July 2006

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Heal Thyself

Filed under: Health Care

Price of health insurance outpaces the cost of care

It seems like every time you turn around there's another headline announcing that they're drowning in money at UnitedHeath's Minnetonka headquarters. The healthcare giant is the nation's second-largest, with some 65 million subscribers and annual sales topping $45 billion--a 22 percent increase over last year. Juicy numbers, to be sure, but lately Wall Street is sounding a little concerned that the party may be starting to wane.

The Wall Street Journal today carries a terrific analysis of the health insurance industry's paradoxically pale prospects:

Last year, the top seven U.S. health insurers earned a combined $10 billion -- nearly triple their profits of five years earlier. The windfall came as insurers raised their prices faster than underlying health costs.

Now the good times may be rolling to a halt. Health insurance has become so expensive that many smaller employers are dumping insurance altogether. If insurers don't do something, they may find their business shriveling. Yet if they restrain price increases, or appear to, they get hammered by Wall Street.

The story quotes a consultant who calls aggressive pricing a "long walk off a short pier," noting that no one stays in business long if their prices erode their customer base. Insurers have gotten away with raising prices even as costs go down, the consultant adds, because most employers don't realize healthcare inflation is decelerating. And why would they? UnitedHealth has entire divisions peddling health-savings accounts and other insurance "products" that purport to save money for employers by creating incentives for workers to seek less care.

If you wondered where the booty at the heart of the stock-options probes underway came from, there it is. And while the booty will remain considerable, particularly in the eyes of the wage-slaves who can no longer afford health insurance, all signs are that it's poised to dwindle. At the beginning of the year, for instance, CEO Bill McGuire's options were worth a cool $1.6 billion. UnitedHealth stock was trading at its 52-week high at the time: 64.61. It's trading at 47.83 right now, quite possibly in part because the company recently reported it expects to add only 850,000 new members this year instead of the 1 million to 1.2 million originally forecast.

Operating margins used to hover around four or five percent in a good year, but now average eight percent at a large insurer, the Journal reports. And if you think this means there's room for a price war, think again: "WellPoint's chief financial officer says that if the company's profit margin fell by just 0.2 percentage point, 'We'd have to gain 2 million lives to make it up. It doesn't take much analysis to ask, 'From where?'"

Posted by Beth Hawkins at July 31, 2006 2:59 PM | Comments (0)

 

Minnesota by the numbers: Top 20 polluters

Filed under: Environment

So you want to know what companies are releasing the most pollutants into Minnesota's air and water? The ugly answers can be found in the recently released Right-to-Know Chemical Information Report, which is posted on the Minnesota Department of Public Safety website. Among other things, the report lists the top 20 pollution producing facilities in the state. As usual, Xcel Energy's coal-burning power plant in Becker occupies the top spot; according to the report, the Sherco plant emitted more than seven million pounds of pollutants during the 2004 calender year. That's more than three times as much as the number two polluter, Minnesota Power's Boswell Energy Center in Cohasset. The full report is larded with useful tables and other data. Below are the Dirty 20, ranked top to bottom.

Sherco Plant (Xcel Energy), Becker
Boswell Energy Center (Minnesota Power), Cohasset
Flint Hills Resources, Inver Grove Heights
3M Cottage Grove Center, Cottage Grove
Sappi Cloquet LLC, Cloquet
A.S. King Generating Plant (Xcel Energy), Bayport
Boise White Paper, LLC, International Falls
CHS Oilseed Processing, Mankato
MN Soybean Processors, Brewster
Riverside Plant (Xcel), Minneapolis
Rochester Public Utilities, Rochester
Larson Glastron Boats, Little Falls
Twin Cities Assembly Plant (Ford), St. Paul
Crown Food Packaging, Owatonna
Central Bi-Products, Redwood Falls
US Marine/Bayliner, Pipestone
ADM Co., Mankato
Gopher Resource Corp., Eagan
Taconite Harbor Energy, Schroeder
3M, Hutchinson

Posted by Mike Mosedale at July 31, 2006 2:02 PM | Comments (0)

 

7/31 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS

Steve Monaco has this week's Monday Movie Quiz at Couch Pundit.

THESE DAYS

The U.S. Army recently discharged a highly regarded Arabic linguist, Sergeant Bleu Copas, who was the target of an anonymous email "outing" campaign, bringing the total number of Arabic language specialists dismissed under the gay ban to at least 55.

