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By SUSAN WOZNIAK

As summer was winding down, I had a conversation with a young woman. Something she said, led me to answer, “That’s out of my bailiwick.” She looked puzzled and asked, “What’s a bailiwick?” I chuckled a bit and said, “Your generation uses the word...

By JON HUER

The most common description that liberal-democratic America uses to refer to Donald Trump’s GOP-MAGA followers is that they are “crazy.” This description seems entirely appropriate. Just watch and listen to Trump — and his followers in the street and...

By NINA SCOTT

Richard Nicoll and his wife, Martha Hanks-Nicoll, live in New Salem, in a lovely house with a spectacular view. Richard is originally from the southwest of England; he finished high school and one year of Agricultural College, then came to the U.S. in...

By MARGUERITE WILLIS

The Recorder’s Nov. 27 headline, “Plan falls short of goals,” is such an understatement concerning the state’s Student Opportunity Act, passed in 2019.As a 77-year-old white woman living in the poorest and whitest county in Massachusetts, I’d suggest...

By CARRIE N. BAKER

Over 60 percent of Americans support abortion rights, but last year Roe was overturned and 14 states now ban abortions in most circumstances. A president who lost the popular vote by millions appointed three staunch opponents of abortion to the...

By MICHAEL SEWARD

After about 100 years of exclusionary zoning, there was bound to be a reckoning. Antiquated and discriminatory housing policies among the towns of the Pioneer Valley resulted in a severe housing shortage. The housing proposal presented at a recent...

By RICHARD S. BOGARTZ

I remind the reader of my penchant for recreational lying, the purpose of which is not to deceive but to entertain, lest the reader misunderstand my tranquility under the threat of Donals Trump becoming dictator for life.Whew! I am so relieved. I’d...

By CARL DOERNER

When he died last month, Henry Kissinger was lauded as preeminent diplomat of the past half-century. The news media didn’t shy from the fact that he was controversial, but for the most part they left graveyards he created unvisited.Growing up in...

By MATT L. BARRON and JON WEISMANN

On Dec. 11, the U.S. House passed the Lower Costs, More Transparency Act, legislation to require Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) to disclose drug rebates and discounts, revealing what they pay drug makers for prescription drugs. The bill would also...

By BILL DANIELSON

Dear Reader: I can’t believe that 2023 is almost over. Next week I am going to work on my traditional Year-In-Review column, but today I have decided to give myself permission to go back to one of my favorite photos of 2023. This is a photo that I...

By GENEVIEVE HARRIS-FRASER

I know this street in the Old City, Al Quds, East Jerusalem. I limped along its dusty pathway after sustaining an injury before arriving in Palestine in late December 2005 to attend a Palestinian-Israeli Peace Conference. This street may be the very...

By ALLEN WOODS

In trying to look at our world with the Christmas spirit this year, the continuing wars in the Middle East and Ukraine hover on the periphery of my vision, with horrific images of death and destruction just waiting to overwhelm me if my concentration...

By STEFAN CALABRIA

I was not raised a hunter. As a five-year-old traveling with my family in Scotland, I remember staying at a hotel which prominently displayed the mounted hides and heads of numerous wild animals. I covered my face with my shirt and refused to eat...

By COURT DORSEY

A recent article on theshoestring.org, “The Forest and the Trees: Western Mass’ Solar Siting Problem," is incredibly enlightening, and deserves to be read by anyone who values Franklin County’s beautiful natural environment. The issue of balancing...

By RORY LITTLE

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is a mysterious and slow institution. As our national court of constitutional finality, SCOTUS usually takes months to decide whether to review a lower court decision, and more months to hear arguments...

By AL NORMAN

Property tax relief for senior citizens in Massachusetts has never been better. In early October, Governor Maura Healey signed into law a wide-ranging tax relief bill, including a provision more than doubling the refundable property tax credit known...

By BEVERLY ALLARD

Peace on Earth and goodwill to all. Easy to say, at this time of year, but much harder to practice on a day to day basis. As I look at my recently decorated living room with the Christmas lights on my tree, the lighted garland over my fireplace and...

By RUSS VERNON-JONES

Eight years ago in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, the nations of the world set a goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. They agreed that every nation, and especially the wealthiest ones, would contribute to reducing climate damaging...

By DANIEL CANTOR YALOWITZ

This week marks my fifth year as a volunteer chef at Stone Soup Café. This anniversary enables me to reflect on all the good the café has done for Greenfield and beyond, and the staff, board, volunteers, and friends who circulate through this...

By PETER M. HAAS

The recently concluded Climate Change COP28 (the 28th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the 1992 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change) surprised many observers by generating more concrete decisions than had been expected. Most...