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One Foot Out the Door

In Opinion, psychology, sociology, Uncategorized on June 14, 2026 at 9:01 am

Deer In Headlines

By Gery Deer

There’s a type of person most of us have encountered at some point in our lives, who always seemed to have one foot out the door, no matter what they were doing. Maybe they worked beside us. Maybe they were a friend, a family member, a coworker, or even a romantic partner. No matter where they showed up, they always seemed to be either not fully engaged or uncomfortable in a stable.

You know the type. They take a new job while quietly browsing openings for the next one. They join a club but never quite invest themselves in it. They enter relationships while keeping an eye on what else might be available. They volunteer, participate, contribute, and engage, but always with an invisible escape hatch nearby.

At first glance, it can look like independence. Sometimes it’s even mistaken for ambition. In certain situations, it may be both. But there’s often something else happening underneath. Commitment requires vulnerability.

To fully commit to anything, a career, a marriage, a friendship, a community organization, a creative project, or even a personal goal, means accepting uncertainty. It means risking disappointment. It means investing time, energy, emotion, and effort with no guarantee of a rewarding outcome.

For some, the risk feels unbearable. Instead, they remain halfway committed and keep their options open. They avoid becoming too attached, and if things go wrong, they weren’t “all in” from the start. Sadly, however, life rarely rewards partial investment.

A person who constantly keeps one foot out the exit often experiences only a fraction of what commitment can offer. Relationships remain shallow because trust requires consistency. Careers stall because advancement usually belongs to those willing to stay long enough to build expertise and credibility. Community involvement becomes transactional instead of meaningful because real impact takes time. I’ve seen this countless times in professional settings.

Someone joins a team and immediately starts talking about what comes next. Before they have learned the job, they are planning their departure. Before relationships can blossom at all, these types of individuals are looking for better opportunities. Before contributing anything substantial, they evaluate whether the commitment is worth their time.

All things considered, though, sometimes a change is actually necessary. Not every job deserves loyalty. Not every relationship should continue. Not every organization is healthy. Leaving can be the right decision. But there is a difference between recognizing a bad fit and living with your track shoes already laced up. One is discernment. The other is avoidance.

What fascinates me is how often people with one foot out the door believe they are protecting themselves. In reality, they may be protecting themselves from success as much as failure.

Commitment creates opportunities that are impossible with casual participation. The strongest connections are built through years of presence – showing up. The most rewarding careers are often shaped by persistence through difficult seasons. Creative accomplishments emerge from projects that survive frustration, boredom, setbacks, and self-doubt.

None of those things happens if we leave as soon as the initial excitement wears off. The older I get, the more I appreciate people who stay. I’m not referring to those who leave a bad situation or suffer abuse or dysfunction. I mean, people who stay long enough to make a difference. People who keep showing up after the novelty disappears. People who honor commitments when doing so becomes inconvenient. Those are the people who build businesses, strengthen families, sustain friendships, support communities, and create legacies.

They understand something important. Commitment is not a feeling. It is a decision repeated over and over again. Some days that decision feels easy. Other days it feels like work. Most worthwhile things eventually require us to continue long after the excitement fades.

Maybe that’s why people with one foot out the door often seem restless. They spend so much energy preparing for the next thing that they never fully experience the thing right in front of them.

Life is not lived in the exits. It happens while staying. And sometimes the most courageous thing we can do is stop looking for the door, plant both feet firmly where we are, and see what becomes possible when we finally settle in. Be present. Engage and commit.

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The Membership Fee

In Opinion, Politics, psychology, Uncategorized on June 14, 2026 at 8:56 am

Deer In Headlines

By Gery Deer

I have never been especially good at joining things. That probably sounds strange coming from someone who has spent years involved in community organizations, networking groups, and professional associations. It is not that I dislike people. I actually enjoy being around thoughtful, interesting people. What has always made me uneasy is the moment when participation quietly becomes conformity.

There always seems to be a point at which a group stops being about shared purpose and becomes about directed thinking. That is where my internal alarm system usually kicks on. Maybe that says something about me and even more about human nature.

