In the bright and shiny future, we all live in cities under giant domes, green and warm all the year round - a sort of Logan’s Run, but without the forced euthanasia. It almost happened in, of all places, in Winooski, an old mill town in northern Vermont. [more inside]
posted by daniel_charms on Oct 6, 2009 - 33 comments

First, there was the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck. Now, everyone's favorite super-premium conglomerate-owned sticking-to-its-righteous-roots ice cream company has transformed "Chubby Hubby" into Hubby Hubby (only in VT, only for September), in support of same sex marriage, which is legal in Vermont as of this month. No word yet whether Iowa-based Winnebago will follow suit with a specially-named RV.
posted by ericbop on Sep 3, 2009 - 46 comments

'Artisanal butters' are favored and appreciated by cooks and gourmands -- especially those crafted by "garage entrepreneurs" from Maine [video]* and Vermont (churned by Diane St. Clair and favored by Thomas Keller at his noted restaurants, The French Laundry and Per Se). Butters from Canada, France, Ireland and elsewhere are also cherished. [more inside]
posted by ericb on Aug 2, 2009 - 36 comments

While many quirky news buffs may be aware of the story of Phineas Gage -- the Vermont railroad foreman who had a three foot iron rod penetrate his skull as the result of an explosion and lived to tell about it -- fewer know that the only known photograph of him was recently discovered. Fewer still know that the identification of that photograph happened via a Flickr comment. (no thanks to you LA Times, previously) [more inside]
posted by jessamyn on Jul 29, 2009 - 77 comments

In the past many folk rightfully pointed out that IHOP (International House of Pancakes) didn't have a restaurant in Vermont. Times have been a changin.' Last month, Vermont became the 50^th and final state to welcome an IHOP. And, being in Vermont, "old fashioned corn syrup," masquerading as true maple syrup didn't make the grade. "The IHOP here is the only one of about 1,400 in the United States, Canada and Mexico to serve real maple syrup." The managers got permission from the company "with a special dispensation" to serve the real stuff. [more inside]
posted by ericb on Apr 23, 2009 - 110 comments

Today, the Vermont Legislature voted to override Gov. Jim Douglas' veto of a bill allowing same sex marriage, making Vermont the 4th state in the nation (and the second state this week) to legalize same sex marriage. Vermont is the first state to do it legislatively; it happened in the other three states via court ruling.
posted by booksherpa on Apr 7, 2009 - 252 comments

Up in Maple country The season is right for making maple syrup. Grades a,b,d; colors are factors. The international market is a factor. Visit lovely Cape Breton. [more inside]
posted by longsleeves on Mar 15, 2009 - 19 comments

Charlotte Dennett who read for the bar in Vermont, is now running for Vermont Attorney General on the Progressive Party ticket. Her platform: Prosecute George Bush for murder. Her choice for chief prosecutor: Vincent Bugliosi. [more inside]
posted by Xurando on Nov 2, 2008 - 62 comments

"The sweet aroma of sap permeating the air, still harkens the arrival of Spring"^* in New England, Canada and other U.S. states. The Eastern Woodland Indians discovered that maple sap cooked over an open fire produces a sweet sugar [video], resulting in maple syrup. Many associate the syrup with Quebec (which produces most of the world's supply) and Vermont where about "one of every four trees...is a maple."^* Vermont even has a "maple cop." He enforces "Vermont's maple regulations for the state Agency of Agriculture, which strictly regulates how Vermont's most famous export is made, marketed and sold."^* [more inside]
posted by ericb on Apr 6, 2008 - 36 comments

The Union is Dissolved! Or, at least it will be, if these unusual allies have their way. While waiting for the results of the Second North American Separatist Convention, you can read up on the separatist groups who attended the first convention last fall.
posted by spaltavian on Oct 4, 2007 - 156 comments

American Elf is a daily diary comic by James Kochalka. The latest strip is always free but the archives are subscription only. He also a musician, his most famous song being Hockey Monkey, and he has number of songs up for free on his site. [via Eddie Campbell who says: "Beginning in 1998 Kochalka took the form of daily strip and imbued it with a life that has been missing from it for a long time. Since then he has made sure his daily round is not finished until a strip is done. Another thing I like about it is the way he carefully avoids any taint of 'continuity'. There is no story here, just the eternal incidentalness of life as it is lived."]
posted by Kattullus on Aug 29, 2007 - 21 comments

