Editorials

Published
January 19, 2011

Our View: China summitshould yield progress on jobs

Last year, Evergreen Solar of Massachusetts looked to be on the forefront of an energy revolution, in which domestically manufactured solar panels would bring new power options to domestic consumers. Instead, the company became another in a long line of manufacturing defeats, when company officials announced that despite receiving $58 million in federal subsidies, they were laying off 800 workers and outsourcing their manufacturing to China. There, even bigger subsides have driven the cost of solar panels so low that Evergreen can't compete. Similar policies are slowing the development of American wind turbine and battery industries, which would be the cornerstones of an alternative energy economy here.
Published
January 19, 2011

Our View: City Council should pass on white elephant warship

A floating museum would be a good idea for Portland, but not one as big as the JFK.
Published
January 18, 2011

Our View: Stuxnet virusa way to fight without bombs

It has been called "the most sophisticated cyberweapon ever created," and new reports coming out about the Stuxnet virus say that although it didn't stop Iran's efforts to build a nuclear weapon, it may have set back progress by several years, buying valuable time to halt the program without using military force. Even more interesting, the virus is now said to have been a joint production of both U.S. and Israeli security agencies. The United States reportedly contributed knowledge of the vulnerabilities of the Siemens computers used by Iran, and Israel tested the virus on the centrifuges it uses to enrich uranium to produce its own substantial nuclear arsenal. Whether these reports are confirmed or not, there seems little question that the virus has given Iran's nuclear production program fits. According to descriptions of its effects, the virus not only caused nearly a thousand Iranian centrifuges to self-destruct, it sent false messages of normal operations to controllers so they wouldn't interfere until the virus had done the maximum amout of damage.
Published
January 18, 2011

Our View: More should join move for bipartisan seating at speech

The State of the Union address is a great opportunity for Congress to display unity.
Published
January 17, 2011

Our View: Maine can’t stand still in school reform efforts

While other states improve, Maine is in a holding pattern, and slipping in the rankings.

Published
January 16, 2011

Another View: Postal Service is changing to meet marketplace’s demands

A recent editorial identified the right problem, but missed the solutions.
Published
January 16, 2011

Our Views: Small-scale proposal big idea on power use

The deal offered to some wind farm neighbors provides a model of how to heat with electricity.
Published
January 15, 2011

Our View: The whole world is listening, Gov. LePage

The governor undermines his own agenda when he makes comments like Friday's.
Published
January 14, 2011

Our View: Obama struckright note in Tucson speech

President Obama said what needed to be said Wednesday night at a service for the slain and injured of the Tucson, Ariz., shooting rampage. "At a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized -- at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who think differently than we do -- it's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we are talking with each other in a way that heals, not a way that wounds."
Published
January 13, 2011

Our View: Attorney general right to join Obamacare suit

Critics are making a judgment call, but are not the ones with the power to settle the question.