HometownSource Blogs

All entries to this blog are the opinion of the blogger only, and not of the Morrison County Record or ECM Publishers, Inc.
President Obama recently said he favored compensating teachers according to the academic accomplishments of their students. If the students did well, so would the teacher. If the students fail, the teacher would not receive due compensation.

Yet, he gives big business (AIG, banks, automobile manufacturers, etc.) big money to fail.

I agree with Obama about limiting compenstion for teachers who cannot seem to do their job. They shouldn’t be teaching.

He should do the same for the rest of the country. If a business fails due to poor practices, let it fail. It sure did no good giving them hundreds of millions (billions) of dollars. The taxpayers are out that money and the many of the businesses are still in trouble. They are laying off workers faster than they are spending the money.

Stop with the hand-outs.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty, state and local officials, were at Rocori High School in Cold Spring this morning (April 30) within hours of the state’s first case of swine flu being confirmed by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Pawlenty said there would “likely be more cases” of the flu in Minnesota, and urged Minnesotans to stay home if sick and practice sound personal care habits, such as thoroughly scrubbing their hands with soap and water.

Minnesota Health Commissioner Sanne Magnan opined that such simple measures as could make a huge difference in containing the outbreak.
About ten other samples from sick people have been submitted to the health department from the Cold Spring area, Magnan explained.
The governor noted that because of privacy issues, officials are limited in what they can say about exactly where the flu samples came from.

The state health department by next week hopes to have the proper guidelines in place so they can conduct their own swine flu testing without having to send samples to the CDC.

The health department suspected two days ago that he confirmed case of swine flu might indicated be positive.

The sample was flown to the CDC.

The confirmation from the CDC came early this morning, she said.

One task of the health department is to learn the habits of this particular “novel”  flu virus, Magnan explained. Because it is new, it may or may not behave like other flu viruses, she explained.

It’s not known whether this particular strain of swine flu will disappear with the close of the flu season.

Or whether, like the famous 1918 flu outbreak, the flu will first appear in a mild form before changing into a deadlier form, Magnan explained.
Only one death has been recorded in the United States from the flu, she noted. In terms of a severity, the outbreak so far is not measured as severe.

Local Cold Spring officials noted that area residents have remained calm.  Rocori Middle School — the confirmed swine flu case has been linked to the school — is remaining temporarily closed.

Rocori School Superintendent Scott Staska indicated that local people are afraid of taking phone calls concerning the flu outbreak out of fear it’s national media calling and trying to trick them into saying something.

The House today (April 29) on a voice vote amended its liquor bill to allow for all adults attending Gopher football games at the new TCF Stadium to drink alcoholic beverages.

As previously written in the bill, only those in selected stadium seating could consume beer, wine, whatever.

But Rep. Leon Lillie, DFL-North St. Paul, offered the amendment to open the entire stadium to drinking.

“I haven’t drank for 20 years — but I’m thinking about it,” Lillie joked on the House floor.

A Minneapolis DFL lawmaker, Rep. Phyllis Kahn, argued against the amendment, arguing it could result in inebriated fans walking through nearby residential areas after a football game.

She pointed to last weekend’s spring fest mini-riot as evidence of the danger of mixing high-spirited students with booze.

But Rep. Al Juhnke, DFL-Willmar, opined that the change in the legal drinking age was the real culprit behind the antics at the university.

“The kids drink before they get to the games,” he said.

If university officials don’t like the idea of opening the entire stadium to drinking, then “shut it off — the whole place,” Juhnke said.

University officials in discussing drinking policy at the new stadium expressed concern over underage drinking and also that the stadium lacked the proper plumbing to allow for beer sales everywhere, the bill author explained.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty and state health officials this morning (April 29) spoke of a heightened wariness by state officials regarding swine flu (H1N1) with a possible case of the flu temporarily closing two schools in Cold Spring.

