Opinion
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 in the home of a billionaire in Palm Beach, Florida, he went off script (if there ever was a script) to complain, not just 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 Selectperson 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 even...
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,...
Brenda Davies: Makes some healthy changes for our planet
By BRENDA DAVIES
Challenge yourself this Earth Day season. Develop a few new habits for the health of our planet!1. Join ‘No Mow May’ (or reduce your mowing). Leave the “weeds” for the pollinators: bees, ants, birds, etc.2. For the planet’s sake, grab a rake. Resist...
Guest columnist Jonathan Kahane: Clapping back at no-good scammers
By JONATHAN KAHANE
If you have experienced even a fraction of what I have been subjected to regarding scam phone calls lately, I’m sure that your frustration and anger meters are buried at the high end. It amazes me how various government agencies are able to trace...
My Turn: April is second chance month
By ANNIE MAURER and ALYSSA GOLDEN
April is Second Chance Month, a time to focus on how our community can support our neighbors in central and western Massachusetts returning from incarceration.As attorneys with Community Legal Aid’s CORI/Re-Entry Unit, we see the life-changing power...
My Turn: A moral justification for civil disobedience to abortion bans
By CARRIE N. BAKER
Over the last several years, in response to abortion bans and restrictions, advocates around the country have developed an alternative supply network for abortion pills outside of the medical system and the law.As a lawyer and law-abiding citizen, I...
My Turn: Industrial solar installations are overwhelming Northfield neighborhood
By JOHN BUXTON
Twenty-six thousand panels were recently approved on Pine Meadow Road in Northfield and are scheduled to be installed in our residential/agricultural-zoned neighborhood. It was appealed and argued over for the last couple of years, but ultimately it...
Guest columnist Rudy Perkins: Dangerous resolution on Iran
By RUDY PERKINS
Both the Iranian government’s bombing of Israel and the Israeli government’s bombing of Iran are extremely perilous for the Middle East and the United States. That is why the dangerously one-sided U.S. Congressional resolution, H.Res. 1143,...
Guest columnists Ellen Attaliades and Lynn Ireland: Housing crisis is fueling the human services crisis
By ELLEN ATTALIADES and LYNN IRELAND
Vacancies at programs operated by human services providers — despite some progress over the last two years — are still much too high. More than one in four direct support professional positions in adult residential and day programs for people with...
My Turn: April is second chance month
By ANNIE MAURER and ALYSSA GOLDEN
April is Second Chance Month, a time to focus on how our community can support our neighbors in central and western Massachusetts returning from incarceration.As attorneys with Community Legal Aid’s CORI/Re-Entry Unit, we see the life-changing power...
My Turn: Judgmental about malaise
By MARGUERITE WILLIS
Hold on, I’m going to be judgmental. I heard an ad on internet radio for a well-known company that sells fiber supplements.But wait for it — that company now has fiber gummies for kids “because they don’t get enough fiber!” Accompanying the ad were...
Ahmad Esfahani: Aiding and abetting and middle school angst
Those horrible middle school memories. Never knowing if Benji or Joey really liked you or not, and other types of misgivings and misleadings that ultimately led to an understanding that nothing really makes sense. Hooray for our federal government....
Greg Franceschi: Support bike lanes and walking paths in South Deerfield
In 2023, voters around the country directly approved $2.2 billion dollars in new funding for bike projects.If you want our roads to be safer for people on bikes, please tell our Selectboard, Planning Board, and most importantly, FRCOG’s (Franklin...
Laurie Benoit: Volunteers needed for cleanup of Buckland cemeteries
The Buckland Union Cemetery Association Inc. will hold its annual spring cleanup on Saturday, April 27 from 10 a.m. to noon. Volunteers are needed to help remove sticks, seasonal decorations, dead flowers and wreaths, broken items, and debris in our...
Todd Damon: Liking the positive vibe of Greenfield lately
It feels like we’ve created a day for everything and everyone. It’s become a bit much, in my opinion. However, I do like recent letter writer Mary Collins’ idea of celebrating the communities we choose to call home. Her April 9 letter in the Recorder,...
Kim George: National Volunteer Week — hospice needs you
Our community is at its best when we come together to help others in a time of need. At Pioneer Valley Hospice & Palliative Care, 35 trained volunteers give their time, attention, and compassion to help people facing the end of life live as fully as...
Charlene Galenski: Blake Gilmore, a strong candidate for Deerfield’s Selectboard
On May 6, Deerfield will have its annual election for local positions. Blake Gilmore is running as a candidate for Selectboard.Deerfield is facing some financially challenging times. Over the past few years, the town has voted to finance several...
Patter Field: Northfield Bird Club wins award
This year’s Northfield Citizen Stewardship Award was presented by the Open Space Committee to the Northfield Bird Club at the Selectboard meeting on April 16. The club’s founder, Nick Fleck, present to receive the award, read one of his poems....
