-
Tony Sertich and the seachange on the Iron Range
As previously reported, Rep. Tony Sertich (DFL-Chisholm) will resign Thursday to take his new position as commissioner of the unique state agency Iron Range Resources. This agency overseas the tax revenue paid by mining companies in lieu of local property taxes. Though much maligned by foes, both of the informed and uninformed variety, IRR remains…
-
Dayton officially announces Sertich pick at IRR
And it’s official. More on the way. Governor Dayton Announces Representative Tony Sertich to Head Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board Dayton, Sertich committed to economic development in Northern Minnesota St. Paul— Governor Mark Dayton today announced the appointment of Representative Tony Sertich as Commissioner of the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB). Sertich,…
-
Sertich to be next Iron Range Resources Commissioner
The Mesabi Daily News is reporting something that’s been in the rumor mill around the Iron Range for weeks. Gov. Mark Dayton will appoint Rep. Tony Sertich to be the next commissioner of Iron Range Resources on Tuesday. Wisely, the MDN was granted an exclusive here. Later on Tuesday I’ll elaborate on the three big…
-
COLUMN: On fantasy football and our times
This is my weekly column for the Sunday, Jan. 9, 2011 edition of the Hibbing Daily Tribune. On fantasy football and our timesBy Aaron J. Brown I begin today with a bit of braggadocio. That means smack talk. For the first time in eight years of participation I have won the “Super Bowl” in my…
-
Brown on the Air: SPECIAL TALENTS
Tune in this week for 91.7 KAXE‘s “Between You and Me,” the Saturday morning call-in and music spectacular featuring host Heidi Holtan and YOU, the affiliated folks of northern Minnesota. The topic this Saturday is “Special Talents.” This is a chance to share your interesting or strange special talent, or those of someone you know.…
-
A Prairie Home Companion seeks new host?
Garrison Keillor has benched himself as tonight’s “A Prairie Home Companion” program host. Folk musician Sara Watkins will take his place. Keillor will make appearances in sketches and perform his customary “News from Lake Wobegon” monologue, however. Speculation is that Watkins is getting a tryout as Keillor mulls retirement in the next year, though the…
-
Drag to leave WDIO, Duluth media to become thunderdome
Thing #597 that I love about living in northern Minnesota. When TV reporters quit the media for money and regular hours they go work for mining companies. In a surprising announcement reported in today’s Duluth News Tribune WDIO 5 p.m. anchor Sandy Drag said she would leave the station to work as regional public relations…
-
GUEST POST: The raw, cold appeal of the Iron Range
From time to time I share guest posts from readers and those with an Iron Range interest. This one comes from Nicole Anderson who wrote this reflection after spending a year on the Range recently. The Iron Range at first comes off as depressing with its empty store fronts and ghost town feel, but that…
-
MPR: "Iron Range needs answers more nuanced than ‘jobs, jobs, jobs’"
Minnesota Public Radio published my commentary piece today entitled “The Iron Range needs answers more nuanced than ‘jobs, jobs, jobs.’” This is the second one and I think I’m going to try a few more because we all know what starts happening after the third date, am I right? This piece strikes at some of…
-
Dayton makes civility a viable option
Gov. Mark Dayton is getting national attention for the way he handled what normally would have been a routine signing of an executive order authorizing Minnesota’s enrollment in a federal health care plan. He opened the press conference to the public and when protesters arrived he let them stay. Not only that, he let some…
-
All politics is (less) local on the Range, Minnesota and beyond
Andrew Gelman at the well respected FiveThirtyEight political data blog recently explored the old saying “All Politics is Local.” This is often considered a veritable commandment in political circles, but Gelman offers a new take. Gelman’s bold-face conclusion is: “Politics is less local than it used to be.” To the degree this saying was true,…
-
Iron Range 2011: Everything is wonderful, nothing is safe
Iron Range taconite production recovered in 2010, ending shy of its peak numbers from 2008 just after the recession started. The six taconite plants on the Range, ore dump salvaging Magnetation and the value-added producer Mesabi Nugget are expected to produce as much as 39 million tons in 2011. Keewatin Taconite is getting green lights…
-
In which I explain the bog blog concept
Before Twitter and Facebook there was a time when blogging was the hip thing to do. This period lasted just a few years, from 2004 into 2007. By the end of it I was doing community ed classes about blogging and that’s how you know a trend died. While blogging is still relevant, it’s now…
-
Brown on the Air: For days of Auld Lang Mine
I’ll be on 91.7 KAXE Monday morning at 8:10 to talk about the year ahead for the Iron Range and northern Minnesota. I’ll be dabbling in mining news and trying out some of my new riffs on the “fate vs. free will” concepts I’ve been working with lately. I’m going to make that so much…