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Almanac for May 18, 2026

Local columns

Today is Monday, May 18, the 138th day of 2026. There are 227 days left in the year. Today in history: In 1980, the Mount St. Helens volcano in Washington state erupted, leaving an estimated 57 people dead or missing. Also on this date: In 1863, the Siege of Vicksburg began during the Civil War, ending on July 4 with a Union victory that gave its forces control of the Mississippi River. In 1896, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Plessy v. Ferguson, endorsed "separate but equal" racial segregation. (The decision was reversed in 1954 by Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka.) In 1927, ...

Professional Trades Month highlights career options

Editorial

As high school graduations begin in the region, it’s worth noting that May is Professional Trades Month, highlighting the career opportunities available in these much-needed positions. In 2024, 393,000 Michiganders were employed in professional trades occupations, a 14.4% increase from 2020, according to a news release from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, or LEO. Many of these high-demand, high-wage careers do not require a four-year degree and have pathways that focus on credentials, certificates, on-the-job training and ...

When killing becomes commonplace

Local columns

"It is forbidden to kill; therefore all murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets." — Voltaire (1694-1778) Last week, when the Pentagon resumed its attacks on small boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean, the media barely noticed. The ...

GOP incumbent in Louisiana loses Senate primary race

Local columns

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — When Charles Wandfluh voted in Louisiana's Republican primary over the weekend, he could only conjure the unflattering image of a panicked rodent when talking about Bill Cassidy's desperate attempt to cling to his U.S. Senate seat despite opposition from President Donald ...

Congress needs to rein in ‘turbo’ gerrymandering

Editorial

The redistricting arms race now roiling American politics was not merely predictable, but inevitable. It began the moment President Donald Trump picked up the phone last year to demand that Missouri, Texas and other red states gerrymander their congressional districts mid-decade to give Republicans an advantage in the upcoming midterms. Some Democratic-held states have responded in kind. The result is that in much of America this November, voters won’t be allowed to choose their politicians; the politicians are instead choosing their voters. It’s an untenable situation that will ...

Ex-election clerk’s sentence commuted after Trump pressure

Local columns

DENVER (AP) — Colorado Gov. Jared Polis on Friday commuted the sentence of election conspiracy theorist Tina Peters after pressure from President Donald Trump, the latest instance of the president using his powers to reward those who echoed his baseless claims of mass fraud as the cause of ...