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Opinion

Editorial: Take a moment to thank a tourist

Mon, Jul 15

Category:

Editorials

Those of us who live here are familiar with our love/hate relationship with the summer visitors. It’s bleak here in January and February, so we look forward to “the season” when more restaurants and businesses open and the island comes alive. But when it does arrive, we become impatient with the...
Editorial: We need a seat at the PUC table

Mon, Jul 1

Category:

Editorials

During the special session that the Town Council scheduled this past week to discuss whether or not to appeal the recent Public Utilities Commission order that approved the annual revenue increase for Interstate Navigation, there was some palpable frustration with the PUC and the process that led...
Editorial: BIHS has new leadership and a new opportunity

Mon, Jun 24

Category:

Editorials

After a tumultuous and disruptive year, the Block Island Health Services (BIHS) Board of Directors has newly elected officers, one new board member (and two returning members) and some new opportunities. The new slate of officers is Bob Fallon, president; Cindy Baute, vice president (who was also...
Editorial: "Stop... talking to cops" is exactly the wrong message

Tue, Jun 18

Category:

Editorials

Given the events of the past few weeks, we have to assume that whoever planted a sticker on the stop sign in Bridgegate Square so that it would read: “Stop… talking to cops,” was serious about making a point. Just as the community, long in denial about the issues of substance abuse, appears...
Letters to the Editor, June 15, 2013

Mon, Jun 17

Category:

Letters

To the Editor: I would like to thank the members of Block Island Health Services for their votes and kind words of support during the recent election. I pledge to continue my commitment to the Medical Center and the staff with the same honesty, integrity and professionalism that I have for the past...
Editorial: Beach Pavilion should be open by now

Sun, Jun 9

Category:

Editorials

There were about 80 students, plus assorted teachers, visiting the island and having a bonfire on town beach the other night. It was a beautiful night, crisp and clear, and the kids were all camped out about 100 feet or so from the Fred Benson Beach Pavilion. They were taking pictures and throwing...
Letters to the Editor, June 1, 2013

Mon, Jun 3

Category:

Letters

To the Editor: Re: Police log The bucolic setting of this beautiful New England island has taken a few hits lately. It’s not quite fair, considering the attributes that the island does have. That is the reason many of us will stay here to the end, despite the BIPCo (Block Island Power Company)...
Editorial: A Taste of Block Island begins Friday

Fri, May 31

Category:

Editorials

Do you have your button yet? That is, have you paid your five dollars for the button that will gain you access to all the events happening this weekend during A Taste of Block Island? The button can be purchased on the ferry or at the Block Island Chamber of Commerce, and along with it comes a...
Guest Opinion: Call someone if you feel depressed

By

Steve Hollaway

Wed, May 29

Category:

Opinion

“There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide. Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy,” said the philosopher Albert Camus. We ought not to dismiss anyone for facing the question or to treat despair...
Letters to the Editor, May 25, 2013

Mon, May 27

Category:

Letters

To the Editor: I hope now The Block Island Times will adopt a policy of considering the fragility of a person when they decide what to print in the Police Log column. Historically, The Block Island Times has been very selective about what and about whom it chooses to include in...
Editorial: A Memorial Day Remembrance

Mon, May 27

Category:

Editorials

On Thursday, Nov. 19, 1863, a group of dignitaries, including President Abraham Lincoln, gathered on a field in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania to dedicate the opening of Soldiers’ National Cemetery. This was during the Civil War and just a little under five months after Union soldiers won a decisive...
Guest Opinion: Converting streetlights to LED technology

By

Chris Warfel

Mon, May 20

Category:

Opinion

One year ago, the Electric Utility Task Group (EUTG) was asked to investigate the conversion of the town’s street lights to LED either through conversion by the Block Island Power Co. (BIPCo), or by the town condemning the lights and converting them to LED. Condemnation of street lights, or having...
Editorial: Look into appealing the Interstate agreement

Sun, May 19

Category:

Editorials

One of the most prominent refrains among islanders after the R.I. Public Utilities Commission (PUC) announced that it had approved the draft agreement with Interstate Navigation — which, among other things, increased freight rates by 34 percent — was that the PUC did not take into account the...
Publisher's Note: The ties that bind us

