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Community Center It was good to finally see some resolution on the Fairmont Community Center this week. Committee member Amy Long put it best when she noted that the committee was not looking for a revote and was “asking the council to acknowledge the due diligence and the work the committee has done upon request from the council.” People want this community center, and it’s about time we had one. Disaster Simulation Lance Ross, owner of the Emergency Preparedness Resource Group, recently put together a Table-Top Incident Command Disaster Simulation training program in the ...

The dangers of repeat DWI offenders

Throw together a crowd of protestors blocking a city intersection and a 5-time DWI offender driving with no license and you have the recipe for a tragedy. Late Sunday, Nicholas Kraus, driving without a license after five DWI convictions, approached the intersection that had been blocked off by demonstrators protesting the shooting of Winston Boogie Smith, Jr., killed by U.S. Marshals on June 3. Kraus told officers he saw a car blocking the intersection and thought he had to speed up to “jump” the barricade. Instead, he smashed into the car, knocking it into Deona Knadjek, killing ...

COVID-19 cases and vaccinations

On Tuesday, for the first time in over a year, the state of Minnesota Department of Health recorded fewer than 100 new cases of COVID-19. Only 95 new cases were reported for the first time since April 2020. And the state reported only one additional death. According to Health and Human Services of Faribault and Martin Counties, Martin County has been seeing similar results. The last new cases of COVID in the county were reported on June 14, of which there were 13. There were only 3 acitve cases as of that time, with 2 hospitalizations. The estimated case rate per 10,000 for the past 14 ...

Take out “straw purchasers” of guns

The rash of shootings in Minneapolis and St. Paul has people on edge, especially after three children were killed by stray bullets in recent weeks. The number of illegal guns out on the street seems to be growing, and that’s due to “straw purchasers.” These are people who have no criminal record or other red flags that would prevent them from purchasing firearms. They go into a gun shop, buy a weapon or several weapons legally, and then sell them into the illegal black market. The Star Tribune recently detailed one such case, a woman who bought 47 guns in May. She and her fiancé ...

Will the state’s leaders compromise?

Gov. Tim Walz and legislative leaders were reportedly working all weekend to come up with a budget plan for the state that could be approved at a special session the governor is calling for today. We’re not sure how they were doing because of the closed door negotiations, but we supppose a lot of the wheeling and dealing was more about policy matters than budgets. Republicans are still annoyed with the governor’s use of emergency powers during the COVID-19 pandemic, an issue that will come up again today. The governor needs legislative approval every 30 days to extend the emergency ...

Omar’s words speak for themselves

Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar has a knack for getting herself into trouble with her words. This week, for the second time in her short career as a U.S. Representative she has had to backtrack on words she has use,d in relation to the Middle East, Israel and Palestine. In 2019 she tweeted, “It’s all about the Benjamins baby” in reference to AIPAC, a pro-Israeli lobbying group. She apologized for the statement, which many felt revived an anti-Semitic stereotype that Jews care only for money. This week, in a tweet about a conference in which she is seeking justice for all victims of ...