Archive for ‘Opinion’

  • My Irish Up

    By Mike Corrigan BN Columnist Dad’s generation beat the Germans and the Japanese. My father had it easy, winning that war, with all the help he got in men and materiel.  I, on the other hand, was later chosen to single-handedly beat the Russians. When I got the first hint of my assignment, it was […]

  • Earth Notes: Somebody’s always saying good-bye

    By Rev. Robert Plaisted Guest Columnist “It’s the same old scene, time after time. That’s the trouble with all mankind. Somebody’s always saying goodbye.” That’s a verse from a popular song written by Bob McDill and issued on a 1982 hit recording by Anne Murray. It’s also true. It can hurt like hell to say […]

  • Recycling Matters

    By Maureen McDevitt Bridgton Recycling Committee I have vivid memories of a time long ago. All of our food waste was put in a garbage can, where it was then collected and sent to the local pig farm. We hung our clothes on a line to dry, which not only saved electricity, but also protected […]

  • Earth Notes: Memo to the future

    By Cynthia Stancioff Guest Columnist I recently listened to a radio piece in which people from various walks of life were asked what one sentence they would leave for a future civilization if ours were to vanish.  One person felt it would be most important to leave a message about racism; someone else suggested that […]

  • My Irish Up: Tick, tick, tick…Time to get bitten?

    By Mike Corrigan BN Columnist The Tick Apocalypse is upon us, a disaster almost Biblical in scope. The creeping, crawling, biting invasion of the spring of ’23 reminds of Egypt’s plague of locusts. There ought to be a law against it but, as usual, Congress does nothing. I’ve talked to several people the past three […]

  • Earth Notes: Mountains and molehills

    By Rev. Robert Plaisted Guest Columnist “Why this obsession with the climate change?” That’s the opening sentence from a recent letter to the editor, which consisted mostly of 15 questions, all beginning with the word “why.” I don’t have space to answer all 15, so I’ve chosen two. Both deal with climate change. Before answering […]

  • In the Garden: Good worms and bad worms

    By Nancy Donovan, Ph.D., PT Master Gardener Volunteer Until I was doing the research for this column, I did not know that there were no native earthworms in Maine. In the Aug. 1, 2021, online issue of Maine Home Gardener News, an article that was first published in the April 1, 2019, issue of the […]

  • Earth Notes: Black flies? Mosquitos? Yes, please!

    By Mary Jewett Guest Columnist We all know the classic rhyme, April showers bring May flowers. May also brings an influx of annoying biting insects. For many (most?) people, this leads to feelings ranging from mild annoyance to fully formed rage against the bloodsuckers. Most of us have seen the classic comics naming the mosquito […]

  • Recycling Matters: Making corporations pay for their waste

    By Rachel Miller Bridgton Recycling Committee Member When the town of Bridgton voted down Pay Per Bag, many community members rejected the proposal out of concerns for the resulting costs to the individual and in reaction to the mandatory nature of the approach for individuals. In the meantime, interestingly, the state of Maine has been […]

  • Earth Notes: Relax, it’s just money

    By Rev. Robert Plaisted Guest Columnist Much of modern life is a mad scramble for money, so perhaps we should ask what money is, and how it became so important to us. Merriam Webster defines money as “something generally accepted as a medium of exchange, a measure of value, or a means of payment.” Money […]