Opinion

Opinion: Just say no

To the editor, As Chair of the Mattapoisett Democratic Town Committee I feel compelled to respond to Mr. Pierre’s letter to the editor regarding the ORR School District and it’s school committee and his dissatisfaction with reading material and his...

Opinion: Certain issues in our schools

To the editor, I have lived in this nice little town of Mattapoisett for a little over 24 years. Recently I was very disappointed in hearing about certain issues that are going on in our schools, and what this is doing to certain students. First...

Opinion: Trust in ORR is damaged

To the editor, The Poet X is a book that contains a sexually charged poem about masturbation, and it is being taught inside an 8th grade English class at ORR Junior High School. The kids in class are only 13-14. What on earth is going on?? The same...

Opinion: Stop the growing divisiveness

To the editor, After 25 years of enjoying being a year round resident of Mattapoisett, I am saddened at the arrival of the racist, homophobic “wave” that has recently washed ashore in our community. It is no coincidence that the list of books that...

Opinion: Censorship is a barrier

To the editor, I am writing to express my concern regarding the current book banning efforts being promoted by some Tri-Town residents and the resulting negative comments being directed towards the ORR School Committee and Tri-Town Against Racism...

Opinion: Whatever happened to transparency?

To the editor, As I reviewed meeting minutes of our various school committees over the past few months, I discovered something troubling: our school committees do not like to answer questions. I noticed that over the course of the last couple of...

Opinion: Nip bottles degrade Marion

To the editor: It is difficult to venture out for a walk, a bike ride, or put a canoe in the water without seeing the blight and pollution caused by ubiquitous nip bottles that degrade Marion’s streets, parks, streams, bays, beaches, fields, and...

Opinion: Lost man

To the editor: There is a man I’ve never met who needs some help. With maturity. I know this because he has hung a distress signal on the fence next to his house. I pass it daily. It says ‘F**k Biden’. Lest it escape my attention, after the sun goes...

Opinion: Embrace our human melting pot

To the editor: In Southcoast-Today’s January 18th edition, the article Anti-Racism Group to Expand by Matthew Ferreira was, for me — a retired high school Language Arts teacher — more heartening than not. But also, the article was a very sad...

Opinion: TTAR response to school committee comments

To the editor: After hearing Joe Pires speak at the end of the Joint School Committee meeting on 1/19 and reading his statement in the Facebook group, Tri-Town Buzz on 1/25, I feel compelled to respond. My name is Alison Noyce, I am a founding...

Opinion: The nerve of the ORR school district not to give Good Friday off

To the editor: A recent letter to the editor whined about the Old Rochester Joint School committee voting to make “Good Friday” a full school day for the 2023-2024 school year. The subliminal message of course is the disappointment and...

Opinion: ORR and Good Friday

To the editor: I was quite disappointed to see that the ORR Joint School Committee voted to make Good Friday a full school day for the 2023-2024 school year. ORR already tried to make Good Friday a school day back in 2014. Hundreds of residents...

Opinion: Buzzards Bay Watershed and Nitrogen Pollution

Dear Editor: The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection is proposing a set of rules that would require homeowners on the South Coast, Cape Cod, and the islands to replace their septic systems with the latest nitrogen-filtering...

Opinion: Gender Queer book should have no place at ORR

To the editor: Gender Queer is not a “regular” book with text. It is a 240-page graphic novel (like a large comic book), and its explicit illustrations of sex acts – which are arguably pornographic – should have no place in any school in ORR. I read...

Opinion: Our values keep us caring, no room for hateful words

Dear editor, Thank you Tom and Frances Kearns, for your strength in speaking truth to power. Over the past few months, we have been increasingly concerned at the reports of racial bullying and harassment of LGBTQ students in our Mattapoisett schools...

Opinion: Elected officials should reject hate speech not embrace it

Dear Editor, During the 14 December 2022 District School Committee meeting, Joseph Pires an elected representative of the Old Rochester School District made comments during the Equity Subcommittee report proposing that hate speech directed at...

Opinion: Thank you from the Marion Garden Group

To the Editor, We wish to thank everyone who participated in the Annual Holiday Boutique at the Marion Music Hall last Saturday. Members of the Marion Garden Group had been making unique ornaments and other decorations for months, and then...

Opinion: Problem solving gone missing

Dear Editor, Problem solving lacks in our society more and more each year, from domestic households to the highest levels of our democracy. Beginning with family breakdown, it is easier to look away than getting involved when confronting mental...

Opinion: Thank you Tree Committee, Garden Club

Dear Editor, Congratulations to the Marion Tree Committee and Marion Garden Club for all their excellent work over many years. These dedicated folks have done so much to make and keep Marion a beautiful and special town, and done it so thoughtfully...

Opinion: Community should preserve more trees

Dear Editor, Recently there has been a surge in tree removal. Several properties in town have been cleared and left fallow with stumps and debris. Other trees have been removed because the homeowner considers them a danger and could fall and do...

Opinion: Media should print book excerpts

Dear Editor, Thank you for your article that brings attention to the books that have caused great concern for many parents. Providing the titles of these books being recommended and promoted by librarians, teachers and educational administrators, is...

Opinion: Marion uses less energy, saves money

Dear Editor, For a little town like Marion, $1,200,000 is serious money. The Energy Management Committee (EMC) attended the October 18th meeting of the Select Board to celebrate a decade of progress toward its mission of reducing Marion’s dependence...

Opinion: Return of the Cold War mindset

The Cold War ended nearly 31 years ago and today the threat of nuclear use is a sobering possibility. NATO and the Kremlin are collectively training up on their annual nuclear response exercises in a time where humanity is facing real escalating...

Opinion: Effort to ban books marginalizes members of minority communities

The nationwide wave of efforts to censure literature has reached the shores of the Tri-Town area through the recent actions of a small minority to ban certain publications in our ORR junior and high school library. This should come as no surprise...

Opinion: Banning books is against our freedoms

Dear Editor, On the topic of banning books in our school libraries: Our forefathers guaranteed certain freedoms in this country. Uneducated narrow- mindedness, and bigotry, should not be allowed in our school system. Libraries should contain books...

Opinion: Problem with speeding on Point Road

Dear Editor, My name is Iain McManus. I am 14yr old freshman in high school at ORR. I live on a street off Point Road in Marion. As you may or may not be aware, the speed limit on Point Road is 35mph and in some places only 25mph. I would like to...

Opinion: Support Straus for re-election

Dear Editor, I write to support the re-election of Bill Straus for State Representative. Having observed Bill in office for over 30 years, I have seen his commitment and hard work for the communities he serves. I have also seen the respect he’s...