People join things because belonging feels good. It always has. Human beings are tribal creatures. Thousands of years ago, being accepted by the tribe meant protection, food, and survival. Being rejected often meant death. That instinct never really disappeared. It just evolved. Today, we join political parties, churches, online communities, fandoms, networking groups, social movements, and fitness cultures. We’re still for connection, identity, and the comfort of knowing we belong somewhere.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. Civilization itself depends on cooperation. In fact, some of the best experiences in life come from being part of something larger than us. Healthy groups can encourage people, support families during difficult times, create lifelong friendships, and accomplish meaningful things that no individual could achieve alone.

But every group has a culture, and culture shapes behavior. Sometimes that shaping is positive. Sometimes it becomes something else entirely.

Over the years, I have noticed that many organizations, movements, and belief systems eventually develop an unspoken expectation. You are not just encouraged to participate. You are expected to align. Certain opinions become mandatory. Certain phrases become part of the language. Certain viewpoints become untouchable. Once that happens, disagreement starts being treated less like conversation and more like disloyalty.

That tendency exists everywhere. Politics may be the clearest example right now. People increasingly behave less like citizens with opinions and more like extreme sports fans defending a team. Once someone puts on the jersey, every mistake by their side gets explained away while every mistake by the other side becomes proof of evil, corruption, or stupidity.

Religion can often fall into the same trap. So can activism. So can corporations. Social media communities do it constantly. Even harmless hobbies sometimes develop their own strange culture where questioning the accepted thinking feels like breaking some unwritten law.

And the internet has poured gasoline on all of it. Social media rewards unqualified certainty, outrage, and extremist tribal behavior. Algorithms do not care whether people are thoughtful. Algorithms operate from engagement. Anger and hateful sentiments always spread faster than kindness or nuance. Slogans travel farther than complicated ideas. The loudest voices usually rise to the top, while quieter, more thoughtful conversations fade into the background.

What worries me is how easily intelligent people can start outsourcing their thinking to the groups they belong to. History is filled with examples of otherwise reasonable people following movements, leaders, and ideologies far beyond the point where common sense should have applied the brakes.

That is the real danger of drinking the Kool-Aid. It usually does not happen all at once. Most people do not wake up one morning and decide to stop thinking for themselves. It happens slowly. A little compromise here. A little silence there. Before long, people are defending things they would have questioned a few years earlier simply because the group expects them to.

Still, there is another side to this conversation. A person who refuses to join anything at all can become isolated, cynical, and disconnected from the world around them. Independence is healthy. Isolation is not. It is easy to stand outside every system and criticize the people inside it. It is much harder to participate while still maintaining your critical thinking and the ability to ask uncomfortable questions.

Maybe that is the balance we should aim for. Join things. Build community. Support causes. Believe in something larger than yourself. Just do not hand over your mind in exchange for membership. A healthy group should never require you to stop being an individual in order to belong.

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Rising AI Addiction

In Opinion, sociology, Technology, Uncategorized on June 14, 2026 at 8:48 am

Deer In Headlines

By Gery Deer

A few years ago, people worried that artificial intelligence would eventually replace human workers. Today, another possibility is emerging, and it may arrive long before robot uprisings or mass unemployment. More and more people are becoming emotionally and psychologically dependent on AI systems that never sleep, never argue, never get bored, and never stop responding.

That dependence does not always look dramatic. It rarely begins with obsession. It starts innocently, usually disguised as productivity or curiosity. Someone asks an AI chatbot to summarize an article. Then they ask it to explain a difficult topic. Soon, they are discussing politics, relationships, career frustrations, or private fears with software designed to keep conversations going as long as possible. Hours disappear.

People increasingly report losing track of time while interacting with AI tools. A quick question becomes an evening of conversation. A work assignment turns into endless prompt refinement. Students claim they are researching while actually drifting through AI-generated distractions that feel productive without accomplishing much. The machine always has another answer, another idea, another response waiting instantly. Human beings have never encountered technology quite like this.

