All Entries in the "Op-ed" Category
Op-ed: 2 proposals would amend Vt. Constitution
By Sen. Alison Clarkson The Vermont Constitution is a living document and, as such, is allowed to be amended. However, the authors of our Constitution in 1777 did not make it an easy document to amend. It is a multi-year process, requiring review and approval in two consecutive legislative biennia (in this case 2019-20 and […]
Op-ed: Bock on legislative progress in Montpelier
By state Rep. Tom Bock Windsor-3-1 Nothing about the 2021-2022 legislative session in Montpelier has been business as usual. It began as no other like it, in total virtual mode with legislators “Zooming in” from 150 locales across Vermont. Despite these challenges, we are making progress on critical goals. Our focus continues to be on […]
Op-ed: Sunshine Week celebrates open government — even in a pandemic
By Jim Condos Vermont Secretary of State “Work Like There Are 625,000 Vermonters Looking Over Our Shoulders” Covid-19 has strained so many of our institutions over the last year. As our Vermont government agencies work to support our state through this crisis, we must always work to maintain the public’s right to know. Fortunately, in […]
Sen. Clarkson: Pandemic Zooming has made Montpelier more accessible
By Sen. Alison Clarkson Town Meeting week certainly was different this year. While I missed the in-person visits, delicious food and touring around Windsor District, our virtual Zoom Town Informational Meetings enabled me to stop in to 10 gatherings. Without having to drive half an hour or 45 minutes between meetings, I was afforded the […]
Op-ed: VPR/Vermont PBS — The Vermont media conglomerate
By Matt Krauss The largest non-profit media organization in Vermont history –made up of Vermont Public Radio and the Vermont Public Broadcasting System — will soon have 117 employees, an annual budget $18 million and $91 million in assets. Seven Days has around 43 employees; VtDigger around 22. How many at your local newspaper? Its […]
Opinion: State bill would require civics education for high school graduation
By Sen. Dick McCormack Windsor District It requires real effort to focus on anything but Covid-19 and the transfer of power, but life and its lesser concerns go on. A tri-partisan group of senators, including local colleagues Sen. Alison Clarkson, Sen. Mark MacDonald and all three Rutland County senators, are co-sponsoring S.17, a bill I’ve […]
Opinion: Historic day in Montpelier and Washington, D.C.
By Sen. Alison Clarkson Windsor District Last Wednesday, Jan. 6, we saw a sharp contrast between legislative life in Vermont and in the U.S. Congress in Washington, D.C. This contrast couldn’t have been more stark: One, unusually quiet, orderly, historic but subdued; The other noisy, chaotic and shockingly violent. One affirming and one rocking our […]
Op-ed: Town Clerks are heroes of Election Day
By Jim Condos Vermont Secretary of State As Vermonters we should be proud. The November General Election saw Vermonters voting in record numbers, exercising our civic duty both safely and securely during circumstances that are anything but ordinary. Much of the conversation nationally is focused on the results of the election. I think it’s equally […]
Op-ed: Rep. Bock on wrap up of legislative session Covid funding, Global Warming Act, cannabis marketplace
By Tom Bock The Vermont House of Representatives passed its final bills and adjourned on Friday, Sept. 25. This concluded an historic 2-year session in which Covd-19 tested our state, causing numerous disruptions, including the closure of Vermont’s State House. The main purpose of the final session, which began on Aug. 25, was to finalize […]
Op-ed: One Drop Passing as white, denying your identity
By James Michael Brodie ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC “You see, unfortunately, I am not black. There are lots of different kinds of blood in our family. But here in the United States, the word ‘Negro’ is used to mean anyone who has any Negro blood at all in his veins. In Africa, the word is […]
Op-ed: Individual actions save local businesses
By Tim Roper I’ve heard and read quite a bit recently about how the town of Chester is killing small business through onerous regulation and thought this might be a good place to share some thoughts from my perspective in that regard. I’m writing here as a citizen of Chester and a small business owner, […]
Op-ed: Why are you mad?
By James Michael Brodie ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC A few days ago, a white gentleman responded to one of my posts with a series of profanity laden insults. When another poster pointed out his bigotry, he responded by declaring himself a “proud racist,” before adding in a few more expletives. A quick look at postings […]
Rep. Bock: State moving Covid money into areas of need
By Rep. Tom Bock The last day that I and my fellow Vermont House colleagues set foot in the House Chamber was Friday, March 13. Since then, for more than three months, the 150-member House has conducted business from our homes, with Speaker of the House Mitzi Johnson insisting we continue to wear proper business […]
Op-ed: Why are you ‘white?’
By James Michael Brodie ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC I recently posed a question to my friends on Facebook who identify as white: “Do you know how you came to be called white? Do you know why?” Those who responded shared their experiences of living in white skin, but none could cite the source of those […]
Op-ed: My alma mater needs to teach about racism
By Cheyénne Prescott I was raised in the town of Chester, population slightly more than 3,000. From the 2nd grade to the 12th, I’ve been a part of this tight-knit, corner of Vermont. Some of my earliest childhood memories took place on the wooden play structure at Chester-Andover Elementary School. My “crew” and I would […]
Op-ed: Seeking racial equity in Vermont
By Sen. Alison Clarkson This week’s New Yorker magazine cover “This Side Up,” illustrates an upside down world, capturing an aspect of how many are feeling right now. Our U.S. government has failed to adequately prepare and protect its citizens from a global pandemic – and our public safety officers, whose job is to protect […]
Op-ed: Racism is white America’s problem
Editor’s note: This column is reprinted with permission by the author, James Michael Brodie, an old friend and colleague of mine from Baltimore, Md. — Cynthia Prairie. By James Michael Brodie ©2020 Telegraph Publishing LLC It should be evident by now that people like the white woman who called the police on a black man […]
Sen. McCormack: Right ideas, wrong applicaton
By Sen. Dick McCormack The pandemic, its economic fallout and the resulting social and personal stresses all beg for analysis. What’s going on? What are proper responses? What mistakes are being made? What fundamental problems are exposed? I’m grateful for the informed, insightful, indeed wise communications I’ve been getting from concerned citizens. It’s gratifying when […]
Sen. Clarkson: Vermont’s housing problem is a health problem
By Sen. Alison Clarkson The Covid-19 crisis is challenging all of us, but it is particularly challenging for those already at risk in Vermont. “Stay Home, Stay Safe” assumes two things – that you have a home and that it is safe. Sadly, for too many Vermonters this is not the case. And so Vermont’s […]
Commentary: How to help a domestic abuse survivor during the Covid-19 crisis
By the Women’s Freedom Center If you’ve been out to run essential errands, you’ve already felt the eerie absence of almost everyone else. Grocery stores, drugstores and drive-up restaurants provide not just necessities now, but also our few remaining live contacts outside the home. They’re a welcome sight to anyone, but imagine how vital they […]
