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Letters to the Editor

State of country no surprise to him

Quite honestly, what is transpiring in this country, pandemic aside — the chaos, uncertainty, etc. — does not surprise me at all. Approximately 10 years ago, I watched a news segment that showed how companies were having seminars for their managers on how to treat the new workforce entering the labor market. In other words, instead of the new employees adjusting to the company, the company was pandering to the new employees. I knew right then and there the country was steering itself down a road of mayhem. Can you imagine Henry Ford being told, “You have to have a seminar for you ...

By mail-in or otherwise, vote

Here is today’s thought. Mail-in voting is the exact same thing as absentee voting. Both are safe and neither is prone to any kind of widespread fraud. If you do not believe me, try to get a ballot for a dead person or your dog. I have heard both of these thoughts coming from on high in a big white building in Washington D.C. But please try it. You will find it does not work. They require more than just your asking for a ballot. And if they send a ballot to someone no longer with us, either through death or relocation, that will not count, either. You see, identification is required ...

Country needs strong foundation

President Kennedy said, “Ask not what your country can do for you …” and everybody listened. Why? Because they were scared to death of a nuclear confrontation with Russia, and Russia was building an arsenal in Cuba. What’s more, John F. Kennedy was right, and his statement was incredibly wise. Your country is the very foundation you build your life from, not to mention the life of your children and your children’s children. A weak foundation will not stand the test of time and lawless chaos will erode the wisdom of the foundation of our constitution. This nation was built on ...

The nation is at a crossroads

Can this nation survive as a people united in a brotherhood of humanity? I believe we are at a crossroads. We have had almost four years of leadership focused on blind loyalty to President Donald Trump, the enrichment of the wealthy at the cost of the less well-off, stoking the divisions of race, ethnicity and residency, and the propaganda of fear. This was the country of 1863 in my mind. This what Trump Republicans seem to be supporting outwardly or in their silence through conformity. For example, where were they when children were put in overcrowded cages, Democratic areas are seen ...

Fight to vote went on for some women

I am writing to say thank you, Lynne Wilson, for your guest column celebrating the 19th Amendment, a whole century of women being able to vote in America. You reminded us that protests, lobbying, arrests, prison time, beatings and even force feedings are not unique to our generation or to this century. I am grateful for the women of history who were strong enough and relentless enough to keep pushing for America to truly live out our ideals of justice among equals and equality for all. But wait — did ALL women gain the right to vote? No! The reality is that women of color do NOT ...

Communities can apply for rural broadband

EDITOR: We are in the midst of a renaissance in rural Michigan infrastructure investment. Since the invention of the internet, each administration — both state and federal — have promised more resources to help connect rural areas, but it is only now that these promises are being kept. As a lifelong rural resident active in every level of government, I have never seen a time when more federal resources were being dedicated to building water, sewer, electrical and critical facilities for Michigan’s small towns and villages. Just in the past year, rural Michigan electric ...