Television entertained audiences. Social media captured attention. Smartphones made distraction portable. Artificial intelligence combines all of those features while adding something far more powerful: interaction. AI responds directly to emotions, language, interests, and insecurities. It creates the illusion that someone is listening carefully, even when no actual understanding exists behind the screen.

That illusion matters because people are wired to seek validation, reassurance, and escape from discomfort. AI delivers all three immediately. Feeling lonely? The chatbot responds warmly. Feeling insecure? The chatbot encourages you. Feeling overwhelmed? The chatbot simplifies complicated decisions. Real human relationships require patience, compromise, and emotional effort. AI companions require almost nothing. For some users, that convenience can quietly become dependency.

Teenagers may be especially vulnerable because their social identities are still developing. Adults facing isolation, anxiety, or depression may also find AI interaction easier than navigating difficult human relationships. Employees working remotely can spend entire days communicating more with machines than with coworkers. Over time, the distinction between healthy use and compulsive reliance becomes increasingly blurred. There is another concern receiving far less public attention: the erosion of silence and reflection.

For generations, boredom served an important psychological purpose. Quiet moments allowed people to process emotions, reflect on problems, and develop independent thoughts. Waiting rooms, walks, and long drives once provided mental breathing space. Today, every pause can instantly be filled with AI interaction. Questions no longer remain unanswered. Uncertainty no longer lingers. The machine is always available to entertain, reassure, or distract. That may sound harmless, but constant stimulation changes behavior.

Researchers already know excessive social media use can affect sleep, attention spans, anxiety levels, and emotional health. Artificial intelligence could intensify those effects because it feels personal. Unlike scrolling through videos or reading random posts, AI systems simulate conversation and emotional engagement. They can mirror language patterns, reinforce beliefs, and encourage users to continue interacting. The long-term consequences remain largely unknown.

That uncertainty alone should concern parents, educators, employers, and policymakers. Society embraced social media long before understanding its psychological impact, particularly on younger users. By the time researchers recognized the extent of the damage, billions of people had already integrated those platforms into daily life. Artificial intelligence is advancing even faster, while public understanding remains dangerously limited.

None of this means AI should be feared or rejected entirely. Artificial intelligence can improve medical research, education, accessibility, and workplace efficiency. Used responsibly, it can become a valuable tool. The problem begins when tools evolve into substitutes for attention, relationships, creativity, or emotional resilience.

People should begin setting boundaries now rather than wait for future studies to confirm the obvious. Limiting recreational AI use, protecting device-free time, encouraging in-person relationships, and teaching digital self-awareness may become essential habits in the years ahead.

The greatest danger may not be that artificial intelligence becomes more human. It may be that humans gradually become less connected, less reflective, and less able to exist without constant digital reinforcement. Such existence diminishes us. Getting lost in a digital world only makes the real one harder to deal with if and when you ever come out of it.

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Jamestown Café Launches First Website, Bringing Online Ordering and Community Updates to Customers

In Business, Local News, Uncategorized on June 8, 2026 at 1:59 pm

By Gery Deer

(JAMESTOWN) — One of Jamestown’s newest small-business success stories is taking another step forward.

Jamestown Cafe⁠ has launched its first-ever website, giving customers a new way to stay connected with the downtown café while making it easier to learn about menu offerings, hours, events, specials, and online ordering opportunities.  

The new site serves as a digital front door for the café, which has quickly become a gathering place in downtown Jamestown since opening in 2025. Visitors can browse menu items, learn about the café’s story, view operating hours, find contact information, and stay informed about upcoming events and seasonal offerings.  

Owner Ashley Mannier said the website represents another milestone in the café’s continued growth and its commitment to serving the community.

Located at 9 W. Washington St., the café occupies a restored historic downtown building that Mannier and her family transformed from a vacant storefront into a welcoming neighborhood destination. Since opening, the business has become known for specialty coffee drinks, breakfast and brunch selections, sandwiches, pastries, and baked goods served in an atmosphere that celebrates local history and community connections.  

