
Op-Eds
INDEPENDENCE DAY
Our Founding Documents
Ben Franklin and others admired the founding document that unified the Haudenosaunee peoples (who were called the “Iroquois” by the colonists), which some said had influenced the founding of this […]
WELLFLEET HOUSING AND TAXES
‘Creative Destruction’ Is Tearing the Fabric of Community
The short-term-rental tax should be dedicated to addressing the housing crisis
An article directing Wellfleet to dedicate 80 percent of its rooms tax revenue to affordable housing was narrowly defeated — the vote was 90 to 101 — at this year’s […]
OP-ART
Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over it became a butterfly (after Picasso), drypoint and watercolor.
KEEPING WATCH
The Complexities of Eastham’s Wastewater Problem
Searching for a true community solution
Eastham has not made it easy for residents to vote without reservation for the financing of its Targeted Watershed Management Plan (TWMP). The $170-million cost of the project is an […]
WATERCOLOR
All Your Eggs In My Basket
LONG NIGHT’S END
Brood XIV and Me
The cicadas’ life cycle is a metaphor for resilience
The loveliest thing about periodic cicadas is their red eyes. Their wings are mottled in golden brown, like precious metal, lace over ebony. Certain insects become jewelry: scarab beetles, dragonflies, […]
OP-ART
Not Suckers
ADAPTATION
Resilience Is About More Than Technical Skill
Bridging policy and neighborly presence in Provincetown
In conversations about coastal resilience, we often hear about engineering, infrastructure, and timelines. We rarely hear about the relationships that everything else depends on — the ones between people, between […]
OP-ART
Scientists Invited
ENCROACHMENT
Dishonoring a Provincetown Hero
Douglas Roach’s grave should have been protected
I am grateful to the Provincetown Independent for its coverage of the development of 27 Cemetery Road and the encroachment on the Roach-Watkins family gravesite. It is troublesome not just […]
OP-ART
Be Brave, Don’t Cave
ORGANIZING CHAOS
A Perilous Time for Public Libraries
Local community needs should not fall victim to politics
Libraries organize chaos. So wrote Nancy Kalikow Maxwell in her book, Sacred Stacks: The Higher Purpose of Libraries. And lately, or maybe always, there is plenty of chaos to organize. […]
OPTING IN
A Game-Changer for the Housing Crisis
Towns should adopt the ‘seasonal communities’ designation now
Twenty-five years ago, families who made $60,000 a year could afford to buy a house here. Today, households making less than $300,000 a year struggle to find housing on the […]