Coal-burning utilities are passing the hat for one of the few remaining scientists, Pat Michaels, Virginia's state climatologist, skeptical of the global warming harm caused by industries that burn fossil fuels. [via Digg]

The government's crackdown on media indecency could prevent World War II veterans from sharing their stories in an upcoming TV documentary series by Ken Burns, Paula Kerger of the Public Broadcasting Service said.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Oren Goldberg left his job as the listings coordinator for City Pages to trek through Central America. Read about his being robbed at gunpoint and other adventures at The OG Diaries.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

A cake made out of meat [via b3ta]

Polish posters of American movies

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I have never heard the song 'Cousin Dupree' and I don't even know who this gentleman, Mr. Steely Dan, is. I hope this helps to clear things up and I can get back to concentrating on my new movie, 'HEY 19.'"

-- "You, Me & Dupree" star Owen Wilson, responding to Steely Dan's accusation that the film plot was lifted from their 2001 Grammy-winning song "Cousin Dupree"

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 31, 2006 6:22 AM | Comments (0)

 

Last dance at Hooters

Filed under: Minneapolis

"YMCA" has probably been performed for the last time at the new Hooters in downtown Minneapolis. The restaurant, which opened July 5 in Block E, has been informed by the city that such performances are not permitted under its liquor license.

The problem: Hooters has a Class E liquor license. The only entertainment permitted with such a license is recorded music, such as from a jukebox. In order to have dance performances, according to Ricardo Cervantes, the city's deputy director of licenses and consumer services, Hooters would have to obtain a Class A or B license. "If they wanted to upgrade they certainly can," he notes.

Jenna Havlish, a manager at the downtown restaurant, renowned for its scantily-clad wait staff, says that they were caught off guard by the notice from the city. "No other Hooters has ever bumped into this problem," she says. "But if the city tells us to do this we're gong to abide."

Cervantes says that a city employee filed a complaint with his office after witnessing a performance on July 14, during the Aquatennial festivities. "What I understand is that there was a group of waitresses or hostesses that were dancing on the balcony," he says. "Perhaps it was as much advertising as it was performance."

Havlish notes that both staff and customers are disappointed that dancing has been outlawed. "We just happen to have a group of girls who love to do it and it keeps them going," she says. "It brings up morale."

Posted by Paul Demko at July 28, 2006 10:41 AM | Comments (21)

 

7/28 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

THESE DAYS

Yesterday was "Faith Day" at Atlanta's Turner Field, where fans were invited to stay following the Braves-Marlins game to hear Braves star pitcher John Smoltz share how his life changed by believing in Christ.

Astronomers at the University of Tasmania have found that the solar system's smallest planet, Pluto, is not getting colder as first thought and it probably does not have rings.

War protester Cindy Sheehan has purchased a 5-acre plot in the president's hometown of Crawford, Texas, with some of the insurance money she received after her son was killed in Iraq.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

The Rochester newspaper has an impressive collection of news and sports blogs, as well as sites from around the region, at Post-Bulletin Blogs.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Batman and Robin meet Jay and Silent Bob: Justice Rats

Ben Cohen from Ben & Jerry's explains the U.S. defense budget on the Tavis Smiley show using cookies.

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I'm happy that Ullrich and Basso weren't allowed in... [Floyd Landis] was one of my favorites before the race. He's clean and what's more, he's a great guy."

-- Three-time Tour de France winner Greg LeMond, July 24, admonishing cyclists implicated in a pre-Tour drug scandal, and congratulating this year's winner

"Tour de France winner Floyd Landis has been suspended by his professional cycling team. The team said it has been notified that he tested positive for high levels of testosterone during the race."

-- Associated Press, July 27

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 28, 2006 6:03 AM | Comments (0)

 

Overheard: Joe Schmit's final wisecrack

Filed under: Overheard

Wednesday, 6:58 p.m., the Channel 5 studios somewhere in the Hubbard Empire complex on University Avenue, where Minneapolis meets St. Paul.

Longtime KSTP-TV sports guy and recent news anchor Joe Schmit is bidding an emotional adieu, leaving his job of 21 years for a gig with Petters Media & Marketing Group.

It's a surprisingly classy and heartfelt goodbye, and Schmit good-naturedly notes that tomorrow is the first day in two decades he won't have to wear make up.

But just as things start to get misty with TV-pals-'til-the-end Dave Dahl and Cyndy Brucato, and there are some uncomfortable displays of arm-patting, Schmit lets loose with a sinister one liner. "I'll just miss our little chat every day about the ratings," he says with a wry chuckle. "That's what I'm gonna miss."

Posted by G.R. Anderson Jr. at July 27, 2006 6:31 PM | Comments (0)

 

Put down that dilly bar and step away from the ice cream truck

Filed under: Crime

A new menace is loose on the streets of Minneapolis: unlicensed ice cream trucks. Earlier this week city license inspector Richard Tuffs sent out an email to CCP/SAFE officers seeking help with the issue.

