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Almanac for March 31, 2026

Local columns

Today is Tuesday, March 31, the 90th day of 2026. There are 275 days left in the year. Today in history: In 1968, at the conclusion of a nationally broadcast address on Vietnam, Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson stunned listeners by declaring, "I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your president." Also on this date: In 1492, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain issued the Alhambra Decree, an edict expelling Jews from Spanish soil, except those willing to convert to Christianity. In 1854, Japan and the United States ...

Where is the arc of justice headed?

Local columns

Former President Barack Obama liked to quote the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s line that "the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." Of course, what was an expression of optimism for the moral reformer King was more in the nature of a victory spike of the football for ...

Almanac for March 30, 2026

Local columns

Today is Monday, March 30, the 89th day of 2026. There are 276 days left in the year. Today in history: In 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot and seriously wounded by John Hinckley Jr. outside a Washington, D.C., hotel. Also wounded were White House press secretary James Brady, Secret Service agent Timothy McCarthy and a District of Columbia police officer, Thomas Delahanty. (Hinckley would be found not guilty by reason of insanity and held at a psychiatric hospital until his supervised release in 2016. James Brady died in 2014 as a result of his injuries.) Also on this ...

Be safe when preparing traditional holiday meals

Editorial

With this week leading up to Easter Sunday for Christians plus having the Jewish holiday of Passover starting Wednesday through April 9, many families will gather for traditional meals. Mother's Day, too, is just around the corner. With that in mind, the the U.S. Department of Agriculture, or USDA, has offered some advice for marking the holidays safely. “Spring holidays are about cherished traditions—sharing Easter ham, Passover brisket, or a Mother’s Day brunch with those you love,” Dr. Mindy Brashears, undersecretary for Food Safety at the USDA, said in a news release. ...

Pope on Palm Sunday rejects claims that God justifies war

Local columns

ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV said Sunday that God doesn't listen to the prayers of those who make war or cite God to justify their violence, as he prayed especially for Christians in the Middle East during a Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter's Square. With the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran entering its ...

The morality of Trump's war

Local columns

War is the most horrific series of events upon which any government can engage. It is systematic, industrialized, indiscriminate killing. It kills innocent adults and little girls. It often ruins the post-war lives of the killers. It is young men violently fighting old men's power games. It is ...