To the Editor:On behalf of the teachers at Fairmont Area Schools, I would like to say thank you to our dedicated school board members. The Education Minnesota Fairmont members will join other teachers throughout the state to salute their local education leaders during Minnesota's annual School ...
We think it's great when public entities, such as boards, councils and commissions, open up the floor to the public for input. This often happens at regular meetings, but time can be limited. So an additional public forum can be great for giving everyone a chance to speak.So we offer kudos to ...
Why is Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton a redistributionist liberal when it comes to earnings in the private sector, but not when it comes to the salaries of his state agency commissioners? It was learned this week that Dayton used his authority to boost the pay of commissioners at the departments of ...
Four U.S. senators who may be viewed by some as unlikely allies are sponsoring a bill that could be one small step toward a rational defense spending policy.Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va. has joined with Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.; Ted Cruz, R-Texas; and Rand Paul, R-Ky., on the bill. While observers ...
To the Editor:As chairwoman of the South Central Workforce Council, which provides oversight of workforce development in south-central Minnesota, I am excited to welcome Steve Pierce as a new council member. He brings a strong and sturdy base of workforce knowledge from his many years on the ...
To the Editor:Today, we have between 5 and 10 million Muslims in the United States. In surveys conducted by the Pew Research Center, 21 percent have a favorable view of Al Qaeda. That may be a low percentage, but 5 percent of 5 to 10 million is a lot of people.Often, these Muslims are ...
"The United States will always defend our interests and uphold our commitments to allies and partners," President Barack Obama wrote in the introduction to a foreign policy statement he sent to Congress on Friday.Well, not exactly. It certainly is in U.S. interests to keep Iran from building ...
To the Editor:I have reviewed Gov. Mark Dayton's latest budget proposal and found both hits and misses within the plan. There's more money for education and public safety, but there are huge tax increases on drivers and a huge overall spending increase as well.Dayton's General Fund budget would ...
More and more of what Americans work hard to produce is being taken out of our pockets and sent to Washington. Runaway government growth means higher taxes for us and a collossal national debt to be paid off by our children and grandchildren.President Barack Obama wants to continue the trend of ...
Thanks, plowing crewsWe add our thanks and appreciation to the crews in the area that plow roads and streets.?We don't always understand the system or the level of urgency displayed in some places, but it's no easy task that confronts snowplow crews facing limits on their time and resources.We ...
It is no wonder that Ohio Gov. John Kasich has been received so favorably on his multi-state tour on behalf of a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution. More and more Americans are becoming aware that in Washington, they just don't get the concept of living within one's ...
We believe our area funeral homes and the people who work there fundamentally care about their work. They know it is important, and they know they will face harsh, deserved scrutiny and anger if they mess things up for any grieving family. Since funeral homes also are businesses, they know ...
Making community college free for virtually anyone who wants to attend is a plan President Barack Obama is eager for the public to know about - and, of course, to be grateful to him as its author.Less publicity went to another White House proposal that would have hurt millions of American ...
To the Editor:My name is Jeffrey Pratt and I'm the sheriff in Monona County, Iowa. In early December, we had a member of our community go missing and we believed he may have fallen into an area recreational pond. I put out a call for assistance looking for some help in water recovery and the ...
Barely had "sequestration" - the government spending limits Congress put in place Jan. 1, 2013 - celebrated its second anniversary when President Barack Obama urged throwing any restraint to the wind.Last week, Obama urged Congress to approve $74 billion per year more in spending than allowed ...
To the Editor:By a vote of 132-0, the Minnesota House of Representatives has approved legislation that brings disaster relief funding to southern Minnesota communities devastated by heavy rains and flooding last June. I supported the measure.Our towns and counties have been waiting for us to ...
Businesses find it difficult to function in an on-again, off-again regulatory environment. While government rules may change from time to time, some consistency is essential.Members of Congress should provide that clarity regarding the ash that is a residue of burning coal at power plants and ...
To the Editor:Child sex trafficking, a form of modern day slavery, is a growing problem, not only in Minnesota but in every state in the United States. Victims are being forced into commercial sex.On a national level, did you know that the average age of entry into prostitution is 12 to 14? ...
City doing what it canFairmont Foods has announced it is closing mid-March. The accompanying emotions and analyses vary. Some people are angry and blaming City Hall, for supposedly not doing enough. We can't agree.Not every business owner has a close relationship with government. The city can't ...
Political leaders in the state of Minnesota believe they have come up with some solutions to reducing the achievement gap between white students and students of color. They are concerned about this problem because Minnesota reputedly has one of the worse education gaps in the country. But ...