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High school ag teacher We’re happy to welcome Fairmont High School’s new ag teacher, Cassandra Brown to the community. It’s great to hear more students are interested in learning about agriculture and that the school sees the importance in expanding the program. Walk for Animals It’s great to see the Martin County Humane Society is putting on its annual Walk for Animals event on Sunday, Sept. 12. This year the event is expanding with a family carnival taking place after the walk. We hope the fundraising event has a good turnout. Young learners grow This year Fairmont ...

Biden taking gloves off in COVID battle

President Joe Biden is taking a much more aggressive stance in the battle against COVID-19. Thursday, he announced a sweeping new plan to require more people to get vaccinated. Using the government’s power to dictate safety and health measures in the workplace, the new rules mandate that all employers with 100 or more workers require them to be vaccinated. Workers at health care facilities that receive federal Medicare or Medicaid payments will also have to be fully vaccinated. Biden is also mandating that all federal employees of the executive branch must be vaccinated, along with ...

How will Minneapolis pull off police change?

Minneapolis voters have a big question on their ballot this fall. Do they want to keep the Minneapolis Police Department which is deeply unpopular with the people it is supposed to be protecting and serving, or do they want to start over with the new Department of Public Safety that could include police officers, but will emphasize other approaches to keeping people safe? Let’s assume voters approve the new Minneapolis DPS. Who is going to come up with the organization and plan? According to the ballot question, the Minneapolis City Council will have more direct control of the ...

Suing for a mask mandate

Has Minnesota’s health policy become politicized? Apparently, yes. Last year Gov. Tim Walz asked for and received approval for emergency powers that allowed him to issue rules to slow the spread of COVID-19 infections in the state. They were widespread and very impactful. Restaurants, bars and health clubs were ordered to close. People were told to work from home where possible. People were ordered to wear masks in public places, including schools. The state had all kinds of directives for spacing and sanitizing in schools, and for when schools had to go to distance learning. The ...

Capitol security may never be the same

Nobody likes the idea of our nation’s Capitol or our state capitols surrounded by chain link fences and barricades. These are the “people’s houses,” where the representative they elect go to enact laws. People should have access to do what the first amendment says they have the right to do — “peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for redress of grievances.” But in recent years, as the George Floyd demonstrations and ultimately the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol have shown, a lot of demonstrators are not looking to peaceably assemble. Those who do are ...

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School resource officers It was good to hear from Fairmont Police officers Will Murray and Shannon Bass. We like the positive interaction they are intent on building with students and we appreciate the valuable asset that school resources officers have become. Kudos to the Fairmont Police Department and the school board for working together on this endeavor. It’s great to know that our students have role models in law enforcement to look up to. School Speaking of the schools, we’re glad they’re back in session. There’s no doubt that in-person learning is extremely valuable ...