Columns | EastBayRI.com - News, Opinion, Things to Do in the East Bay

This portrait of Julia Ward Howe was begun by John Elliott in 1910 and completed by William Henry Cotton in 1925. It hangs in the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.

Julia Ward Howe — author of America’s proud ‘Battle Hymm’

On April 12, 1861, South Carolinians opened fire on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor to begin America’s bloody Civil War and put our Union in peril. Several months later, a Rhode Island woman … more

By Patrick T. Conley | 4/15/25

Reaction to global trade war is mostly breaking along partisan lines

1. STORY OF THE WEEK: Decades after supporters lauded the North American Free Trade Agreement as a way to add American jobs, there’s plenty of criticism of NAFTA from both the left and the … more

4/14/25

For Democrats, it's not too early to start thinking about midterm elections

1. STORY OF THE WEEK: The mid-term elections of 2026 are almost 20 months away -- and that’s an eternity in politics. But after months of soul-searching after the Democrats’ devastating … more

By Ian Donnis | 4/7/25

Questions about the homeless pallets are spot-on

Amazon has a small house for sale, 20’ by 40’, which is larger than the pallets now housing the homeless, with three bedrooms (or choice, like a living room or den if one bedroom is … more

By Arlene Violet, Esq. | 4/2/25

Still waiting for the state's professional cannabis regs

1. STORY OF THE WEEK: Almost three years have passed since Gov. Dan McKee signed adult-use cannabis legalization into law , and the state has yet to open the application process for handing out … more

By Ian Donnis | 3/31/25

Will voters assign bridge blame at the polls?

1. STORY OF THE WEEK: As we roll into the weekend, perhaps you’re savoring the emergence of spring, the arrival of March Madness in Providence, an expected return to form of the Red Sox or any … more

3/24/25

Commentary: '40,000 Headmen'

Originating in the (aptly named) rainforest’s hills, a heavy nighttime downpour sluiced palm fronds, bamboo and other plant life into the sea. In the dawn, coconuts sporting long hairlike … more

By Rick Massie | 3/18/25

Expect R.I.'s 'tax the rich' debate to be heating up soon

1. STORY OF THE WEEK: “Don’t tax you, don’t tax me, tax that fellow behind the tree!” -- the timeless aphorism from the late U.S. Sen. Russell B. Long of Louisiana -- speaks … more

By Ian Donnis | 3/17/25

Keeping close watch on the on-again, off-again tariffs

STORY OF THE WEEK: Tariffs “will always tend to crush the spirit of enterprise and cripple the productive energies of a country.” If that sounds like a gripe from Canadian Prime Minister … more

By Ian Donnis | 3/10/25

AG believes the courts will help balance the power shift in D.C.

Despite the breakneck pace of President Trump and Elon Musk as they try to remake the federal government, Attorney General Peter Neronha said, “I think you can, for the most part, put Humpty Dumpty back together again.” more

By Ian Donnis | 3/3/25

Commentary: Fort Barton School’s closure is devastating for Tiverton

Editor's note: An abridged version of this commentary will be published in the Thursday, March 6 edition of the Sakonnet Times. The decision to close Fort Barton Elementary School in my hometown … more

By Samantha Cookinham | 2/27/25

This 1893 photograph shows the old Little Compton Town Hall/post office building, which burned to the ground, along with other buildings, in a New Year’s Eve fire 108 years ago.

The Town Crier: A look back at Little Compton conflagrations

As Little Compton continues to mark its 350th anniversary this year, here’s a look back on one of Little Compton’s hardest nights: On December 31, 1917, a fire of massive proportions … more

2/26/25

I pledge allegiance to Trump

Nobody would argue that government is not corpulent and needs a diet, which the President is doing. While scholars are focused on whether much of President Donald Trump’s purge of programs and … more

By Arlene Violet, Esq. | 2/18/25

Providence will be Ground Zero for an array of federal cuts

STORY OF THE WEEK: Providence is Rhode Island’s ground zero for an array of possible cuts sparked by the administration of President Donald Trump and his GOP congressional supporters. With … more

By Ian Donnis | 2/18/25

The President's moves incite a range of countermoves

STORY OF THE WEEK: Everyone talks about waste and fraud, but no one does anything about it. That may sum up the view of many, if not most, supporters of President Donald Trump as his administration … more

By Ian Donnis | 2/11/25

Richmond Elwell, Little Compton’s old lamplighter, switches on the lamps on the Common on July 4, 1976.

The Town Crier — lighting the way in Little Compton

The latest in a series of columns by 'The Town Crier,' celebrating Little Compton's 350th anniversary this year: During the nation’s Bicentennial in 1976, Little Compton chose to celebrate … more

2/4/25

Turbulent waves keep rolling out of Washington

Ian Donnis’ Rhode Island politics roundup for Jan. 31, 2025 1. STORY OF THE WEEK: If the past week tells us anything, here are a few starting points: 1) Democratic-leaning states like … more

By Ian Donnis | 2/4/25

Trump comes out swinging, pushes immigration to the forefront

STORY OF THE WEEK: President Trump ’s use of an executive order to try to eliminate birthright citizenship — a right enshrined in the Constitution not long after the Civil War — … more

By Ian Donnis | 1/27/25

Members of the New Bedford Symphony Orchestra play for students at the Wilbur McMahon School in Little Compton.

Commentary: Little Compton non-profit teaches love for the arts

Editor’s note: Neve Carmichael is a student at Tiverton High School, and wrote this article as part of her journalism studies. Music, in one guise or another, permeates through all … more

By Neve Carmichael | 1/22/25

Is Rhode Island's glass half-full, or half-empty?

STORY OF THE WEEK: Gov. Dan McKee had a high-profile platform last Tuesday, using his State of the State speech to assert that Rhode Island is “flipping the script” from some of the less … more

By Ian Donnis | 1/21/25

The ebbs and flows of the local news business

I was a reporter for two years. I was an editor for 14 years. I was a general manager for 12 years. I’ve been a publisher for a week. What’s the difference between the new gig and … more

By Scott M. Pickering | 1/18/25

Sakonnet Light is undeniably beautiful but can be deadly when the weather is in — working there nearly scared the lightkeeper to death in 1917.

Think the weather is cold enough now? Everything is relative

Editor's note: This column is part of a series dedicated to Little Compton's 350th anniversary celebration this year. For more, see the organizing committee's website . Most of us have heard of … more

By The Town Crier | 1/9/25

Column: Action led straight to schools’ lunchrooms

Youth of today are trapped in an unrelenting cycle of despair over the climate crisis. On social media, we’re bombarded with images of natural disasters, rising sea levels, and alarming … more

By Emma Pautz and Bella Quiroa | 1/8/25

A New Year’s resolution for state leaders

Here is a basic New Year’s resolution for state political leaders: “Spend taxpayer money as if it were you own.” Instead, far too many politicians make giddy spending decisions … more

By Arlene Violet | 12/31/24

Little Compton's own Colonel Henry Tillinghast Sisson, memorialized in this statue at the Common, invented the three ring binder.

Town Crier: Did you know these strange Little Compton facts?

In researching for Little Compton's upcoming 350th birthday celebration, I have found a few facts that would probably not fit in a column by themselves, but I found them interesting and fun. So here … more

By The Town Crier | 12/12/24