A Sense of Where We Are: Going UP

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Autocratic forces are ascendant.

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Autocratic forces are ascendant in America. But truth-telling independent media is one remaining bulwark against the unrestrained exercise of power. At a time when billionaire owners of corporate media are making accommodations to political leaders, our nonprofit newsroom cannot be bought or broken. Please stand with us.

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View Westward Expansion in a larger map

Rhinelander, Wisconsin—Well that was fast. In the planning stages of the trip, we set aside four weeks to see the South, and just one week to go pretty much the length of the Mississippi River. And now here we are in Wisconsin, after more or less teleporting around the Midwest (somehow we’ve still managed to cross the river 17 times). Anyways, stay tuned for a full report on the tomb of America’s last great statesman (hint: It’s not in Springfield), something called “Chicken Lips,” and whether or not Mark Twain would be proud of his hometown if he saw it today.