After a decade as a Maine superintendent, I authored a 2006 Brookings report that drove school district consolidations, many later reversed by local voters. The education funding debate stays fixated on revenue — who is paying and how — while ignoring results — who benefits and by how much (“Maine’s school funding formula has long […]

The use of the word “genocide” to describe the situation in Gaza is not remotely accurate and should not require a rebuttal, but here is one anyway. At no time before or during WWII were the Jews an existential threat to Germany. They had been living peaceably with no weapons of war at their disposal. […]

Letter writer Scott Farnum asks how the citizens’ initiative on voting somehow went from being a voter ID bill to an all-inclusive question (“Wording of voter ID question is undemocratic,” Aug. 7), mentioning numerous big changes to Maine election law. He blames the secretary of state for this “change.” In fact, there was no change. […]

Most Americans want to know that the food they purchase and consume was produced responsibly, and that it didn’t come at the cost of animal suffering. It’s no surprise that voters in 15 states backed laws that set reasonable standards for how animals, raised for food, should be treated — such as California’s Proposition 12. […]

Like countless Mainers of all political persuasions (I’m sure), I was disgusted to read of the immigrant-hating attacks by Republican gubernatorial candidate Bobby Charles on state Rep. Deqa Dhalac, who has lived in America for more than 30 years. The recently deceased political consultant and commentator David Gergen said that the current occupant of the […]

I live in western Maine, trying to grow crops and store solar energy for my solar power system. With this smoke from Canada my crops are way behind in development. The nighttime temperatures are too low for proper development. Daytime sunlight is diminished for photosynthesis required for plant growth. My recorded solar energy output from […]