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Congressional Republicans fail to protect the BWCA

Minnesota’s Republican members of Congress — Pete Stauber, Brad Finstad, Michelle Fischbach, and Tom Emmer — supported H.J. Res. 140, overturning protections for over 234,000 acres just outside the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCA) in Minnesota, thereby opening the door to potential copper-nickel sulfide mining next to the BWCA. As a registered Republican I am disgusted by their choice to support a foreign mining company rather than to protect Minnesota’s most pristine natural environment. The H.J. Res. 140 decision passed both houses of Congress along party lines ...

May is National Stroke Awareness Month

When stroke happens, minutes matter. Similar to how a heart attack blocks blood flow to the heart, a stroke happens when a clot or broken blood vessel stops or limits blood flow to the brain – a brain attack. The American Heart Association reports that for every minute during an untreated stroke, 1.9 million brain cells are lost. To remember signs of a stroke, think BE FAST: B: Sudden Balance lost E: Sudden Eyesight loss F: Face drooping A: Arm weakness S: Speech difficulty T: Time to call 911 Continuity in stroke care between small hospitals and bigger referral ...

The burden of hoarding

Many of us have things that we like and enjoy so much that we collect them. When we collect something, we acquire it, accumulate it, display it and store any extras. For some of us, collecting and accumulating things develops into an irrational and uncontrollable urge that is overwhelming. It is much, much more than collecting. It can grow to the point where the accumulation of possessions takes over the home, preventing the use of living areas in the home. This outcome is more common than you might think, and can be quite serious. Psychologists call this extreme problem Hoarding. ...

Horsing around in Sioux Falls

My wife and I recently went horsing around. And no, it didn’t involve traveling to Louisville for the Kentucky Derby. We are much too cheap to make a special trip like that. Some years ago, when we were in Kentucky for business, my wife and I visited Churchill Downs. There weren’t any races that day, and the joint was as quiet as a Monday morning church. I walked into one of the high rollers’ suites just so that I could say that I did it. The view from up there wasn’t any better than what you see on TV. Sportscasters have labeled the Kentucky Derby “The Most Exciting Two ...

Ending the era of unchecked fraud in Minnesota

Minnesotans have always taken pride in our work ethic and our commitment to looking out for our neighbors. We pay our taxes with the understanding that those hard-earned dollars will be used to build our roads, defend our borders, and provide a hand up for the most vulnerable among us. But lately, Minnesotans have watched in disbelief as hard-earned tax dollars have been treated like a playground for fraudulent activity. The scale of corruption is groundbreaking. At least $9 billion in taxpayer money has been stolen from Minnesota’s social service programs under the watch of Gov. Tim ...

Alcohol and the teen brain

The importance of the brain cannot be overstated. Without it, we would just be lumps of flesh. Damage it, and we malfunction. It determines everything we do, keeps us alive by monitoring and running our body, stores our memories, triggers our emotions, allows us to speak, determines how smart we are, and so much more. This critical organ needs to be protected and never abused in any way. A common way that our brains get abused is through the use of alcohol and street drugs. The focus here is on alcohol and the developing teenage brain. The fragile developing brain goes through ...