DOCTOR MARTIN LUTHER KING, JUNIOR DAY 2026

 The following is an editorial.

KING MEMORIAL, WASHINGTON DC

Once again we pause to honor a good man who is no longer with us, but sadly this year is different because those currently running the United States do not believe in "wokeness", let alone diversity, equality and inclusion.

Doctor Martin Luther King, Junior (1929-1968) was a minister and civil rights leader who believed that all were created equal, regardless of skin color, gender, wealth or whatever other factors society might use to attempt dividing its people.

"THE SOFT MINDED MAN ALWAYS FEARS CHANGE. HE HAS AN ALMOST MORBID FEAR OF THE NEW. FOR HIM, THE GREATEST PAIN IS THE PAIN OF A NEW IDEA."

Doctor King grew up in a world of segregation and even after some achievements to correct this issue, including then President Lyndon Baines Johnson signing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law, realized there was still a long way to go before "the dream" was truly achieved.

"I HAVE A DREAM THAT MY FOUR LITTLE CHILDREN WILL ONE DAY LIVE IN A NATION WHERE THEY WILL NOT BE JUDGED BY THE COLOR OF THEIR SKIN, BUT BY THE CONTENT OF THEIR CHARACTER."

Sadly Doctor King was assassinated in 1968, his work unfinished, but others strive to continue the task.

We are one race upon a singular planet within the vastness of the universe.

Regardless of who you are, we must all work together for not only the betterment of this world, but ourselves, our civilization today and the generations to come.

"WE MUST LIVE TOGETHER AS BROTHERS, OR PERISH TOGETHER AS FOOLS."

With current events in Minnesota and elsewhere, hopefully by next year's Doctor Martin Luther King, Junior Day I may have something more positive to post.

"DARKNESS CANNOT DRIVE OUT DARKNESS. ONLY LIGHT CAN DO THAT.

HATE CANNOT DRIVE OUT HATE. ONLY LOVE CAN DO THAT."

"I BELIEVE THAT UNARMED TRUTH AND UNCONDITIONAL LOVE WILL ALWAYS HAVE THE FINAL WORD IN REALITY.

THAT IS WHY, EVEN TEMPORARILY DEFEATED, RIGHT IS ALWAYS STRONGER THAN ANY EVIL TRIUMPHANT."

ALL QUOTES BY DOCTOR MARTIN LUTHER KING, JUNIOR.

Lee Houston, Junior

Editor-In-Chief, The Free Choice E-zine

19 January, 2026

The 2/TWO separate links above were active at the time of posting this article.

The above was an editorial.

SUNDAY FUNNIES: DOGGING IT (misc. jokes)

 Hello Everybody! Koda Canine here!

Boy, am I glad I'm an indoor dog because right now the weather can't make up it's mind what it wants to do in my neck of the woods.

It actually got into the UPPER 30s today with rain☔ but within the next hour it's supposed to start snowing!🌨

While the snow is supposed to clear out by sometime Monday afternoon at the latest, it also turns MUCH colder then, with even the daytime high as a single digit before it all starts trying to return to whatever passes for "normal" nowadays.

Yes folks, Climate Change IS real!

But let me tell you all some weatherproof jokes to get everyone's mind off of the mess outside.

Ready?

Did you hear about the farmer who replaced his rooster🐓 with a duck?🦆

Now he wakes up at the quack of dawn.🌅

Then again, chickens🐔🐔 are always tired. After all, they work around the cluck.

The local rock group down the street is trying hard to learn their songs.

They have a sign🪧 that says: "We play for free."

But on the back of it, the sign says "For $30 we will stop playing."

Would it kill the makers of Avocados 🥑🥑to put a different toy in them?

My people have like 50 different wooden balls now.

They tried playing fetch with me using one of them and it hurt my teeth!

"I've got a honey of a joke."

One bear says to the other "Do you know what the secret of life is?"

"Just grin and bear it?"

"Really?" said the first bear. "I thought it was 42."

The way the world seems to be going at times, there are moments when I like to tell people "I hope the rest of your day is as pleasant as you are."

Then I watch their faces as they try to determine if that was a compliment or an insult.

After a ranch experiences a robbery, do they buy more cattle🐄🐮 to beef up security?

Have you ever noticed that at the start of every disaster movie there is a scientist being ignored?

Two slices of bread🍞 got married.

The wedding was amazing until someone decided to toast the bride and groom.

So on that note♫, have a great week.

Take care.

STAY SAFE!

And please be back here next weekend for more Sunday Funnies!—KC.

SUNDAY FUNNIES: FUR FITNESS

Hello Everybody! Autumn the Puppy here!

Now technically it should be Waxy Dragon's turn in our hosting rotation, but she's still celebrating Dragon Appreciation Day.

Turns out that's a big Draconian🐲 to do and a LONG holiday weekend for them, especially since it fell on a Thursday this year.

Waxy will be back next weekend, but we do have a bit of a scheduling dilemma ahead of us.

Sunday February 2 is both Groundhog Day AND when the 2020 edition of "the big football🏈 game", since only licensed sponsors can call it by the event's official title, will be held.

