Letters to the Editor
To the Editor: When it comes to people dying in this country why is so much emphasis put on gun related deaths? Understandably, gun related deaths usually present as a tough situation. And yes, we want to limit those deaths. Some organizations say guns are the leading death of children. Base…
To the Editor: Dear people of the great state of Vermont,
To the Editor: Representative Sibilia, in response to your legislative update on House 355, the Defend the Guard Act, introduced in the Vermont House of Representatives on February 26, 2025, yet to be voted on ("Understanding the 'Defend the Guard' movement and H.355," March 4): this Act is …
To the Editor: The following is in response to Publisher Jordan Brechenser's commentary, "Hazardous cleanup: Who is liable?" in the March 11 Reformer.
To the Editor: In his 1796 Farewell Address, President George Washington counseled Americans to pursue peace and commerce while limiting political entanglements – especially "permanent alliances" with foreign nations. Until 1917, our elected representatives attempted to abide by this advice.
Letters to the editor
To the Editor: When it comes to people dying in this country why is so much emphasis put on gun related deaths? Understandably, gun related de…
To the Editor: After following testimony on S.193 before the Senate Judiciary Committee, one thing stands out: the conversation about mental health competency in Vermont focuses heavily on the rights of defendants, while rights of victims, survivors and the public receive far less attention.
To the Editor: In recent articles on your opinion page you have allowed writers to consistently use false information in their attacks on the President of the United States. This should be an insult to your paper's integrity, but perhaps your desire to satisfy your Trump deranged constituent…
To the Editor: I recently read an opinion article penned by an attempted conservative legislator who ran and was defeated in 2024 for the Windham 6 District.
To the Editor: This letter is in response to Pam Baker’s recent letter excoriating Rep Becca Balint for opposing the SAVE Act ("Balint normalizes violations of federal law," Feb. 27). I guess if you are a supporter of President Trump and believe his lies that any election that he loses is ri…
Columnists
Ask anyone how many towns there are in Vermont and you’ll hear a range: 251, 252, maybe 256 depending on whether you count unincorporated towns and gores. What doesn’t change is this crucial fact: nearly all of them rely on the labor of love of volunteers. Neighbors serve on selectboards, pl…
In the Feb. 7 edition of her daily column, Heather Cox Richardson wrote about the thousand plus people who turned out at a recent Surprise City, Arizona Council meeting to oppose the establishment of an ICE detention center in their community. During that meeting, one of the opponents told a…
When you vote or show up you get the results or government you want; when you don’t, you get the results or the government you deserve. That is to say, your voice makes a difference, your presence has an impact, and your involvement makes things happen. I truly believe when our Founding Fath…
Vermont is a model for future energy generation. The Vermont Yankee nuclear plant has closed and now over 99 percent of the state’s electricity is from hydroelectric, wind, solar, and biomass – renewable sources that do not pollute the environment or harm humans, and last forever. Sources li…
As we hope for a quick end to the war with Iran we must urgently increase food aid to relieve hunger among the victims. The U.S. and Israeli war with Iran is escalating the hunger crisis in the Middle East and beyond. People are being forced from their homes by the fighting and now are even …
Columnists
In the Feb. 7 edition of her daily column, Heather Cox Richardson wrote about the thousand plus people who turned out at a recent Surprise Cit…
The recent coverage on the subject of returning the mountain lion back to the state, generated a good discussion in the media. Wildlife advocates pushed and the leadership team at the Fish and Wildlife Department (FWD) pushed back urging caution. This one issue brings to mind the many conten…
I heard a song written by a woman that I hold in exceptionally high esteem, named Kelly Eldrige Boesch. Ms. Boesch is a digital creator par excellence, as well as a songwriter and performer. Her use of AI is highly accessible. The song’s subject matter concerns a situation that most of us fi…
As Donald Trump, Bibi Netanyahu, Pete Hegseth, Lyndsay Graham, and the rest of the warmongers become ever more rabid in their quest to kill as many Muslims as possible, in Gaza, in the West Bank, in Iran, in Lebanon, we face a moral dilemma. Many of us continue to live in relative comfort in…
At no point in our combined more than 50 years of service as hospital leaders have we witnessed the unusual combination of uncertainty that now defines Vermont’s statewide healthcare system. So much is in flux, and powerful forces are pulling in different directions.
Trending Now in Opinion
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Letter to the Editor: Protect the Vermont National Guard
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Letter to the Editor: Trump's immoral attack worthy of impeachment
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Commentary | Living with the Long Emergency by Tim Stevenson: Why did Trump make war on Iran?