Pawlenty spoke of taking “an abundance of caution.”
A sample of the Minnesota virus has been sent to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for verification — lab results are expected within a day.

According to the CDC website, some ten states so far have reported 91 cases of swine flu with one death reported.

The Minnesota flu victim is expected to fully recovery.

The CDC points out that the symptoms of swine flu are similar to those of the season flu: fever, coughing, loss of appetite, tiredness.

Both the CDC and state officials point out that seasonal flu killed some 36,000 people in the United States last year.

The CDC notes that two of the licensed anti-viral drugs have been shown effective in treating the current swine flu virus — these virus constantly change, they note.

As for the effectiveness of wearing masks or other breathing devices as a preventative step, the CDC opines that its effectiveness cannot be determined because of a lack of information.

Swine flu cannot be contracted by eating pork.

The CDC, the governor, points to basic hygenic practices, such as washing hands, keeping fingers out of eyes and mouth, a good precautions in avoiding contracting illness.

A big-lunged House Republican spoke for his caucus for an instant this afternoon (April 28) during a procedural firefight breaking out over the Democratic majority’s attempt to end debate on the transportation policy bill.

“Noooooooooo,” shouted a House Republican into their microphone during one exchange.

The dust up was touched off when the House Democratic majority attempted to invoke a rule ending debate with two Republicans amendments remaining at the desk on the policy bill.
“Who are you going to try to gag next?” House Minority Leader Marty Seifert, R-Marshall, snapped from the House floor.

Both sides quoted House rules and procedures at a rapid fire pace, Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Delano, at one point questioning the fitness of House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, DFL-Minneapolis, to be the presiding officer.

House Majority Leader Tony Sertich, DFL-Chisholm, on the floor said it was the first attempt to end debate this session and that the majority had let debate on other bills spill over the alloted time by minutes and even hours.

Passions abated when Kelliher allowed the two remaining House Republican amendments to be heard — something accomplished in few minutes — before the transportation policy bill was finally passed by the House.

“This was very significant,” Rep. Jim Abeler, R-Anoka, said of the minor explosion. “It was just a matter of when, not if,” he said of it occuring.
Abeler, a House Republican moderate, credited Kelliher for allowing the remaining Republicans amendments to be heard.

Had they just done that, they would have voted on the bill quicker, Abeler opined.

Still, Abeler was pleased enough with Kelliher to send her message.

“I don’t think they’ll try to do it anytime soon,” Abeler said of the majority again attempting to cut off debate.

He indicated it could provoke the same response from the House Republicans.

Kelliher, accompanied by Senate DFL leaders, met with Gov. Tim Pawlenty this afternoon for about an hour and came out of the Govenor’s Office talking about a productive meeting.

There are no agreements on overall budget targets yet, they indicated.

Still, Kelliher explained that House and Senate conference committees will be meeting and it’s expected that five smaller finance bill will be sent to the governor’s desk by middle to late next week.

Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller, DFL-Minneapolis, spoke of the governor needing to get his fiscal language straight regarding the budget.

For instance, the governor uses a K-12 funding shift in his budget — fine, Pogemiller explained.

Then he should call it a shift.

He shouldn’t call it a budget cut.

“He can’t call it both. It has to be one or the other,” said Pogemiller.

House and Senate today (April 27) during debate on health and human services finance bills took votes regarding state-funded abortion.

Rep. Patti Fritz, DFL-Faribault, and Sen. Claire Robling, R-Jordan, offered the amendments stipulating state funding of abortions be ended to the extent possible and not lose federal eligibility for programs.

The amendment in the House resulted in a tied vote — tied votes fail.

Local lawmakers voting in the affirmative: Abeler, Anderson, Buesgens, Davids, Dean, Dettmer, Dittrich, Doty, Eastlund, Emmer, Garofalo, Hackbarth, Holberg, Kiffmeyer, Lenczewski, Mack, McNamara, Peppin, Sanders, and Sterner.

