Ignore Slavery, It’s No Longer Operative

[Note: Ten years ago this month Mr. Ewing began favoring us with his thoughts. Why he continues to bother, considering our treatment of them, we cannot say. Only recently—far too recently—due to his habit of quoting from questionable sources, we instituted a policy of prefacing his letters with a warning to readers against putting any faith in statistics proferred by him. Statistics are not a problem in this letter, but it’s clearly time to expand that disclaimer. The last few years have demonstrated all too well the remarkable efficacy of a technique called the “Firehose of Falsehood,” also known as “Flooding the Zone with [digestive …

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Put Out Water for the Birds

Dear Editor: Outdoors yesterday I saw one bird, then a second (sparrow, chickadee) land on my dog’s water dish rim and take a drink, a long one. Earlier this week a traveling-through hummingbird came down out of the sky and refueled at my hummingbird feeder that I keep ready, though my regulars have migrated away. Now migrating hummers might stop briefly. Makes me want to ask – if you are able to do this, put water out for the birds. Now I’m keeping my three dog waters high (so small birds can perch on the rim and reach the water, that height of water needed). …

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Small Man in a Big Job

Dear Editor: It takes a big man to represent this great country. A President worthy of office must stand for the justice, democracy, liberty, and diversity that have created our well-being. He must set an example to the world of the ideals that all can aspire to. He must also show the empathy and moral character we expect of our neighbors, friends, and ourselves. Instead, a very small man is our President. Petty and vindictive, he cares only about making a transactional profit for himself, a bully who worries that any criticism underlines the illegitimacy of his three-million-minority election. Why would the designated leader of …

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Trump Would be 86ed From Kindergarten

To the Editor: In every election I’ve voted in, be it local, a primary, presidential or non-presidential, I always see voters taking their children with them as they vote. They clearly want their children to know participating in the democratic process is important. Just as my parents did, I am sure many watch the Presidential debates with their children. I wonder how they can explain President Trump’s behavior in Tuesday’s debate? His constant interrupting, his arguing with the moderator, his total ignoring of the rules he had agreed to. His behavior would not be allowed in kindergarten and is no example of how any adult …

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“A Trump Guy Through and Through”

To the Editor: In the New Hampshire primaries, more than 4,000 Democrats voted for Chris Sununu as a write-in. But Sununu is not the moderate they think he is. “I’m a Trump guy through and through,” Sununu boasts. He takes money and advice from the fossil fuel industry. His 77 vetoes diminish your rights, take money out of your pocket, and put you in danger from a runaway climate. Many New Hampshire residents work multiple jobs in the struggle to pay bills on a minimum wage of $7.25/hour. Sununu twice vetoed bills attempting a modest increase to $10/hour. We are in a pandemic, with no …

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The New Court’s Agenda

To the Editor: I continue to believe that we all deserve healthcare, racial and class equity, a livable earth, to live safely without guns to resolve our disputes, and that women have the right to decide issues related to our own bodies. In the September 20th Boston Sunday Globe (p. A15) Cass Sunstein, a professor at Harvard Law School, wrote about the issues to be decided soon by the U.S. Supreme Court: healthcare; climate change regulations; women’s reproductive rights; affirmative action programs; and the independence of a number of agencies such as the Federal Reserve Board, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and others. I read elsewhere …

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