Rick Holmes
WickedLocal
Framingham, MA, United States
Contact Rick
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
| Recent: |
|
| Past: |
|
Past articles by Rick:
Column: History in the remaking
We must not let the rhetoric and tactics of extremists distract from what is really happening here. America is coming to grips with its history, with a → Read More
Column: Saying the name of Eurie Stamps
That means we have to try harder. The deaths of George Floyd, Eurie Stamps and so many others at the hands of police have exposed deep flaws in → Read More
Column: Politics and heartache in Cuba and Florida
The Southernmost Point in the Continental United States, or at least the monument that celebrates it, sits at the corner of South and Whitehead. → Read More
Column: Reforms to fix the primaries
Every four years around this time, we talk about how crazy it is to let Iowa and New Hampshire dominate the presidential nominating process. → Read More
OPINION, Rick Holmes: Massacre hidden in a swamp
South Kingstown, R.I.No signs direct tourists to the historic site, no interpretive markers explain its significance, and there’s no place to park. → Read More
Viewpoints: How the Endangered Species Act made a refuge for the Mississippi sandhill crane
GAUTIER, Miss. — This used to be the heart of a great American savanna. Now it’s about all that’s left. → Read More
RICK HOLMES: Holding off the extinction of the sandhill crane
GAUTIER, Miss. - This used to be the heart of a great American savanna. Now it's about all that's left. We always hear about savannas in Africa, where → Read More
RICK HOLMES: Holding off the extinction of the sandhill crane
GAUTIER, Miss. - This used to be the heart of a great American savanna. Now it's about all that's left. We always hear about savannas in Africa, where → Read More
RICK HOLMES: The guns of Fort Pickens
PENSACOLA, Fla. – Government has always had a hand in this part of the Florida Panhandle, and here I was, camped on government land, when the government ground to a halt. For centuries Pensacola Bay was a site for forts flying the flags of Spain, France, England and the United States, whose purpose was mostly to declare authority over territory they didn’t know what to do with. Besides bragging… → Read More
RICK HOLMES: The guns of Fort Pickens
PENSACOLA, Fla. – Government has always had a hand in this part of the Florida Panhandle, and here I was, camped on government land, when the government ground to a halt. For centuries Pensacola Bay was a site for forts flying the flags of Spain, France, England and the United States, whose purpose was mostly to declare authority over territory they didn’t know what to do with. Besides bragging… → Read More
RICK HOLMES: How Jimmy Carter changed Georgia and the world
ATLANTA -- In 1970, Canadian Neil Young told “Southern Man” to “Keep your head, don’t forget what your Good Book said,” and some Southern men took offense. Jacksonville rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd responded, in “Sweet Home Alabama,” that “I hope Neil Young will remember a southern man don’t need him around.” Both songs became hits that are still played decades later. At the time, they exposed a… → Read More
RICK HOLMES: How Jimmy Carter changed Georgia and the world
ATLANTA -- In 1970, Canadian Neil Young told “Southern Man” to “Keep your head, don’t forget what your Good Book said,” and some Southern men took offense. Jacksonville rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd responded, in “Sweet Home Alabama,” that “I hope Neil Young will remember a southern man don’t need him around.” Both songs became hits that are still played decades later. At the time, they exposed a… → Read More
RICK HOLMES: What’s wrong with Congress – and us
The last time I was in Washington, the Capitol was wrapped in scaffolding, undergoing a $60 million restoration. The cast iron structure had been rusting → Read More
RICK HOLMES: What’s wrong with Congress – and us
The last time I was in Washington, the Capitol was wrapped in scaffolding, undergoing a $60 million restoration. The cast iron structure had been rusting → Read More
RICK HOLMES: The changing face of Old Virginia
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Gen. Robert E. Lee still sits astride Traveller in what used to be called Lee Park, but the park is now officially Emancipation Park, and Lee and his horse are wrapped in what looks like a giant black trash bag. A few blocks away, in Justice Park – which used to be Jackson Park - a statue of Gen. Stonewall Jackson suffers a similar indignity. City officials say they… → Read More
RICK HOLMES: The changing face of Old Virginia
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Gen. Robert E. Lee still sits astride Traveller in what used to be called Lee Park, but the park is now officially Emancipation Park, and Lee and his horse are wrapped in what looks like a giant black trash bag. A few blocks away, in Justice Park – which used to be Jackson Park - a statue of Gen. Stonewall Jackson suffers a similar indignity. City officials say they… → Read More
RICK HOLMES: John Brown’s missing bell
HARPERS FERRY, West Virginia – This is a place of history and mystery, memory and myth. Here, Thomas Jefferson looked out at the confluence of the Potomac and the Shenandoah rivers and called it “one of the most stupendous scenes in Nature.” Here, George Washington saw abundant water power and a strategic location for one of the nation’s first federal armories. And here, in October 1859, a… → Read More
RICK HOLMES: Darkness and desperation in Puerto Rico
Horses roam free on Vieques, grazing on the beaches and wandering village streets, as they have for centuries. Vieques has a rare bioluminescent bay, where I dipped a paddle on a moonless night some years ago and watched the water come alive with blue-green light. A few miles west, El Yunque towers over the eastern half of Puerto Rico, with the tropical rainforest at its peak wrapped in clouds.… → Read More
RICK HOLMES: Climate change is already picking winners and losers
It’s been a bad year for moose in the Northeast and forests in the Northwest. Moose are magnificent creatures, weighing 1,000 pounds or more and standing up to seven feet tall. They can be elusive, most of the time staying hidden in deep woods. Threats to their population have come from development and automobiles. Car vs. moose collisions so common that officials in northern Maine post… → Read More
RICK HOLMES: Climate change is already picking winners and losers
It’s been a bad year for moose in the Northeast and forests in the Northwest. Moose are magnificent creatures, weighing 1,000 pounds or more and standing up to seven feet tall. They can be elusive, most of the time staying hidden in deep woods. Threats to their population have come from development and automobiles. Car vs. moose collisions so common that officials in northern Maine post… → Read More