News and Current Affairs Posts

Straw Poll: Who Shocked the World More?

I woke up today with an otherworldly, twilight zone-like feeling similar to the one I had in November of 1998, like where I had to check multiple news sources to see if I was understanding the election results correctly and then check back again to make sure. Shocked I tell you. Shocked.

My question to the PDD brain trust: What was more shocking Jesse’s win or Chip’s? And you can do a “where were you” personal memory or two if you want for color and flavor.

Love, Wild Goose

Public art install at the DECC (plus special bonus footage of Oberstar-Cravaack supporters leaving the scene!)

Duluth 2010 General Election Results

With all precincts reporting, here are the statewide numbers for Minnesota races related to Duluth and St. Louis County.

Join LakeVoice in our election Tweets

The LakeVoice editing team will be Tweeting the local Midterm election today. Feel free to follow us below or on Twitter and add your own perspectives by using the hashtag #DuluthVotes10 (that’s Twitter talk).

Google map update

I just noticed that a new satellite image of my neighborhood is on google maps. The area used to be fuzzy and green; it was hard to see the houses clearly. Now we can tell that two people were getting out of my minivan when the image of my house was taken. It was taken sometime this summer.

The photo posted here is the Hartley Nature Center parking lot, not far away. The screen-grab doesn’t look as clear as it does originally. Maybe your house has been updated, too?

Author Jay Weiner to speak tonight at The Bookstore at Fitgers

Author Jay Weiner will be in Duluth tonight for a talk and book signing for his new book This Is Not Florida: How Al Franken Won the Minnesota Senate Recount.

Thursday, October 28, 2010
5:00-8:00 pm
The Bookstore at Fitger’s
600 E. Superior St.
Duluth, MN 55802

Amidst storm, vandals break into East High School

DNT Story

Why was school called off yesterday anyway?

Hillside Laundry

Just got the news … Hillside Laundry is burning.

This week on the Playlist

A unique blend of gypsy-bluegrass; cross-country experiences with Roadtrip Nation; landscapes by Sue Pavlatos and a sneak peek at the College of Saint Scholastica’s production of Twelfth Night are in the spotlight on The PlayList, Thursday, Oct. 28 at 9pm on WDSE-WRPT’s PBS North (8.1/31.1). (The PlayList is repeated Fridays at midnight.)

Sample Ballot for Duluth, St. Louis County, Minnesota 2010 General Election

This sample ballot is for House District 7B, so, depending on where you live, it might include some stuff you won’t get to vote on (like State Rep for 7B or State Senator for 7) and might not include some stuff you will get to vote on (like State Rep for 7A or 6B, or the big race for District 1 County Commissioner). So heads up on that.

Sample Ballot for Superior, Douglas County, Wisconsin 2010 General Election

Here it is, a sample ballot so all the folks in Douglas County can practice at home.

Independence of Duluth News Tribune Political Endorsements

The recent DNT endorsement of Chip Cravaack, a conservative Republican who enjoys a lot of Tea Party support, made me want to tap the PDD community for information and discussion of the DNT endorsements over the years. The Fargo-based, private company Forum Communications became owner of the DNT in 2006. Since then, the DNT and the many other Forum newspapers overwhelmingly tend to endorse conservatives and Republicans as a bloc.

Monahan Brothers Make it to D.C.!!

Remember back in May!?!?! Well, 3,100 miles later, the old guys made it! This photo was taken at the Lincoln Memorial on Wednesday, where organizers from movetoamend.org unfurled a ginormous (20×100 ft.) preamble to the Constitution for people to sign. It was quite a display, both visually and emotionally (I’m pretty proud of my pops). The crowd was receptive and security was … cooperative. Pics from the action made it into USA Today and the Washington Post. Anyway, what a day! If this is inspiring at all, consider signing the motion at movetoamend.org. If you’re curious, here are the rest of the pics from my epic political activism adventure:

SmugMug: Monahan Brothers in DC 10-2010

Rowdy crowd at Oberstar/Cravaack forum

It was an emotional crowd at the Congressman Jim Oberstar and challenger Chip Cravaack forum on Tuesday, Oct. 19. A crowd filled the main level of the DECC Auditorium and didn’t heed the requests of forum moderators Dave Orman or Chuck Frederick to keep the event civil.

At the beginning Orman told the crowd that there had been a fist fight in the Skywalk (which this blogger thought was a joke, but apparently not). See more photos and the whole Hillsider blog post here.

Hillsider intern attends presentation about Domestic Violence Awareness Month

Our Hillsider intern, Sam Elmquist, attended a presentation about Domestic Violence. Here is his post.

Power and Control Wheel

October is nationally recognized as violence against woman awareness month. In honor of this I attended a presentation about physical violence against women, more particularly about a women’s shelter here in Duluth called Safe Haven. The shelter works with men, women, and children involved in abusive relationships. Safe Haven provides a safety net which allows women caught up in abusive relationships to come and stay at the shelter, hopefully allowing them the time they need in order to try and settle themselves as individuals. Specifically they give these women a place to stay and time to figure out what it is they want to do.

Various support groups help them realize the situation they are in and give them the chance to relate with other women who are going through similar circumstances. The shelter offers women looking for help up to thirty days to figure out what it is they want to do, this is not necessarily a time limit because the shelter is willing to make exceptions for women who need more time and are seriously committed to change.

Read the whole post here.

Do NOT follow this link or you will be banned from the site!