BY ELAINE KLAASSEN Tom Dickinson is a multi-faceted person who lives in the Powderhorn neighborhood. Friends and neighbors know him as a concert pianist, a Buddhist (Kwan Um School of Zen), an activist (WAMM committee Tackling Torture at the Top), a cat-lover, and/or as the founder and president of an…
BY TONY BOUZA I had lunch the other day with a bright, educated liberal. He fulminated over the Left’s excesses, going overboard on race, etc., etc. I disagreed with him vehemently. We have made progress: 1619-1865: slavery; 1865-1965: Jim Crow; 1965-present: incarceration. White society uses its cops to keep blacks…
BY ISABELLA MORDEN-WHEELDON Curvy Girls is a global network of peer-led support groups for girls up to age 18 suffering from scoliosis. For those unfamiliar with the condition, scoliosis is a lateral curvature of the spine that tends to occur in girls during adolescence. Treatments usually involve a plastic back…
California Fires I find that in order to understand the news behind the news I usually have to seek sources beyond the usual sources. Thus, mainstream media too often glosses over information vital for real understanding. The recent fires in California are an example. In November 2018 a spark from…
BY ELINA KOLSTAD As we enter a new decade, Australia is burning, and in Minneapolis two fires killed residents in affordable housing units in recent months. While bush fires are a common occurrence in Australia, climate scientists have long warned that fires would get worse and here we are. The…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON This is the 50th year since public ownership of transit began in the Twin Cities. As such, I find it appropriate to go over the past decades and how the MTC (later MCTO and finally Metro Transit) has performed, and what should be in store in…
BY JOE HESLA If you rent in Minneapolis, times are bad and getting worse. Since the light rail and the phase 2 of the Greenway were completed in 2004, a lot of market rate (read gentrification) apartment buildings have been built along both corridors. Three examples: The Station 38 apartment…
BY ED FELIEN Minnehaha Senior Living, an assisted-living community located in South Minneapolis, has recently added a new library for its tenants and dedicated it to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, the poet famous for writing “The Song of Hiawatha.” Doug Ernst, a local historian and Longfellow reenactment presenter, came to Minnehaha…
BY AMY BLUMENSHINE As the drums beat once more to rev up the nation for war with Iran, the moral, religious and psychological consequences get little consideration. As a deacon called by the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) to address the suffering of military veterans and their families, I…
Sunday, Feb. 16, 7 p.m. St. Joan of Arc gym 4537 Third Ave. S., Mpls. Thomasina Petrus presents a concert for Black History Month: “Are We There Yet? Tales from the American Journey.” Thomasina leads a group of musicians and actors in an evening of music and stories, with special…
BY ED FELIEN The walls are closing in on you. Everybody knows your game. It’s all coming out now, your connections to the Russian Mob. How they bought condos at Trump Tower and had them repossessed by the feds for money laundering. How they gave you tons of money when…
BY DEBRA KEEFER RAMAGE In 2008, at age 55, I lived in a small town in England. I had recently been diagnosed with high blood pressure, and my blood glucose and cholesterol numbers were high too, though not demanding treatment. I started an exercise regimen at a private gym in…
BY TONY BOUZA By 1975 women were entering police ranks in great numbers. They’d been piling up at the gates for years and then the dam broke. I am very proud of my role as an expert in demolishing the barriers. The Southern Poverty Law Center sued to eliminate the…
Dear Ed Felien, Deb Keefer Ramage, and Dave Tilsen: I saw the heading “Celebrate Mayday,” so of course I had to pick up this issue: The November 2019 Nokomis edition. I am glad that you wish to see Mayday celebrations continue, and that you wish to uphold the Free Speech…
BY KATHRYN KELLY How does the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board get what they want? One way is to twist and change input from their Community Advisory Committee (CAC) members to suit their agenda. And, according to Commissioner AK Hassan, referencing the 2020 budget, it is also through “a series…
