Accountability and integrity are slipping badly with the Connecticut state police. The agency has failed to complete an investigation of trooper misconduct…
Posted: 04 August 2021 [08:15 PM] Opinion
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Posted: 04 August 2021 [08:15 PM] Recent Headlines
Tuesday 08/03/2021
Posted: 03 August 2021 [08:58 PM] To the Editor: I am paying taxes under protest this year. I don't want Bristol to become a magnet for medical waste. Our air is bad enough- we don't need to become another New Jersey. Increased truck traffic would impact…
Monday 08/02/2021
Posted: 02 August 2021 [06:17 PM] To The Editor: The November election is now 3 months away, but it is not too soon to talk about why we need to re-elect our current leadership team. In the early and most uncertain days of Covid-19, our…
Posted: 02 August 2021 [06:16 PM] Consolidation of the banking industry is gaining speed, in part because technology increasingly allows routine retail banking functions to be conducted via the internet and cell phones, reducing the need for branch offices. But there is another reason: Government’s indifference…
Sunday 08/01/2021
MAYOR'S CORNER: Bristol Parks - New programs, initiatives to start fiscal year Posted: 01 August 2021 [07:00 PM] The City of Bristol turns the page each July 1, beginning a new budget. Department line items are replenished. Here are some…
Friday 07/30/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Lincoln and progress refute fans of 'critical race theory' Posted: 30 July 2021 [09:23 PM] Whatever "critical race theory" is, fears about it are easy to understand. It is seen as a mechanism for impugning the country…
Wednesday 07/28/2021
Posted: 28 July 2021 [09:01 PM] To the Editor: This letter is to encourage all voters to support the good work of the Mayor and City Council so that Bristol can continue to make the incredible progress we have seen in the last 4 years. From…
Posted: 28 July 2021 [09:00 PM] To The Editor: I recently had the opportunity to hear Bob Mielcarz speak about his interest in running for City Council in District 2. I was very impressed with his thoughts and positive direction. As a retired teacher, he understands…
CHRIS POWELL: Juvenile crime forum avoids relevance, accountability Posted: 28 July 2021 [08:59 PM] Last week's well-attended forum on juvenile crime and justice, called by Glastonbury's Town Council, was illuminating, just not so much about juvenile…
Monday 07/26/2021
Posted: 26 July 2021 [08:34 PM] To the Editor: Most Bristol residents are looking to resume normal activities and long for the freedoms and liberties that this country was founded upon. Bristol is a big “small town,” with a diverse population that should be celebrated. If…
CHRIS POWELL: Vaccine skeptics don't need Trump and Republican nuts Posted: 26 July 2021 [08:33 PM] Hesitancy about COVID-19 vaccination is becoming resistance and even hostility in Connecticut and throughout the country, news reports say. Blame is cast…
Friday 07/23/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Our own aspiring terrorists; and burying Henryk Gudelski Posted: 23 July 2021 [09:02 PM] Connecticut has its own aspiring terrorist and subversive group, and it's not the Ku Klux Klan, the Proud Boys, or even al-Qaida.…
Wednesday 07/21/2021
Posted: 21 July 2021 [09:06 PM] To the Editor: It's hot, and my 3-year-old is sweaty and curious. He always wants to know more about the world, and on Tuesday he asked me 'why is it like the fog but in the sky?' The haziness had…
CHRIS POWELL: Little management remains; and Ned sounds Republican Posted: 21 July 2021 [09:01 PM] Good for Governor Lamont and the state legislators who approved the new state budget, which is providing 7.5% raises to about 1,700…
Monday 07/19/2021
CHRIS POWELL: State Employee unions help Lamont as they criticize him Posted: 19 July 2021 [09:04 PM] Connecticut's state employee unions may be rendering great service to Governor Lamont's probable campaign for re-election by complaining about him. This service…
Friday 07/16/2021
CHRIS POWELL: To end corporate welfare, cut taxes for all businesses Posted: 16 July 2021 [09:07 PM] At Governor Lamont's order, state government is reducing its direct subsidies to businesses coming into the state or expanding here – cash…
Thursday 07/15/2021
Posted: 15 July 2021 [09:07 PM] To the Editor: I am a former Connecticut resident, having moved to Florida in 2015. I am 87 and have just about seen it all! So when I use the word guarantee, I use it very carefully! And this is…
