WobblyReport

Running shorts On runs, sentences... July was a month of making up for lost training time. My log after 22 days showed more than 92 miles jogged. Here are brief reflections on some of those miles. Rifle River Recreation Area The temperature was close to 90 F (32 C) on July 5 for this jaunty two-miler through the hilly, difficult section of Rifle River Recreation Area’s trails, beginning from the parking area near Grousehaven Lake. The route is fully shaded and runs along several ridges, with the feel of a coastal trail. Two others hiked the route in the opposite direction to my own. The route is easily navigable. More loops, longer ones extending south that I explored last year, are accessible from the same parking area and trailhead. But those were for another day. The lake access was teeming with people relaxing, barbecuing and cooling off. Entry is free with a Recreation Passport, which is available as an opt-in on license plate renewal. Loud Creek Non-Motorized Trail Sys...

The petition to bring ranked choice voting to Michigan elections began circulating last week. Director Pat Zabawa reportedly logged his own signature as the campaign's first last Thursday. “One down, 446,197 to go,” said Zabawa. “Obviously, we have our work cut out for us: when we qualify for the ballot, it will have taken the biggest signature collection campaign in Michigan history. That might intimidate some campaigns, but it’s what this team is built for. We have thousands of volunteers who are very eager to win this with shoe leather and hard work. We’re now in the stage of the campaign where progress is measured in how much ink we put on paper and how many conversations we have with our friends and neighbors.” Conversations with our friends and neighbors indeed. Circulating petitions, and engaging with circulators when we encounter them in public, provide simple and direct opportunities to establish and reestablish community connections. Whether or not we agree or disagree...

Declaration of Independence TL;DR? Find a full transcription of the original Declaration of Independence here . Read on for a modernized and distilled version. Sometimes people reject an established political authority that they had for a time in the majority agreed to follow. Here’s why we did. Obviously human beings are created equal, inheriting unalienable rights, among them Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. People institute governments to secure those rights and produce the best chances for Safety and Happiness. Government power starts and ends with the consent of the people. If government fails in these regards, it is the Right of the People to change or abolish it and institute new forms of government. Prudence dictates that we not change or abolish long-established governments for slight or short-lived causes. Plus, people are naturally averse to change. But when a long train of abuses clearly aims to impose tyrannous rule, people have both the right and the dut...