Legislators in Maine have voted to weaken the citizen-initiated Clean Elections Act, and now they are considering raiding the funds Mainers put there to keep elections accessible to all who are interested in serving this state. Recently, the Maine House and Senate voted to remove the “matching funds” provision from the Clean Elections Act, and […]

The Legislature’s Education Committee recently voted against allowing public funds to go to some religious schools, but some major changes to Maine’s education system are still to be decided by legislators as the session comes to a close in mid-April. We’re pleased the education committee had the foresight to kill the bill that would have […]

When I began teaching high school English, I shared a classroom with a colleague who had papered the walls with various pictures bearing slogans designed to motivate our charges to strive to reach new and lofty academic heights. I don’t recall many of those posters specifically, but one that remains vivid in my memory was […]

“Everyday is a journey, and the journey itself is home.” — Matsuo Basho When I look out my front door now, I see a river shimmering just beyond a busy street. My life’s journey has brought me here, and along with it the challenge of feeling at home as much as possible in a strange, […]

The National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s basketball tournament started two weeks ago with 68 teams hoping to play in the Final Four. For 64 of those teams, that dream didn’t come true. The hopes of winning a national championship are still alive for four teams, however. During the past two weeks, teams have battled Thursday […]

Thumbs up to all those who turned out to speak on Sanford’s “disorderly housing” ordinance proposal. We’re pleased to see the town moving forward on the issue and hope an ordinance can be implemented to better the living conditions for renters and their neighbors, and make the jobs of their landlords easier. In Biddeford, the […]

Without the numbers, it is difficult to speculate on whether or not funds were misused at the Maine State Housing Authority. But one thing is clear: Republicans have had it out for the agency’s head since they gained control of the Legislature and Governor’s office. Most notably, state Treasurer Bruce Poliquin, a board member of […]

On issues of national importance, it makes sense to get as much voter input as possible. Maine’s current system of caucusing to select a presidential candidate does not allow that ”“ and that’s a problem. A last-minute bill submitted earlier this week, LD 1882, would correct this, returning Maine to a primary system by 2016 […]

The Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, a nonprofit group of journalists committed to investigating the inner workings of the state government, has been doing some important work in the past few years. They’ve exposed the woefully backed-up dam inspection schedule, ethics concerns with legislative conflicts of interest, and the failures of Maine’s outdated method […]

Will Generation Y young men and women be able to attain their realistic dreams for the future?  Will they get the jobs they want or be able to start their own small businesses one day, from experiences they learned working in their jobs? Who are the members of Generation Y? Typically, they are defined as […]