Opinions & Essays

Ice Fishing

In addition to my regular columns, I publish opinions and essays elsewhere in the Courant.  Within the last few years, they’ve mostly been lead opinions for the the Sunday Opinion Section. Prior to that, they were part of my regular essays for "Place," the Courant’s special Sunday commenetary section.

Link here to a special collection of four essays that tell the story of the Connecticut Landscape  from the time of the ancient rock to that of our modern exit ramp culture. 

Below is the COMPLETE LIST from November 18, 1996 to January 20, 2013.  For those published later, refer to my curriculum vitae.  Scroll midway down the document. 


34.  Living Sustainably Within Your Watershed: UConn Water Worries (front page editorial on statewide water policy,  (front-page editorial on building a pipeline to Storrs). Hartford Courant, January 20, 2013, p. C1 

33.  Winds of Change?: Powerful Tornadoes Nothing New — But Frequency, Ferocity in Keeping with a Warmer World. (front page editorial on the killer tornadoes of June, 2011). Hartford Courant, June 5, 2011.

32.  Spring Melt Pulls Veil from Roadside Trash (on melting snow, spring freshets, and the great oceanic garbage swirls). Hartford Courant, March 21, 2010, p.

31.  What makes Waterfalls from the Rocks? (on the origin of roadcut-clinging icings) Hartford Courant, February 21, 2010, p. C XX.

30.  A State By Geological Consent (on the origin of Connecticut). Hartford Courant, March 22, 2009, p, C5.

29.  Holding Nature in Trust (On the necessity of land trusts) Hartford Courant, May 6, 2007, p. C4.

28.  Red Brick UConn Campus No Place for Metal Monstrosity (on Frank Gehry’s anti-natural architectural proposal). Hartford Courant, November 19, 2006, p. C5 (Place).

27.  Rocky Reckoning (on the cultural meaning of three terms: rock, stone, and boulder). Hartford Courant, February 26, 2006, p. C5.

26.  Harvest the Galapagos for Sneakers? (on anti-environmental merchandising).   Hartford Courant, January 1, 2006, p. C5.

25.  A Reverence for Stone: Why Rock Walls Surround the Sacred Ground of New England Cemeteries. Hartford Courant, October 23, 2005, p. C4.

24.  New Orleans Can’t Stand in Nature’s Way, Hartford Courant, September 4, 2005, p. C1.

23.  There’s No Place Like Home  (Commentary on Southern New England’s limited exposure to natural hazards). Hartford Courant, April 24, 2005, p. C5.

22.  Natural Landing. Hartford Courant, December 12, 2004, p. C5 (Commentary on The Wright Brother’s 101st aniversary and Bradley Airport).

21.  All that’s left is the name: Without it’s stone wall, "Fieldstone Commons" is nothing of the sort. Hartford Courant, December 19, 2004, p. C6.

20.  Red Sox Nation’s Rock-Solid Foundation (on the unifying force of regional geology).   Hartford Courant, October 31, 2004, p. C5.

19.  Students like Safdie (commentary on architectural plans for science center). Hartford Courant, September 23, 2004, p.A13

18.  Focus on the River (on architectural plans for the Connecticut Science Center).   Hartford Courant, Sunday Sept 12, 2004, p. C7.

17.  Exit Ramp Culture (Connecticut History Part IV; on mall over develeopment)   Hartford Courant, September 12, 2004.

16.  Wetlands on Trial (on the challenge facing town conservation commissions). Hartford Courant, May 2, 2004, p. C4.

15.  Thin Blue Line: A Danger for Drinking WaterHartford Courant, April 11, 2004, p. C5 (Place).

14.  The Sand TrapHartford Courant, January 18, 2004, p. C4.

13.  Losing Ground (Connecticut History part III, on postglacial soils and their conversion) Hartford Courant, November 9, 2003 .

12.  Jailhouse Rock: The symbol of pilgrim freedom shouldn’t be behind bars (On Plymoth Rock). Hartford Courant, September 23, 2003, p. C4.

11.  Connecticut’s Glacial Gifts (Connecticut History, part II, on glacial geology).   Hartford Courant, Sunday, August 31, 2003, p. C4.

10.  The Tides of Time; No longer a commodity, whales are still precious (on whale beachings and community response).   Hartford Courant, Sunday, August 24, 2003, p. C5.

9.  Cheshire’s Dark Underworld (on abandoned mining landscapes). Hartford Courant, Sunday, July 13, 2003, p. C3.

8.  Cat Tales: Tracking the Elusive Evidence of Cougars in Connecticut.  Hartford Courant Sunday, June 15, 2003, p. C5.

7.  Making Connecticut, the Primal State of Architecture (Connecticut History, Part I, Bedrock Geology) Hartford Courant, June 8, 2003, p. C4.

6.  Riverfront Reconsidered (on Hartford’s Riverside threat by flooding).   Hartford Courant, Sunday, March 9, 2003, p. C5.

5.  Monitor Development (on big issues for state development). Hartford Courant, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2003.

4.  These Stones Belong to You and Me (on conserving stone walls). The Hartford Courant, Feature editorial for Sunday, December 1, 2002, p. C1.

3.  Diamonds are Forever–Unfortunately (on converting dead bodies of pets into keepsake diamonds).  Hartford Courant, Sunday, Sept 1, 2002.

2.  Yucca Mountain is not Yuck a Mountain (on Nuclear Waste Disposal).   Hartford Courant, August, 2002.

1.  A detective discovers our shifting sands (on winter sanding and mining of aquifers).   Hartford Courant, Monday Feb. 12, 2001, p. A11.


Photo:  Minnesota ice fisherman. I forgot which of my friends sent this photo. The question of why people do this for fun is a typical inspiration for an essay.