It’s no surprise that so many movies focus on the teenage years. Just think what this time of life puts us through.

After ambling our way through adolescence, we suddenly have to make crucial decisions about our future while simultaneously dealing with changing bodies, insistent urges and, for many of us, crippling inferiority complexes.

All of this makes teenagers a fascinating subject for movie fiction, and it makes them an equally fascinating subject for movie documentaries. At least, it does when the documentaries are as sensitive and thoughtful as All This Panic.

Director Jenny Gage and cinematographer Tom Betterton reportedly followed a group of Brooklyn girls through three years of their lives. In the process, they created a deeply personal record of the small and large crises they faced along the way.

And make no mistake about it: Though the flick’s title could be misinterpreted as a condescending comment on teen angst, these young women lead very complicated lives.

Excerpts from remarks made by Dennis J. Kucinich Monday, April 24, 2017 to the Ohio Legislature, Columbus, Ohio

Privatization of public assets is a major issue in America, and, in the case of education, the federal government provides billions to privatizers in the charter industry… The privatization of public education in Ohio has resulted in a wasteful, inefficient, duplicate school system, with duplicate buildings and a duplicate transportation system, paid for by the same taxpayers who have paid for public education in the first place.

Charter schools, which are falsely labeled as public charter schools, not only represent the privatization of education but the rejection of popular democracy and its connection to the education of its citizenry.

In the past year I have been meeting with representatives of public education organizations, gathering information on the impact of educational privatization, that is, charter schools, on the public education system, its integrity, its financing and its stability...

VeganShift and The Columbus Vegan Meetup are hosting the exclusive Columbus premier of “What the Health” on Wednesday, May 3 at 7:30PM at the Gateway Film Center, 1550 N High St, Columbus, OH 43201. Visit VeganShift and Columbus Vegan Meetup facebook groups and websites for more details on getting connected to the vegan community. Tickets - $10.

Spring break in Downtown Las Vegas. As is typical of my well rounded personality, I was calmly minding my own business and not causing any trouble. My serenity was even more impressive given a streak of rotten luck which included a closed video arcade and the tragic disappearance of DuPar's Restaurant. More significantly, the shark tank at the Golden Nugget pool was temporarily sans sharks due to “routine maintenance on the waterslide.” This caused a bit of tough sledding, given that said sharks were the major selling point in getting my family to stay at this particular hotel (along with the arcade and the restaurant).

You might think that my luck would be evened out by success at the tables, but you would be wrong. Despite a mathematically impeccable betting strategy, my one night out ended in swift defeat at the El Cortez craps table.

Nevertheless, I retained my composure and set a positive example for other downtown revelers like a good Ohio boy should.  I was comforted by the fact that I had intelligently insisted on a room facing the rear of the hotel instead of the noisy Fremont Street Experience.

Free Press Hero: Brian “Clash” Griffin

Unperturbed by driving rain, subzero temperatures and scathing heat -- he plays on. Unintimidated by police presence be they in person, on horses or bikes, or aggressive counter-protesters - he plays on. Unrelenting in his intensity as he participates at every rally -- Brian “Clash” Griffin plays on. He was there when we demonstrated outside Governor Bob Taft’s church, trying to stop the execution of an innocent man, Johnny Byrd -- playing until his fingers were frostbitten. When they started the Iraq War and we were attacked by pro-war fanatics during weekly peace vigils at 15th and High -- he played on. In solidarity with Occupy Columbus at the Statehouse -- he played on. He marches with his guitar in the Pride Parade, Black Lives Matter marches, the recent (and very wet) People’s Climate March, and the list goes on. Brian Griffin infuses enthusiasm at every gathering as he often makes up a cause-oriented song on the spot. The Free Press is in awe of Brian’s persistent and consistent musical presence and are inspired by the soundtrack he provides to our lives. “We are gonna rise up!”