Bob Collins
Let there be a special place in hell for the people who kill a dog. 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.
Eau Claire has a tough decision to make. Should it dig into the community couch cushions for the $4 it’ll take to buy Soo Line #2719, currently at the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth. Read more →
Here are the stories, topics, and guests you’ll hear today on MPR News. Read more →
The anonymous op-ed, paints a truly horrifying picture of a dysfunctional, barely existent executive branch. Read more →
When a Pennsylvania couple, accused of skimming the GoFundMe money donated to help out a homeless man, made clear through their lawyer today that they’ll take the Fifth next week, let’s just say it didn’t help the image of Kate McClure, 28, and her boyfriend, Mark D’Amico, 39. Read more →
Folks are going to want to pick apart this ad, released today by Nike, because Colin Kaepernick is in it and that makes them see red. I see confirmation that maybe a kid who needed a ride in the rain is right. Read more →
Monday’s post about the Allstate Insurance survey showing that St. Paul and Minneapolis feature some of the worst drivers in the nation certainly struck a nerve with readers, who went above and beyond in efforts to explain why the survey was probably wrong Read more →
A letter in the Star Tribune today seems like an invitation to engage in one of our favorite spectator sports: watching and listening to theater- and concert-goers blow the whistle on their audience mates. It’s a problem even at “Hamilton.” Read more →
Perhaps you’ve seen the cute Facebook challenge to police departments across America to record a lip-syncing video. An endless string of mostly uninspiring efforts followed.
Read more →
If there are two non-southern states that are mirrors of each other, it’s Massachusetts and Minnesota. So yesterday’s primary election results in the Bay State carry a couple of important messages: the next generation of politicians isn’t waiting their turn, and voters are coming for members of Congress, no matter what party they’re in. Read more →
Here are the topics, stories, and guests you’ll hear today on MPR News. Read more →
Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter, Jamie, died in the Parkland, Fla., school massacre, wanted to make a point when the Senate confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh took a break.
Mission accomplished. Read more →
NBC has something going for it in defending an attack on its station licenses, however. The FCC historically couldn’t care less about ‘serving the public interest’, the mission under which the licenses are issued. Read more →
The puzzling online shaming of an actor because he has a job bagging groceries betrays the reality that too many people think hard work is beneath them. Read more →
A moose pays the price for our curiosity and desire to share. Read more →