To the editor: The attitude and anger of Ms. Gitten’s letter (Jan. 11) in my opinion, is part and parcel of why America is so deeply divided. Tell me, Ms. Gitten, what led you to believe that I am “a person of the opposing side?” Perhaps it was that I pointed that out that the goals ...
Hours after the U.S. Capitol was cleared of the Donald Trump-supporting insurrectionists last Wednesday, Congress took up the job the mob had tried to thwart, the verification of the electoral college vote and the declaration of Joe Biden as the president-elect. Sadly, even after the ...
To the editor: The images from Washington DC on Wednesday, Jan. 6 are deeply disturbing and continue to send shock waves not just throughout the country, but around the world. It is widely believed by many, including Republican leadership, that a key tenant of this insurrection was the ...
To the editor: In the Jan. 7 Short Takes section of the Independent the editor called questionable Rep.Fischbach’s decision objecting to the election certification conducted by Congress. Her objection to the certification was far beyond questionable. Had she studied facts, like the work ...
To the Editor: I was both bemused and offended by John Coulter’s article (Jan. 2) attacking Professor Anita Gaul’s work on the KKK in Southwest Minnesota. Mr. Coulter is apparently charging Professor Gaul with revisionism, but there is nothing revisionist about her discussion of the ...
The Confederate Flag, for the first time in its existence, was displayed at the United States Capitol Wednesday. Understand the historical significance of that. In a four-year Civil War, one million confederate soldiers, led by arguably the most capable American-born general in the history ...
Taking the oath of office THUMBS UP: Congratulations go out to Michelle Fischbach, Chris Swedzinski and Gary Dahms, and our other government representatives recently taking the oath of office. Fischbach is now our new congressional representative in the 7th district. She took her oath ...
Following the most harrowing day in our government’s history since the British burned the White House during the War of 1812, Congress returned immediately to work Wednesday night once the U.S. Capitol’s corridors were cleared of insurrectionists. Debating throughout the night, they did ...
President Donald Trump’s frustrated and frantic efforts to nullify the results of the 2020 election resulted in a mob scene at the U.S. Capitol Wednesday. Hordes of protesters waving Trump banners along with American flags pushed up to, and into, the Capitol, disrupting Congress as it was ...
Members of Congress take an oath when they are elected to office that starts out, “I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic…” All newly elected and returning members of Congress took this oath on ...
Once again, we have been reminded of how courageously many law enforcement personnel react to their protect-and-serve mandate. On Christmas morning, a bomb exploded in downtown Nashville, Tennessee. It had been placed in a recreational vehicle. The perpetrator had placed a loudspeaker in it, ...
The world’s scientists have completed their miraculous mission of developing a COVID-19 vaccine. Now, the focus shifts to actually giving people the shots. This is a massive challenge that will take months at a minimum to accomplish. Fortunately, Minnesotans will be able to closely monitor ...
As we lurch, stumble or launch into the New Year, I expect all of us have learned something about ourselves and those around us. That something is we miss each other. Perhaps, we’ve even learned what’s important to us — the safety of our family, friends, community and the need for ...
As with so many epic ventures, it began with an idea that was so simple that it could only be described as pure genius. I was in third grade, and my classmates and I were trudging back into our school building after the Christmas break. It felt as though we were returning to a gloomy Siberian ...
It has been the worst American year since at least 1968, or 1862, or, arguably, ever. It has, however, provided episodes that will amaze and perhaps amuse a calmer future America. There has been feverish statue-toppling: Up with “social justice,” so down with Ulysses S. Grant, pulverizer ...
When politicians talk about “the science,” they often limit discussion to their science. As long as we understand that, we can defend ourselves by checking more reliable sources. But what happens when the politicians start tinkering with primary sources — with reports from government ...
Distribution of millions of doses of vaccine effective against COVID-19 was no Christmas miracle. It happened only because many people at private drug companies worked hard and at top speed — encouraged by the federal government — to develop and test the vaccines. And they were released ...
There’s an old saying in politics: “When it’s clear you’ve lost, declare victory and depart the field of battle.” That would have been easy for 6th District U.S. Rep. Tom Emmer, because the National Republican Congressional Committee chairman had a lot of victories to declare ...
It was Christmas time and Charlie Brown was tired, concerned and pleased. It had been a stress-filled year for him and his pals. He missed seeing his friends on a regular basis and, even though, a couple of them were stinkers, boy, did he miss them! And, along with that loneliness, he was ...
Question: I was hoping in a future column you could talk about safely navigating a roundabout. Last fall, a roundabout was put in by our Elementary School. Since the start of the 20-21 school year, I’ve been using it 20x/week dropping my kids off and picking them up. I see many drivers ...