When the Connecticut legislature passed a ban on most pesticides for athletic fields used by kindergarten through 8th-grade students in 2010, who knew (not an entirely rhetorical question) that a common alternative — even for towns less wealthy than Old Lyme — would be to construct playing surfaces out of countless tons of tires recycled… Keep Reading
At the conclusion of the December WPCA meeting, Chairman Prendergast made the following statements recorded in WPCA minutes and CT Examiner: His White Sands property and those of his neighbors had gone up 20 – 30% in the latest appraisal. “Beach property values generally go up when the rest of the town goes down. When… Keep Reading
Hartford is exploiting an anomaly in the Medicaid program to extract billions from the U.S. Treasury, not to finance health care, but rather to finance otherwise unaffordable state spending, primarily state employee health care and retirement benefits. This anomaly, or “shell game” (the term used in a U.S. Senate committee report) operates through the hospital… Keep Reading
If you read the newspapers in America in 1780 or so – just as the modern familiar incarnation of the Christmas holiday is taking shape – you might be surprised to find that already critics and observers are fretting the loss of the true meaning, the spirit, of Christmas, much as they do today –… Keep Reading
With a short legislative session in the spring, state and federal elections in the fall, we’re drawing up plans for nonpartisan election coverage, with the expectation that at least two state senate seats, and two or three house seats in the region will have exciting elections this fall – one insider has suggested privately that… Keep Reading
Not quite twenty years ago, in the dead of winter, in a small newspaper room in the Russian National Library in St. Petersburg, Russia, I sat reading New Year’s Eve coverage for the years 1903 until 1923 in bound volumes of three or four dozen newspapers from the time. A city of Petersburg’s size had… Keep Reading
Checks and balances, that’s what our country is built on. Everything from the federal government to the local school board needs proper oversight, questioning and input from a variety of voices to work best. Without in-depth reporting, a key check on the system is missing. This past April, when I started reporting at the Connecticut… Keep Reading
People often ask what I like best about my job as a reporter and writer. A few years ago I would have said the opportunity to bring attention and transparency to important issues, interview interesting people and learn about a wide range of topics. In a sense, nothing has changed because all of these remain… Keep Reading
We asked 32 writers, politicians, educators, artists, journalists, acadmics to contemplate the New Year for us. Participants include Ned Lamont, Joe Courtney, Paul Formica, Devin Carney, Justin Elicker, Alma Nartatez, Richard Stout, Tony Sheridan, Luanne Rice, Will Haskell, Sophie Spaner, David Kelsey, Jack Monmeat, Jerry Weiss, Gail MacDonald, Betsy Gara, Rolf Wolfswinkel, Brian White, Brittany Stalsburg and others... Keep Reading
Barry Ricci, longtime superintendent of the RI Chariho Regional Schools, was a hero beloved by the children and families of Charlestown and all of us who were privileged to work with him at Town Hall. We mourn his loss and we extend heartfelt condolences to the Ricci family. A quote from Barry when he became… Keep Reading
