In response to a recent commentary by a retired nuclear worker in the Rutland Herald, here is a short response from someone not in the industry of why nuclear is not carbon-free.
Note that this response is short, because you do not need many words to speak the truth.
Nuclear is not the answer to climate change.
Valid concerns exist about global warming caused by carbon dioxide from coal-fired power plants. Yet production of uranium fuel also results in greenhouse-gas emissions.
There is plenty to criticize in Tom Salmon's ode to Vermont Yankee, but two paragraphs are particularly odious. He writes, “Eight years ago […] I began to notice the heat being turned up on Vermont Yankee. A rather fierce ideological battle from the hard left ensued. Some were Vermonters,
The Brattleboro Recreation & Parks Department recently received a $50,000 grant from the Withington Fund of the Vermont Community Foundation for the completion of work at West River Park. The recreation area and ball fields, located on Route 30 on the bank of West River, opened in 2013. It...
Obituaries • Glenn B. “Chick” Chickering, 82, of Spofford, N.H.. Died Dec. 1. Husband of Stella Chickering for more than 50 years. Father of Frances M. Chickering and her husband, Peter Dobroski, of Dover, N.H.; Cheryl A. Brigham and her husband, Ronald, of Hampton, N.H.; Glenda G. Stoddard and her husband, David, of Ludlow, Mass.; and the late John “Jack” Chickering. Sister of Joyce Jernberg. The baby boy of the late Agnes (Balfour) and Clifford “Crib” Chickering, he was born...
Sandy Golden's instincts to protect the poor, the elderly, and those with disabilities are instincts many of us have. I strongly disagree, however, with her assertion that a tax on carbon pollution would “brutalize” those groups. It is true that such a tax would raise the price of fossil fuels, such as home heating oil and propane. That is clearly its intent, as it is meant to discourage the consumption of such carbon-based fuels. If designed correctly and fairly, however,
Westminster Cares has finished moving into its new home at the Westminster Institute, 3534 Route 5 in Westminster Village, and is gearing up to invite the community to an open house. Meanwhile, the nonprofit organization, which works with seniors and disabled adults in Westminster, is reflecting on its journey. It's come a long way since it was founded in 1988, when it operated out of the home of Karen Walter, one of its co-founders. It had offices at the Westminster...
Homeless vigil planned in Bellows Falls BELLOWS FALLS – Greater Falls Warming Shelter is sponsoring a candlelight vigil for the homeless Thursday, Dec. 18, at 4 p.m., under the Christmas tree in the Bellows Falls square. Recognition of the plight of the homeless at this time of the shortest days of the year and the coming first day of winter will include songs and words of hope, followed by a march to the shelter located in North Walpole, N.H. The...
For the second straight year, Company of Muses presents Brattleboro School of Dance's “The Nutcracker” at New England Youth Theatre. Show times are 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 19 and 20, and 1 and 5 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 21. This year's production of the holiday classic includes the staging of the mouse and soldier battle, a scene that had to be omitted from last year's version. Guest artist Damon Honeycutt drew on his background in circus and...
The National Audubon Society invites birdwatchers to participate in the world's longest running citizen science survey, the annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count (CBC). Between Dec. 14, 2014, and Jan. 5, 2015, birders and nature enthusiasts throughout Vermont and from far beyond will take part in this tradition. In the Brattleboro area, the count will be done on Saturday Dec. 20. For more information, write Chris Petrak at [email protected]. Each year, the Audubon Christmas Bird Count mobilizes more than 70,000 volunteer...
Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present country, swing, honky-tonk and old-time music sextet The Sweetback Sisters performing their annual Christmas concert at Next Stage on Sunday, Dec. 21, at 7:30 p.m. Each December, Brooklyn's favorite country band tours the East Coast and spreads the holiday cheer with The Sweetback Sisters' Country Christmas Singalong Spectacular. This supremely fun and wildly popular show requires audience participation (lyric sheets are provided) and a love for all kinds of holiday music. All...
The Mili Bermejo Quartet is coming to Stone Church Arts on Saturday, Dec. 20, at 7:30 p.m. The Latin jazz quartet features world-class musicians: vocalist Mili Bermejo, double bassist Dan Greenspan, pianist Jiri Nedoma, and drummer Bertram Lehmann. The doors open at 7. For more than three decades, Boston-based vocalist/composer Mili Bermejo has transcended the borders of cultures and musical genres. She's performed in the United States since 1980, and in that time the critics have called her “the Latin...