"I am having problems with unlicensed ice cream trucks around the city," he wrote. "Could you send a message out on your email sites to all the block club leaders asking them to do the following. If they see an ice cream truck in the neighborhood to check and see if they have a valid green 2007 Minneapolis Mobile Food Vendor sticker posted on the side of the vehicle."

Mobile Food Vendors, as ice-cream trucks are classfied in Minneapolis, are required to register with the city, pass an inspection, and pay an annual $104 fee. (To see what a properly licensed truck looks like click on the photo at left.)

Ricardo Cervantes, the city's deputy director of licenses and consumer services, says that un-licensed trucks were an issue last summer as well. Two vendors were issued warnings to get their vehicles up to code. "We're trying to size us this issue," says Cervantes. "We know it exists. We want to make sure that these guys are safe, that they don't pose any hazard to our consuming public."

Cervantes says that the plea for public assistance in identifying renegade ice cream trucks has already yielded results. "Since this email has gone out we're getting emails and information from neighborhood groups," he says. "There was one vehicle in particular that we've gotten two complaints about."

Generally first-time ice-cream truck scofflaws are merely issued a warning. But if they continue to flaunt the licensing requirements the consequences will become more severe. "If we find somebody out there repeating this behavior, violating the law, we may impound the vehicle," says Cervantes.

Posted by Paul Demko at July 27, 2006 4:29 PM | Comments (2)

 

The guy behind the "Hitler Ad"

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

WCCO political reporter Pat Kessler nicely dissected Senate hopeful Mark Kennedy's inaugural campaign ad, which makes the somewhat laughable claim that Kennedy--among the most reliable pro-Administration votes in Congress--is "not much of a party guy." But Kessler's best catch in the piece is shining the spotlight on Kennedy's media consultant, Scott Howell.

Despite the soft-focus approach of the Kennedy ad, Howell is best known in political circles for a willingness to "go negative" with a nearly unmatched gusto. He had a hand in the Swift Boat campaign and was linked to a television spot in the 2002 Georgia senate race which portrayed Max Cleland as soft on defense. The ad achieved this by the most unseemly means--alternating a picture of Cleland, who lost both his legs in the Vietnam War, with images of Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein.

Howell has disavowed a role in that particular commercial. But he was the acknowledged force behind the notorious "Hitler ad" from last year's Virginia gubernatorial race. In the spot, the narrator stated that "[Democratic candidate] Tim Kaine says Adolph Hitler doesn't qualify for the death penalty."

Voter disgust over the Hitler ad was cited as a factor in Kaine's victory. Despite that episode of apparent over-reaching, Howell is still feared by Democrats who cite his enviable track record of electoral successes, which includes the 2002 campaign of Norm Coleman.

Posted by Mike Mosedale at July 27, 2006 11:33 AM | Comments (5)

 

No party for Reichgott Junge

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

5th District Congressional candidate Ember Reichgott Junge has backed down in her fight with the DFL over use of the party's moniker. On July 10, DFL attorney Alan Weinblatt sent her campaign a letter demanding that the moniker be stripped from all "billboards, websites, and other campaign materials, forthwith." State Rep. Keith Ellison is the DFL-endorsed candidate, but faces three serious challengers in the September primary.

The former state senator initially refused (see "Party Games"). But in a press release put out by the campaign this morning Reichgott-Junge agreed to make the changes. "Frankly, I was surprised at the strident tone of the letter," Reichgott Junge says in the release. "The initials DFL had been prominently displayed on our campaign website since April, and we were never notified by the party or anyone else that there was a problem."

For the record here are the changes, as detailed in the press release, that are being implemented:

July 13: website (www.emberforcongress.com) changed to:

"DFL Primary--Fifth District"

July 17: E-blasts changed to: "DFL Primary September 12"

July 26: Two billboards changed to "DFL Member" at the following locations:

328-3rd Street, Minneapolis

5415 W. Broadway, Crystal

By July 28: Two billboards changed to "DFL Member" and moved to the following new locations:

1417 E. Lake Street, Minneapolis

4300 Nicollet, Minneapolis

By July 31, there will be no billboards that are unchanged.

Posted by Paul Demko at July 27, 2006 11:04 AM | Comments (1)

 

7/27 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

THESE DAYS

Despite several years of official and press reports to the contrary, a new Harris poll finds that half of adult Americans still believe that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction when the United States invaded the country in 2003.

