Editorial: $1.50 buys $25,000 in value!

Inside today’s Addison Independent, readers will find a four-page EXTRA section announcing the launch of The Addy All-Stars. It’s a term recognizing Addy Indy readers who choose to donate in addition to the cost of a yearly subscription.

This Town Meeting, passing school budgets will be no sure thing. That’s largely because tax rates are set to increase by double-digits, even if school budgets are held to rational increases. 

It’s not often any town’s taxpayers get such good news. But that happened recently when the Middlebury selectboard learned the proposed $16.4 million rebuild of Middlebury’s Ilsley Library might be accomplished with a $4.5 million bond vote.

This classic Nordic ski event, with a legacy dating back to the 1970s, was founded by the late Blueberry Hill Inn owner Tony Clark as an opportunity to have fun on the snow with “guaranteed jumps, spills, singletrack challenges, agility obstacles, and may … (read more)

Are the far-right MAGA Republicans in the House, which supposedly make up a minority and includes House Speaker Mike Johnson, intent on helping Russian President Vladimir Putin overrun and occupy Ukraine?

A federal appeals court held Tuesday that the country should be governed as a nation based on laws, rather than governed by the dictatorial whims of an all-powerful ruler.

As Addison County residents review the upcoming school and town budgets ahead of March’s Town Meeting Day votes, we encourage everyone to spend a few extra hours studying the proposals.

Misinformation and its close cousin, disinformation, were recently ranked the top short-term risk (defined as the next two years) facing the world in the World Economic Forum’s Global Risks 2024 report.

From a contrarian’ perspective, Trump’s 51% blowout of Gov. Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy and others still suggests there were almost 48 percent of Republicans who preferred someone other than Trump.

We don’t want to say it’s part of the new normal, whatever that might mean, but it’s no coincidence that these freakish storms are related to higher-than-normal global temperatures with a climate changing faster than anticipated.

As we enter the New Year, the weather is on our minds partly because it has been so unusually warm and snowless; but more to the point it’s how that changing weather impacts our lives.

In his column today, Middlebury College Professor Hector Vila writes a probing piece about how the humanities might be an antidote to the anxieties of today’s era; how love and the concern for each other might counter our society’s obsession with the ills … (read more)

As this calendar year draws to a close, the sense of renewal and rejuvenation, of starting with a fresh slate has a strong cultural pull.

The downtown was packed with college students getting Middlebury Money and spending it in local stores; most of the downtown’s businesses were open until 8 or past, and many were serving free cookies and various beverages.

As the Middlebury Snowbowl prepares for opening day this Saturday, Dec. 9, loyal skiers and riders are excited to take advantage of several new amenities.