Opinion
Crossing Bridges
Spectator
By Stephen Tuttle | April 13, 2024
Is that bridge you’re about to cross safe? Are you sure? This comes to mind as salvage crews try to clear the remains of the collapsed Francis Scott Key bridge that spans the entrance to Baltimore harbor. Of course, the bridge you’re on probably does not have a 984-foot-long, 95,000-ton (when empty) behemoth of a ship about to impact the structure, so you’re likely safe…though boat strikes aren’t our only bridge worry. ... Read More >>
In Praise of Goodness
Guest Opinion
By Greg Holmes | April 13, 2024
As I write this column, former president Jimmy Carter has been receiving hospice care for over a year at his home in South Georgia. Whether you believe Carter was a “good” president or not most likely depends on your own political affiliation. It’s much easier to lump people in a party together and judge them one way or the other than to carefully consider each individual on their respective merits. Like most, ... Read More >>
The Medicaid Mental Health Gap
Guest Opinion
By Emma Smith | April 6, 2024
If you have Medicaid, like a third of all Michigan residents, you may have noticed that finding a therapist who is willing and able to take your insurance has become increasingly difficult in the past year or so. At the start of 2023, mental health therapists began noticing a sharp decrease in the reimbursement rate from Meridian of Michigan, the largest Medicaid provider in our state. This decrease was instituted without notice ... Read More >>
Congress Shall Make No Law
Spectator
By Stephen Tuttle | April 6, 2024
The misinformation is ramping up as the next election approaches, and that means religious bigotry can’t be far behind, complete with nonsense about this being a “Christian nation.” A former president, in what has to be one of the tackier moments in modern American political history, has sold his name—yes, a licensing fee was paid—to sell a Bible for $59.99. (You’d need to have actually read the book to fully appreciate how ... Read More >>
Taxing Times
Spectator
By Stephen Tuttle | March 23, 2024
Have you filed your tax returns yet? No? The deadline for the annual unpleasantness approaches rapidly. Our tax code can be a nightmarish morass of nearly inexplicable rules and regulations. It is so big the Government Printing Office has to produce it in two volumes; one of 1,404 pages and the second a much tidier 1,248 pages. It is a common assumption that most of us somewhere in the middle of the ... Read More >>
A Look at Originalism
Guest Opinion
By Stewart MacLeod | March 23, 2024
O Tempora O Mores! Oh the times, oh the culture. This Latin phrase relates to both the 18th century and our current times. Are Originalists—those who think we should base the interpretation of our country’s founding documents on the times and the views of their crafters—basing their theories on actual history? This is not just a pedantic question; it affects legal decisions being made today, from the lowest to the highest courts ... Read More >>
Infrastructure Investments Will Set Northern Michigan Up for Success
Guest Opinion
By Sam Inglot | March 23, 2024
Right now, Michigan is going through a rapid transformation. A total of 5,489 infrastructure projects laying ground across both peninsulas will receive more than $45 billion from laws passed under President Joe Biden. The Biden administration is flipping the script in positive ways for lasting change that deserve your attention, especially in rural communities and small towns. At Progress Michigan, we created a website for you to track the progress on these ... Read More >>
Encyclopedias of Women's Contributions
Spectator
By Stephen Tuttle | March 16, 2024
"Women's history is women's right—an essential, indispensable heritage from which we can draw pride, comfort, courage, and long-range vision." Gerda Lerner, a founding member of the National Organization for Women (NOW) and one of the first to seriously study women’s history as an academic endeavor, said the above some time in the late 1960s. It is no less true now than it was then, and when Women’s History Month was named officially ... Read More >>
Champions, Not Pillagers
Guest Opinion
By Cathye Williams | March 16, 2024
During his State of the Union address, President Biden reminded us of his administration’s commitment to confronting the climate crisis and saving the planet from it. He and Congress already made a good start by enacting the Inflation Reduction Act, the most sweeping legislation so far to address global warming by phasing out fossil fuels and building a clean energy infrastructure and economy. Surveys conducted by Pew Research Center in 2022 and ... Read More >>
Kudos to the Caregivers
Guest Opinion
By Karen Mulvahill | March 9, 2024
Growing up, my younger sister and I alternated between being best friends and worst enemies—sometimes within a single hour. We fought the way two cats will, staring malevolently until one makes a move, then slapping at each other’s faces without really connecting until one turns away. Minutes later we’d be walking to the record store together. In the last decade, we’ve spent a lot of time together, never even arguing, much less ... Read More >>
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