Recent Joe Konopka Columns

Joe Konopka

Network news let down public in Trayvon Martin case

Joe Konopka | Sunday, May 20, 2012

Several weeks ago, I watched Manchester demonstrators on Channel 9 with disbelief. They waved signs demanding justice for Trayvon Martin’s Feb. 26 death. Why? Not …

Joe Konopka

Old Yankee perseverance seems in short supply today

Joe Konopka | Sunday, April 15, 2012

Occasionally, I’m prone to gazing at the old stone walls that enclose three sides of my property. It’s hard not to be impressed by the …

Voter apathy the fuel that drives deceptive political ads

Joe Konopka | Sunday, March 18, 2012

Should political advertisements be held to the same standards as commercial product ads? At the launch of the Republican primary election, a Litchfield woman suggested …

Joe Konopka

Bad back incident conjures up some painful memories

Joe Konopka | Sunday, February 19, 2012

So there I was, flat on my back, unable to move without sending sudden jolts of pain from my elbows to my knees. Lying there …

Joe Konopka

Christmas shooting certain to whip up anti-gun hysteria

Joe Konopka | Sunday, January 15, 2012

On Christmas Day, 24-year-old Dover resident Jessica Rivera-Padilla called 911. Her boyfriend had been shot. Police arrested Rivera-Padilla on the charge of manslaughter. …

Joe Konopka

Ayotte has right idea with her baseline budgeting bill

Joe Konopka | Sunday, December 18, 2011

U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte has given New Hampshire taxpayers a Christmas present. …

Joe Konopka

Presidential debates can tell you lot about a candidate

Joe Konopka | Sunday, November 20, 2011

As Newt Gingrich sets up a new headquarters in Manchester, his rising popularity confirms that those who complain that too many Republican primary debates were …

Joe Konopka

Feeling a bit nostalgic for school days of yesteryear

Joe Konopka | Sunday, September 18, 2011

September is a somber month for me. It summons memories of that era of promise in which I was raised. Back then, September dropped the …

Joe Konopka

Much has changed in 27 years – and not for the better

Joe Konopka | Sunday, August 21, 2011

Whatever happened to my world? When I came back to New Hampshire in the early 1980s, everything held such promise. I landed a decent job, …

Crack down on litterbugs by publishing their names

Joe Konopka | Sunday, July 17, 2011

Have you noticed what’s happening? People are desecrating New Hampshire’s landscapes. I’m talking about trash and the way people toss it with no regard to …

No Labels vs. tea party movement? No contest

Joe Konopka | Sunday, June 19, 2011

Which makes more sense, the political objective of the No Labels group or that of the tea party? The comparison may seem uncomplicated, but beware …

Joe Konopka

Disenfranchisement claims bogus on voter ID bill

Joe Konopka | Sunday, May 22, 2011

When I dropped into Hudson’s old Lions Hall to vote this past March, I was again struck by the ease with which the process takes …