First, thank you to Jerry Grehl and Jack Bratrud for their thoughtful perspectives offered on the Commentary pages of the January 30, 2017 issue of the Fillmore County Journal. Both of these local readers put me in my place, and I consider this a good thing. Based on the response from my original opinion piece about unions, I came to several realizations. We have very … [Read more...]
A big day for conservation in Minnesota
On January 17, Governor Mark Dayton signed an agreement with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to leverage $350 million of federal dollars to help fund water quality improvement efforts in 54 southern and western Minnesota counties. Dayton believes “Minnesota is at a critical juncture in addressing our state’s serious water quality challenges.” The new … [Read more...]
Erasing it from a website won’t make it go away
It’s a new age for most Americans. We have a new President, new Cabinet, New Year, possibly new jobs, houses, etc., but one thing seems to remain the same: the state of our environment. While our new administration has its positive appeals, there are negative ones as well. Particularly, I personally feel our emphasis on being a world leader in science has now been deemed … [Read more...]
Letter about Unions…
To the Editor, A few queries about Jason Sethre’s virulent anti-union editorial: Mr. Sethre, at what point in recent history did the boss-management class go from malevolent to benevolent? When did they soften their hearts to the plight of the worker? Sorry pal, they ain’t changed since, as the old saw goes, “Unions were good in their time, but---”! Unions have been under … [Read more...]
Regarding the January 23 commentary “Unions are like expired sour cream”
By Jack Bratrud First, the reader is subject to think that unions represented nearly 35% of the workforce in 1954. What the article does not say is that in the 1950s, 60% of our workforce was blue collar workers. By 1978 only 20% of the workers were blue collar and 80% were white collar workers, thus the need for white collar unions and a voice to challenge … [Read more...]
One Moment, Please… Unions are like expired sour cream
In March of 2015, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker finally addressed something that really needs national attention. Unions have overstayed their welcome in America, and especially within the public sector. Once upon a time, unions served a purpose. Between 1932 and 1954, union membership in America grew from serving 7.7% to nearly 35% of the workforce. Back in the … [Read more...]
Letter about Peace on Earth…
To the Editor, Everyone talks about Peace on Earth, but there was a moment that I actually saw it. And it came from, of all people, teenagers. I was in Minneapolis, with a group of about 40 exchange students, and it started to snow. Now, this was the first time many in the group had ever seen snow, and their excitement was contagious. Soon, every one of the group was … [Read more...]
Letter about Making American schools great…
To the Editor, Over the last year I have heard a lot of making America great again, but have not heard any ideas about making our K-12 education great. I have heard a lot of talk about school choice and free market systems to fix our schools. In answer to that, I quote John Oliver by saying, “The problem with letting the free market decide when it comes to kids is that kids … [Read more...]
Help! My daughter is a socialist!
Yes, readers, I’m afraid it’s true. My two-year-old looks to be heading down that dark path and I figured it best to get this story out to the masses in an attempt to nip it in the bud. It isn’t easy having to relate all of this to you, but I feel I need to. If I don’t act now, there’s no telling what sort of crazy things my daughter might do as she gets older. I first … [Read more...]
Devil’s advocate…Vantage Point Pt 1: Foresight
Tall structures for seeing distant objects have been vital in virtually every successful civilization. For millennia, the heights of buildings were very limited to only several stories due to a lack of either innovation or resources. With stone and mortar, watchtowers allowed sentinels to keep watch over great swaths of distant land. With only a few more innovative methods … [Read more...]