Maybe it’s just a professional preoccupation, but I’ve always been intrigued by why voters cast their ballots as they do. I’ve never made a formal study of it, but have talked with plenty of them over the years, and one thing sticks with me from those conversations: There’s no one thing. People find a myriad of interesting — and sometimes idiosyncratic —r easons for voting this … [Read more...]
Continuing education opportunities close to home
By Tim Penny President/CEO Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation Continuing education in a business or profession is critical for future growth, but trainings can be difficult to participate in when events are held far away or are too costly. At Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) we take pride in hosting a variety of high quality, low-cost training … [Read more...]
Letter to the editor about photo ID
Letter about photo ID is not voter suppression... To the Editor, The commentary claiming voter ID is voter suppression reminded me of a fall 2013 trip to Norway during their general election. In the Trondheim library I happened to observe early voting. The voter would present their ID to a lady behind a table and she would give them a ballot. When the lady was not busy I … [Read more...]
Letter to the editor about please get vaccinated…
Letter about please get vaccinated... To the Editor, Nearly half of Republicans say they are unlikely to get the COVID vaccine. A recent Gallup Poll found that only 45% of Republicans have confidence in science. Many conservatives have a long history of not believing in evolution, climate change, and now the COVID vaccine. With hundreds of thousands of Americans dead … [Read more...]
Chatfield invites interested residents to apply for council seat
At the July 13 Chatfield City Council meeting the process to appoint an interested resident to fill the city council vacancy was discussed. The vacancy was created with the resignation of John McBroom. Three options were considered: to advertise for interested residents that would like to contribute, to recruit a former councilor or mayor, or to review active people in the … [Read more...]
Voter ID is voter suppression
Rushford, MN In recent years, the GOP has introduced, in many states, various Voter ID laws purporting that for an election to truly be fair and valid, we must have some sort of government provided identification to show our individual citizenship status. This push is designed to force citizens to jump through unnecessary hoops to prove their status all under the pretense … [Read more...]
Letter about “Only TRUTH should rule the day” and “Declining population?”…
To the Editor, Many thanks to Kathie Haynes for putting Stan Gudmundson’s outlandish rant in perspective. Facts have been endangered recently, but I think and hope that they will prevail. Re: declining population: It’s not a pretty sight to imagine wholesale death of those who get old. But nobody owes us 20 extra years past our “use by” date. I am 75, an age unheard of a … [Read more...]
Letter about brave voices…
To the Editor, I know of a young man who’s mother slapped him across the face and said “Don’t you ever say that again” when he told her what a priest had done to him. The priest that molested him wasn’t just a pervert but his real problem was that he was a tyrant. The young boy could have prevented dozens of other boys from getting abused by this man if he had stood on the … [Read more...]
Letter about declining population…
To the Editor, In response to Jason Sethre’s concern about a declining population in the editorial of July 12; it seems a little short-sighted worried about a declining population that could interfere with our way of life, when we already have about 7.5 billion people on this earth and are increasing by about 100 million each year. (Ruchir Sharma - The Rise and Fall of … [Read more...]
One Moment, Please… Declining population?
You may have read in the news that the world population is on the decline. According to a July 15, 2020, article on BBC News, “Falling fertility rates mean nearly every country could have shrinking populations by the end of the century. And 23 nations – including Spain and Japan – are expected to see their populations halve by 2100. Countries will also age dramatically, … [Read more...]