All Entries in the "Op-ed" Category
Op-ed: Let stand historic language of Vermont Constitution
By Sen. Dick McCormack When the Vermont legislature convenes in January, there will be an effort to amend the Vermont Constitution to alter the 1777 language prohibiting slavery, the first prohibition of slavery in North America. I think doing this is a bad idea. As I understand it, supporters of amending object to the anti-slavery […]
Commentary: The irony of the Phoenix
By Shawn Cunningham © 2018 Telegraph Publishing LLC Irony – As a literary device, irony is a contrast or incongruity between expectations for a situation and what is reality… It can also be a difference between what might be expected to happen and what actually occurs. — literarydevices.com If it weren’t for the loss of […]
Op-ed: In Vermont, accessible registration, secure voting
By Jim Condos Election Day is fast approaching. On Tuesday, Nov. 6, Vermonters will head to the polls to vote for the people who will represent them, from Justice of the Peace all the way up to governor and members of Congress. Free and fair elections are the bedrock of our democracy, here in Vermont […]
Op-ed: Senate hopeful Zupan challenges Sanders as absent from votes, absent from Vermont
Editor’s note: The Chester Telegraph reached out on Tuesday to the campaign of Sen. Bernie Sanders by email to also write an op-ed for The Chester Telegraph. The campaign is considering it. We will let you know of the decision. By Lawrence Zupan Next month, Vermont will elect a U.S. senator. Vermonters want a senator […]
Op-ed: Personal stories break stigma of addiction
By Kate Lamphere, LICSW Earlier this year, I attended the National Opiate and Prescription Drug Conference. I was inspired by U.S. Surgeon General Jerome M. Adams, MD, MPH, who shared his personal story of how addiction touched his family, resulting in a family member being incarcerated due to involvement with opiates. What made such a […]
Rep. Tom Bock: Government shutdown avoided
By Rep. Tom Bock Windsor 3-1 Time was of the essence. Without a budget passed by July 1, Vermont government would be closed for the first time in history. After the biennium session ended on May 17 without a spending plan, a special session was reconvened, and over a period of four weeks the legislature […]
Bill Schubart: ‘Vermont Life’s’ heedless death
By Bill Schubart This commentary first aired on VPR I grew up reading Vermont Life in the fifties and continued reading it until shortly after the turn of the century. It always had a prominent place in our home, moving quarterly from the coffee table to the bathroom magazine rack – where its continued perusal […]
Commentary: Rep. Bock highlights notable bills
By Rep. Tom Bock We’re into the last two weeks of the 2018 legislative session in Montpelier, always a chaotic time. Pressure is building to get bills through the before adjournment. The House and Senate need to reconcile differences on bills affecting funding for education and clean water as well as many other issues. Following […]
Commentary: Get to know Grace Cottage
By Rep. Kelly Pajala The legislature meets Tuesday through Friday, so Mondays are often the one weekday during sessions when legislators have the opportunity to spend time back in their home districts. Last Monday, in the midst of my brain being consumed by the battle over gun control and school safety, I literally went out […]
Commentary: Rep. Clarkson on gun safety, tech security bills
By Sen. Alison Clarkson Both bodies of the Vermont legislature have now passed three major measures to improve firearm safety in our state. These bills: S.221, H.422 and S.55 are designed to keep guns out of the hands of those who intend harm to themselves or others, domestic violence abusers, and those with a serious […]
Commentary: Rep. Bock on gun, tax measures
By Rep. Tom Bock The school shooting in Florida plus the incident at Fair Haven High School right here in Vermont has brought the need for immediate attention to be paid to gun violence. Gov. Phil Scott had already outlined an action plan to improve school safety and reduce gun violence. The gun violence prevention […]
Op-Ed: Open government is good government
By Jim Condos Vermont Secretary of State March 11-17 is Sunshine Week, a national celebration of access to public information and what it means for you and your community. All across Vermont new board members and other town and city officials are being sworn in and taking their seats for the first time. I am […]
Sen. Clarkson: Firearms, minimum wage hike among issues in state Senate
By Sen. Alison Clarkson The arrest of a Poultney teenager who was allegedly planning a mass school shooting at the Fair Haven high school should be a game changer in Vermont. We can no longer justify inaction on enacting common sense firearm safety measures. Yes, Vermont is a safe state, but we now know that […]
Rep. Tom Bock: Early action on marijuana, more pressing issues await
This is the first of my periodic notes on happenings in the Vermont Statehouse during the 2018 legislative session. As a representative to the Vermont House for Windsor 3-1, I want to keep all of you abreast of the issues discussed and bills proposed and give you a sense of Vermont’s legislative process including how […]
Op-ed: As new unified school district gets under way, board needs to listen closely to parents, families and teachers
Editor’s note: Chester resident Sue Willis wrote this open letter to the new Green Mountain Unified School District Board. By Sue Willis ©2018 Telegraph Publishing LLC After sitting through the meeting of the Green Mountain Unified School District Board last Tuesday evening, I was compelled to write a letter to all members regarding some of […]
Commentary: Chester is emerging with new energy
By Cynthia Prairie ©2017 Telegraph Publishing LLC Several years ago, at a Chester Town Meeting, a resident told those gathered that she believed that the town was stagnating. Then, others noted there were empty shops on the Green, houses were not selling and those that did sell were getting prices far lower than their assessed […]
Op-ed: Large cost to innkeepers, state of unregulated Airbnbs
By Kathy Pellett The proliferation of Airbnbs and web-based rentals are affecting the livelihood of owners of licensed, regulated inns, hotels and B&Bs. There are serious implications, not just for the hospitality industry, but for the state economy as a whole. Operating an Airbnb is not just a matter of someone renting a room in […]
Commentary: Get your family, neighbors prepared for disaster
By Erica Borneman Like most of you, we at Vermont Emergency Management have been watching events unfold in Texas following Hurricane Harvey. As we watch, most of us are no doubt reminded of our own historic disaster: Tropical Storm Irene. We’ve seen many stories from Houston about individuals and families who were rescued from their […]
Op-ed: Up-ending the carbon status quo
By James Gustave Speth With the Trump administration doing everything it can to eliminate progress made in combating climate change, it is particularly important for forward-thinking states like Vermont to take action. Because of the urgency of the issue, it is quite disappointing to see this year’s legislative session draw to a close without any […]
Op-ed: President’s baseless claims undermine trust in voting
By Jim Condos Vermont Secretary of State On Friday, President Trump announced the establishment of a commission by executive order to investigate the presence of voter fraud in elections. Despite continued assertions by President Trump that widespread voter fraud, in the millions, occurred during the 2016 election, there has been no evidence that any widespread […]
