As I wrote this, I am returning by train and bus from New York City, where I and tens of thousands of others marched in the October 18 worldwide, anti-fascist No Kings Day protests. 

Fittingly, I had the day before attended a memorial service for my friend and world-renowned mathematician Peter Lax, who, as a teenager fled fascism in Hungary and played a key role in the Manhattan Project. Peter was Jewish, and his father, a prominent physician, was slow to recognize the dangers of the fascism growing in Hungary in the 1930s and early 1940s. But not Peter's mother. She saw the growing threat

The “No Kings Demonstration,” a vast nationwide protest targeting executive overreach, offers a stark paradox: its impressive size and passionate dissent ultimately became an unexpected political advantage for President Trump.

This decentralized movement’s tactical deficiencies—primarily its ambiguous message and susceptibility to negative framing—paradoxically converted massive mobilization into an “ace of trump” for its intended target.

The primary weakness of the "No Kings Demonstration" was its fundamental ambiguity. Unlike successful historical movements that demanded a singular

 After ample debate in Parliament, Greece, the cradle of democracy, introduced in 2024 a well-thought-out system of mail-in ballots for Greek citizens abroad including the many resident in the U.S. It includes a Greek Government online portal, and, in the U.S., assistance and encouragement to vote from the Greek Embassy and Consulates in New York, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. It is designed to serve all citizens and make it easy for them to vote.

As a new resident of Rockland, after 23 years in diplomacy and education in Greece, I am appalled to find Mainers considering

The Rotary Club of Damariscotta-Newcastle held it’s Annual Karl’s Kids BBQ/CORNHOLE/DANCE on October 19th at Duck Puddle Campground and it was a huge success. Karl’s Kids helps kids and teens in Lincoln County with financial need who want to participate in sports or enjoy outdoor physical activities. Karl’s Kids helps with equipment needs and in many other ways that will give kids and teens access to physical activities.

The weekend’s festivities were highlighted by a great Cornhole tournament organized by Mike Prentice and Carmen Reed of Bayside Plumbing & Heating, 50/50 Raffle, BBQ Pig Roast

Rockland's Emergency Warming Center is embarking on its third year of providing a safe and comfortable overnight space for all community members during the worst nights of this coming winter. We provide every guest with a quiet place to sleep, two warm meals, a warm shower, clean and comfortable bedding, and a variety of useful supplies to take with them upon leaving - and there are no barriers to entry.

We've opened our doors up at the Flanagan Community Center for 16 nights so far, serving 24 different guests for a total of 76 bed-nights so far. The most consistent feedback we receive from

The distinctive buzz and tiny, high-note sputters of the juncos are now everywhere when we walk the neighborhood. That and the high “seet” notes of the white-throated sparrows that emanate from every bush at dawn are clear signals that we are in the latter half of the fall bird migration season.

Listening at night, we also hear mostly those same white-throated sparrow “seet” notes as the birds flow south in night migration.

Yellow-bellied sapsuckers have been appearing here and there around town on our walks as well. They too tend to be later-fall migrants. Out on Monhegan Island, there

The  Rockport Budget Committee has been actively working with the Rockport Select Board to review and plan the financial plans for the upcoming fiscal year [FY 2026-2027]. A primary concern of the committee is the hardship placed on many residents with Rockport’s municipal expense budget increases of 9.75% in 2022, 16.5% in 2023, 13.23% in 2024, and 26.65% in 2025.

The committee’s primary focus has been on ensuring that proposed budgets align with organizational goals, maintaining fiscal responsibility, and identifying areas for cost reduction.

Recent Activities

Political signs along our roadsides say "Secure Elections," and urge a "yes" vote on Question 1. But our elections are already secure. I urge you to vote "no," as the opposing signs say, and ensure that those who can't get to the polls can still vote.

Don't be misled. Question 1 on the November 4th referendum is an attempt to limit the ways you can cast your ballot. Read it carefully. If passed it would "eliminate two days of absentee voting, prohibit requests for absentee ballots by phone or family members, end ongoing absentee voter status for seniors and people with disabilities..." That's

When talking with my older grandchildren about how they weigh the truthfulness of facts they read or hear, they all agree that “considering the source” is one of the most important and helpful tools a person can use.

On the holiday Monday, my wife and I set off to purchase a new dishwasher. Ours, only seven years old, had stopped working, defying all Tracee’s attempts to fix it. For the last several weeks, it has served as a drainer for the hand washed dishes, a surprisingly time consuming task in a family of five. 

During the process of selecting and ordering the new appliance, the woman selling it to us mentioned how her husband had successfully repaired their dishwasher. Then she asked if I, the guy already bored of the process and who had wandered off to check out the latest in refrigerator technology

Riley School hosted prolific author and Midcoast resident Tess Gerritsen at its Theater on Tuesday. Tess has a grandchild who attends Riley and spent some time Tuesday afternoon sharing with the community the many joys and challenges of being a writer. A highlight was viewing the same book with four different covers, depending on the publisher’s location in the world. Children asked questions about editing, where Tess’s ideas come from, and what it’s like to go on a book tour.