Orlando officials have banned charitable groups from feeding homeless people in parks downtown, arguing that transients who gather for weekly meals create safety and sanitary problems for businesses.

A study carried out by Oxford University and The University of Toronto looked at more than 60,000 deaths, of men aged between 35 and 46, in the U.S., Canada and Poland, and found that more than half the difference in the risk of death of wealthy or educated men, and those who have had less education, can be attributed to smoking.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

The prodigal Norwegian has returned! Certified curmudgeon (he'll hate that) Mark Gisleson has emerged from his Ford Bell folly to restart Norwegianity.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

What happens when owls get scared

Find out what kind of guy would chug a whole bottle of maple syrup

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"He clearly has some issues that need to be dealt with, and I will encourage him to seek the necessary help."

-- Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN), condemning his 81-year-old father after he was cited for lewd conduct and indecent exposure for allegedly having sex in a vehicle with a 38-year-old woman

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 27, 2006 6:40 AM | Comments (1)

 

Battle of the Bulge Indeed

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

Norm Coleman's 81-Year-Old Dad Gets Some

The Star Tribune this afternoon reported that Norm Sr., a decorated veteran, was busted for lewd conduct and indecent exposure for allegedly having sex with a 38-year-old in a car outside a pizza parlor. You can read the story here.

An earlier version of the article contained a last sentence that's not posted now: "Police said the woman cited, Patrizia M. Schrag of St. Paul, has no history of prostitution."

We have to wonder: Did they ask police the same question about Norm Sr.?

Posted by Beth Hawkins at July 26, 2006 4:40 PM | Comments (12)

 

Yates is Insane

Filed under: Crime

And so is the criminal justice system

A Texas jury today found Andrea Yates not guilty by reason of insanity in her second trial for the 2001 drowning of her five young children. The Washington Post has a short analysis by a legal expert offering context.

There is no victory here. Yates will be sent to a heavily-guarded mental health facility, where she will probably spend the rest of her life. From time to time she will be evaluated. And, if past is prologue, every time her medicine allows her to regain a little bit of sanity she will realize what she did to her beloved children and then descend again back into some sort of madness. So this story started as a tragedy and continues as a tragedy even with though the defense finally won the day.

Check out the polarized comments at the bottom of the post and then consider this story from today's St. Paul Pioneer Press or this story from City Pages archives.

Posted by Beth Hawkins at July 26, 2006 2:35 PM | Comments (0)

 

Jelly Roll Blues

Filed under: Minneapolis

Black Day for Local Foodies
by Dara Moskowitz

After 16 years selling Danish baked goods that made pastry lovers weep with joy, Blackey's Bakery in northeast Minneapolis is closing on Saturday--and now we're weeping without joy. Oh, that three pound loaf of rügbröd! (Black pumpernickel, with or without seeds.) Oh, that floatingly light pastry called kringle, which dissolved on the tongue in buttery waves. Oh those meltingly tender almond horns! Gone! Forever! We feel faint.

What, you've never been to Blackey's, and so you're not aching? Well guess what, Convention Grill burger fans, Annie's Parlor burger fans, and Monte Carlo burger fans: you'll be losing the sweet, fluffy, perfect buns that made your burgers so unique.

I talked to Svea Ernst, co-owner of the bakery, about this disaster. "Our son is going back to Denmark, and we cannot go on without him," she told me. "A lot of our business is delivery, and we cannot get reliable drivers. Our son is the one who has been picking up the pieces all the time, and without him we cannot run the business. We have been trying to sell the bakery for a long time but nobody wants it. Or they want it, and they don't have the money. It was a very difficult decision to make, as we have been here almost 16 years, but it is what we have to do."

Aaaaah!!!! I'm rending my garments right now.

Until I learned that there is some hope. Most of Blackey's Danish line will be moving to Denny's 5th Ave. Bakery in Bloomington (7840 5th Ave. S.; 952.881.6573)--and especially the Danish treats will. Whether Denny's Bakery will make the Blackey's rolls that launched a million burgers is up in the air, and whether the clients will follow is too. But where there's hope, there's at least hope.

Not for Nordeasters though. Saturday is Blackey's last day, but smart shoppers will get in there sooner. "Right now it seems like people are stockinig up and filling their freezers," Ernst told me. My only hope is that I can make it up there before this story posts.

Posted by Beth Hawkins at July 26, 2006 2:12 PM | Comments (3)

 

Open Thread: 5th District Candidates on Israel

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

There have now been three significant debates over the past 10 days among the 5th District candidates for Congress, and I'll be chiming in with my own scorecard sometime in the next few days. But listening to tonight's debate at Temple Israel, I was struck by the unwillingness of any of the four candidates to even acknowledge the possibility that the Israeli government has damaged its own long-term security by laying waste to Lebanon this month, let alone criticize an action that even within Israel is a contentious topic of debate.

