Commentary
Anne Gage: Elementary school libraries need support
Seems not a day goes by without another chapter to the Jones Library saga. They have again been able to gain access to more funding in the quest to improve and expand the library. Unfortunately the same cannot be said for our elementary school...
Richard Fein’s recent column “Is Hamas winning the long war?” [Gazette, Nov. 27] states that “in response (to Hamas’ crimes) Israel and Egypt have blockaded Gaza.”.He neglects to mention that this blockade denies food, medicine and water to several...
Guest columnist Susie Mosher: Disability activists also oppose aid in dying
By SUSIE MOSHER
The article “Bill seeks to give terminally ill options” published in the Gazette on Oct. 23 gave a slanted report on the public hearing held at the State House on Oct. 20. From reading the article one would be led to believe opponents of the Medical...
Columnist Darcy Dumont: Amherst must reprioritize budget for climate action
The inner workings of Amherst’s town budget are a mystery to most in town. I would venture to say they are a mystery even to many town councilors who are not on the Finance Committee. That being said, the budget process is going on right now, with the...
Peter Demling: Leave decision on track to next board
A vote to abandon the current high school track and field project by rescinding the debt authorization for it is scheduled for the Dec. 12 meeting of the Amherst-Pelham Regional School Committee. I’d ask the committee to consider that it would be best...
Nina M. Scott: Witness to history: Rosalynn Carter, JFK
Two events occurred this past week that reminded me of where I was when they happened.Nov. 22, 1963, the day JFK was assassinated, my husband Jim and I were in Lugano, working at the American School in Switzerland. It was already evening there when we...
Elissa Rubinstein: Columnists’ language did them no favors
In their Oct. 23 guest column, Katherine Appy and Adi Heller of Amherst Forward called for “optimism and collaboration” as local elections approach [“Let’s vote for optimism and collaboration”]. They correctly state “there’s a lot of divisiveness in...
Leslie Nyman: Save Medicare from corporate profiteers
More than half of Medicare beneficiaries now have for-profit corporations in charge of their care through Medicare Advantage plans. Insurance companies are well paid for these plans and much of that taxpayer money does not find its way to patient...
Michael Lawrence Levine: Need a new DPW, not a building
Regrettably, a major priority for everyone running for Amherst Town Council appears to be spending $30 million-plus on a new DPW building. With a DPW whose major credentials are destroying curbs while plowing and destroying neighborhoods with infinite...
Jeremy Andersen: Grateful for work on safety zones
I wanted to reach out and say thank you to the Amherst Town Council for opting into MassDOT’s regulations for the establishment of safety zones. Safety zones will help make our playgrounds, parks, early-childhood education centers, and eldercare...
Guest columnist Musbah Shaheen: Empathy needed to see others’ trials
By MUSBAH SHAHEEN
‘I feel scared being a Jew,” said my friend as we debriefed the war in the Middle East. As a Muslim who was raised in Syria and was fed from a very young age political anti-Israeli and antisemitic propaganda, I often refrained from commenting on the...
Lydia Vernon-Jones: Amherst needs to get its priorities straight
Whether you have supported the Amherst Jones Library renovation (and partial demolition) project in the past, or not, it’s time to pay attention to what’s happening with the library project. If you care about the climate, taxes, affordable housing,...
Anne Herrington: Support increased borrowing for Jones Library
As a resident of Amherst, I urge the Town Council to vote in favor of the $10 million increase in the borrowing cap for the Jones Library project, and not delay this authorization.Raising the borrowing cap will not increase the town’s $15.8 million...
Martin Miller: Jones Library project deserves continued support
By MARTIN MILLER
The Amherst Town Council will be making a very important decision at an upcoming December meeting. I, along with a likely majority of voters (based on the results of the town vote in 2021), are asking that the council vote in favor of amending the...
Jeff Lee: Amherst needs info before raising Jones borrowing cap
By JEFF LEE
Next week the Amherst Town Council will be deciding whether to add $9,860,100 to the $35.3 million borrowing authorization it approved in 2021 to pay for a renovation and expansion of the Jones Library that has been years in planning. Given Amherst’s...
Spencer Simon: More hidden gems?
I just read Robin Goldstein’s Best Bites review of the Texas Roadhouse and I wonder, what other hidden gems have we here? [“Think again, culinary elitists,” Gazette, Oct. 28].Will he be lobbying the Michelin inspectors for a star for the Route 9...
Nancy Craker-Yahman: A warm welcome makes it easier for newcomers
I was pleased to read the recent article about Hadley officials making new arrivals feel welcome [“State picks motel for homeless shelter” Gazette, Oct. 25]. As an educator, teacher mentor, and published writer for educational magazines, I was...
Guest columnist Jonathan Klate: Are we equal to the love required?
By JONATHAN KLATE
I am a Jew.My father and all of my grandparents emigrated from the pale of settlement in Eastern Europe, as did my wife’s Jewish father. It was difficult to know where they lived exactly and for how long; Ukraine, Moldova, Russia, Hungary, Belarus …...
Richard S. Bogartz: Gender identity just isn’t my call
By RICHARD S. BOGARTZ
The person I’m writing about, who is very close to me, has read this and given permission to publish it.I’ll call him Guy. Guy has the body of a 20-year-old woman. He knows himself to be a 20-year-old man.We talk weekly. It’s a great privilege. Guy...
Judy Franklin: Let’s be open-minded and take care of our students
My mother bought me the book “Our Bodies, Ourselves” by the Boston Women’s Health Book Collective in 1976 or so. I discovered that Massachusetts women are strong. And I knew people who had gone to college in Massachusetts, so in 1980 I moved here to...
