Editorial

A good place to grow

A week ago we ran a lead story about immigrants who have arrived here in the region and some of the challenges they face. It was about a meeting held in Brattleboro, but touched on immigrants around the area including here in the Deerfield Valley.
Much of the discussion in that meeting...

Horrible lessons of the Holocaust can’t be lost

This weekend everyone will have the opportunity to visit one of the most unusual events ever to be held here in the valley. On Friday and Saturday a Holocaust remembrance exhibit is being held at Twin Valley Middle High School. As we reported last week, the event is the culmination of a year of...

Valley offers so much to children thanks to many

Last week’s edition had a couple of stories that, while independent of one another, continue to weave together the rich tapestry that makes up the fabric of the community.
What is that tapestry? Part of it is how the valley is a great place to raise children.
Those two stories...

How do we increase voter participation?

Tuesday’s River Valleys school district annual meeting in Wardsboro (see story on page A2) was another example of participatory government alive and well in this little corner of Vermont. Turnout was solid, voters had questions and concerns, and board members were prepared with answers.
...

Our planet’s future is our children’s future

“Teach your children well ...”
Saturday is Earth Day, the annual celebration of the planet. It also represents a continuing call to action for people of the world to realize the threats posed to the Earth’s well being. Earth Day was established in 1970 to point out the threats to the...

Readsboro voters will be faced with a choice

School choice is something that evokes a lot of passion in Vermonters. Understandably so.
Vermont has one of the most unusual choice systems in the country. Depending on the town or school district, there might be choice for students and families from pre-K all the way through high...

An overdue apology

During the past few weeks, we’ve reported on the ongoing investigations into racial harassment at Twin Valley Middle High School.
One investigation, by the US Department of Justice, resulted in an agreement with the Twin Valley School District that spells out a number of steps Twin...

Laughter is the best medicine! April Fools’ Day around the world

“If we smile at someone, he or she will smile back. And a smile costs nothing. We should plague everyone with joy. If we are to die in a minute, why not die happily, laughing?”
– Swami Satchidananda It’s been said that laughter is the best medicine. Who’s to argue with that? We have...

Time is running out

What a difference a week makes. It was just days ago the region was digging out from one of the biggest snowstorms in many years. For 36 or so hours, the world around the valley slowed to a crawl for many, and came to a halt for others, as the snow clogged roads, dropped power lines, and...

The importance of open access in government

This is Sunshine Week, March 12 to 18. We’ve written quite a bit about Sunshine Week in this space, and government transparency in general. Why? Because government at its best serves the people, not the other way around. Sunshine Week, as its website declares, “Aims to promote open government...