The Jamestown Cafe‘s new website provides online ordering and updates on hours, and new drink, and food item information.

The website, developed by Ryan Patt Solutions, in Jamestown, allows customers to quickly check current hours, view menu offerings, and learn about featured items ranging from breakfast paninis and specialty coffee drinks to sandwiches and bakery selections. The online platform also provides a central location for announcements about new menu additions, special promotions, and community events hosted by the café.  

For customers who rely on social media for updates, the website complements the café’s existing Facebook and Instagram presence while offering a more permanent and easily accessible source of information. Future updates are expected to include expanded online ordering features, event notifications, and regular announcements about new drinks, sandwiches, baked goods, and seasonal specialties.  

The launch reflects a growing trend among small-town businesses investing in professional online presences to better serve customers and provide convenient access to information outside regular business hours. For Jamestown Café, it offers another way to strengthen the connection between the business and the community it was created to serve.

Those interested in learning more about the café, viewing menu options, checking hours, or staying informed about upcoming specials and events can visit the new website at thejamestowncafe.com.  

The café is open Wednesday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.  

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Back to the Keys: Xenia Library Events Celebrate the Enduring Legacy of the Typewriter

In Books, Business, Children and Family, Dayton Ohio News, Education, history, Technology, Uncategorized on May 26, 2026 at 11:00 am

The Greene County Public Library and GLD Communications are teaming up to celebrate National Typewriter Day with two public events later this month at the Xenia Community Library, combining history, writing, and hands-on experiences centered around one of the most influential communication tools ever created.

The first event, “Typewriters in the 21st Century,” will take place Tuesday, June 23, at 6:30 p.m. at the library. The presentation will be led by award-winning journalist, author, and typewriter enthusiast Gery Deer of Jamestown-based GLD Communications. According to event organizers, the program will explore the continuing relevance of typewriters in a modern digital world and examine their role in shaping communication, journalism, business, and creative writing.

A second event, a public “Type-In,” is scheduled for Saturday, June 27, from 1 p.m. until 5 p.m., giving participants the opportunity to bring their own typewriters or try a variety of machines supplied by collectors and enthusiasts. Organizers say the event is designed to create a relaxed, social atmosphere where visitors can experience writing in a slower, more tactile way while learning about the machines and the culture surrounding them.

Melissa Fasanella, Head Librarian at the Xenia Community Library, believes the “analog lifestyle” has really made a comeback in 2026. “This year our Library started a puzzle exchange, by customer request, that’s been popular for those who want to take a puzzle home or to give new opportunities to others to assemble puzzles they have already put together at home and want to give to us for reuse,” she said.  

SEE THE VIDEO INTERVIEW HERE

“We’ve also seen several items that we loan out such as pickleball kits, telescopes, birdwatching kits, etc. circulate well this year so far as individuals and families are rediscovering more ‘unplugged’ hobbies.”

Deer added that the programs are intended to be about more than nostalgia. “With these events, we’re celebrating, not the machine so much, as what it represented and its relevance in the 21st Century,” he said. “The typewriter provided women with an opportunity to join the professional office workplace; it enabled the mass production of important legal documents and correspondence, and much more.”

“The typewriter was the forerunner of most of our modern communication equipment,” Deer said. “We still use the same QWERTY keyboard invented for the first typewriters on virtually every communications device.” He added that many people are rediscovering typewriters as a way to slow down and reconnect with focused creativity.

“And for the writer and general public alike, they’re getting a chance to disconnect and unplug from the digital noise that invades every part of our lives,” Deer said. Also participating in the type-in event will be TB Writers Plus, the only typewriter sales and service company in the region, run by Trevor Brumfield and Becca Brumfield. The business will have some typewriters on hand for attendees to try out, along with information on how to buy one.

National Typewriter Day is observed annually to recognize the invention and cultural impact of the typewriter, a technology widely credited with revolutionizing business communication, journalism, publishing, and office work throughout the late 19th and 20th centuries. While largely replaced by computers decades ago, typewriters have experienced a resurgence among writers, artists, students, and collectors who appreciate their mechanical simplicity and distraction-free writing experience.