Granted, the two questions related to the Israeli offensive were couched in a manner designed to elicit support; and Keith Ellison's old Nation of Islam baggage certainly played a part in his tepid and nervous response--which, with its emphasis on the need for peaceful solutions, was the closest anyone came to sheathing the sabers. But the rhetoric on the Israeli operations certainly presented a stark juxtaposition with the staunch anti-war fervor regarding U.S. troops in Iraq.

Anybody else who was there struck by this? Discuss...

Posted by Britt Robson at July 26, 2006 1:13 AM | Comments (38)

 

7/26 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

THESE DAYS

Melanie Martinez, the host of PBS's kiddie program The Good Night Show, has been fired after it was revealed that she filmed PSA parodies hailing the health benefits of masturbation and anal sex when she was in her twenties.

In recent years, police have started to use powerful infrared cameras to read license plates and catch carjackers and ticket scofflaws. But the technology will soon migrate into the private sector, and morph into a tool for tracking individual motorists's movements. [via Slashdot]

The ashes of actor James Doohan, "Scotty" from Star Trek, are scheduled to be launched into space (along with astronaut Gordon Cooper's ashes) this October, per his final wish.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Anna Blume vows to floss daily, go to Worldcon, knit a sweater, and read a book a month. Follow her progress here.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Vintage print ads for drugs, from when injectable whole opium was over-the-counter.

Beavis and Butthead in Se7en

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I can catch poop in my hand and just be like OK."

-- Academy Award winner Julia Roberts, on child-rearing [via Golden Fiddle]

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 26, 2006 12:42 AM | Comments (2)

 

Crime blotter: all talk

Filed under: Crime

On July 2, just before 9 p.m., Lakeville police received a 911 call from Dennis Dale James. He informed the dispatcher that he was en route to his ex-wife's house and that he intended to kill her. According to a criminal complaint filed today in Dakota County District Court, James claimed to be armed with Glock handguns, hand grenades and a shotgun. He also stated that he would kill the police dispatcher and any officers that attempted to confront him. At this point the call was turned over to Sgt. John Kornmann. James told him that he had been drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana all day, and that he was bi-polar. Then his cell phone cut off.

Lakeville officers responded to several possible residences for James. At an apartment on 210th Street, a boy informed them that James had just left the building. Officers tracked him to another nearby residence and placed him under arrest. No firearms, explosives or ammunition were found in his possession. James was charged with making terroristic threats. The 28-year-old was convicted of a similar charge in January, 2004.

Posted by Paul Demko at July 25, 2006 3:41 PM | Comments (0)

 

Follow-up: The true cost of the new Lowry Corridor

Filed under: Minneapolis

Hennepin County's hidden fees on property acquisition

One of the questions that remained unanswered in last week's story about the Hennepin County rehab of Lowry Avenue on the north side of Minneapolis was a total pricetag on property acquisition. Nowhere in a 122-page report about the project is there any kind of cost estimate.

One county engineer acknowledged that the road construction for each of two phases (from I-94 to Girard Avenue North, then Girard to Theo Wirth Parkway) will cost some $6 million.

But the county has been engaging in buyouts, relocations, and eminent domain for some 29 parcels along the Lowry Avenue corridor. What's the county spending on that? Last week, no one seemed to know.

"The phase one acquisition costs are not complete, but what we've spent so far is around $6.7 million, and that number includes relocation, et cetera," clarifies Hennepin Coutny Works staffer Carol Lezotte in a voicemail to Blotter. "We still have two condemnation cases out there, so we anticipate that number will go higher."

In other words, in addition to the $12 million for both phases of the road construction, snatching up property for the entire project will cost as much as another $12 million, if phase one is any indication.

One owner who did not go quietly was Keith Reitman, who has owned a mixed-use property on Lowry and Lyndale that he has upgraded over the last 18 months. To hear Reitman tell it, the county did a "quick-take" on his property, essentially offering him $550,000 for a parcel and building he claims is now worth $1 million, "give or take a nickel."

"My response was 'Fuck you,'" Reitman says. He is pursuing a lawsuit against the county, with a hearing scheduled for sometime next month.

Posted by G.R. Anderson Jr. at July 25, 2006 2:56 PM | Comments (0)

 

7/25 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

THESE DAYS

Tourists to the International Space Station now have the option of adding a 90-minute spacewalk to their $20 million trips for an extra $15 million.

Pressured by police officials, a New Zealand policewoman is giving up her night job as a prostitute.

