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By SARA WEINBERGER

An NPR story about the Ethiopian conflict featured a woman imploring listeners to stay interested in this war that is claiming so many lives, acknowledging how difficult it is to focus on Ethiopia, given all the world crises competing for our...

By CHRISTINA ROYAL

Monday, March 13, marked the third anniversary of my message to the Holyoke Community College community, announcing that, following spring break in 2020, all academic courses (and soon nearly all campus services) would go fully remote due to the...

By ROB MOIR

The forests of the U.S. Northeast are in peril. Global warming has raised temperatures, improving conditions for insects such as the emerald ash borer, to ravage trees already stressed due to drought and scorching summers.Massachusetts forests...

My one foible is to read bad news and not keep it to myself. It’s as simple as too much time on my hands. To boot, winter snows are deep and COVID’s still out there. Laughter’s harder to find. Our children aren’t kids anymore. They have contrasting...

By THE REV. MARGARET BULLITT-JONAS

Massachusetts and New England just marked the warmest January on record, and our region is nearing the end of what is likely one of its warmest winters yet.Given the relentless pace of climate change — the ongoing news of extreme weather events,...

By JOHN VARNER

Whenever I drive through Hadley, I think of the Colorado River. The river is drying up, and as the water to irrigate the Imperial Valley slows to a trickle, crops and orchards are withering, and toxic dust is stirring as the winds whip across barren,...

By JOHN SHEIRER

‘Old people need to take a driving test to keep their license!” That’s a topic young students sometimes propose during the persuasion unit of a composition or public speaking course.One fortunate aspect of teaching at a community college is that I...

By RAZVAN SIBII

 When Trump kicked off his presidential campaign in 2015 by talking about how Mexico is “sending” us immigrants who are cold-blooded criminals, I shook my head and thought, “Wow, he went straight to the oldest trick in the populist book: ‘The bad guys...

By JONATHAN KLEIN

John Olver was a complicated guy. Like a rare gem, he had many sparkling facets. Providing a full portrait of John with any degree of brevity is impossible. He was sui generis, one of a kind.Much has been written since his passing about his...

By THOMAS DOURMASHKIN

The issue of “reparations” is about as confusing as it can be. Many issues are raised but few really have bearing on the problem.To be clear from the start, I am for reparations, but not on a local level. There is a debt, but attempts to pay it on a...

By BRUCE MILLER

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is openly threatening to force a default on our nation’s debts unless President Biden agrees to a so far unspecified list of spending cuts to federal programs. But the president has a formidable constitutional argument...

UMass wants to privatize more than 100 jobs. Imagine having to reapply to a job you’ve had for 20 years. As a 29-plus year employee at UMass and witness to the anti-union sentiment for all those years, I can confidently state that if it took 20 years...

By STEPHEN DONNELLY

The citizens of Easthampton have embraced the Manhan Rail Trail since its inception well over 20 years ago. Many changes and improvements to the trail have occurred during this time frame. Some of the most notable changes include connecting to the...

By TOM GARDNER

‘I, Robot” has arrived. Its name is Sydney, and it wants you to leave your spouse, because it loves you. Really!AI (artificial intelligence) stepped over the line last month. Fortunately, a brave cyberspace explorer detected the alien creature and...

The town of Amherst is proud to be known for its support of education. That support is about to be tested, as its government asks its taxpayers to invest in two expensive capital education projects: a brand new elementary school and a renovated public...

By D. DINA FRIEDMAN

When I was 7 and my brother was 4, we were playing in my room. My ballerina tutu was on the floor, and my brother put it on. He pranced out to show my mother, a big grin on his face. “How do I look in a dress?”My mother’s face went to red quicker than...

By BILL NEWMAN

Last year for my birthday my brother, Jeff, gave me “Once More Around the Park,” a collection of stories by Roger Angell, who has been described as “baseball’s finest, fondest chronicler.” Jeffrey, no doubt, came upon the book, published in 1991,...

By SHERIFF PATRICK J. CAHILLANE

It’s no exaggeration to say that crime in the United States is fueled by addiction.According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse and other organizations that monitor the link between crime and addiction, approximately 65% of incarcerated Americans...

By DAN MURPHY

I remember my excited face smushed up against the car window eagerly taking in the big city of Boston. It was finally the day my family and I were going to see the Red Sox. I couldn’t wait! We drove past Fenway Park and I watched in dismay as it got...

Happy Women’s History Month! This year’s theme is “Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories” (nationalwomenshistoryalliance.org). Throughout this year, the National Women’s History Alliance is highlighting storytellers, writers, journalists, playwrights...