News and Current Affairs
Duluth Crime Wave
Is anybody else a little freaked out about all the crime in Duluth lately?
A 62-year-old friend of mine was walking home from work a few weeks ago and was brutally assaulted with a hammer by St. Mary’s parking ramp and the perpetrator was never found. There was no report of this in the media.
Now this week we have muggings and a bloody dead body found on Michigan St. How come the media is not covering this? Should we start a Duluth Crime Facebook page to keep each other informed?
What do you think?
Amazing Aurora!
It’s visible in Finland — as in northern Europe, not Finland, Minn.
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“Carless in Duluth” Teaser
Carless in Duluth is a short documentary showcasing people in Duluth who walk, bike, or take the bus instead of driving. Notice how easy it is to forget that pedestrians and bicyclists exist when the environment is designed only for cars.
Premiering this March at a local downtown independent cinema near you.
Hometown Heroes – Today’s DNT
Ann Lockwood, who stands outside her home at 627 E. Eighth St., expresses her gratitude Monday for the help she received from Project Save Our Homes in preventing the foreclosure of her house. She’s flanked by Duluth city Councilor Sharla Gardner (left) and County Commissioner Steve O’Neil.
Duluth News Tribune: “Fighting foreclosures, one home at a time: New group helps Duluth woman keep her home.”
Farewell, Newspaper Lady
The Newspaper Lady has died. When I moved here, I stubbornly continued to red MSP papers for a year. At every street festival, at every new student weekend on campus at UMD and LSC, she was there, giving out papers and tempting me with deals. After about four free papers and four smooth pitches, I became a DNT subscriber and never looked back.
Thank you, Newspaper Lady. You helped make Duluth home.
See: “Man held on suspicion of drunken driving in Duluth crash that kills woman, injures grandson” for details.
Dahlberg Appointed to Port Authority
St. Louis County Commissioner Chris Dahlberg has been appointed to the Duluth Seaway Port Authority. This is an excellent move toward economic development in our area. Our state needs to put more business-minded individuals like Dahlberg into theses positions. Better yet, the state needs to get more business oriented across the board.
Google Kansas City: Poles & Tubes
Google Fiber work in KCK is delayed by dispute over how its wires are hung.
SOPA/PIPA Info
Welcome back to your regularly scheduled Perfect Duluth Day programming. For roughly 24 hours, PDD was blacked out to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Protect IP Act in the U.S. Senate, co-sponsored by senators Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar.
Now that the silence is over, rant and rave all you want in the comments.
Here are some news links:
Fox 21: “Websites Black-Out in Protest of Possible Internet Censorship”
MPR: Delegation responds to Internet piracy bills
AP: Wikipedia editors question site’s SOPA blackout
What Canal Park Brewing Company will look like
Canal Park Brewing Co. is expected to open this summer. Construction is underway and Wagner Zaun Architecture’s designs look like this. (more…)
Puebla Service Project fundraising ideas?
Hello Duluthians! My name is Astrid Mazariegos. I am a second year pharmacy student at UMD.
This year I am coordinating a trip to Puebla, Mexico. Usually, only students from the College of Pharmacy Twin Cities campus participate. However, this year I wanted to promote this great opportunity in Duluth. So far I have 15 classmates who have signed up.
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Save Ann’s Home! MLK Day march for housing rights
Background: Ann Lockwood is the owner of a modest East Hillside home. She walks with a prosthetic leg after a major medical crisis that also cost her a good-paying job. Ann is now at risk of losing her home to foreclosure by State Farm Bank, even though she is working again and able make consistent mortgage payments.
Please join us on Monday, MLK Day, at 10am to send this message from our community to State Farm: 1. cancel the sheriff’s sale of Ann’s home, and 2. provide Ann with a fixed-rate loan modification she can afford. Gather at 8th St and 7th Ave E, then march to the Washington Center to join the main MLK Day celebration.
This kind of people power is saving homes across the country, and we aim to do the same for our neighbors in Duluth.
What: Save Ann’s Home — March for housing rights
When: Monday, January 16, 10 to 11 a.m.
Where: Meet at the corner of 8th St & 7th Av E, march to the Washington Center
Who: Project Save Our Homes, Loaves & Fishes Community, Minnesotans for a Fair Economy, and hillside neighbors
More on Facebook, and check here for a complete listing of MLK weekend events.
Going through the Change
I’ve been having hot flashes. No, not that kind of hot flash. And if it were, I sure wouldn’t be writing about it here. I am talking about something more insidious: a societal hot flash.
