Welcome to the Op-Ed Section

Ready to Write a “Letter to the Editors”?

E-mail or use our form at “Contact Us,” in the horizontal menu, top of the page on the right.  Either will do the trick.

We welcome your questions, opinions, additional information or corrections to our articles, suggestions for issues to cover or sections to add.

Read More

Op Ed:  Out of the wild, into our hands


June 27, 2008
by Terry Michelotti

I was very happy to read the article about the rescued baby fawn at Bell School the other day. I really commend the New Castle Police Department for their quick response and caring efforts. I also would like to say thank you to the school nurse for her help. 

Read More

Op-Ed:  Tim Russert

June 20, 2008
by Warren Gottlieb

Tim Russert, the beloved moderator of “Meet the Press” and Washington bureau chief of NBC News, died suddenly of a heart attack at age 58 this past week. He was one of my heroes.

Read More

Op-ed: Schedule change, maybe not so bad

May 30, 2008
by Zach Schonfeld

There has been no shortage of criticism concerning the imminent Greeley schedule change, which looms on the horizon like some loose storm of dreaded proportions.

Read More

Op-ed: The joys of the New Castle10K run

May 23, 2008
by Andy Sparks

I’ve just run up and down the hills on Hardscrabble Road.

Read More

Op-Ed: “We’re Not Moving” Party


by Mark S. Tulis
April 18, 2008

Recently we had a party at our home to celebrate the fact that, after living in New Castle for 30 years, my wife Elaine and I are not moving away even though our youngest child is about to graduate from Greeley. The reason we are not moving is because our love for the town has not changed in those 30 years and we believe our connection with the town does not end with our youngest going off to college. 

Read More

Op Ed: “Warlike Activity”


March 28, 2008
by Christine Yeres

My 16-year-old son continued to use his cell phone, band aided with silver duct tape to match, until the hinge between the hearing and talking parts completely gave out. 

Read More

Op Ed: What’s the worst that can happen? Well, someone could die

February 15, 2008
by Susie Pender

She only got one wrong, out of the 20 questions on the New York State written driver’s test. And they don’t tell you which one, just hand over the learner’s permit with a smile and quick congratulations. Odd that. Shouldn’t they make sure she knows the right answer? 

Read More

Op-Ed: Barack Obama can inspire and motivate people to work together

February 15, 2008
by Rose Cohen

Barack Obama first won me over at Washington Square where, like all his listeners, I was transported to a better place. 

Read More

Op-Ed: Economic stimulus package amounts to “bread & circuses”

February 8, 2008
by George Benack

Our country has grown rife with pundits whose jobs depend on portraying simple situations as more complex than they really are. When pressed for straightforward answers like, “Who will pay for and why are we even considering this $150 billion stimulus package?”, they hem and haw or, lacking sensible justification for such an expenditure, tell us it’s too complicated for the average Joe to understand how economies like ours work, that it’s not the same as when a homemaker has to balance the household budget. Truth be told, in many ways it is the same. And that’s part of why we’re in the mess we’re in.

Read More

Op-Ed: Sexual harassment in Westchester

by Lee Seham
February 1, 2008

A few months ago, I filed my first written sexual harassment complaint. Ironic – maybe – for a man who conducts sexual harassment prevention seminars for large and mid-size corporations.

Read More

Op Ed: Shop local, listen local

By Laura Rossi-Ortiz
January 4, 2008

Read More

Op-Ed:  The Little Drummer Boy

By Rich Diefenbach
December 21, 2007

So much is written about the need to help our children find the “true spirit” of Christmas.

Read More

Op-Ed: The late-night ruminations of an apprehensive college applicant

By Gili Kliger
December 7, 2007

I should be working on my college applications right now. I’m sitting at the kitchen table. It’s a Saturday night, mid-November.

Read More

Op Ed: New Castle’s Manhood

By Lee Seham
November 30, 2007

A female client once strenuously objected to my sexist observation that acceding to the other side’s position on a particular issue would leave us “emasculated” in the course of further negotiations. 

Read More

Op Ed:  The Un-Chosen People

By Lee Seham
November 2, 2007
Growing up, some of my best friends were Jewish. Actually, my very best friend – my dad.

Read More

Op-ed: Stuck on the bridge; a plea for better communication


June 27, 2008
by Tom Kasulka

If all goes according to current plans, sometime soon you will drive across our historic Quaker St. Bridge and notice that the canopy of trees lining the gateway to our hamlet being marked for removal. Over the next few weeks you’ll then witness the gathering of cranes, bull dozers and back hoes as construction of a 265-foot-long great wall and new road commence where the trees and a grassy hill once stood. 

Read More

Op-Ed: PTA offers a big “thanks” during Teacher-Staff Appreciation Week


March 9, 2008
by Victoria Tipp

Ask most people why they moved to New Castle and they will tell you that it’s because of the schools and the quality of education their children will receive.

Read More

Op-Ed: Paterson’s governorship seen as an opportunity for change in Albany

April 11, 2008
by Stephanie Grayson

In the wake of the sex scandal involving former governor Eliot Spitzer and the Emperor’s Club VIP, an upscale prostitution ring, attention has turned to his replacement, Governor David Paterson, who was sworn in on March 17. While many see this Albany upheaval as an opportunity for change, others wonder if it will only lead to more of the same.

Read More

Op-Ed: MOMA’s “Design and the Elastic Mind,” a must-see exhibit

April 4, 2008
by John Ehrlich

The Chappaqua Neighbors Club headed to New York City last Friday March 28 to experience “Design and the Elastic Mind,” the Museum of Modern Art’s much-heralded exhibit celebrating “Techno-Art,” which focuses on the interaction between design, science, art and technology. This must-see exhibit displays every day objects as Warhol-like cultural artifacts; presentation graphics as art; and technology as a new form of artist palette for design.

Read More

Op-Ed: Aren’t you the lady with the husband with two wives?

March 7, 2008
by Rosheen Taylor

Well, a funny thing happened a couple of weeks ago. 

Read More

Op Ed..Community supported agriculture yields yummy produce

By Deborah Weiss
November 16, 2007

I love Wednesdays! On this day, from June through December, my neighbor and I make a weekly pilgrimage to our local community supported agriculture site to pick up our produce for the week. 

Read More

Op Ed: Veterans Day should be every day

By Shelby Monroe
November 9, 2007

Read More

Op Ed…. Don’t Stand Idle

By Amy Barone
November 9, 2007

Read More

Op-Ed…New schedule, new math

By George Benack
October 26, 2007
No one should expect that the implementation of a new schedule at Horace Greeley High School will come off without a hitch. 

Read More

OP Ed …The Race Is Still On, but the Competitors Have Changed

By Abe Khan
October 26, 2007
Math and science skills must be nurtured in our children from an early age in order to make a real difference in our future.

Read More

Op - Ed . . . . . . . . . How to make Family Court work more efficiently

By Judge Charles F. Devlin, Westchester Family Court

Read More