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Letters To The Editor

We need a better conversation about data centers

To the Journal editor: Much of the public conversation has focused on preventing data centers from coming to the Upper Peninsula. That concern is understandable, but it overlooks how land use regulation actually works. A statewide prohibition on data centers would be a matter of state law. Local governments, on the other hand, are responsible for considering where all lawful land uses may be permitted and what standards they must meet. Through my work as a regional planner and participation in Michigan's Statewide Data Center Working Group (a collaboration of statewide land use ...

Demand clear protections at the Chocolay Township Board public hearing Aug. 10

To the Journal editor: I am writing to urge Chocolay Township residents to attend the upcoming public hearing at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 10, at the Chocolay Township Fire Hall (5010 US 41 South). The board will consider proposed zoning amendments regarding natural resource mining that leave our community incredibly vulnerable. It could be your last chance to use your voice before a final vote. Many residents do not realize that under Michigan law, natural resource extraction can legally occur adjacent to and directly in residential zones. If a developer buys land in your neighborhood to ...

New political landscape

To the Journal editor: When my wife and I moved back to the UP a couple of years ago, we discovered a number of changes, positive and negative, in the state’s political landscape. When we left for jobs in Illinois in the 1990s, John Engler was still putting his distinctive right-wing stamp on government operations in Lansing. Here in the Upper Peninsula, Bart Stupak held the 1st District’s congressional seat. Bart was an interesting independent-thinking Democrat. He had opposed a number of gun control measures, but—much to the annoyance of the National Rifle Association —voted ...

Science advisor not a scientist

To the Journal editor: Given President Trump’s record of incompetence and corruption, it should be no surprise that, for the first time in the history of the position, the president’s science advisor is not a scientist. Michael Kratsios, who is also the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, has not earned a PhD or even an undergraduate degree in science or engineering. His only degree is a BA in politics from Princeton. Before being confirmed to this position by the U.S. Senate, Mr. Kratsios had worked at an investment fund run by Peter Thiel, a ...

Loving our neighbors under flame: A reflection on grace, action

To the Journal editor: In recent weeks, our social media feeds have been flooded with reactions to the devastating natural disasters facing our Canadian neighbors. Sadly, rather than prompting grief or a desire to help, these events have been met by some individuals with judgment, claiming these hardships are "the end of times" or "divine punishment" aimed at Pride Month. This tendency to weaponize natural disasters to score ideological points reveals how deeply a self-centered political and social culture has pulled us away from the core of the Gospel. We must confess that our faith ...

Blame climate change

To the Journal editor: Blowing smoke recently, four Republican Politicians, John James, Jack Bergman, John Moolenaar and Lisa McClain, expressed disappointment in the National Government of Canada for not doing more about the smoke from Canadian wildfires riding the winds to Michigan. I find it disturbing that these four politicians cannot remember their high school geography or science. Canada is the second-largest country in the world, with a boreal forest spanning well over a million square miles. The forest is made up primarily of spruce, larch, fir, pine and birch. I fought fires ...