Voting opposed: Gardner, Hansen, Hortman, Jackson, Kalin, Masin, Morgan, Newton, Obermueller, and Tillberry.

In the Senate, the amendment failed on a 26 to 39 vote.

Local lawmakers voting in the affirmative: Fobbe, Gerlach, Johnson, Jungbauer, Koch, Koering, Limmer, Pariseau, Robling, and Vandeveer.

Voting opposed: Betzold, Carlson, Chaudhary, Doll, Erickson Ropes, Foley, Metzen, Olseen, Rummel, Sieben, and Wiger.

The House today (April 24) passed its public safety and economic development finance bills, but not before a good deal of debate.

An attempt was made during the public safety floor session by Rep. Bud Nornes, R-Fergus Falls, to a pass a bill, Emily’s Law.

The law would lower the age that a teen could be taken into adult court from 14 to 13-years-old. Nornes explained it attempted to remedy a situation raised by a violent crime in Fergus Falls where a 13-year-old teen raped a toddler and killed her by throwing her against a wall.

Supporters argued the provision was narrowly tailored, just applicable to first-degree murder. But Democratic leaders disputed the amendment’s fitness for the public safety bill.

“I urge you to vote ‘No’ to the ruling,” said Peggy Scott, R-Andover, of supporting an appeal to throw out a ruling by the that Emily’s Law was nongermain.

But the ruling was upheld.

House Public Safety Finance Committee Chairman Michael Paymar, DFL-St. Paul, said the “(Minnesota) courts are very happy” with the public safety bill.
The bill, which uses some $38 million in federal stimulus dollars, directs the money to the state prison.

But it also directs that the system must cut its car fleet by 20 percent and make other cost savings.

The bill also raises court fees. For instance, the $270 marriage dissolution fee is increased to $330.

Items found in the economic development bill includes $250,000 for City of Hugo tornado relief, a life line to the Arts Board which Gov. Tim Pawlenty proposed to defund, half the cuts to the Minnesota Historical Society, about seven percent, than proposed by the governor, and $250,000 for the Combative Sports Board to became self-funding.

In a big city provision, the City of St. Paul is granted loan forgiveness for repayment of $32 million to the state for the St. Paul River Center in order to build an ice arena that the Minnesota Wild can use for hockey practice.

Kenyan native and Coon Rapids resident Geoffrey Kiprotich won the 10th edition of the Earth Day Half Marathon in St. Cloud on April 18. He won the 13.1 mile race that finished at Husky Stadium in one hour, eight minutes, 20 seconds. It was the second consecutive victory for the Dumar running club member.
Elite Meet includes the class of the area
Many of the area’s top track and field athletes will compete at the two-day Hamline Elite Meet in St. Paul Friday and Saturday.

The individual track events and some field events are scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. on Friday while the relays and remainder of the field events will conclude on Saturday.

Click here for a schedule of start times.

A few of those listed on the starting rosters:

Andover: Mason Albright, Boys 4×800/4×200/4×100/4×400, Derek Barrett, Jeff Hoernemann, Dave Budish, Eyo Ekpo, Thomas Anderson
Anoka: Boys 4×800/4×200/4×100, Jake Knoop, Pat Cotter, Jarrett Allen, Girls 4×400, Katelyn Fritz, Ian Moore, Chris Sluis, Matt Hastings
Blaine: Stephanie Jergensen, Tracie Gillund, Nicole Murphey
Spring Lake Park: Jesse Reemtsma, Keegan Sunderland

A number of area track-and-fieldsters are named on the state’s track honor roll. Click boys or girls for the official list, posted by the coaches’ association.

Former U.S. senator Norm Coleman said today (April 24) that the Minnesota Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the U.S. Senate contest on June 1 at 9 a.m.

“This has been a long process,” said Coleman, speaking to the ECM Editorial Board this morning.

Coleman said he was fairly confident the court would rule in his favor.