The June 23 presentation is free and open to the public, though registration is encouraged through the library’s online event calendar. Organizers said the June 27 Type-In will also be open to the public and welcoming to both longtime enthusiasts and people who have never used a typewriter before.

Typewriters in the 21st Century Free Registration: https://greenelibrary.bibliocommons.com/events/69cac953491b809c6f23e6e0

National Typewriter Day Celebration Type-In Free Registration: https://greenelibrary.bibliocommons.com/events/69cfa70366c3387a9d05ae9b

Additional information and registration details are available through the Greene County Public Library website, www.greenelibrary.info, and the library’s online events calendar.

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Xenia Community Library presents, Typewriters in the 21st Century with Gery Deer

In Local News, Technology, Uncategorized on May 5, 2026 at 6:56 pm

In celebration of National Typewriter Day, June 23rd, join writer and typewriter enthusiast Gery Deer as he explores the typewriter’s resurgence and modern-day relevance.

Join writer and typewriter enthusiast Gery Deer at 6:30 PM at the Xenia Community Library for “Typewriters in the 21st Century,
an engaging one-hour program exploring the surprising resurgence and modern-day relevance of the typewriter. Drawing on his experience as a working writer and collector, Deer will share insights into why people are returning to analog tools in a digital world, how typewriters can enhance productivity and creativity, and what makes them uniquely appealing in the 21st century.

In an age dominated by touchscreens and artificial intelligence, the typewriter remains an enduring symbol of creativity, focus, and craftsmanship. But beyond nostalgia, these mechanical marvels continue to serve a meaningful role for writers, collectors, and professionals today.

Some of Gery Deer’s vintage typewriter collection – the newest is a 1964 Royal Safari (bottom right, blue). Deer uses the machines in his everyday work as a writer and creative director to help reduce digital fatigue and distractions.

Attendees will learn about the history and evolution of typewriters, their practical uses today, and the growing community of enthusiasts who keep these machines alive. The program also includes a discussion on collecting, maintaining, and using vintage typewriters, along with personal stories from Deer’s own journey.

Whether you’re a writer, history buff, collector, or simply curious about life beyond the keyboard, this program offers a thoughtful and inspiring look at how archaic technology continues to shape modern expression.

About The Presenter: Gery Deer is an award-winning journalist, producer, and the creative director of GLD Communications, where he leads strategic storytelling and media production for a wide range of clients. With decades of experience in print, digital, and broadcast media, Deer has built a reputation for compelling, thoughtful content that connects with audiences across platforms.

He is a current columnist and contributor for multiple regional publications, including the Xenia Daily Gazette, where his work often explores culture, community, and the human experience. Deer also serves as the editor and publisher of The Jamestown Comet, an independent online news and commentary publication focused on local issues, features, and informed perspectives.

Deer is a passionate typewriter enthusiast and collector, bringing a unique blend of historical appreciation and modern insight to his presentations. His engaging style and depth of knowledge make him a sought-after speaker on writing, media, and the enduring relevance of analog tools in a digital age.

Full information and free registration online: https://greenelibrary.bibliocommons.com/events/69cac953491b809c6f23e6e0

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Four Stars Is Enough

In Local News, Opinion, Uncategorized on May 3, 2026 at 11:35 am

Deer In Headlines
By Gery Deer

Modern society has developed a strange habit of seeking approval from people who often have no stake, no expertise, and no genuine interest in what they are judging. We have turned everyday life into a performance staged for an invisible audience armed with star ratings and comment boxes. The irony is that most of the people who hand out these ratings are just as unqualified as those receiving them, yet we treat their opinions as if they were carved into stone.

Somewhere along the way, we decided that five stars should be the goal, the standard, and the measure of a life well lived. But five stars is a fantasy. Real life is messy, inconsistent, and rarely perfect, no matter how carefully we curate it for public consumption. And yet, we chase that perfect rating as if it will unlock some hidden validation that finally tells us we are enough.