Wednesday 07/14/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Connecticut must examine causes of its social collapse Posted: 14 July 2021 [08:08 PM] "Life imitates art far more than art imitates life," Oscar Wilde wrote. But sometimes it's awful both ways. Many years ago an…
Monday 07/12/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Democrats strive to conceal failures of juvenile justice Posted: 12 July 2021 [07:04 PM] Fall out of bed and kill yourself in Connecticut and your state legislators well may introduce legislation memorializing you by purporting to…
Sunday 07/11/2021
Posted: 11 July 2021 [10:48 AM] Dear Editor, This used to be solely a newspaper letter to the editor...but with the decrease in newspaper circulation, it's become mostly a virtual letter to the Bristol community. Here's my annual list to help those in need. My garden…
Friday 07/09/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Colleges serve themselves; and expose juvenile courts Posted: 09 July 2021 [08:11 PM] Enrollment at Connecticut's community colleges has been collapsing, probably because the state's economy is weak and most students being admitted are unprepared…
Thursday 07/08/2021
Posted: 08 July 2021 [01:53 PM] To the Editor: Americans are frogs in the pot of water being brought to the boil and cooked. We ignore incremental chunks of our freedoms being chiseled away by Marxists determining our social mores. A co-founder of Black Lives Matter is…
CHRIS POWELL: Suffield skips the 'flag wars;' what's the pride of sex? Posted: 08 July 2021 [01:36 PM] Suffield has opted out of what First Selectwoman Melissa Mack calls the "flag wars," which are being fought over attempts to use…
Sunday 07/04/2021
MAYOR'S CORNER: Bristol's parks are critical to our health Posted: 04 July 2021 [08:35 PM] By Mayor Ellen Zoppo-Sassu Summer is a great time to pause and think about how fortunate we are to have the over…
Friday 07/02/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Might Connecticut care more about crime than P.C. trivia? Posted: 02 July 2021 [08:38 PM] By CHRIS POWELL Lately the Lamont administration has boasted about closing prisons in Connecticut even as crime has exploded. Of course the crime…
Wednesday 06/30/2021
CHRIS POWELL: How long will Gov. Lamont hold the line on state taxes? Posted: 30 June 2021 [08:51 PM] For months the far-left faction of the Democratic caucuses in the General Assembly, which controlled the legislature this year, sought to raise…
Monday 06/28/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Discipline for police amid secrecy, union clout Posted: 28 June 2021 [08:43 PM] Connecticut's most important journalism last week was the study produced by Bill Cummings of the Hearst newspapers about the weakness and secrecy…
Friday 06/25/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Exterminating their own rat; and state pays for exclusion Posted: 25 June 2021 [08:48 PM] Did someone try to get the General Assembly to pass a gasoline tax increase last week without the knowledge of the public…
Wednesday 06/23/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Zoning, Tweed controversies suggest new motto for state Posted: 23 June 2021 [09:00 PM] Municipal zoning that controversially excludes inexpensive housing in the suburbs isn't the only area where Connecticut long has allowed the local interest…
Monday 06/21/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Lamont celebrates celebrates pot bill with racial demagoguery Posted: 21 June 2021 [08:53 PM] Celebrating last week the General Assembly's passage of legislation to legalize marijuana and put state government into the drug business, Governor Lamont…
Saturday 06/19/2021
CHRIS POWELL: 'Rats' ride the 'implementer'; and 'presto-change-o:' equity! Posted: 19 June 2021 [12:25 AM] What a mockery of democracy has been made by the Democratic majority in the General Assembly with its legislation "implementing" the new…
Wednesday 06/16/2021
CHRIS POWELL: At state Capitol, old statue is offensive but not mayhem Posted: 16 June 2021 [08:21 PM] While bullets flew and people fell all around Hartford, some within sight of the state Capitol dome, the General Assembly deliberated its…
Monday 06/14/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Legalizing marijuana is easy; what's hard is the patronage Posted: 14 June 2021 [08:35 PM] Legalizing recreational marijuana in Connecticut is off until a special session of the General Assembly this week, with House Speaker Matt Ritter,…
