The year 2014 is shaping up as an incredibly exciting one for those of us born in 1957. That’s because we all turn 57 sometime during the next 12 months. And with the exception of winning a multi-million dollar lottery, finding the Fountain of Youth, or learning for a fact the preening star of a […]

On Dec. 16, a federal judge’s ruling may have marked a historic turning point in the civil war between President Barack Obama and those Americans intent on preventing the executive branch from being the sole rule of law while We The People are no longer a self-governing republic. The next day, the lead editorial in […]

Carly Poe is a 33-year-old single mother in Portland, Ore. Despite a college degree, she struggles to find work and raise a teenage son with serious medical problems. Food stamps ”“ the government program officially known as SNAP ”“ help her survive. “We’ve been making ends meet with SNAP,” she told The Oregonian. “It’s a […]

For too long, too many Americans have been denied access to affordable health care. That’s changing. The Affordable Care Act is a good first step toward increasing access for millions of Americans. We are seeing some important progress, and in the coming months, we will be working to make sure we continue that progress, so […]

Thumbs up to all of the electricity line workers, plow truck drivers and others who are on the front lines during the seemingly endless snow and ice storms we’ve had in the past few weeks. When the snow starts to fly, it’s comforting to know that our utilities and public works departments can be counted […]

Hundreds of thousands from Maine to Michigan were plunged into darkness as the result of the late December ice storm. People shivered in the dark. Running generators in enclosed spaces, some died or became seriously ill from breathing carbon monoxide. With all the focus on modernizing the electric system in recent years, you might have […]

A new year is supposed to bring with it a spirit of hope for the future. That famous countdown and ball dropping is a time to set goals for improvement, to make positive changes and embrace new experiences. That’s what the energy at New York City’s Times Square is all about each Dec. 31, as […]

Over the holidays, I received a box of fancy, chocolate-covered strawberries. No ordinary fruits, these. As I opened the box, I ogled a dozen beauty queens, impossibly plump and tarted up for the holiday season. I read the gift message and proceeded to dig in. First, I sampled one of the dark chocolate variety, which […]

Figures released last week showing a 50 percent increase in the number of sexual assaults reported across the military’s branches are at once heartening and disturbing. It is great to hear that more service members are coming forward to report these crimes, but it’s also a major concern that so many service members have to […]