The American Bar Association said Sunday that President Bush was flouting the Constitution and undermining the rule of law by claiming the power to disregard selected provisions of bills that he signed.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Educator William Ostrem, a Princeton and U of M alum, muses on current events from Northfield at Northern Letter.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

The world has fallen into anarchy following an infertility defect in the population that will lead to the extinction of humankind. Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, and Michael Caine star in Alfonso Cuarón's Children of Men.

AskMen.com's Top 10 Worst Referee Calls [via Digg]

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I plan to get all 'Wrath of Khan' on it."

-- Superman director Bryan Singer, discussing a proposed summer 2009 sequel that would ignite the middling franchise

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 25, 2006 6:14 AM | Comments (0)

 

7/24 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS

Steve Monaco has this week's Monday Movie Quiz at Couch Pundit.

THESE DAYS

A growing number of Minuteman Civil Defense Corps leaders and volunteers are questioning the whereabouts of hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of dollars in donations collected in the past 15 months, challenging the organization's leadership over financial accountability.

Walter Becker and Donald Fagen of Steely Dan have posted an open letter to actor Luke Wilson on their website, encouraging him to convince his brother, Owen, to apologize for his involvement in the movie You, Me & Dupree, the premise of which they feel was swiped from their 2001 song "Cousin Dupree."

An Oregon man has filed a lawsuit against Michael Jordan and Nike founder Phil Knight for $832 million, saying he is tired of being mistaken for the Chicago Bulls legend. Looks like a suit against Montel Williams could also be in the works.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Girl Detective longs for a special ring of hell set aside for spammers, telephone solicitors, and junk mail senders. Follow GD's efforts in her year-long movie and book challenges and in baby-rearing at her eponymous blog.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Photo galleries of the Cavity Lake wildfires in the Boundary Waters

Chad Vader, Day Shift Manager

All your snakes (on a plane) are belong to us [via Fazed]

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I'd always thought marrying a blood relative as close as a cousin was immoral, and certainly risky if you plan to have kids. Conventional wisdom says only primitive people who live in isolated places marry cousins. It leads to stupid children. But that's a myth. It's the sort of myth that leads to stupid laws. Half the states in America have banned cousin marriage, but there's no good reason for it. You can marry your cousin and have perfectly intelligent kids."

-- Townhall.com contributor and ABC News commentator John Stossel, confronting one of the most divisive cultural issues of our time

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 24, 2006 6:38 AM | Comments (0)

 

Do the young folk really hate Amy Klobuchar?

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

In her role as Hennepin County attorney, Amy Klobuchar has probably alienated a good number of youthful offenders. That's the fate of any prosecutor. But if you believe the results of the Star Tribune's latest Minnesota Poll, Klobuchar's problems with the younger demographic run much deeper than that. According to the survey, the DFL-endorsed candidate to replace retiring U.S. Senator Mark Dayton currently enjoys an overall 19-point lead over Republican Congressman Mark Kennedy and is cleaning his clock in virtually every demo--with one strange exception: likely voters between the ages of 18 and 24. In this cohort, the Strib found Kennedy leads Klobuchar by a whopping 47 percentage points.

Can it be so? Not likely, says Lawrence Jacobs, a pollster and professor of political science at the University of Minnesota. As Jacobs sees it, those kids-love-Kennedy-and-hate-Klobuchar numbers are probably an anomaly. "When you look at a model that tries to screen out folks who are not going to be voting, you can end up with pretty small groups in different age groups," Jacobs explains. "They [the pollsters] were probably talking to 20 to 30 people and sometimes with such small groups you get really weird results. I wouldn't read anything into it."

This being the political season, of course, a lot of people read a lot into all the polls. In the conservatives blogosphere, the pundits didn't bother musing on Kennedy's supposed popularity with the the kids. But they were quick to pronounce the finding of a 19-point gap as further evidence of the "Red Star's" liberal bias and general incompetence. At Powerline, the always excitable John Hinderaker fumed that the Minnesota Poll was like a golfer with a bad slice, "consistently wrong in the same direction--it favors Democrats." Over at Captains Quarters, the shouting was considerably more vehement: "The Star Tribune showcases its usual hackery in these results. No one who lives here is fooled by the MinnPoll any longer." Even syndicated columnist and die-hard Republican Robert Novak got into the act, declaring that the results were "not credible."

In Jacobs' view, debate about polls is healthy but the unrelenting bashing of the Minnesota Poll is more than a little unfair. He notes that Robert Daves, who runs the poll, is well regarded by his colleagues (in fact, he is the president of the American Association of Public Opinion Research) and is known for using well tested and fairly sophisticated techniques. Bottom line: "Klobuchar is clearly ahead and she's ahead by double digits. Is she ahead by 19 points? I don't know. But Kennedy is definitely behind."