The A.K. Miller Auction "This is one of those stories that begins at the end. This was the end of A.K. Miller’s Stutz collection." Miller was a reclusive eccentric living on a ramshackle farm in Vermont. When he and his wife died, his estate was prepared for a tax sale. Sheriffs found a treasure trove of old cars, some wrapped in burlap to avoid prying eyes, stashed in a collection of dilapidated outbuildings. The auction (pdf) was eventually handled by Christie's and netted over two million dollars. [via]
posted by jessamyn on Aug 11, 2007 - 13 comments

13% of Vermont wants to secede, up from 8% last year. Here is their manifesto. Also Texas, Alaska, South Carolina, Hawaii.
posted by MNDZ on Jun 6, 2007 - 82 comments

If the NYTs can publish a one-link "post" to a YouTube video, so can I.
posted by about_time on Jun 1, 2007 - 34 comments

"All Creeds. All Breeds. No Dogmas Allowed." Whether you are a dog person or not, you have probably seen Stephen Huneck's woodcut illustrations, sculptures, furniture or children's books. The man clearly likes his canines. About eight years ago, a wild idea came to him shortly after he returned home with his wife and three dogs following a near-fatal illness that left him in a coma for two months. He was inspired to build a non-denominational chapel on his 400-acre mountain-top farm in St. Johnsbury (named "Dog Mountain," naturally), and to style it in the manner of a small village church built in Vermont around 1820. He then opened Dog Chapel to the public. "I look at this chapel as the largest artwork of my life, and my most personal." he says. It looks cool. Woof.
posted by miss lynnster on May 29, 2007 - 16 comments

I Love Vermont
posted by james_cpi on Apr 20, 2007 - 50 comments

Interactive Toxic Town from Natl Library Medicine This NLM link shows relatively small everyday sources of toxics around town. Most worry over envirodisasters like Love Canal and Libby Montana but toxics in homes, schools, and small biz can add up to a bigger dose for most of us. The toxic town thread from June 2nd shows the incredible scale of industrial negligance at the nasty sites. Time capsules are neat when you stumble into something gramps left in the attic to remember his hey day. But hazwaste sites are time capsules of a different sort, left behind by industries escaping their environmental liabilities. These sites tell the story of utter disregard for the environment and community as hazwaste was poured down floor drains, dumped into soil and unlined lagoons, or directed into nearby streams. Most of us live far enough away from these chemical bullseyes to not be directly affected. But even more unbelieveably, sometimes the industry was able to pawn off its waste as "clean fill", getting rid of the stuff and spreading it all over town. Prime examples: Grand Junction CO and Stratford CT. But you don't need that for your street to harbor toxic waste - there are thousands of small waste sites in various stages of discovery or cleanup embedded in every state, rural/suburban/urban towns alike. Leaking tanks beneath gas pumps, dry cleaners, small industry, farms, nurseries,and even some homes can be toxics hot spots. Vermont's statewide hazwaste site list broken down by town is an example - it would be smart to find the list for your town.
posted by whatstoxic on Oct 11, 2006 - 12 comments

Vermont's Painted Theatre Curtains were made between 1880 and 1940 and are on display thanks in part to The Vermont Museum and Gallery Alliance and a grant from the NEA. [more inside]
posted by grapefruitmoon on Jun 25, 2006 - 9 comments

Start or stop Atlantica. [via CBC]
posted by boost ventilator on Jun 11, 2006 - 30 comments

Custody After Civil Union Pits States Against Judges (NYT) - This may be the most signficant custody battle to ensue following the collapse of a Civil Union. Are there any laws in place to allow the non-biological mother visitation rights over the three year old child born during this union? Vermont says yes, Virginia says no. Final verdict? Jury's still out, this one may go all the way to the Supreme Court.
posted by grapefruitmoon on Sep 8, 2005 - 17 comments

Senator James Jeffords (I-VT) has decided not to run for re-election in 2006 and Bernie Sanders will run for the Senate seat. Major General Martha Rainville (adjutant general of the Vermont Army National Guard) is thinking of making a run as a Republican.
posted by C17H19NO3 on May 9, 2005 - 19 comments

I ran into this article on the The Progressive website. Upon reading it, I said, "Who is this guy and why haven't I heard of him?" You Vermonters know him. He's your congressman, Bernie Sanders. Does anyone else (besides the Vermonters, of course) think this guy's got the right ideas?
posted by Jon-o on Apr 27, 2005 - 27 comments

"We wanted to retire to something we knew nothing about, something we would find intellectually, physically and spiritually daunting." ~~ "I like goats. They're funny." ~~ "Our animals are vegetarians and don't do drugs." ~~"I can sort of get inside the head of the bacteria," she said. "I read about cheese in bed." ~~ "Oh, Lily," she said matter-of-factly. "Things didn't work out. We ate her." via NortonDC.
posted by onlyconnect on Jun 23, 2004 - 9 comments

