The video was shocking. It was a video that showed callous disregard for life. The Facebook Live was recorded Monday evening on a Minneapolis street by a bystander using his smart phone. It captures an African-American man laying on his ...
Over the years, I’ve attended wine classes, read many books and articles about wine and have taught some wine classes and, for some reason, the words of Augustine keep coming to me. The one theme that keeps coming forth in my ruminations is that I have faith in wine to reflect the world — ...
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 ...
Many public school districts are ending the academic year early or plan to do so, The Associated Press reports. In some, use of distance learning via online tools has been pronounced a disappointment. But come August and September, when American children return to school — we hope — ...
Believe it or not, there’s still a few winter constellations, most notably Gemini the Twins and Auriga the Charioteer hanging out in the western evening Marshall sky. Sharing that part of the heavens right now are the bright planets Venus and Mercury. They’re still putting on a great show ...
There’s a compromise reached in every relationship. My wife loves to cruise on the open water and I love to fish, so much so that the idea of being on a boat without a rod in hand is what I imagine hell must be like. So while I manned the helm of the party boat as we moved up and down the ...
Every crisis has new heroes. During the 9/11 attacks, they were the first responders running into burning and crumbling buildings as others ran out. Now, during the Coronavirus pandemic, the most visible heroes are the health care professionals, who are saving others and risking their own ...
A slight turn of the dial THUMBS SIDEWAYS: As anticipated, Gov. Tim Walz on Wednesday turned the dial a little more. But for some, he didn’t turn that dial enough. In fact, a lot of restaurant and bar businesses, along with churches, expressed disappointment. Minnesotans have been ...
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 ...
I didn’t have the gumption to see it through, so I gave up on the project. My wife and I have been doing our best to maintain social distancing during this coronavirus situation. This meant forgoing haircuts, which gave me the perfect excuse to accomplish one of my life goals, namely, to ...
To the editor: As I am composing this letter to the editor, a week before Memorial Day, it looks as though Minnesotans will observe that special holiday, due to restrictions proclaimed by government officials, in an abnormal manner. Supposing that we want to be good obedient citizens, will we ...
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 ...
I’m not much for travel, even in the outdoors. Though it’s the safest way of getting from point A to point B, I sweat profusely while aboard just about any airplane, regardless of whether there’s fishing or hunting on the other side of the trip and often start dreading the flight back ...
To the editor: As we continue through the COVID-19 pandemic, we realize that this is not going to be a short sprint but rather a marathon. Like any skilled marathoner will tell you, it is not about speed or a fast start, but rather, pacing is key. At the onset of the stay-at-home order in ...
There are days when I ask myself: “Who cares?” In a world full of chaos, concerns and the “C” word, does anyone care, and if they do, how do they show it? Loaded questions and I ask them because of the unsettled environment within which we currently exist. I write quite a bit ...
Every week day morning as I walk down Main Street from the Mainstay Cafe with my morning coffee in hand I’m reminded of the story I never got to write. I’m reminded as I walk past the Wooden Nickel on my way to the Independent office. Painters and other workers have been busy for weeks now ...
It’s time to get back to work THUMBS UP: Gov. Tim Walz made the right decision in transitioning Minnesota from the stringent restrictions of the original stay-at-home order. The governor announced Wednesday that he was letting the stay-at-home order expire on Monday. Most retail stores ...
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 ...
To the editor: The end of the rope is here. There is no more. We have a governor that has no idea nor does he care of the devastation he has brought on to the thousands of businesses, to say nothing for the tens of thousands of the citizens of the, once, great State of Minnesota. He is ...