Kalamazoo Opinion

Column: Plans brewing to give 'tired' Milham Park an overdue facelift

2009-11-08T12:00:10Z

The Friends of Recreation, the Friends of Milham Park and the Parks and Recreation Department want public input to help develop a master plan for revitalizing both Milham and Blanche Hull parks.

Editorial: Being progressive requires healthy debate

2009-11-08T12:00:20Z

All the campaigning in the city of Kalamazoo is finished, the votes are counted and the campaign signs are put away. (Well, at least they're supposed to be.) So what are we to think about the election of seven city commissioners, the passage of a tax to fund Metro Transit and the approval of changes to the city's anti-discrimination ordinance to include protections for people regardless of sexual preference or gender identity?

Letters: "Create unemployment IRA to benefit self-employed" and more

2009-11-08T12:00:00Z

As I hear from many subcontractors who have no work because of the lack of housing demand, I wonder how they feed their families, make their house payments, pay utility bills or satisfy minimum payments on credit cards. Since subcontractors are usually self-employed, they don't qualify for unemployment benefits, their customers don't pay the taxes that support the unemployment benefits, and they don't weigh in on the public debate regarding increasing the unemployment taxes or extending the number of months for receiving benefits.

Column: So many meaningless phrases when all is said and done

2009-11-08T12:00:00Z

As conversation transpires in our lives, the air is filled with oodles and oodles of words. But if you listen closely, we say so many things that don't really say anything at all.

Independents rule and they're not happy

2009-11-08T05:00:01Z

Last week's election last week can’t predict what will happen in Michigan a year from now, self-identified independents in Michigan are no less angry with the economic status quo than the independents who put a Republican in the New Jersey governor's office. And aren’t likely to feel much better next November if unemployment remains in the double-digits. In fact they already say they won’t be.

Column: I feel lucky, but luck's not what found my cancer

2009-11-07T13:00:00Z

Two weeks ago I was diagnosed with colon cancer — and stumbled on a valuable life lesson on the importance of perspective.

Viewpoint: Kalamazoo should honor Derek Jeter with his own day

2009-11-07T12:00:20Z

Fall brings the fear of shoveling your driveway and the end of the baseball season. I do not wish to jinx us with snow, so I will focus on baseball. West Michigan is a great place to be a baseball fan. You are two hours from three Major League Baseball parks and an hour or so from five minor league venues.

Our Turn: Are social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace a positive thing?

2009-11-07T12:00:10Z

After a hectic school day, the only thing I want to do when I get home is plop down at the computer and log in to Facebook. I check my notifications to see what I missed during the day. Afterward, I return to the home page and scroll through my friends' status updates. Social networks keep me in touch with friends and family both far away and close to home.

Letters: "Michigan Promise to students was not kept" and more

2009-11-07T12:00:00Z

Budget crunch? To all the kids who study hard and test well, the Michigan "Promise" turned out not to be a promise after all. The cuts in per-pupil spending for all the schools - that'll really help educate our children.

Viewpoint: Four things to remember about this year's state budgeting process

2009-11-06T13:00:10Z

The Michigan state budget process is over - for now. The reality is that our state's economic challenges mean Lansing will be back at it again very soon working to update our current spending plan and prepare next year's. But for now, there are four important things to know about the budget that was just signed.

Viewpoint: Public deserved input into legislation to change status of orchard property

2009-11-06T13:00:10Z

Western Michigan University's planned expansion of the Business Technology and Research Park into Colony Farm Orchard has stirred intense emotions in our community. Regardless of whether the project should go forward, the last few months have witnessed a failure of process: a failure, particularly by our elected officials, to conduct the decision making process in an open and transparent manner that takes into account opinions on all sides.

Viewpoint: It's unfortunate Kalamazoo chose to deny lights to Christian school students

2009-11-06T13:00:10Z

I am writing in regard to the Kalamazoo Christian stadium lights controversy and the vote by Kalamazoo Zoning Board of Appeals. I sent my children through the Kalamazoo Christian Schools system and have been a Kalamazoo Christian High School board member.

Letters: "Health insurance rate hikes are out of control" and more

2009-11-06T13:00:00Z

My husband and I are senior citizens, ages 76 and 79. We have tried to prepare for our senior years by investing in a long-term health care insurance policy 17 years ago. Recently we received a notice that our monthly rates are going up. They have gone up, of course, every year, but this year in December they will increase 40 percent.

Editorial: Voters speak; now it's time to get to work

2009-11-05T15:26:27Z

Politics and contentiousness seem to go hand in hand. Divisive issues were in play during elections across southwestern Michigan on Tuesday. There were some ugly tactics employed, realities we are learning to expect these days, unfortunately.But the elections are over....

Letters: "Commission's health care declaration rings hollow" and more

2009-11-05T13:00:00Z

Written by: Dave Powers, Marla Ferguson, Eric Graham, Doug Simmons, John P. Taylor & Rosemary Abbruzzese.Commission’s health care declaration rings hollowThe Kalamazoo City Commission made a grand and politically correct statement a few weeks ago declaring for the world to...

Column: Writers and speakers should be more careful about their grammar

2009-11-04T13:00:10Z

Were I to win the lottery, I would establish a well-endowed prize for teachers who still instruct their students in the old-fashioned basics of grammar.

Letters: "Paw Paw ball field development questioned" and more

2009-11-04T13:00:00Z

I received a letter pertaining to baseball/softball fields being developed in Waverly Township in Van Buren County. There are some valid points and issues that should be addressed.

State budget? Yes. Real direction? No.

2009-11-04T10:59:30Z

So, does the state of Michigan have a budget yet, or not?The short answer is yes, although you would hardly know it from the frustration that followed Gov. Jennifer Granholm's signatures of the state's final spending bills Friday. State government...

Editorial: Protecting pork industry important for area

2009-11-03T13:58:53Z

Michigan swine herds are healthy, and pork is safe to consume. But there's a myth that pork from infected pigs can transmit the H1N1 virus to humans. Not so. However, humans who contract the flu can pass it on to pigs.

Letters: "VFC is about the people, not the steeple" and more

2009-11-03T13:00:00Z

It's hard to miss the big church between Oakland Drive and U.S. 131 on the north side of Interstate 94. Wow! Is that really necessary? For those of us who currently attend Valley Family Church, the answer is a big "yes." The location on Romence Road is maxed out — all four services and also the children's church classrooms. This church is growing and so are many others in Kalamazoo. God is working in this city.

Viewpoint: No solution for poverty problem until we address its root cause

2009-11-02T18:28:30Z

On Oct. 18, the Kalamazoo Gazette ran a front-page article titled "Homelessness Spreads." The main article by Alex Nixon and the accompanying article by Nate Reens gave a superficial and typically sympathetic view of people who are caught up in the "homeless condition" that is apparently spreading throughout our society.