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COLUMN: Iron Range political universe to change in 2012
This is my Sunday column for the June 3, 2012 Hibbing Daily Tribune. Iron Range political universe to change in 2012By Aaron J. Brown When my father turned 30 I said, “Dad, you’re eligible to run for the Senate!” My goodness, I was 7. That’s the kind of kid I was. But dad, a mechanic…
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COLUMN: New book helps close old cultural gap
This is my Sunday column for the May 27, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. Anton Treuer appeared as a guest in the April 7 Bemidji edition of the Great Northern Radio Show. New book helps close old cultural gapBy Aaron J. Brown When I was preparing to do my radio show in Bemidji…
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Before the Iron Range, there was iron Waynesboro
Hello to all the new readers who heard me on MPR this morning. Ahhh, who am I kidding? Hello, old readers. We’ve been talking about the way that mining affects communities, for better and worse. Here on the Iron Range it’s not hard to see the impact of mining, both in the changed landscape and…
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Hill of Three Waters
This is my Sunday column for the May 20, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. My visit to the Hill of Three Waters took place a year ago. While photography is forbidden at the site, I did snap this photo of the entrance to the hill to show what the forest looks like. Hill…
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COLUMN: Sticking to the planner
This is my Sunday column for the May 13, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. Sticking to the plannerBy Aaron J. Brown Living in the north woods one learns whatever you leave on the kitchen counter when you drive to town might as well have been hurled into an intergalactic wormhole. It is gone.…
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COLUMN: We don’t get it; any of it
This is my Sunday column for the May 6, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. A version of this piece aired on Northern Community Radio’s “Between You and Me” Saturday morning. We don’t get it; any of itBy Aaron J. Brown Long ago there was such a thing as a “mainstream” in American culture.…
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COLUMN: Death by Sitting
This is my Sunday column for the April 29, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. Death by sittingBy Aaron J. Brown As I sit here now I realize I’m going to die soon. I mean, sooner than later. I mean, sooner than I would if I were standing right now. And how am I…
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COLUMN: A magnetic pull to the future
This is my Sunday column for the April 22, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. I’ve included some photos I took during my visit to Magnetation that did not appear in the newspaper. A magnetic pull to the futureBy Aaron J. Brown Along the shore of the Lind-Greenway Pit a rusted steam shovel stands…
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Dylan’s Minnesota story shows poetry in motion
This is my Sunday column for the April 15, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. I read a shorter version of this piece on Northern Community Radio’s “Between You and Me” Saturday, April 14. Dylan’s Minnesota story shows poetry in motion By Aaron J. Brown This 1978 quote from Bob Dylan opens the March…
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COLUMN: Confessions of the kitchen clueless
This is my Sunday column for the April 8, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. A version of this piece aired on a recent episode of Northern Community Radio’s “Between You and Me.” Confessions of the kitchen cluelessBy Aaron J. Brown The trailer house where I grew up was like a proletarian U-Boat. I…
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Highway 53: Herbie Rides the Range
This is my Sunday column for the April 1, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. SCENE: Jesse, a dejected-looking boy of 12, looks out over the Mine Overlook south of Virginia, Minnesota, in the heart of northern Minnesota’s Mesabi Iron Range. He speaks with his mentor Mort, the kindly retired miner who staffs the…
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COLUMN: An encyclopedia of change
This is my Sunday column for the March 18, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. An encyclopedia of changeBy Aaron J. Brown Change brings a mighty clatter, but also the echo of what just ended. Those echoes have my attention as our strange northern Minnesota winter drops with a thud into a distractingly gorgeous…
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COLUMN: Saving time, a chronological challenge
This is my Sunday column for the March 11, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. A version of this piece aired recently on KAXE’s Between You and Me. Saving time, a chronological challengeBy Aaron J. Brown Time is money. Well, sort of. Time is the soil from which sprouts our mortal life. You can…
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COLUMN: The evolution of dogship
This is my Sunday column for the March 4, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. A version of this piece aired a couple weeks ago on 91.7 KAXE. The evolution of dogshipBy Aaron J. Brown In a recent Time Magazine cover story, researchers found that friendship endures even among the beasts. That is to…
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COLUMN: From the Grange to the Range, Minnesota’s protest history shapes today
This is my Sunday column for the Feb. 26, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. From the Grange to the Range, Minnesota’s protest history shapes todayBy Aaron J. Brown I’ll never forget the night of the 1998 election. I was working as a reporter for KDTH-AM in Dubuque, Iowa. My boss Cindy Kohlmann and…