Don’t fret if you haven’t kept up with all the advance news about the budget that Governor Ned is rolling out on Wednesday. I can barely keep it all straight and it’s my job. It does matter. We’re looking at new taxes, tolls, service cuts, new technology, new ways of attracting companies, nanny-state charges, the minimum wage hike, a payroll … read more
As part of his 1989 inaugural address, President George H.W. Bush said the following: “We cannot hope only to leave our children a bigger car, a bigger bank account. We must hope to give them a sense of what it means to be a loyal friend, a loving parent, a citizen who leaves his home, his neighborhood and town better … read more
Seeking School Superintendent Karen Baldwin’s resignation must not have been an easy decision for the Board of Education to make, but it was the right call. In today’s world, technology has made “cut and paste” practices easier, probably more common, and perhaps even more accepted. But it is still wrong. Students are warned not to plagiarize. They’re punished for it … read more
To the Editor: The kindness of strangers is stronger and better than you can imagine. This past Sunday, my husband of 60 years, Paul, and I went to 9:30 Mass at St. Elizabeth Seton up in Ridgebury. On our way home the car slowed down. Paul realized we had no gas left. Now what … I had a cell phone, … read more
To the Editor: I get it. There are many who feel that any limitation on gun ownership is unacceptable as a violation of the second amendment and that an armed America is a safe America. I just don’t agree. It scares the heck out of me. So, while I go down swinging, please indulge me. Isn’t an armed college student … read more
To the Editor: RPS Superintendent Dr. Karen Baldwin’s statements in the Feb. 1 issue of The Press, criticizing Mark Robinson’s MLK Day address were extremely disappointing. The statements made unsupported assertions and used deeply inflammatory language to profoundly mischaracterize Mr. Robinson’s remarks. I urge Dr. Baldwin to withdraw those statements. The disputed portions of Mr. Robinson’s address were recorded in … read more
Receiving a graded essay is unlike receiving a graded math test; the piece does not lose points based on being “right” or “wrong,” because literature is open to interpretation, and essays demand insight. Therefore, it is harder to grasp why an essay receives a ‘B’ instead of an ‘A’ after one spends countless hours writing it. To address this issue, … read more
Thirty years ago, in 1988, the school administration and board were defending a lawsuit over editorial control of the high school magazine, Lodestar. Colorful lawyer William Laviano took on the student magazine’s case and drove the school board crazy, all the while running up legal fees. The three year battle cost the board $400,000. What a mess! School authorities seem … read more
To the Editor: Last Monday, the Board of Education expressed an intent to cut two to four RHS English teachers — and with them, the writing conferences at the heart of the English program. Writing conferences are one-on-one mentoring sessions between students and teachers, the only source of individualized attention in a school where it is too easy to get … read more
Nothing screams “first world problem” more than the whining about Apple’s recent announcement that they designed iPhones to throttle their own batteries as they aged. While the flagship tech company put out a tone-deaf press release to quell the storm (it didn’t), it did little to remove the impression that they’d just been caught making their phones artificially antiquated in … read more