When we hear something terrible has happened to someone we know, we are concerned for them. We are worried.  We want to help. 

And let’s face it, we are also concerned that something like that might happen to US.  

Our self-concern often takes the form of a list: “All the reasons this won’t happen to me.” 

The House Commerce and Economic Development Committee took up H.366., An act relating to promoting economic opportunity for BIPOC-owned businesses. The bill is short; the meat of which reads:

“The Department of Economic Development shall design and implement the Black, Indigenous, and Persons of Color (BIPOC) Business Development Program, the purposes of which are: (1) to provide BIPOC-owned businesses with technical assistance, including financial literacy, digital literacy, and marketing; (2) to promote State and federal contract bid opportunities to BIPOC owned businesses; and (3) to provide training to business technical assistance providers to reduce bias in service delivery.

For five years now the climate change movement couldn’t get a vote on a politically dangerous carbon tax to reduce fossil fuel consumption, and produce millions of dollars to finance climate-worthy investments like home weatherization.  Now they’re trying push through a $1.3 billion over ten years “Thermal Energy Efficiency Charge”, formerly known as a tax. It will be levied not by accountable legislators, but unconstitutionally by the “unaccountable strangers” at the Public Utility Commission.

During the Town Meeting Week break for the legislature, the Ethan Allen Institute commissioned a scientific poll (450 respondents) to gage where Vermonters are on some of the key issues under consideration.

Back in 2005 Congress enacted and President Bush signed the “Protection of Lawful Commerce in Firearms Act”. The act was prompted by an effort by a anti-Second Amendment groups to hold firearms manufacturers. distributors and retailers legally liable for crimes committed by persons using a firearm.

On February 20 President Biden did something above and beyond his month long campaign to reward and placate the various groups that brought about his election.

There is a proposal making its way through the Vermont House of Representatives to expand Vermont’s bottle deposit law. The bill would double the cost of a standard bottle deposit from 5 cents to 10 cents, and it would apply the deposit to “water bottles, wine bottles and containers for all noncarbonated and carbonated drinks, except for milk, rice milk, soy milk, almond milk, hemp seed milk, and dairy products.” It would also create a 15 cent deposit requirement for liquor bottles.

Yes, the same legislature that spent that last several years legalizing recreational marijuana in Vermont is debating banning flavored vaping products and menthol flavored cigarettes. Sorry, but this is just stupid.