Jack Tulloss: Sisyphus and UMass football

What do Sisyphus of Greek mythology and UMass football have in common? Let’s see. Sisyphus was a troublesome king and an unceasing provocation to Zeus. Consequently, Zeus dispatched Sisyphus to the underworld, where Hades deemed that Sisyphus would...

Abbie Jensen: RFK Jr. is a danger to public health

The recent column by Olin Rose-Bardawil is one of the most appalling pieces I’ve read in the Gazette [“RFK Jr. could bring change to health woes,” Dec. 13].RFK Jr. is a grifter and a nepo baby with no health and managerial expertise, but with an...

Michael Morgan: Publication of news story, column ironic

It’s ironic that the Gazette published a (well-intended) column [“RFK Jr. could bring change to health woes,” Dec. 13] extolling the virtues of RFK Jr’s position on the relationship between diet and chronic disease (which is, indeed, problematic) on...

Guest columnist Michael Quinlan: Mixing healthier foods with vaccine misinformation

By MICHAEL QUINLAN

 I read Olin Rose-Bardawil’s column in support for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Health and Human Services secretary [“RFK Jr. could bring change to health woes,” Gazette, Dec. 13]. And although RFK Jr. has sounded the alarm about chronic diseases, there...

Columnist Tolley M. Jones: Wrapped love

By TOLLEY M. JONES

The silverware family in the sink swam in the Palmolive suds sea as I stood on the wooden step stool washing the dinner dishes. At 7 years old, I was too small to be able to reach the sink otherwise. My 9-year-old sister and I were responsible for...

Abbey Edward: Transphobia dressed up as rationality

Karen Bercovici’s argument in her Nov. 14 guest column on gender-affirming care is nothing more than transphobia dressed up as rationality [“We need to rethink ‘gender  care’ for children,” Gazette, Nov. 14]. The writer focuses on a single study, the...

Pelle Lowe: Protect First Amendment rights now

On Thursday, Dec. 19, the U.S. Senate will vote on a bill to crush First Amendment rights protecting free speech and peaceful protest. The “Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act” has been described by constitutional scholar...

Columnist Razvan Sibii: Lest we forget — Immigration is a good thing

By RAZVAN SIBII

The anti-immigration people won the elections. They campaigned successfully on the “mass deportation” of undocumented immigrants and they have every intention of fulfilling that threat. And, if the first Trump administration is any indication, they...

Guest columnist Joshua Wallack: Forward is the right way for Kittredge Estate

By JOSHUA WALLACK

The Kittredge estate holds a unique place in Leverett’s history — a nearly 80-acre property whose next chapter deeply respects the character, values and “vibe of Leverett” and its neighbor Amherst. As someone who has spent decades creating projects...

Nikalsen Haug: Trans rights not up for debate

This is not a letter of appreciation like other letter writers sent. I’m writing because I’m sick to death that half the time I open up my hometown paper, I see my human rights being debated in the opinion section.By showing persistently that trans...

Laurie Evans: Restore public access to the Gordon King Christmas tree farm in Leverett

The town of Leverett is home to a unique resource. This is a former Christmas tree farm now known as the Blueberry Patch kindly donated by Gordon S. King for community use. Recently its accessibility has been unjustly obstructed by no trespassing...

Columnist Sara Weinberger: Sharing the joy in Syria’s liberation

By SARA WEINBERGER

Saturday night, Dec. 6 … just as I crawled under the covers, I heard the buzz announcing a message. Reaching for the phone, I read what I never expected to receive: “The Syrian Emergency Task Force is proud to announce that the Syrian people have...

Bruce C. Forcier: 2-year struggle for transparency in South Hadley Water District 1

For the past two years, I have been engaged in an arduous journey to compel the South Hadley Water District 1 Board to comply with Secretary of State Determination SPR 22-1997 regarding cell phone records. This battle for transparency has escalated to...

Peggy Matthews-Nilsen: Avoid massive demolition of Jones Library, renovate instead

The Nov. 27 letter in the Gazette in support of The Jones Library demolition-expansion project appears to be unfamiliar with the interior of the Jones Library and reasonable alternatives to tearing down the Jones’ 31-year-old brick addition. The...

Helena Donovan: Letter distorted messaging on Jones Library

I want to correct a letter that was published in the Nov. 30 edition under the title “Spreading disinformation about the Jones Library.”First, the writers misquoted the sign near the Amherst Farmer’s Market, making it seem slightly more provocative...

Judith Hyde: Northampton for life

This is a letter to the mayor and to all those who make Northampton such a great place to spend the rest of my life.Six days in Las Vegas last week have deepened my already robust appreciation of what we have here. Coming home, I saw with new eyes and...

Columnist Bill Newman: A look back from the future

By BILL NEWMAN

First, they came for people they called “illegals.” There was initial resistance, but many people who were not at risk did not speak out because they felt exhausted and distraught, could barely watch or read the news and believed nothing they said or...

David and Iris Berkman: Support for The Jones Library

We are writing to express our support for The Jones Library project. We have been residents of Amherst for almost 30 years, and patrons of the library throughout that time. We raised our kids with frequent visits to the children’s room, attended...

Larry Cervelli: FBI Director Wray — Don’t resign

Dear Mr. Wray: Please do not resign your position. Remain in office until your term is completed. You expect your resignation to prevent the reputation of the FBI from being dragged through attacks by the incoming administration. Nothing could be...

Ira Helfand: A bomb survivors warn of nuclear danger

On Tuesday, Nihon Hidankyo, an association of survivors of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, became the fourth organization to win the Nobel Peace Prize for work advocating the abolition of nuclear weapons.In accepting the award, Terumi Tanaka...