In a conversation about politics, a liberal acquaintance recently said to me that we can't do anything right now; we just have to wait for a more favorable political climate and then try to make change.
I was flabbergasted. Waiting is exactly what we shouldn't do. Now more than ever, people want change, and we're working to make it happen.
I recently joined 350 Brattleboro, the local branch of the climate-change-fighting organization 350.org. We are collecting signatures to put a resolution for renewable energy on the Town Meeting Day ballot.
The resolution calls on the state of Vermont to step up its efforts to meet the goal of 90-percent renewable energy by 2050, and it calls on the town of Brattleboro to do its part by weatherizing town buildings, installing solar panels, and phasing out the use of fossil fuels to heat buildings and power vehicles.
Good day, and I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! The Arctic has been unleashed into southern Vermont. Actually, thanks to a large ridge of high pressure over Alaska and northwestern North America, a “cross-polar” flow has been established. This flow is pulling frigid Siberian air over the...
The mission that Vermont Independent Media set out for itself when it was founded in 2004 was to promote local, independent journalism in Windham County; to create a forum for community participation with its newspaper, The Commons, and its website, commonsnews.org; and to promote civic engagement by building media...
It is estimated that only about 10 percent of sudden cardiac arrest patients survive, but it has been shown in some communities that this number can be boosted much higher. The increased survival rate can be attributed in significant measure to when and how CPR is administered. Often CPR is not initiated until emergency responders are on the scene. As effective and diligent as their efforts may be, often too much damage has already occurred to the patient because of...
Three students at Putney Central School donated $145 to the Putney Foodshelf on Dec. 22. The students held a bake sale during the school's annual holiday gift bazaar on Dec. 8. Eighth-grader Jenna Powers and seventh-graders Raina Armour-Jones and Fern Patton came up with the idea on “Walk-to-School Day,” which was Oct. 11. The girls talked about how Christmas was coming, and they wanted to perform acts of kindness. “We all have had friends who have used the Foodshelf,” Armour-Jones...
Environmentalist and activist Bill McKibben speaks about his new book, Radio Free Vermont, on Wednesday, Jan. 10, at 7 p.m., at The Stone Church, 210 Main St. To say that the current news cycle is brutal would be a gross understatement. Seemingly every day - or depending on how often you check your social media feeds - every hour, there is a new crisis in America. With the first anniversary of Donald Trump's election victory approaching, turn off your cell...
As I was reading a recent op-ed by a legislator, I was struck by his praise of the state's “aggressive oversight of Vermont Yankee” in its attempt to curb carbon emissions. Yes, the state of Vermont leads in in-state low-carbon generation, but we buy more out-of-state fossil fuel than ever since Vermont Yankee closed. If this “aggressive oversight” in fact contributed to Vermont Yankee's closure, it cost Vermonters their largest zero-carbon-energy provider. In just a few weeks, Vermonters will have...
Paul Hawken, the author of The Ecology of Commerce, has written that the planet came with a manual of operating instructions that we seem to have lost. The instructions included: don't contaminate the soil, don't poison the water and the air, watch for overpopulation, and don't turn up the thermostat. There has been a movement afoot to find that manual, to work to compensate for the damage that has already been done, and to develop what Hawken calls a new...
The United States has an annual base military budget that is larger than the next eight countries combined. It has more than 800 bases around the globe. According to the Defense Department, from 2011 to 2014 “special operations forces deployed into more than 150 countries.” Nearly 50 percent of the annual discretionary budget goes to the military, close to $1 trillion. According to a Harvard Kennedy School study in 2013, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are the most expensive...
Vermont Performance Lab is launching The Confluence Project, a new collaborative effort that demonstrates an in-depth model for bringing arts, youth, community groups, and educational institutions to the civic dialogue table to help create a deeper engagement around environmental and social issues in our community. The Confluence Project takes a collaborative and interdisciplinary approach to the study of water. It links visual and performing artists with the community development and natural-resource planning work of Windham Regional Commission and public programs...
In 2016, after analyzing its annual Community Health Needs Assessment, Brattleboro Memorial Hospital's Community Health Team hired an RN Vulnerable Populations Care Coordinator to be on-site at the Groundworks Collaborative Drop In Center assisting clients experiencing homelessness with access to healthcare services. As the year progressed, a subsequent need was identified. Patients experiencing homelessness didn't have a safe place to prepare for or recover from procedures and acute hospitalizations, such as wound care or colonoscopies. Working in partnership with Groundworks...
