Opinion
Guest columnist Dr. Katherine J. Atkinson: Why isn’t the state Legislature moving faster to shore up primary care in Massachusetts?
By DR. KATHERINE J. ATKINSON
When I read that the state was mandating insurance companies to cover urgent care centers in Massachusetts, my blood started boiling. The Massachusetts Legislature can force insurance companies to pay for “doc-in-the-boxes” but not for primary care?...
Guest column by Chris Mohn: Mandating teaching about antisemitism
By CHRIS MOHN
Due to rising incidents of antisemitism, an amendment to our state budget signed Monday by Gov. Maura Healey Senate will require teaching about antisemitism. The amendment calls for for the creation of a Special Commission on Antisemitism and directs...
Elaine Kersten: No sympathy for protesters
Am i supposed to feel sympathy for the individual featured on the Gazette’s front page with the article regarding campus violence [“Fallout only beginning for those arrested at protests,” Aug. 5]?I don’t think so. As a descendant of German Jews, I am...
Rorie Woods: Stolen home equity must be returned
The celebration by Gov. Maura Healey and state Sen. Jo Comerford for reprimanding municipalities against controverting the U.S. Constitution by stealing equity in property tax seizures is like commending a thief for agreeing to stop stealing, but not...
Jon Weissman: Single-payer health care the solution
Thank you for highlighting (again) the crisis in primary care [”Primary care in crisis,” Gazette, July 27].As the board chair of Mass-Care: The Massachusetts Campaign for Single Payer Health Care, I appreciate being quoted, but I want readers to...
Claire Morenon: A time for reflection and deepened commitment to local farmers
We appreciate the article by reporter Chris Larrabee, “Farmers grateful for more typical growing season after 2023 floods devastated fields,” [July 17]. Devastating is a good word for it: River flooding on July 10, 2023 swept away millions of dollars...
David Sloviter: Why such silence?
Why is there such silence? Where is the outrage? When kids in Gaza die in an airstrike, the charges of genocide and murder fill the editorial page. When Hezbollah, which has denied responsibility, targets a soccer field and kills 12 children and teens...
Ellen Miller-Mack: Nurse practitioners as primary care providers
How is it possible that in an article about the lack of primary care in western Massachusetts [“Primary care in crisis: Doctor shortage continues,” July 26], there is not a word concerning the active role of nurse practitioners as providers of...
Tina Swift: Kudos for Jones project direction
If my car is broken, I bring it to a qualified, trained mechanic. I do not ask my neighbors who may have driven a car, but have no expertise in auto mechanics, what to do.In a similar vein, I wish to congratulate the director and the trustees of the...
Nancy Campbell: Facts matter about the Jones Library project
It is important that information shared about the Jones Library renovation and expansion is factual. Opponents are welcome to express their opinion that Amherst does not need to renovate and expand our library. However, misinformation about the...
Richard S. Bogartz: A visit from Throckmorton
By RICHARD S. BOGARTZ
At last, I’d finished my Biden series — but enough public service. I yearned to return to my brand of seriousness. Longtime readers may remember my imaginary friend, Throckmorton, and his equally imaginary partner, Brynhildr.Well, no sooner did I put...
Amherst stakeholders: New super breath of fresh air
By ALI WICKS-LIM, MARTHA TORO and LAMIKCO MAGEE
Members of the ad hoc LGBTQIA+, Black and Latinx caucuses of Amherst have recently had the opportunity to welcome Dr. Xiomara Herman as the district’s new superintendent. We feel very encouraged about her leadership and hopeful about the start of a...
Mickey Rathbun: Not forthcoming about Jones project’s historical toll
By MICKEY RATHBUN
Reporter Scott Merzbach’s article of July 11 regarding the Jones Library project’s loss of approximately $2 million in historic tax credits due to its continued failure to meet state and federal historic preservation standards missed a critical piece...
Guest columnist Bruce J. Stedman: Bells will toll for all on Aug. 6
By BRUCE J. STEDMAN
When you hear church bells tolling on the morning of Aug. 6, listen carefully. They have an important message for you.In 1624, English cleric and poet John Donne published a series of poems, including “No Man is an Island.” Donne lived and wrote at a...
Stuart Cohen: Save Cherry Hill!
Cherry Hill is a wonderful community golf course with a diverse clientele and a very reasonable membership fee. It’s set on beautiful, tree-lined fairways with awesome views, especially in the fall. It’s a welcoming place not only for golfers, but for...
Susan J. Tracy: Our new responsibilities in a dictatorship
In their June 1 decision, the Supreme Court gave Donald Trump and all presidents total immunity from prosecution. In his decision supporting Donald Trump in his appeal about alleged subversion of the 2020 election, Chief Justice Roberts wrote:...
Patricia Ramsey: The Biden Trump contrast
What a contrast! Biden, an honorable elder statesman, withdraws from the presidential race for the good of his party and our country. Trump, a self-serving, toddler-politician, lies, threatens, and incites violence to cling to the presidency like a...
Jan Norris: Isn’t it amazing?
Donald Trump gets shot and yet Republicans didn’t riot, there were no businesses looted, no fires were set, and Republicans didn’t get a free pass to “blow off steam.” They came together and rallied around him at the convention. What a contrast with...
Toni Cunningham: Library repairs a fraction of expansion cost
The Jones Library’s “Plan B” does not have to be — and should not be — one that addresses every deferred maintenance need.All town-owned buildings have millions of dollars worth of needed repairs. Why would a non-town-owned building get everything...
Stephen Armstrong: On Trump assassination attempt
I find it hard to comment evenly about the Trump assassination attempt, because he has demonstrated repeatedly how little sympathy he has for people other than himself, and because he has been just plain nasty and criminal. But this event brings forth...
