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The kind of community I’d like to live in

In my role supporting The News’ editor, I get the opportunity to put together the paper once in a while. This means I am communicating with our dozen or so local and guest columnists, reading, editing, writing, et cetera, et cetera. On Friday, I had the opportunity to read Lenny Avery’s ...

Oversight in politics

Republicans call it the House Oversight Committee. The Democrats label it the House Witch Hunt Committee. For you students of government you know the three branches are supposedly co-equal. The courts have power to review what the other two branches do and the governor and legislature ...

What comes next?

Last week, I attended my nephew's high school graduation. Like most graduations, it was filled with excitement. Proud parents took pictures. Grandparents fought back tears. Friends celebrated together. And at the end, hundreds of caps flew into the air. As I watched those students ...

What comes next?

Last week, I attended my nephew's high school graduation. Like most graduations, it was filled with excitement. Proud parents took pictures. Grandparents fought back tears. Friends celebrated together. And at the end, hundreds of caps flew into the air. As I watched those students celebrate, I found myself thinking about a question that probably crosses the minds of a lot of people in Northeast Michigan. What comes next? Not just for my nephew, but for all of those graduates. Will they stay here? Will they find careers here and be able to build a life here? Will they leave ...

Let the love in

Most times when I'm invited to speak at a conference, someone introduces me by reading the short bio provided. But this past week at the Southeastern Writers' Association Conference, my friend, the Georgia judge and novelist Lori Duff, introduced me. She started off by warning she might ...