Columns – Page 227

I won’t permit officialdom to tell me when and what to print

August 15, 2015

“Vinnie the Vet gets the scoop!” — Ed (Uncle Buck) Buchanan, holding his nose in an attempt to sound like Walter Winchell If there were any such thing as a Community Journalism League, I’d be leading it in publishing true, but unauthorized stories. Not because I’m trying to sell papers....

Columns

Army Bob: Civility should be practiced in political discourse

August 13, 2015

In this column I have discussed the manner in which folks on the right and left side of the political aisle use invectives to make a point. Referring to people with whom columnists disagree by using terms like "dumb ass" and "obese idiot" is so counterproductive. Some call this type...

Democracy Tree: Gamrat/Courser affair may hurt road repairs

August 11, 2015

by Amy Kerr Hardin The sordid Gamrat-Courser affair probably has increased potential for lack of a deal on roads. If Courser and Gamrat truly care about fiscal responsibility, they will resign now, and spare taxpayers the time and money wasted on an investigation into the obvious, diverting attention from truly...

Ranger Rick: The Democrats indeed were the party of slavery

August 11, 2015

The weak high school educational instruction on the history of the U.S. Civil War and its causes usually talk of the despicable Confederates (CSA – Southern states) against the good Union (Northern states), but usually doesn’t point out the politics of the overwhelming Democrat South against the overwhelming Republican North....

Monday Moanin’: When lies sound truthful and murder is respectable

August 9, 2015

By Jeff Salisbury JeffreyLSalisbury@gmail.com “Political language... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.” — George Orwell Spotted a meme on Facebook this past week… simple graphic… with the graphic shown at left, by Carmen Spoor via “Storm...

The Muck Starts Here: Personal air space and the lack thereof

August 9, 2015

by Barry Hastings "Hey, Buddy! Seen any drones?" "Yep. Seen a couple of 'em." "Big one, Nr. 2 shot; smaller 'un, Nr. 4." Seriously speaking, though, these remote-controlled accidents seeking a place to happen are a deep concern to incoming and outgoing commercial aircraft crews, to aircraft operating in support...

Democracy Tree: Reps. Courser, Gamrat deceptive dances fail

August 8, 2015

by Amy Kerr Hardin When Michigan House Representatives Todd Courser (R-Lapeer) and Cindy Gamrat (R-Plainwell) were caught having a little extra-curricular nakie tête-à-tête, it’s clear neither had fully thought through the consequences of their affair being discovered. Courser’s first line of defense was to play the victim through a half-baked, self-generated email...

Columns

Army Bob: Crime rate decreases when criminals are locked up

August 6, 2015

by Robert M. Traxler There are no criminals; there is only a criminal nation or society that made the criminal. It is better and much cheaper to send those convicted of drug-related crimes to rehab than it is to incarcerate them. There is no need for prisons as electronic monitoring...

Democracy Tree: Pro-Choice movement finally strikes back

August 5, 2015

“Birth control is important across the political spectrum, to Democratic women, to Republican women, and to Independent women… birth control is the cornerstone of women’s health, their ability to get an education, and their economic security.” — State Rep. Winnie Brinks, D-Grand Rapids It's a purely political ploy by the...

Ranger Rick: U.S. is No. 1 in debt, even worse than Greece

August 4, 2015

As much as Ranger Rick has his opinions diametrically opposed to the author of this “on-line rag” (his words, not mine), I think we both realize the U.S. is in dire straits in terms of debt. My idea is government spends too much, regulates too much, and generally screws everything...

Category: Columns