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Banning books a pathetic ploy for control

The barrage of attacks on books in the last year is another example of trying to deny reality by clamping hands over eyes — in this case to keep them from reading. A State of America’s Libraries Report says the number of requests to ban books is the highest reported in the 20 years of the survey. The new report released by the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom found 729 challenges — affecting nearly 1,600 books — at public schools and libraries in 2021. That number is more than double the previous year. The report includes only the known ...

‘Not Real News’ trumps real news

It’s a disheartening sign of the times when The Associated Press, the gold standard of reporting real news for the better part of two centuries, is compelled to publish a regular feature called “Not Real News.” This is what the digital medium has wrought: a dystopian hellscape of savage liars and propagandists where anybody can say anything, and any number of people will believe them. It’s incredible, literally, what ridiculous and utter nonsense is being passed off as news, and with the latest version of culture war being waged, an alarming number of people fall victim. Most ...

Biden ethanol announcement good news for Midwest

Last month more than 1,000 farmers, workers in the ethanol industry and other biofuel supporters sent a letter to President Joe Biden urging him to allow broader use of lower-cost ethanol blends like E-15. The letter stated that ethanol is the solution to record-high gas prices. Apparently, Biden got the message. He flew to Iowa on Tuesday and announced his administration will suspend a federal rule that bars higher levels of ethanol in gasoline during the summer. The decision was hailed by many in the Midwest, including U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn. Klobuchar has been a strong ...

Morbidly rich are different — they don’t pay taxes

It’s one week until tax day. For most Americans it’s time to pay the piper for the income they’ve well-earned making a living for basic expenses like housing and food. Except for the ultrawealthy. Megabillionaires and their ilk pay...nothing. There are many ways to evade taxes, but last year ProPublica revealed the go-to tactic, which is so simple, you don’t have to be a certified public accountant to understand it. The first step for them is to buy an asset. Something big. Something worth enough in value to cover a rich family’s personal expenses for the year — $50 ...

Et. Cetera

Area support ensures project success Last weekend, members of the Fairmont Baseball Association, Fairmont Rotary Club and Martin County Area Foundation came together to put up several batting cages at the Winnebago Avenue Sports Complex in Fairmont. The project was made possible with funding from all three organizations. This was a good example of entities coming together to make something positive happen in the community. We’re sure the batting cages will be put to great use. County moves on funding request This week the Martin County Commissioners moved forward with a letter of ...

Give Minnesotans some tax relief

The Republicans in the Minnesota Senate are pushing for a big tax cut for taxpayers, but members of DFL in the Legislature are not buying it. The Senate passed an $8.4 billion tax cut bill Thursday. Legislative leaders, however, realize that tax plan could look very different when the final version emerges. But Republicans such as Sen. Gary Dahms of Redwood Falls are not giving up. “After years of over taxation, Minnesotans deserve permanent ongoing tax relief,” he said in a statement. “We eliminate the unfair double tax on Social Security and cut income taxes for all Minnesota ...