Next week, famed mountaineer Ed Webster comes to Skidompha Library in Damariscotta for a talk and book signing. The amiable Webster will discuss his five years in Tibet and highlight his pioneering of a never-before-climbed route up Mt. Everest.

To read the national headlines, it seems 2009 could be the year that the newspaper industry goes the way of the Dodo.

However, now would be the time for us to raise a shaky finger and say something like, in our best Monty Pythonesque voice, “But we’re not dead yet.”

It’s hard to tell how fitting it is that we lose two local icons within days of each other this past week, but our losses are certainly in keeping with the tone of the current times.

I want to take the time to thank Barb Bowers, the Board of the Lincoln Theater and those that generously contributed in order to bring the Metropolitan Opera Live in HD to Damariscotta.

We citizens of Wiscasset have tried the town manager form of government for half a decade.

As a taxpayer, I think we voters should go back to a three person select board comprised of people who comprehend the particulars of an historical coastal town intersected by major arterial routes.

Hagar Enterprises Inc. would like to thank the plowing crew of John Prior Inc., for their help with the storm of Feb. 23-24. During this storm a tree fell down blocking the Lessner Rd. at the Biscay Rd. end. John and his drew offered to plow Lessner Rd. for us until the tree could be cleared away and the road opened.

In the last week or so I have come across a true life incident right here in Lincoln County that illustrates the absurdity of our current health insurance system.

I guess I should take my own advice, and be more vigilant.

It seems the Village Center Ordinance change I have been arguing against is on the Annual Town Meeting Warrant after all. It was part of the Shoreland Zoning Ordinance amendments that the selectmen put off.

To the Editor:

A thought: It is well enough that people of the nation…

Over the years, I have written many articles on the drug companies and their insatiable greed manifested at the expense of we consumers.

To the Editor:

It may interest your readers that in 2008 the Midcoast Green Collaborative conducted 90 home energy audits.

Puppies are so sweet and so cute. Puppies grow up, and all too often, for whatever reason, so many dogs are living their lives day after day tied outdoors. Some people would say, “It’s the family pet!”

To the Editor:

On Jan. 31, 70 adults and kids spent the afternoon sledding, snow shoeing and making snowmen and s’mores to raise much-needed funds for fuel assistance.

Lincoln County has one of the highest rates of underage drinking in Maine. Consequently, many parents are looking for ways to reduce underage access to alcohol. One of the easiest ways to do this is to keep track of the alcohol in your own home. If it’s been depleted or is kept in a conspicuous place, it may be leading to consumption by your teen.