Opinion - Piscataquis Observer

Opinion

High drug prices are cruel

What a relief it is to hear about campaigns that take aim at price gouging by pharmaceutical companies! It is a long-standing problem that just seems to be getting worse. Many Mainers find it very difficult to afford the medications they need.

Catch and release not under attack

In reading John Holyoke’s recent piece, “Catch and release fishing not to blame for togue population explosion,” I was struck by the writer’s claim that catch and release is “under attack.”

DNA: to share or not to share?

In my last column I wrote that DNA testing has become common and prices have dropped in the last decade, making the tests affordable for everyone. But before testing know there are issues involved in the process.

Thanks for Wings for Wishes on the Waterfront

On behalf of all the pilots and organizers of Wings for Wishes on the Waterfront, I would like to express my sincere thank you to all who attended and helped our group donate almost $11000 to Make-A-Wish Maine. We collected over $5000 on the waterfront the day of the event. I am humbled by the outpouring of support from our local community.

Lessons from my absent parents

I was helping Dad get dressed for Mom’s funeral. Five days a week, as long as I remember, Dad wore a suit and tie to commute on the Long Island Railroad to-and-from his Manhattan office.

You need to care about what’s happening in Hong Kong

Hong Kong is the single most important arena in the struggle for human liberty on the planet today, and that struggle is in danger of being crushed under the boot of totalitarian oppression.

When it comes to gun safety, it’s time to call out the absurd

In my column last week, I wrote about 30 ideas that could help stem the rising tide of gun violence in the United States. The ideas ranged from background checks and waiting periods to a ban on military-style weapons such as the AR-15 and large capacity magazines.

Big Pharma greed must stop

Millions of people are affected by the rising costs of prescription medication every day. It is wrong that hard working families have to choose between taking medication and being able to eat a meal.

What the principal used to tell the kids at Columbine

Thursday, August 8, 2019, an unidentified 20-year-old man wearing camo clothes, a bulletproof vest; carrying 100 bullets, a rifle, and a second gun, walked into a Missouri Walmart. He was spotted immediately by an off-duty firefighter with a concealed carry permit who held a gun on the 20-year-old until police arrested him. No shots were fired. No one was killed.

Stop giving in to the mob

Neil deGrasse Tyson is, to a certain generation of people in this country, something of a demigod. He is an astrophysicist, author, director of the Hayden Planetarium and one of the chief pop-science figures of our time.

30 gun safety ideas in 30 seconds

1) Strengthen background checks and close the loopholes that allows someone to buy a gun without one. 2) Ban high-capacity magazines that enhance the killing power of semi-automatic weapons. 3) Require gun owners to be licensed.

DNA and genealogy – Part 1

A few years ago I was interviewed by a newspaper on the future of genealogy and DNA. I went on record that DNA would change genealogy in the future, opening doors we could only imagine. When the piece ran I was chided by a fellow genealogist who insisted that DNA was a flash in the pan and what I said was ridiculous.

What if the handwriting on the wall is cursive?

Where did I learn how to write? I mean penmanship, the whole writing process; from learning to identify and pronounce the upper- and lowercase letters of the alphabet, to learning how to form those letters with pencil on paper? How did I learn to write in cursive or script?

Bear study long overdue

I think the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife canceled a request for proposals to conduct a scheduled study on the impact of human food (including baiting) on Maine’s bear population because they didn’t want to hear the results and make them public. The study RFP was cancelled for a litany of flimsy excuses, even though it has been long overdue.

Thin Blue Line flag shouldn’t be controversial

Let's say you are in a meeting or class, and it is somebody's turn to speak. The person is long-winded and frequently wastes everyone's time with unproductive babbling.

When it comes to attacks on elections, we’re the ‘suckers’ being targeted

Democracy is under attack in the United States. A recent US Senate Intelligence Committee report found that it’s likely all 50 states were targeted by the Russian government in 2016 as part of that country’s efforts to influence our elections.

Life would be better following the Golden Rule

Did you ever stop and think how much better life would be for everyone if we all followed the Golden Rule “To treat others as you want to be treated.” Instead we have, more than we would like, people that think “life is all about me, myself and I.”

First visit to solitary confinement

My first time visiting a solitary confinement unit at Maine State Prison in Warren was like walking into a Federico Fellini movie. I did not visit alone.

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