Several local businesses are competing to see which can come up with the most donations in a food drive to benefit Our Place Drop-in Center's food pantry. Erica Wojchick, a graphic designer at Sonnax Industries, has challenged her business neighbors in a five-week drive, with each week having a different theme. Week one was proteins, week two was food for kids' lunches, and week three will be whole grains and sauces. Fruits and vegetables and kids' weekend snacks follow in...
The Latchis Theatre announces the return of its Off the Beaten Path film series, which showcases recent films that might have slipped under the radar but are worth seeing. The series, presented with the Brattleboro Film Festival, continues each weekend through Jan. 3 and 4, 2015, with films for a variety of tastes, including a wickedly funny psychodrama, a timely comedy-drama about the issue of race, and an absorbing and deeply personal documentary about surveillance whistleblower Edward Snowden. “We love...
I am writing to give my grateful applause to the trustees of the Putney Public Library. As the retiring director of the library, I wish to publicly express my appreciation and respect for this board and its nine members who have done so much in the last six years for the library and the townspeople. Working together with diligence, humor, and a sense of camaraderie, they have quietly excelled at carrying out their duties as elected officials to the greater...
“Journey East: Finding Your Place” will have its public debut at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 20, in the main venue of the Latchis Theatre. The focus of the documentary is Journey East, a Sino-American cultural exchange founded 15 years ago at Leland & Gray Union High School in Townshend by teacher Thomas Connor and fellow faculty with the support of the University of Vermont's Asian Studies program. Journey East has given hundreds of local students a glimpse of the...
The truth can be ugly, and I was saddened to hear of this horrific deed, murder most foul. In the short 13 months since I have lived in Townshend, there has been a drug overdose death of a mother who leaves behind two small children. There also was a senseless murder/suicide of a young couple. Olga Peters: Keep up the good reporting, and welcome to Townshend.
Now that the election cycle has come and gone, I think it's important to take a break from all the political theater and show my appreciation for Governor Peter Shumlin. Recently, some of our local media outlets - and opinions expressed in them - have speculated on issues that will be in the forefront of our legislature's minds, particularly in a way that is meant to transfer negativity and doubt on the governor. We have a lot to be proud...
As a vet (Army, 1958–1962) with a service-connected limited disability (10 percent), I have always felt we owe more, faster, and better treatment to all vets in general but in particular to those with higher percentages than my own. Anything we can do to get speedier evaluations and attention for a vet who comes to the VA for help or calls for an appointment - that should be the norm. In my own case, several years ago, a delay in...
Where did FairPoint ever say that it would cut pay by one-third? What a dumb letter. Get the facts straight before writing, please.
The Vermont Working Lands Enterprise Initiative, an innovative and imaginative idea, was created in 2012 by Act 142. Its purpose is “to stimulate a concerted economic development effort on behalf of Vermont's agriculture and forest product sectors by systematically advancing entrepreneurism, business development, and job creation.” For two years, the WLEI has supported our working lands enterprises, with great results. As the governor and his administration are building the budget for next year, I strongly recommend that they continue to...
The Commons does a great disservice to its readers by even printing this article. Having spent my entire adult life in the nursing profession, I am more than aware of the needs, and the lack of accommodations for those needs, of people who are either physically abused or mentally challenged. And while the article dances around many of these problems, it also, unfortunately, gave my niece, Laura Momaney, free rein to castigate her family with no proof of her accusations...
The Rockingham Free Public Library recently received a $6,000 National Endowment for the Humanities “Preservation Assistance Grant for Smaller Institutions.” Through the grant, the RFPL's historic glass plate negative collection and large-format photographs will be rehoused in glass plate negative-specific padded boxes, wrappers, a flat file and large format folders for the large-format items. Once properly stored for preservation, the items will join the library's Catalogued Photograph Collection. In 2010, the RFPL received an Institute for Museum and Library Services...
On Sunday, Dec. 21, from 6:30 to 10 p.m., make time for the annual Holiday Dessert Potluck at the Stone Church on Main Street. Organizers say this Sunday departs from the usual program in a few respects: an earlier start time, a longer break with fun activities, and square dancing rather than contra dancing as the highlight. The entertainment begins at 6:30 p.m. - earlier than usual - with Peter Siegel playing tunes for a couple of dances. Joining in...
The town has until Aug. 1, 2015, to complete work on the final stage of the Core Arts Project, and its project team is trying to regain its momentum after a change of leadership. Brattleboro was one of 80 towns nationwide in June 2012 to get an “Our Town” grant. The town was awarded a $50,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to fund the Brattleboro CoreArts Project - an initiative that focuses on arts and place, and...
