Bob Collins
It seems Americans are occasionally challenged by simple civics. But the notion that voting marks an engaged country seems questionable Read more →
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.
It’s a good time to be a golfer, but for the fact there aren’t all that many golfers anymore.
Read more →
Fargo Forum editor Matt Von Pinnon is defending Friday’s front page, which featured the photos of North Dakota House members and their vote on a measure that would have extended discrimination protection to gays. Read more →
As usual, Steve Hartman nailed it again, telling the story of Carter and Jack Hanson, who literally fell in love with history. Read more →
Maura Crowell was given a five-year deal that starts at $140,000 for the 2015-16 season and jumps $7,500 each year before hitting $170,000 in 2019-2020. Both numbers are well below the $215,000 Miller was pulling in at the school that’s bleeding red ink.
Read more →
Emily Phillips made sure we’ll remember her even though most of us never knew her. She wrote her own obituary. Read more →
If a guy wants to wear women’s clothing, how does that impact you to the point where you beat him up? It’s just cloth. Read more →
You don’t often see a bill’s roll call on the front page of the morning paper, but the Fargo Forum went all out today following yesterday’s vote in North Dakota to deny protection to gays. Read more →
In Massachusetts, this billboard got people all stirred up this week.
Read more →
It’s always comforting to be reminded that people will drop what they’re doing to help an animal in distress. Read more →
Whether the Indiana ‘religious freedom’ law is an attempt to discriminate against gays has been, obviously, open to debate, but it’s worked out really well for a pizza shop owner who declared that it sure does give her the right to discriminate. Read more →
While we take things on Reddit with a grain of salt, we nonetheless are hoping this story of an angry doctor who objected to having to write a note to a patient’s boss is true. Read more →
There’s only one Howard Johnson’s restaurant left in the country now. And it doesn’t appear to be on solid footing. Read more →
Minnesota spends nearly $100 per capita on state-run gambling in which they have little chance of winning. Read more →
She’s been talked up as a Supreme Court nominee and potential attorney general. Now comes word Klobuchar’s writing her memoir, a requirement these days for a presidential run. Read more →