To the Editor, Lee Hamilton, you did it again. You write “Remember What Government Can Do” just at the right time!! It is so easy to complain and criticize our government at all levels. Of course we have the right to be critical and we also have the obligation to consider what the government has done and what they are doing right now. Lee Hamilton points out the “biggest … [Read more...]

By Tim Penny President/CEO Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation As summer days turn into evening, many parents pull out a book or two to read to their kids at bedtime. This is important because studies consistently show that reading at a young age drastically improves a child’s educational trajectory. At Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) we know it is … [Read more...]

By Lee Hamilton Here’s a question: When was the last time at least half of Americans said the government in Washington could be trusted to do the right thing all or most of the time? It was right after 9/11, according to the Pew Research Center, and that was really just a blip. Before that, you’d have to go back to the 1960s. And after the 9/11 bump subsided? You won’t be … [Read more...]

By Matt McMillan CEO of Press Publications, Northstar Media, Kanabec Publications, Sentinel Publications and Publishers Printing Service, Inc. Minnesota is home to 14,000 lakes, 12,000 loons, 135,000 seasonal lake cabins and 3.9 million newspaper readers. Really? Really. Every month, 86% of Minnesota adults read newspapers’ print and online issues, according to a new … [Read more...]

Have you ever wondered how many people collect matchbooks? I have. I was curious for no apparent reason. It was one of those things that enters my mind as if it were a message sent from my home planet. I’d been working on my pocket knife collection. I have one in my vast collection — two if I could find the other one — when a matchbook grabbed one of my glittering … [Read more...]

The weather was close. That’s how my mother would have described it. Stifling humidity surrounded me and it wasn’t pleasant company. I’d told stories on stage at the state fair and had a break before yapping again, so I took a stroll on the fairgrounds. The sounds of the fair rushed over, by and through me. I enjoyed watching people eat things I’d never eat unless I was … [Read more...]

To the Editor, When I was much younger, the injustices of society made me angry, now they make me sorrowful.  These sorrows come at all levels: international, national, and local. Internationally we have wars in the Ukraine, Myanmar, Yemen, the Sudan and Ethiopia.  We can not imagine the suffering these wars are causing.  And the refugees created!  It is estimated that … [Read more...]

Publisher Fillmore County Journal jason@fillmorecountyjournal.com Every once in a while, I hear someone around my age or older say, “I’m worried about these young people and their work ethic these days.” They are talking about the next generation of teenagers. The problem is that all of these “young people” seem to be lumped into the same category.  People think they … [Read more...]

Many years ago, I was in the audience when the Rev. Jesse Jackson, the legendary civil rights activist and election mobilizer, gave a speech. He often used the catchphrase, “Keep hope alive!” when he spoke, and he did so that time. The audience picked it up as a chant. “Keep hope alive!” they called. “Keep hope alive!” It was a memorable bit of political showmanship.   A few … [Read more...]