Archive
Besides his books, Bill has written a variety of poems, short stories, opinion pieces, and more.
Contraindications
We have two criminal justice systems. One under-incarcerates white, wealthy males and sports heroes who steal, cheat or take drugs. Some are never arraigned, nor convicted, or spend easy time...
Jail or College?
Congressman Paul Ryan and his conservative colleagues want to reduce government spending on “entitlement” programs and curb the cost and impact of government in general. But I believe that with...
The Future of Vermont Public Television
Don’t look back… except to learn from past mistakes and make change. Look ahead, and welcome new opportunities. In the ‘80s, when cable and satellite opened unlimited channels to the...
Trigger Warnings
When I first heard the term “trigger warning,” I imagined Roy Rogers leaning down and whispering something to his horse but I’ve come to understand that the concept is something...
Talk with Affordable Housing Convention – July 14, 2014
Our state’s prescient motto, “Freedom and Unity” sums up the fragile equilibrium between the independent rights accorded to each of us to provide for ourselves and our families and our...
Keynote Champlain Valley National Heritage Partnership
My first exposure to the idea that Burlington’s shoreline had any other significance than as a large body of water was when I was 15 and my mother gave me...
It’s Time to Update Vermont School Governance
Sixty years ago, our family drove to Burlington two or three times a year. This was before the interstate, car culture, and paved roads wove Vermont together into a rural...
The Social Safety Net We Can Never Afford
We’re putting our future at risk. The current political stasis that ignores the needs of so many Americans and immigrants and refuses to fix broken systems is creating a new...
Bullying and the NRA
Earlier this summer, Americans reacted with outrage to a video of bullying on a school bus in which several teens unleashed a barrage of invective against the older woman serving...
School & Municipal Leadership Conference Aug., 14, 2014
Good morning. I’m here because I served on the Blue Ribbon Legislative Tax Commission several years back. I now know that “Blue Ribbon” means thank you for your service, we’ll...
Will Free-market Capitalism Survive our Abuse of It?
There’s some discussion these days about the survival of free-market capitalism. Conservatives believe it suffers from too much regulation and taxation, while liberals believe it needs more of both. Conservatives...
