LETTERS - Marblehead Current

1Mar

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LETTERS, Local News, Opinion, Viewpoints

LETTER: Re: Living within your budget….

To the editor: I would like to echo concerns stated by Mr. Jack Buba in last week's letter (Feb. 22). Evidently, many town citizens (and administrators) need to be reminded that since 1995 the Marblehead Community Charter Public School (MCCPS) has been successfully operating on a fixed state-funding budget based on a per-pupil expense (PPE). For 28 years, 230 students per year, in fourth through eighth grades, have been receiving a first-class education without incurring deficits and/or overrides. How does that happen, and why isn't that possible for all our public school districts? The Massachusetts Education Reform Act of 1993 changed how the Commonwealth supported, administered and funded the education services of our public school students in local school districts. The fa...

1Mar

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Business, LETTERS, Opinion, Viewpoints

LETTER: Cross-pollination is critical for Marblehead small businesses

To the editor Just got through reading Virginia Buckingham's column, “Bringing Back a Bookstore,” and I could not agree more about the void that Spirit of '76 left in our community by closing. It cut right to the core and spirit of Marblehead. Marblehead has been faced with years and years of small businesses opening up and closing their doors, almost to the point now where our streets are lined with real estate offices and the dentist office that occupies our former bookstore. Yes, a bookstore sounds like a touching new option for someone to open, but it's rough out there. Never mind the challenges of the internet, but Marblehead needs to re-define itself as a destination in terms of a total experience. Throughout the greater North Shore, it is not known as a place to g...

10Feb

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LETTERS, Opinion

LETTER: Neighbors left out of pickleball ‘drama’

To the editor: Regarding the pickleball drama, this issue has been mismanaged since its inception because all stakeholders were not considered, which is the most basic strategy when seeking to elicit change. Pickleball is a loud game. Never at any point was the impact on the neighborhood surrounding Marblehead Veterans Middle School considered. The din of the plastic equipment and the abrasive vocalizing of the players is nerve-wracking. Locking the pickleball courts was the best decision Recreation and Parks has ever made. The noise from the courts, without protection from foliage, reverberates through the neighborhood due not only to the game and its players but also due to the proximity of the PAC. Neighbors were neither consulted nor warned about the construction of these ...

29Dec

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LETTERS

LETTER: Marblehead task force condemns Club Q shooting

To the editor: On Nov 19, 2022 a deadly shooting occurred that left five dead and more than 19 injured at Club in Colorado Springs,Colo. The Marblehead Select Board Task Force Against Discrimination condemns this and all other acts of violence against the LGBTQ community. The Club Q shooting took place on the eve of National Transgender Day of Remembrance, which is a day set aside to reflect and honor the transgender individuals who have lost their lives due to violence. We condemn the increase of hateful anti-transgender rhetoric and legislation that is sweeping the country, including bomb threats that continue to terrorize staff and patients at Boston Children’s Hospital for providing affirmative care to transgender patients. The members of TFAD stand beside and offer our ...

27Dec

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LETTERS

LETTER: ‘Decidedly unhappy with Marblehead bump outs’

To the editor: The article on bumpouts suggests that “drivers” are unhappy but “pedestrians,” according to town officials, are happy. As one who sometimes drives a truck, sometimes walks and sometimes rides a bicycle, I'm not sure which category you would put me in. But I am decidedly unhappy with Marblehead's bumpouts. They are poorly thought out and improperly implemented. Consider the bumpouts on West Shore Drive at the Tower School and Bike Path. The posted speed limit is 20 miles an hour. The Bike Path sees large volumes of scooter, bicycle and foot traffic at that spot. A raised crosswalk (known as a table crossing) should therefore have been installed along with the bumpouts at that location. Engineers should also have eliminated the two parking lot entrances/exits tha...

27Dec

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LETTERS

LETTER: A toast to a quieter new year

To the editor: My husband was born in Marblehead. An accident of birth, he says with great pride. My roots are less glamorous as my family goes back to southern, mid-west farmers. However, I have been won over by the support of this community in my ten year battle to bring a little peace to this beautiful seaside town. Marblehead is indeed special as she takes her place as one of 170 communities across the United States taking a stand for the environment and health. This summer we will see a break from the noise and pollution of one small tool but the implications are far greater. Maybe this brief respite will provide other benefits: *An increase in pollinator plants in local gardens for insects and butterflies. * A few leaves left under bushes and trees for birds to forage f...

27Dec

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LETTERS

LETTER: Taking Buckingham’s recommendations to heart

To the editor: I've decided that in 2023, I'm going to take your recommendations (Re: Patience Bingo) to heart, especially the one about deleting the first email response? Admittedly, it's been soul-satisfying to fire off a clever, witty, slightly insulting reply to an especially irritating email, an electronic letter full of egregious spelling errors, or an implausible response from a vendor to whom I had sent a patient and sensible message requesting a further explanation of "lifetime warranty." The keystrokes are heavy and the prose is—okay—fist-pumpingly direct. My irritation eases once the words are out and on the page, but the fire is still hot and too often I've hit "send" before considering that the recipient—if there really is a human one—might be a lunch-skipped, hunched-...

11Dec

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LETTERS, Opinion, Viewpoints

LETTER: An appeal from the Marblehead Task Force Against Discrimination

To the editor: The Marblehead Select Board has set up donation accounts for various committees within the Town of Marblehead for citizens to make charitable contributions. One of the committees is the Marblehead Task Force Against Discrimination (MTFAD) which was founded in 1989 by the Select Board after a series of hate crimes in our community. For over 30 years, the Task Force has provided programs combating bigotry and promoting respect while seeking to support those affected by discrimination in Marblehead. As part of its ongoing efforts to raise awareness, the MTFAD requires funding to hold events and programs. The showing of pertinent films, engaging speakers and holding a book read for middle schoolers have been recent events held. The Task Force collaborates each year with o...

11Dec

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LETTERS, Opinion, Viewpoints

LETTER: Net Zero goal is laudable, but transition demands more time

To the editor: A column entitled “Local actions have global consequences” in the Nov. 23 issue of the Marblehead Current sets out goals for the town to reach Net Zero by 2040. These goals, while ambitious are also risky. The energy supplied by fossil fuels has supported an ever-increasing standard of living and life expectancy since the late 1800s. Alternatives must be affordable and reliable if we move away from fossil fuels. Otherwise, our standard of living will be degraded. Acting locally makes sense, but we are dependent on resources outside the town and even the country. A battery can contain three to eight minerals depending on the type of battery. Just like fossil fuels, these are not in unlimited supply. According to a study by Prof. of Geometallurgy Simon Michaux (https...

5Dec

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LETTERS, Opinion, Viewpoints

LETTER: Reminds me of dad

To the editor: My compliments to Brenda Kelley Kim for her article entitled "Words matter" in the Marblehead Current of Nov. 30. Her story about her father reminds me of my father; he once advised me, "Say what you mean, and mean what you say.” He gave me that advice only once, long ago, but I still remember it. He was well respected in Sherborn, where we lived, and he served as town moderator there for many years. Tim Parker Arthur Avenue