Opinion

My Turn: Unneeded, twice-rejected raise back for another vote in Erving

By BOB STEELE I am writing about the validity of a recent residents’ vote in Erving. At a Town Meeting in October 2023 and again in January 2024, town residents voted to defeat an article for a pay increase for the elected positions of treasurer,...

Pushback: Your home’s power plant could save our energy grid

By AL NORMAN

Tonight, voters in Wendell will act on a new general bylaw regarding licensing requirements for battery energy storage systems. Last Saturday, Shutesbury voters adopted a very similar bylaw. By voting “yes” on this bylaw, Wendell residents will...

My Turn: How to keep right on killing

By NANCY GROSSMAN

 Say, “I don’t believe the numbers.” Insist “It’s complicated.”Say, “There is no alternative. Hamas has called for the destruction of the state of Israel and thus, Hamas must be destroyed.” Disregard the Israeli leaders who have called for the...

Anne R. George: City should help seniors keep their homes

If we can provide an elder or a person with disabilities in Greenfield with a little help in covering their property taxes, it’s an investment in our entire community. We are an increasingly diverse community and should work to keep it that way....

Tom Peabody: Lucky to have Blake Gilmore

I have known the Gilmore family my whole life having grown up just down the street. The family is well known for donating their time and efforts to help better our town and the area. Blake Gilmore is not just hard working but a commendable success...

My Turn: A ruthless strategy that damages US

By PATRICK MCGREEVY

Democracy don’t rule the worldYou better get that in your headThis world is ruled by violenceBut I guess that’s better left unsaid.— Bob Dylan  In the film “Ender’s Game,” Harrison Ford’s character tells a boy who had been bullied that, when you...

Analee Wulfkuhle: Shores Ness a vote for Deerfield’s future

Deerfield residents, on May 6, when voting for Selectboard, look no further than Carolyn Shores Ness. She works 50 to 60 hours a week for Deerfield. No one else on the ballot will do that. Health issues? From mosquitoes to thousands of dollars in...

Byron Coley: Shores Ness for Select Board

Blake Gilmore wants my vote to serve on the Selectboard in Deerfield. So I asked friends and neighbors what they knew about the candidate, and where he stands on the issues in the town — subsidized senior housing, senior center, road repair funding,...

Amy Tibbetts: Northfield residents deserve truth and clarity

Thank you for reporting on facts and history surrounding Northfield’s current EMS chief [“Chief’s failure to transport infant prompts license suspension,” Recorder, April 27]. I have been following the articles closely as my family has lived in...

Karen Rowe: Support the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act

I grew up in an era when there were no limits on what people could dump into rivers and lakes. I remember magazine photos of the Cuyahoga River on fire in 1970, flames shooting high up into the air.It was a time when there also were no limits on the...

Columnist Daniel Cantor Yalowitz: Staying real, remaining humble

By DANIEL CANTOR YALOWITZ

Two weeks ago in this space, I wrote about the importance of cultural humility. At that time, I knew that my next column would focus on its twinned counterpart, personal humility. Today, I’ll focus on why maintaining an understanding of ourselves in...

Emily Gaylord: Shores Ness brings experience

Deerfield friends and neighbors: If you want a fiscally responsible selectperson, you already have her: Carolyn Shores Ness. She has an estimable track record of working closely with legislative officials, securing funding (that important “f” word),...

Araceli Katalin McCoy: Why we should change the voting age to 16

Speaking as a Frontier student, if I think of a perfect political voting system, I think of everyone having a voice and fighting for what they believe in. I have a strong feeling that most of you feel the same way. With many people having the choice...

David Dempsey: The Carnegie Library is overdue for an upgrade

At the upcoming May 4 Montague Town Meeting, members will have an opportunity to vote on Article 17 that will fund the next stage in the planning and design of an improved library for Turners Falls. Our beloved 118-year-old library simply does not...

Arlene and Doug Tierney: Vote for Blake Gilmore on May 6

Blake Gilmore, a resident of South Deerfield, is seeking a position as a member of the DeerfieldSelectboard. It is with great enthusiasm that we endorse his candidacy. We have known Blake Gilmore for 60-plus years, early on as a co-worker at the...

The World Keeps Turning: Quantifying happiness — How we measure up

By ALLEN WOODS

A few weeks ago, Donald Trump again displayed his blissfully ignorant understanding of the modern world. At a fundraiser at the home of a billionaire in Palm Beach, Florida, he went off script (if there ever was a script) not only to complain about...

My Turn: Dear Patients — We hear you!

By DR. MEGHAN GUMP

 As a family practitioner and the medical director of Valley Medical Group, I care deeply about my patients and our community. During my 20 years of practicing full-spectrum primary care in Franklin County, I have come to value the relationships I...

Ava Gips: Carolyn Shores Ness gets things done

I met Carolyn Shores Ness when we worked against the fracked gas pipeline. She was the only local Selectboard member who thought of using the power of the Board of Health (in Deerfield, the Selectboard is also the BOH) to stop the pipeline, and was...

Annette Pfannebecker: Vote yes for Shores Ness and for Deerfield

It’s a fact: Carolyn Shores Ness is committed to enhancing all aspects of life in Deerfield. Through her eagle eye on fiscal responsibility, she has supported businesses, farms, education, health and safety, seniors, roads and infrastructure,...