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Letters to the Editor

Readers’ Views

It’s all in the name To the editor: When I was a kid, we had a city dump a mile north of town. It was for household garbage to get piled up and burned once a month, if the wind was right. When we moved to Fairmont, the city dump was a little northeast of town. It had an incinerator for household garbage, a good tall stack to get the smoke high enough to dissipate. Seemed to work just fine, regardless of wind direction. So, it looks like the preferred method of getting rid of garbage has always been to take it to the dump and burn it. (Up until recently, now we have to bury it, ...

Readers’ Views

Regain control of the debt To the editor: The National debt zooms past $40 trillion on Aug. 19, 2026, as the government borrows to cover military spending, tax cuts and social programs. These are not investments in infrastructure or the future. These are frivolous expenditures on wars of choice, ballrooms, lawsuits, illegal tariffs and breaks for the rich and big corporations. It is all on our backs and our children’s mortgaged futures. The only way to regain control of the debt is to increase taxes and reduce expenditure. Why not match $1 of new tax with $1 reduced ...

Readers’ Views

“I.C.E.” is not Christian! To the editor: “I.C.E.” shouldn’t even be a subject that a person calling themselves “Christian” needs to be told to be against! After all, we know we are the “illegal aliens” to God and Heaven! Yet he continues to forgive us with Love and even sent his son to suffer the punishment we deserve! Yet, knowing all this, we still easily disregard and think we don’t have to show such compassion to others. We eagerly join in on the evil and even become defensive about supporting unchristian activities! We are to follow Christ’s ...

Readers’ Views

Pickleball? Lakes? Council meeting highlights. To the editor: Councilman: “Due to the urgency of citizens to add pickleball courts.” Urgency? Last meeting, the woeful pickleballers lamented, “We’ve been waiting 15 years.” Now it is “urgent”? Pickleballers if you are “impoverished”, I’m sorry, please excuse me. If not, build your own, rent SMEC (Southern Minnesota Educational Campus), dual-purpose courts. Risk your own time, effort and money, not ours. Council, did you ask neighbors, friends and relatives? Fairmont, “The City of Lakes” or pickleball? What ...

Readers’ Views

Yes, lake health is important, but… To the editor: I am responding to Gregg Paulson’s “Lake health and pickleball?” editorial on Thursday the 13th. First, the city council must do both. They are both part of the community’s well-being. However, the importance of lake health is paramount. His account of DNR approval was not factual, according to the DNR’s head of aeration. That said, there is much I agree with. The city had aerators in Budd Lake but found that they did not improve water quality sufficiently. In a way, the proposed nano-bubblers are just aerators on ...

Readers’ Views

Appreciate the support To the editor: I would like to sincerely thank and commend the Martin County Area Foundation for the timely assistance it recently provided to the Martin County Historical Society. When the air conditioning system and water heater at the Pioneer Museum failed on the same day, replacement became an urgent priority. Proper temperature and humidity control are essential to preserving the museum’s documents and artifacts, and the Foundation responded immediately by approving funding for this critical need. Martin County is fortunate to benefit from the vision of ...