He also noted it’s possible the court could indeed rule in his favor, count ballots, and he could still lose the election.

A noticeably tan Gov. Tim Pawlenty met with reporters today (April 23) as House and Senate ground away on legislation on their respective floors.

Pawlenty spoke on variety of issues, finding nothing postive to say about the recent tax bills that House and Senate Democrats have put forth.

“This is a very troubling set of proposals,” he said.

Pawlenty depicted Democrats as scouring the Capitol, looking for things to raise taxes on. Pawlenty, as have other Republicans, pointed to a provision in the House tax bill eliminating a tax deduction on organ donation expenses as evidence of a kind of mania.

“Of course,” he answered when asked if he intended to veto a DFL tax increase bill when it reached his desk.

Still, Pawlenty did not portray the gulf between his state budget proposal and the Democrats’ as unbridgeable. Ask about the K-12 funding shift in the House K-12 finance bill — one bigger than the administration’s own — the governor deemed it unwise but not something to slam the door on.

Pawlenty sounded as though he was anything but wed to his proposal to bonding in order to fund for the state budget. He indicated that it wasn’t a sterling idea, and suggested that if Democrats had other ideas, bring them forth.

Indeed, Pawlenty suggest that the budget gulf between the sides was not only bridgeable but not as epic as some may want to believe.

In other matters, Pawlenty viewed the state and state employee unions reaching a contract agreement as something local government and its employees should follow — freeze public employee wages for the next two years, he urged.

Pawlenty viewed the removal of local proporty tax caps, something House and Senate tax bills would do, as a “terribly bad idea.”

As for charges by DFLers that he was unengaged in the legislative process, Pawlenty styled it typical April session chatter.

He has been spending considerable time meeting with House and Senate committee chair people, he said.

Democrats, such as Senate Tax Committee Chairman Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, have suggested that the jumping off point for negotations with the governor is when Pawlenty admits that he, too, is increasing state revenues.

Rather than making the utterance Democrats apparently wait for, Pawlenty said today the claim by DFLers that they were cutting the state budget deeper than he was were invalid.

The House after passing its higher ed and agriculture and veterans bills today (April 22) took up the environment and energy finance bill and worked into the evening.

As of 9:30 p.m., House Republicans were having limited success in amending bill.

Under the bill, the Minnesota Zoo takes a five percent cut, though dollars from the lottery fund are directed towards the zoo.

A bill from Rep. Tom Hackbarth, R-Cedar, is in the legislation. It requires nonresidents to pay a $20 fee to use state or grant-in-aid all-terrain vehicle trails.

There’s a yard waste provision that has starting in 2010 the metro area being regulated in the use of plastic bags used for yard waste. The idea is to move the metro to using compostable bags, as plastic bags can make compost unusable, it’s argued.

The bag legislation was carried in the House by Rep. Paul Gardner, DFL-Shoreview.
Legislation carried by Rep. Jeremy Kalin, DFL-North Branch, creating a framework for appropriating some $200 million in federal stimulus dollars for state energy projects is in the bill. The largest chunk of this money, some $132 million, is slated for the weatherization assistance program for weatherizing homes across the state.

The also includes legislation authored by Rep. Bob Dettmer, R-Forest Lake, concerning state park passes for vets.

Also another local lawmaker, Rep. Phil Sterner, DFL-Rosemount, has a provision pertaining to waste management reporting.

Rep. Rick Hansen, DFL-South St. Paul, has a provision pertaining to DNR gift cards.

The House is expected to take up the K-12 finance bill, among others, tomorrow.

It’s ability to inform is, in my opinion, diminished by its ability to overwhelm, intrude and waste time. But let’s face it, Twitter is all the rage.

I don’t care that you’re “making a spaghetti dinner for (you) and (your) boyfriend while wearing (your) favorite green T-shirt” and I REALLY don’t care that you’re “trying to pull (yourself) out of bed.”

