It’s finished. The gubernatorial candidates can cancel all remaining campaign appearances. The debate organizers can forget about renting halls and setting up public-address systems. The state’s television stations can kiss that lucrative last-minute political advertising goodbye. And pundits such as myself can find something else to blather on about for the next five weeks (I’m […]

Sept. 25 marked the beginning of the American Library Association’s Banned Books Week, an occasion to highlight books that have been banned or challenged through the years while promoting the right of individuals to make their own reading choices. According to the association, in 2009 there were 460 challenges of books on religious, racist, political […]

This week, Lucius Flatley and his coffee shop compadres turned their discussion to the gubernatorial race in Maine, and reached the conclusion that they regretted the large number of independents who are running. Such confusion means that the winner will likely achieve office with only a minority of the voters, hardly the ideal circumstance for […]