It comes down to personal responsibility. No matter how much we wish it could be so, there is no way to mandate that people wear masks and socially distance in private settings. Face covering mandates in public spaces are difficult enough to enforce; try telling someone having a few friends over that they must wear masks while entertaining in their back yard. And yet, taken to extremes, failure to comply wi...

Facebook Page Opens Eyes Editor: A few weeks ago, I joined the Facebook page America Backs the Blue. I didn’t know what it would be like, but every day there are incredible postings of positive things: families proud that their relatives are joining the force, photos of African American children hugging a member of the force, brave K-9 partners, the list goes on and on. A long time ago I saw a Peanuts ca...

“Well, she got her daddy’s car And she cruised through the hamburger stand now Seems she forgot all about the library Like she told her old man now And with the radio blasting Goes cruising just as fast as she can now   And she’ll have fun, fun, fun Til her daddy takes the T-bird away.”   In the summer of 1963, the Beach Boys exploded on the popular music scene. “Surfin’ Safari” had ...

Like cancer, racism is most dangerous when it is hidden. When it is overt, bigotry can at least be confronted. But insidious racism can exist in a community that prides itself on inclusion and tolerance. The signs can be subtle, like the defacement of local Black Lives Matter lawn signs, or letters to the editor that marginalize the protest movement.  At The Chronicle, we try to call out such behavior when we ...

Stay Engaged Editor: OK, I’ll admit it: I am a little worn down by the world. Obviously, COVID-19 has made life harder, much more for some of us than others for sure, and we each have our own family/life/work challenges to face. But there is more to all this, and for me it’s the backdrop of the constant and relentless assault on truth, science, responsible environmental regulation and the very democratic pr...

“Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!” Like the Wizard of Oz, the Trump administration is blustering, threatening and bullying states to fully open schools in the fall. Like the small, frightened man behind the curtain, they're trying to further their own interests through the art of distraction, threatening to take away federal funding if schools don't reopen. It's certainly true that until scho...

Honoring The Right Heroine Editor: I was pleased to learn that Ginny Locke is being honored as a 2020 Commonwealth Heroine by the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women. About 20 years ago, I attended a Crosby Mansion open house and subsequently signed on as a volunteer with The Friends of Crosby Mansion.  What a great group of people they are and I attribute their successful accomplishments in res...

The newly rebuilt observation deck at the Chatham Fish Pier is certainly an improvement over its predecessor. Solidly built, spacious, attractive and made of more durable material than the previous wooden deck (situated in one of the harshest environments one can imagine), it will no doubt weather storms, sun and salt spray for years, hopefully decades, to come. But getting to the point of opening the deck to ...

Chatham Selectmen Fail Voters Editor: If you have ever thought about serving as a volunteer on a Chatham board, think twice. Your efforts will not be appreciated unless you cede your right to speak freely and express an honest opinion. Don’t ever criticize the board of selectmen or you’ll not be re-appointed. Despite entreaties from friends, colleagues, and concerned citizens, I was not re-appointed to t...

If you’ve lost track of time and space, stumbling about in a calendar-less COVID-19 coma, the recent explosion of fireworks, sending shuddering dogs into under-the-bed mode, might have alerted you to the sudden appearance of the Fourth of July. As so many traditional Independence Day activities and formal fireworks displays have been canceled due to the virus, let us be illuminated by some little-known July Fo...

One needn’t look far beyond the daily headlines for reminders that the United States of America remains an imperfect union, a grand experiment in self-governance that has seen both triumphs and failures. But there are still plenty of reasons to fly the American flag with pride. We strongly object to the notion that those who fly Old Glory automatically subscribe to a set of beliefs or ideals, support a particu...

One-third. That's the approximate number of mail-in ballots received in last week's annual town election in Chatham. Orleans also received a hefty number of mail-in ballots in its election last week, so many that it briefly delayed the determination of the outcome. These were local elections, where the turn-out is minuscule compared to what is likely to be a heavy show by voters in the November presidential co...