Is anyone else losing patience with media references to “unseasonably warm” temperatures? This is a record-busting winter on all counts.
Case in point, Little Angie’s: “Opulent Ice House Coming Soon: December 9 Until Thaw!” High-end cocktails to be offered in a lounge made of ice blocks. But today I noticed the piled shards of melting ice scattered around the enclosure. They just couldn’t get the thing built.
For more ranting about the Duluth climate-change experience, including a couple of photos, please see my latest Nature of Modern Life blog post.
(And, yes, it would seem that the joke is on me. Winter is here today. Gone tomorrow? We’ll see.)
Cravaack New Hampshire Dodgeball
Of all the obvious jabs at Minnesota 8th District Congressman Raymond “Chip” Cravaack for moving to New Hampshire — which reached a fever pitch today for the New Hampshire primary — this is definitely the funniest. (Note to moderators, it’s blatantly partisan, certain to test the new commenting policy).
Not sure if the movie clips are fair-use or not so I suppose it could get yanked at any time.
Days when we owned media are numbered
The Blockbuster store on Central Entrance is closing; what video shops remain? See DNT.
How long until I won’t be able to own my media any more?
Monday, January 9 – City Inauguration Festivities
In the past, the swearing in ceremonies were a very small part of the State of the City activities. This year we’ve decided to try something different in order to give City Councilors their own event, allowing the newly elected councilors to be the focus of that event. So, next Monday, I will have a very short outdoor inauguration at noon at City Hall. That evening, the council inauguration will be held at 6 p.m. at Clyde Iron Works, the ceremony starting at 6:30. As a reminder, the councilors being sworn in include Jay Folse, Sharla Gardner, Jennifer Julsrud, Garry Krause, Linda Krug and Emily Larson.
At 7 p.m. there will be a reception featuring live music by Teague Alexy and the Boomchucks. All these events are free and open to the public — we’d love to see you there!
Explorations Abroad: China
This looks like fun. Some friends of mine are going. Deadline is on the horizon! –db (more…)
Drunk in the Midwest
From the Star Tribune: “Why are we more boozy?”
“Many residents in the Upper Midwest are descendants of northern Europeans, and that’s an area of heavy alcohol consumption,” said Peter Nathan, a professor at the University of Iowa who has been studying alcohol use patterns and effects for more than 40 years. “The long, cold winters keep people inside more than in other parts of the country, so that contributes, as well.”
Thank you, solstice revelers!
Thanks to all the pagan drummers and bonfire tenders, the sun came back up this morning. From Park Point, it was rising right over the mouth of the Amnicon River. Where was your solstice sunrise?
Here are a few musings on the topic.
Happy winter!
Merry Christmas, Lake Superior
MPR: $300M initiative to clean up Great Lakes
Congress has approved $300 million to continue a multiyear program aimed at fixing some of the Great Lakes’ most severe environmental problems. Some of the money is expected to benefit Lake Superior and Duluth.
Is the Last Place on Earth ruining Duluth?
[This post originally featured a video from the Northland’s NewsCenter that is no longer available.]
Goodbye Habeas Corpus
The Senate has voted to pass the National Defense Authorization Act , which contains a provision that would allow the military to abduct American citizens, on US soil, without charges or trial, indefinitely. Ex CIA analyst Ray McGovern discusses it here. Both Minnesota senators voted yea. This is a big deal!
William (Billy) Harper found dead at UMD
UMD released the name of a student found dead in his dorm Monday. William “Billy” Harper, 19 from Coon Rapids, was discovered dead in his room at Heany Hall on Monday. Lisa Erwin, chancellor of student life, says it appears he died of natural causes. Billy Harper was enrolled in the Labowitz School of Business and Economics. He was very active in sports and talented football player in high school. My prayers are with his friends and family.
Duluth’s Downtown Casino
As someone still fairly new to town, I’m not sure I understand the whole story behind the legalities of the Fond-du-Luth casino downtown.
Is it located on sovereign Indian territory or is the Fond du Lac band just the landlords? Why do we have such an eyesore that encourages anti-social behavior in our downtown at all? Isn’t there some way to make it go away entirely in favor of say, a museum, or a book store, or affordable housing, or a cafe?
[BTW — I come from a family of origin where the scourge of gambling wreaked havoc. Yeah, yeah, I know people can enjoy gambling and do it responsibly — but can’t we at least leave that out of downtown and off in Nevada or on reservations? (Of course, I don’t think it’s really healthy for reservations either, but if that’s a sovereignty issue I respect that.)]
