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Orchids & onions

ßORCHID: To organizers and participants in last week’s Polar Plunge in Mosquito Lake for raising about $30,000 for Special Olympics Ohio. About 80 brave souls dove into the frigid waters to get their chill of a lifetime while freezin’ for a reason. The event, one of many statewide, was organized by the Ohio State Moose Association, and Minnie’s Moose Crew led all teams this year by raising nearly $16,000. That team’s No. 1 performance indeed was appropriate in honor of Hermina “Minnie” Wolfe who rose to the stature of queen of the plunge, having participated in it for more ...

Celebrate, observe one full century of Black History Month

2026 has dawned as a momentous red-letter year for American history. As most know by now, the United States already has launched America250, its supersized patriotic bash to commemorate its 250th anniversary as a proud independent nation. What far fewer of us recognize, however, is that another proud cultural phenomenon literally seeped in history will mark its milestone 100th anniversary this weekend on Feb. 1. That observance, of course, is Black History Month. The roots of Black History Month date to 1926, when revered Dr. Carter G. Woodson and his Association for the Study of ...

The wrong narrative

If you follow what presents itself as “reporting” these days ,you have likely heard about a 5-year-old boy in Minneapolis who was used as “bait” to get his father, who had abandoned him, to return so he could be arrested. Some claimed the child had been “kidnapped” by ICE. Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) rushed to the cameras to promote the “bait” and “kidnapped” narrative. Hillary Clinton said ICE was using children as “pawns,” and Kamala Harris also repeated the “bait” label. The women on “The View” echoed the same theme. Their talking points were ...

Every aspect of Epstein scandal must be probed

Of course, Bill Clinton should cooperate with any investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s trafficking of underage girls. The suggestion that Democrats would shield a former president from questions that might tarnish his legacy speaks ill of Democrats. This concerns a criminal enterprise, not bad-boy behavior. Democrats siding with the pursuit of justice should be commended. Nine of them joined Republicans on the House Oversight Committee in voting to hold Clinton in contempt of Congress for refusing to testify. Committee Chair Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) then gave Clinton two weeks to ...

The American police state has arrived

In recent days, the government in America has not only failed to protect the freedom of speech, it has attacked it. Like authoritarians throughout history, it has sought to silence the speech it hates and fears. But most authoritarians did not have a Constitution that was written as an intentional obstacle to them. In Miami last week, Raquel Pacheco posted a Tweet/X calling Rep. Randy Fine (R-Fla.) a hypocrite for supporting the free speech of those who want Israel to take over Gaza, but opposing the free speech of those who want a Palestinian state. When she received a visit from two ...

Mourning in America

Today we mourn the death-by-execution of Alex Pretti and Renee Good. I use the term execution intentionally because they were murdered intentionally by Trump's goons. (I've seen the videos; I'm sure you have as well.) At times like this, Gandhi used to say, "The truth is revealing itself." To show our grief and solidarity, you might want to wear a black armband this week and light a candle in your window this evening and for the remainder of the week. But there is much more to do than mourn. As the labor leader Joe Hill asked in 1915 just before he was executed: "Don't mourn ... ...