News

Letters to the Portland Editor: May 29, 2009

Commodity leads to scarcity
I've never seen Al Diamon quite so hysterical as in his column on the water issue. Nazi analogies of the Left are simply the Ann Coulter form of crazy, especially when you are defending corporations.

By PORTLAND PHOENIX LETTERS | May 27, 2009

Out of office

Just because nobody pays attention doesn't mean a guy can't make a royal mess of things.
It's only fitting the news media seem to have missed James J. Walsh's death. Even when Walsh was alive, the rare instances when he attracted publicity never worked out too well for him. The only reason he had any kind of political career was because he mostly flew so far below the radar that he had to pick earthworms out of his teeth.

By AL DIAMON | May 27, 2009

As white as they come

Maine: The other white state
It seems to be Maine's turn again to be the least racially diverse state in the nation.

By SHAY STEWART-BOULEY | May 27, 2009

Dale Bozzio sentenced to jail

Feline Trouble
Two months after being convicted of animal cruelty, new-wave pop icon Dale Bozzio feels trapped in her own personal witch trial.

By ASHLEY RIGAZIO | May 27, 2009

On Sotomayor

A noble pick that highlights a political flash point. Plus, California's shame.
There is a pleasing symmetry to President Obama's nomination of federal appeals court judge Sonia Sotomayor to the United States Supreme Court.

By EDITORIAL | May 27, 2009

Gold standard

In Congo, desperate men labor in dangerous conditions to satisfy the world's appetite for gold
Samy Badrio waded exhausted in waterlogged gumboots up from the mine's dark entrance and raised his hand to shield his eyes against the brightness of the noon-high Equatorial sun.

By MIKE PFLANZ | May 20, 2009

Bringing the big comic-book guns to town

Other worlds
In its short history, the brand-new Ocean Gateway terminal hasn't seen anything like the hundreds of comic-book creators, collectors, and fans (900 strong, nearly half of them age 12 or under) who attended the inaugural Maine Comics Arts Festival on Sunday.

By ALEX IRVINE | May 20, 2009

A kick-start for conservation

But Maine's new energy plan may not go far enough
To make the most of huge chunks of incoming federal economic-stimulus cash (and to get their hands on more of it in the first place), the Maine Legislature has to ramp up its energy-efficiency planning — on the double.

By DEIRDRE FULTON | May 20, 2009

Bigger is better

A smaller House
You've seen those obnoxious TV ads for phony products promising "natural male enhancement." Now, here's something that does exactly the opposite.

By AL DIAMON | May 20, 2009

After the battle

Where will same-sex marriage be in 2010?
In a fast-moving and historic couple of days in Augusta (pity they don't move so fast on other important issues), the Maine Legislature last week approved same-sex marriage, and Governor John Baldacci ended weeks of speculation about what he would do by signing it that very day.

By JEFF INGLIS | May 13, 2009

Maine Greens readying for 2010

To the left, to the left
The Maine Green Independent Party, which celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2009, announced its seven-member steering committee after its annual convention in Augusta early this month.

By DEIRDRE FULTON | May 13, 2009

From the mouths of innocents

Modern poverty
It has become an unwelcome reality, living from paycheck to paycheck and worrying about job stability, but what about being born a guiltless young person growing up with a drug-addicted parent, no job skills, and no home?

By SONYA TOMLINSON | May 13, 2009

Drinking muddy water

Eco-Whacko Syndrome!
There's something in the water

By AL DIAMON | May 13, 2009

Immaculate reception

The New England Patriots played host to a very different out-of-towner last week, as the Dalai Lama made a most incongruous visit to Gillette Stadium
Two Saturdays ago, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama sat cross-legged on the 50-yard line and gently intoned that "the path to happiness in the individual and with society is through inner peace."

By MIKE MILIARD | May 13, 2009

Putting an end to the hunger strike

Prison Watch
Maine State Prison officials ended a hunger strike involving at least 10 inmates of the solitary-confinement Supermax unit in Warren by threatening to withhold the strikers’ psychotropic medications, according to allegations by an inmate who participated in the strike.

By LANCE TAPLEY and JEFF INGLIS | May 18, 2009

Maine Supermax inmates on hunger strike

Going hungry
At least eight inmates of the Maine State Prison’s solitary-confinement Supermax unit in Warren are on a hunger strike, protesting not being allowed to have radios to listen to.

By LANCE TAPLEY | May 07, 2009

Dodging shots

In politics, and with the media, it's the outcome, and not the intention, that matters. That's fortunate for Senator Susan Collins, who got lucky twice in the same week.

By JEFF INGLIS | May 06, 2009

Inspiring urban growers

Just in time for the fresh-food abundance that comes with summer and farmers' markets and pick-your-own adventures, the folks at SPACE Gallery and the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) will host their second Food+Farm extravaganza this week.
Just in time for the fresh-food abundance that comes with summer and farmers' markets and pick-your-own adventures, the folks at SPACE Gallery and the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) will host their second Food+Farm extravaganza this week.

By DEIRDRE FULTON | May 06, 2009

Generation Green

Once derided as tree huggers, eco-friendly youth are now the nation's most powerful (and feared) voting bloc. So why isn't the GOP listening?
Republicans have a lot to say about the immorality of saddling the next generation with our national debt. But when it comes to leaving them a wrecked, depleted, and rapidly warming planet, they are taking the exact opposite line.

By DAVID S. BERNSTEIN | May 11, 2009

Do state officials know best?

Word From The Top
Like when the country goes to war, most news reports of how state government is handling the H1N1 “swine flu” crisis have just repeated what officials have said.

By LANCE TAPLEY | May 07, 2009