Earlier this week, Chris Wallace – son of legendary journalist Mike Wallace – appeared on the Stephen Colbert Show and said, among other things, that his father and the legendary television news show 60 Minutes were partly to blame for today’s public distrust of the media. Wallace, a former FOX Network news anchor who this … Continue reading Lie to me
Category: BLOG POSTS
Commentary that has not been published elsewhere.
Losing my religion
Warning: This post is about politics, God, a dear friend of mine and a chance encounter with my sixth-grade Social Studies teacher. I enjoy talking politics with my friends, even with those friends who adamantly disagree with me or have an entirely different perspective than mine. There are consequences, however. Openly discussing your political beliefs … Continue reading Losing my religion
PLAUSIBLE DENIABILITY: CHAPTER TWO
The sun had barely crested the horizon and already the morning traffic was beginning to thicken. The limousine exited Interstate 93 and rolled seamlessly onto State Street, but still four blocks shy of its destination and running 15 minutes late because of a traffic accident involving a tractor-trailer truck and a Prius. It did not … Continue reading PLAUSIBLE DENIABILITY: CHAPTER TWO
Biddeford After Dark: When writing was fun
“Biddeford After Dark” is a five-part series of articles that I wrote more than 20 years ago while serving as the editor of the Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier. According to what I wrote at the time, the purpose of the Biddeford After Dark series was “to explore what was often ignored: what happens in our community after … Continue reading Biddeford After Dark: When writing was fun
The One Thing
I don’t know what to say about that day, much less what to write about it. What I do know is this: all of us born before 1990 remember exactly where we were and what we were doing on that awful September day 20 years ago. I don’t want to add just another layer of … Continue reading The One Thing
Fire and rain; a tale of two cities
When I was 15, I was sent to live with my uncle Leonard in West Peru, Maine. I would joke with people during my sophomore and junior years in high school that I lived in Peru but had to go through Mexico to attend my classes at Rumford High School. If you have ever been … Continue reading Fire and rain; a tale of two cities
Gimme Shelter
There is no question that downtown Biddeford is going through a renaissance. From a run-down and neglected corridor of assorted and vacant mill buildings to one of the most desirable places for young people to live in southern Maine. Suddenly, without warning, downtown Biddeford became hip. Today, long-since abandoned textile mills in the downtown area … Continue reading Gimme Shelter
I’m a boy and I’m a man
Ralph Waldo Emerson once quipped that “a foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.” This week, I offer a solid example in which society is best served from at least a little bit of consistency. State Rep. Maggie O’Neil (D-Saco) has introduced a bill (LD 706) to lower the voting age in Maine from … Continue reading I’m a boy and I’m a man
One by one, until we’re done
It started with an e-mail I received Friday afternoon. It was sent to me by Marty Grohman, the man who sponsored my recent membership into the Biddeford-Saco Rotary Club. Marty was looking for volunteers who would be willing to give up a few hours to help FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) at its Mobile Vaccination … Continue reading One by one, until we’re done
When Irish eyes are smiling
Damn! I remember it like it was yesterday, but actually it was about a quarter century ago when I first met Vincent Keely and his son, Brian. It was Halloween day and I had just started my new job as a reporter for the Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier. Back then, the Courier office was located on Washington … Continue reading When Irish eyes are smiling
NOTES TO CARL | LESSONS IN MEDIOCRITY 