Opponents of the Affordable Care Act, which is also known as Obamacare, claim it is a disaster for the country, mainly because it gets government into the health insurance business. They say it amounts to “socialism” in the United States, just as supposedly exists in Europe and other places that use government as the lone […]

The baby boomers are coming of age, which means a large segment of the population is now nearing or in retirement. An older demographic means a different atmosphere for many towns and, most importantly, different needs. Housing, transportation options and social service needs aren’t the same for older people as they are for, say, young […]

On a Halloween weekend in the not-too-distant past, I stood in the living room of a long-time friend, a blindfold pulled tight around my eyes, trying in vain to eat a doughnut suspended from the ceiling. This activity is ridiculous enough without any additional help, but as it happened, I was dressed as the video […]

When the shutdown ended, our public officials sounded like fraternity boys with a hangover after a disastrous weekend drinking binge. “Never again!” spewed and dribbled from the lips of Republicans and Democrats alike. “We need to make sure that government does not go through another round of brinksmanship,” Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said on “Meet […]

Sometimes, relationships just don’t work out ”“ especially when they’re forced. Such is the case with Regional School Unit 23, where Saco, Old Orchard Beach and Dayton have been attempting to share the responsibility and cost of educating their students together for the past four years. Saco voters will decide on Tuesday whether or not […]

The addition of another property to the Williams Court Park in Biddeford is a good use of the city-owned land and will hopefully add to the city’s efforts to revitalize and improve the downtown. Construction on the park began in 2010 when several vacant buildings on the street were purchased by the city, with the […]

Under Obamacare, the Internal Revenue Service will determine who is eligible for health insurance subsidies, and it will deliver those subsidies, in the form of tax credits, to millions of individual Americans. It’s a huge job, and a critical one, involving hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars. So it should go without saying that the […]

We in Maine have seen offensive American Indian monikers such as “redskins” and “squaw” removed from landmarks and high schools within the past few years ”“ most notably with the Sanford High School’s recent change to Spartans. It’s time now for the same to happen to one of the United States’ National Football League teams. […]

These woods are not yet comfortingly familiar to me. It will take some time and many walks for us to get to know each other, and for their particular personality to affix itself firmly in my mind. Their scent is the same as others I have known this time of year, from the sweetness of […]

Thumbs up to the local survivors of domestic violence abuse who shared their stories as part of the Survivor Stories Project, which was performed Thursday, and will be again this week, to help spread awareness and raise funds for Caring Unlimited, a Sanford-based nonprofit that helps victims of domestic violence. The Survivor Stories Project was […]