Did you have an ancestor who changed his or her name? This was quite common in the past. If our ancestors didn’t like their given name and preferred a nickname or middle name, they usually didn’t feel the need to legalize a name change in a court of law as we do today. They just went ahead and used whatever they preferred.

House Republicans remain concerned that excessive spending, combined with a lack of true priorities, will result in hardship and tax increases down the road. Democrats created a state budget that is 11 percent higher than the last one.

Michael Bloomberg has a lot of money. To fully understand just how much money he has, consider the following: Donald Trump is, by far, the wealthiest person to ever hold the office of president. His current net worth is estimated to be roughly $3.5 billion.

Gov. Janet Mills’ $127 million supplemental budget is both conservative and deferential to the Legislature -- including its Republican members.

As the long lines of cars turn off Main Street into the Cross Insurance Center this high school basketball tournament week, it's hard not to reflect on the people inside. They are moms and dads, brothers and sisters, grandparents, cousins, family friends, classmates and, perhaps most significant, the plain but oh-so-reliable hometown basketball fans who cheer on the team, year after year.

Reactions on the Piscataquis Observer Facebook page to last week's column are interesting. Especially comments critical of my praise for the new campaign to repeal ranked-choice voting (RCV) in Maine. A few criticisms referenced parts of Maine history with which I was unfamiliar, so I did some digging on the internet for a better understanding.

Joe Biden has been running for president for more than 33 years, and has never won a single primary.

When voters go to the polls on March 3, they’ll also be asked whether or not they want to reject a new state law that ended loopholes that allowed some people to inappropriately avoid vaccinations for their kids. Voters should reject the People’s Veto and vote “no” on Question 1.

Word this week of a campaign to block use of ranked-choice voting in Maine's 2020 Presidential election, and to instead allow the people of Maine to vote on repealing RCV, is warm news on a cold winter day.

Maine has a proud tradition of union work in both its public and private institutions. More broadly, throughout their existence in the United States, the collective actions of unions, including occasional strikes, have helped to ensure safe work environments for individuals and viable products for the entire country.

Valentine’s Day brightens the long, cold winter.  Women dream of roses, jewelry, and romantic candlelit dinners. Woe betide the husband or sweetheart who forgets his wife or girlfriend (hopefully he doesn’t have both).  

There is a Democratic candidate running for president right now, and she is very liberal. At a press conference where she stood next to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, this candidate made clear that she supports a Green New Deal. This candidate is also firmly pro-choice, has a 100 percent voting record with both Planned Parenthood and NARAL Pro-Choice America, and has called for federal funding for abortions.

Former US Rep. Bruce Poliquin is running, only this time it’s not into a bathroom to hide from reporters. Poliquin has found the courage to venture back in public since his defeat by US Rep. Jared Golden in 2018.

I am digging through storage boxes of books, papers, and music CDs, stored in the basement here at Camp Marlene; stuff that dates back -- some of it -- to the 1970s when I was living in Davenport, Iowa.

There is a place, ladies and gentlemen, where magic happens. It is a place where men and women parade around on a stage and recite lines they memorized in their head, and try to make you feel like what they are saying is natural and spontaneous.

Democratic voters in Iowa will caucus next week, becoming the first to weigh in on who should be the nominee to challenge President Donald Trump in November. I’m going to let you in on a little secret that only experienced and wise political columnists know.

Who elected these people? I asked myself that question a few times working in the Maine Legislature. I wasn't being cruel. Neither was I being wholly dismissive of the legislators in question. Rather, I was thinking first about the duties, the job of being a legislator. It can take only one vote to have a majority of legislators raise taxes, end charter schools, end the definition of marriage, change the way we vote -- the opportunities for legal mischief making are endless.

Principles are pretty easy to have. It doesn't take much effort to say that you believe in things like free expression, multiculturalism, religious tolerance, a limited government, social justice or fiscal austerity.