The Northcountry Chronicle

When the world’s on fire, what should we do?

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For millions of people around the globe—especially young people—the pressing issue of our time is this: The world is on fire! On fire with climate change, creating a new and intensifying norm of deadly weather extremes that make a dystopian future a distinct possibility—constant wildfires, rising seas, desertification, global crop failures, widespread hunger, water shortages, &c. Luckily, we are a sentient species with the scientific ability to know that the chief cause of this global destruction is not angry gods, but us—specifically humankind’s massive extraction and burning of oil, gas, coal, and other fossil fuels. So, there’s a rising chorus of people shouting “Fire!” And, …

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Study Shows ‘Stakeholder Capitalism’ Failing to Live Up to Promises as Corporations Continue Putting Profits Over People

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by Kenny Stancil, Common Dreams When the Business Roundtable issued a statement on corporate purpose and promised to “deliver value to all of…our stakeholders” in 2019, some applauded the attention paid to social and environmental concerns by 181 CEOs as a significant improvement from neoliberal economist Milton Friedman’s 1970 dictate that “the social responsibility of business is to increase its profits,” which marked the beginning of an era of shareholder primacy. But a study published Tuesday by the Test of Corporate Purpose (TCP) initiative showed that amid 2020’s disastrous public health, economic, social, and environmental challenges—the coronavirus pandemic, massive unemployment and worsening inequality, persistent police …

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“The New Hampshire Advantage”—But, For Whom?

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Ray Duckler recently wrote a disturbing column in the Concord Monitor about Pittsfield, one of New Hampshire’s property-poor towns, struggling to provide an adequate education for their kids. He quotes one of Pittsfield’s high school students, who addressed the Senate last summer: “every year, we’re set up to lose more and more, and at some point, there’s just going to be nothing left.” I have many fond memories from attending Pittsfield High School many years ago and received, at that time, an education good enough to get into Columbia. But, over the years, our educational system has become increasingly unequal, hamstringing property-poor towns, increasingly unable …

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CEO tricksters cut their pay without bleeding

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Covid-19 has been a doubly-deadly disaster for millions of Americans, destroying both life and livelihoods. But one of the most heartening responses to the crisis has come from the least-expected place: Corporate executive suites. This spring, numerous CEOs made headlines by showing some class solidarity. If we’re having to wallop our workers because of a pandemic, these bosses told media interviewers, the least we can do is cut our own salaries. Yes—all in this together! Only…not really. An analytical firm looked at the books of nearly all major U.S. corporations, finding that a mere fraction had made any cuts to senior executive pay, and the …

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Carl Drega, Folk Hero to Free Staters

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by Susan Bruce Those of us who lived in northern New Hampshire when Carl Drega went on his murderous rampage see something like this and get the chills. The chills mixed in with some serious pissed off. Carl Drega was a guy from Bow who had a small vacation place in Columbia—a small town near Colebrook. He was not a beloved member of the community. Drega was an angry man who was sure everyone was out to get him. He’d had code enforcement problems in Columbia. He wanted to use tarpaper as siding on his house. His house was on the riverfront, and a flood …

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Trump’s bassackwards government

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by Jim Hightower Gosh, our Trasher-in-chief has really been busy lately, calling Kamala Harris “nasty” and calling our post offices “a joke.” But, instead of trash-talking, shouldn’t a President be, you know, running the government? Nah…that bores him. Besides, that’s why he packed his cabinet with all those corporate lobbyists who are skilled at trying to rig our government to serve moneyed elites. Now, empowered by Trump, these special interests are our government, literally setting and running America’s economic, environmental, health, and other public policies. And what a job they’re doing—on us! Check out Andrew Wheeler, head of Trump’s EPA. He had been the top …

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