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Editorial

It’s not too late to get a shot for the flu

A moment to draw attention to that other vaccine that’s well worth getting — for influenza. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is urging Michiganders to get their flu vaccine as soon as possible to protect themselves and their communities from flu, especially while continuing to battle COVID-19. Getting a flu vaccine is critical this season because flu viruses and the virus that causes COVID-19 will likely be spreading simultaneously. Importantly, residents are able to get their COVID-19 vaccine at the same time as their flu vaccine. According to the CDC, those ...

Recreating on ice? Safety should always be first consideration

Many thousands of residents and visitors alike are taking to area waterways in search of winter fishing opportunities. Soon, tip-up towns will start to appear in various locations, often with anglers’ vehicles parked near the fishing site itself. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources makes it their business to keep an eye on area ice conditions. Over time, agency personnel have become adept at determining whether ice is safe or not. Because it’s impossible for DNR personnel to inspect every ice sheet every day, here are a handful of guidelines — many of the ...

$1B for Great Lakes Restoration calls for smarter spending

On the behalf of our HOMES lakes — Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie and Superior — the hard work of political wrangling is done. The $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill passed in August points $1 billion at the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, which funds pollution and contamination clean up and prevention, invasive species removal and habitat restoration. The boon not only raises the bar, it hurls it skyward like a javelin to the sun, with an additional five years of escalating yearly funding that will reach $475 million by 2026. The $1 billion, plus the annual funding, wins ...

Use virtual learning for those kicked out of school

Student suspensions and expulsions are skyrocketing since the deadly shooting at Oxford High School last month, as school officials practice increased vigilance to head-off any possible violence. It’s prudent to separate potentially dangerous students from the broader school community. But that doesn’t mean their education has to come to an end. The remote learning option developed during the COVID-19 pandemic should be used to keep troubled kids in class virtually. That’s a more productive approach than returning to the zero-tolerance policies that many districts are ...

Extending county commissioners’ terms the right move

The Michigan Legislature has passed a bill that would extend from two years to four years the length of terms served by county commissioners in Michigan. That means commissioners would serve the same length of terms that elected county executives such as clerks and treasurers serve. The bill also standardizes terms so commissioners face election at the same time as state representatives in the fall of even-numbered years. That has its downsides, to be sure. Sometimes, for example, a fresh face is the best answer for a problem. That’s especially true when it comes to ...

State funding will assist local school districts in key hiring

Nelson Mandela once said, “Our children are the rock on which our future will be built.” Michigan is now making moves to support that foundation. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Tuesday announced that schools are recruiting and hiring 560 more school psychologists, school social workers, school counselors and school nurses with the help of funding from the fiscal year 2022 State School Aid Act. “The pandemic reminded us that school-based mental and physical health professionals are not luxuries,” Whitmer said in a statement. “Healthy students — physically, mentally and ...