I don't think that athletes and entertainers need to stay silent about issues they care about, nor do I begrudge them using their fame and wealth to advance causes they believe in. That tolerance for their opinions, however, does not mean that I need to celebrate what they say, or the means with which they say it.

The woods are getting a bit chilly. I know I’m used to hot summer days, but we seem to be running out of them. It’s getting to be long-pants weather, especially if you’re out walking in those cooling woods.

Maine’s senior senator in Washington, D.C. single-handedly killed the chance to reform Obamacare and provide hard-working Mainers with affordable and effective health insurance.

The best government is the government that governs least and local governance is the best governance. The free market is the best purveyor of healthcare. Unfortunately, our government has violated these proven truths and now we are caught in the tentacles of their misdeeds, Obamacare or the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Recently, I have come to believe that the issue of free expression on college campuses, and specifically how it is today restricted, is the biggest threat to the future of the American republic that we face.

If we are going to save the American health care system, we need your help -- and we need it now.

Want healthy people, healthy communities and a healthy economy? With Medicaid expansion, more people will get care that keeps them healthier and saves lives. Expanding Medicaid will also help Maine’s economy.

Hillary Clinton is out with a new book. Haven't you heard?

During my time in Maine this summer, I visited all of the 16 counties in our state, hearing feedback from Maine people about the issues important to them, their families and their communities. My stops throughout the state once again reminded me that Maine is a big small town with very long streets – we care about each other and our friends and neighbors.

After the devastation from Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, the families who have to rebuild their lives need affordably priced lumber. Unfortunately, corporate greed from a coalition of big lumber companies has already sent those prices skyrocketing. Making a profit is the goal of any company -- and it should be.

Now is the time to be careful walking in the woods. They’re out there! The would-be hunters, that is.

Because of the work I do, I have the opportunity to meet with many Maine businesses, particularly small businesses, and ask them what is necessary for them to survive, thrive and grow. I also often ask them what stands in their way of achieving those things. I ask these questions because I care about the answers. The only way we can keep young people in the state, provide jobs, grow our economy and achieve real prosperity is for Maine businesses to prosper.

Fall is here, summer isn’t over. Huh! It feels like fall today, cloudy, cold, and a great day to stay indoors by the computer. Did you know computers keep you warm? I didn’t either, but it’s definitely warmer in here by the computer than it is out there in the great (cold) outdoors.

It is so refreshing to have a president in the White House who truly understands what it takes to create jobs and grow the economy.

Earlier this week, the Bangor City Council decided that Columbus Day, a federally recognized holiday, should in fact be Indigenous Peoples' Day. Despite protestations from the council that it wasn't trying to "replace" Columbus Day (which they can't do anyway, it being a federal holiday), the choice to recognize and celebrate the newly designated Indigenous Peoples' Day on the day we recognize Christopher Columbus is a pretty clear signal of what the city council's intentions are.

Are you interested in knowing how AARP and local leaders are working together to create a more age-friendly culture, making Dover-Foxcroft, Milo, Dexter, Guilford, and Greenville more livable for people of all ages? Want to share your ideas? Would you like to know more about how AARP is advocating for older adults statewide? If so, come to the AARP Coffee Talk at Elaine’s Bakery in Milo on Thursday, September 21 from 10 – 11:30 a.m. or join us at The Mill Café in Dover-Foxcroft on Tuesday, September 26, from 10 – 11:30 a.m.

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." Those words, rather famously, come from Martin Luther King Jr., first spoken in a sermon he gave in 1957, and then printed in his 1963 book “Strength to Love.”

The lowest form of journalism is analyzing the sufficiency of condemnations. That said, as hyperbolic and unhinged as the media's reaction to Donald Trump's statements in the wake of Charlottesville may be, they do still have a point. President Trump did not, in my opinion, say the right thing, and I wanted to hear things out of his mouth that I did not hear.