A Vision Clouded By Reality
June 30, 2006 on 2:44 pm | In Main, Scenic Photos | 1 Comment
The view from Robin Hill in Lakeville toward Racoon Hill in Salisbury was eerily padded with low-lying clouds this morning around sunrise. [scenic photo taken bleary-eyed from my driveway by yours truly]
The ‘Burning’ Issue of Flag Desecration
June 30, 2006 on 2:08 am | In Main, National | 6 Comments
[Photo Courtesy of Political News]
Note: I was editor of The Millerton News from 1998 to 2001. In the wake of the U.S. Senate’s narrow June 27 vote against amending the Constitution to prohibit the desecration of Old Glory, I was reminded of this editorial I wrote in The Millerton News of April 6, 2000, which was the last time I can remember this foolish idea being rejected. I have reprinted it below. Thanks to my colleague James Clark for directing me to the striking photo:
Amid the jingoism and pandering that often plagues the U. S. Congress, it was heartening to learn last week that the Senate failed to approve a constitutional amendment that would have banned the desecration of the American flag.
Stop & Shop Revisited: Olives and SUVs
June 28, 2006 on 9:53 pm | In Local, Main | 6 Comments
Note: I promised myself I wouldn’t write another entry about the new Canaan Stop & Shop for awhile, but so many people continue to talk about the store that I just couldn’t resist.
The image on page B1 in the June 29 Lakeville Journal [see photo at left by Karen Bartomioli] said it all. A Mercedes SUV is taking a left off of Route 44 and into the parking lot for the new market. In addition to what Karen pointed out in her terrific story, two things stand out: 1) The upscale vehicle is emblematic of the kind of clientele Stop & Shop hopes to attract and; 2) Ignoring signs urging him to do otherwise, the boneheaded driver is entering the parking lot from the exit ramp. Not only do the signs counsel against it, but the exit itself splits into curving left and right lanes so that the man (or woman) behind the wheel of the Mercedes practically has to make a hairpin turn (or go up over the curb) to get into the place. This is symptomatic of another problem …
The Big Heart of The White Hart
June 26, 2006 on 9:26 pm | In Local, Main | 2 Comments
There was good news and bad news Saturday in Salisbury.
First the good … It’s amazing how many people will come out for a party when there’s free food and drink to be had, to say nothing of entertainment and good company.
But I suspect most everyone who turned out for the White Hart Inn’s 200th anniversary party would have come even for a cash bar and a 90-year-old accordian player. That’s how much having a friendly, independently-owned inn in the center of town means to people.
Stop & Be Shocked
June 23, 2006 on 4:02 pm | In Local, Main | 8 Comments
“You’re travelling through another dimension, a dimension not only of sight and sound, but of mind … a journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. That’s the signpost up ahead…your next stop, the Super Stop & Shop!”
It seems like we’ve been hearing for years that a new Super Stop & Shop was being built in Canaan right next to old one. But it was bit of an eye-opener when I returned from vacation earlier this week to discover that it had finally, actually opened.
As I grabbed one of the new and roomier shopping carts and headed into the place, I was fully prepared for how different it would look. My friend Gerry Barth, who has been the meat manager there for several years, told me in no uncertain terms a visit to the new facility would be an odyssey.
Lamont Drinks In A Cup of Joe
June 21, 2006 on 7:59 pm | In Main, State | 3 Comments
Much to the delight of challenger Ned Lamont, it was one step forward and a few more backwards this week for Sen. Joe Lieberman in his quest for reelection.
The good news is that Lieberman finally stopped waffling and stated categorically he would not pull out of the Democratic primary with Lamont. That sends a clear signal to his supporters that the three-term senator isn’t just going through the motions while setting his sights on an independent bid for reelection.
Reunion Ruminations …
June 17, 2006 on 3:33 pm | In Local, Main | 2 CommentsSOUTHBOROUGH, Mass. — I write from the Boston area, where I am attending my 30th high school reunion. It has not been a good turnout for my particular class (less than 10 out of a graduating class of about 60), which got me to thinking about reunions in general. Are they worthwhile? Are they a meaningful way to reconnect with people? Or are they vapid exercises in futility that prove Thomas Wolfe’s maxim “You Can’t Go Home Again”?
Going Helmetless? Get Your Head Examined!
June 14, 2006 on 7:40 pm | In Local, Main | 7 Comments
Lately I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about motorcylces — which is a little strange since the last time I was on a cycle it was in college as a passenger.
The recent accident involving Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger might have something to do with it. Or maybe it was the loud complaints — perhaps even noisier than the machines themselves — about motorcylces this year from the residents of Kent.
Both incidents set me to thinking about the sanity of motorcyclists, particularly those who ride without helmets, as Roethlisberger did when he collided with a car at a busy intersection and was jettisoned into said vehicle, smacking his head on the windshield and breaking his upper and lower jaw, fracturing his nose and various facial bones, losing two teeth and suffering a 7-inch gash on the back of his head. All for the pleasure of feeling the wind run through his hair. It is a phenomenon that’s hard for me to relate to, especially since I am not a thrill-seeker and have little hair left.
Joe Must Go
June 11, 2006 on 7:01 pm | In Main, State | 10 Comments
Is there a more arrogant and thin-skinned politician on the planet than Joe Lieberman?
The latest Quinnipiac University poll shows Lieberman challenger Ned Lamont has pulled within striking distance of the three-term senator. This has no doubt sent Lieberman into fits of apoplexy. You see, Lieberman just doesn’t think we Nutmeggers should be deprived of the opportunity to have him represent us in Washington.
I must confess Democrat Lieberman captured my imagination when he ran successfully for the Senate in 1988 against Lowell Weicker, casting the portly incumbent as “a bear in the woods” who was never there when we needed him. The strategy worked and Lieberman subsequently abandoned his very-liberal past and carved out a carefully crafted niche as a sensible moderate who could cross party lines in pursuit of principle — a quality he shared with Weicker.
Huffing and Puffing About Sharon Hospital
June 8, 2006 on 10:38 pm | In Local, Main | 2 CommentsLast week’s disclosure that Sharon Hospital solicted its medical staff for donations to the re-election campaign of Rep. Nancy Johnson struck a chord with some members of the community. In researching the news article I wrote about the subject last week, I communicated with several physicians at the hospital — some off the record, some on. Most were not thrilled about being asked to contribute to a partisan political campaign.
And I understand there has been some adverse reaction to the editorial that appeared this week in The Lakeville Journal. That piece chastised — but was not harshly critical of — the hospital, its parent company and the judgement of hospital CEO Charlie Therrien, in deciding to hold a fundraiser breakfast for Johnson and for asking the medical staff not only to attend, but to give $500 to the Johnson campaign.
Continue reading Huffing and Puffing About Sharon Hospital…
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