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Editorial

Line 5 accord imperfect but step in right direction

The agreement that has been reached between the state of Michigan and Enbridge Energy is a step in the right direction, but whether that is truly the best deal will be determined in the coming years. Enbridge’s Line 5 has long been an environmentalist’s nightmare, as the threat of spewing millions of gallons of oil and natural gas liquids into our Great Lakes has come under some intense scrutiny lately, particularly since 2010 when one of the Canadian company’s pipelines failed, causing a natural resources catastrophe at the Kalamazoo River in downstate Calhoun ...

Creative local thinking can spark economy

There are many ways Marquette can set itself apart and promote the area to the rest of the world. There is, of course, its remote outdoor beauty, with Lake Superior, rugged terrain and wilderness areas concentrated in the region. The city has many buildings of architectural interest, such as the old City Hall, the former orphanage that now is Grandview Marquette and St. Peter Cathedral. However, those are extrinsic things of interest. Marquette can distinguish itself further by focusing on the intrinsic things that make it a special place to live. One of these ways is fostering ...

Fire safety at home can save lives

Fire Prevention Week from Oct. 7-13 is about teaching people how to protect themselves from home fires, which is a matter of life and death now more than ever. Residential fire rates have been decreasing. That is the good news. But the bad news, which makes Fire Prevention Week extremely important, is the death rate per home fires is 10 percent higher in 2016 than 1980. While there are less home fires, the fires occurring are more lethal. If more people knew that information, it would save lives. Like many other situations in everyday life, situational awareness is the key. ...

Casperson bill could add to road damage

“Boy, are those roads bad!” You’ve probably heard that statement, or something similar at some point in the past few years. Maybe when you heard it, it was in reference to driving in wintry weather conditions. But for the purposes of this editorial, it applies to Michigan’s crumbling, deteriorating, potholed roadways that all of us drive on daily. Our roads are a problem, and as it currently stands, Senate Bill 396 could make the problem worse. There is no amount of sugarcoating we could use to try to cover up or downplay the poor conditions of our roads. It’s simply a ...

Register, vote: Do your duty for democracy

By definition, democracy depends on voting, and contrary to the lies and myths conjured to prevent we the people from voting, democracy works better when more people vote — always. Before addressing some of those crimes against democracy, every citizen 18 years old and older should know voting is not just a privilege and not just a right — it is a civic duty and obligation as an American to vote in every local and general election. The only requirement to vote is to register. In Michigan, the registration deadline for this election is 30 days before the election, which makes Oct. 9 ...

Snyder played role in deal to end lockout

It wasn’t a perfect solution, not by a long shot, but with winter just around the corner, road crews are going to work immediately, courtesy of an agreement hammered out by Gov. Rick Snyder Thursday. The Associated Press reports the Michigan Infrastructure & Transportation Association will end a lockout that started Sept. 4, allowing unionized operators of cranes and other heavy equipment will return to work. MITA, the trade association representing contractors, locked out the union after union officials said they didn’t want to negotiate a new contract with MITA, but with ...