The truth is far less dramatic. You can earn five stars online and still feel empty the moment the notification fades. Nothing about your actual life changes because someone you will never meet clicked a rating on a screen. We have mistaken attention for value and validation for truth.

If you step back for a moment, it becomes clear how absurd it all is. Why are we letting strangers—whose only qualification is a profile picture and a scrolling thumb—decide how we feel about ourselves? The answer is uncomfortable: because we have built systems that reward approval over authenticity. And once approval becomes the currency, we stop asking whether it is worth anything.

Perhaps the healthier standard is not perfection, but sufficiency. A four-star life acknowledges effort, imperfection, growth, and honesty without demanding applause from people who do not know the work behind the scenes. In the end, maybe four stars is not a compromise, but a liberation—a reminder that our worth is not determined by strangers tapping glass. It is determined by how we show up when no one is watching, by how we treat others in quiet moments, and by whether we can look at ourselves with honest acceptance.

The obsession with public approval has turned many lives into performances instead of experiences. We post instead of living, we curate instead of connecting, and we measure instead of finding meaning. There is a quiet relief in deciding that enough is enough—that not every moment needs applause, not every effort needs validation, and not every choice needs a rating.

Life becomes lighter when we stop outsourcing our self-worth to algorithms and anonymous judges. The most honest score we will ever receive is the one we give ourselves after reflection. And that score does not need to be perfect to be meaningful.

So instead of chasing five stars, maybe we should aim for something far more human: consistency, kindness, effort, and integrity. Those are harder to rate, but easier to live with. When we strip away the noise of online approval, we often find that what matters has been in front of us all along—a quiet life, well lived, not perfectly, but honestly.

That is the real measure, not stars or likes, but substance. And substance does not require applause to exist. If we can accept that truth, we free ourselves from an exhausting pursuit of approval that never truly satisfies, and we return to something steadier, more grounded, and far more real: a life measured not by strangers, but by our own honest standards.

In that space, four stars is not a downgrade, but clarity. Clarity that we are allowed to be imperfect and still be whole. The world will continue to rate everything it sees, but we do not have to participate in every judgment.

We can choose instead to live beyond the rating system and rediscover what it means to be enough without external confirmation. That choice is quiet, but powerful, and it begins when we finally stop asking strangers for permission to be ourselves.

We can live more freely when we decide that our value is not a public vote, but a private truth built from daily actions, intentions, and quiet integrity—beyond the screen and beyond the noise of judgment itself.

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What Grounds You?

In Local News, Opinion, Uncategorized on May 3, 2026 at 11:27 am

Deer In Headlines
By Gery Deer

In a world that never stops talking, the hardest thing to do is listen for silence. We scroll, swipe, click, and chase, convinced the next notification might carry something essential. Most of the time, it doesn’t. It just adds another layer of noise to an already crowded headspace, another reason to forget where we are standing and who we were before the noise found us.

That is why the question matters: what grounds you? Not in some abstract, self-help sense, but in the real, tactile way that keeps your feet planted when everything else feels like it is spinning. Grounding is not a trend. It is a tether. It is the quiet, stubborn force that keeps you from drifting too far into anxiety, ambition, or the endless churn of digital life.

I have come to believe that grounding lives in the senses. It is the weight of something familiar in your hands, the sound of a rhythm you have known for years, the smell that pulls you backward through time without asking permission. It is not complicated, and that is precisely why we overlook it. We are trained to chase what is new, not what is true.

For me, those anchors are unapologetically analog. There is the click of a typewriter key, sharp and deliberate, a sound that refuses to be rushed. There is the feel of bicycle handlebars steady under my grip, reminding me that forward motion does not require a screen. And there is an old truck, a 1967 International Harvester grain truck, that answers to the name Serenity.

Serenity is not subtle. It is steel and wood and history, the kind of machine that demands your attention simply by existing. But for me, it carries something quieter. It carries the low thrum of an engine from childhood, the memory of time spent beside my father, learning without realizing I was learning. It carries the echo of music played with family, the shared language of rhythm and repetition.

