By Aaron Swartzentruber Greenleafton, MN I would like to put a good word in for our police officers. Too often our whole police force is portrayed as brutal, oppressive, and murderous because of either a few rogue officers, a few bad actions by good officers, or a few perceived bad actions by good officers. If you consider all the good that locally controlled police forces … [Read more...]

I’m sure you’ve witnessed millennials walking around in leggings, hipsters burning incense, and ads targeting women to “zen out.” What do these things have in common? Likely, you’ve associated these things with the practice of yoga. But chances are you don’t have a full understanding, or perhaps even have a misunderstanding, of yoga and the ideals behind this sacred practice. … [Read more...]

For over 100 years, University of Minnesota Extension has brought educational programing to greater Minnesota. The success of Extension’s educational programing – both in the past and present – is heavily dependent upon understanding the needs of the people of Minnesota. To understand what Minnesotans need, the University must maintain continuous and open dialog with Minnesota … [Read more...]

One of the gifts of living in a representative democracy is that voting is only one of the rights it confers. For ordinary people who want to make change — who in some way want to alter their neighborhood or town or state or even the nation — the promise exists that by dint of their own efforts they can do so. This is a precious gift. But it is not an easy one to enjoy. Even … [Read more...]

Minnesota has gone “blue” in every Presidential election since 1976. Three times since, it has been the only state out of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and both Dakotas to vote Democratic. In 1984, as quipped by Homer Simpson, Minnesota was the only state won by Walter Mondale, not counting the District of Columbia. In 2010, when the rest of the country went under a red tide … [Read more...]

As many of you already know from previous articles, I give tours to the public. At the beginning of every cave tour, I go through a regular spiel, giving my name, going over rules, and encouraging questions. I don’t fully understand the reason for my joy of a guest getting my attention by calling me by name, but it exists nonetheless. Remembering “faces and names and … [Read more...]

I’ve been reminded recently of the old cowboy song, Home on the Range. You know the line, “Where never is heard a discouraging word”? That is not the United States right now. It feels like pretty much everywhere I turn, all I hear is discouragement. Our institutions of government are paralyzed. We face serious national problems with no effective response in sight — or even, in … [Read more...]