Opinion

For opinion pieces on any topic.

Brattleboro Selectboard Candidate Interview – Elizabeth McLoughlin

by cgrotke | Politics

Elizabeth McLoughlin is an incumbent running for a three year seat on the Brattleboro Selectboard.

Introduce yourself – who are you and why are you running again this year for a 3 year seat?

Elizabeth “Liz” McLoughlin. I am running for reelection to the Selectboard. I have been on the Selectboard for the past 4 years. 

I moved to Brattleboro fifteen years ago, after visiting family here for over twenty years. I am a wife, mother and a new grandmother. One of our daughters attended BUHS, and the other was a substitute teacher here. My husband and I each own a small business. Brattleboro is a great place to live and work and I see my Selectboard service as a way to give back and support our beloved Town. We have a vibrant arts culture and an exceptional park and recreation program. We are welcoming to all, our community includes people from across the country and the world, as well as families who have been here for generations. We are a vibrant New England town.

Brattleboro Selectboard Candidate Interview – Spoon Agave

by cgrotke | Politics
spoon agave

Spoon Agave is running for a one year seat on the Brattleboro Selectboard.

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Introduce yourself – who are you and why are you running this year for a 1 year seat?

During my 34 years living in Brattleboro I have served on almost every major Board, Committee and Commission including Selectboard, School Board, Planning Commission, Development Review Board, Traffic and Safety Committee, the Town Finance Committee, and most importantly the last Charter Revision Commission where I studied diligently and in great depth the structure of municipal government and its relationship and embodiment within a democracy. I chaired several of these groups including Charter Revision. I have been a Town Meeting Representative for nearly 25 years. 

Brattleboro Selectboard Candidate Interview – Samuel Stevens

by cgrotke | Politics

Samuel Stevens is running for a 1 year seat on the Brattleboro Selectboard.

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Introduce yourself – who are you and why are you running this year for a 1 year seat?

I’m a lifelong resident of Brattleboro and someone who really cares about this community. Having completed my B.A. in Political Science at the University of Vermont, I returned to my hometown of Brattleboro resolved to put my newfound knowledge and skills to good use in the service of my community. Since that time, I’ve been a town meeting member, served on town committees, and also become a union steward at my place of work. 

Brattleboro Selectboard Candidate Interview – Dick DeGray

by cgrotke | Politics

Richard “Dick” DeGray is running for a three year seat on the Brattleboro Selectboard.

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Introduce yourself – who are you and why are you running?

My name on the ballot will be Richard Dick DeGray. Many of you know me as the Flower Guy, something I take great pride in doing for our community. I have been active for over thirty years in our community. RTM rep, former BUHS board member and most importantly former eight-year select board member. Several of those years serving as vice chair and chair. I am running for a couple of reasons: first, no one challenged any of the incumbents in last year’s election. I don’t think that is healthy for the town. The other is the way Rescue/ BFF was handled, along with safety issues in our town.

Brattleboro 2023 Selectboard and School Board Candidates

by cgrotke | Politics

Selectboard and school board candidates in Brattleboro have collected their signatures and campaigns are getting underway.

For the Selectboard 3 year seat, Dick DeGray will be running against Liz McLoughlin. Voters can elect one.

For the Selectboard 1 year seat, Spoon Agave, Peter Case, Jessica Gelter, Franz Reichsman and Samuel Stevens have all declared themselves as candidates. Voters can elect two.

Multi-nation Holocaust Mourning Best Be Followed By Remembering Why and How It Was Allowed to Happen

by jay janson | Op/Ed

Six million European Jews and the seventy million other men, women and children didn’t die because of Adolph Hitler, they perished because the wealthy in the US and Western Europe empowered Adolph Hitler to make war!

There is simply no way an impoverished and utterly demilitarized Nazi Germany, with no air force, a tiny navy, no armored vehicles, no heavy weapons and a small army, could have on its own, built its armed forces up to the most powerful military in the world during the first six years of Hitler’s rule without the colossal and crucial investments in, and joint venturing by, top US corporations in low wage Nazi Germany – in outright evasion of the Versailles Treaty prohibition of German rearmament.

Brattleboro Town Meeting Day Absentee Ballots Must Be Requested

by Not Signed In | Politics

Town Meeting Day and Windham Southeast School District Director elections are coming up on Tuesday, March 7, 2023.

Absentee ballots MUST be requested. Unlike the November General Election, ballots for Town Meeting Day in Brattleboro are NOT automatically mailed to all active registered voters. Ballots will be available on February 15, 2023.

