Government works best in the light. When its actions are open, seen and transparent, they can be measured. They can be scrutinized. They can be questioned. They can be challenged.
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3/14/24
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To the editor:
A recent Portsmouth Times article reported that one Portsmouth town councilor thinks Portsmouth has a PR problem. The actual problem is that Portsmouth has difficulty telling …
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3/12/24
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STORY OF THE WEEK: How did Middletown native Michael Flynn go from being a high-level military official to someone seen as a martyr, warrior and evangelist within the Christian nationalist movement? …
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By Ian Donnis
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3/12/24
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STORY OF THE WEEK: The next race for governor of Rhode Island is more than two years away, so assessing the full political fallout from the Washington Bridge saga will take time. In the near-term, …
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By Ian Donnis
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3/5/24
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To the editor:
The Humane Society Legislative Fund, a lobbying affiliate of the Humane Society of the United States, publishes its annual Humane Scorecard of Congress …
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3/4/24
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We have seen ordinary Americans say on camera that we need Donald Trump to be a dictator, because “America needs a dictator now.” Presumably, they feel that a dictator will be able …
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2/27/24
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Three couples sued the Center for Reproductive Medicine, a fertility clinic in Alabama, for inadvertently destroying their embryos. An interloper got into the storage facility, opened up a …
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By Arlene Violet, Esq.
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2/26/24
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STORY OF THE WEEK: Last week, Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee and RIDOT Director Peter Alviti offered a glimmer of hope for frustrated drivers. A plan developed with the Federal Highway Administration …
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By Ian Donnis
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2/26/24
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To the editor:
Grassroots efforts can lead to change. They can educate the public on important town issues and ensure that those who are supposed to represent us hear our voices and desires.
…
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2/23/24
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When student journalists at Amherst Regional High School in Massachusetts heard last spring that middle schoolers in their town were experiencing transphobic and homophobic bullying, they immediately …
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By Josh Moore and.Justin Silverman
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2/20/24
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STORY OF THE WEEK: Back in the day, the approach of the end of February would signal the time for the Providence Newspaper Guild Follies – the bygone annual satiric sendup of the year in Rhode …
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By Ian Donnis
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2/20/24
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In the January 25, 2024 Shorelines Opinion Section, Mr. Clay Commons offers examples to show how well our economy is functioning and requests countering information. He explicitly states …
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2/14/24
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To the editor:
Mr. Kossak’s letter of Feb. 1 on the subject of assault weapons bans (“ Vote to ban ‘assault rifles’ would be totally unnecessary ”) deserves further …
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2/8/24
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So, according to the current RIDOT deputy chief engineer, the Washington Bridge failures “might” have pre-existed, but no one had noticed this until recently.
It was actually an …
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2/7/24
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STORY OF THE WEEK: After a recent news dump, when the McKee administration shared details of a federal request for records related to the Washington Bridge, Gov. Dan McKee tried to regain control of …
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By Ian Donnis
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2/6/24
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The condition of the west bound lanes on I-195 and the subsequent snarl of traffic has unleashed a furious fusillade of accusations and excuses by those in charge. Tens of thousands of daily …
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By Arlene Violet
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1/30/24
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STORY OF THE WEEK: The Washington Bridge saga took a noteworthy turn when state officials last week declined to rule out the possible demolition of the westbound portion of the bridge. If such a …
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By Ian Donnis
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1/29/24
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To the editor:
In response to the letter to the editor by John and Linda Dacey in the Jan. 25 edition of the Portsmouth Times (“Rhode Island is rated 49th in democracy”), let’s …
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1/29/24
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In the years leading up to the pandemic, most Americans were hyper-focused on national-level politics, with Trump, the Democrats or the Republicans seemingly responsible for everything good or bad in …
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1/26/24
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Budget money has constantly been allocated to everything else, from digital security labs to soccer stadiums. Meanwhile critical infrastructure, like the 195 bridge, was shoddily inspected and shoddily repaired. Here is the result.
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1/25/24
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How bad is reality right now? Unemployment down, under 4 percent for two years. Employment up, with hundreds of thousands of jobs added every month. Wages up, if only …
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1/22/24
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STORY OF THE WEEK: Claudin Schneider is a rare breed in American politics: a Republican and former Rhode Island congresswoman who is doing everything in her power to stop Donald Trump from returning …
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By Ian Donnis
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1/16/24
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STORY OF THE WEEK: The Rhode Island General Assembly returned to business last week, with the usual feeling of something akin to students returning to the classroom for the first day of school. House …
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By Ian Donnis
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1/9/24
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Next Tuesday, Jan. 16, at Portsmouth High School, there will be a special Town Council meeting to vote on a proposed agreement with SouthCoast Wind to run an electric line along …
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1/9/24
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I am responding to David Schoorens’s letter in your Dec. 28, 2023 edition. Mr. Schoorens knowingly or unknowingly leaves out the key facts regarding Gen. Flynn’s …
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1/8/24
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