Opinion

Almanac for June 10, 2026

Today is Wednesday, June 10, the 161st day of 2026. There are 204 days left in the year. Today in history: In 2018, NASA's rover Opportunity sent its last message from the surface of Mars. Originally expected to serve a three-month mission, Opportunity functioned for more than 14 years, traveling over 28 miles across Mars and providing critical discoveries about the planet's geology. Also on this date: In 1692, the first execution resulting from the Salem witch trials in Massachusetts took place as Bridget Bishop was hanged. In 1854, the U.S. Naval Academy held its first ...

Editorial cartoon for June 10, 2026

Deadline Monday to nominate for state Veteran of the Year

Know of someone in Michigan who has a record of outstanding service both in and out of the armed forces? The state wants to hear about that individual — but time is running out. Nominations for the 2026 Michigan Veteran of the Year are being accepted through Monday, June 15. This annual honor is presented to a Michigan veteran who has contributed the most over the course of the year to benefit veterans and their families, including their service as a member of a veteran organization and their work in their community, according to a news release from the Michigan Veterans Affairs ...

Editorial cartoon for June 9, 2026

Almanac for June 9, 2026

Today is Tuesday, June 9, the 160th day of 2026. There are 205 days left in the year. Today in history: In 1973, Secretariat won the Belmont Stakes by 31 lengths, winning horse racing's Triple Crown and setting a still-standing record by running the 1 1/2-mile dirt course in 2 minutes, 24 seconds. Also on this date: In 1732, James Oglethorpe received a charter from Britain's King George II to establish the colony of Georgia. In 1954, during the Senate Army-McCarthy hearings, Army special counsel Joseph N. Welch berated Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy, a Republican from Wisconsin, ...

Which party will recover first from its current self-harm?

Tuesday saw the usual first-week-of-June gaggle of state primary elections. It's a feature of the American federal system that states choose when to hold primary and local elections. Back in the 1850s, as historian Roy Franklin Nichols notes, there was an election in all but one or two of the ...