Poet Wendell Berry once said, “If you don't know where you are, you don't know who you are.” This simple yet provocative idea has been at the center of the Hilltop Montessori Middle School's seven-week Sense of Place study that has taken students far beyond the classroom to explore both the ordinary and the extraordinary people, places, and events of Brattleboro. According to a news release, they pored over Historical Society archives, discovered primary source materials at the Brooks Memorial...
Obituaries • William Martin “Bill” Aiken, 92, of Putney, died Dec. 26, 2017, at the home of his son and daughter-in-law, Roger and Linda Aiken, following a battle with cancer. He was born at home in Westminster on Aug. 7, 1925, the son of Guy and Villa (Cater) Aiken. He attended Westminster schools through the eighth grade, dropping out to go to work to help support his family. He proudly served his country in the U.S. Army during World War...
Brooks Memorial Library seeks trustees BRATTLEBORO - The Board of Library Trustees of Brooks Memorial Library seeks enthusiastic and dedicated library users to fill two open positions on the Board. Candidates for this position should have an interest in maintaining a strong and visionary library. Trustees must be residents of Brattleboro. The Board, which numbers nine trustees, meets at the Library on the second Tuesday of the month from 4:45 p.m. to 6:45 p.m. Members are asked to chair or...
Grant funding from the Agency of Transportation has arrived, and more is on its way. This money will help pay for work the town has already completed on problem areas and to repair storm-related damage from the early summer. At the Dec. 20 Selectboard meeting, Road Foreman Lee Chamberlin announced the arrival of $40,000 from the state for repairs the town made to Wickopee Hill Road. The town is responsible for a 20 percent match, Chamberlin said, but “no money,
Volunteers packed 920 bags of food in Wilmington on Dec. 15 and drove them to recipients throughout the Deerfield Valley the following morning. Holiday Baskets is an annual event that helps fill the cupboards of more than 150 families from Halifax to Wardsboro. Poinsettias of cheer are delivered to several dozen more families and individuals as well. In all, more than 450 are served every December. The event is timed for the holidays when many may be running low on...
St. Brigid's Kitchen and Pantry, 38 Walnut St., is in the midst of a fundraising effort to come up with $250,000 to ensure that it will continue to operate for many years to come. St. Michael's Catholic Church, which runs the food shelf and kitchen, seeks to reconstruct the building and make it handicapped accessible with an updated kitchen, dining hall, handicapped restrooms, and a practical working space for the many volunteers. For 35 years, St. Brigid's Kitchen and Pantry...
At the Dec. 18 regular Selectboard meeting, the Board voted to appoint Shelly Huber to the vacant seat left by former Selectboard Chair Carol Hatcher. Hatcher resigned in early December, citing health concerns. Huber expressed interest in the position, and told Board members, “I'm civic-minded, and I love Newfane, and want to contribute.” “We really appreciate that you stepped up and offered your assistance, because we really need it,” Board Chair Marion Dowling said. After the Town Clerk administered the...
Main Street Arts and the Saxtons River Historical Society are again pairing for a series of Fireside Chats to highlight the area's history on Sundays in January, from 5:30 to 6:45 p.m., in the dining room of the Saxtons River Inn. The series begins Jan. 7 with the Back-to-the-Land Movement as told through the experiences of Peter Gould, author of Horse-Drawn Yogurt: Stories from Total Loss Farm. Gould moved to Total Loss Farm in Guilford in the 1970s at the...
It does not require a very deep dive on social media to find gleeful “attaboys” and detailed sharing of body counts and bloodlust, all directed at coyotes. Now we learn of yet another statewide killing contest that has been scheduled for the entire month of February and hosted by a retailer and gun club in Windham County. And afterwards we will no doubt be treated to triumphant photos of coyote corpses stacked like cordwood. The joy of killing is nothing...
Express Fluency - the language school on Flat Street in Brattleboro - and Latchis Arts are teaming up to offer a Sunday-afternoon series of four classic films starring Gerard Depardieu at the height of his career. Each of the films will be introduced at 4 p.m, and after each movie the public is invited to an informal conversation in English about the film at the Express Fluency classroom on Flat Street. The Return of Martin Guerre, based on a true...
