I’ll never forget the first time my parents came to visit us, twenty-somethings with a new baby, on our newly purchased property in the Champlain Valley. They pulled into our dirt driveway, just as our neighbor was herding his Holsteins to summer pasture beyond our land. Surrounded by dozens of cows, they were surprised and stalled as the animals moseyed through. But this was still farm country, after all and dairy was king. Thirty five years later the valley is still farming – but now it’s for

On July 1, Vermont became the fourth State to fund pre-Kindergarten for all its 3 and 4 year old children. It’s a good first step and speaks to an important need. According to Governor Shumlin, for 70% of the children in Vermont under the age of 6, both parents are in the labor force.

In 1930 in Marion, Indiana, two lifeless black bodies in ragged and tattered clothes hung from separate tree branches, their faces and bodies beaten and bloody. Below them, a separate crowd of well-dressed white men and women stood smiling and looking at the corpses. Not one person had an expression of sorrow or remorse – not a single hint of regret.

In a world that seems to be filled with so much hatred and animosity, it may seem strange to talk about happiness. But connecting with the simple goodness in life restores me and reminds me of what I value.

In June, the Supreme Court decided Utah v. Strieff, a case that questioned whether evidence found after an unconstitutional search could still be admitted in court. The case briefly made news, due to a powerful dissent from Justice Sotomayor, but then dropped off the radar as the Court released its affirmative action and abortion decisions.

When Phil Hoff was elected Vermont governor in 1962, it was commonly said that a Democrat didn’t win; the Republican lost. Two years later, something similar happened when Barry Goldwater was the controversial and unpopular Republican presidential nominee.

The American Promise isn’t dead. But it’s not what it used to be.

As we anguish over recent events in Baton Rouge, Falcon Heights, and Dallas, let me be blunt: The prospect of violence against people of color by law enforcement looms ever present – even in Vermont. Now is not a time to anguish, but to act.

When I was sixteen, I stuffed myself in a car with 14 friends to go for ice cream. When we were stopped by the police, half of us had to get out just to roll down the window.

The election is still months away and unpredictable, making it presumptuous to talk about Bill Clinton coming back to the White House. But if that happened, it would be another fascinating aspect of gender-making history. America would join other places where the chief executive also is or has been a married woman including the United Kingdom, Germany and Vermont.