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Editorials and columns

4,000 students is the number that matters most

Thousands of conversations, countless hours of volunteer time over nearly seven weeks, more than 2,000 petition pages, and dozens of misplaced pens are just some of the statistics for the effort to recall Alpena Public School board members Sarah Costain, Monica Dziesinski, and Eric Lawson. However, the time, effort, and materials for the recall are just a footnote in our initiative. Nearly 4,000 is the number that matters to the dozens of volunteer circulators and the thousands of voters who have signed the petitions. No, it’s not about the 3,771 signatures we need to trigger the ...

A determination of time

A few years ago, I wrote a column about time, our time, the time before the railroads imposed their time. It wasn’t until 1918, at the insistence of the railroads, that time zones were created. Our gatherings on depot platforms were at their time, and in time their time became our ...

How to keep loving America — even when it hurts

The approach of July 4 is making my heart hurt. Love of this country is deep-dyed in my soul, but pondering how or even whether to celebrate the semiquincentennial provokes a riot of mixed feelings. The right -- and not just the MAGA right -- responds to any queasiness about this particular ...

A case for letter writing

If there were a single task that could do all the following, would you do it? (1) cultivate deeper emotional connections, (2) improve cognitive and mental health, (3) increase mindfulness, (4) reduce screen fatigue, (5) lower anxiety, (6) stimulate memory retention, and (7) create tangible ...

House bill seeks to roll back protections for Michigan’s youngest workers

The Michigan House Committee on Economic Competitiveness recently reported out House Bill (HB) 5727, which seeks to eliminate a youth work permit system set to be implemented later this year by the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO). The Michigan League for Public Policy has ...

Roll portable air conditioner among rooms

Dear Jim: We are empty-nesters now. Is it wise to move a portable air conditioner among rooms instead of running our central air as much to cool the entire house? - Kari K. Dear Kari: Using a portable or air conditioner is a good idea especially when two of you are going to be in the same room for an extended time. This also is effective with central air-conditioning. Even though the cooling efficiency of a newer central heat pump is generally higher than that of a portable model, using portable one can save money overall. Run the portable unit to cool just a few frequently used rooms ...