In that way, the truck is more than an object. It is a bridge. It connects who I was to who I am, and it does so without asking for an update or a password. It simply exists, waiting patiently, ready to remind me that not everything meaningful needs to be optimized, digitized, or shared.

I suspect we all have something like that, even if we have not named it yet. Maybe it is the smell of coffee brewing before dawn, or the steady weight of a dog settling into your lap at the end of a long day. Maybe it is a song that hits the same way every time, no matter how many years pass.

The problem is not that these things are hard to find. The problem is that we are rarely still long enough to notice them. The world benefits from our distraction. It profits from our attention being constantly pulled somewhere else. Stillness, on the other hand, does not monetize well. It does not trend. It simply works.

When the noise gets loud, and it will, those anchors matter. They give us a place to return to, a baseline that reminds us we are more than our inboxes and timelines. They pull us back into our bodies, into the present moment, into something real. Without them, it is far too easy to drift, to lose the thread of ourselves in the endless scroll.

So ask yourself the question and answer it honestly. What is your tether? What is the thing that keeps you here when everything else tries to carry you away? Find it. Name it. Keep it close. Because when the storm comes, and it always does, you will need to know exactly what holds you to the ground.

In the end, grounding is not about escaping the modern world. It is about surviving it with your sense of self intact. It is about choosing, again and again, to return to what is real, even when what is real feels quieter than the noise. That choice may be small, even invisible to anyone else, but it is powerful. It is the difference between being carried along and standing firm.

Hold on to it, always.

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Dayton Professionals Invited to Turn Personal Stories into Strategic Brand Assets

In Business, Dayton Ohio News, Education, Uncategorized on April 19, 2026 at 9:42 am

Event Update: POSTPONED

We want to let you know that the Story to Strategy: Professional Narrative Master Class, originally scheduled for Wednesday, May 6, 2026, at The Hub at the Dayton Arcade, has been postponed.

We appreciate your interest and support, and we’re working to secure a new date that will allow us to deliver the best possible experience for attendees.

This event may be rescheduled at a later date, please follow our Eventbrite or LinkedIn page for further updates.
GLD Communications
“Let us tell your story.”

:::ORIGINAL ANNOUNCEMENT:::

DAYTON — In an era when professional credibility can be drowned out by constant digital noise, a new master class in downtown Dayton aims to help individuals cut through the clutter by refining one powerful tool: their own story.

“Story to Strategy™: Professional Narrative Master Class,” scheduled for Wednesday, May 6, 2026, will bring together executives, creatives and professionals for a two-hour, hands-on session focused on shaping authentic, strategic personal narratives. The class will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Dayton Arcade, hosted by the Entrepreneurs Center.

Led by award-winning journalist and communications strategist Gery Deer, the workshop emphasizes clarity over self-promotion, guiding participants to better understand how their experiences translate into a credible and effective professional identity.

“In a world saturated with noise, credibility comes from clarity,” Deer said. “This isn’t about teaching people how to promote themselves louder—it’s about helping them define how they show up and why that matters to the people they serve.”

The session is designed as an interactive, immersive experience that draws on journalistic practices such as reporting and editing, as well as modern marketing strategies. Participants will work to identify the “through-line” in their professional journey, refine that narrative into a clear personal brand, and apply those insights to real-world decisions.

Organizers say the course is intentionally accessible, requiring no technical or artificial intelligence skills—just a willingness to engage and reflect. Attendees are encouraged to bring whatever tools they prefer for note-taking, from traditional pen and paper to laptops or tablets.

The $99 registration fee includes lunch, with a buy-one-get-one offer available to encourage collaboration and shared learning.

The February event marks the second installment in the 2026 Master Class Series presented by GLD Communications, a quarterly program aimed at equipping professionals with practical communication and branding tools. Additional sessions are planned for later in the year, including a “21st Century Public Relations Master Class” in August and a “Personal Brand Master Class” in October.

Deer, founder of GLD Communications, brings decades of experience in journalism, marketing and business development. Known for his “Deer in Headlines” newspaper column series, he has led workshops for chambers of commerce, professional associations and community organizations throughout the Midwest.

