Bob Collins
If some of the statements from the United States in the wake of the Russian takeover of Crimea sound familiar, we need only go back to Russian statements in the aftermath of the U.S. attack on Iraq years ago. 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.
Politicians are arguing over whether property taxes in Minnesota have dropped. There’s only one way to determine the answer: your checkbook. Read more →
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources posted this chart today proving that, while severe, this isn’t really the worst winter ever.
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Interstate 35 northbound in Lakeville has been closed this afternoon because of a pile-up in the snowstorm.
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There’s really no reason for me to post this video other than the fact that it reminds us that somewhere in this world today, there’s a person running on a warm beach flapping his arms like a pelican. Equal time: Why would you ice fish? (Minnesota Public Radio News).
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that a school district in California was within its rights when it ordered kids who wore T-shirts adorned with the American flag to turn them inside out. Read more →
Did lawmakers follow through on their promises to give up their shutdown pay, Herb Bergson’s battle, the ice houses that don’t want to leave Minnesota lakes, when we make things all about us, and Minnesota: The state of Daft Punk. Read more →
Lynn Acker, 37, of Coon Rapids, has left Mayo Clinic, where she’s been treated for cancer, and she’s not going back because she wants to spend her remaining days with her three hockey-playing kids. Read more →
Yes, it’s been a bitterly cold winter no matter where you are in Minnesota. Here’s a map. Read more →
In Michigan, a teacher filmed a child stuck in a chair for 10 minutes while she waited for a “maintenance worker” to get him out. Read more →
Actor Seth Rogen came a congressional subcommittee to talk about his mother-in-law’s struggle with Alzheimer’s. Many lawmakers ignored him. Read more →
Can people discuss the suburbs and cities without fighting, the great Minnesota fish scandal unfolds, in defense of Marilyn Hagerty, it’s not called ‘the working people’s stadium,’ and a benefit for Joe in Mankato Read more →
Justice Antonin Scalia turned out to be right when he predicted in the court’s decision striking down the federal government’s Defense of Marriage Act that it would lead to judges striking down state bans on same-sex marriage. Read more →
What do other airliners do when Air Force One is in the area? They go around in circles over Eau Claire and Redwood Falls. Read more →
Swimming in the snow? Read more →