Selectboard approves Grand List Errors and Omissions Report BRATTLEBORO - Acting Assessor Jenepher Burnell presented the Selectboard with the 2017 Grand List Errors and Omissions Report, which represents the list's final figures, at the Dec. 19 regular Board meeting. Although these figures reduced the Grand List by $2,241,723, Town Manager Peter B. Elwell pointed out this amount “represents a tiny fraction of our approximately $1.1 billion total value." Elwell explained that under state statute, the report is called “Errors and...
We are learning about people who pick our food - for example, strawberries. People who pick our food don't get paid enough. It is hard, because the sun is hot. Also, you have to bend down for strawberries. A lot of people get sick from pesticides. Some people don't even get the job because employers can hire only a limited number of people. For those who are hired, sometimes it can be hours in the bus or plane to get...
Jan. 6 has officially been declared Circus Saturday at the Latchis Theatre at 50 Main St. To celebrate the movie musical The Greatest Showman, now playing at the Latchis, the New England Center for Circus Arts is joining forces with the Latchis to help audiences experience the film like nowhere else. Prior to the matinee and early evening showings of the film, there will be pre-show demonstrations by real-life circus artists from NECCA. Attendees may get their picture taken with...
Broadcast News, the next movie in the Journalism Film Series at the Latchis Theatre, is both a time capsule and a work of prophesy. This 1987 dramatic comedy starring Holly Hunter, Albert Brooks, and William Hurt will be shown on Sunday, Jan. 7, at 4 p.m., at the Latchis. Admission is free, but donations are welcome. The 1980s were a period of transition for broadcast journalism. It was the last decade, before the rise of the internet and 24-hour cable...
As if we didn't have enough to worry about, Senate Republicans have now confirmed Donald Trump's 12th federal appeals court nominee, setting a record for the most circuit court picks confirmed in a president's first year. The federal courts significantly affect almost every area of policy, including gun rights, executive power, LGBT rights, freedom of religion. Trump's favored young, conservative judges for lifetime appointments will far outlast his presidency. Take Thomas Farr, who received a green light from the Senate...
I would like to teach you about farming. I have to say: Kids pick our food. Farm owners spray pesticides on the food. The pesticides make kids sick. People who work in this profession should get $4 to $20 per bucket or bag.
After nearly seven months of having an absent town clerk and treasurer, approximately 140 residents petitioned the Selectboard to consider changing those positions from elected to appointed. This request will allow the Selectboard to place the articles on the Town Meeting warning. On March 6, through Australian ballot, voters will ultimately decide if the town clerk and treasurer will continue on as elected officials, or if the Selectboard can appoint those positions. At last year's Town Meeting, Denise Germon, a...
After nearly a year, Inner Fire, Inc. last month received an Act 250 development permit that authorizes the construction of a 12-bed therapeutic and community residence for up to 12 adults, an art barn, and associated infrastructure. The project will be located on 26 Parker Rd. in Brookline. “Since founding Inner Fire in 2013, it has been our dream to build a family sized, fully licensed residential facility that would be a healing, nurturing, comfortable, and safe environment with spaces...
Some people at big farms - both kids and adults - pick our food, like lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and potatoes. Some of the workers are migrant workers. The farm workers and the migrant workers work for a long time, sometimes for 10 to 14 hours per day. Is that crazy, or what? They work in serious heat. They could get really sick. They could get heat stroke and dizziness, too. I think they should have breaks for an hour, because...
People who pick our food might have to work for 10 hours a day, and some have to work for 14 hours a day. Kids sometimes work for 10 to 14 hours, too. People get really bad fevers in the sun. These workers don't get a lot of money. I want them to get a lot of money - and a nice, shady farm to work on.
Did you know that kids and adults pick our food? I worked on a farm. I liked eating the mint. I think it's good that kids pick our food. Kids should work for a little bit of time, but not for a whole day, so they can see their parents.
Vermont State Police continue to investigate the cause of a house fire at 48 Papoose Lane in Brookline on Dec. 17 that claimed two lives. According to a news release from State Police Detective Sgt. Eric Albright, local fire personnel were summoned to the scene on Dec. 17 at about 2 a.m., and found the house fully engulfed in flames. Firefighters from NewBrook, Townshend, Putney, Wardsboro, Saxtons River, West Dummerston, East Dover, and Jamaica, and EMS staff from Rescue Inc.
