Sunday, November 8, 2026

News and Ideas Worth Sharing

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JOHN BREASTED: The Great Barrington Selectboard’s credibility gap

Transparency does not require officials to reveal legal strategy. It does require them to tell voters when the town has been sued.

DATELINE STOCKBRIDGE: Community is the most important thing

So how do we get community back? If we can, how do we maintain it? What is the definition of community and what are elements?

CONNECTIONS: Follow the money

If you want to know what politicians and governments really stand for, follow the money.

Sheffield residents: There is an opportunity to get involved

Whether you are passionate about responsible growth, preserving Sheffield’s charm, or simply looking for a way to contribute, your involvement can make a meaningful impact.

I WITNESS: The return of Captain Wrecking Ball

Although Trump’s modus operandi is to never, ever tell the truth, the threats he made over the past few months and during his campaign were real.

SHEELA CLARY: The Preamble

The worthiest enemy of authoritarianism is authority. But who are the authoritative heroes available to us, and to the younger generations in particular? Who speaks a truth that everyone can get behind?

PETER MOST: Roundtable Discussion — Can an arranged marriage work (for water companies)?

The purpose of the following roundtable discussion was to review the whereases, what-have-yous, and what-fors of the petitions to purchase and merge the water companies.

Thank you to Dalton Town Clerk Heather Hunt for quickly fixing an error in the mail-in ballot for the Feb. 3 special election

Our Dalton town clerk is to be commended for her swift and corrective action to ensure that the February 3 election is appropriately and legally held.

Never forget January 6, what it was and was not

You must never allow yourself to believe lies when your own eyes have seen the truth—particularly when the truth is uncontrolled fury, rage, and murderous conduct.

CONNECTIONS: How and when do we distinguish the bad from the good?

G. K. Chesterton and others said that fairy tales do not tell children there are monsters; children know there are monsters. Do our children know? Do we?

Bracing for the next four years

I am sympathetic to all those who are nervous and have elevated anxiety and debilitating depression while facing the next four years. I hear you every day.

A potential regional school solution?

Monument Mountain High School is in complete disrepair and needs to be rebuilt from scratch.

I WITNESS: TikTok… TikTok… BOOM!

Even though I consider it a goofy, boring waste of time, it has been difficult for me to understand why the federal government has been in such a lather about TikTok.

Debating arguments heard on Fox News regarding the Los Angeles fires

If we are going to put causes to this catastrophe, for God's sake, let‘s put it where it belongs, not where Fox News suggests, without any scientific basis, that it is!

The town of Housatonic and the GE river cleanup

The following is a letter I sent to the EPA. Everyone in Housatonic and Great Barrington should do the same.

Time for a different approach

We will once again be voting at Town Meeting in May for the funds to replace Monument Mountain Regional High School. I know that we need a new school, that the cost keeps increasing, and that our taxes are going to go up. How is this town going to reconcile these facts?