Sean Altman's “Jewmongous Unkosher Comedy Songfest” will invite holiday revelers to come “[c]elebrate the birth of the most famous Jew” Altman's specialty is “an irreverent, sometimes vulgar, but always illuminating view of American Jewish life,” says Rabbi-Cantor Angela Buchdahl of Central Synagogue in Manhattan in a testimonial on Jewmongous's website. The performance takes place Saturday, Dec. 27 at the Hooker-Dunham Theater. “Lyrically, I try to channel my inner Lenny Bruce via John Lennon, but sometimes it comes out as my...
Monetary donations are welcome for a family displaced by a weekend fire that completely destroyed their house on Sunday. No more donations of clothing are needed at this time, says Kim Bank, who spearheaded a clothing drive this week and otherwise has been assisting Mona and Randy Distefano and their two boys, Noah and Zach in the aftermath of the blaze. Firefighters from Grafton Fire and Rescue responded to the fire at 900 Wright Orchard Rd. at around 7 a.m.
Judith and John Thomas of Brattleboro plan to stay up long past their usual bedtime on Wednesday, Dec. 17. Their youngest son, Kyle Thomas, and his band, King Tuff, will appear on “Conan,” airing at 11 p.m. on TBS. Although King Tuff's recent album, “Black Moon Spell,” achieved near-instant renown upon its Sept. 24 release - it was CMJ's “most added” album on college radio the week of Sept. 23; it debuted at No. 1 on Billboard Heatseeker's “Hot Shot...
Gov. Peter Shumlin announced five awards on Dec. 12 in the first round of Windham County Economic Development Program last week. The news came with sides of sweet and spicy. The sweet: Five organizations received official word that they'd received a grand total of $814,000 in grants and loans from the Windham County Economic Development Program (WCEDP). The governor delivered the good news during a press conference in the Selectboard Meeting Room at the Municipal Center. The spicy: The state...
There are few works in the English language as familiar almost to the point of cliché as Charles Dickens's “A Christmas Carol.” “A Christmas Carol” was first published in 1843. Dickens culled the story from personal childhood experiences along with various Christmas stories. The book is generally considered one of the greatest influences for the restoration of the Christmas holiday and it has never been out of print. But this work just as much a ghost story set in a...
In 1958, when I moved from Boston to Bellows Falls, Vermont was something of an economic and political backwater. The economy was stagnant, and political loyalties were virtually unchanged since the Civil War. More people moved out than moved in. Not until 1963 did the human population exceed the bovine. But construction on the Interstate highway began in 1957, and many visitors followed the freeway north to the ski resorts, lakes and woodlands of “Vermont: The Beckoning Country,” so styled...
Vermont Performance Lab (VPL) has been awarded a $50,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), and is excitedly putting out a call for help to meet a required $50,000 in matching funds. According to Sara Coffey, VPL's founder and director, VPL is one of 919 nonprofit organizations nationwide to receive an NEA Art Works grant this year. She told The Commons the award will support six artist residencies for the organization's 2015 season. VPL describes itself as...
At a corner table at The Works Bakery Café on Main Street, Brattleboro native, activist, staff organizer for the Vermont Workers' Center, and mother of two Shela Linton admits that public speaking makes her nervous. Think sweaty palms and heart palpitations kind of nervous. Linton, 36, gestures with her hands as she speaks. She smiles and laughs easily. She is forthright in her opinions and beliefs. At numerous local and state workshops, gatherings, rallies, and protests, Linton stands as a...
My Nana Lekas sacrificed all she knew and all she was in order that her children could become Americans. She knew that she herself would never become one, though she lived in this country 67 of her 89 years and came over on the boat when she was merely 22. When Nana worked as a maid in a wealthy Boston suburb, she would come back to her children - my mother and aunts - and present the new ways of...
The bad news is that the Brattleboro Colonels girls' hockey team got steamrolled by the Rutland Red Raiders, 11-0, last Saturday night in the home opener at Withington Rink. The good news is that it was only the second game of the season and the Colonels won't have to face Rutland again. After the Colonels lost their opener, 9-1, at Rutland on Dec. 3, they saw their next two games postponed by bad weather. This meant that Brattleboro's second game...
There are no easy, clear-cut solutions for dealing with the ongoing Syrian civil war, the disintegration of the state of Iraq, or the rise of the Sunni extremist group known as the Islamic State, or ISIS. Former U.S. diplomat and longtime Kurdish advocate Peter Galbraith of Townshend just returned from the Kurdish regions in Iraq and Syria, and believes that while there are no easy solutions, the current situation in Iraq and Syria could be made a lot worse depending...