Editorial: Job well done by PVTA administrator

There’s an old saying that a leader always should try to leave a place better than he or she found it. That’s exactly what Mary MacInnes did as longtime administrator of the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority — and then some.MacInnes, who retired April...

Columnist Joe Gannon: E pluribus unum the right slogan for the right time

By JOE GANNON

Where does hope come from at this time when the world is lurching ever rightward? What can unite us enough to pull in the opposite direction when the old ideologies are gone?The French may have slowed that lurch toward right-wing populism in last...

Judy Roncalli: Reminder that stop signs are on bike trail

Reminder that stop signs are on bike trail I am a frequent user of both the bike trail and my car. It appears to me that drivers/users of both of these are not aware of the rules of either.The bike trail is now equipped with stop signs at every road...

Columnist Fanny Rothschild: Urgency for mothers to live ‘out front’

By FANNY ROTHSCHILD

When do we stop sitting in our homes or offices, activate our protector natures, and take to the streets?When I lived in Argentina for six months in 1996, I volunteered with the Madres de Plaza de Mayo, a group of mothers who had begun to march 20...

Sally Fitz encourages reusing and recycling as part of decluttering

Reuse and recycle as part of decluttering Thank you for the April 28 article from The Sacramento Bee entitled “Bogged Down by Clutter? Here’s the Fix.”There were many helpful suggestions for cleaning out and decluttering spaces. Unfortunately, while...

Alan Kanner: Suggests Comey firing linked to Russian involvement

Suggests Comey firing linked to Russia By virtue of the president’s firing of FBI Director James Comey, it is only the die-hard Trumpeteers who would not recognize Trump’s own admission of guilt for his direct involvement in his campaign’s Russian...

Jonathan Kahane describes trouble deciphering utility bills

Trouble deciphering utility bills I received a bunch of bills in my mailbox today. This seems to happen every day.I diligently try to pay them in a timely fashion without using my credit line. Usually I am successful, and in most cases I can...

Editorial: House GOP reckless on health care

Former president Barack Obama spoke about courage Sunday night in Boston when he accepted the 2017 John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award.“I hope that current members of Congress recognize that it takes little courage to aid those who are already...

Columnist John Sheirer: Critical thinking cure for fake news

By JOHN SHEIRER

Donald Trump and his supporters are currently the leading purveyors of “alternative facts” and “fake news,” but they didn’t invent these phenomena. They simply took advantage of a political climate that discouraged critical thinking and promoted...

Editorial: Monday Mix on tweets, tensions and cops at school

OK, it might be an overstatement to say that President Donald Trump has met his Twitter match in Amherst Town Manager Paul Bockelman. But when Bockelman took to the Twitterverse recently to chide Starbucks, he made creative use of this 21st-century...

Editorial: Award-winners committed to compassionate leadership 

At the opposite ends of their careers, Barbara Black and Allison Jenks share a commitment to improving the lives of people they touch with their compassionate and spirited leadership.The two women received the Person of the Year and Young Community...

Columnist Bill Newman: Political, moral fight joined over health care

By BILL NEWMAN

People with pre-existing conditions fear that they “are going to die because of a vote we might be taking.”Rep. Tom Rooney (R-Florida) said that earlier this week. He added, “(A) lot of people … call my office … daily who are extremely angry … because...

Bruce Scofield: Must not ignore rapid warming, transfer of carbon

Must not ignore rapid warming, carbon transfer In his guest column, Dennis Burke points out correctly that long-term climate cycles, based on orbital variations, exist and that climates have changed slowly over time. We can indeed use the past as a...

Anne Moore: Nonviolent Peaceforce officials to speak in Northampton

Nonviolent Peaceforce officials to speak here Unarmed civilian protection is being used in South Sudan, Myanmar, Iraq, and the Philippines by men and women in the Nonviolent Peaceforce.This nonpartisan international organization...

Lead In Massachusetts: A Canary in the Coal Mine

By Naila Moreira

The very schools we depend on to educate our children could be making them less smart.Drinking water in schools across Massachusetts, including here in the Pioneer Valley, has been found to contain lead significantly exceeding safety standards. Lead...

Steve Hudgik: Replies to letter writer about existence of god

Replies to letter writer about existence of GodA letter writer says that there is not a shred of evidence that there is a God, or that this supposed God created us (“No evidence that deity created us,” May 1).That is an interesting absolute claim that...

Ralph J. Dolan: Pearl diver Chomsky the undisputed maestro

Pearl diver Chomsky the undisputed maestro That’s Chomsky, huh? (“Chomsky ponders human survival,” April 14). Whether he conforms to your vision of reality or not, one must stand in awe of the man — his astounding work ethic, his grasp of world...

Editorial: President Donald Trump’s first 100 days galvanizes opposition 

On Jan. 21, President Donald Trump’s first full day in office, an estimated 500,000 people rallied in the streets of Washington, D.C., against the new administration.Thousands more are expected in the capital this Saturday — the 100th day of Trump’s...

Columnist Clare Higgins: Looking  beyond the first 100 days

By CLARE HIGGINS

Saturday is President Trump’s 100th day in office.Trump promised a long list of achievements – from repealing the Affordable Care Act to withdrawing from NAFTA to proposing an infrastructure plan. Mexico certainly will not be paying for the “big,...

Charles LaPiene: Recalls predictions made on first Earth Day

Recalls predictions made on first Earth Day On the first Earth Day, April 22, 1970, the nation paused to consider the impact of human activity on the global environment.The greatest threat — as seen that day — was the prospect that future generations...