We’ve all heard the expression “I had a Monday.” Well, Monday, Nov. 26 was a Monday I’ll never forget. It all began around 8:30 a.m., when I had received a call that my sister in-law of 25 years had lost her fight with cancer. She was 56. Family needs family in a time of grief, so I ...
We are watching the wind turbine proposal for Presque Isle County very carefully, as what happens there could set the example for other proposals around the region in the months ahead. Concerned about the proposal and how it might affect them, Moltke Township residents Mike and Stefani ...
On Sunday, Nov. 25, our mother, Marian Gennrich, died following complications from replacement hip surgery. There are two institutions in Alpena that merit special recognition for their part in taking care of Marian and our family. First is the Long Rapids Road MediLodge and Rehab Center. The ...
Ouch ... We bet they didn’t see that coming. So the thinking must have been around town this week regarding library officials informing county commissioners of the need for a millage request next spring. If timing is everything, then this one is terrible, as it now places Alpena Public ...
Come Heller high water … ∫ The state House, as part its ridiculous, lame-duck flurry of nonsense, just passed a bill giving A-F letter grades to schools, which is stupid (what else would we expect from the House?). Rich districts will get great grades, poor districts will get worse ones, ...
In a great line from a 1973 song by Jim Croce, he described a man as “meaner than a junkyard dog.” That reference came from life experience of searching auto junkyards for parts to keep his cars running. In an interview, Croce said, “I got to know many junkyards well, and they all ...
Tell Snyder to veto lame-duck evils We have lost count of the atrocities perpetrated in the current lame duck session of our state Legislature. Our lawmakers unseemly behavior can only further damage the public’s confidence in our state government, which is already the least accountable and ...
As we enter the holiday season, there is one thing that sometimes gets ignored: the Christmas tree. They are beautiful additions for the holiday season, but can easily be forgotten. Fire safety and Christmas trees are two things that go hand-in-hand, but, on occasion, are the last thought a ...
Michigan residents have good reason to be cynical about our democratic process these days, as state House and Senate leadership continues its tradition of flouting accepted lawmaking practices during the “lame duck” season. Lame duck refers to the period after an election when ...
Now through end-of-business on Jan. 4, the Alpena Area Chamber of Commerce is accepting nominations for its Outstanding Citizen of the Year award, which will be bestowed upon an unsuspecting honoree (or honorees) during the chamber’s annual dinner on Feb. 7. The list of past winners is a ...
Recently, an Alpena tree went south. Selected as our state’s official Christmas tree, it’s felling, loading, trucking, and placing were all accomplished smoothly in time for an official Lansing lighting — a slick operation from trunk to smallest branch. But Alpena has sent larger trees ...
Observing Carter seated in the front row during Bush’s Wednesday funeral, we couldn’t help but reflect on how dramatically the nation’s political landscape has changed since these men were elected president. In 1988, Bush, then serving as vice president under President Ronald Reagan, ...
The first thing you noticed about George Herbert Walker Bush was that the guy was huge. There he was, dwarfing over everyone as he methodically worked a tiny hotel conference room near the Detroit Metro Airport, crammed full of Michigan GOP national convention delegates. He and they were ...
Time is short for those of us who have fallen behind on our Christmas shopping. As we cope with the struggles of everyday life while trying to find the perfect gifts for everyone on our lists, let us not neglect to take care of the one task that ought not to require any thought: ensuring Santa ...
Last year, the state gas tax jumped from 19 cents to 26.3 cents a gallon, making it, at that time, one of the five highest gas taxes in the United States. The tax represented a compromise between Gov. Rick Snyder and state lawmakers, and it was a complicated formula, at best, since it also ...
Alpena Township’s Board of Trustees is going to vote on whether Alpena will allow recreational marijuana businesses in the township. Rogers City already turned it down (803 nays, 544 yeas). Alpena Township voted 2,342 nays, 2,015 yeas. Supervisor Nathan Skibbe already said to the board, “We ...
State Sen. Jim Stamas and state Rep. Sue Allor should be ashamed of themselves. Just when we thought we could breathe a sigh of relief after yet another contentious and divisive election, Stamas and Allor, not liking the statewide outcome, are colluding with their GOP peers to destroy what ...
Last year, officials with the Thunder Bay Transportation Authority came up with a great plan for trolley use over the Christmas holiday season. And, this year, they have expanded on that experience and created a “bigger and even better” plan. Beginning Dec. 19 and continuing through Dec. ...
Some people love to sneer at examples of what they deem to be “political correctness.” My usual reaction is to wonder what’s wrong with them. Let’s use the N-word as an example. How is it not a good thing that most people don’t use that term anymore? Or how about some of the truly ...
What we’ve seen year after year is a lame duck session where soon-to-be ex-lawmakers listen to corporate lobbyists behind closed doors to ram through their pet policies at breakneck speed with little accountability or public discourse. It’s a broken piece of our democracy that needs to ...