Reform of the retirement system was at the core of French President Emmanuel Macron's 2016 campaign. He wanted to simplify the system and make it universal. The reform is so highly sensitive - one might even say explosive - that several prime ministers have fallen in similar attempts (1986, 1995, 2008.) Although close to 60 percent of public opinion is favorable to the reforms, … [Read more...] about Letter From Paris: France is Embroiled in a Pension Reform Crisis, But Seems to be Doing Fine … or is it?
Columnists
A View From My Porch: An Appropriate Day to Remember Connecticut Icon William Gillette
Editor's Note: Tom Gotowka sent us this piece last week, but we had always planned to publish it today. By an extraordinary coincidence, we now find — thanks to an article sent to us this morning by our friend and regular correspondent George Ryan — that today is the 90th anniversary of William Gillette's final performance as Sherlock Holmes, given Feb. 12, 1930 at the popular … [Read more...] about A View From My Porch: An Appropriate Day to Remember Connecticut Icon William Gillette
A la Carte: Pepperoni Pasta is Easy to Prep, Delicious to Eat
The other Sunday, I drove to the Mystic Marriott to judge the chocolate gala to benefit Fairview in Groton, I used to call rest homes like Fairview old persons’ homes. Now that I am actually an old person, there are other names that sound nicer, like independent or assisted living. Some years ago a friend told me that when she gets old, she wants to be at Fairview, with its … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Pepperoni Pasta is Easy to Prep, Delicious to Eat
Letter From Paris: Brexit Has Happened – An Historic Day Which Sparked Joy, Tears, and Innumerable Challenges
Editor's Note: The United Kingdom finally left the European Union (EU) at 11 p.m. on Jan 31, 2020, after being a member of the EU for 47 years. Despite a referendum passing in 2016 by a very slim margin that requested the extraction of the UK from the EU, it has been a long three years of butter argument to reach this point. Even now, it is estimated that roughly half of the … [Read more...] about Letter From Paris: Brexit Has Happened – An Historic Day Which Sparked Joy, Tears, and Innumerable Challenges
A View from My Porch: Lyme Native Ezra Lee was World’s First Commander of an Attack Submarine in Battle
There was a time before our time, It will not come again, When the best ships still were wooden ships But the men were iron men … I believe this eloquent verse from Rosemary and Stephen Vincent Benet’s ode to New England’s “Clipper Ships and Captains” can also be used to describe Ezra Lee, the first man to command an attack submarine in battle. In this essay, I … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch: Lyme Native Ezra Lee was World’s First Commander of an Attack Submarine in Battle
Talking Transportation: A Conversation With CT DOT Commissioner Giulietti, Part 2
Editor's Note: This is the second of two articles written by Jim Cameron reporting on his conversation with CDOT Commissioner Joseph Giulietti. Read the first article at this link. Connecticut's Department of Transportation (CDOT) Commissioner Joseph Giulietti is about to finish his first year on the job and his plate is more than full. It’s overflowing with controversy. In … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: A Conversation With CT DOT Commissioner Giulietti, Part 2
Talking Transportation: A Conversation With CT DOT Commissioner Giulietti, Part 1
Joseph Giulietti is finishing his first year as Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Transportation -- CDOT. He’s been busy and less visible in recent months, so imagine my surprise when he offered me a one-on-one, no-holds-barred interview. “You’ve always been fair, Jim. You’ve hit me hard but you’ve always been fair,” said the Commissioner. That’s music to my … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: A Conversation With CT DOT Commissioner Giulietti, Part 1
Reading Uncertainly? ‘The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming’ by David Wallace-Wells
Is global warming a sensible hypothesis? Is it happening? What may be its consequences? What can and should we, as human beings, do about it? These are some of the most important questions facing us today. David Wallace-Wells begins with startling pessimism, moving on to despair, but he finally concludes with a modest sense of optimism. Thank goodness ... at least for this … [Read more...] about Reading Uncertainly? ‘The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming’ by David Wallace-Wells
Legal News You Can Use: What Happens When You Suffer From Chemical Burns?
Chemical burns are a real problem in some workplaces. Whether you're working in a chemistry lab or teach at a local university, you could be exposed to chemicals that could leave your skin burned and damaged. Chemical burns can be caused by some common chemicals found in schools, homes and workplaces. For example, common products that sometimes cause chemical … [Read more...] about Legal News You Can Use: What Happens When You Suffer From Chemical Burns?
Talking Transportation: Speed Kills
Speed kills … and I don’t just mean methamphetamines. Speeding on our roads is linked to over 36,000 deaths each year in the US. That’s almost 700 deaths a week … 100 a day. If a hundred people die in a plane crash, we go nuts. But if they die on our roads we see it as the cost of doing business. As one blogger put it… “it’s high time to stop sacrificing safety on the … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: Speed Kills
A la Carte: A New Dish for a New Decade — Roasted Shrimp, Caulifower with Quinoa
Like many of you, I have made one or two or more resolutions. I, for one, am on that intermittent fasting. I don’t eat before 11 a.m., nor after 7 p.m. This is an easy diet for me: I like lunch more than breakfast and I often am in bed at 8:30, where I read for at least two hours. So dinner at 6-ish works for me. I have lost around seven pounds since mid-December, even with the … [Read more...] about A la Carte: A New Dish for a New Decade — Roasted Shrimp, Caulifower with Quinoa
Talking Transportation: Pre-Cursor of the Tesla, the Dymaxion Car has Connecticut Roots
Did you know that Bridgeport was once the home of “the car of the future”? It was the Tesla of its era, but only three were ever built. This mystery vehicle? The Dymaxion Car. The designer? Buckminster Fuller. Best known for his pioneering 1940s architectural design of the geodesic dome, a decade earlier Fuller was already inventing other things. It was the 1930s and the … [Read more...] about Talking Transportation: Pre-Cursor of the Tesla, the Dymaxion Car has Connecticut Roots
A la Carte: A Day for Dauphinois (aka Scalloped Potatoes)
If you are reading this column today, you know that yesterday was Christmas. If you have little ones, they probably woke you up at dawn, to let you know that Santa had arrived. When our little ones were young, we spent Christmas with my husband’s sister in East Bloomfield, N.Y. We arrived on Christmas Eve, early enough to get to my in-laws’ church in Rochester. There my … [Read more...] about A la Carte: A Day for Dauphinois (aka Scalloped Potatoes)
A View from My Porch: The Second Renaissance of Miss ElizabethTashjian (Connecticut’s “Nut Lady”)
Editor's Note: We are delighted to welcome a new columnist to our LymeLine family today. Tom Gotowka will write an occasional piece under the title, "A View From My Porch," and we are going to let him introduce both his column and himself in his own words. We hope you enjoy Tom's offerings -- as always, let us know your thoughts! Author's Note: “A View from My Porch” is a … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch: The Second Renaissance of Miss ElizabethTashjian (Connecticut’s “Nut Lady”)
Reading Uncertainly: ‘The Library Book’ by Susan Orlean
Editor's Note (i): If you're still searching for a last-minute gift, then consider this book -- it's the perfect present for book- and library-lovers everywhere! Many thanks to our wonderful and ever faithful book-reviewer Felix Kloman of Lyme for sharing his thoughts on this best-seller, which is described by The New York Times as “a sheer delight…as rich in insight and as … [Read more...] about Reading Uncertainly: ‘The Library Book’ by Susan Orlean