Tess is set to publish her thirty-third book very soon, and a TV series will also be launched based on her writing

I urge Mainers to Vote No on Referendum Question 1.  Please say “NO” to this voter suppression effort. But don’t just take it from me. Chris Potholm — an expert on Maine politics and former campaign manager — condemns the modern assault on voting rights in his book, How Maine Decides: An Insider’s Guide to How Ballot Measures Are Won and Lost:  

“In 40 years in Maine politics, with all types of polítical groups, I can't ever remember anyone talking about suppressing the opponent's turnout. That line of thinking today is most antidemocratic and very corrosive to the body politic. It's a shame

MOUNT DESERT ISLAND — On September 27, 2025, more than 200 Girl Scouts and families transformed Acadia National Park into an immersive outdoor classroom during Expedition Acadia. Participants explored, learned, and connected through exclusive, guided experiences—enhanced by National Park Service rangers who led fun, educational tracks including an ecology hike and interactive learning activities throughout the day. 

Expedition Acadia opened doors to more than a dozen unique adventures designed to spark curiosity, encourage environmental stewardship, and deepen lifelong connections with nature

PenBay Pilot recently published a Letter to the Editor urging voters to approve Question 1 on the Nov 4 ballot, in part, because passage would not make it difficult to vote absentee.

According to the letter writer,  "Once the measure is passed, absentee voting will still be allowed, and it can be requested online or in person." 

The ballot measure, if approved, will, in part, "prohibit requests for absentee ballots by phone or family members, (and) end ongoing absentee voter status for seniors and people with disabilities..."

Approval of Question 1 will effectively make it impossible for many

Soft powder blue skies extend in all directions. The sea is shades of blue as well. Dark steel blue in the distance flecked with lines of white from barely curling wave tops sliced by the wind; aquamarine over sandbars nearer the shore. White sands extend north and south as far as we can see, miles and miles into the distance. The air is warm; the breezes gentle.  

This is not a picture of the Maine coast in October as you can see. We are far away from our beloved home state for a short break to the Gulf Coast of Florida in the Tampa/St. Petersburg region.  

Brown pelicans, looking large and

As a long-time resident of Waldoboro, I am thrilled to see the recent changes in the town. There is a blossoming of art and community beyond anything in my 20+ years living here. Change of this kind takes a lot of hard work and persistence — a lot! I want to shout out and thank the four recent initiatives that are building a more encouraging, supportive and strong community.

Deep gratitude to Susan Hodder and her amazing team at the Waldo Theatre. In the last three years, the Theatre has exploded with programming that is wide-ranging, inspirational and honoring of the widely varying people who

Voter ID is on the ballot as Question 1 this November, and I am thrilled. One great thing about this issue has emerged; it is nonpartisan. Clearly, we all want safe secure elections. 

While helping gather signatures to get this important measure on the ballot. I had a memorable interaction with a lady from Union. As a former Maine State legislator, this particular woman reached out to me often, and wenever agreed on a single issue. Ever. When I saw her reading the sign and approaching the table, I didn’t know what to think. I was pleased and shocked to hear her loudly exclaim,“Voter ID, that’s

In 2022, 85% of firearm deaths in Maine were suicides, according to state data.

Given that the vast majority of firearm deaths in Maine are suicides, it only makes sense to allow family members and housemates to go directly to a judge to request that firearms be temporarily removed from someone expressing suicidal thoughts or actions.

In situations where every minute counts, direct petitioning of the court could save lives by acting faster than current procedures that require law enforcement to initiate the process. This proposed Red Flag Law wouldn’t replace existing options — it would simply

Maine has the highest rate of suicide in the Northeast U.S., and most of those tragic losses are by firearm.  In 2022, 87% of Maine firearm deaths were suicides and 63% of our suicides were by firearm.  If someone is hopeless, in crisis and suicidal, having easy access to a firearm is deadly. A firearm allows no time for reconsideration.

Question 2 on the ballot supports establishing a Red Flag law in Maine, allowing a family member or law enforcement to seek temporary removal of weapons for safety. Also called an Emergency Risk Protection Order, these laws allow for a rapid response to remove

Our current government is operating by tenets of organized crime. Extortion, bribery, threats, loyalty oaths, and blackmail are being used to turn our democracy into executive control by coercion and illegal acts. American society has lost its underpinning of civility.

Where are the concepts of conflict of interest, morality, separation of church and state, equal rights under the law, right to due process? We watch daily as our society loses its guiding principles of fairness, respect, and equal rights under the law. 

What happened to the time when elected political leaders represented the