BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THURSDAY AUG. 18, 2016) — All life is amazingly complex, capable of more awareness and intelligence than people can know. For example, this week, THE PLANET saw three simple yet defining instances. First, in this Floridian summer, have you noticed an unusual number of ants […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY AUG. 17, 2016) — Tricia Farley-Bouvier, from whereof dost thou cometh? This is the question of most everyone outside the Kool-Aid drinkers of the local Democrat Party. They know the answer. THE PLANET, alone among local media, knows as well. Everyone else wonders why TFB […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY Second of Two Parts (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, TUESDAY AUG. 16, 2016) — As promised, THE PLANET presents verse and chapter of the debate we picked with our Right Honorable Good Friend Sweet Pete White on the nature and meaning of “democracy.” Sweet Pete led with his chin […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY First of Two Parts (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, MODAY AUG. 15, 2016) — Last week, the Berkshire Brigades (The BBs), which bills itself as “the countywide Democratic Party Organization” (don’t you love them capitals?) held a pep rally smeared in the gauche lipstick of a “debate.” The disguise […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION AUG. 12-14, 2016) — Going back to our days in talk radio, three topics always light up the lines: trash collection, cable TV service, and parking. Our column yesterday on Pittsfield’s latest attempt to address parking drew an unusually large number […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THURSDAY AUG. 11, 2016) — THE PLANET and Beacon Cinema owner Richard Stanley agree: It’s an incredibly dumb idea to charge for parking in downtown Pittsfield. Stanely has strongly opposed to the idea, although official Pittsfield seems hell bent for leather to implement a consultant’s […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY AUG. 10, 2016) — What was and still is buried in the dirt at the building site of the new Taconic High School? THE PLANET alone has not been afraid to explore, and we have been on top of this story since we first broke […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, TUESDAY AUG. 9, 2016) — The agenda for tonight’s meeting of the Pittsfield City Council exemplifies the preference of Official Pittsfield to keep its citizens in the dark. We can’t get into all of the crawling dishonesties, but three examples should suffice. Point 1 — […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, MONDAY AUG. 8, 2016) — Today THE PLANET dishes up two items of interest, the first local and the second local, regional, national, and international — one that journalists deal consistently. 1. LETTER SUPPORTS CONNELL: ‘NOT A TYPICAL POLITICIAN’ I am writing this letter […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY Last of Three Parts (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION AUG. 5-7, 2016) — In making the selection of Donovan & O’Connor (D&O) city purchasing agent told Darren Lee of the competing firm Courtney, Lee, & Hamel (CL&H) the main reason was D&O’s greater experience with municipal law. Lee […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY Second of Two Parts (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THURSDAY AUG. 4, 2016) — With the simmering controversy in the appointment of legal services not making one column inch of taking up one second of time in the Mainstream Media, it has again fallen on THE PLANET to expose […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY AUG. 3, 2016) — Legal dramas have long been standard fare on prime-time TV, from Perry Mason and The Defenders in the late 50s and early 60s to the contemporary Law and Order. You won’t find Raymond Burr again besting William Tallman in the […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, TUESDAY AUG. 2, 2016) — The state rep’s race in in Pittsfield pits two Democrats —incumbent Tricia Farley-Bouvier and Michael Bloomberg — and and one independent, Chris Connell. The incumbent and Bloomberg square off in September for the right to battle Connell in November. In […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, TUESDAY JULY 12, 2016) — After Mayor Linda Tyer submitted an all-time record high budget for the FY17 fiscal year now well under way, she did not seal the city’s economic fate. Once again, We The People had too few allies in the city council. The […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY !PV COLUMN #1,500! (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION, JULY 29-31, 2016) — The reading public delighted THE PLANET yesterday with its response to our column about the downtown’s painted electrical boxes. It’s our goal every time we write here, donating our talents to discriminating folks so […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THURSDAY JULY 28, 2016) — Over the weekend, one of our posters asked THE PLANET to write again about the painting of electrical boxes downtown. THE PLANET, ever responsive to its readers and viewers, checked out the boxes. If the efforts weren’t so embarrassing, they […]
