Commentary Series
7:55 a.m. and 5:55 p.m. Weekdays
Displaying July Archive «prev next»
Thursday July 31, 2008
Compost Wars
Commentator Tom Slayton has been following the recent controversy over compost operations, and he thinks it's really about fundamental values and vision.
Thursday July 31, 2008
Long Trail Patrol
Though we shouldn't, many of us take for granted the pleasure of hiking on a well-maintained trail. VPR commentator and former park ranger Vic Henningsen recently paid a visit to one of the hard-working crews that make that experience possible.
Wednesday July 30, 2008
The Sail Boat
Two summers ago, film make, teacher and commentator Jay Craven bought a seventeen-foot, forty-year old sailboat that turned out to be a bit more than he could handle.
Wednesday July 30, 2008
Ideological Rhetoric
National and local candidate debates - and discussions with friends - have commentator Bill Schubart thinking a lot about liberals and conservatives, and he's intrigued to find that many share similar traits.
Tuesday July 29, 2008
Summer!
There's an old saying that every cloud has a silver lining, but commentator Ruth Page thinks that if the rainclouds of this July have a lining - it's probably green.
Tuesday July 29, 2008
Carla Bruni
The First Lady of France is also a pop star who's just released a new album with some racy lyrics about her new love, President Sarkozy. Commentator Mike Martin has been listening to the CD and thinks some critics have missed the point.
Monday July 28, 2008
The Midsummer Garden
Commentator Henry Homeyer is a gardening coach and writer who says that planting a few more seeds now can extend the garden's bounty into the fall.
Monday July 28, 2008
Hardwick
Former governor and commentator Madeleine Kunin recently visited a small town that's reinventing itself - and also perhaps, offering a glimpse of the future of Vermont.
Friday July 25, 2008
Perennial Gardens
Writer and commentator Deborah Doyle-Schechtman has been tending the perennials around her house, and thinking about their enduring appeal.
Friday July 25, 2008
Northern Forest Canoe Trail
Writer, storyteller and commentator Willem Lange and some friends have been exploring the Northern Forest Canoe Trail.
Thursday July 24, 2008
Camp Cook
As summer reaches its peak many Vermont towns play host to hundreds of young campers who descend upon our lakes and rivers for a few weeks of swimming, boating and waterskiing. And eating. Lots of eating. Commentator Casey Huling thinks that whoever said that an army marches on its stomach - probably went to a summer camp - with good food.
Thursday July 24, 2008
Punitive Damanges
Commentator Dick Mallary is a former U.S. congressman from Vermont. He has also served extensively in state government, and he thinks there may be a better way to assess punitive damages in legal actions - that would be in the interest of both fairness and the public good.
Wednesday July 23, 2008
Self Sewn Veggies
Commentator Charlie Nardozzi is an all-around gardening expert who agrees that some of the best things in life are free - even in the garden.
Wednesday July 23, 2008
Singing Gilbert & Sullivan
Commentator Bill Mares is an author as well as a retired teacher and legislator. He is also sometimes a singer. And one of those times happens to be tonight.
Tuesday July 22, 2008
New Yorker Cover
The cover of a recent New Yorker magazine features a satirical drawing of Barak and Michelle Obama portrayed as Muslim terrorists in the Oval Office. As Vermont Humanities Council executive director and commentator Peter Gilbert explains, the resulting uproar has its roots in the very nature of satire and irony.
Monday July 21, 2008
Name That Boat
Commentator Jay Parini is a teacher, novelist, biographer and poet - with a special fondness for boats - and the names people give them.
Monday July 21, 2008
Water
Commentator Timothy McQuiston is editor of Vermont Business Magazine. And he says that in the years ahead, the politics of water may have a greater impact on Vermont than the politics of oil.
Friday July 18, 2008
Seneca Falls
July is a revolutionary month. Americans declared their independence on July 4th; Bastille Day - July 14th - marks the outbreak of the French Revolution. Teacher and historian Vic Henningsen reminds us of another revolutionary act whose 160th anniversary we observe this weekend.
Friday July 18, 2008
Lech Welesa's Brain
This morning commentator Barrie Dunsmore, a veteran foreign and diplomatic correspondent for ABC News, tells us about a man unknown to most of us, who helped to change our world.
Thursday July 17, 2008
The Talcum of Time
Writer, storyteller, and commentator Willem Lange just attended his 55th school reunion.
Wednesday July 16, 2008
Chicken Wisdom
Humans have been living with chickens for millennia, which may explain why our language is rife with chicken metaphors. After twenty years of tending poultry, commentator Deborah Luskin has learned to question the truth of some bits of chicken wisdom, and to revere the truth in others.
Wednesday July 16, 2008
Worry
Commentator Mary McCallum is a free lance writer and teacher who says that supporting her elderly parents' decision to continue living at home - in spite of serious health issues - has been a challenge.
