The political profile of economic inequality in America has certainly been growing. So has the political confusion over what overcoming inequality will take. Unfortunately, President Barack Obama’s latest State of the Union address may only add to that confusion. Obama could ”“ and should ”“ have declared a clear and compelling agenda for combating the […]

Most New Year’s resolutions made by New Englanders involve our personal health ”“ exercising more, eating better, losing weight or quitting smoking. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency also recommends a smart resolution that will take minimal effort or cost, and will protect your whole family’s health and increase your peace of mind: This winter, test […]

The House Republican leadership, meeting recently at the party’s winter retreat, kept its new immigration reform “principles” as secret as the nuclear codes. Old immigration hands on the Hill, who might have been expected to play a big part in producing the document, were barely consulted. When Speaker John Boehner’s office wanted a knowledgeable Hill […]

A recently published story about downtown Biddeford included the following line: “Most important, said Mayor (Alan) Casavant, is for residents to get rid of the stigma associated with the city being a former mill town.” I rubbed my eyes, shook my head, and went back and read it again, and it read the same the […]

While it may be the most convenient option to simply flush baby wipes or feminine products down the toilet, it’s certainly not the most environmentally friendly. It is also causing a major issue in some places by clogging sewer pipes. The Portland Water District and Maine environmental officials recently launched a campaign to stop people […]

There were parties, celebrations and get-togethers everywhere this past Sunday, Feb. 2, and I am utterly confused about them. America annually goes crazy on February’s first weekend over a day that was minor 47 years ago when, if the occasion was even noticed at all, it passed with relatively little fanfare. How the United States […]

The very core of what makes America different from all other nations is our Constitution’s separation of powers. Here is James Madison in Federalist Paper No. 51: “In order to lay a due foundation for that separate and distinct exercise of the different powers of government, which to a certain extent is admitted on all […]