Category Archives: Politics

SECWAC Hosts Talk in Essex on ‘The Militarization of U.S. Foreign Policy’

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Monica Duffy Toft

On Wednesday, May 7, at 5 p.m., the Southeast Connecticut World Affairs Council (SECWAC) hosts acclaimed scholar of international politics Monica Duffy Toft at the Essex Yacht Club for a talk titled “Dying by the Sword: The Militarization of U.S. Foreign Policy.”

Toft is Academic Dean and Professor of International Politics and Director of the Center for Strategic Studies at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. 

Her areas of research include international security, ethnic and religious violence, civil wars, and demography.

Before joining Fletcher, Toft taught at Oxford University’s Blavatnik School of Government and Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. While at Harvard, she directed the Initiative on Religion in International Affairs and was the assistant director of the John M. Olin Institute for Strategic Studies. 

Toft was educated at the University of Chicago, where she received her master’s and doctoral degrees in political science, and at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she graduated summa cum laude with bachelor’s degrees in political science and Slavic languages and literature. 

Before attending college, she spent four years in the United States Army as a Russian linguist. 

Registration is free to members or $20 for non-members. Register at this link.

A reception will begin at 4:30.

Lyme, Old Lyme Democrats to Unveil Shared Campaign Headquarters, April 27

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The campaign headquarters for Lyme and Old Lyme Democrats opens Sunday.

Old Lyme – Lyme and Old Lyme Democrats will celebrate their new campaign headquarters on Lyme Street with a grand opening Sunday. 

The event will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. at 10 Lyme St.

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz and Comptroller Sean Scanlon will be among the elected officials attending, according to publicity from the town committees.

Refreshments will be provided. 

Those interested in attending should register here.

Hundreds March in Old Saybrook Against Trump/Musk, in Support of US Constitution

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Gathering outside Old Saybrook Town Hall to listen to speeches. All photos by D. Collins.

OLD SAYBROOK—Despite it being a bitterly cold and windy day, hundreds of protesters still gathered on Monday—President’s Day—in front of Old Saybrook’s Town Hall to demonstrate their objections to President Trump and Elon Musk’s actions since taking office.

David Collins of Old Lyme and his wife joined the demonstration.

They first listened to impassioned speeches and then marched as a group down Main Street cheerfully chanting slogans like, “This is what democracy looks like” and “Hey Hey, Ho Ho, these oligarchs have got to go.”

Marching down Main Street in Old Saybrook.

There were also larger rallies in New Haven, New London and Hartford on the same day.

There were creative signs galore on display.

All ages were present at the rally.

This youngster had something to say.

Opponents of the rally were small in number.

A Trump-supporting car and another Trump flag-waving individual were spotted.

SECWAC Hosts Talk in Old Lyme Tonight on “US-China Relations: The Storm Ahead?” Pre-Event Reception at 5:30pm

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William J. Holstein will be the speaker at the SECWAC meeting on Thursday, Jan. 30, in Old Lyme.

OLD LYME — On Thursday, Jan. 30, at 6 p.m., the Southeast Connecticut World Affairs Council (SECWAC) hosts author and expert on US-China relations William J. Holstein to speak on U.S.-China Relations: The Storm Ahead? The event will be held at the First Congregational Church of Old Lyme. It will be preceded by a reception at 5:30 p.m.

After years of building tensions, President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to rachet up tariffs against China by up to 60 percent. American consumers and American businesses will feel the pain, and the government of Xi Jinping will almost certainly retaliate against American interests.

Xi is a Marxist nationalist, meaning he believes that Western capitalistic democracies must be overcome.

To that end, China’s support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Iran’s campaign to encircle Israel shows no sign of abating. China’s cyberwar against America’s Information Technology systems also has reached new heights. It is a kind of confrontation the United States has never before experienced. What is the way forward?

Holstein was dispatched to Hong Kong by United Press International in 1979 and witnessed the first stirrings of China’s economic modernization in southern China. He was promoted to Beijing bureau chief and studied the Chinese language intensively.

He subsequently became World Editor of Business Week magazine and either wrote for or was on staff at U.S. News & World Report, Fortune, The New York Times, and Chief Executive magazine, remaining engaged in the issues surrounding the emergence of East Asia.

He is the author or co-author of 10 books, most recently co-authoring “Battlefield Cyber: How China And Russia Are Undermining Our Democracy and National Security.” (Prometheus, August 2023.) Another title of interest: “The New Art of War: China’s Deep Strategy Inside the United States.” (BrickTower, 2019.)

SECWAC members are free. Non-Member in-person attendance is $20. Non-Member Visit this link to register.

For more information on SECWAC, visit their website.

Letter to the Editor: Sen. Needleman Looks Back at ’24 Election, Forward to Opportunities, Challenges Ahead

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To the Editor:

Happy New Year and Happy Legislative Session! On January 8 in Hartford, legislators from around the state including myself were sworn in for our two-year terms in office. There’s a lot of work ahead of us, but as I look forward, I’m also looking back, too.

I am grateful to all of the voters of the 33rd Senate District, across 12 different towns, for their participation in the election this past year. It was certainly consequential and will represent significant changes in Connecticut and the United States, but the most important part is how many people turned out to make their voices heard. I am overwhelmed with gratitude for all who voted for me, and am also grateful to those who voted against me; your voices matter, and I will not forget your needs.

I’m looking forward to my fourth term in the State Senate and am ready to get down to business as soon as I’m sworn in. I’m focused on the Energy & Technology Committee, which I chair. Last summer’s high heat and expensive power bills reaffirmed that our residents deserve a high-quality, reliable and affordable power grid that’s built for the needs of the present as well as the future. With costs putting a damper on families’ budgets, I know this is an issue we must address, and I will do whatever I can to find short- and long-term solutions accordingly.

I’m also excited, and ready for more work, in my additional committees. As the Vice Chair of the Planning and Development Committee, I am mindful of our state’s housing crunch and will work alongside my colleagues to find new strategies and avenues that can create new housing units and help support our communities, businesses and families. As well, I’ll keep my eye on the Commerce, Finance, Revenue and Bonding and Transportation Committees as a member, making sure our roads, finances and funding remains in order.

There are plenty of additional issues that I will need to weigh in on in the Senate chambers, and my priorities will include supporting the businesses of Connecticut, finding ways to provide financial relief to families across the state and balancing our budget amid financial pressures within our borders and across the country. The new Presidential administration may also lead to changes in how our state operates, and I will be ready to address new approaches that may be necessary in the coming months.

Overall, the new legislative session represents five months of hard work, but it also represents real opportunities to give back to the people of our state and find ways to improve Connecticut now and in the future. I’m ready to do whatever I can to help our communities and our state.

To learn more about what’s going on in Hartford or to contact my office, please visit https://www.senatedems.ct.gov/senator/norm-needleman.

Sincerely,

Norman Needleman,
Essex, CT

Editor’s Note: The author is the State Senator (D) representing Connecticut’s 33rd Senate District, which includes the Town of Lyme, along with the Towns of Chester, Clinton, Colchester, East Haddam, East Hampton, Essex, Deep River, Haddam, Portland, Westbrook, and part of Old Saybrook.