Some people often cringe when they hear the word "patriotism." They hear the word and associate it with mullet-headed morons singing "Born in the U.S.A." They think of the American flag used as thoughtless ornamentation on massive, black trucks.
Vacation season has just about arrived, and I can't think of anywhere better to travel than right here in Michigan. This rich, diverse area is teeming with activities and opportunities to match almost any interest - where else can you cross-country ski, fish for lake trout and dance the night away at an electronic music festival within the borders of one state? I recently made my first trip to the Upper Peninsula.
I'm not sure how I'm going to do it. As excited as I am to graduate from MSU, the changes required - namely real world careers and responsibilities - make me want to hunker down and earn another degree.
The day I have children I will be ready to surrender any selfishness, impatience and pettiness I have in order to provide for and love them to the best of my ability.
In a letter last month, "Columnist's views on limbo repeal incorrect," (SN 5/18), a reader offered an intriguing claim about the Christian deity, asserting "in modern times we Christians have come to understand God as all-loving." This fashionable article of faith, embraced by many Bible-centric Christians, is one of the more astonishing beliefs in modern religion.
Have you ever been in one of those destructive long-term relationships that, at some point, you really just needed to end? I'm not referring to my marriage to my lovely wife of 23 years, but to my 25-year relationship with the Republican Party.
The 2008 presidential election is the first "open seat" contest for the presidency since 1952, meaning it will feature neither an incumbent president nor an incumbent vice president as a candidate.
Gas prices are higher than they've ever been in the United States, and everyone knows it. Major respected news organizations report on rising gas prices constantly - as if inflation, high oil prices and dubious trade partners are novel concepts. People want answers to questions like, "Why do I have to pay so much more to fill the tank of my Ford Explorer?" "I voted, now why won't the government fix the problem?" or "Why are oil companies so inherently evil?" But I'm tired of hearing about it. America has lived in a world of false security, with artificially cheap gas, for far too long.
An issue that raised its mangy head a year ago during midterm elections is starting to creep slowly back into the news.
While everyone else is focusing on Bush's incompetence and the red-state/blue-state standoff, a more significant and quiet revolution is under way among younger voters.
A man in Kansas City, Mo. fired up the grill Sunday and set aflame his book collection. During the past 10 years, Tom Wayne ran a used book store, Prospero's Books, and during that time accumulated thousands of books. Recently, when he attempted to clear out some of his collection he found he could not even give the books away.
For a very long time, most Democrats have been content enough to keep that John F. Kennedy book on its shelf without taking any real political action.
Every so often, national news outlets turn their complete attention to a group of college men and women that are, more often than not, recognized for their negative contributions to university life. It's true, greek life on campuses once had its heyday, but has since been moved to the fringes of the "acceptable" norms. Fraternities are demonized for their involvement in drinking, parties and hazing rituals, while sororities are dishonored because certain girls aren't able to find a place in a "prescribed" social atmosphere.
Seriously, how bad do the Democrats want to lose the 2008 election? Democrats did not win Congress because America suddenly became progressive, socially-conscious and color-blind. They won the House and the Senate last November because bitter, disillusioned conservatives stayed home, refusing to vote for a reckless and dishonest administration.
Americans are being bombarded with different plans to fix the nation's health-care system. After a decade-long dry spell, almost every politician, every large employer, every consumer and industry association and, of course, every presidential candidate, has a health-care reform idea. Isn't it wonderful?
Farmers market season is up and running, and I couldn't be happier. It feels like Michigan is finally waking up from the long, cold winter and blossoming into the glorious green days of early summer. I believe in the United States we've grown far too removed from the land.
Women have certainly come a long way in the workforce, but their pay hasn't yet caught up. In fact, the gender gap in earnings has remained unchanged for the past decade despite the fact there are more women in the labor force than ever before and they are more productive and better educated than they've ever been. Full-time working women still earn only 77 cents for every dollar men earn for doing the same work.
The pit of my stomach falls out whenever I have to fill up my tank. I'm sure I'm not alone.
Imagine this: It's just another day at work or school, and suddenly someone rushes in and tells you there is a shooter nearby.
HG Wells once said, "Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of mankind." I find that I can relate to Wells' statement now more than ever.