BY ELINA KOLSTAD Many people support the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan because they believe it will increase “affordable” housing in the city. Two arguments are put forward to support this claim. The first is that removing the requirement to provide off-street parking will reduce the cost for developers to build…
Spring Parade of Homes It’s time for the Spring Parade of Homes. Until March 31, you can tour 472 new homes Thursdays to Sundays from 12 to 6 p.m. It’s free except for four Dream Homes where you’ll be asked to pay a $5 admission at the door. Proceeds from…
WORDS & MUSIC BY LARRY LONG Beneath your coat and too long tie There’s a burning cross you can’t hide Instead of bridges you build walls All for you and none for all White sheets in the White House Everybody scream and shout White sheets in the White House Time…
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Janaan Ahmed, a junior at Patrick Henry High School (PHHS) in Minneapolis, is the 2019 student at-large director on the Minneapolis School Board. The activism for which Ahmed became known, almost a full year before her selection as student representative, was as one of the point…
Congress passed a resolution last week condemning anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim hate speech, but more than 20 elected officials in Minneapolis condemned the original version of the Resolution that was meant to criticize Ilhan Omar for speaking out against Congress’ uncritical support of Israel. Ilan Omar was criticized for saying, “It’s…
The rich get richer A great deal of what I do when I write is to reduce word usage. For example, a small newsletter that I receive monthly contains so much information about the corporations that run this country. (No, they don’t govern it; they simply control those who do…
BY RICHARD TAYLOR Sometimes, the venue for a meeting can tell us a lot about its goals, such as the aborted one between President Trump and North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un in Hanoi, Vietnam. As Trump put it, “Vietnam is thriving like few places on earth. North Korea would be…
A Southsider weighs in on the Upper Terminal Redevelopment BY ELINA KOLSTAD I recently found out about Minneapolis’ exciting opportunity to redevelop over 48 acres north of downtown at the site of the Northern Terminal on the Mississippi River. The city has approved a $200 million project proposal for the…
BY TONY BOUZA (Publisher’s Note: I vigorously disagree with Tony Bouza’s analysis and my rebuttal follows.) The election for President begins in 2019—and that ain’t an optic. Trump—if he can survive to run (which I doubt) has no chance. Zilch. So, who should the Dems nominate? My secret choice is…
BY ED FELIEN Amy, you stand with the old guard, establishment wing of the Democratic Party. You are a deliberate centrist. You believe in bi-partisan cooperation. You went on the goodwill tour of Neo-Nazi battalions in Eastern Ukraine with John McCain and Lindsay Graham a couple of years ago just…
BY VANESSA ROMERO DEL CAMPO Four years ago I moved here from Mexico with my family and four friends. When we arrived, everything was new and foreign. We didn’t know where to go or how to start our lives over. But we found this apartment. I liked it because the…
BY ELINA KOLSTAD The Minneapolis 2040 Plan is not just an example of greenwashing, its advocates have also created a toxic atmosphere in our city which negatively impacts future efforts to achieve true climate justice. Polar Vortex, Atmospheric River … as our climate changes so does our language. We have…
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE It’s hard to believe but summer is not that far away if you have a kid who needs enrichment, extra tutelage or a grand new experience. The Twin Cities offers a dizzying array of offerings and if you expand your search to outstate camps and events,…
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE Tiny Diner 1024 E. 38th St. Minneapolis This is my relationship with the restaurant “empire” of Kim Bartmann—it started way before I had ever heard of her. In 1992, my teenage daughter came back to live with me for her last year of high school. That…
Love for the Earth BY ELAINE KLAASSEN Since all the great romantic loves of my life are now either married, dead, or sainted hermits, I decided on Valentine’s Day that my last great love affair will be with the Earth. As my good luck would have it, there was a…
