A new report from the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce confirms what our state demographers have been telling us for a long time: Minnesota’s economy needs the immigrant population to succeed. Here are some of the key findings of the Chamber’s report as outlined in its executive ...
For the first time in many years, there’s a proposal to do more than just simply maintain the nation’s aging network of roads, bridges, and other public works resources. It’s likely to be expensive. The cost to pave even one mile of a two-lane road is more than what’s needed to ...
The Blue Moon Ballroom was located at the Lyon County Fairgrounds in Marshall. The ballroom was built in 1929 by Ray Baldwin Jr. and John Bulowski. According to Baldwin, he and Bulowski became involved in building the ballroom after the Valhalla dance hall on Lake Shetek burned to the ground. ...
MaryAnn Blanchette was born June 19, 1931, to Ann and Theodore Kack on the family farm south of Marshall without any physician or midwife in attendance. MaryAnn, at that time, was the youngest of four children. The eldest, Eleanor, was 18 years her senior. MaryAnn’s parents were both ...
We continue to see police reports about the theft of catalytic converters. They are stolen off vehicles in car lots or on the streets. People who find their vehicles vandalized and looted by thieves face an expensive replacement cost. It may be upwards of $1,000, depending on the ...
Wind is a constant source of botheration in this part of the world. I’m not just talking about the kind of wind that can arise from consuming a questionable gas station burrito. While that type of wind can be a major health hazard in enclosed spaces, it’s easily alleviated by going ...
Have you ever been dared to do something? Something that’s, well, scary? After doing the ‘dared’ thing, did you find some sense of peace or fulfillment? Or, where you just happy to walk away from the moment? Based on those questions, are you reliving a special moment? Come on! ...
To the editor: It is so very unfortunate that so many people have no clue, no understanding of our Constitution, how the Founders labored for months to provide the citizens of the United States with a national government that had “limited” powers and how it brought us to become the most ...
President Joe Biden wants to open up COVID-19 vaccinations to everyone by May. That’s a commendable goal, one that could best be reached by providing the vaccines needed to vaccinate everyone by May. Gov. Tim Walz has opened up vaccinations to anyone 16 and older. Again, that is a great ...
There’s a curlytailed grub that’s getting tougher and tougher to find, to the point where I have to order it directly from the manufacturer’s site to ensure I have enough for the season. While it comes in standard white and yellow, two must-have colors for my spring fishing, along ...
They work, spend money, pay taxes and help fill demographic gaps, chamber finds. The Minnesota Chamber Foundation is out with a much-needed report on the many contributions of immigrants, detailing the critical role they play both in this state’s present and its future. Immigrants have ...
The tradition of getting a new outfit and hat for Easter originated in Europe. People would purchase new clothing and hats to celebrate the coming of spring and the meaning of Easter. After the American Civil War, the tradition of purchasing a new outfit, including an Easter bonnet caught on ...
We have been exploring the 1918 influenza pandemic and its regional impacts. Last week we began comparing that epidemic with our COVID-19 epidemic to better understand each and perhaps reach a clearer understanding of our current epidemic journey. Last week we compared the numbers sickened ...
President Joe Biden, fresh from signing his nearly $2 trillion COVID-19 relief law, is now proposing another $2 trillion package to rebuild and expand the nation’s infrastructure. The late Illinois Republican Sen. Everett Dirksen is often quoted as saying of the federal budget, “A billion ...
To the editor: A recent Public Forum writer claimed that if one is serious about finding the truth, one must start with testable facts. Truth must be a fact that can be proven by science. However, that is only one definition of “truth” according to the World Book Dictionary. During ...
Gov. Tim Walz promised that “normalcy is on the horizon” during his State of the State speech on Sunday. Speaking from the classroom where he once taught social studies at Mankato West High School, Walz said “brighter days are ahead,” thanks to the increasing number of COVID ...
The murder trial of Derek Chauvin, the fired Minneapolis police officer who kept his knee on the neck of George Floyd last May for over nine minutes, until Floyd died, is different from any other trial held in Minnesota up to know. It is being livestreamed. We can all watch and listen as the ...
Is it sustainable, organic or biodynamic? These descriptive words are used a lot in today’s world and are becoming universal in the wine world. They can be confusing but I always go back to my upbringing and Rachel Carlson’s book entitled ‘Silent Spring’. While growing up on our ...
It has been said that April is the cruelest month. And for good reason. In our neck of the woods, no other month can take you from a cool autumnal fog to summertime heat to blizzard-like conditions to balmy springtime sunshine all in one day. April is the equivalent of going on a whirlwind ...
Several times a week I find myself driving east on Church Street here in Marshall, beginning at A Street. Just past the First Lutheran Church property on the north side of the street is a sign that never fails to bring a smile to my face as I remember a particular cartoon out of the past. The ...