Friday 06/11/2021
CHRIS POWELL: That 'transformational' budget really won't change much at all Posted: 11 June 2021 [09:47 PM] Some small good things were done by the session of the General Assembly just concluded, but the best things about the session…
Posted: 11 June 2021 [12:25 AM] Dear Bristol Community: June starts the hurricane season. Now is the time to prepare for this season with due diligence in our community. Many of us take for granted that the city of Bristol will always be there for us…
Wednesday 06/09/2021
CHRIS POWELL: If Afghans want freedom, they'll have to fight for it Posted: 09 June 2021 [09:12 PM] Misconceived when it began 20 years ago, the American expedition to Afghanistan is being misunderstood as it comes to its predictable end…
Sunday 06/06/2021
MAYOR'S CORNER: All the colors of summer alive and well in Bristol Posted: 06 June 2021 [08:16 PM] It may seem strange to lead with the color GRAY for a column about the vibrancy of the upcoming summer but it…
Friday 06/04/2021
Posted: 04 June 2021 [08:28 PM] To The Editor: I submit this letter in direct response to the editorial by State Rep. Whit Betts on Friday, May 28. The people of Bristol deserve accurate information, so I’d like to shed some light and answer some…
CHRIS POWELL: Connecticut has too much 'cultural humility' already Posted: 04 June 2021 [08:17 PM] While the General Assembly has never been known for political courage, the racial obsession that lately has been taking over there should…
Wednesday 06/02/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Don't hide voter database; and lock up chronic crooks Posted: 02 June 2021 [08:51 PM] By CHRIS POWELL Maybe last year's presidential election wasn't stolen, but it raised fair questions about the integrity of voting procedures, and…
Sunday 05/30/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Is infamous hedge fund Alden stripping or saving newspapers? Posted: 30 May 2021 [03:34 PM] Nearly everyone wanted Tribune Publishing Co. to be purchased by someone other than Alden Global Capital, since the hedge fund is seen…
Friday 05/28/2021
Posted: 28 May 2021 [08:54 PM] To the Editor: I would like to take this opportunity to thank the many people for their support of the Plymouth Volunteer Ambulance Corps’ Covid Vaccination Clinic on Saturday, May 22. The weather was perfect, and we had such a…
Posted: 28 May 2021 [08:53 PM] To the Editor: I was one of the 80 percent of the Bristol voters who supported term limits in 2013. Clearly, this vote reflects very strong bi-partisan support. It is now 2021 – 8 years later – and suddenly the…
Posted: 28 May 2021 [08:51 PM] Congratulations may be in order for the University of Connecticut's Board of Trustees for discovering, upon the abrupt resignation of Thomas C. Katsouleas after less than two years on the job, that the university doesn't really need its own president.…
Wednesday 05/26/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Where's Connecticut's racism? Not where anyone is looking Posted: 26 May 2021 [08:57 PM] Like the rest of the country, Connecticut is full of racial disparities. With legislation declaring racism a "public health crisis," the General…
Monday 05/24/2021
CHRIS POWELL: A big reward in nooses case but none in murders nearby Posted: 24 May 2021 [09:07 PM] All the noose-shaped ropes that keep being found at the unfinished Amazon warehouse in Windsor are starting to seem less like the…
Friday 05/21/2021
Posted: 21 May 2021 [09:06 PM] To the Editor: Chris Powell is a designated hitter for the Herald/Press who swings for the fences at every at bat. He strikes out a lot, but hits a few home runs. His recent column “Should the state government take…
CHRIS POWELL: Dems try subversion as well; and 'socialism'says nothing Posted: 21 May 2021 [09:02 PM] What is the public interest in unionizing government employees as they now are unionized in Connecticut? The public interest in allowing private-sector…
Wednesday 05/19/2021
CHRIS POWELL: Cracking the Constitution in the Constitution state Posted: 19 May 2021 [08:33 PM] Connecticut long has been known as the Constitution State because of the Fundamental Orders ratified by its original European settlers in 1639,…
Tuesday 05/18/2021
Posted: 18 May 2021 [08:27 PM] How Do You Know You’re Ready For Retirement? It’s Not Just The Finances By Patti and Milledge Hart An intriguing find once emerged from a RAND Corp. survey on Americans and their working conditions. It turned out that 40 percent of employees…