Wed, May 15

Category:

Opinion

Whether in sorrow or celebration it is our sense of place that sustains us all. And for that we are grateful. Where else but on Block Island? The Boston bombings set the tone a few weeks ago — a sense of unease and distress. After all, our island community is part of the larger New England...
Letters to the Editor, May 11, 2013

Mon, May 13

Category:

Letters

Dear Block Island Community: Thank you to all who came out to celebrate Peter’s life. He found a home when he stepped off the ferry 33 years ago. He would have so appreciated the beautiful day and the outpouring of love from so many on this little island. During the winter, so many people visited,...
Two important town meetings next week

Fri, May 3

Category:

Editorials

The annual Town Financial Meeting will be held this Monday, May 6, at 7 p.m. at Town Hall. The proposed municipal budget is $12,141,327. Voters will also be asked to act on, among other matters, a $1 million bond for the Sewer Department equipment upgrades and $1 million for the Block Island...
Letters to the Editor, May 4, 2013

Fri, May 3

Category:

Letters

To the Editor: The Block Island Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department would like to extend our sincere condolences to the family and friends of Peter Monje. Pete’s life was too short but, oh my, it was a life well lived! Pete was a multifaceted human being who did many things and did them very well...
Letters to the Editor, April 26, 2013

Mon, Apr 29

Category:

Letters

The following letter was sent to the Department of Environmental Management and copied to the B.I. Times . To the Editor: Thank you for coming to Block Island last week and making some sense of the nonsense portrayed by some members of our Town Council and especially the Block Island...
Editorial: BIHS Board needs to make member list accessible

Sun, Apr 28

Category:

Editorials

The scenario reminds us of the plot of some paranoid Cold War thriller: a member of a board asks other members of the same board if he can see a list of the people he represents. The answer, right now, is no. Candidates who are running for open seats on that same board ask if they can see the list...
Hey, DEM: Thanks for nothing

Tue, Apr 23

Category:

Editorials

Decades ago a very unwise decision was made to bring deer to Block Island. Perhaps no one could have anticipated then what we now know. With no natural predator the deer population would swell way beyond what just under 10 populated square miles could support. Furthermore, the introduction of Lyme...
Block Island Poetry Project is this weekend

Fri, Apr 12

Category:

Editorials

April is National Poetry Month, and Block Island celebrates this form of art with its own unique event, The Block Island Poetry Project, which began yesterday (Thursday) and continues through the weekend. There is no doubt that many see poetry as an outdated, even quaint, form of writing: we...
Letters to the Editor, April 5, 2013

Mon, Apr 8

Category:

Letters

Letter to Editor: Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! The Block Island Residents Association and the Conservation Commission want to thank all of you who participated in the Crescent Beach Dune Restoration Work Day on Saturday. There were about 100 of you and you accomplished a great deal. You dug 360...
Editorial: Town council correct in approving deer plan

Sat, Apr 6

Category:

Editorials

At long last the Town Council has voted to take meaningful action to deal with the deer problem. For decades the growing herd was tolerated and many island voices said that the only people bothered by the deer were the cottagers who liked to garden. But the deer also pose a serious health problem...
Editorial: Public hearing on Interstate proposal is Thursday at 12:15 p.m.

Wed, Apr 3

Category:

Editorials

If you have any concerns about the Interstate Navigation agreement for rate changes now pending before the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), then we encourage you to attend the Thursday meeting at Town Hall. Members of the PUC will be at Town Hall at 12:15 p.m. for a public hearing. The commuter...
Letters to the Editor, March 30, 2013

Tue, Apr 2

Category:

Letters

To the Editor: I write in response to Block Island Residents Association (BIRA) President William Penn’s letter to this paper published in the March 16 edition. Maybe he didn’t mention he holds this position because it isn’t relevant, but I say differently. Mr. Penn often cites a dated BIRA survey...
Editorial: A week without internet service is not acceptable

Sun, Mar 31

Category:

Editorials

A number of Verizon customers on the island — the number most consistently heard was 200 — had no internet service beginning last week for up to six days. The police station was affected, as was the medical center. None of this is acceptable. We know of one resident who was about to leave the...
Letters to the Editor, March 23, 2013

Mon, Mar 25

Category:

Letters

To The Editor: Re: Second Amendment To the brave and valiant soul who courageously stood at a recent Town Council meeting, and appealed for sensibility and reasoning where the Second Amendment is concerned, I simply say, “You go, girl.” That amendment has been “interpreted,” and thereby altered, by...
Editorial: Community-wide discussion on the future of B.I. School needed

Sun, Mar 24

Category:

Editorials

As we report in this edition , projections show that enrollment at the Block Island School will drop below 100 within ten years because of falling birth-rate trends. A decade ago the school population was just under 150 and now it hovers slightly above 110. According to a report by the New England...
Letters to the Editor, March 16, 2013

Mon, Mar 18

Category:

Letters

This letter was written to Michael J. Elliott of the US Army Corps of Engineers and copied to the Block Island Times . To the Editor: As a home owner on Block Island for 35 years and a year-round resident for the past 17 years, I am writing to strongly support the Deepwater Wind...
Editorial: One last chance for public comment on Interstate proposal

Sun, Mar 17

Category:

Editorials

There is one last chance for public input on the draft agreement reached between Interstate Navigation and a Division of the PUC that was announced earlier this month and it’s a valuable — if belated — opportunity for the public to offer its input. “The settlement basically brings us to where we...
Letters to the Editor, March 9, 2013

Mon, Mar 11

Category:

Letters

To the Editor: Hurricane Sandy and the December storm have devastated the Dune Restoration Project started by the Conservation Commission almost four years ago. Our program was working to rebuild the dunes by installing snow fencing to delineate the pathways to the beach. Sand was trapped by the...
Letters to the Editor, March 2, 2013

Mon, Mar 4

Category:

Letters

To the Editor: There is a glaring error in the letter said to be sent to the Rl Ethics Commission by Kim Gaffett and appearing in the Feb. 23 Times . In the fourth paragraph of the Times ’ letter, last sentence, it is stated “None of the (Gaffett) donations were received through...
Letters to the Editor, February 23, 2013

Mon, Feb 25

Category:

Letters

To: the Editor — As a bartender, it’s known you should avoid talking politics or religion because hot button issues tend to be more of a distraction than a medium for a good time. As a bar owner, talking politics or religion should be avoided at all costs especially if living in a small community...
Editorial: Island Free Library is a place of quiet learning

Sun, Feb 24

Category:

Editorials

Island Free Library is a place of quiet learning A public library is a place of quiet contemplation. But as libraries transform themselves from a place almost exclusively devoted to books and other publications, we can expect — and in fact encourage — the inclusion of more modern forms of...
Letters to the Editor, February 16, 2013

Mon, Feb 18

Category:

Letters

This letter was sent to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and copied to the Block Island Times: I am writing to strongly support the Deepwater Wind Block Island Project. I am a year-round resident of Block Island and a member of the Town of New Shoreham’s Electric Utility Task Group (EUTG...
Guest opinion: Deepwater Wind — the next 38 Studios

By

James E. O'Neil, former R.I. Attorney General

Mon, Feb 11

Category:

B.I. Wind Farm, Opinion

I am compelled to write after reading Deepwater Wind’s recent paid advertisement in the Block Island Times captioned “The Block Island Wind Farm: The Right Project for Block Island. Setting the Record Straight.” Deepwater has absolutely failed to “set the record straight.” The article is...
Letters to the Editor, Feb. 9, 2013

Mon, Feb 11

Category:

Letters

To: the Editor— I am writing to express my public opposition to the Deepwater Wind application to build a wind farm off Block Island. I have hesitated expressing my opinion in a public forum so far because, while I am opposed to corporate control of our energy, my primary objection has been...
Letters to the Editor, Feb. 2, 2013

Mon, Feb 4

Category:

Letters

To: the Editor — It has been pointed out that in my last letter to the Block Island Times I over-estimated the burden the Recreation Department imposes on taxpayers by not factoring in proceeds from the beach pavilion. I missed it because that income appears on another line in the budget...
Editorial: Rate hearing an opportunity to tackle lingering issues

