Opinion
My Turn: Human kindness radiates from the inside out
By MARILYN MARKS
During these times of political, economic, and climate turbulence, anger and alarm surge and tensions run high. In responding to our poly-crisis situation, we quickly assign blame. However, pointing the finger at Washington, D.C. and shouting “Tyranny!” is ideally balanced with uprooting the tyranny we may unknowingly carry within ourselves.
My Turn: The elephant in the room — nuclear weapons
BY CARRIE KLINE
Changes are coming so quickly these days that it’s hard to address anything that isn’t bleeding and burning. And yet, some issues that are urgent are largely silent, that is, until they explode. We are on the brink of disaster. Nothing can compare with the immediate decimation of life on earth as we know it. With this in mind, and motivated by the passage of resolutions in other cities and towns in our area and throughout our commonwealth, nation and world, I am bringing a Resolution in Favor of a Nuclear Weapons Freeze to the Sunderland Town Meeting on April 25.
Danielle Miller: Will never regret vote for Trump
As Democrats resist President Donald Trump here in Franklin County and throughout the United States, those of us on the right try our best to ignore their hysteria. These activists can’t fathom Trump’s appeal and are hopping mad that he has returned to the White House with “an unprecedented and powerful mandate.” The man is almost 80, but he’s still full of vim and vigour (and you’d swear he’s 20 years younger than Joe Biden). Kamala Harris, on the other hand, was just full of hot air. And, honestly, I will always feel immense joy over the fact that this unintelligible candidate failed to win a single battleground state in her doomed bid for the presidency.
Letter: Tim Hilchey- the Positive Alternative to Partisanship
A vision of Deerfield’s future.
Kim George: A heartfelt thank you to our amazing volunteers
We cannot express enough gratitude for our volunteers’ incredible work for Pioneer Valley Hospice & Palliative Care. Their passion, dedication, and unwavering commitment to our cause have left a lasting impact, and we feel truly fortunate to have them as members of our team.
Jeremy Williams: Welcome, brothers and sisters
Walking in others’ shoes should be a lesson taught in all schools. This could teach empathy and compassion for what others might be going through. Sometimes we need to see and feel what others have gone through to understand and have total compassion for them.
Guest columnist Ben Grosscup: Anti-Trump resistance can’t be ‘hands off’ on militarism
By BEN GROSSCUP
My Turn: Don’t be afraid
By CARL DOERNER
Columnist Jon Huer: How dirty is our money? Very dirty
By JON HUER
Let’s imagine that you are about to eat a cookie that has been touched and handled by over a thousand (yes, a thousand) different hands. Or, you just found out that the hotel where you stayed last night used the same sheets for over 100 guests.
My Turn: We are DEI
By ELLEN VILLANI
It’s not a department that the federal government is in control of. It’s a way of life, a philosophy ingrained into our actions, behaviors and everyday lives. We practice DEI with no need of governance or directive. It is us and we are it.
Julie Cavacco: Hilchey for Deerfield Selectboard
Deerfield is in the position where we have two candidates running for a seat on the Selectboard that have both held the position. The decision of who to vote for is very easy for me.
Lew La Chance: Consider Easter services
God Bless all who attend church services 52 weeks a year. Those who attend occasionally, or have stopped visiting God, please think about going to Easter service. Remember St. Dismas, the good thief hanging on the cross next to God on Calvary. The thief told Jesus he was sorry for his sins and asked Jesus to forgive him. At the last minute, St. Dismas stole heaven.
Marilyn Pelis: Activities vary at senior centers
A recent letter writer made a valid complaint about the Greenfield Senior Center. A couple of years ago the only class, Seated Chair Dance, that I could fully participate in was suddenly ceased. I won't go into that fiasco. Immediately we were welcomed at South County. Shortly after we were invited to Erving and Turners Falls. Everyone is invited to attend any one of these facilities. They all have many activities, both regular and special. If you want a pleasant experience, check them out. You won't be disappointed.
My Turn: Let wildlife roam — An important new wildlife bill can help reconnect critical habitat
By JOHANNA NEUMANN
Humans are great at building things, but it’s also beginning to dawn on us that these impressive and sometimes magnificent structures also impact the other creatures that we share this earth with.
Guest columnist William Lambers: Easter baskets can save lives far away
By WILLIAM LAMBERS
The joy of finding an Easter basket filled with food and gifts is something you never forget. Even greater is the feeling of giving an Easter basket of food to someone in need. This has been a great tradition for many years.
Martin Dagoberto Lydgate Driggs: Defending a cornerstone of American democracy
There’s no shortage of urgent issues demanding our attention. In moments like these, we each have to choose something local and worth fighting for. For me, that’s our library.
Jim Bates: The gift that keeps on giving
With all the belly-aching, temper tantrums, hysteria and foot stomping like petulant children, the liberals writing into this newspaper since Donald Trump was re-elected have taken all the space on the opinion page. I tried to wait it out, but they are the gift that keeps on giving.
My Turn: Raise every voice, every heart
By ALAN HARRIS
I had written an essay back on April 2 which seemed apropos then but as yet unpublished, I’ve replaced it with what I think has perspective on our current moment. There is no one vantage point from which humanity can digest and assimilate the vagaries and constant movements that engulf it, that it creates. That cannot be, however, an excuse for how we indulge our fancies, ignore truths, and delude ourselves at the hands of incipient, or not, tyrants, sycophants, and opportunists. We live in a circus: evolutionary, theatrical, spiritual — fill in the blanks.
My Turn: Call us Cinderella Town
By ANDREW VARNON
You might say Greenfield had a “Cinderella run” in the Strongest Town competition. Out of 16 municipalities across North America, we made it to the Final Four, and we didn’t have the Strong Towns pedigree. Who would have picked us?
Laura Josephs: Is a 170-foot cell tower really needed near Newton Elementary School?
My family moved to Greenfield in 2017 and bought our first home near the Newton School last year. We would like our son to start kindergarten there in fall 2026.
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