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Letter to the Editor: A solution for hazardous needles
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Commentary | Joseph Mangano: Reviving nuclear power in Vermont would be a health hazard
Editorials
For anyone who ever doubted how special it is to live in Vermont -- we would argue especially southern Vermont -- Town Meeting Day is proof positive that there is no better place to call home.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired every member of a powerful vaccine advisory committee last summer and replaced them with a bunch of cranks, sidelining scientific experts in service of his anti-vaccine agenda.
The right to speak, think, write and read freely is the core of democracy; without one, we do not have the other. So if you're wondering what meaningful action an individual can take in this dangerous time for democracy, have a look in a book — perhaps a banned one — and stand up for the freedom to read and the local institutions that protect this endangered liberty.
"The news that two Manchester residents were detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Monday has had a powerful and polarizing effect within our communities. The Journal’s careful approach to covering this story as it unfolded proved similarly polarizing – but we stand by our choices as journalists and neighbors. Here’s why."
We've been hearing the complaint for years — Vermont is not a business friendly state, in part because the high cost of regulatory burdens can stymie needed development. That theory certainly bore out in our in-depth analysis of the housing crisis here in Windham County and all over Vermont.
Editorials
The right to speak, think, write and read freely is the core of democracy; without one, we do not have the other. So if you're wondering what meaningful action an individual can take in this dangerous time for democracy, have a look in a book — perhaps a banned one — and stand up for the freedom to read and the local institutions that protect this endangered liberty.
The United States Postal Service is on the brink of a self-induced collapse. The failed policies of the Delivering for America Plan have driven away customers through a combination of sky-high rate increases and degraded service. David Steiner, who will take over as Postmaster General on Jul…
A year of widening political divisions ended with the sobering news that confidence in the nation’s judicial system has also taken a hit, dropping to a record low 35 percent, according to the most recent Gallup poll.
We at the Reformer regret the controversy surrounding our decision to briefly publish in an online story the name of a Bellows Falls Union High School student who died in a car crash in Springfield earlier this week.
The federal government is predicting a nursing shortage in 2025, and we’re already seeing signs of one locally. Around one-fifth of registered nursing positions in Massachusetts home health care and nursing homes are unfilled. Massachusetts hospitals spent $1.1 billion last year hiring tempo…
More in Opinion
While the issue itself is not a new one, the reality is that property owners are being forced to take substantial health risks to clean up used syringes with exposed needles. While local law enforcement does what they can to keep drug use curtailed in the downtown district, the issue seems t…
The devil you know? But what happens when they’re all devils and every devil makes the previous devil look better than the last? I really hope at some point we can hold them all accountable; I hope at least history will hold them to a standard that used to exist when the rule of law was the …
Editor of the Reformer: For those of us who were around at the founding of the State of Israel in 1948 and were excited about its early development as a progressive social-democratic country, what has become of the political and governmental structure and activity of the country now is an en…
To the Editor: As a local resident, I appreciate reading the updates from the votes at the various town meetings. It is important to understand what is important to residents of surrounding communities.
The American and Israeli joint strike against Iran, beginning with the March 1 assassination of the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has plunged the entire Middle East into a violent vortex with seemingly no end on the horizon. The hostilities, called “A War Without Strategy…
To the Editor: Vermont Public misreported the Marlboro and Readsboro school closure story on March 5, 2026. It neglected to report that parents in Marlboro and Readsboro also have the option to choose alternate approved independent (private) schools for their children once the closure takes …
Vermont’s state lands are quiet places where trees grow tall, streams run clear, and wildlife fills the forest from canopy to floor. They are the working forests where loggers head out in the freezing dawn to provide wood for homes and supply the local elementary school with heat. They are t…
Across Vermont, nonprofits are the backbone of our communities — filling gaps, meeting critical needs, and enhancing our quality of life. From disaster recovery and food access to youth programs, workforce development, arts and culture, and health care, nonprofits are people helping people —…
“What is this, some kind of porno?” my dad grumbled a few minutes into the first episode of "Heated Rivalry." Over the winter holidays, my parents and sisters and I sat down to watch the “Canadian gay hockey smut” television show, which tells the story of on-ice rivals who spend years meetin…
To the Editor: As elected school board members, we are deeply concerned about proposals under consideration by the Vermont Legislature that would fundamentally reshape public education. We write as individuals, not on behalf of our boards.
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