Days of rage THUMBS DOWN: The protests and rioting following the death Monday of George Floyd in Minneapolis are understandable. The rage of the black community has been pent up and building with each time a black man has died at the hands of police in Minnesota. Admonitions to remain calm ...
Protestors have been gathering in Minneapolis since the death of George Floyd Monday. Floyd, a black man, was being questioned by Minneapolis police on suspicion of trying to pass a counterfeit $20 at a store. Somehow he wound up on the ground, in handcuffs, while a veteran Minneapolis police ...
Minneapolis police have added another name to the list of Minnesota black men who have died at the hands of police. The list is getting longer, and drawing more attention to Minnesota from the rest of the country as a place where “Minnesota Nice” doesn’t extend to all. On Monday, a ...
About 11,000 people were forced to leave their Central Michigan homes a few days ago, when two large dams failed. No lives were lost, in part because the dams’ imminent failure had been anticipated for several days, as a result of heavy rainfall. In fact, concern about the dams dates back ...
While we Americans were paying tribute to our fallen heroes during Memorial Day weekend, observant Muslims here and abroad were marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan. Even in Afghanistan, there was a pause in hostilities between government and Taliban forces. It came as U.S. and ...
Today, we pause to remember those who sacrificed their very selves in the service of our nation. We honor those who served in the U.S. military forces and who gave their lives in that service. We should reflect on the hardships they endured, not just the fear and hardships on the battlefield ...
No Fair! THUMBS DOWN: No Minnesota State Fair!? Somehow it seems to hit harder than the loss of the spring sports season, or the delay of Major League Baseball, or not being able to go out to eat. Because that 12-day stretch at the end of summer combines and condenses all the thrills and ...
Churches in this state want equal treatment with the shopping malls, casinos, bars and restaurants, tattoo parlors, barbershops and hair salons when it comes to government restrictions on their operations. Thursday, the Catholic bishops of Minnesota and the Missouri Lutheran Synod announced ...
We know Gov. Tim Walz wants to take things slowly and cautiously as he allows various businesses to reopen. But we fail to see the logic in some of his pronouncements Wednesday about bars and restaurants, hair salons and barbershops. The governor said bars and restaurants can resume serving ...
Nearly every American has suffered financially from the COVID-19 epidemic. At least 36 million of us were laid off from our workplaces. Even those still on the job have seen their retirement savings decimated. But a few people — those who had some forewarning of the economic havoc to come ...
In the spirit of “Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow,” the Minnesota Legislature let the current session end Sunday without coming to agreement on a bonding bill. House Republicans voted en masse against the Democrats’ proposed bonding bill on Saturday, and Sunday’s ...
Unanimity over how much power intelligence agencies should have to pry into Americans’ personal affairs has disappeared with reports during the past few years of unconstitutional invasions of privacy. Victims of that have ranged from high-ranking government officials down to millions of other ...
Back to business THUMBS UP: Lots of local business owners will be hoping to get back to business on Monday when Gov. Tim Walz’s new “Stay Safe MN” plan takes effect. We would say, “get back to normal,” but it may be a long time before we return to anything resembling the old normal. ...
Gov. Tim Walz is dialing back on the COVID-19 stay-home restrictions. Starting Monday, more retail businesses will be able to open, if they have plans for employee and customer safety and social distancing. People will be able to go out of their homes for more reasons. Groups of ten or less ...
Hundreds of thousands of hogs raised by farmers to provide Americans with ham, bacon and other meat products will not make it to the slaughterhouse unless ways are found to cure a nasty side-effect of COVID-19. This unsettling problem is one that hits close to home in this area, where pork ...
During three and one-half years, Americans converted a peacetime economy to become the arsenal of democracy and win World War II. The “greatest generation” accomplished that because it had to be done, for the good of all humankind. Now we as a nation face another challenge, of far less ...
We all need a bit of a psychological pick-me-up. The tough fight against COVID-19 is taking its toll on us emotionally. Coronavirus blues, meet the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Just in time to give our spirts a boost, NASA is planning to send a new group of astronauts into ...
Here’s to mothers everywhere THUMBS UP: Mother’s Day arrives tomorrow, and this year the opportunities for showing our appreciation to her are limited. With the COVID-19 restrictions, it’s hard to take Mom out to brunch or to dinner. Flowers are always a good idea, but visiting her may ...
Like everything else these days, wearing face masks in public has become controversial and divisive. Go to a local grocery store, and about half the people you see are wearing masks. Vice President Mike Pence made headlines during a recent visit to the Mayo Clinic when he ignored the ...
Give federal regulators credit for recognizing that the coronavirus pandemic is no time for business as usual. The Food and Drug Administration, in particular, seems to have surgically removed some of the red tape from its process. Last Friday, the FDA announced it will be permitting ...