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Broadcasting community lost leader in Chappell passing

The Upper Peninsula lost one of its broadcast pioneers recently with the passing of Lou Chappell. Chappell, 85, died Feb. 14 at home in the Marquette area. We won’t try to mention all of Chappell’s accomplishments here. Readers are referred to The Mining Journal’s obituary section for an exhaustive review of all he was and did. We’ll simply note Chappell was among a very small number of people who played key roles in local business, specifically the broadcasting community. Start with early work at WLUV-TV6. Chappell was both an on-air and behind the scenes personality. In ...

Michigan’s shrinking should prompt deep thinking

It’s hard when we reside in a town that’s rapidly expanding to see the communities receding around us. We see square buildings popping up like mushrooms after a rain, and share our streets and favorite places with an increasing human stream. Housing is harder to find than a green unicorn, and we’re constantly showered in accolades for being “desirable.” But Michigan itself faces quite a different scenario. More people died in Michigan in 2020 than were born. That’s the first time that’s happened since 1900, according to The Detroit News. Deaths related to COVID-19 drove a ...

Bills would give construction workers extra protection

As construction workers push to get Michigan’s roads in better condition, they have to deal with enough on-the-job hazards — they definitely don’t need drivers creating new ones. That’s why a pair of Michigan representatives have come together from across the aisle to try and protect them. State Rep. Sara Cambensy, D-Marquette, and state Sen. Wayne Schmidt, R-Traverse City, have introduced legislation that would allow for the placement of automated speed cameras in construction zones. The proposed bipartisan pieces of legislation, House Bill 5750 and Senate Bill 874, were ...

February is Heart Health Awareness Month

Heart disease is the number one cause of death of women in the United States and in Michigan, causing about one in five deaths in 2020. In recognition of Heart Health Awareness Month and the American Heart Association’s Go Red™ for Women campaign, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) WISEWOMAN program and Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention Unit are working together to raise awareness of this important health issue. From 2019 to 2020, mortality rates due to heart disease increased nearly 2% among white non-Hispanic women, more than 8% among Hispanic women ...

UP’s Baumgartner sets great example with golden finish

Iron River resident Nick Baumgartner gave the Upper Peninsula a new reason to be proud. He and teammate Lindsey Jacobellis won the gold medal Saturday in the inaugural mixed team snowboard cross at the Winter Olympics in China. Not that the U.P. wasn’t already proud of Baumgartner, the oldest snowboarder ever on the U.S. team. Our hearts broke right along with his two days earlier when he finished 10th in men’s snowboard cross. He said afterwards: “I’m 40 years old, I’m running out of chances. This one stings. This one hurts.” He was determined the loss would not be the ...

Use Michigan surplus to reward all taxpayers

The biggest issue with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s $74 billion budget proposal is that it uses public funds to reward preferred groups of taxpayers and citizens, while ignoring others. Michigan is in a rare place in that it has more money than it needs to run state government. In most years, governors and lawmakers are forced to make tough choices about how to cover too many needs with too few dollars. For 2023, the state has a $7 billion surplus, thanks to spending cuts made to counter the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and increased tax revenue from unanticipated economic ...