Wednesday, November 11, 2026

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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.

SHEELA CLARY: Half emergencies

For me, for us, the current trend toward warmth instead of cold and rain instead of snow is a sadness simple, a simple loss, a long, felt absence of this thing that we love and miss, an absence about which there is nothing to be done.

CONNECTIONS: Let’s hold on to what makes the Berkshires a grand place to live

Concern and a helping hand are not implied criticism. Most of the time we humans can use all the help we can get, and those who offer help are rarely intending an insult; they care—that’s all.

PETER MOST: Cottage industry

In the earlier column, I noted the problem with HUD’s AMI Berkshire County map. To our current—and future—representatives, here is the problem and, with your help, an easily implemented legislative solution.

I WITNESS: Welcome to the new Theocratic States of America

Because every word of the Bible is divinely inspired, citizens of the Theocratic States of America will no longer be able to pick and choose which of God’s laws they obey.

In response to Carole Owens’ ‘Rents and rates’

Although longtime respected business owner and local plumbing and gas inspector Bob Gennari shares a last name with the Mill Pond Trailer Park mortgage holder, he does not now and never has held paper on or had any ownership association with the park.

Hamas charter invokes genocide against Israel and Jews

Accusations of Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people are both unfounded and completely naïve and show the ignorance of those who believe such nonsense.

Netanyahu needs to be brought to justice

Taking Netanyahu out of the equation in the Middle East would be the fastest way to keep the United States from getting into another protracted Middle Eastern war and save democracy in Israel.

CONNECTIONS: Rents and rates

Berkshire County property values are rising exponentially. That makes Berkshire County an attractive investment. We are attracting investors from outside our communities. They are single-minded.

Biden’s and Trump’s stances on healthcare and Medicare — fact vs. fiction

Which candidate has actually demonstrated that he will do the work to protect and expand healthcare? Since both Trump and Biden have served as president, their records offer every voter a window into what they would do if elected in November.

STEPHEN COHEN: A brief geo-political, demographic lesson on Judaism

Since many seem blind to the fact that Jews do not surreptitiously control the world, a brief geo-political demographic lesson, particularly for my Italian friends, may be in order.

PETER MOST: In defense of taxes

I have lived in places with fewer services and higher taxes, and let me say, Great Barrington’s model is preferred. We make up for what we pay in property taxes with fewer car alignments and tire replacements, greater livability, and enhanced property values.

I hope BMC reconsiders ending its exercise class for those with Parkinson’s Disease

These patients have already lost so much to this disease. My husband can no longer drive, work, play golf, or even run simple errands alone. This class is not only for their physical well-being but also their emotional well-being.

I WITNESS: False equivalencies

Let’s be clear: Donald Trump is not being politically persecuted; he is being criminally prosecuted.

This Tuesday, commit to being uncommitted

As recent U.S. polls are showing, there is broad and growing consensus that a permanent ceasefire must happen immediately. But as the International Court of Justice digests the overwhelming evidence that Israel is guilty of genocide, the Biden administration and the U.S. remain complicit with and continues to fund their actions.

Invoking the ghost of Howard Jarvis

Taxpayers feeling the pinch the hardest will either move away or they will revolt like Howard Jarvis. Must it come to this?

LEONARD QUART: The world darkens

Trump has no use for democracy, and that is what makes him the most dangerous of American political figures