Sometimes life lets us set the record straight. It happens in big and small ways and reminds us to stay true to who we are, to believe in our talents, pursue our interests and develop our skill sets. The world is filled with people who will tell you "no," and it feels like we are hearing "no" ...
In a tight-knit community like Alpena, where the waters of Thunder Bay meet the hardworking spirit of northern Michigan, youth sports are far more than weekend distractions or Friday night lights. They are a vital thread in the fabric of our town, fostering healthier kids, stronger ...
Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) joined together last week to sponsor a bipartisan bill that would require the secretary of state to determine whether the People's Republic of China is engaging in genocide against the people of Tibet. "Communist China is committing genocide in Tibet. There is no way around it," Scott said in a statement about this bill. "The regime in Beijing has engaged in systematic killings, torture, forced sterilization, forced displacement, government sanctioned kidnapping and a myriad of other crimes against humanity in its oppression of ...
Data centers are big buildings full of machines that process what we do on our phones and computers. AI requires even more computing power, so companies are eager to build more data centers. The usual suspects are freaking out. "We must stop it!" says Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. "Slow it down!" demands Sen. Bernie Sanders. Data centers do use lots of power, and water to cool them down because their computers generate heat. One center can use as much power and water as a small town. "Uses resources like a madman!" says one protester in my new video. Last year, ...
In the debate over redistricting, one truth is too often buried beneath legal jargon and partisan maneuvering: Gerrymandering is, at its core, about voter dilution. It is the quiet engineering of political outcomes, line by line, until communities that should speak with strength are instead reduced to whispers. For decades, one of the most consequential tactics has been "cracking," splitting cohesive communities, often made up of Black voters, across multiple districts so they become a minority everywhere and a majority nowhere. The impact is profound. A population large enough to ...
In 200-plus years of interpreting the free speech clause of the First Amendment, the courts have narrowed and expanded its scope. The Supreme Court employed a particularly narrow approach during much of the last century, through two world wars and then the Red Scare in the 1950s. Thankfully, in the 1960s, the Warren Court began a remarkable and thus far unimpeded march toward compelling the government to tolerate open, wide, caustic and even threatening speech. When crafting the First Amendment with its iconic speech clause -- "Congress shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of ...
