Breaking News

Opinion

Conducting amateur archeology

Columns

I have been doing a bit of amateur archeology lately, digging deep, excavating through layers of an all-but-forgotten past. This process is sometimes painful as it causes me to review the awful fashion and haircut choices I made when I was growing up. Digging through old family photos can cause a guy to become caught in a vortex of nostalgia. What happened to that young, carefree boy who seemed to have the fashion sense of a hobo? The kid who had an at-home haircut that appeared to involve a bowl placed on the head? The happy-go-lucky lad who looked as concerned about his ...

Press ignoring abortions

Letters

To the editor: The late Jesse Jackson declared in an article he wrote for Right to Life News in 1977.  “Race and poverty are dimensions of the life question, but discussions about abortion have brought the issue into focus in a much sharper way. How we will respect and understand the nature of life itself is the over-riding moral issue, not of the Black race, but of the human race.” “Life is the highest good and therefore you fight for life, using means consistent with that end,” Jackson wrote. “Life is the highest human good not on its own naturalistic merits, but because ...

Managing invasive species

Letters

To the editor: National Invasive Species Awareness Week (NISAW) is February 24-28. NISAW is a nationwide event to raise awareness about invasive species, the threat that they pose, and what people can do to prevent their spread. An invasive species is a plant or animal that is not native to a particular ecosystem, whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm, or harm to human health. It is capable of moving aggressively into an area, monopolizing light, nutrients, water, and space to the detriment of native species. Some invasive plants are ...

Thumbs up/down

Editorials

THUMBS DOWN Old man winter returns with a vengeance Last week it looked like Minnesota might get an early spring. The Valentine’s Day weekend saw unusually high temperatures. On Feb. 13, New Ulm set a high temperature record for the day. Walking around without a coat or hat outside was optional. It was wonderful. Then it had to start snowing Wednesday morning and it didn’t quit until late afternoon. Everyone had to break out their shovels again and driving conditions were terrible. The snowfall was mixed with freezing rain creating extremely slick conditions. Even walking on ...

A Bad Bunny with a good message

Columns

I like Bad Bunny. There, I said it. I lost a few readers there. I don’t speak Spanish. My daughter Abby does. (Shout out to Abby’s high school Spanish teacher, Gail Bromenschenkel. You done good!) Abby has lived in Spain, Guatemala, and Colombia. Many of her friends are Spanish speaking. Some years ago, Abby put me onto Spanish music. It’s my music of choice when I’m jogging the lake trail. Juanes, Shakira, and Morat are favorites. Bad Bunny has joined my playlist. I don’t speak Spanish. But I enjoy the sound of the language. It has a beautiful cadence and rhythm, ...

What is happening to our democracy?

Letters

To the editor: According to a recent Politico article, the state of “Minnesota is the eye of the Trump storm.” This is nothing new, as he has been targeting Minnesota since the 2000 election in which he continues to make false allegations of election fraud and non-citizen voting. Trump has recently singled out Gov. (Tim) Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, attacking them repeatedly. We’ve all heard the insults Trump has heaped on these two leaders as he sends thousands of masked Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers to this state to allegedly weed out the “worst ...