‘The Lion in Winter’ at the Guthrie

BY ADAM M. SCHENCK The Guthrie’s new artistic director, Joseph Hajj, brings a Christmastime drama to the Guthrie, “The Lion in Winter,” a political intrigue play that offers Minneapolitans hope. Could it be that our times are better than in 1183, when Henry II of England mulled over which son…

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Drones assassinate enemies

BY POLLY MANN It’s called the “Disposition Matrix” or “PPG,’’ a guide released in May 2013, describing the U.S. government’s use of drones to assassinate undesirables. It contains the names of terrorism suspects, including sealed indictments and clandestine operations; when strikes may be used against terrorist targets; where there is…

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Staff recipes for the holidays

BRIDGIT This recipe is from my   grandmother Betsy Jean Kendrick.  She was known for having huge, unruly dogs—the last two dogs she owned were a Samoyed and a Newfoundland. So while she liked her real dogs big, hairy and slobbery, she liked her dog cookies delicate and delicious. Chocolate Dogs…

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Midwinter traditions

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Two years ago at this time, we regaled you with a flood of traditions from around the world and their interrelationships. Some were from only vaguely known almost prehistoric relatives, and some were from Americans and invented in the 1960s. You know what? We barely scraped…

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Queen of Cuisine: Going to the dogs

BY CARLA WALDEMAR Prairie Dog 610 W. Lake St. 612-223-8984 www.prairiedogssausage.com ‘Tis the season to pig out at tables sinking under the weight of Granny’s turkey, pot luck eccentricities, more sugar and carbs than even a Sumo wrestler could comfortably inhale, and other dietary overloads. So, when it’s time to…

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‘Arrival’ unravels problems of communication

BY ADAM M. SCHENCK Denis Villeneuve is quickly showing himself as one of Hollywood’s masters of mood and film craft (he also directed “Sicario”). “Arrival” covers well-worn sci-fi tropes like flashbacks to a dead daughter and the aliens’ gift to a humanity too foolhardy to accept it.  Amy Adams illustrates…

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Books make good gifts 

“The Geography of Madness: Penis Thieves, Voodoo Death and the Search for the Meaning of the World’s Strangest Syndromes” by Frank Bures This book is perfect for that sensitive, inquisitive, scholarly cousin, friend or daughter—the one who is always wondering about human behavior and humans in groups, the one who…

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Lock him up!

BY ED FELIEN He can’t resist being loud and splashy.  He wants to make a big show, because then everyone will know what a big man he is. And that’s why he comes off as a buffoon, a clown out of control. The most ancient con game is probably the…

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Stop the cops!

BY ED FELIEN The City Council will be holding a budget hearing on the city budget this Wednesday, Dec. 7, at 6:05 p.m. in City Chambers, Room 317, City Hall.  Mayor Hodges wants to raise property taxes by 5.5% to hire 35 new police officers.  That’s about $2.4 million for…

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Water Protectors Shut Down Wells Fargo 

Shortly after 7:30 a.m. on Dec 1, a group of about three dozen people entered the Wells Fargo corporate headquarters at 600 S. 4th St. in downtown Minneapolis. Six activists, split into two groups of three, locked their arms together in devices known as lock boxes, in front of the…

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Stand-off at Standing Rock

BY DAVID TILSEN The Native people of the Western Hemisphere have come together to support the Standing Rock Lakota in their decision to not allow the Dakota Access Pipeline to be built.  They have clearly decided this pipeline threatens their existence. They will not be invisible any more.   Native nations…

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