That said, Jacobs isn't surprised by the chorus of complaints that followed the release of the poll. "Partisans on the left and the right are now going after pollsters whenever their candidates are behind. It's a standard part of the consultants handbook to neutralize the impact of a harmful poll."

That strategy is increasingly drawing the attentions of pollsters like Daves, who, it so happens, recently co-authored an article on the subject for the Public Opinion Quarterly. Its title? Pollsters Under Attack: 2004 Election Incivility and Its Consequences.

Posted by Mike Mosedale at July 21, 2006 11:02 AM | Comments (2)

 

7/21 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

THESE DAYS

A federal Department of Homeland Security agent passed along information about student protests against military recruiters at UC Berkeley and UC Santa Cruz, landing the demonstrations in a database tracking foreign terrorism.

A mass of jellyfish forced a Japanese nuclear power plant to slow part of its output this week after the slimy creatures blocked up the plant's seawater cooling system.

An online game that poked fun at the FBI's hunt for Jimmy Hoffa's remains was shut down after Florida-based Spirit Airlines received dozens of complaints from customers who felt the flight promotion was distasteful.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Mike Schneider is currently in Las Vegas participating in a World Series of Poker tournament. Monitor his progress at Card Shark.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Gummi Bears depicting the 7 Deadly Sins [via Boing Boing]

Using dialogue from other James Earl Jones movies, the folks at AkJak bring us the Vader Sessions.

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I consider it a tragedy that the party of Abraham Lincoln let go of its historical ties with the African-American community. For too long, my party wrote off the African-American vote, and many African-Americans wrote off the Republican Party."

-- President Bush, in the first address of his presidency to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's annual convention

"I was a Republican -- until they lost their minds."

-- NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 21, 2006 6:26 AM | Comments (0)

 

Mattson endorses Solicitor General Lori Swanson for AG

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

Jennifer Mattson, left, the lawyer whose insurgent candidacy for attorney general last Sunday was one of a series of events that helped convince Matt Entenza to step aside, is about to announce that she is now supporting current Solicitor General Lori Swanson. In a press release scheduled for a 5 p.m. release, Mattson describes Swanson, a Mike Hatch protege making her first run for public office, as "the only heavy hitter still in the race. She has been slugging away at corporate defendants and winning for the people of Minnesota." Mattson's statement implies she is withdrawing her candidacy. Today is the deadline for taking such action.

Read Jennifer Mattson's statement after the jump...

July 20, 2006
5:00 p.m.
State Capitol
Statement by Jennifer Mattson

Mattson Endorses Swanson for Attorney General

Last Sunday I announced my candidacy for attorney general and delivered a personal letter to Representative Matt Entenza at his home asking him to withdraw for the good of the people of Minnesota. I filed for office on Monday and on Tuesday Representative Entenza withdrew. This was a major victory for my campaign, the DFL party and all Minnesotans who deserve a lawyer without a conflict.

My second goal was to ensure that the investigations into the healthcare industry started by Attorney General Hatch be vigorously pursued by the next attorney general.

There is no doubt in my mind that the lawyer best qualified to fulfill that goal is Solicitor General Lori Swanson. She has had primary responsibility for the managed health care litigation and has performed with admiration and distinction. She is tough-minded, legally-skilled and knows this area of the law better than anyone in our state. Using today's political lingo, in my judgment, Lori is the only heavy hitter still in the race. She has been slugging away at corporate defendants and winning for the people of Minnesota.

Therefore, I am whole-heartedly endorsing her candidacy. I will work tirelessly and do whatever I can to support her effort to be the people's lawyer. My first effort will be to notify all the hundreds of people who offered their support to my campaign and encourage them to get behind Lori's candidacy.

Mattson for Attorney General
Miles Lord, Chairman

Posted by Britt Robson at July 20, 2006 4:39 PM | Comments (2)

 

Gutknecht "goes wobbly," cuts and runs on Iraq

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

Earlier this summer, when Congress was debating resolutions about the future course of U.S. actions in Iraq, Minnesota's First District Rep. Gil Gutknecht said to his colleagues, "Members, this is not the time to go wobbly. Let's give victory a chance." Just weeks later, the front page of today's Washington Post (reg. req.) quotes Gutknecht, just back from Iraq, as saying that the situation is much graver than he'd been led to believe, and urging an immediate withdrawal of troops.

