Bob CollinsIt’s bad enough that a mudslide inundates your home, sending you running for your life. But when you find out your home is gone and insurance won’t give you a dime, it’s an extra punch to the gut. Homeowners insurance generally doesn’t cover flooding nor “acts of God.” It happened to Randy Carlson, who has Read more →
MPR News Reflections and observations on the news
Archives for July 2014
There’s no bigger problem in all of aviation than runway incursions, in which a plane strays onto an active runway. In Barcelona this weekend, an Aerolineas Argentinas plane crossed a runway directly into the path of a landing Russian airliner. It could have been catastrophic. The captain of the jet on the ground likely missed Read more →
Joe Stiglingh, of West Palm Beach, sent his quadcopter and GoPro on a suicide mission in May. But he wanted to see what fireworks look like inside the fireworks that were being fired off in Miami. The equipment survived, he found out, and now his video is tearing up the Internet. It’s being portrayed as Read more →
Like most great performers, Stephen Dragert Gallivan is a shy guy. Put him in a seersucker suit, stick him on a tricycle, and give him ice cream to sell, however, and he’s Wally Wonka. Read more →
A New York student refused to participate in his commencement ceremony unless his twin brother, who has Down syndrome, was allowed to walk on stage with him. Read more →
What’s wrong with this document? An academic in New Jersey says a period after the phrase “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” appears in the official transcript of the Declaration of Independence, but not on the badly faded original that’s on display. Danielle Allen, a professor at the Institute for Advanced Study, says the Read more →
There’s good money in vitamins and strip joints. Just ask Leland Swanson of Fargo. The Fargo Forum reports that Swanson has recently dropped almost $8 million to buy an apartment at One57 in New York, the 90-story tower for billionaires on New York’s Central Park. Swanson is president of Swanson Health Products, which sells vitamins, Read more →
Louis Zamperini won’t get to be at the premier of the movie about his incredible life. He won’t get to fulfill his appointment as next year’s Rose Bowl parade grand marshall. He died this morning at age 97, more proof that life isn’t fair. He was so impressive as a track and field star at Read more →
No doubt there are plenty of people who couldn’t care any less that a really large airplane — the world’s largest ever built — took off into a beautiful sunset at Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport on Wednesday evening. But for thousands of others, the reaction to the four-day stay of the Antonov 225 was Read more →
It’s a pretty slow time of the year for news so the chances are good you’re going to hear or read a story about rising gas prices over the July 4th holiday. Why, look! Here’s one now! “Travelers to pay highest holiday gasoline prices in 6 years,” says Bring Me The News, citing a report Read more →
I’m sitting down as I write this. As with every other morning on NewsCut, I’ve been sitting in the same spot — my couch — for nearly six hours. According to studies, I’ve lost two hours off my life, just today. And I don’t care; I’ve enjoyed the sitting and as I enter the last Read more →
It’s a big win for retailers who were afraid that if the Supreme Court had upheld the Court of Appeals approval of a consumer fraud suit they would be required to reveal their profit margins. Read more →
The initial flood damage tally for last month’s water world in Minnesota has been pegged at $32 million. How does that compare to past disasters? Read more →
In Rochester, sitting with a sign that says you need money? That’s protected speech. But blocking someone’s path or touching someone to ask for money isn’t.
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The Minneapolis man, pulled to safety by the superhuman strength of a Woodbury man, got a chance to meet each other again.
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