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Gearing for a century in spin
In recent weeks my wife and I have been thinking about buying a car. We haven’t decided on one, nor are we in a hurry, but it’s been fascinating to research different vehicles. Being from the Iron Range I always think about where cars are made before buying one. In the case of modern cars,…
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Weighing the effects of a year at home
Early in the pandemic I decided that I wasn’t going to obsess about body weight. Someone I know tweeted that they’re not a cow, so there is no need to keep a scale near their sleeping quarters. That made sense to me at the time. Then over the next several months I ate an entire…
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How titans scooped up the Range
When I was a kid one of my favorite pieces of playground equipment was the excavator in the sandbox. You could sit on a little stool to control a shovel with two levers. Dig a hole over here, make a pile over there. I could do that all day. To grow up on the Mesabi…
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Legislative ‘bluff and bunk’ no different after 100 years
Just when did politics get so … weird? When did politicians become sociopathic performance artists, huffing their own vapors long past the point of inebriation? Of course, we begin by blaming the other party, whoever they may be. But then, upon sober analysis, we might conclude that it’s the internet’s fault. The answer, however, is…
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It truly is robot-fighting time
There’s a lot of dumb TV out there. Thus, I hesitate to explain that one of my favorite shows is about fighting robots. But I also think there’s a lesson in this program that would reinvigorate northern Minnesota’s Mesabi Iron Range. “Battlebots” wrapped up its tenth season on the Discovery channel recently. The New Zealand…
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The passion of curiosity
There is a crisis in local education that can be plainly seen by experts and laymen alike. It is a crisis of engagement, enrollment, and learning. Fueled (though not caused) by the COVID-19 pandemic, educators wrestle with questions of critical thinking and knowledge. Meantime, the drone of standardized testing grinds away at deeply distracted students…
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Power in the Wilderness project nearing completion
Longtime readers know that I’ve eased up production here at MinnesotaBrown while I toil on several big projects. Here’s how it’s going. I’ve been working on a book for the University of Minnesota Press about Victor Power, called “Power in the Wilderness,” with a first draft due early this summer. I’m past 2/3 done now,…
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Seeking normalcy one year into pandemic
So, let’s not sugar coat this. I’ve been working from home for almost a year. And while I like my home and have everything I need to do my job here, I am starting to notice signs that this year has affected me in many poorly understood ways. We’ve been trying to help prevent the…
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Party labels fail to capture political change
In 2021 politics projects an animated mix of theatrical despair. People seem hopelessly angry all the time, though typically without understanding exactly what’s going on or how anything works. We pick our favorite avatars and cheer them as they battle perceived enemies, hoping for a victory that, even if realized, never seems to change anything.…
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At the end of a winter transformation
It’s been cold in northern Minnesota these last couple weeks. Not really record-breaking, so much as record-nearing. Kind of like running fast enough to read the number on Usain Bolt. Not the fastest, but still fast. You might ask how it is that anyone or anything survives when the temperature hits 40 below, a cold…
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Now is our only time
The other day my son Doug asked me a question. If I could live in any time in history other than our current time, when would I want to live? Doug loves starting conversations with training seminar ice breakers, even though he’s never been to a training seminar. (We suspect he’s on a management track).…
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Future of Hibbing mine tied to rapidly changing steel industry
Today, the Minnesota Reformer published my new column, “The clash of two big steel companies will help shape the future of the Iron Range.” The piece explores the issues behind Hibbing Taconite’s need for a new iron ore supply. I’ve written before about Cleveland-Cliffs’ new position in North American iron and steel. Now we’ll see…
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The Super Bowl is stupid and that’s what makes it great
It’s Super Bowl Sunday, the most uniquely American holiday of them all. Today we celebrate millionaires committing violence upon one another for the enrichment of billionaires. And it’s not even on CNBC! What a day. Don’t get me wrong. I love Super Bowl Sunday. Always have. Most people watch it, and I love things that…
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A primal howl from Wolf Island
I live in the woods. Sometime at night you can hear the wolves. I’ve heard many wolves over the years. And yet every time I hear a wolf howl I always look to the stars above the moonlit tree line, wondering if the sound is as close as it seems. My spine shutters. This same…
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Community police challenges not just a metro issue
My latest column for the Minnesota Reformer, “Law and Order starts with peace,” weaves stories from my Iron Range grandpa’s time as Keewatin town cop with the unsettling trends in community policing today. This is a problem for all of us to face, not just the metro area. This piece refers to the killing of a…