For attendees, the takeaway is intended to be immediate and actionable—not theoretical.

“A strong narrative can turn a brand into something more human, more relatable,” Deer said. “When people understand your story, they’re more likely to trust you—and that’s where real opportunity begins.”

Registration details and future class announcements are available through GLD Communications’ event listings.

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We Need to Stop Warrantless Spying on Americans. Here’s How.

In history, National News, News Media, Opinion, Politics, Uncategorized on April 17, 2026 at 9:38 am

COURTESY: The New York Times – April 17, 2026

A photo of a blurry surveillance camera, in the foreground, against a sharper-focused seascape in the background.
Credit…Grade Solomon

By Mike Lee and Dick Durbin

Mr. Lee and Mr. Durbin are senators.

Add The New York Times on Google 

This article was updated to reflect news developments.

We disagree on many issues. One of us is a longtime Democrat, the other a conservative Republican. But both of us are deeply concerned about warrantless government surveillance of the American people.

In 2008, Congress enacted Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act to allow the government to gather vital intelligence about foreign governments, terrorists and spies. The problem is that it has also allowed agencies like the F.B.I. and the National Security Agency to regularly gather and search through the private communications of American citizens without a warrant. That is a clear violation of rights protected by the Constitution.

It’s true that Section 702 doesn’t allow the direct targeting of Americans, but their communications are still often gathered during the warrantless surveillance of foreigners abroad. Once the government has this data, agencies then have the ability to search through it. And they do: Transparency reports reveal that thousands of such searches are performed every year. A federal court previously found that some the F.B.I. had conducted had violated the Fourth Amendment.

Predictably, without a requirement for court approval of these searches, abuses have been rampant. As a recent report from the Brennan Center for Justice highlighted, F.B.I. agents in recent years have searched for the communications of “protesters across the political spectrum; members of Congress; a congressional chief of staff; a state court judge; multiple U.S. government officials, journalists and political commentators; and 19,000 donors to a political campaign.” In a time of extreme partisanship, these abuses have provoked bipartisan outrage.

Congress should have a serious and informed debate on these issues rather than ramming through a reauthorization of Section 702 with minimal reforms yet again, sidelining Americans’ constitutional rights in the process.

That’s why the two of us have proposed the Security and Freedom Enhancement (SAFE) Act, a compromise that would reauthorize the valuable core of this tool while enacting reasonable safeguards to protect the Fourth Amendment rights of all Americans.

The government would still be able to check its databases to uncover connections between targeted foreigners and Americans. But it would have to get court approval in the small number of cases in which these searches have generated results and the government has a proper basis for gaining access to the contents of the communications. Importantly, our warrant requirement also contains robust exceptions for legitimate emergencies, so that we can balance civil liberties with legitimate security needs.

Our bill would also cut off another form of warrantless surveillance: the widespread practice of circumventing the Fourth Amendment by purchasing Americans’ sensitive information from data brokers.

The Department of Justice (including the Drug Enforcement Administration and the F.B.I.), the Department of Homeland Security (including ICE, Customs and Border Patrol and the Secret Service) and the Defense Intelligence Agency have purchased cellphone location information for millions of Americans. Such information is highly sensitive and can reveal intimate details of that person’s life. Even more troubling, artificial intelligence could supercharge such surveillance, allowing the government to harvest and analyze mass quantities of highly personal and sensitive information about Americans without court approval. Our legislation would close these loopholes — again with pragmatic exceptions to accommodate legitimate safety and security needs.

Congress should not take an all-or-nothing approach to reauthorizing Section 702. We have the time and the responsibility to get this right. Members may disagree about what reforms are required — that’s why we have debates and amendments. But simply extending the law without any changes to protect Americans’ privacy should be off the table.

We owe it to the American people to meet this moment and do our jobs to protect both national security and civil liberties. Our bill offers a bipartisan solution to do just that.

Mike Lee, Republican of Utah, and Dick Durbin, Democrat of Illinois, are senators.

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