Because America’s de facto official language contains more than 250,000 words, mastering it as a second tongue must be exceptionally difficult. But perhaps the most challenging thing about becoming conversant in English after growing up speaking another language would be sorting out all the homophones, or words that are pronounced alike but have very different […]

Everyone is talking about how exciting the first round of the NBA playoffs was, and rightly so. Five of the eight first-round series went the full seven games ”“ including both No. 1 vs. No. 8 matchups ”“ and eight games went to overtime. But lost in the excitement is a refreshing revelation for the […]

As first reported by the Miami Herald’s Carol Rosenberg on April 17, during a pretrial hearing of a Guantanamo prisoner previously held at a series of CIA secret prisons, judge Army Col. James Pohl ordered the agency to provide the long-concealed “names of agents, interrogators and medical personnel who worked at the so-called black sites” […]

Secretary of State John Kerry recently urged Russian leader Vladimir Putin to dial down the confrontation in Ukraine. “If Russia continues in this direction,” Kerry warned, “it will not just be a grave mistake, it will be an expensive mistake.” So far, however, it’s the leaders in Washington, Bonn and Brussels who are making mistakes […]

Excerpts from recent editorials in newspapers in the United States and abroad: The Oklahoman on Obama administration and Keystone XL pipeline: The Obama administration has found yet another way to keep from deciding the fate of the Keystone XL pipeline’s northern leg, from Canada to Cushing. This time, to hear the administration tell it (with […]

Thumbnails:         thumb”¢nail (thum’nail’)         …2. anything quite small or brief,         as a small drawing or short essay Thumbs up to the new online system, “Get Connected,” recently launched by the United Way of York County, which allows people to find volunteer opportunities in their community. This new service is a […]

Now that the dust is starting to settle after the work of the 126th Legislature, one thing is startlingly clear: In spite of the collaborative, bipartisan work of the Legislature, Gov. Paul LePage has chosen politics over people at every opportunity. He has vetoed more pieces of legislation than any other governor in Maine’s history. […]

Jeff Kellar scores a $25,000 Gottlieb grant.