An announcement from Trey: "So Coventry will be the final Phish show...For the sake of clarity, I should say that this is not like the hiatus, which was our last attempt to revitalize ourselves. We're done. It's been an amazing and incredible journey."
posted by methree on May 25, 2004 - 20 comments

Vermont Town votes to join New Hampshire. [link via pissresort]
posted by Stynxno on Mar 3, 2004 - 18 comments

6000 breathtaking aerial photos of American towns and other sites, with particularly good coverage of towns in New England (MA, VT, CT, NH, RI, ME). All of this by one photographer, Joseph Melanson, whose mission in life is "to show you facets of your environment that you never realized no matter how long you lived there."
posted by dougb on Aug 6, 2003 - 23 comments

Picking Up Butch at Middlebury (Vt.) College - Rick Reilly pulls on the heart strings with a story about a dedicated sports fan.
posted by ajr on Mar 12, 2003 - 3 comments

This summer, I took a trip to the Brattleboro region of Vermont. Until I picked up Lovecraft's "The Whisperer in Darkness" again this past week, I had not realized that I had just made a trip into Lovecraft Country. [more inside]
posted by ursus_comiter on Aug 28, 2002 - 12 comments

Howard Dean Get to know that name because you will likely be hearing it often in the coming months. The Governor of Vermont is currently the only Democratic presidential contender who has officially declared his candidacy. He is gaining press nationally and internationally as a potential breath of fresh air on the American political landscape. An interesting mix of liberal populism and traditional conservative fiscal responsibility, he is known to rub colleges from both sides of the ideological spectrum the wrong way. Regardless of your opinion on his politics, do you think this man have a shot? Do the proverbial square pegs in the Democratic and GOP round holes ever stand a chance? Will the Bush and Gore juggernauts forever push differing ideas into the realm of third parties or is there room for descent from within?
posted by EmoChild on Aug 27, 2002 - 41 comments

Bill Moyers, National Treasure, Drunk Driver? Man, I almost hate to post this. Up here in Vermont we think that maybe the state troopers just don't have enough Dunkin Donut's outlets.
posted by dhacker on Aug 2, 2002 - 41 comments

The Strolling of the Heifers. It's not exactly the running of the bulls, but Brattleboro, Vermont's "three-day festival about cows, small towns, small farms and the myriad things that make rural life special" hopes to support the local farming community, which has been badly squeezed since the expiration of the Northeast Dairy Compact. It features (among other things) a milking contest between U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy, U.S. Senator James Jeffords, and U.S. Congressman Bernie Sanders.
posted by mattpfeff on May 13, 2002 - 7 comments

When in Vermont, don't photograph a nuclear plant. Or a bridge, road, telephone pole, or railroad. It could get you 10 years in the clapper.
posted by beagle on Nov 30, 2001 - 20 comments

The new weblog/site: take back vermont covers the the recent gay marriage ruling in Vermont and the flap it has caused for some of the more kooky right wing citizens. Many citizens have go so far as to openly display their bigotry by posting signs in their yards. The best part about the site? Putting it at the domain of the people that oppose gay marriage, and asking people to deface the signs by adding a ".COM" to them so they can see a site that asks folks to support the law and all the reasons why it should stand. Simply ingenious.
posted by mathowie on Jul 30, 2000 - 6 comments

While you were sleeping, gay people were getting married in Vermont. Beginning at midnight last night, people began flocking to their town clerks [some of them] and signing pieces of paper that would allow them to visit their partners in the hospital and file state taxes jointly. While I have yet to see a news photo of a happy couple [no thanks to the AP] I'm sure today is going to be an interesting day in town.
posted by jessamyn on Jul 1, 2000 - 4 comments

A concerned Vermont parent wrote an interesting letter to the editor regarding the gay rights conflict.
posted by faisal on May 12, 2000 - 5 comments

The same-sex domestic partnerships bill in Vermont has been approved by the state's lawmakers. "The continued denial of these legal protections, benefits and responsibilities to a small but vulnerable class of Vermont's citizens diminishes their humanity, dignity, freedom and independence." It's about damn time, hopefully other states will soon follow suit. Oh, and if you have a problem with this, listen to this and let me know why you continue to have problems with it.
posted by mathowie on Apr 25, 2000 - 12 comments

Should other states recognize same-sex civil unions licensed in Vermont? Vote and they'll send your vote to state governors, Congress, and the President.
posted by veruca on Apr 20, 2000 - 8 comments