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Winter Olympics reflect the best in sports and a hope for peace

Nothing compares to the Olympics when it comes to promoting the best in sports competition and peaceful international relations. The Winter Olympics kicked off this week in the mountains of northern Italy. We’ll have two weeks of televised skiing, ice skating, sledding, hockey, curling and other winter pastimes. In Minnesota the Winter Games are just as popular as the Summer Games. We are well represented on the United States Olympic roster. Hopefully our athletes will come home with a sizable set of medals. I have Winter Olympics heroes from the Games of my younger days. ...

NU Film Society plays the long con with a screening of ‘Catch Me If You Can’

NEW ULM – The New Ulm Film Society’s film series on the movies of Steven Spielberg takes on a fun cat and mouse story with a screening of “Catch Me If You Can.” The screening is 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 10 at the New Ulm Public Library. “Catch Me If You Can” was released in 2002 and stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks. DiCaprio plays Frank Abagnale Jr., one of the most successful con artists and check forgers in history and Hanks plays the FBI agent tasked with catching him. The film jumps back and forth through time, showing different parts of Abagnale’s life, ...

Keep heart health as top of mind this February

February is American Heart Month, a time for everyone to think about their own heart health and prevention. Heart disease is the number 1 killer in America, and has been for a century. Almost 50% of Americans have at least one of three key risk factors for heart disease: high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol or smoking, according to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. Heart disease prevention is for everyone, and it begins at your yearly checkup. At this appointment, your primary care provider will note important measures that can indicate possible cardiovascular ...

Forty-five Valentine’s Days

A crucial national holiday is looming on the horizon. Ignoring this holiday could imperil your current and future happiness, especially if you’re a guy. Valentine’s Day is a boon for the greeting card, floral, and jewelry industries. Sales could be tripled if their stores’ sound systems played “Mandy” by Barry Manilow on a continuous loop. One guy, after hearing that sap-drenched song for the first time, said, “It made me want to call all of my old girlfriends and beg them for forgiveness.” I mentioned that quote to my wife and she replied, “You darn skippy he ...

League of Women Voters Empowering Voters

Precinct Caucuses are local meetings, held and run by the two major political parties in Minnesota: the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL) and the Republican Party (GOP). At 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 3 the public has the opportunity to meet with neighbors face-to-face, to discuss ideas and actions you support which, if adopted, may become part of the party platform. A party’s platform is a formal, comprehensive document outlining the party’s core principles, goals and policy positions on key issues. A precinct caucus is the opportunity for voters to learn the process, ...

A painful story taken without permission

Dear Annie: I’m a senior citizen. Fifty years ago, another young girl and I were in a juvenile detention facility for very minor infractions that would not lead to incarceration today. I was repeatedly raped by two counselors throughout our months there. This other girl was not mistreated in any way because she was related to the spouse of one of the administrators. We’re not good friends but have stayed in touch over the years because of this shared experience. She’s talked off and on about writing/publishing an autobiography, which I’ve encouraged. Recently, I met someone in ...