If people truly cared about those things they’d call you, go out to dinner with you or meet up with you for a cup of coffee, not “follow” your “140 characters or less” when they should probably be working or paying attention in class.

But these days, that’s probably less true.

While I’m often the first to cite generational gaps as evidence that “our parents just don’t get it” or “you have to change with the times,” I just haven’t been able to buy into the latest products which harvest invasive qualities that grow exponentially with their respective popularity. Read more »

Sen. Debbie Johnson, R-Ham Lake, was excused yesterday (April 20) from the Senate starting in the afternoon. Johnson was one of two senators not voting during the public safety finance bill debate and the presiding Senate officer indicated that Johnson had not been excused.

A Senate staffer later said Johnson was sick, which was reported, after a phone call to her Senate office did not elicit a response.

Johnson today said she has asthma, had been sick and also excused. Johnson, who serves on the Senate Tax Committee, was not at the hearing this morning when the Senate tax bill was presented.

In other matters, the Senate economic development bill contains $350,000 in one-time funding to the City of Hugo for tornado relief. Gov. Tim Pawlenty did not include the appropriation in his budget.

The Senate provision allows the City of Hugo to reimburse Oneka Elementary School up to $7,800 for costs attributable to the recent tornado.

The Senate today (April 20) voted down two proposed gambling amendments to the state government finance bill.

Sen. Dick Day, R-Owatonna, a long-time advocate of state-sponsored gambling, offered the racino amendment that would have the state taking a cut of the action on expanded gambling at Canterbury Park in Shakopee.

“How can we pass up a billion dollars sitting there,” said Day of potential gambling revenue to the state. “There is nothing on the dark side of it,” he said.
Sen. Claire Robling, R-Jordan, argued that Day’s proposal did not constitute a state-run casino — the state wouldn’t be on the hook if the venture failed, she explained.
Additionally, Robling argued that a racino would invigorate the Minnesota horse industry, which now looks to the south for its future, she opined.

But Democrats argued that gambling dollars are unstable — a “nightmare” to budget with, opined Sen. Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing — and that the state should not look to gambling to solve its problems just as an individual should not do so.

Sen. David Tomassoni, DFL-Chisholm, offered another gambling amendment, one dealing with electronic pull-tabs, but both Tomassoni’s and Day’s amendments failed.

Local lawmakers voting for the racino amendment: Erickson Ropes, Johnson, Jungbauer, Koch, Koering, Metzen, Pariseau, and Robling.

Voting against: Betzold, Carlson, Chaudhary, Doll, Fobbe, Foley, Gerlach, Limmer, Olseen, Rummel, Sieben, Vandeveer, and Wiger.

During a Legislative Audit Commission hearing today (April 17) Minnesota Department of Agriculture Commissioner Gene Hugoson indicated that his department has not been auditing the financial reports that state ethanol producers have been obligated to submit in order to receive ethanol subsidy payments.

Hugoson told the commission that his department does not have the funding or staff to conduct audits. Beyond this, data privacy considerations require that the financial data be general — the records of the companies are not completely opened to scrutiny, he explained.

Legislative Audit Commission Chairwoman Ann Rest, DFL-New Hope, chided Hugoson for the state of affairs.

“It’s getting a taxpayer subsidy,” she said of the ethanol companies.

Taxpayers have right, Rest said.

Having administrations scrutinize such data should be as routine as brushing your teeth in the morning, Rest opined.

She also questioned why companies receiving state subsidies are not required to completely open their books.
The issue of the ethanol finanical reports spilled out onto the Senate floor where the agriculture and veterans bill was amended to require ethanol producers to continue to submit financial reports — they were no longer needed because the payment program was nearing its end, it was argued.
The legislative auditor used the financial records in researching a report on the state’s biofuel policies and programs.

It’s estimated that state’s subsidies to the ethanol industry since the start of the program more than a decade ago is about $329 million.