So which classic routine do we do that day? The lady wanting to sue the groundhog for the inaccurate weather forecast or sports jokes, ending with Andy Griffith's famous routine "What it was, was football"?

Anyway, they say what goes around comes around, but don't you think "they" would get awfully tired and dizzy traveling in circles so much?

Yet Humans never cease to amaze me.

It's the start of a new year so once again everyone tries, or at least promises they're going to get into shape.

One of my owners bought some strength building tablets, guaranteed to build muscle in a very short time.

Unfortunately he can't get the cap off the bottle, and it isn't even child proof!

He then joined a gym, but the next time he tried to go there, my man couldn't find his membership card.

A replacement/new one was $10. A donut and coffee at the nearby shop were $3.

Guess who saved $7?

What is it with roosters?🐓

Just because they see the sunrise,🌅 they think they've got to crow and shout about it, waking everyone else up in the process.

Hey bird! Just because you're up at the crack of dawn doesn't mean I have to be.

Then again, why everyone complains when I howl at the full moon...🌕

And on that note♫, have a great week everybody and please be back here again next weekend for more Sunday Funnies!—AtP.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JANUARY 19, 2019

😎FUN FACT
Any production requires at least 24 frames of art per second to be considered fully animated. Less is classified as limited animation.

THE 50/50 CHANCE
Just like a regular TRIVIA TIME question, except there are just two possible answers, hence the even odds of getting it right. Ready?

TRUE or FALSE: Legendary voice artist Mel Blanc has worked for the Disney Studios too.

WHAT’S THAT SONG?
Words from a tune of the past are below. All you have to do is give us the song title. Ready?
♫And I don’t think I have ever seen a soul so in despair♫

We’ll reveal all next weekend, but for now, let’s open up THE ANSWERS BOX📦 and discover the results from the January 12, 2019 Puzzle Corner.

RHYME TIME
The clue to something is below, but no matter how long your answer is, each word within it must rhyme. Ready?

Any sty = pigs’ digs.

AKA, ALSO KNOWN AS
Who do we know Terry Gene Bollea better as?
Wrestler Hulk Hogan.

SUNDAY FUNNIES: QUOTE THE CELEBRITY...

The noblest dog at this E-zine

Hello Everybody. Autumn the Puppy here!
The other day, my owner actually said "Speak girl", when trying to get me to bark for a treat.
As if I would stoop so low.
Instead, I started reciting the famous soliloquy from William Shakespeare's Hamlet:

To be, or not to be. Or maybe it was 3A?

Anyway, it got me the treat, and served as a reminder that I haven't ran any funny celebrity quotes lately. So here we go...

Winters, circa 2002

If God had intended for us to fly, He would have made it easier to get to the airport.
Jonathan Winters, long before the tragedy of September 11, 2001

John Glenn

As I hurdled through outer space, one thought kept crossing my mind.
Every part of this rocket was supplied by the lowest bidder!
Former Astronaut turned U.S. Senator John Glenn

Steve Martin

Hollywood must be the only place on Earth where you might be fired by a man wearing a Hawaiian shirt and a baseball cap.
Steve Martin, actor, comedian, author, banjo enthusiast

Arthur C. Clarke

I don't believe in astrology.
I'm a Sagittarius and we're very skeptical about such things.
Noted Science Fiction Author Arthur C. Clarke. 2001: A Space Odyssey, etc.

We are here upon this Earth to do good unto others.
What the others are here for, I have no idea.
Poet W. H. Auden; 1907-1973

"Unfortunately we're out of time, so have a great week and please be back here next weekend for more Sunday Funnies." Autumn the Puppy.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JANUARY 19, 2013

HAIL TO THE CHIEF!

On Monday, January 21, 2013; United States President Barack Obama will be sworn in to begin his second and final term in office.
Therefore, it's INAUGURATION QUIZ TIME!

01. President Obama is the (fill-in-the-blank) President of the United States. {looking for a number}
02. Because of additional terms of previous Presidents, there have actually been (fill-in-the-blank) inauguration ceremonies. {looking for another number}
03. Because it has not always been our nation's capital, who was the first President to actually have his inauguration ceremony held in Washington, DC?
04. Who was the first President to have their inauguration aired over the radio?
05. Who was the first President to have their inauguration televised?

We'll reveal all next weekend. But for now, let's peek inside THE ANSWERS BOX, and discover the results from our January 12, 2013 Puzzle Corner.

TRIVIA TIME
What was the SECOND group to feature John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison?
Answer: THE BEATLES! The first was The Quarry Men. John Lennon started the group with a couple of his school chums. Paul McCartney joined later, and George Harrison became a member shortly before their evolution to The Beatles.

COMMON BONDS
The members of each group below have something in common. Do you know what it is?
01. {Chicago, The Bay City Rollers} = Saturdays
Chicago had a hit with Saturday in the Park, while the Bay City Rollers looked forward to S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y NIGHT!
02. {Lionel Richie/The Commodores, The Monkees} = Sundays
Lionel Richie and the Commodores sang Easy Like Sunday Morning; while The Monkees experienced a Pleasant Valley Sunday.