Have you ever wondered what happens to your artifact donation after it is accepted into the museum? Did you know that there is a behind-the-scenes process of properly cataloging, organizing and storing these artifacts?
Despite the often cold language about “market corrections” or “rightsizing” that accompanies them, mass layoffs are a collection of individual little catastrophes for the people affected by them. Such is the case for workers caught in rounds of tens of thousands of layoffs announced in the p…
A recently released University of Michigan study promotes the alleged economic and environmental benefits of a transition to electric vehicles. But the study’s emphasis on fuel costs vs. overall costs limits its real-world applicability. The claimed environmental benefits of the transition a…
Happy New Year! Did you make any resolutions for this year? I like to think of them as opportunities for the year instead of resolutions. There can be lots of opportunities during the 12 months of the year.
The COVID-19 pandemic brought many things to light – some not so good, like a tendency to insert politics where it doesn’t belong. Some pretty good, like a participation spike in government when meetings were remote.
For weeks, the White House has insisted (with some justification) that the parallel special-counsel investigations into President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump for mishandling classified documents are in no way comparable. Yet in critical respects, both cases can be traced to a…
When I was a young boy growing up, I was taught to pray before meals. As our family gathered at the dinner table, we would acknowledge our dependence on God and our gratitude for his daily care, by giving thanks for the food God had provided. My father would lead us all in prayer, and when h…
Unity requires shared facts
Proposing laws that directly contradict U.S. Supreme Court rulings might be a feel-good exercise for Michigan lawmakers, but it risks creating an atmosphere of uncertainty for residents.
We asked: Some cities have a mascot, much like schools and universities and pro sports teams. If the city of Grand Haven has one, what should it be?
Did you know that reading provides benefits like helping to improve focus and attention, enhancing vocabulary, reducing stress and improving sleep? It’s great to know that something as enjoyable as reading offers such positive benefits.
Minor misquote
Just how many ways can defiant Republicans, finally finding their backbone, say to Donald Trump: “As far as 2024 is concerned, we’re just not that into you”?
According to news reports, the 6-year-old accused of shooting a teacher at a Newport News, Virginia, elementary school is unlikely to be charged with a crime. That decision highlights something that’s long been true: We just don’t know what to do about violence by small children.
Use this time creatively
A lot of well-deserved concern is spreading across academia over students’ use of ChatGPT to write their class essays and do their homework. The OpenAI.com program is so sophisticated that it can compose original material that consistently fools experts – and teachers – into believing it was…
The White House drove the country into an inflation mess because it refused to listen to economists and others who predicted the administration’s massive multi-trillion-dollar spending spree would overheat the economy. Next time — but let’s hope there isn’t a next time — such willful ignoran…
This December marked five years since my sister received a life-saving bone marrow transplant to cure her Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Five years without relapse is when a bone marrow transplant is officially considered a cure.
No slam dunk wanted
When Rick Snyder was elected governor in 2010, the state ranked dead last in economic growth and employment in a Business Leaders for Michigan report. It had spent most of the previous 10 years in a single-state recession, the infamous “Lost Decade” that saw its residents, jobs and opportuni…
On a Friday the 13th over 20 years ago, I gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. That was a very, very lucky day.
Federal bureaucrats aren’t the only ones looking to ban gas stoves. Plenty of state and local officials want to do just that.
Most people make New Year’s resolutions to lose weight, exercise more or stop a bad habit. AAA hopes Michiganders will make a resolution to improve road safety by moving over for vehicles that are stopped on the shoulder of the road.
We asked: Have you ever walked through or visited Grand Haven's Duncan Memorial Park (Duncan Woods)?
Out with the old and in with the new. No, I’m not talking about the new year – I’m talking about the interior of our house!
There’s no denying that Pete Martel did something bad. In 1994, he pleaded guilty to armed robbery and assault after robbing a store and firing a gun at police.
A sick party
In a world in conflict, Grand Haven was that refuge from the storm. That place of safety and peace.
Disappointed by commissioners
When we look at systems that navigate the tangled workings of families, we often find snarls. No surprise there – anyone with a family knows how complicated those relationships can be, even when things are going well.
A single incident more than two years ago led us to learn a lot about patience and customer service. It all has to do with a refrigerator.
Education in Michigan is in crisis. Dismal data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows some Michigan students suffered reading losses more than twice the national average during the pandemic.
The United States has long been a model for the world, inspiring people in other nations to throw off oppression and follow our path by creating stable, solid, democratic societies based on the rule of law, featuring the orderly and peaceful transfer of power.
A friend of mine posted something on Facebook the other day that I thought was very important as we enter a new year. He said, “Try this instead of ‘Auld Lang Syne’ as you finish the old year and begin a new one.” And then he printed out the words of the “Heidelberg Catechism, Question and A…
Welcome to 2023
“Government” and “ineptitude” are two words forever joined at the hip. The latest example is a doozy.
We asked: Are we headed for a recession, or is it already here?
The year 2022 was good to me. The universe gave me cancer and that changed my life for the better.
On Jan. 13, 1968, before most hockey players wore helmets, Minnesota North Stars player Bill Masterton hit his head on the ice after a clean body check. Masterton bled from his nose, ears and mouth, and he passed out. But the game resumed and was completed.
Where freedom rings?
In one English translation of the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus prays, “Forgive us our debts.” To borrow the title of one of the Beach Boys’ greatest hits, “Wouldn’t it be nice.”
“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child…
Brings back memories
When, in February 2021, the temperatures in parts of Texas dropped to the lower teens, crashing the power infrastructure, officials were at a loss dealing with a problem that they simply hadn’t had before and people died as a result.
The clouds loom low and gray on this final leg of an 18-hour drive. Florida just welcomed our family with a concrete sign and painted sun as my boys arm-wrestled and argued in the back seat.
The airline with the ticker LUV, now a far cry from its early customers-first days under co-founder Herb Kelleher, ruined countless holiday reunions over the past week. Southwest Airlines marooned not just passengers but also its own crews and landed tens of thousands of its customers in a S…
Viewpoint 1: In 2023, expect the unexpected
An Oakland County judge ruled in a case against the Rochester Community Schools that public school teachers aren’t covered by Michigan’s disclosure laws. It’s an absurd determination that, if allowed to stand, has the potential to shield vast amounts of public information from view.
We asked: Will you be making a new year's resolution this year?
From the explosive pops of uncorked champagne, to fireworks and loud (usually bad) singing, 2023’s entrance made a joyful noise.
Shame on the BLP
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