Lew La Chance: Kudos to city employees 

What does one do when there is groundwater in one’s basement of their house?I called the non-emergency police number and they sent the Fire Department, who got rid of most of it. They called the local Department of Public Works, who removed sewage...

Amy Timmins: Toy drive brought goodwill 

On behalf of ServiceNet and the children we serve through the Days Inn family shelter, Greenfield Family Inn, and REACH Early Intervention Program, I want to thank everyone who contributed so generously to the recent toy drive coordinated in...

Ferd Wulkan: Hamas, Israel both use extreme violence

Hamas and Israel have a lot in common. A pox on both your houses!So much has been written about the conflict between Israel and Hamas, but what is rarely discussed are the many things Hamas and the Israeli government have in common. They are both...

Carol Crafts: Lights of Mount Sugarloaf a volunteer effort

As I read the recent article regarding the tree atop Mount Sugarloaf, I thought of the countless years I enjoyed seeing it lit and never gave a thought as to who was responsible for it being there [“Mt. Sugarloaf’s holiday lights a community...

Robert Dickerman: Does AIPAC represent the U.S. Jewish community?

American politicians could abruptly halt the destruction and carnage in Gaza by threatening to suspend aid and trade to Israel. One reason that politicians haven’t done this is that they fear losing the support of AIPAC and the Jewish vote. American...

Local to Global: Calling on Biden to back peace, not war

By H. PATRICIA HYNES

Dear President Joe Biden: I would wish you a Happy New Year but it seems trite, given all the challenges and troubles you and our country face in 2024 — some inherited from previous administrations, others of your making.Americans are 10 times more...

My Turn: Planting dates

By SARA SCHLEY

If the blood spilled on Kibbutz Be’eri, where hundreds were massacred on Oct 7 could speak, would it cry out in Hebrew for vengeance? Would the children crushed by concrete in Gaza demand retaliation in Arabic? Both screaming from their graves for...

Columnist Al Norman: Medicare Advantage and ‘disadvantages’

As of 2023, there were 31.2 million elders enrolled in private Medicare plans, known as “Medicare Advantage.” For the first time, that’s more enrollees than in the “Traditional” Medicare program. Seniors choose these private companies because they see...

Bill Beckett: West County coverage appreciated

Our thanks go out to reporter Bella Levavi and the editors of the Recorder for your wonderfully thorough coverage of important public improvements scheduled for western Franklin County in the upcoming year (“Top News Stories of 2023: Part 1,”...

Brian Prescott: Letter gave a laugh

I enjoyed Dan Manka’s humorous Dec. 27 letter about Lincoln and Trump having both stood for the American Way. That was very funny!Brian PrescottTurners Falls

Brian Cooper: Train travel not so great

My eyes rolled a bit when I read about how wonderful and convenient it is that we can take an Amtrak train between Northampton and New York City (“More Aboard!” Recorder, Dec. 27). It certainly is convenient for the city dweller without a family car,...

Pushback: The best property tax break for seniors

By AL NORMAN

Property tax relief for senior citizens in Massachusetts has never been better. In early October, Governor Maura Healey signed into law a wide-ranging tax relief bill, including a provision more than doubling the refundable property tax credit known...

As I See It: Between Israel and Palestine: Which side should we be on, and why?

By JON HUER

On Oct. 7, Hamas, the militant faction of Gaza Palestinians, in a surprise attack, killed more than 1,400 Jews. Three weeks later, the avenging Israeli military has killed close to 9,000 Palestinians in Gaza, and counting. Such attacks and...

Greg Werner: The hypocrisy of Democrats

I see a lot of hypocrisy among Democrats, and as far as I’m concerned that makes their viewpoints invalid. Here are a few examples.Democrats wanna stop climate change but they still drive gas-powered vehicles, fly on airplanes and heat their homes...

We should learn from Texas

For the past few weeks, Texans have been going through an unusual heat wave. This puts pressure on its electricity grid as everyone runs their air conditioners at the same time.Like New England, Texas generates most of its electricity using gas. But...

As I See It: In one man are four Horsemen of Apocalypse

By JON HUER

Amid the uproar over Donald Trump’s indictment, I am awakened by a sudden revelation that Trump is the Dark Angel of Apocalypse sent from Hell to bring the cataclysmic destruction to America. He is the very personification of the Four Horsemen —...

Stop the double standard and tell the truth about Ukraine

By ALLEN J. DAVIS and TOM WEINER

The first casualty of war, as many have noted, is the truth. This war is no exception.Why was it acceptable for the U.S. to give an ultimatum to the Soviet Union to remove its missiles from Cuba in 1962, thereby almost igniting a nuclear holocaust?...

Forests and grasslands needed to feed humanity 

To combat climate change and feed humanity, we need both forests and grasslands. Forests and grasslands both provide critical ecosystem services — like storing carbon and providing wildlife habitat — and both deserve protection. Grasslands are...

My Turn: Why we mark International Respect for Chickens Day

By KIM CLARK

Thursday, May 4 is International Respect for Chickens Day! This day was declared in 2005 to promote compassion and respectful treatment of chickens and other domestic fowl.Before you begin to guffaw at a day dedicated to fowl, please take a minute to...

Guest columnist David Gottsegen: As war rolls on, support for Ukraine must continue

By David Gottsegen

With the approaching anniversary of Russia’s unprovoked onslaught on Ukraine, I think back to the Dec 5 column in the Gazette by the Rev. Peter Kakos on “defusing Ukraine.” He wrote of his hopes for an “irenic” peace, a hope that “both warring...