In response to appeals from Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg and the youth climate movement, a broad coalition of Vermonters is planning dozens of events and political actions this month. Large public rallies in Burlington, Middlebury, and many other towns on Friday, Sept. 20 will be part of a day of climate strikes and walkouts at schools and businesses in Vermont and around the world.  Hazel Civalier, a junior at Champlain Valley Union High School, spoke of the need for “stopping business as usual. We, the youth of today and tomorrow, deserve a future where we can hope for more than survival, and an education that will prepare us to continue the work of creating it.” Sep…

Burlington Electric Department (BED) and Green Mountain Power (GMP) are alerting customers about a rise in scam calls this morning. The scammers claim to be from GMP, call from a number that pops up as GMP, demand immediate payment and threaten to cut off power within just 30 minutes. Your local power company would never do that. If you receive a call like that, just hang up - it is a scam. GMP customers started alerting the company first thing this morning about strange calls, and Burlington Electric Department was not spared, either. “At Burlington Electric, safety is our number one value. This priority includes the financial security of our customers. We encourage our customers who re…

For over 16 years, homesharing services have been provided to Vermonters by two small and independent non-profit organizations, working to improve the lives of thousands of Vermonters:  Home Share Now (covering Washington, Lamoille and Orange counties) and HomeShare Vermont (covering Chittenden, Addison, Grand Isle and Franklin counties).  Over the past few months, discussions have taken place between the two programs to determine how to efficiently and cost effectively deliver strong, sustainable homesharing services to Vermonters.  To achieve this, our organizations have made the decision to have all homesharing services provided by one organization. Effective Novembe…

Governor Phil Scott today announced François Scarborough Clemmons as the recipient of the 2019 Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts. Clemmons is a nationally renowned actor, singer, playwright and author. He is best known for his role as Officer Clemmons on the children’s television series, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. Clemmons is also a Grammy-winning opera singer and founder of the Harlem Spiritual Ensemble. “I am pleased to name François as the winner of this year’s Excellence in the Arts award,” said Governor Scott. “His renowned musical talent and years of service to his community made him the perfect choice. Congratulations, François, and thank you for making Vermont prou…

By G. E. Shuman Early in the summer my dear wife, who seems to enjoy filling my need for a new toy occasionally, bought me a leaf blower. Mine is not an over the top, gas-powered, blow the lawn furniture away blower; it’s a nice, fairly quiet, lightweight, rechargeable machine. For years I’ve seen other guys around the neighborhood using leaf blowers but have never been interested in having one. I always considered them to be just another gimmicky waste of money that probably worked about half as well as claimed. I mean, how could you go up against a Vermont wind with any device you could carry around? Boy, was I wrong! Truthfully, I have loved the little thing from the first time…

Another series of mass shootings – this time in Dayton, El Paso, Mobile, and Odessa – ushered in the expected “thoughts and prayers” from elected officials across the nation. 40 people were killed and 73 more were injured over the span of just a few weeks in those four shootings alone. The usual, performative hand wringing began, and quickly subsided. Gun violence prevention was discussed only as far as it was politically expedient and not a second longer. Once again, we are burying the dead, nursing the wounded, and trying to comfort the living. Once again we are fully equipped with the solution, yet held hostage by the gun lobby. What is abundantly clear is that we cannot expect leader…