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...]
Responding to Gudmundson
By Roy Cerling This note is in response to Col. Gudmundson’s January 9 Fillmoare County Journal commentary on retaining the electoral college. I take exception to some of the arguments used. In fact I believe the editor Mr. Sethre should sometimes reject commentaries due to their utter lack of journalistic standards. I complain because, while Col. Gudmunson is … [Read more...]
One Moment, Please… Premiums cost Clinton election
Our 44th President of the United States of America said, early on, “If you like your plan, you can keep your plan.” Over-promised and under-delivered. I have watched and waited since November 9, 2016, when the world came to realize Donald J. Trump was elected to be the next President of the United States of America, before sharing my observations. If I had my … [Read more...]
Protect your health when working in the cold
Cold weather presents a unique set of challenges for those who have to work outside, including our farmer producers. No matter how cold it gets, animals need feed and water, snow has to be moved and grain has to be shipped. While most producers have ways of remaining productive during the winter months, it never hurts to remind ourselves of some important cold weather … [Read more...]
Our system comes with no guarantees
There are a lot of dire predictions about our representative democracy out there. We’re just past a presidential election campaign in which candidates complained about a rigged political system. Now, commentators worry about the imminent failure of the American experiment. I don’t agree with these predictions of calamity. Our representative democracy is not on the verge of … [Read more...]
Keeping the electoral college is mandatory
In a democracy, the majority vote should determine the winner. Because Hillary won the popular vote, she should be the next president. It’s only logical. Would Hillary have won had the election been based on the popular vote? I’m not so sure. Here’s why. First, there are the fraud and dead voter problems. Dead people shouldn’t vote. But radicals in the Democrat Party … [Read more...]
Privilege explained
When the subject of being part of a privileged group comes up many people become defensive. Their response is, “I’ve worked hard for what I have, I am not privileged.” Yes, many privileged people do work hard. I think I have worked hard and am also privileged. The point is that other people may work as hard or even harder and never realize the same “success.” As we know many … [Read more...]
2016 was an eventful year
Last week Viet “Henry” Long stopped into Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation’s (SMIF) office. He was confused about a of couple checks he had received from the Foundation. They were not big checks, totaling only $2,500, but both were indeed for Henry, who co-owns Magic Ten Nails in Owatonna. Henry took over ownership after the 2010 floods, when the previous owner decided … [Read more...]