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Opinion

Let the people decide fate of MN flag

Letters

To the editor: I write in response to Anita Gaul’s article May 13 on the opinion page. As Vice Chair of the State Emblems Redesign Commission Anita voices her opinion that the new flag design was completed under completely open and fair circumstances. Apparently Anita is also chair of the Lyon County DFL Party, and I find that fact to be very telling. Anita says the new flag was created by members representing “diverse constituencies” (Democrat DEI language). Most of us had no idea this was even happening. Anita takes to task Paul Torkelson’s comments that not all ...

Thumbs up/down

Editorials

THUMBS UP Graduation season begins It is the start of graduation season this weekend. Within the next couple of weeks, all local schools will be holding commencement ceremonies for their respective graduates. The first two local graduations are coming this weekend. Martin Luther College (MLC) will hold a commencement service at 10 a.m. Saturday at the MLC campus. Cathedral High School will follow with a graduation ceremony held at 1 p.m. Sunday at St. Mary’s Church. Minnesota Valley Lutheran (MVL) High School will hold its graduation ceremony at 2 p.m. Sunday, May 24, in the MVL ...

Losing two tourism attractions

Letters

To the editor: I want to thank The Journal for a very informative article on what tourism means to the New Ulm area. Unfortunately, we have lost two historic sites that at one time brought many visitors to New Ulm from all over the world. Namely, the Harkin Store and Fort Ridgley, both owned by the Minnesota Historical Society. Harkin Store was an 1870 general store; original building with some of the artifacts still left when it closed. The site told the story of riverboat traffic, the riverboat town of West Newton, pioneer life and shopping the general store (the Walmart of its ...

God fills our world with color

Columns

If our worth is to be measured by our lawns, I am in trouble. You’ve seen those perfectly manicured lawns in the nice parts of town. Then there are farmyards that look like the cover of Country Living magazine. Our lawn is there because something needs to grow between the buildings and the fields. Some of it was seeded to lawn grasses in a distant past. Some of it’s just what grew there. All that said, in my simple-minded way, the yard looked spectacular this spring. Everything greened up as winter withdrew. A two-inch rain lushed it up. Amid the vivid green were bright ...

Telling the story of an American hero

Letters

To the editor: On Saturday, May 2, New Ulm hosted a Memorial Tribute Program honoring New Ulm native and Medal of Honor winner Captain Willibald Bianchi.  Over 500 people were in attendance at the new National Guard Readiness Center.   As most of you know, the remains of Capt. Bianchi were identified in 2025 through advanced DNA testing and recently returned to New Ulm 85 years after he left for World War II.    The memorial was made especially meaningful by remarks from Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Timothy Usset, VFW Commander Tom Roesch, Mayor Kathleen Backer, US Senator ...

What is social anxiety?

Columns

It is not unusual to feel a bit uncomfortable around certain people or in certain groups. There may be a good reason for that discomfort based on past experience or the nature of the situation. Having significant discomfort when interacting with other people most or all of the time is a problem that can have bad consequences. How big a problem can this be? First, let’s rule out shyness. Shyness is an acute, temporary, situation-dependent discomfort that may occur when dealing with people whom you don’t know. You may expect to say something wrong, look foolish, get teased, get ...