Columnists

Regular Columnists

Ed Felien  •  Elaine Klaassen  •  Polly Mann  •  Tony Bouza  •  David Tilsen  •  Debra Keefer Ramage  •  Stephanie Fox  •  Johnny Hazard 

 


Justine Damond: Post mortem

BY TONY BOUZA The Damond case is a one-in-several-decades of events. Bound to be pored over, examined, analyzed and judged. I admit to rapt fascination with its facets. Frequently overlooked—and to my regret, by me—is the origin of it all. Justine Damond was coming to the rescue of a human…

Continue reading

Northern Spark 2019 comes to the Avenue

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE For this year’s Northern Spark event, the American Indian Cultural Corridor on Franklin Avenue will be one of three “nodes” of explosive and transformative art activities. If you’re unfamiliar with Northern Spark, now in its ninth year, this started out as a moving art festival that…

Continue reading

Cheesy pleasures at All Square

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE All Square 4047 Minnehaha Ave. S. Minneapolis 55406 Hours: Wed. thru Sun., 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. All Square is not like other restaurants; it’s not even like other small neighborhood diners with an excellent but limited menu and a family-friendly vibe, though it is all…

Continue reading

Peace of Pie Festival

BY ELAINE KLAASSEN One day a member of Minnehaha Communion Lutheran Church (MCLC) said out loud, “I want to feed people pie,” and her thought did not fall on deaf ears. The Peace of Pie festival was born, and will be held in the fruit tree orchard of Adams Triangle…

Continue reading

What’s new on 34th Avenue?

BY ED FELIEN You can’t see it, but the change has been profound. Drive down 34th Avenue and it looks like nothing’s changed (other than the encroaching construction!). The houses, the commercial buildings, everything looks the same, the way it’s always been. But it won’t be that way forever. The…

Continue reading

Big Beasts

BY TONY BOUZA Editor’s note: Once again, I vigorously disagree with Mr. Bouza’s analysis. Please read my note at the end of his essay. Cineaste. Today’s word—and, since confronting the English language on Dec. 22, 1937, I’ve grown increasingly fond of this really powerful tool. At about that time I…

Continue reading

Fire Bob Kroll!

BY ED FELIEN When Mayor Frey announced an end to fear-based warrior training for Minneapolis police, Police Federation President Bob Kroll announced his Federation would offer that warrior training free to Minneapolis police officers. Warrior training was cited as the principal cause of Officer Yanez’s killing of Philando Castile. It…

Continue reading

New green deals on East 38th Street

BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Despite my best intentions, I did not make it to Tare Market’s opening day (April 19) until 1p.m. or so, three hours after they first opened the doors. I felt better about that when they told me there had been a pretty big line of people…

Continue reading

The Democrats and the Farmer-Labor Party

BY STEPHANIE FOX While most states have their Democrats, only in Minnesota do we have the Democratic Farmer-Labor Party, the DFL, the result of the coming together of the far left Farmer-Labor Party and the more moderate Democrats, 75 years ago this month. On April 15, 1944, the two parties…

Continue reading

Old books in a new paradigm

BY DEB KEEFER RAMAGE In the vibrant neighborhoods surrounding Chicago Avenue and 48th Street, it’s easy to forget about home-based businesses. Many are so home-based that there’s no sign in the window, no trucks pull up to the door, no clients park on the tree-lined block. One extremely private way…

Continue reading

P. D. Blues

BY TONY BOUZA Around 1966, the NYPD was assailed by the police union as an unfit place to work. The cops were miserable. Morale had never been lower. The troops wallowed in lachrymose self-pity and the Fourth Estate lapped it up. What a fun time they were all having. My…

Continue reading