According to Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German theologian who went up against Hitler and paid with his life, ignorance, being uninformed or misinformed is a more dangerous enemy of the good than evil is. Against evil, he maintained, one can protest; it can be exposed and, if necessary, stopped by force, but against a lack of […]

On winter mornings since 2013, the bronze statue of Melville Fuller in front of the Kennebec County Superior Court sometimes features a crown of snow. In an artful touch, he sometimes sports a toque, or stocking cap, that modifies without erasing his judicial mien. It’s there because Fuller, who grew up in Augusta, is the […]

As the least racially diverse state in the nation, it has been easy for white Mainers to ignore the structures of racism that exist throughout our society. This has caused our fellow Mainers to suffer greatly. Over 400 years of policies designed to segregate, marginalize and economically oppress racial, Indigenous and tribal populations have resulted […]

Vote Shaw, Hepler In November, Woolwich residents will be voting for two Selectpersons. The incumbents are Jason Shaw and Allison Hepler. I have known Mr. Shaw personally and professionally for 30 years. I have also interacted with him several times during his tenor as a Selectperson. He is fair, open-minded and confident. He knows what […]

Every 50 years I have an engaging conversation with Michael Fiori. The first one occurred in the spring of 1970 in the Bowdoin College Admissions Office. Michael was a local kid, the son of Columbo and Marie Alice Fiori who ran the Kennebec Fruit Company on Maine Street. He had come for an interview because […]