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The iron in our blood
Thought for the day: My family and the families of my neighbors and friends moved from countries around the world to one specific place, at one specific time, because of the iron in the ground. Twofer. Photo from FB site “I f***ing love science,” via friend-of-the-blog Jake Ramsey. Related posts: No related posts.
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MinnesotaBrown hits the million mark
This morning MinnesotaBrown.com passed the 1,000,000 page view mark. This dates back to the blog’s transition to Google Blogger servers in October 2007, though the blog officially began in November of 2006. Sure, that number includes search bots and various internet goblins. It includes myself, refreshing the blog during updates. I haven’t hit anywhere near…
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COLUMN: Atop hill of slime, a clear view of northern political landscape
This is my Sunday column for the Nov. 25, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. This piece is based on some analysis I did for the blog last week. Atop hill of slime, a clear view of northern political landscapeBy Aaron J. Brown As you know by now, Rep.-elect Rick Nolan (D-MN8) ousted Rep.…
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Celebrate Thanksgiving with the Great Northern Radio Show
Happy Thanksgiving weekend! MinnesotaBrown will slow down over the holiday weekend. Nevertheless, the doldrums of holiday radio in northern Minnesota will be restored to greatness (or something) by the Great Northern Radio Show. Our very successful Eveleth broadcast will re-air from 9-11 a.m. Thanksgiving Thursday on the Northern Community Radio network of 91.7 KAXE (89.9…
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Gov. Dayton pardons turkey, but bird ain’t got what it takes to make it on the outside
Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton pardons (live) turkey. (Photo: Hunger Solutions) Well, it’s the time of year for state and federal executives to make a show out of “pardoning” a turkey before Thanksgiving, the time of year when untold millions of turkeys are sold and consumed in the United States. As you can see here Gov.…
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A night of jokes and thanks for Iron Range’s Rukavina
Last night, more than 400 people piled into the Mt. Iron Community Center to roast retiring Rep. Tom Rukavina (DFL-Pike Township), one of the most outspoken and well-known Iron Range lawmakers in recent memory. I am told that footage of the event will be forthcoming, which I will share here, but John Myers of the…
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Some fear Range mining slump in near term
The AP reports on yesterday’s news that Cliffs Natural Resources would be idling taconite production lines and temporarily laying off workers amid a slowdown in the steel industry. About 125 workers at Northshore Mining in Silver Bay, Minnesota, and more than 500 workers in northern Michigan will be affected at the start of the new…
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Cliffs to idle lines at Northshore, affecting 125 workers
Business North reports that Cliffs Natural Resources will idle two lines at its Northshore Mining property in Silver Bay. About 125 taconite workers will be affected by the temporary shutdown, which is slated for Jan. 5, 2013. Cliffs will also idle lines at the Empire Mine in Michigan. Officials cite the cyclical nature of iron…
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Northern MN lawmakers named committee chairs
With the DFL taking majorities in the Minnesota State House and Senate earlier this month, House Speaker-elect Paul Thissen and Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk are announcing their committee structure and new chairpersons. Last week the following roster of chairs was announced. I’ve highlighted the northern Minnesota legislators who have earned these influential positions. See…
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Inside N.E. Minnesota 2012 Legislative Election Results
It was frustrating to see little or no reporting of election results on the western Mesabi among the bigger Grand Rapids and Hibbing papers. The weekly Scenic Range News Forum actually did more than the two larger papers combined. The Grand Rapids Herald-Review ran some numbers a week later (and only the numbers that came…
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See MDN interview of Iron Range Rep.-elect Metsa
Of the major Iron Range newspapers, the only one investing in regular political coverage is the Mesabi Daily News. And it’s cool to see them try some new things here, by posting a YouTube video of editor Bill Hanna interviewing Rep.-elect Jason Metsa (DFL-Virginia). It was disappointing to see very little newspaper coverage of the…
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COLUMN: ‘Better Venison,’ with Wolfgang Buck
This is my Sunday column for the Nov. 18, 2012 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. A fully-realized performance of this piece aired on Northern Community Radio’s “Between You and Me” yesterday. ‘Better Venison,’ with Wolfgang BuckBy Aaron J. Brown With deer hunting rifle season wrapping up this weekend, people across northern Minnesota are left…
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18-pt trophy stag chef Wolfgang Buck on KAXE Saturday
Last weekend’s poor weather has put Minnesota’s 2012 deer harvest down 14 percent from last year. Now, the final weekend of rifle deer hunting is upon us. On Saturday morning, from 10 a.m. to noon, Northern Community Radio’s “Between You and Me” will talk about cooking for Thanksgiving. I chose to talk about interesting ways…
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Cravaack talks fiscal cliff, uncertain future in MinnPost
Outgoing Rep. Chip Cravaack (R-MN8) gives an interesting interview with Devin Henry of MinnPost. He is gracious to election winner, Rep.-elect Rick Nolan (D-MN8), but isn’t prepared to say what he’ll do next. Seems like an awful lot is up in the air. He also comments on the current “fiscal cliff” negotiations that he’ll be…
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"Ruk Roast" to honor, pillory iconic Range lawmaker
On Monday evening, Iron Range community members, leaders and state politicos will join to roast retiring Rep. Tom Rukavina (DFL-Pike Township), an icon of recent Iron Range politics. Donations will be collected to establish a Tom Rukavina scholarship at Mesabi Range Community and Technical College in Virginia, Minnesota. I expect stories aplenty, as Rukavina left…