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DNT: Locals, ‘outsiders’ equally to blame for Duluth crime
The Duluth News-Tribune is running a fascinating series on the social impact of “outsiders” in Duluth. Talk to most Duluth folks (or Range folks, for that matter) and they’ll tell you that those darn “outsiders” cause most of the problems (crime, drugs, welfare fraud, etc.) in their area. The DNT did some investigative reporting and…
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Franken questions coal gas plant in the Bemidji Pioneer
Al Franken, DFL U.S. Senate candidate from Minnesota, gave an interesting interview to the Bemidji Pioneer. (No, Bemidji is not on the Iron Range but many of our people go to college and drink a lot of beer there, so it is a city of note). Essentially, Franken was stressing his support of basic northern…
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Range mining: another perspective
Mining. The Range. Sounds familiar, right? A friend sent me some links about mining on the western range that put a new perspective on some of the mining stories we report so often here on Minnesota’s Iron Range. These are stories from the High Country News about some of the tough economic choices that need…
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How to date an Iron Ranger
This is my Hibbing Daily Tribune column for Sunday, Feb. 17. A version also ran as a radio essay on 91.7 KAXE Saturday, Feb. 16. We’ve passed Valentine’s Day, which means by now your mate has settled back into his or her comfortable ambivalence toward you and your relationship. Sorry about that. I’m sure the…
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Brown on the Air: Love, Misc.
I’m on the air Saturday morning for my weekly essay on KAXE’s “Between You and Me.” This week’s show topic is about love and dating, sort of a whiplash off of this week’s Valentine’s Day holiday. I offer “tips for dating Iron Rangers.” Usually, the essay is complete by the time I write this post.…
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You know you’re in northern Minnesota when…
… you see a bumper sticker like this: “Kids who hunt, trap and fish don’t mug little old ladies” ~ Highway 169 near Grand Rapids, Feb. 14 Related posts: No related posts.
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Change on the Range?
Though I missed the speech, the Hibbing Daily Tribune report on Hibbing Mayor Rick Wolff’s State of the City address was encouraging. Visions, challenges and initiatives Mayor says Hibbing must embrace changeBy Kelly Grinsteinner, Hibbing Daily Tribune HIBBING — With change knocking on Hibbing’s door, Mayor Rick Wolff says the community and region must be…
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Update: Nothing wrong here at the airport, say people who run the airport
An update on the Chisholm-Hibbing Airport controversy from earlier in the week. The Airport Commission has chosen to accept the check from former airport director Dave Danielson as a “resolution” to the matter. They then named the interim director to officially succeed Danielson despite his using the airport address as the address for his private…
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Bonding bill nothing to snooze over
The chatter I keep hearing from folks who attend lots of under-reported public meetings is that the $67 million bonding request to fund infrastructure for the Minnesota Steel plant near Nashwauk is vital to the project’s viability. In quiet rail authority and city meetings, company representatives and city officials communicating with them say that the…
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Obama and the Iron Range
This post is shared with my friends at www.mnblue.com, a progressive Minnesota political blog. I’ve heard that some Range leaders are nervous that Sen. Barack Obama’s underperformance in central Range precincts like Hibbing and Chisholm despite his massive statewide win in the caucuses. (Sen. Hillary Clinton carried those core Range towns about 60/40; Obama carried…
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Achy Breaky news stacking
Here’s one of the “top stories” from Yahoo News this morning: “Billy Ray Cyrus apologizes for seatbelt gaffe“ Let’s go back to journalism school. Who? What? Why? Where? When? How? Who: Billy Ray Cyrus, washed up country star who sang “Achy Breaky Heart,” a song so stupid that it almost triggered the End Times (unless…
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Nothing but clear liquids for the time being
There’s plenty going on locally, statewide and nationally but blogging is slow because I’m sick. The whole house is sick. We’re all getting better but 36 hours ago it was a cauldron of disease around here. Babies firing arcs of barf across the living room, 10 pairs of child jammies called into emergency service, parents…
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2008 Minnesota legislative session begins
The 2008 Minnesota legislative session opens today with what appears to be an ambitious agenda for the DFL House and Senate. Best case Minnesota gets a transportation bill and more; worst case Minnesota gets just a small bonding bill. The governor seems inclined toward a stalemate on Day 1. From the Associated Press: Minn. lawmakers…
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This is Jim. He is holding a brown paper bag full of money.
The headline is an homage to the Chisholm-Hibbing Airport’s recent TV ad campaign featured a lovable everyman named Jim. It’s a good thing “Jim” didn’t linger too long at the airport or he might have seen something he shouldn’t have. I haven’t posted about the longstanding controversy surrounding the Chisholm-Hibbing Airport, its former director and…
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Dylan Days wins grant for Iron Range Bob Dylan exhibit
One of my pet projects is Dylan Days, an annual arts event in Hibbing run by an initiative called “Dylan Arts Celebration,” which I co-chair. Kelly Grinsteinner of the Hibbing Daily Tribune reported Sunday about our recent $10,000 grant from Iron Range Resources’ Culture and Tourism program to create exhibit material for an upcoming Bob…