Bob Collins
Information through inaccuracy, the end of NPR’s ‘voice’, what’s in Minnesota’s trash, a hater’s guide to the World Series, and what’s in a chicken nugget? 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.
How the school shooter in Nevada got his gun, why unemployment is worse for older people, the whistleblower in the St. Paul Archdiocese scandals says she didn’t do enough, the scandalous SponeBob SquarePants headstone, and the walking dead that are the Minnesota Vikings.
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“From where I stand, teachers are the last line of defense against the tyranny of the 1 percent.” That line in a speech during the annual Education Minnesota conference last week put Megan Olivia Hall, the state’s teacher of the year, in the line of fire. Hall, a grade 7-12 science teacher at Open World Read more →
There’s something calming about smashing pumpkins.
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A high school team in Texas beat its Fort Worth-area opponent 91-0 under some Friday night lights. So a parent filed a bullying complaint. Read more →
The staff of NewsCut acknowledges liking a beer as much as the next blogger, but it’s also noticed that more and more economic development in the Twin Cities recently involves brewing more of it. And why not? The immigrants who settled here were master brewers from the old country, the community center in the upper Read more →
When regulations are a good idea, the end of Miami is near, the passing of the last Minnesota survivor of the USS Indianapolis, helping Dusan Travica, and what sustainability looks like. Read more →
The man who confronted the school shooter in Nevada, a vow to fix the health care website, New Jersey’s governor gives up the anti-same-sex-marriage fight, a Wisconsin judge orders the state to stop enforcing Gov. Walker’s collective bargaining restrictions, Gov. Dayton to have hip surgery, and the two Boy Scout leaders who tipped over an ancient rock formation lose their gigs. Read more →
Today’s viral video on the Intertubes is tonic for people who long for more parent involvement in the education of children. Read more →
The latest school shooting barely makes the news. Read more →
Jerabek’s Bakery suddenly closed both of its Saint Paul locations yesterday. Owners Russell Spangler, Ronda Vincent and John Wills broke the news on Facebook. Read more →
The federal government is paying for SWAT vehicles for small-town police departments. Do they really need them? Read more →
President Obama is speaking in the Rose Garden about the problems with the website that allows people to shop for health care under the new health care law. Read more →
The roots of an epidemic, the problem with dead bodies, learning to read at 54, job seekers on stage, and a home for orphan Konny. Read more →
When the baseball playoffs are down to the final few teams, a baseball game is almost as precious as life itself. Read more →