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Opinion

Don’t drive drunk, buzzed, or high

Editorials and columns

The Michigan State Police reported 9,331 alcohol-related crashes in the state in 2022, including 301 crashes in which at least one person died. That includes 79 alcohol-related crashes across Alpena, Presque Isle, Montmorency, and Alcona counties, four of those crashes fatal. The State ...

Why does clutter accumulate in our homes?

Editorials and columns

Even the most organized people, if you have a life at all, end up with clutter in their homes. Some people say they have no clutter, as they get rid of what they don’t use immediately. I would guess that these people live alone and don’t have anyone to answer to. But most of us answer to ...

Protect from payday lending

Editorials and columns

Numbers don’t lie. And the numbers here in Michigan clearly show that payday lenders are targeting vulnerable communities and stripping millions of dollars away from Michiganders under the masquerade of being a fast fix for financial emergencies. Payday lending has clearly been predatory ...

Make more information easier to find

Editorials and columns

Local government does its business — spends your tax dollars and sets the policies that affect your day-to-day life — at public meetings, usually held monthly or twice monthly. By law, you have the right to attend those meetings and to address the local government board about the matters ...

Independents want more say

Editorials and columns

Are you one of them? Everybody knows somebody who is a self-described Democrat or Republican, but how many folks go around boosting that they are an independent, usually described as a voter who plunks for the person and not automatically for an R or a D just because they are thus? So, are ...

State remains cloudy during Sunshine Week

Editorials and columns

For the past 10 years, the Michigan Press Association has given the Rep. Peter Petallia Memorial Sunshine Award to public servants who strive to promote and protect transparency in government. The award is named after former state rep. Peter Pettalia, of Presque Isle, who embodied all good ...