Bob Collins
Every now and again, a day comes along with a letter to the editor that you know is going to set the world ablaze.
Today is that day.
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MPR News Reflections and observations on the news
By Bob Collins
Bob Collins retired from Minnesota Public Radio in 2019 after 12 years of writing NewsCut and pointing out to complainants that posts weren’t news stories. A son of Massachusetts, he was a news editor 1992-1998, created the MPR News regional website in 1999, invented the popular Select A Candidate, started several blogs, and every day lamented that his Minnesota Fantasy Legislature project never caught on.
No matter how much we may love winter, this is the time of the year where even a moderate dumping of snow can send us over the edge.
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Norm Ornstein, a Minnesota native, writes in the New York Times today about his son, ill served by a mental health system that does not serve those who are too ill to know that they need help. Read more →
Here are the topics and guests you’ll hear today on MPR News. Read more →
Just in the time between when Forbes released its annual ranking of billionaires today, and lunch time, Glen Taylor’s worth increased by another $100 million, according to Forbes. And he’s not even close to being the richest man in Minnesota. Read more →
To counterbalance the post earlier of a dead dog and the guy who shot it, we give you the men and women of the North Reading (Mass., of course) police and fire departments, who took charge when a woman brought her choking Saint Bernard puppy into the station. Read more →
A panic attack during a November game changed the way the ex-Timberwolves player thinks about mental health. Read more →
The civilized world will put up with a lot of incidents of savagery. But killing a dog isn’t one of them.
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The world’s oldest message-in-a-bottle has been found in Australia and there are two fascinating elements to the story. One is that the world’s oldest message in a bottle has been found in Australia. The other is the work that was required to determine that the world’s oldest message in a bottle has been found in Australia. Read more →
It’s a fool who suggests s(he) has seen the depths of the political catastrophe that is the United States right now, but former Trump campaign aide Sam Nunberg’s round of appearances on TV last night is going to be hard to beat. Read more →
Here are the topics and guests you’ll hear today on MPR News. Read more →
The Lexington became the first aircraft carrier the U.S. ever lost at sea. When she went down in the Battle of the Coral Sea, that was the last anyone saw of Lady Lex. Until Sunday. Read more →
The New York Times says new data shows that having a daughter makes it less likely a couple will try to have more children. Why? Once you have a daughter, why mess up a good thing with a son? Read more →
We have no choice but to leave it to women to confirm whether a report from WalletHub is correct: Minnesota is the best state for women. That’s either an indication of how great Minnesota is or how poor 49 other states are. We cannot comment; we’re men. What do we know about what it’s like to be a woman anywhere? Read more →
A haul of unsecured weapons was found inside the home of a boy with autism who allegedly made a threat at a Vadnais Heights school. His grandfather says they were only family heirlooms. Read more →