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Iron Range: Join, share, rebuild, grow
The Mesabi Daily News ran an editorial Sunday calling on lawmakers to push local governments to support shared services. I agree. This falls in line with my recent call for an Iron Range Congress for local governments and schools to start meeting as soon as possible to discuss consolidation and maximization of our increasingly limited…
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Money, money, money …. money (it helps to have music behind this headline)
The MDN continues its coverage of the pay rates of public officials with stories about compensation of local superintendents and lawmakers. You make more as a superintendent but it’s hard to tell what you make as a lawmaker. Related posts: No related posts.
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Sunday, Sunday, Sunday! MinnesotaBrown is on the big city teevee
I’ll be part of a story that will air on Twin Cities NBC affiliate KARE 11 Sunday night during the 10 o’clock news. (Here’s the promo). Boyd Huppert does a segment called “Land of 10,000 Stories” and lately he’s been touring Greater Minnesota to see how the economy is affecting people outside the metro area.…
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Layman (finally) confirmed as IRR(RB) commish
The Minnesota State Senate has confirmed Iron Range Resources Commissioner Sandy Layman by a voice vote. Her confirmation was held up indefinitely by Iron Range state senators after her original appointment by Gov. Pawlenty in 2003. Belated diplomacy beats none at all, I guess. Related posts: No related posts.
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Get ‘shovel ready’ to rumble
Two items today from Jon Collins, the legislative correspondent for several Range newspapers, illustrate the way the federal stimulus package could be invoked in Minnesota’s budget mess. First, one analysis says that Minnesota could receive up to $3.23 billion in federal aid. That billion with a big “B.” For what? For who? It’d be exciting…
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What do Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago and the Iron Range have in common? (Hint: not weather)
This PTI story from LiveMint.com details the Essar Steel group’s efforts to expand its standing in the international steel market. In addition to the Essar Steel Minnesota project we follow here (that’s the integrated iron ore mine and steel mill under construction near Nashwauk), the story details major plans for Essar in Brazil and Trinidad…
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Voters overwhelmingly rename Range Delegation "Range Delegation"
For the past several days I’ve been conducting a poll on this blog about a humorous, ideally affectionate nickname for the Iron Range’s DFL legislative delegation. I was getting tired of typing all those words. Well, I don’t know what happened. Maybe the malaise over the massive budget deficit, maybe the cheekiness of the nominated…
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Here’s some of this, for the election addicts
Here’s an interesting power ranking of potential 2010 gubernatorial candidates from Jeff Fecke at the Minnesota Progressive Project. I agree with his assessments for the most part, along with Zack at MNPublius’s take that Pawlenty probably won’t run again. Only T-Paw knows, and the decision no doubt hinges on how this terrible, terrible session will…
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MinnPost profiles Oberstar, future of transportation
MinnPost’s Steve Berg wrote a compelling profile about U.S. Rep. Jim Oberstar (D-MN8) in today’s edition. Oberstar is the Congressman for northeastern Minnesota including Duluth and his native Iron Range. He is also the Chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the story focuses heavily on his vision for the future of the…
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On Iron Range Ghosts and Sasquatch
In today’s Duluth News Tribune reporter Christa Lawler interviews Iron Range ghost hunters, the aptly named Northern Minnesota Paranormal Investigators. As the story states these guys have been around quite a while, before it was cool as they say. The Hibbing Daily Tribune did a story on these same guys and was subject to a…
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State media makes something from nothing on Keewatin surplus
A story is going around the state on the Associated Press wire that the Iron Range city of Keewatin ran a surplus this year (unlike most other cities, especially on the Range). This is true, but the fact that it’s being trumpeted as being so unusual is a bit misleading. (The story originally ran in…
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MinnesotaBrown’s inaugural speech analysis comes with FREE GUM!
So, I’ve got two ways I could go here. I could write about the speech. Or, I could point out an opportunity for each and every one of you to acquire free gum in honor of today’s inauguration of Barack Obama and Joe Biden. Well, I’m a speech teacher by trade so I’ll go that…
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On that other side
Woody Guthrie wrote an iconic American folk song called “This Land is Your Land” in 1940. I sang it elementary school and you probably did too. Guthrie, a Dust Bowl troubadour was one of the most significant musical influences on Bob Dylan, born in Duluth as Robert Zimmerman and raised in Hibbing on the Iron…
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I am DVRing history
In a fitting irony, I will be recording this morning’s inauguration proceedings and watching them around noontime. My reasons are so modern that it hurts. My wife and I are going into town to sign closing papers on a home refinance. (4.875%)! We are very fortunate in that our money situation is solid and we…
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Greenway super staying put
I don’t know how I missed this, but Greenway Superintendent Rochelle VanDenHeuvel turned down the Virginia (Minn.) Schools Superintendent position for personal reasons, according to the Mesabi Daily News. This leaves Cook County Schools Superintendent Chuck Futterer the top choice for the Virginia job. I had written that if VanDenHeuvel had left Greenway, that trouble…