Thousands of Mainers take prescription drugs. For many, prescription drugs represent the only defense they have against crippling pain. For others, prescription medications are a lifeline in their fight against serious conditions like heart disease, cancer and diabetes. Americans pay the highest prices in the world for their prescription drugs, and the ill effects cannot be overstated.

Most of us know the sound of the 1960s. But very few of us can say we are a sound of the ‘60s. Drummer Hal Blaine, who died a few days ago at age 90, was one of those few. I worked with Hal (1980-83) when I was managing editor of Modern Drummer magazine.

We are fortunate to still have a local newspaper in the Piscataquis Observer. Cities and towns across the U.S. have lost 1,400 newspapers in the last 15 years, and the Observer, like all other Maine papers, has been subject to staff reductions, but at least we still have a source for coverage of board meetings, local events, sports events, etc.

In 2016 the town of Dover-Foxcroft voted to approve our updated comprehensive plan as a tool to guide us in positive economic development, focusing on quality of life and natural resources. With housing sales up and some new investments, the future looks brighter than it has in decades.

When all is said and done, there will probably be more than 15 people running for the Democratic nomination for president. One thing is clear already. In order to win the nomination, Democrats are going to need to speak to the increasingly strident, socialistic, progressive activist segment, and energize them. All the attention, all the energy and all the money is with them.

It’s long past time that the Maine Legislature sends a state Equal Rights Amendment to voters. But a word of caution for the supporters — of which I am one: If LD 433, which would amend the state constitution to explicitly prohibit discrimination based on the sex of an individual, appears on the ballot, we will need to run a real campaign to make sure it passes and to protect against divisive and harmful attacks from opponents.

I did not vote for Eliot Cutler, but I am so happy that he has stood up to David Farmer and his propaganda and far-left liberal views.

So Matthew Gagnon doesn’t want to live in Massachusetts or New Hampshire, he just wants to be taxed like he was. We’ll ignore that Maine has many times the land area and a fraction of the other states’ population density. We’ll ignore that the state has had eight years of Republican tax cutting policies, which has not achieved their mystical economic results.

Lori Calderone’s March 13 letter about the national popular vote for president verses the Electoral College shows the common misconception about how the Electoral College works.

Maine's Land Use Planning Commission (LUPC) proposes to eliminate rules that limit new development applications within 1 mile of clusters of similar development anywhere in the Unorganized Territories. The new proposed system would allow new development applications of any type in designated zones along any public road within 7 miles of 41 towns they have designated as "rural hubs." These zones encompass approximately 1.3 million acres.

While legislation could be submitted immediately on behalf of the board, I believe that to do so would place a decision reserved for the citizens of HAD 4 directly with the Maine Legislature. I represent the citizens in seven of the towns in the HAD, and I believe that given the information and opportunity, the townspeople will make the right decision. The results of a vote by the citizens would indicate to legislators that the process in the charter had been followed and would hopefully provide more clarity to what the people want to happen with their hospital and health care services.

The New England Historic Genealogical Society’s e-zine always has a survey for its readers. One of their recent issues asked if you could talk to any of your ancestors, without regard to language barriers or time, who would it be? They were interested in what century your chosen ancestor came from, but the question has got me asking myself: who would I choose among all the thousands of names of ancestors and relatives?

In addition to running a public policy think tank and writing this column every week, I have also been blessed for the last three years to host the morning drive-time radio program on WGAN, southern Maine's biggest news and talk radio station.

Musician and teacher, Susan Ramsey, has said more than once, directly and indirectly, how much she loves living in Piscataquis County. Piscataquis County -- the whole State of Maine -- is fortunate to have Susan Ramsey as one of its own.

I was away for much of the month of February, so I just came across the piece by David Farmer in your Feb. 4 edition that used me as a strawman for his criticism of “rich dudes” who might run for president of the United States, governor of Maine or, implicitly, any other public office – unless they run under the banner of Mr. Farmer’s Democratic Party.

It is hard to overcome an emotional response in politics. It’s part of the reason why President Donald Trump is able to maintain the support of his hardcore supporters. He connects with them emotionally – with anger, fear and, often, hatred.

It is critical to our democracy that every citizen’s vote has value, and is felt by the voter to have value. Enacting a national popular vote will ensure that every vote has value; and is not lost due to the particular majority party of the voting district. No longer will Piscataquis Democrats or York Republicans have reason to say, “My vote doesn’t matter.”

It has been my honor and pleasure to serve our communities on two fronts over the last 32 years; as a physician and as a Mayo Regional Hospital board member. The hospital's financial status is in serious peril, with an operating loss of $1.5 million through the first four months of the fiscal year we could potentially see an operating loss of $4.5 million by the end of the fiscal year. This trend is unsustainable and the genesis of consideration of a merger with Northern Light Health.