If Someone Reminded Us that King Called His Gov.”The Greatest Purveyor of Violence in the World”

by jay janson | Op/Ed

What if someone of consequence and world attention, difficult for US monopolized and controlled media to ignore, reminded us that one year before receiving a bullet to his brain, King had made bold print headlines in newspapers worldwide reading,”KING CALLS US “GREATEST PURVEYOR OF VIOLENCE IN THE WORLD..”[1]

Would it not weaken US deep state media credibility as it tried to explain how this world shaking event in the life of Martin Luther King had not been known by millions who celebrate his birthday on a national holiday for a great civil rights leader? – the only American, so honored.

Ban On No Cause Evictions In Brattleboro Would Hurt Good Tenants

by SallyFegley | Op/Ed

The Town of Brattleboro will vote on a ban to No Cause Evictions in a referendum on March 7, 2023. Landlords and managers of rental properties are strongly opposed to this ban.

The term “No Cause Evictions” is a bit of a misnomer. There is always a cause when a property owner or manager does not renew a lease. And these are not exactly evictions, they are non-renewal of leases at the lease terminations. Tenants are able to leave at the end of a lease, why should the owner or manager not be allowed to ask the tenant to leave?

No Cause Evictions are a tool used by property owners and managers to ensure the safe and quiet enjoyment of rental properties by all tenants. Taking a tenant to court for a “For Cause Eviction” is extremely costly ($5,000 to get started), take many months and offer no guarantee of results.

Vermont Governor Scott’s Inaugural Address – Full Text

by cgrotke | Politics

Governor Scott was sworn-in again today and gave the following address to kick off his new term.

“Madam Speaker, Mr. President, Mr. Chief Justice, Members of the General Assembly, Honored Guests, and fellow Vermonters.

I am truly thankful for the opportunity to continue to serve as governor.

And after a few long years, it is good to be back in the people’s house, where Vermonters have come together from across the state in our darkest times and finest hours to solve problems for their communities and help their neighbors.

So today, I am especially grateful we are here, in this building, together.

FTX Funds Helped Balint Campaign?

by CrisEricson2016 | Op/Ed

Federal prosecutors on Tuesday DEC. 13, 2022 charged FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried with multiple counts of fraud, money laundering & campaign finance violations.

Becca Balint, DEMOCRAT won 2022 election for US Congress House of Representatives for Vermont. Her campaign was promoted by money from FTX. Becca Balint received an indirect $1.1 million donation from a 26-year-old executive at crypto exchange FTX. 

EV Cars Will Not Reduce Use of Fossil Fuels Because Use Of Disposable Plastic

by CrisEricson2016 | Op/Ed

I just realized we are being fooled.

The electric vehicle car industry isn’t going to reduce global warming because the disposable plastic container industry and synthetic clothing industry plan to use more oil as the population increases and their sales plan includes feeding people with disposable plastic containers and clothing people with synthetic fabrics made from plastic fibers made from oil.

Brattleboro Unofficial Election Results November 2022

by cgrotke | Politics

Here are the unofficial Brattleboro election results from Town Clerk Hilary Francis.

“These are the results from the ballot tallies, not including write-in votes, and not including other towns’ results.

Thanks to the amazing poll workers and the American Legion who made today possible! Considering our number of absentee voters, we had a lot of voters coming through the doors, and high voter participation for a mid-term General. The day was smooth and safe!”

What Is An Appropriate Political Protest Poster? After “FJB” and Code Pink Vagina Hats, How Far Can We Go?

by CrisEricson2016 | Op/Ed

WHAT IS THE MOST EFFECTIVE TYPE OF POLITICAL PROTEST POSTER?

(1) There’s the ever growing fame of photos of President Joe Biden with “FJB”.
(2) There’s “orange man bad” photos protesting former President Donald Trump.
(3) There are the amazing poster photos of Code Pink ladies wearing Vagine Hats.

I’m Ms. Cris Ericson, candidate for U.S. Senator on your election ballot.

Helpful Election Information for November 8 General Elections in Brattleboro

by Not Signed In | Politics

Below is information that might be helpful to know for the November 8th General Election.

All active registered voters were automatically mailed a ballot. Please make sure to follow the instructions included with your ballot, including SIGNING THE CERTIFICATE ENVELOPEand making sure your ballot is INSIDE that envelope. Please use a BLACK PEN to mark your ballot. DO NOT USE A MARKER as it can bleed through to the back of your ballot and require you to need a replaced ballot. If you have not received your ballot, or if you have any questions about your ballot, please call the Town Clerk’s office at 802-251-8157.