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Aug 20, 2024 | 
mcall.com | Jacob W. Michaels
As members of the Interfaith Action, Justice and Advocacy, and Ecumenical committees of the Lehigh Conference of Churches, we take both our faith and civic responsibilities seriously. We celebrate the diversity of our communities and pursue efforts for justice, advocacy, interfaith and ecumenical relationships, and seek well-being for all people.
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Aug 19, 2024 | 
mcall.com | Jacob W. Michaels
By Danielle Ohl of Spotlight PA; Jessica Lussenhop of ProPublica; and Irina Bucur, Tracy Leturgey and Eddie Trizzino of The Butler EagleSpotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. He’d warned them.
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Aug 3, 2024 | 
mcall.com | Jacob W. Michaels
Even with Joe Biden stepping aside in favor of Kamala Harris, progressives still fear a Donald Trump victory and claim that it would lead to the demise of American democracy and the rise of American authoritarianism. This is rich coming from progressive liberal Democrats because the authoritarian approach is irresistible to them, just as it is to the extreme right.
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May 21, 2024 | 
mcall.com | Jacob W. Michaels
By The Rev. Lindsey Altvater Clifton, First Presbyterian Church of BethlehemThe rumor mill about First Presbyterian Church of Bethlehem has been churning out all kinds of misinformation! The congregation is not planning any high-density development. The church is not closing, the property is not being sold, and the building is not being torn down to build public housing.
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Apr 10, 2024 | 
mcall.com | Jacob W. Michaels
Editor’s Note: The Morning Call solicited Your Views from candidates in contested primaries in the Lehigh Valley region. They were asked to discuss what they see as they biggest issue(s) facing their district and how they would approach solving the issue(s). Today’s pieces are from state Rep. Robert Freeman and challenger Taiba Sultana, Democrats running in the 136th House District, which includes Hellertown and part of Lower Saucon Township. No Republican is running in the race.
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Mar 27, 2024 | 
mcall.com | Jacob W. Michaels
What makes a great workplace? If you ask Lehigh Valley employees, it’s an employer that believes in them and that they believe in right back. Consider the 31 Top Workplaces honored in The Morning Call’s 12th annual Lehigh Valley-wide survey. They include health care providers, educators, banks, engineers, builders and consultants. They sell clothing, manufacture medical devices, operate petroleum pipelines and manage environmental waste.
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Nov 30, 2023 | 
mcall.com | Jacob W. Michaels
The Oct. 7 attacks on Israel by Hamas are directly responsible for what transpired in Gaza since. Let me be crystal clear right now that the loss of any life is a tragedy no matter what “side” one may find themselves agreeing with. Yet it is imperative that we acknowledge that every sovereign nation has the right to not only defend itself but to dig out the root of the source of the attack.
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Aug 8, 2023 | 
mcall.com | Jacob W. Michaels
We have two political parties in the United States, the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. They take turns being the In Party (the party that holds the presidency) and the Out. Richard Nixon was one of our more consequential and perceptive presidents. In addition to his many political and diplomatic accomplishments, he was ahead of his time in doing whatever it takes to secure and retain political advantage.
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Aug 4, 2023 | 
mcall.com | Jacob W. Michaels
I wrote a short story one time called “The Body Surfer,” about a guy who drove to Stone Harbor, New Jersey, and tried body surfing in February, for reasons too boring to recount here. Here’s how I explained his thoughts on body surfing, which not surprisingly, coincide with my own. “His dad had taught him how to do it, standing by his side in the surf when the boy was barely tall enough to keep his head above water. ‘Don’t do a lot of flailing around like some of these idiots do,’ he explained.
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Jul 15, 2023 | 
mcall.com | Jacob W. Michaels
What makes a top workplace in the Lehigh Valley? Turns out it’s not all about the size of your paycheck. That was the takeaway from The Morning Call’s inaugural Top Workplaces survey in 2012. A dozen years later — despite incredible changes in the Lehigh Valley economy and in how many of us approach our jobs — the same holds true.
