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Gardening is a thing people do
I’m taking a week off from commentary, but if you’re a gardener tune in to “Between You and Me” this Saturday morning from 10 to noon on 91.7 KAXE. Guest host Linda Johnson will be talking with Bonnie the Plant Lady about setting up your 2011 garden. We do have a garden at the Brown…
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No, thank YOU for your classified ad goodness
From the classified section (adorable!) of the Grand Rapids Herald-Review under “Notices”: THANKS POLITICIANS for spending our money, burning our food and crushing our cars. West End Auto. Oddly specific. Highly intriguing. Related posts: No related posts.
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Horses, race cars and slots, oh my!
Meeeeeeeantime, added to the IRRRB business last night was a land deal for a potential racino on the Iron Range. This particular racino ties in to an decade-old motorplex project that I covered at the Hibbing Daily Tribune. You take your casino, you wrap it up with car racing and then you add HORSE RACING.…
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A cruel joke on the people of the Range
History’s stage is both wide and deep. No entity with tendrils reaching as far into Iron Range political networks as Excelsior Energy can be expected to exit this stage quietly. The only question is whether the play itself is a comedy or a tragedy. I haven’t decided. This week saw two important developments regarding Excelsior…
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Ain’t no pasty like a Cornish pasty, ’cause a Cornish pasty is now protected by the European Union
If you happen to find local and national conflicts to be unappetizing, the folks over in my paternal homeland are having a much more delicious dispute. The Cornish pasty, a baked meat, potato and butter pie in a flaky crust, has now earned protected cultural status by the European Union. This means that to be…
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The partisan regional paradox of internet politics
This is a map depicting high speed internet availability and options in the United States. The green areas are places where high speed internet options are widely available. The less green you see, the fewer options and lower internet availability. You might know that I hype high speed internet as a potential economic development tool…
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Iron Range past, present, future subject of new radio documentary
The following is a press release from 91.7 KAXE regarding an upcoming radio documentary about the Iron Range by Milt Lee. I spoke with Milt with for this piece and am greatly looking forward to his take on the region. Iron Range Radio Documentary Debuts on 91.7 FM“Ranger in My Heart” Seeks the Region’s People,…
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Melin sworn in; appointed to IRRRB
State Rep. Carly Melin (DFL-Hibbing) was sworn in today at Hibbing City Hall. She joins the state House of Representatives already in session and restores the 72-62 GOP/DFL split established after last fall’s election. News today also came down that House Speaker Kurt Zellers appointed Melin to the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board. State.…
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Melin to be sworn in Tuesday in Hibbing
From the wires: Carly Melin to Take Oath of Office for the Minnesota House of Representatives at Hibbing City Hall on Tuesday, February 22nd at NOON. Hibbing- Carly Melin will be sworn into the Office of Minnesota House of Representatives this Tuesday, February 22nd. The swearing in ceremony will be at noon at the Hibbing…
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Iron Range Maidens win first roller derby bout
Congratulations to the Iron Range Maidens on winning their first roller derby bout Saturday night in Grand Forks. It is one thing to talk about starting a roller derby team. It is another to form a confederation of inexperienced women ranging in age from college to middle age and begin drilling them. It is another…
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The Almanac Trip, or "So now I guess I really should write a novel"
If you missed my segment on TPT’s Almanac this weekend here’s the link (My bit is at the :30 mark, halfway through). The trip to the Twin Cities was a success and a welcome February diversion. We got home Saturday night before the big snow storm hit Sunday. As I wrote last week, Almanac is…
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COLUMN: When a mining town disappears
This is my weekly column for the Sunday, Feb. 20, 2011 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. When a mining town disappearsBy Aaron J. Brown When you think of a website you don’t imagine permanence. You imagine something fleeting, changing, soon to be buried by the past. My first website was on the old GeoCities…
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Brown on the Air: ALMANAC and HOT STOVE LEAGUE
I’ll be rocking public broadcast media to its very core this weekend. Tonight at 7 I’m on TPT’s Almanac in St. Paul which airs in northern Minnesota on WDSE Channel 8. Cathy Wurzer will interview me in her series on regional writers. Tomorrow morning you can catch my weekly essay on “Between You and Me”…
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Almanac and the big city, here we come
This Friday at 7 p.m. I’ll be in St. Paul appearing on TPT’s Almanac, the popular news magazine program that airs live on PBS affiliates across Minnesota. Cathy Wurzer will interview me as part of her series on regional authors for my book “Overburden: Modern Life on the Iron Range” and varied other writings. For…
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Melin in St. Paul, to take office early next week
I spoke with Rep.-elect Carly Melin (DFL-Hibbing) this morning on her way to St. Paul. She’ll spend the rest of this week setting up her new office and learning her committee assignments. She confirmed that she’ll be in the office triplex with Reps. Tom Rukavina (DFL-Virginia) and Tom Anzelc (DFL-Balsam) sharing the services of one…