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Editorial

Lanctot appointment a win for arts, culture in region

Hats off to Emily Lanctot for her selection to serve on the Michigan Arts and Culture Council. Her appointment brings to the council an experienced arts professional, educator and advocate whose work reflects the important role that art and culture play in building vibrant communities. Lanctot serves as director and curator of the DeVos Art Museum at Northern Michigan University, where she also is a continuing contingent professor in the School of Art. In these roles, she contributes to both the presentation of visual arts and the education of future generations of artists and creative ...

Guest opinion

EDITOR'S NOTE: This opinion was originally published by Bridge Michigan, a nonprofit and nonpartisan news organization. Visit the newsroom online: bridgemi.com. Our state has been embroiled in a long list of political debates this election season. But one poll revealed something exciting about Michiganders: We agree on the value of afterschool. In an EPIC/MRA survey conducted in August of 600 likely voters across the political spectrum, 72% said access to affordable, quality afterschool and summer programs was extremely or very important. When respondents learned that five of every ...

Warning about dangers of driving while drowsy

As daylight hours dwindle and the winter season approaches, drivers can find themselves battling fatigue and drowsiness while behind the wheel of a vehicle. This puts not just the driver in danger but those around them in the vehicle and sharing the road, according to Emplify Health by Bellin. This is national Drowsy Driving Prevention Week, when experts warn that operating a motor vehicle under such conditions can have dangerous, even deadly, consequences. Dr. Brad Burmeister, an emergency physician at Emplify Health by Bellin, said in a news release that drowsy driving poses a ...

Memo to Dems: Turn political page

It's going to take some time for the dust to settle on the shellacking the Republican Party took from the Democrats in Tuesday's general election. As of this writing, the Democrats flipped enough seats in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives to seize control of each chamber and the toll, from the GOP perspective, might get even worse in the coming days. This was a thorough repudiation of President Trump and his policies, from higher prices to the war with Iran to threatening our allies to Trump's chummy relationships with dictators. The list goes on and on. Democrats, ...

Guest editorial

EDITOR'S NOTE: This opinion was originally published by Bridge Michigan, a nonprofit and nonpartisan news organization. Visit the newsroom online: bridgemi.com. On Saturday, Oct. 24, I had my first opportunity to serve my community as an election inspector, one of the people who staff your local polling place. I spent the day at my Ingham County community's early voting site, and the experience moved me to write this essay. What struck me most is that if voters were familiar with the people, procedures and processes behind our elections, the skepticism we see in surveys would shrink ...

Don’t sit on sidelines for crucial midterm elections

After what seems like endless campaigning — and a barrage of television ads and mailers, often downright nasty in the attacks aimed at the opposing candidate — the 2026 midterm elections mercifully have finally arrived. Polls in Michigan will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. Both states will select new governors, as Michigan's Gretchen Whitmer is out due to term limits. Michigan will have a new U.S. senator and the Upper Peninsula a new 38th District state senator, with Ed McBroom of Waucedah Township also term-limited. There's Congressional seats on the ballot, in a year ...