Commentary
When government works
Did you ever hear someone complain about government? Did you ever hear someone not complain about government, more like it? From the diner to the debate stage and across social media, it has become a ritual, almost reflexive, practice among Americans to pooh-pooh all things emanating from Washington, D.C. In fact, listening to the recent […]
Going far together: A new way to look at mental health
Mental health professionals like me often write about things such as the discrimination we call stigma, or the need for greater awareness of and funding for treatment services, or the powerful, life-changing work accomplished by treatment and service professionals every day throughout our state and nation. While all this is solidly true, let’s think about […]
Why live in New Hampshire?
About 50 years ago, just after finishing graduate school in Ohio, I made the decision to decline some good job offers and move back to New Hampshire. Well, moving back might be a bit of an overstatement, as my life in New Hampshire up until age 24 consisted of summers as a kid on a […]
On Constitution Day, thoughts of gerrymandering, money in politics, and other modern problems
Raphael’s “School of Athens,” painted in the early 16th century, famously depicts Plato and Aristotle in dialogue about their respective philosophical approaches. Plato points skyward to emphasize the primacy of abstract principles – found in the Realm of Forms – whereas Aristotle extends the palm of his hand over the ground, emphasizing the need to […]
Editor’s Notebook: As within, so without
Technology is the mind made external. From sensors to computer memory to artificial intelligence, human beings have dedicated their very existence to shifting the inner world to the outer, with dreams of duplicating or even surpassing the organism itself. Look around you right now, and whatever you see should make it clear that the mind […]
Frost, friendship, and a longing for poetic simplicity
The Granite State claims the beloved poet Robert Frost as its own, and with one of his collections actually titled “New Hampshire,” it seems perfectly appropriate to do so. For those of us raised here, Frost became part of the fabric of our education, and many of us probably still carry visions of stone walls, […]
Investments in child care will be key to Granite State’s economic future
In New Hampshire, many families looking to enroll their children in a child care program face significant barriers, with affordability and accessibility posing substantial challenges. Even before the pandemic, licensed child care providers in the Granite State only had the capacity to cover about 60 percent of the estimated need of children aged 6 and […]
Suicide prevention is a priority for me now
Editor’s note: This commentary discusses grief, loss, and suicide. I live in an old Denver building with six units, one of which was occupied, until recently, by a mathematician. I met this neighbor several years ago when I asked permission to enter her apartment, because I was looking for the building’s main water shut-off valve, […]
Editor’s Notebook: Memories of the future
For months, I’ve been abnormally fixated on winter weather. How fixated? It is 88 degrees as I write, with only a few fragile clouds lolling in the blue, and I find myself thinking about tire treads and layers of merino wool. The thing is, unlike columnist Stephanie White Ferland, I actually enjoy summer and am […]
State business tax rate reductions decreased revenue for public services
Since 2015, state revenues have increased substantially. These higher revenues have provided opportunities for investments in health, education, and transportation while generating surpluses over planned revenue targets in state budgets and giving policymakers more fiscal space to enact tax rate reductions. State lawmakers have successively reduced the business profits tax (BPT) and the business enterprise […]
Summer is far from New England’s best season – but at least there are farmers markets
If pressed to list the seasons in order of preference, summer would land at the bottom of my list. Fall and winter are nearly tied for first place, and spring isn’t far behind. Maybe if summer was a steady 76 degrees with a breeze, I might reconsider. But those sweltering days really get me down. […]
Jimmy Carter set a high bar for public life after the presidency
We pay a lot of attention to our world leaders while they are in office. From following policies, successes, failures, and speeches, our media and information sources provide much for us to consume. The same cannot be said, however, of our attention to a leader after they have left office. Several of our American presidents […]