BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY ED NOTE: Nominees for The Coveted Orbit Award have been arriving. The list thus far includes Mark and Lisa Tully, PLANET correspondent The City I Hate, city councilor Chris Connell, PLANETeer Jonathan Mele, Mary Jane and Joe Kapanski, and Merry & Bright, another PLANETeer. Do you have […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY [Ed Note: THE PLANET is accepting nominees for out coveted Orbit Award. We shall make the announcement of our winner before Christmas. Last year, Charles Garivaltis took honors. Who will it be this time?] (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION DEC. 3-5, 2021) — THE PLANET concludes […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY Second of Two Parts (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY DEC. 1, 2021) — Getting all December on you, THE PLANET wraps up this two-part series on words by taking up our next one. And the words is … Democracy. A couple of quick hits. In Word Association, the […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY ADD 1 MONDAY AFTERNOON — “Ding dong, the wic … ” Oops. Forgive us. (PLANET ASSUMES A ‘WALTER CRONKITE” GRAVITY): THE PLANET has received word that Deanna Ruffer will resign as Community Development director in early to mid-February. From the mayor: “Over the next month or so, […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE BLACK FRIDAY WEEKEND EDITION, NOV. 26-8, 2021) — This weekend, our focus is on you. THE PLANET, and THE PLANET alone, affords its readers instant feedback opportunities in real time on the stories we post — and also on other issues and matters […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY [ED. NOTE: In the following column, THE PLANET uses aliases for the actual names of the students involved. We do have the identities of these students, but we have decided to withhold them]. ———- ooo ———- (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY NOV. 24, 2021) — Clearly, SOMETHING happened […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, MONDAY NOV. 22, 2021) — Fifty-eight years ago today, 12:31 p.m. Central time, Dallas, Texas … THE PLANET need not say another word. Those who were old enough to remember can never forget. We take a moment. ———- ooo ———- Since THE PLANET previous post […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY ADD 1 EVENING NOV. 19, 2021 — THE PLANET here, reporting that we have continued to investigate the Richmond Consolidated School firestorm. We have gathered new information with a direct bearing on all that we have reported thus far. We hope to share this new information on […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY NOV. 16, 2021) — Recently, while back in the Berkshires, business took THE PLANET to Tyler Street. We hazarded the journey only after having filed for combat pay and venturing in with a full pack. Our words shall be brief, choosing to let […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, MONDAY NOV. 15, 2021) — Our recent two-part series drew lots of comment and opened a lot of eyes about the current state of the Pittsfield public schools. We received two letters not posted on THE PLANET but sent privately — freely, unsolicited, and […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OS SOLITUDE, VETERAN’S DAY WEEKEND EDITION, 2021) — THE PLANET is pleased to present this guest column by a former Pittsfield resident who now lives in France. If affords a look at a cemetery that honors the dead from World War I, located in Suresnes, France. […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS ANS COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY NOV. 10, 2021) — THE PLANET has heard from exactly no members of the Pittsfield school administration, no members of the school committee, or no new members just elected following Part 1 of this series pulling back the curtain on what passes these […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY [ED. NOTE: THE PLANET encourages any and all members of the PSD administration, any and all members of the Pittsfield school committee, and and all public schools staff, any and all students, any and all parents plus — of course — any and all readers to comment. […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION NOV. 5-7, 2021) — The Loon Left just sank the Biden agenda. America should be grateful. Voters just gave a body blow to the extremists on the left, who call themselves “progressive.” Our guess is that “liberal” just isn’t left enough […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY NOV. 3, 2021) — The big news from yesterday’s election came in Ward 2, where independent challenger Charles Kronick, championed by THE PLANET, shocked the Machine-backed candidate by 60-40, in short, a landslide. This results can be read as a mini-referendum on the […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY THE PLANET received this letter late, past “going to press.” Nonetheless, we want to share it with the citizenry in the hopes it will turn out more to the polls citywide but especially in Ward 2. FROM CHARLES IVAR KRONICK: My wife, Ann, wants me to post […]
