Comment on How lawmakers who don’t belong to a party see their role in Maine’s new Legislature

Palm Beach County Commissioner Michael Barnett said he lost his brother. Through tears, Commissioner Sara Baxter revealed she has lost not one, but two sisters. Commissioner Gregg Weiss divulged that he, too, lost a brother. All had been victims of the opioid crisis. “It’s an insidious disease,” Weiss said at a meeting. Palm Beach County commissioners recently shared stories about their own loved ones — a strong reminder of the impact of addiction — as they looked ahead toward helping others. The candid conversations came after an advisory committee in Palm Beach County brought forth recommendations on how to spend about $122 million in opioid lawsuit settlement funds rolling into the county over the next 18 years. Palm Beach and Broward counties are among the many local governments across the U.

Dear Amy: My aunt has fallen on hard financial times and has begun leaning on me. Although she has a daughter, two stepsons, a nephew, and the biological father of the granddaughter she is raising, I’m the only one willing to help. Others are quite able but unwilling due to choosing not to work, refusing to pay child support, or falling out over the years. I have agreed to directly deposit a certain amount of money into her account every month, but she consistently asks for more. I’ve suggested she reach out to the others instead of solely relying on me, but she appears to make little effort. I am giving her what I can without wrecking my own financial plans. Do you have any suggestions about how to say “No” to further requests without seeming heartless? I’m finding it difficult to refuse, but I’m feeling angry and taken advantage of, not only by my aunt, but by the others standing by and not helping. — Nurturing Niece Dear Niece: I assume that your concern about the child your aunt is raising is an important part of your motivation to extend ongoing generosity.

By WAFAA SHURAFA and SAMY MAGDY (Associated Press) DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — At least 274 Palestinians were killed and hundreds more were wounded in the Israeli raid that rescued four hostages held by Hamas, Gaza’s Health Ministry said Sunday. The military said its forces came under heavy fire during the complex daytime operation deep inside the territory. The killing of so many Palestinians, including women and children, in a raid that Israelis celebrated as a stunning success because all four hostages were rescued alive, showed the heavy cost of such operations on top of the already soaring toll of the 8-month-long war ignited by Hamas’ Oct.

Q: We’ve been hearing lots of Jimmy Butler trade rumors and lots of contract-extension rumors, but I’ve yet to hear anything about how Jimmy’s injured knee rehab is coming along. With the Celtics waltzing through the injury-riddled Eastern Conference to the NBA Finals, I would like nothing better than to see a “Celtic nightmare” Jimmy Butler revenge tour (with the Miami Heat) next season.  – Greg, Jacksonville. A: Jimmy Butler’s knee injury never was considered a long-term issue, with plans, in fact, to have returned had the Heat made a deeper playoff run.

With climate in the news, Democrats have revived an old narrative that Republicans will have nothing to do with helping the environment. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. I serve as chair of the Natural Resources Committee in the Florida Senate, and I represent a vulnerable coastal district, spanning the Florida Keys and the southernmost part of the peninsula.

Free Charley Pell. Clear his name. Give him his reputation and Southeastern Conference title back. He went to his grave 23 years ago still known as one of college football’s most notorious cheaters, but now we know he wasn’t cheating at all; he was simply ahead of his time. “Charley came along about 40 years too soon,” his longtime wife Ward told me the other day from her home in Alabama.