Help paying for health care. Repairing crumbling roads and bridges. Gun safety laws. Action on climate change. A realistic immigration policy. Citizens want action on all these issues and most people agree on the solutions. Yet nothing happens. Presidential candidate Tom Steyer thinks he has the answer and the answer is not who gets elected but the need for basic
Voters lose with only Trump on the ballot
Republicans who vote in Minnesota’s new presidential primary next year will have only one choice on the ballot. Even though he’s not the only announced candidate, only Donald Trump’s name will appear. Last month, the state Republican Party notified the Secretary of State that the “list” of candidates for the March 3, 2020, primary will be a short one –
Social networks are publishers, not platforms
When online message boards, chat rooms and discussion lists first appeared in the digital world, they were much different than today’s social media environment. In the 1990s, they were viewed as digital “bulletin boards,” much like physical bulletin boards, where contributors could post words and photos for public display. At the time, lawmakers, under pressure from free speech advocates, wrote
More cuts loom if voters reject school levy
Sartell-St. Stephen school district’s voters will get a second chance on Nov. 5 to approve an operating levy that would raise $1.7 million a year for 10 years. A year ago, voters defeated a similar measure, forcing school leaders to cut $1.3 million from this year’s school budget. District voters should approve the levy this year. The money is needed
Bits, bites and cops make St. Joseph a thriving place to live
Good news is stacking up for St. Joseph from a variety of unrelated actions that will help the city grow and attract new businesses and residents. Midco recently announced gigabit internet service is now available, which offers business and residents online speeds as much as 35 times faster than standard services. That technology upgrade should make St. Joseph an attractive
Vaping is a public health crisis for young people
Back in 1975, Minnesota was the first state to enact a Clean Indoor Air Act. Although the act did not eliminate smoking in public settings, it did require the creation of “Smoking Permitted” and “No Smoking Areas,” it was still a groundbreaking law at the time. Thirty years later, the Freedom to Breathe Act banned smoking in indoor public spaces
Area legislators deliver votes on conservative agenda
If you are a political conservative, a recent report about the Minnesota Legislature has good news for you. If you’re a liberal, the news is that you’ve got to work much harder to elect legislators who represent your views. The American Conservative Union released its ratings of Minnesota Legislators and the three people who represent our area received high scores.
School test scores provide a tool to close performance gaps
For those of you who like to keep score, the latest test results for Minnesota’s schools were released last week. Called the Minnesota Report Card from the state Department of Education, the scores measure the performance of the state’s 890,000 students based on five indicators – achievement and progress on state reading and math tests over time, progress toward English