Sun, Feb 3

Category:

Editorials

The island is hugely dependant upon Interstate Navigation as the necessary lifeline to the mainland. The Block Island community continues to be grateful for the good neighbor policy the company has consistently practiced through the years. That’s why we’re a bit taken aback by the manner in which...
Letters to the Editor, Jan. 26, 2013

Mon, Jan 28

Category:

Letters

To: the Editor — The brouhaha still sputtering over the harsh treatment meted out by the Medical Center’s board of directors to Monty Stover once again reminds me how often our small-town issues can be viewed as microcosms of the nation’s broader concerns. Whatever one’s take may be on the...
Guest Opinion: Not Right Away

By

Martha Ball

Mon, Jan 28

Category:

Opinion

Generally speaking I am not a fan of guns. I loathe the sound of them in the settling dusk, I hate the fact that forever seared on my mind is a tableau from my kitchen window, the fiery flash of a muzzle a nano-second before a deer fell, a split second before the sound reached my ears. Even given...
Publisher's Note: thoughtless vandalism

Tue, Jan 22

Category:

Opinion

The installation of benches around the commercial area has provided welcome seating for visitors and residents alike. Pass through downtown on a summer day and you will find all the seats occupied. The program has been embraced by families seeking to memorialize a loved one. But some months ago...
Letters to the Editor, Jan. 19, 2013

Tue, Jan 22

Category:

Letters

To: the Editor — Sometimes while reading, one comes across a phrase that speaks so perfectly to a thought one happens to be entertaining that all one can say is, “yes!” It was so with me yesterday after having read Peter Voskamp’s fine piece in your paper awarding this year’s Bayberry Wreath to the...
Letters to the Editor, Jan. 12, 2013

Mon, Jan 14

Category:

Letters

To: the Editor - It is never good to criticize without giving praise when actions are taken to make a problem better. On Tuesday morning I watched as the catch basins were being pumped out. This is progress. When heavy rains come it is nice to know the water has someplace to go rather than making...
Editorial: Petition undermines council’s majority vote

Sun, Jan 13

Category:

Editorials

We have had dysfunctional Town Councils in the past and it made the process of governing quite difficult. Candid, informed discussions inclusive of differing viewpoints serve the public well. Once the vote is taken, however, the members should respect the outcome. With that in mind, we are uneasy...
Letters to the Editor, Jan. 5, 2013

Mon, Jan 7

Category:

Letters

To: the Editor — After seeing another letter with numerous distortions aimed at the board of the Block Island Health Services in the December 22 Block Island Times , I was tempted to write a long rebuttal, but decided it would be better to concentrate on going forward. The board has agreed...
Letters to the Editor, Dec. 29, 2012

Mon, Dec 31

Category:

Letters

To: the Editor— Yes, Fred Nelson's letters are a little long at times, but if you take the time to read them, they make a good deal of sense. They are scientifically accurate. I've never yet seen a disclaimer from a reliable source concerning the use of synthetic fertilizer, but it seems...
Editorial: Time to look at gun laws and mental health services

Sun, Dec 23

Category:

Editorials

Enough is enough. For years, our national and state leaders have hedged and dragged their feet on gun control issues, not wanting to alienate a powerful political lobby. A former Democratic president let a ban on assault weapons expire. President Obama is making noises but has taken no action,...
Letters to the Editor, Dec. 21, 2012

Fri, Dec 21

Category:

Letters

To: the Editor— We were very surprised to see the public notice in last week’s Block Island Times that Interstate has filed with the Public Utilities Commission for major changes in its fare structure and were amazed by the changes they are proposing. Two, in particular, seem to us to be...
Letters to the Editor, Dec. 14, 2012

Mon, Dec 17

Category:

Letters

This letter was sent to Peter B. Baute, Interim Director B.I. Medical Center, and copied to the Times : In his letter to you in the 12/8 edition, Dr. Baute launched a gratuitous ad hominem attack on me riddled with distortion and hyperbole. It should be seen for what it is: a red...

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Island Buzz

Escape to Narragansett!

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