Mom and apple pie: Contrary to popular emotion, these are not universal goods. Some people would prefer another kind of pie, or no pie at all. Some are severely allergic to wheat. For a few, apple pie might be fatal. The same goes for motherhood.... Read more

This month, I’ve noticed a fire sale on America’s heritage. New York City is selling its public libraries and schools — unique, historic, beloved neighborhood institutions — to private developers. They will tear them down, construct steel-and-glass luxury condos and office towers in their places, and tuck the books and kids back in on the first floors.... Read more

Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead — the best-selling book a with tie-in training campaign and materials and corporate-sponsorship synergies — has been branded the 21st-century reboot of feminism. From the cover of Time magazine to the far reaches of the blogosphere, its author, Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, has been nominated (and just as often voted down) as the next Elizabeth Cady Stanton.... Read more

“Extending welfare to work benefits without interruption for a lifetime does nothing to actually encourage people to get a job,” declared Gov. Peter Shumlin in his budget address last week. “[I]t is neither compassionate nor prudent to continue a system in which struggling Vermonters are financially punished for getting off government assistance, finding a job and providing for their children by going to work.”

The governor’s compassionate, prudent alternative: Punish struggling Vermonters for not finding a job.... Read more

Often when you dodge a bullet, it hits someone else. So, a week after Obama’s election, while pro-choice Americans were luxuriating in relief that the U.S. would not soon have a Supreme Court of Mormon elders or a health care system directed from the Vatican, news arrived from Ireland of just how deadly a pro-“life” government can be.

The death of Savita Halappanavar also offered a warning about the illusions — and dangers — of “moderation” in the abortion debate.... Read more

If there’s a Tea Party in New York City, you don’t hear much about it. That’s not just because New Yorkers drink coffee. It’s because the city runs on government. The five largest employers in New York are government agencies: The City of New York had almost 150,000 workers in 2011, including its Department of Education, not-for-profit Health and Hospitals Corporation or Metropolitan Transportation Authority. The MTA employed 66,804. It was one of the only agencies to increase its workforce last year. Not a moment too soon.... Read more

A couple of friends and I hiked up Lowell Mountain on a recent rainy Saturday to get a closer look at Kingdom Community Wind, Green Mountain Power and Vermont Electric Cooperative’s wind farm. We turned right off New Street in Albany onto the Bailey Hazen Road, past Don and Shirley Nelson’s tidy white farmhouse and their round pond half outlined by a stone wall, like a bright eye with an arched brow. The fields and pastures poured toward the mountains in every direction.... Read more

I was in London last week, and the Brits were mad for the Paralympics. Virtually every event was sold out. More than 11 million people watched the opening ceremonies on television, which were followed by 150 hours of live coverage over 12 days. Newspapers ran special daily sections. Crowds gathered around screens in pubs and markets.... Read more

If you’ve been watching the Olympics (and who hasn’t?), you’ve seen the promo for “Stars Earn Stripes” almost as often as you’ve seen gymnast Aly Raisman’s butt. The new NBC reality show, which premiered Monday, takes eight B-list celebrities — including Todd Palin and Nick Lachey, the boy bandster perhaps best known as Jessica Simpson’s ex — dresses them in combat gear, teams them up with Navy SEALs and Green Berets, and supplies helicopters, Humvees and lots of mud, smoke and noise.... Read more

The “I Am Vermont Strong” license plate is a clever way to get working-class people to pay for the Irene cleanup and avoid taxing the rich. But that’s not all that bugs me about it. First, the slogan starts with “I,” not “we.” It’s individualistic.

Second, it’s macho, as if someone (the gov?) thought Vermont was starting to look a little sissy, overrun with same-sex couples and foodies. In fact, the only vehicles I’ve seen with the new plates are big-guy pickup trucks.... Read more