If you read this before heading off to work … DO NOT take 694 … Tim Harlow of the Strib says: “Unsuspecting drivers are headed for major traffic trouble Monday when a five-month road project begins squeezing Interstate 694. The main commuting corridor for the north metro carries 150,000 drivers a day. ‘I am really concerned about when this project starts, about traffic delays big time,’ said Ken Barnard, spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Transportation. ‘It’s not going to be pleasant.’ For the next five months, motorists on I-694 will face lane closures 24 hours a day between Hwy. 252 and I-35W. That’s on top of work already in progress on I-694 extending east from 35W to Hwy. 10, meaning the construction zone will extend 10 miles along the north metro’s main east-west corridor.” Put bluntly … we’re doomed.
The perpetual wild card that is the Independence Party in Minnesota gets a check-up byBrian Bakst at the AP:“Even if the party fails to recruit a notable gubernatorial challenger, there's no chance the IP's ballot line sits empty. It's easy for anyone to register a campaign and plunk down the $300 filing fee. They don't have to prove prior ties to the party. And because the IP enjoys major-party status, a petition with a minimum of 2,000 signatures isn't required. The important marker for the party is to get 5 percent or more of the vote in any of the five statewide races to maintain the major party label. So far only one office — secretary of state — is a contest with no incumbent running.”
At the Minnesota Progressive Project, Greg Laden offers his thoughts on the weekend’s Minneapolis DFL convention: “At caucuses, and at [Saturday's] convention, the party insiders send out strong signals of two things: 1) The party insider activities are more important than the job of putting forward candidates and 2) If you don’t get interested in the party insider activities we will punish you by boring you to death in the hopes that you go away and don’t come back. (Dear party insider. You may not think you are putting out these signals, but you are. Ask anybody who is not an insider.) … Six hours of mucking around before voting is a long time, but the various caucuses I’ve been to do the same thing at a somewhat less obnoxious level. Party business happens at the beginning, and has no real time limit, and you do it until you are done, then the voting happens and that DOES have a time limit (there are several different real and pragmatic time limits that kick in, including the fact that you will all get kicked out of the VFW hall at a certain time because BINGO. Etc.) So, the part of the process that brings people in is the part of the process that the insiders disrespect, or don’t care about, it would seem.”
No surprise here. The latest Minnesota Poll shows either indifference or acceptance of the NSA “metadata” trolling.Kevin Diaz of the Strib says: “A new Star Tribune Minnesota Poll finds that 57 percent of Minnesotans approve of the National Security Agency’s (NSA) court-authorized dragnet of phone and Internet data to spot possible terrorist activity. Only 33 percent say they disapprove, while 10 percent are unsure. The poll also finds that more Minnesotans disapprove than approve of whistleblower Edward Snowden’s decision to leak the existence of the government’s data collection. The 46-42 split on that question suggests some uncertainty about Snowden’s motives and whether the public has a right to know more about the highly classified operation.”
We may have heard the last “what sequester?” joke. Corey Mitchell of the Strib says: “Starting July 1, [electrician Dustin] Hawkins will be among more than 2,400 federal Department of Defense employees in Minnesota forced to work a reduced, four-day week for several months. Those furloughs will be spread across 63 sites statewide, but Duluth’s 148th Fighter Wing, Camp Ripley in Little Falls and St. Paul’s 133rd Airlift Wing — the units with the highest concentration of federal employees — face the brunt of the cutbacks. In Brooklyn Park, Lois Muller, 81, has started counting her pennies in case Meals on Wheels, which relies on federal funding, starts charging for the food that volunteers bring to her home twice a week.” It’s not like reducing marina service on Lake Minnetonka, but it’s ratcheting up.
Former Speaker Kurt Zellers made peace in Wisconsin the only way you ever make peace in Wisconsin … by drinking beer. Ross Evavold of the Chippewa Herald reports: “Brothers Dick, John and Jake Leinenkugel were roaming around the brewery grounds Saturday, shaking hands, posing for photos and thanking some of their loyal Leinie’s followers. At the 10th annual Leinie Lodge Family Reunion Saturday, those fans included a high-level Minnesota politician, as the Kurt Zellers Apology Tour came to Chippewa Falls. … When the Minnesota House of Representatives was debating whether to raise the state alcohol tax in April, Zellers (R-Maple Grove) criticized claims that the tax increase would amount to seven cents a beer. ‘That’s like promising a case of Summit to the party and showing up with that bathwater called Leinenkugel’s,’ Zellers said. ‘It’s not a fair deal at all. Good Minnesota beer for Wisconsin bathwater, no sir.’ ”
Local attorney Robert Hill has some ideas on how to reform the Minnesota Tax Court. In a Strib commentary, he says: “The tax court could become part of the judicial branch, under the jurisdiction of the state Supreme Court. Judges would still be appointed by the governor, but Minnesota residents would be able to run against them in elections. This would create a level of accountability not available under the current practice. A review system is also built into courts overseen by the state Supreme Court, where judges’ work is routinely reviewed and audited.” Let’s guess at the ideology of citizens who would clamor to be on the Tax Court?
Kind of a poignant story from Marcella Corona of the PiPress on the last masses at a 127-year-old church: “Fifty-five people listened quietly to the priest's words in a church that seats more than 500. A few dabbed tears from their eyes as the Rev. George Welzbacher talked of faith and loss. Worshippers at the Church of St. John of St. Paul on the city's East Side learned months ago their 127-year-old parish would soon close. At a special Mass on Tuesday honoring deceased parishioners, the church's own passing was on the minds of many.”
Really? A list of the 101 best food trucks … in the entire country? At The Daily Meal site, Arthur Bovino (if he were making a list of steak joints, I’d be suspicious) tallies em up and declares a couple of local winners, at No. 84 (the Vellee Deli) and No. 10 (the Chef Shack). “If you love the flavors of Asia and Mexico, crave fresh ingredients, and want a memorable meal, check out Vellee Deli. The menu: the Mojo, a jumbo lemongrass and ginger sausage topped with pico de gallo and fresh papaya; fish tacos; and Chicken Currito, a spicy Thai curry with chicken, potatoes, romaine lettuce, rice, and creamy sauce. … Life partners and chefs Lisa Carlson and Carrie Summer each have more than 20 years of experience, and also one of the most lauded trucks in the country, scoring 10th place on last year’s 101 Best Food Trucks list and earning a spot on U.S. News’ list of America’s most creative food trucks in January 2013.”