BY ED FELIEN “When he comes out of the hole and sees his shadow, then it’s six more weeks of winter.” It makes sense. If the groundhog comes out of his hole on Feb. 2 in Minnesota, and he sees his shadow, that means there’s most likely still snow on…
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE The connection For the past decade or so, I have been thinking a lot, and acting – a bit less, but still acting – on ways to reduce my personal harm to the environment in the process of consumption. As the four “R”s tell us (reduce,…
BY TONY BOUZA The sitting (and I use the term advisedly) Chief of Police capped a distinguished police career with his greatest feat—the announcement of his departure. Mirabile dictu! In my insufferable hubris (“That Tony Bouza, he sure is full of himself, isn’t he?”—overheard one wag to another) I hasten…
The soldier and the peacenik I am a voracious reader and years ago when I read of the coming birth of a college in Marshall, Minn., where I was living, I decided to apply for the position of bookstore manager. Never mind that I had no experience in running a…
BY ED FELIEN Democrats are being seriously trolled by Republicans. Paul Gosar sent out a crudely modified anime cartoon depicting him cutting the head off Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC). Marjorie Taylor Greene, during the 2020 campaign, posted an image on her Facebook page of her holding an automatic rifle alongside photos…
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE The title of this article is meant to gently lead you into a dark place. If I had titled it “Dying During the Holidays” you probably would have skipped it, right? Sorry about that. But now that you’re here, let me explain. If you’re one of…
BY TONY BOUZA America is in the throes of an agonizing debate—police reform—and it has no answers. Yet that’s how the U.S. tackles its problems—and often solves them—through heated fulminations and some final distillations into changes. The biggest problems—today—are racism and income disparity. George Floyd launched the discussion on race…
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Restaurant news Have you heard of Goldbelly? I first heard of it last week, when I did a search to find where I could get good latkes without having to make or cook them myself. Of course, I meant to be searching for a local deli…
BY STEPHANIE FOX Minnesotans can boast about being number one in a lot of positive categories, but having some of the largest educational disparities among minority and low-income students in the country is no reason to brag. One factor in this disparity is that where white parents have higher incomes…
BY ED FELIEN The huge and spontaneous outpouring of gratitude on the Seward Neighborhood Forum for Cam Gordon was begun by Jim Welna: Wanted to thank Cam Gordon for his service to our community and the City of Minneapolis as a member of the Minneapolis City Council since 2006. He…
BY ED FELIEN We were feeling so hopeful, so optimistic. We were congratulating ourselves on our great victory over ignorance. We lit a cigar to celebrate. And then it blew up in our faces. We made some terrible mistakes. The banner across the front of the stage in Powderhorn Park…
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE The case for a spiritual practice for good mental health In recent years, there has been a merging between the body of knowledge of spirituality and spiritual practice and that of mental health and wellness. In a way, they were never separate. After all, the root…
BY STEPHANIE FOX For four years, those traveling on I-35W have seen a mammoth construction project rise above Lake Street. The structure is part of MnDOT’s Crosstown plan to create a 14-mile highway Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line connecting Minneapolis, Richfield, Bloomington and Burnsville. On Thursday, Oct. 21, the first…
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE The difference a pandemic makes In contrast to last year, even though the pandemic is still very much in force, there are quite a lot of in-person events to attend to enjoy the holiday season this year – if you are so inclined, and if you…
BY TONY BOUZA What a facile phrase. Rolls off the tongue so easily we fail to concentrate on its miraculous value. Americans profess it promiscuously, but I’ve found that, when push comes to shove, few really believe in it enough to risk anything meaningful, unless it applies to them. An…
