has been elusive. Afghanistan has epitomized instability for millennia, resisting occupiers: Greeks, Mongols, Turks, Arabs, British, Persians, Russians or, more recently, Americans. Even in the short term, neither colonialism nor democracy has taken root. Outliers, bloodied after countless incursions, have learned to leave it alone. In […]