Good day, and a very Happy New Year to you! I hope that 2018, some how and some way, brings you happiness, peacefulness, success however you define it, and good health. As far as our sensible weather is concerned, we are about to go through at least one more powerful Arctic blast this weekend which will be preceded by a snowstorm that will produce light to possibly moderate accumulations in southeastern Vermont. The biggest impact, however, will not be the...
Town Clerk Hilary Francis says petitions for Brattleboro Town and Town School District Officers and Town Meeting Members are now available. Town elections will be Tuesday, March 6, and the Annual Representative Town Meeting is Saturday, March 24. Petitions for Town Officers must contain at least 30 valid signatures of registered Brattleboro voters and be filed in the Town Clerk's office no later than 5 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 29, in order to have their names placed on the ballot.
Following are some letters to the editor from some young contributors, all students at Academy School in Brattleboro. The letters came to The Commons via their teacher, Kelly Junno, who writes: “This year, in our third grade class at Academy School, we studied climate. Our children will be intimately familiar with that word in their lifetime. Where to begin with this important topic? We spent our unit of study looking at climate and food. How does the climate dictate the...
Brattleboro Colonels boys' basketball coach Jason Coplan knew that the start of this season was going to be rough. He had a team that was short on varsity experience that would be tested early against five powerhouse teams in their first five games. So, the Colonels starting the season at 0-5 is distressing, but not surprising. There is still time to regroup, but it won't be easy. After starting the season with a 21-point loss to Amherst, Mass., a 55-point...
During the month of January, seven Brattleboro-West Arts members will exhibit recent work in a variety of media at the Robert H. Gibson River Garden, 157 Main St. The art on display will include acrylic paintings, watercolors, hooked and braided wool, oil paintings, encaustics and pastels, in styles ranging from new visions of wildlife to landscapes to abstraction. Participants include Julia Eva Bacon, Maisie Crowther, Lesley Heathcote, Ron Karpius, Kris McDermet, Walter Slowinski, and Jen Wiechers. Bacon's oil paintings highlight...
Girls on the Run Vermont is widely known throughout the state for its physical activity-based, positive youth-development program designed to empower local girls in grades 3 through 8. A recent independent study conducted by Maureen R. Weiss, Ph.D., a leading expert on youth development, provides compelling evidence that Girls on the Run is highly effective at driving transformative and lasting change in the lives of young girls. According to the study, girls who participate in the program develop and improve...
Elizabeth Rogers, singer-songwriter, was born and raised in New York City. She started singing at the age of nine with the New York City Opera and the Metropolitan Opera companies. She has toured internationally as a classical and jazz singer. In 2000, she moved to the north of Scotland, where she concentrated her efforts as a folk-singer/songwriter. She currently lives in Vermont and will be performing a “Stone Church by Candlelight” concert at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 6, at Immanuel...
Construction at the Central Fire Station, the third and final piece in the town's police and fire facilities project, is close to completion, Town Manager Peter B. Elwell reported at the Dec. 19 regular Selectboard meeting. Workers are “almost finished with that,” with just a few items on “the punch list” remaining, said Elwell, who noted his “next report will likely be the last.” Elwell noted “overall, the [fire department] employees are happy with the space. It's much more functional...
Wycliffe Gordon and his International All-Stars will perform at the Vermont Jazz Center on Saturday, Jan. 13, at 8 p.m. Gordon is one of the leading jazz trombonists in the world and, although he is the recipient of numerous awards, he is best known for his long tenure with Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. For his Vermont performance, Gordon will be joined by his touring ensemble, The International All-Stars. They are a group modeled after trumpeter Louis...
A flurry of state regulatory activity takes place this month in two companies' request for approval of the sale of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant. But that flurry of activity will have to wait a couple of weeks due to some real flurries. Due to a forecast snowstorm for Jan 4, the three-member Vermont Public Utility Commission (PUC) - formerly the Public Service Board - postponed a public hearing on the petition to allow Entergy to sell the dormant...
The Tenores de Aterúe is a quartet of four American singers, each with a background in folk polyphony and early music, who perform from the island of Sardinia in Italy “cantu a tenore,” a form of polyphonic singing. On Jan. 19, Tenores de Aterúe will appear for the first time in Brattleboro, when the group performs a concert of cantu a tenòre at 118 Elliot at 7 p.m. “Sardinian cantu a tenòre is a unique style of music which uses...