“When the cops declare open season on journalists, when they feel free to declare any scene of ‘unlawful protest’ a free fire zone, that will be a very ugly day — and not just for journalists.” — Hunter S. Thompson, “Strange Rumblings in Aztlan” They were obviously ...
So far, the Olympics, the Octoberfest, the Cherry Festival, and, locally, the Brown Trout Festival have all been canceled because of the high rate of contagion of the coronavirus. These events have not been eliminated without consideration. Understood that we are all getting anxious about ...
Almost everyone enjoys firework displays, but what I have read from the Moffit Cancer Center is alarming, and I share it with you. Fireworks release toxic chemicals in the air, water and soil, which are persistent remaining in the soil for years. The Moffit Cancer Center said this: “The ...
EDITOR’S NOTE: This column has been substantially modified from its initial appearance in June of 2017. Joe and Josie Taraskiewicz always left a light on at their business — Joe’s super Service — on the top of the hill in Hillman. Their business motto, “ We’re fishing for your ...
I was a bit disappointed in the replies to my letter to the editor dated May 4. The responses I received only admonished my opinion on abortion as not newsworthy or not appropriate for today’s times. It is exactly this type of thinking of political correctness that has virtually destroyed ...
To our community, Thunder Bay Theatre Inc. is a year-round, nonprofit theater and performing arts organization committed to providing consistent, high-quality productions, educational opportunities, and additional arts and cultural events utilizing a professional company augmented with ...
The 13th annual Corrections Academy began Monday morning at Alpena Community College. Offered in partnership with local and regional law enforcement, the academy provides skills leading to certification allowing trainees to gain employment as corrections officers. The academy attracted 22 ...
Each year I get calls regarding people finding baby animals and asking what they can do to save the baby. The best thing you can do to help, however, is to leave the animal alone. Many animals will hide their young for safety, and they will return. Most of the time, those wild animals do ...
In recent weeks Editor Bill Speer and Managing Editor Justin Hinkley have been preaching about the need for citizens to support The Alpena News and journalism in general. Hinkley’s May 30 commentary took to task President Donald Trump’s issues with Twitter and Facebook. He began his ...
President Donald Trump’s handling of the pandemic and murder of George Floyd has demonstrated that he does not have the ability or character necessary to unite our nation and effectively lead during a crisis. His failure to take ownership of the COVID-19 crisis and take action that would have ...
One of the prettiest drives in the area is Grand Lake Road from the Hideaway Inn to the “new” Presque Isle Lighthouse. Along the way there is Besser Bell, Fireside Inn, Birch Hill, the Village of Presque Isle, and the “old” Presque Isle Lighthouse. And perhaps a chance view of the host ...
Today is June 5, 2020. It is a bittersweet day for me, because it was another June 5, one back in 1953, that an angel, Josephine, was born. Nineteen years later, in 1972, we were officially united in marriage, but the true reality was we were united in soul and spirit the day we met. Most of ...
Alpena city officials apparently are rock stars when it comes to budget management. So it would seem after city Clerk/Treasurer Anna Soik informed the Alpena Municipal Council this week that, instead of facing a projected shortfall, as had been thought possible at the beginning of the year, ...
Forget the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. We bet that, if you look in the garage, you might find a gold mine in unreturned bottles and cans. Beginning June 15, state residents can start returning their recyclable containers to retailers again — a move they have not been able to ...
Rogers City is trying to build a grassroots coalition to bring the Michigan Economic Development Corp.’s Main Street program to the city. The program would bring some much-needed money and expertise to help the Nautical City revitalize its city center, and MEDC requires the effort to be ...
Michigan schools will soon be able to tap into extra money from Congress to address the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. As those funds become available, state officials should focus as much as possible on the needs of students, without regard to what kind of school they attend. The ...
Maybe the astronauts who left Earth for the International Space Station this past weekend had the right idea. Given the option, most of us would rather forget the trials and tribulations 2020 has brought us. But, unfortunately, we don’t have that option, and we are forced to deal with ...
Some day down the road, the two of them with their trusty dog, Kevin, will be sitting in their rockers on the porch, and they’ll have a good laugh. But nobody is laughing in Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s inner circle, these days. The lethal virus continues its march up and down the state. The ...
Newspaper columnist Rod Dreher wrote “There are three kinds of people who run toward disaster not away: cops, firemen and reporters. Watching the coverage of protests over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, the importance of journalism could not be more evident. The photography, ...
President Trump, who clearly never read “Pinocchio” as a child, is furious at Twitter for labeling several of his tweets as false. OK, yes, technically they didn’t say, “The president’s tweets were big, fat, phony lies.” What they did do, however, is put a label under two recent ...