Archive for ‘Opinion’

  • Uppermost House: The annual drive

    By S. Peter Lewis BN Columnist Long about now each year, my wife Karen and I do the same thing that we’ve done for so many years that I can’t even remember when we didn’t do it; although it had to have been before 1982, the year we got married. A few days either side […]

  • Small World: Winning and losing at diplomacy

    By Henry Precht BN Columnist I hope you’re paying attention — taking notes, maybe — because Americans are being treated to a series of free lessons in good and bad diplomacy: What works for peace and prosperity and what threatens us with loss of lives and treasury. I refer, of course, to our promising dealings […]

  • On my Corner

    By Bob Casimiro My recent trip to the southwest was as much about the weather as my participation in border watch activities with the all-volunteer members of Arizona Border Recon. While the purpose of the trip was a weeklong exercise on the southern border, the weather was, with one notable exception, uncommonly cold and a […]

  • Small World: Syria, a short geopolitical quiz

    By Henry Precht BN Columnist Q: Is there a connection between President Trump’s personal troubles and the air strike on Syria? A: Officially, only on page one of the New York Times (unless proven otherwise before the News goes to print). Leading the left hand column is an article about the president’s personal lawyer entitled, […]

  • Small World: Strangers at the Gate

    By Henry Precht BN Columnist Let’s give a bit of time this morning to the continuing political issue of immigration. Although I am not aware of a particularly strong reaction to an influx of foreigners in the Bridgton area, it is certainly a source of agitation for other communities around the nation. Immigrants steal our […]

  • Small World: A man’s fancy turns

    By Henry Precht BN Columnist Too little attention has been paid, perhaps, to the role that women play in the lives of our presidents. (On the other hand, virtually no attention has been paid to the reverse, i.e., the masculine role in the lives of our feminine rulers for the obvious reason that there haven’t […]

  • The Right Angle: Politics or principle

      By Rich Cebra (Naples) State Representative Politics or principle? It is the challenge facing elected people daily, and more often than not, the vast majority fail the test. Such was the case on March 1 at the Maine State House in Augusta. Speaker of the House Sara Gideon headlined an anti-gun rally at the […]

  • Earth Notes: Ruminations on food

    By Sally Chappell Lately I’ve been ruminating on the ethics of eating. Our vegan friends point out the misery inflicted on countless chickens, cows, pigs, etc. from being confined in crowded conditions (Confined Animal Feeding Operations —CAFOs) with slaughter as the ultimate end. Vegans separate themselves from this abuse by avoiding consumption of animals as […]

  • Small World: A holiday of hearts, flowers and suspicions

    By Henry Precht BN Columnist I write these words on Valentine’s Day. Almost everybody has in mind on this date flowery cards, rich chocolates, and bunches of roses. I have a dear wife well deserving of such tributes, but my thoughts inevitably turn back to this date — a grim one — in 1979. I […]

  • On my Corner: Chatter in the brush

    By Bob Casimiro BN Columnist Chiapas is the southernmost state in Mexico, close to 2,000 miles from southwest Arizona, where I have been making frequent treks for border watch activities. It is largely indigenous and, also, very poor, having the lowest per capita GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of all 31 Mexican states. Chiapas is also […]