Tuesday July 15, 2008
Shrews
Commentator Ruth Page has lived in Vermont and followed environmental issues for many years. But her fascination for the natural world is as strong as ever, and it still often takes her by surprise.
Tuesday July 15, 2008
Poetic Rivalry
It’s the time of year for hoeing one’s garden. Commentator and Executive Director of the Vermont Humanities Council Peter Gilbert tells us about a Robert Frost poem that seems to be about hoeing a garden and a roadside visit with a friend. But it may, in fact, set forth the terms of a poetic rivalry between two literary titans.
Monday July 14, 2008
Bastille Day
Today France is celebrating Bastille Day and the democratic ideals of the French Republic, but commentator Mike Martin - who teaches French at Champlain Valley Union High School and writes about issues of culture and education - says that some French are worried that their president isn't doing enough to promote democracy and human rights in his foreign policy.
Monday July 14, 2008
What to Tell the Children
Commentator Sharon Lamb is a professor of psychology at Saint Michael's College and a practicing therapist. This morning, she has some practical advice about how to talk to children when bad things happen - like the recent murder of 12 year old Brooke Bennett.
Friday July 11, 2008
Health Food or Candy?
Commentator Rachel Johnson is Professor of Nutrition at UVM and an advisor to Eating Well Magazine. Today, she warns us not to fall for healthy-sounding foods that really aren't.
Friday July 11, 2008
Moving Water
Writer, storyteller, and commentator Willem Lange notes that water moves us in many ways.
Thursday July 10, 2008
Food Crisis
Author, gardener, and commentator Ron Krupp has been thinking about food, and why the cost of food has risen so sharply in recent months.
Thursday July 10, 2008
Mary Cassatt
There's an important show of the American Impressionist Mary Cassatt currently at the Shelburne Museum. Commentator Tom Slayton is editor-emeritus of Vermont Life magazine. He was there and has these thoughts.
Wednesday July 9, 2008
The Right to Dry
That long holiday weekend we
just had was filled with warm sunny days - perfect for hanging your laundry
outside on a line. That is, if you're
allowed to. Independence Day gave
commentator Bill Schubart a chance to reflect on the "right to dry."
Tuesday July 8, 2008
The New News
Commentator Bill Mares is an author, as well as a former teacher and legislator. He has also worked as a journalist. Lately, he's been thinking a lot about how the news business is changing.
Tuesday July 8, 2008
IBM
Commentator Tim McQuiston says that while IBM employees, and indeed the entire state, shivers every time there's a rumor of a layoff, the company must itself wonder how its valuable Vermont plant fits into its own plans.
Monday July 7, 2008
The Unbearable Realness of Wall-E
For Commentator Philip Baruth, summer blockbusters are like Christmas fruitcakes: not very enjoyable, but at least they let you know what month it is. Philip went to see Pixar's animated tale Wall-E and found it just so-so. That is, until life began to imitate art. And then he had the time of his life.
Monday July 7, 2008
Child Brides
The parades, fireworks and picnics celebrating our democratic values may be over for another year, but former Vermont governor and commentator Madeleine Kunin wants us to remember that there are still places in the world where basic human rights are denied to many.
Friday July 4, 2008
National Anthems
Writer, storyteller, and commentator Willem Lange has a few thoughts on Independence Day.
Friday July 4, 2008
The Meaning of Independence
Celebrating Independence Day has special significance in an election year, when we consider where the country's headed next. Teacher and historian Vic Henningsen reflects on the politics of independence and its meaning to those who made it.
Thursday July 3, 2008
4th of July
The 4th of July is most closely associated with the Revolutionary War, but historian and commentator Howard Coffin reminds us that important events also occurred on this date during the Civil War - as reflected in the experiences of two Vermont brothers.
Thursday July 3, 2008
Media Excess
Did the news media go over the top in devoting far too much time to the death of NBC’s Tim Russert? This morning, commentator Barrie Dunsmore, who spent more than thirty years as a correspondent for ABC News, has some thoughts on the coverage.
Wednesday July 2, 2008
Interdependence
Art Woolf teaches economics at UVM and blogs at vermonttiger.com. He says that on the 4th of July, Americans celebrate more than just political freedom.
Wednesday July 2, 2008
Frederick Douglass on 4th of July
This summer the Rokeby Museum in Ferrisburg is featuring recordings of eight pivotal speeches by American abolitionists. Commentator and executive director of the Vermont Humanities Council Peter Gilbert says that one of them seems especially relevant today - as the Fourth of July approaches.
Tuesday July 1, 2008
Simple Solar Power
It takes an active homeowner to take advantage of passive energy. Commentator Deborah Luskin and her family have recently accepted the challenge to make one, small, green change in their lives.
Tuesday July 1, 2008
The Other 4th of July
As America's birthday approaches, historian Kenneth Davis has been thinking about another Fourth of July story - one that many Americans haven't heard.
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