On Monday, we will celebrate Washington’s Birthday. Not Presidents’ Day, but Washington’s Birthday, the official U.S. and Maine government designation of the day. This is my annual recognition of Washington. To remember Abraham Lincoln and other presidents, some outright failures, the holiday honoring Washington has been absorbed by the commercial “Presidents’ Day.” But we should […]
Journal Tribune Opinion
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Tax conformity legislation must protect schools and property taxpayers
The Maine House of Representative voted for a tax conformity measure that fully conforms to the federal tax code for the next two years and allows families and businesses to file their returns now. Unlike the proposal from Gov. Paul LePage, it also puts money into public education to protect classrooms from cuts and property […]
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Field of dweebs
Political commentator and consultant Paul Begala once said that politics is “show business for ugly people.” I want to send this guy a cake. His observation has been true for decades now, but it wasn’t always the case. When this quaint little republic was born in earnest, politics were a straightforward affair: You elected a […]
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Rep. Gattine receives well-deserved honor
I just learned that Rep. Drew Gattine (D-Westbrook) received AARP’s 2015 Capital Caregiver Award. There is no legislator more deserving of the award than Rep. Gattine. It’s difficult for me to thank him adequately for the work he has done for Maine’s 178,000 caregivers and their families in making the CARE Act and its three […]
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Saco going against wishes of late property owner
The late Mary D. Merrill entrusted her Saco property, River Bend Farm, to the Saco Valley Land Trust with a conservation easement outlining her own vision for future usage of the farm and land. The Saco Valley Land Trust’s board of directors has determined in two consecutive votes that The Ecology School’s proposed use for […]
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Why is Obama still killing children?
President Barack Obama closed his speech at last week’s National Prayer Breakfast with a prayer for forgiveness. “I pray that my failings are forgiven,” Obama told the audience of spiritual leaders. “I pray that we will see every single child as our own, each worthy of our love and of our compassion. And I pray […]
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Why women in office matter
Millennial women shouted their views with their votes in New Hampshire, where almost 80 percent of them went for Bernie Sanders. The primary followed a flurry of stories about outraged young women claiming Madeleine Albright and Gloria Steinem had tried to “shame” them into voting for Hillary Clinton. Why, they demanded, should we vote for […]
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There’s an app for that!
A million-dollar inspiration hit me after spending a week in the car driving across this great land of ours with Sue . My idea would be a new variation on the GPS navigation systems in cars now. Instead of the voice coming from the dashboard, it would use the speakers in the backseat and say […]