The Ann Arbor Independent Editorial Team 2249 posts 224 comments

NANCY KAPLAN, A current member of the Ann Arbor District Library Board of Trustees, recently launched a run for Ann Arbor City Council to represent Ward 2. Kaplan, a retired physical therapist, was elected to the AADL Board of Trustees in…

by Rene Ghert-Zand We are fortunate that while Passover commemorates events of a very ancient era, we live in extremely modern times. As we rush around shopping and cooking for the holiday this year, we don’t even need to turn on our…

by Ellen Freudenheim SO YOU’VE BEEN invited to a Seder! Mazel tov! There are all kinds: small family Seders, and huge Seders involving dozens of friends. Seders with a lot of kids running around, and Seders where the youngest is pushing…

by Erica Brody AS THE SEDER draws near, Jews of all stripes become oenophiles, setting out to stores to choose the perfect wine for their Passover meals. As with the meals themselves, which by now include vegetarian and gourmet…

by Rabbi Arthur Waskow THE TRADITIONAL Passover Haggadah teaches that in every generation, some Pharaoh will arise in destruction, and that in every generation, every human being — not just every Jew — must look upon herself or himself…

In response to a Freedom of Information Act request, AADL officials turned over 1,307 pages of incident reports generated by library staff during 2013. A total of 160 of the incidents involved patrons sleeping on library premises. ON…

by Jill Richardson I KNOW I shouldn’t be, but I am shocked by Americans’ laziness. We look for the closest parking spot to the gym so that we don’t have to walk those extra few steps. We indulge in watching more cooking shows, yet…

by J.H. Mae I HATE IT when people talk about the weather. It’s such a dull, over worn topic, but here I go, talking about the weather myself.Winter doesn’t bother me, especially now that I work from home. But even when I didn’t – even…

by Jill Richardson KRIS HOMME, A retired engineer, did not know what was happening to her. At age 33, she was diagnosed with macular degeneration — a disease that usually does not appear until old age. Not one to give up, she somehow…

by Cliff Weathers WHEN WE THINK of counterfeit products, we may envision cheap watches, sunglasses, or handbag knock-offs sold by edgy street vendors or shadowy guys in trench coats. These are harmless enough as far as ripoffs go, with…