Thursday, May 23, 2013
New Hampshire, a state smaller than all but four others, is nonetheless rich in renowned poets. The dean of them all, in age if not in tenure in the Granite State, is 88-year-old Maxine Kumin of Warner. She is a former state and national poet laureate, a Pulitzer …
Thursday, May 23, 2013
On Tuesday, appearing before often irate members of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, Apple CEO Tim Cook was “nowhere man,” defending Apple subsidiaries that, for tax purposes, live in a “nowhere land” beyond the reach of any nation’s tax collectors. But unlike the “nowhere man” in the …
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Today is a day for state representatives to look out for their own. By that we mean the hometown businesses that provide jobs, pay taxes, support sports teams and give a city or town vitality and a sense of place. Every existing business would be harmed by the …
Monday, May 20, 2013
Recently Monitor staff writer Kathleen Ronayne explored an interesting change at Concord High School, where students this year are increasingly foregoing, say, a lunch of pizza and fries in the cafeteria in favor of buying a similar meal at the pizza shop down the street. For the school, …
Monday, May 20, 2013
Back in 1995, New Hampshire communities were given the option of a new way to govern themselves: SB 2, which allowed residents to vote at the polls, rather than in town and school district meetings, on everything from local budgets to labor contracts and government policy. Since then, …
Sunday, May 19, 2013
The anti-panhandling ordinance enacted by the city council last week offers no answers to the problem of homelessness in Concord. The ordinance doesn’t even provide an answer to the problem of panhandling itself – and yet when it passed unanimously, it drew praise from all sides. Rightly so. …
Friday, May 17, 2013
Turns out, politicians really can do more than just talk. They can do more than plot against each other for partisan advantage. They can put aside giant philosophical debates and actually get something done for the people who elected them. There’s been precious little sign of such behavior, …
Friday, May 17, 2013
Perhaps inevitably, the debate over gun violence in New Hampshire has become a long, angry referendum on Sen. Kelly Ayotte – her vote on gun control measures in the U.S. Senate, her town hall meetings in the aftermath and her recent column describing her views. Residents on both …
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Richard Nixon’s second term as president ended in political tragedy because of Watergate. Ronald Reagan’s second term was hamstrung by the Iran-Contra scandal, and Bill Clinton’s was crippled by personal misbehavior that led to impeachment proceedings. We recite this sad litany not to equate any of these episodes …
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
A special legislative committee investigating casino gambling in New Hampshire is expected to vote today on a recommendation to the House of Representatives. The group has worked admirably to study the pros and cons of legislation that has the potential to change the state’s politics, economy and reputation. …
