~ a column by Colleen O’Brien A special issue, May 2026, of National Geographic, that inspiring, admirable,138-year-old magazine, recently published an entire edition on “The Most Influential Figures of Ancient History.” Most of them are men, of course, because most of history apparently happened only to men. Too much power and wealth seem to foster hubris, notable in the dozens of…
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A commencement challenge – have just a bit of Mr North’s positive impact on youngsters
Another class of Greene County students has graduated. They’ve received congratulations, gifts, and words of advice. I have my own piece of advice for them: Strive to have at least 1 percent of the positive impact Mr Jim North has had on young people. Mr North is marking the end of the school year by “retiring” from his very active…
Read MoreOBBBA, OBBBA/ Hubba, Hubba
~a column by Colleen O’Brien Under the childish name, the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) [kind of like Hubba Hubba], the average citizen will suffer. Big Bill rips out formerly agreed upon funding for Medicaid, Medicare and Obama’s Affordable Care Act, ensuring that middle and lower wealth individuals will pay more for less healthcare. It will push lots…
Read MoreAnd one more part of our lives bites the dust
~ a column by Colleen O’Brien Into my new bank I go. A couple of people are standing, talking to computer screens. A smiling person on the screen talks to them. There are no tellers, and it’s not lunchtime. I wander over to a screen and look at it. What am I supposed to do? A 30-something guy walks…
Read MoreView from my window – Burning the socks
May 10, 2026 We recently attended a family wedding in Rock Point, MD. Rock Point is located about 60 miles north of Washington D.C. on Chesapeake Bay and near Annapolis. The groom’s family hosted the pre-wedding evening gathering at a marina in Rock Point. An announcement on the bulletin board indicated a BURNING OF THE SOCKS to be held the…
Read MoreThe Capitol Roundup
State Sen Jesse Green, May 12, 2026 Greetings from the Golden Dome! Session has finally come to an end. As I sit back to reflect on the wins and losses, I am full of gratitude for all that we were able to accomplish. For this week’s newsletter, I will focus on a few of the big wins that took a…
Read More“Here Comes the Sun”
~a column by Colleen O’Brien Here Comes the Sun is long-time environmentalist Bill McKibben’s latest book on what’s happening to our planet weatherwise. This man is up to date with global warming and the folks who don’t believe it and those who do; the idea that we can save the world from frying is what this book is about. It is…
Read MoreView from my window: Minimum wage
APRIL 27, 2026 Wages and salaries change with the times: My father shared stories about working for $1 per day, but that did include room and board. That would have been approximately 1929 and he was grateful for the job as a hired hand for a local area farmer. My first away from home job was detasseling corn. The payment…
Read MoreOur citizen journalists
~a column by Colleen O’Brien In April of 2015, I wrote about a way to get the news other than via newspapers, broadcast, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other social media. An audacious new way of on-the-spot news reporting was named NewsByMe, unofficially known as “citizen journalists.” This little application on one’s phone made it possible for anyone to play reporter.…
Read MoreStupid is as stupid does, Part two
My continued contemplation about recent events has led me back to consider Deitrich Bonhoeffer’s Theory of Stupidity (an internet search for this theory will help you follow along with my suppositions). One is this past winter’s anti-ICE movement in Minnesota. The other are April’s “No Kings” rallies. Let’s start with Minnesota and especially the deaths of Renee Good and Alex…
Read MoreTrump and the growing class divide
~a column by Colleen O’Brien Why is it that American billionaires want to run their country into Third-World status? Stingy healthcare, high rate of birth deaths, lessening life spans, politicized public education, banned books, low incomes, soaring prices, unsafe bridges and tens of millions of potholes? Billionaires are eager to give a ton of money to a felon of a…
Read MorePope Leo comes to our aid, to the world’s aid
~a column by Colleen O’Brien “Iran is doing a very poor job, dishonorable some would say, of allowing oil to go through the Strait of Hormuz.” [BBC Apr 10, 2026] Trump, the poster boy of dishonor, mumbles this to his bedtime companion, Truth Social, who promptly sends it out to the world, which does not want it. I discount him…
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