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No easy way to pay for college
Parenting is hard but rewarding. I’d allowed myself to feel accomplished when our three sons hit adulthood. But, in truth, parenting keeps going, and with three in college we’re the latest to realize how expensive it’s become to start a career. Today’s column (gift link) brings new perspective on the challenges. I grew up in…
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Minneapolis bathhouse debate hearkens memories of Iron Range sauna history
How strange is our relationship with our own bodies and their various functions? Like most Americans, I was raised to hide as much of mine as possible. That was fine with me, because my body was always lumpier than most. “Shirts vs. skins” in gym class was less an activity, more an existential crisis. So…
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Which side are you on?
I’m relieved that the cottage industry of “Why did the Iron Range turn red” political analysis has mostly dried up. I wrote or participated in many such stories, but it grew tiresome. The region shifted from DFL to Republican, fueled by demographic and cultural changes, along with economic estrangement from the state’s wealthier metro area.…
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Forest Service reorganization throws vital research into chaos
Today’s column (gift link) is about the reported reorganization of the U.S. Forest Service, and specific impacts on forestry research here in Minnesota. Again I find myself lamenting a decision by our present administration, which I realize is tiresome to some. But my argument speaks not to partisans, but to the practical: the people who…
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Build Quack Better: Housing and ducks
Today’s column (gift link) is about housing. And ducks. I’ve now written about housing several times. I didn’t start from a position of expertise, but I’ve had the opportunity to learn from a lot of experts. You could say the same of my knowledge about birds. Even 12 years ago, I actively resisted interest in…
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The nadir of social media’s neurotic era
Today’s column (gift link) is about recent legal and political blowback against social media companies. But here I’ll start a little further back. In middle school, I wrote a humor column about the injustices of hall pass policies on a piece of notebook paper. At the time, I did so for my own reasons, mostly…
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The mystery boxes that will shape our future
Today’s column (gift link), like many of mine lately, is about the friction between technological advances and human well-being. For all the talk of innovation in business and political circles, you see precious little of it on any given day. We humans love our patterns and, to paraphrase George Carlin, half of us are of…
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We’re not out of the woods, but hope grows
Today’s column (gift link) dives into a surprising, and very welcome, piece of good news for those of us who live in rural Minnesota communities. The Center for Rural Policy and Development issued its “State of Rural 2026” report last week, which shows a slight increase in population across most rural Minnesota counties, along with…
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The divergence of humanity and productivity
As I share today’s column (gift link), I confess trepidation. After all, how much more does the average person want to hear about artificial intelligence? Here’s the thing, I already know the answer. I’ve seen statistical evidence. Most people don’t want to know about AI, talk about AI or click on AI-related articles. (Indeed, a…
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Ironically, war in Iran shows feasibility of Minnesota’s green tech
Today’s column (gift link) introduces three new Minnesota industries that could relieve some of the economic chaos caused by the war in Iran. Shortly after the first bombs of “Operation Epic Fury,” prices for anhydrous ammonia used for fertilizer, helium used in medical and tech sectors and minerals used in everything else quickly increased. Like…
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Shining a light on townships
It’s been busy here at MinnesotaBrown World Headquarters. I wrote a column about Kristi Noem’s ouster at DHS that ran Saturday and forgot to post about it. Oops! (Here it is, if you’re still interested). Today’s topic is decidedly more local. If you didn’t know, today is Township Day. Local elections will be held in…
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Making it harder to vote will hurt more than help, and that’s the point
In today’s column (gift link), I warn against new federal voter laws using a local example of why we should be wary. I rewatched “Goodfellas” the other day and mused over Henry Hill philosophy about life as a gangster. He points out that the only records of his life were his birth certificate and his…
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High demand turns abandoned public buildings into new housing
The very moment a school stops being a school, with students running through its halls and janitors mopping the floors and oiling the furnace, it become a bologna sandwich rotting in the sun. So many small rituals go into keeping our human artifices intact. We only notice them when they’re gone and reality comes calling.…
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Welcome to our big wet water funding crisis
Today’s column (gift link) is about water infrastructure. One of civilization’s greatest secrets is that we, as individuals, are much more necessary to its continuation than we might think. Have you ever seen the show “Life After People” on the History Channel? It uses digital effects to imagine what would happen to cities and other…
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Talking immigration and literature for WGN ‘On Books’ podcast
Listen to my “On Books” interview with Steve Bertrand from WGN Chicago. *** The most enjoyable book I’ve read this month is one I probably should have read a long time ago. “Betsy and Tacy Go Over the Big Hill” is part of the “Betsy-Tacy” series by Minnesota author Maud Hart Lovelace. Written in the…