Dana Wormald

Editor at New Hampshire Bulletin

Editor-in-chief, New Hampshire Bulletin (@NHBulletinNews). Formerly: @ConMonitorNews and @UnionLeader. (He/him)

Articles

Because of suspicious minds, New Hampshire communities are caught in a trap

1 week ago | newhampshirebulletin.com | Dana Wormald

Even in my most generous moments, I struggle to find benevolence in the American right’s various pursuits. I can hear the response on the left as I write: That’s because there is none. But I’d rather not move through my days believing tens of millions of Americans are actively wishing harm on their neighbors.
Maybe some New Hampshire Republicans just need to do a little more reading

2 weeks ago | newhampshirebulletin.com | Dana Wormald

I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about why Democratic politicians struggle so much to connect with working-class voters. That’s for the party leaders and candidates to figure out.
It could be that some New Hampshire Republicans just need to do a little more reading

2 weeks ago | yahoo.com | Dana Wormald

"The far right now dominating the American Republican Party is selling an idea of liberty that in practice amounts to unfettered freedom but only for the like-minded." (Getty Images)I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about why Democratic politicians struggle so much to connect with working-class voters. That’s for the party leaders and candidates to figure out.
Maybe memory is to blame for the public education divide in New Hampshire

3 weeks ago | newhampshirebulletin.com | Dana Wormald

Even now, amid all of this, I believe people generally have good intentions. I can see the power grabs and veiled malevolence that have always been there, rising through the years with different faces and forms, but the perception of a broader shift toward darkness seems to be based on a couple of behavioral factors: Just about everybody wishes themself well, but the desire to extend that wish to others varies greatly; and just about everybody is afraid, but not of the same things.
To understand today’s New Hampshire Legislature, consider the paint can bill

1 month ago | newhampshirebulletin.com | Dana Wormald

If nothing else, modern American politics has taught us that ideologues are often good at wooing the people but they always stink at serving them. And that truism is on full display at the state level, too. Consider, for example, the saga of New Hampshire’s paint can bill. Our state Legislature isn’t exactly known for an abundance of impactful, no-brainer bills, but House Bill 451 is one of them.
To understand today’s New Hampshire Legislature, consider the paint can bill

1 month ago | yahoo.com | Dana Wormald

"Our state Legislature isn’t exactly known for an abundance of impactful, no-brainer bills, but House Bill 451 is one of them." (Getty Images)If nothing else, modern American politics has taught us that ideologues are often good at wooing the people but they always stink at serving them. And that truism is on full display at the state level, too. Consider, for example, the saga of New Hampshire’s paint can bill.
How to navigate New Hampshire in America’s callous age

1 month ago | newhampshirebulletin.com | Dana Wormald

Talk to someone working in the service industry, or education, or any public-facing position, and you’re likely to hear story after story of callousness. That’s not to say everyday kindness has disappeared altogether, but it is being overwhelmed by its opposites. And because we create our politics and not the other way around, nobody should be surprised by the state of things.
Why the focus on ‘divisive concepts’ in New Hampshire? Why the attacks on diversity programs?

1 month ago | newhampshirebulletin.com | Dana Wormald

Years ago, when I worked as a newspaper opinion editor, a conservative reader sent a letter to argue that 21st-century America was a post-racial society. I don’t recall the details of his email except that his case was built around individual accomplishment, particularly the success of Black entertainers (including Bill Cosby) and the election and reelection of President Barack Obama.
Where does New Hampshire get all of its not-so-great ideas? • New Hampshire Bulletin

1 month ago | newhampshirebulletin.com | Dana Wormald

As Gov. Kelly Ayotte, President Donald Trump, and legislative and congressional Republicans continue to shape their marketing campaign for selling reductions in critical public services and programs as “reasonable adjustments” to spending, it’s important to keep up with your reading.
A New Hampshire budget mess. Chaos in Washington. These are promises made, promises kept.

1 month ago | newhampshirebulletin.com | Dana Wormald

What could be more Republican than the two-year state budget under construction in Concord? Revenue is down, in part because the GOP keeps cutting and repealing taxes to help out corporations and the wealthy, and meanwhile hundreds of state positions are being cut, critical agencies eliminated, and spending on public services slashed. But guess what’s expanding?