Greenfield, MA | FrogenYozurt.Com - Online Literature Magazine

Cheers, Ben S. Clarke, For An Enjoyable Cliff Claven Performance

On March 13, 2011, in Greenfield, MA, Politics in Greenfield, Massachusetts, by Editor

It seems that Ben S. Clarke, a regular contributor to the Greenfield, Massachusetts newspaper – The Recorder, is still on the search of his own identity. He started off as a Washington-DC-based speech writer, but after George 43 there was no more job for him. Once back in his home town he started off as a Rush-Limbaugh-wannabe.

Greenfield, Massachusetts – Store Opponents’ Arguments Come Up Short

On March 13, 2011, in Greenfield, MA, Politics in Greenfield, Massachusetts, by Editor

Greenfield was first approached with a 165,000-square-foot building to house Store X. It has been reduced to 135,000 square feet. We have been warned by Group Y that the traffic will be horrendous. Instead of people traveling out of town, they may choose to stay in town and travel down High or Federal streets. Now, if I understand this correctly, if the building is reduced to 80,000 square feet, the traffic will lessen because … I’m still not sure of the thinking. If the bottom line is because Store X will not be able to carry enough goods to satisfy customers, who exactly is Group Y trying to help?

Greenfield, Massachusetts: A Frustrated Al Norman Defeated

On March 6, 2011, in Greenfield, MA, Politics in Greenfield, Massachusetts, by Editor

Al Norman, a Greenfield resident, nationally known as a consultant against Walmart, is in a serious predicament. He fights Walmart on a national basis, yet the majority of residents in his hometown has voted for a discount department store development by a margin of roughly 2:1. Imagine the blow to his reputation in case the project prevails.

On Martin Luther King Day An Open Letter To Tim Grant

On March 1, 2011, in Greenfield, MA, Politics in Greenfield, Massachusetts, by Editor

What separates immigrants, applying for citizenship, from born Americans is simple: They need to apply for the privilege of American citizenship, and they are undergoing a process during which they have to prove that they are worthy of being an American. They need to know – and understand – the American constitution especially the aspects that make this country so great.

The Greenfield Recorder and the Racial Slurs

On March 1, 2011, in Greenfield, MA, Politics in Greenfield, Massachusetts, by Editor

Our local newspaper, the Recorder, serving the people of Franklin County and the North Quabbin Region, seems to be undergoing a shift toward supporting extreme right-wing views, which includes, but is not limited to the publication of borderline racial slurs.

How A "Big Box Store" Will Destroy Downtown Greenfield, Massachusetts

On March 1, 2011, in Greenfield, MA, The C.A.V.E. people of Greenfield, Massachusetts, by Editor

Honestly, I am sick and tired of the misleading comments regarding the impact of a potential large retail store on downtown Greenfield, Massachusetts. Today’s Recorder – who seems to allow more opponents than proponents to comment lately – shows another “My Turn” article written by Hazel Dawkins, another misguided Al-Norman-Worshipper.

The Coming Of Spring In New England

On February 27, 2011, in Current Readings, Life in New England, by Editor

It is unfortunate that both, the Farmer’s Almanac and the groundhog, were wrong about a mild winter and spring luring around the corner. However, being back in the house, pouring a cup of good Shelburne Falls Coffee (my favorite Costa Rican Tarrazu), and reading the March/April edition of Yankee Magazine, I learned that spring in New England is not marked by the calendar

The Red Garden – A Novel About Colonial Massachusetts by Alice Hoffman

On January 20, 2011, in Book Reviews, Life in New England, by Editor

This book of linked stories is a backstage pass to the making of a single town’s legends. We’re there at the fictitious founding of Blackwell, Mass., where a handful of families have trudged west from Boston into the mid-18th-century wilderness. They survive their first winter in the Berkshire mountains off milk stolen from a hibernating bear. Each story brings a new era.

Greenfield, Massachusetts And The Problem With The "Walmart Sprawl-Buster"

On January 7, 2011, in Greenfield, MA, Politics in Greenfield, Massachusetts, by Editor

What caught my attention, though, is what I consider an unbearable level of hypocrisy maintained by the opponents of the “big box store” idea. Their ringleader is the man known as the “sprawl-buster” consultant for those who oppose Walmart nationwide, Mr. Al Norman. (Note: At this time, nobody knows which retail store might come into town, not even the developer of the assigned property, but it might be a Walmart, and this is where the schizophrenia sets in.)

Ben S. Clarke: Shopping And Dining Far Away From Greenfield, Massachusetts

On January 6, 2011, in Greenfield, MA, The C.A.V.E. people of Greenfield, Massachusetts, by Editor

Ben S. Clarke, whenever he writes, successfully manages to offend, in this current case the entire population of Vermont. In the January 5 edition he condemns Vermont for enforcing speed limits (in fact, he complains like a little, spoiled princess), because he got caught, and now he has to pay a $186 speeding ticket. Yes, the laws do apply to everybody, even Ben S. Clarke.