Gutknecht's comments are not printed anywhere on his campaign website. Indeed, the war in Iraq is not included among the website's top five issues, despite the fact that Minnesota has the nation's fourth-largest complement of troops in Iraq, with Gutknecht's district in southern Minnesota a particular hotbed of recruitment.

The congressman's change in position on Iraq was flagged in a press release by his electoral opponent, Tim Walz, a National Guard veteran and schoolteacher. The release, repeated on Walz's campaign website, says "A partial withdrawal [such as favored by Gutknecht] leaves those left behind exposed to even more deadly insurgent violence. Gutknecht's suggestion is his own re-election plan, not an exit plan will keep our troops safe."

Posted by Britt Robson at July 20, 2006 4:06 PM | Comments (1)

 

7/20 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS

Steve Monaco has found a bootleg video (with subtitles) of Jackie Chan's recent drunken escapades at a Jonathan Lee concert at Couch Pundit.

THESE DAYS

U.S. Airways will start selling advertising on its air-sickness bags. Airline spokesman Phil Gee said the company is looking for new ways to counter rising jet fuel and labor costs.

U.N. Assistance Mission in Iraq reports over 5,800 Iraqi civilians were killed, and another 5,700+ were wounded, during May and June of 2006. [via Boing Boing]

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Will we be reading about baby Max's high school graduation eighteen years from now? Start reading Baby Daddy Blog and follow his progress.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Human Pong

Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Scarlett Johansson, and David Bowie star in a film about rival magicians in turn-of-the-century London in The Prestige, directed by Christopher Nolan.

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I wasn't ready for this kind of smut... I hope he doesn't make any more movies."

-- Good Morning America film critic Joel Siegel, to the New York Post's Page Six gossip column, after walking out of Kevin Smith's Clerks II after 40 minutes

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 20, 2006 6:30 AM | Comments (1)

 

Sex offender madness

Filed under: Crime

On July 10 the Albertville city council unanimously passed an ordinance limiting where convicted sex offenders can live within the town. Under the new zoning restriction, such criminals are precluded from residing within 1,000 feet of any park, daycare center, school, playground, or house of worship.

The uphsot: 97.2 percent of housing in Albertville (pop. 5,783) is now off limits to sex offenders. The policy applies to all level three sex offenders, as well as those who have committed sex crimes involving minors under the age of 16.

Albertville, located roughly 30 miles northwest of Minneapolis, is at least the third Minnesota municipality to enact sex offender residency restrictions in recent months. In February Taylors Falls passed a measure prohibiting level three sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of anywhere that children gather--basically making the entire city off limits. The town of Wyoming enacted a similar measure the following month. As KARE 11 reported this restricted level three offenders to a 50 acre patch of land that lacks sewer or water lines. Minneapolis and Maplewood have also contemplated similar measures.

Taylors Falls, Wyoming, and Albertville have something else in common: there are no level three sex offenders living in the towns presently. In fact, of the 111 such criminals currently registered with the state, 50 of them reside in Minneapolis.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota plans to file a lawsuit contesting the Taylor Falls' ordinance. Iowa enacted a statewide provisision severely limiting where sex offenders can live in 2002, and it has so far withstood legal scrutiny. The law was initially deemed unconstitutional by a federal judge, but that decision was overturned on appeal. The U.S. Supreme Court then declined to review the matter. "The concept anyway does not appear to violate federal constitutional provisions," says Albertville city attorney Mike Couri, who drafted the municipality's ordinance.

But Nancy Sabin, executive director of the Jacob Wetterling Foundation, says that such provisions are ineffective in preventing sex crimes. "By passing what are called safety zones or residency restrictions you actually drive the people underground and make it harder to find them and supervise them to make sure they're compliant," Sabin says. (Indeed Iowa has seen an increasing number of sex offenders going underground since its law was implemented.)

Sabin further notes that 90 percent of sex crimes never get reported and that most such acts are committed by people who are known to the victims. "These towns are not doing the research before they pass the law," she says. "If they did the research they wouldn't waste their time."

Posted by Paul Demko at July 19, 2006 12:35 PM | Comments (0)

 

7/19 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

THESE DAYS

Florida state house candidate Charles Grapski has been banned from his hometown of Alachua after being ejected from a recent city commission meeting after he repeatedly objected to the city's "consent agenda."

An "apartheid-like" system of racial segregation imposed by early Anglo-Saxon invaders in England may have massively boosted the breeding of the Germanic interlopers, much to the detriment of the native Celtic race, researchers claim in a new study.

President Bush personally blocked a Justice Department investigation of the anti-terror eavesdropping program that intercepts Americans' international calls and e-mails, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said Tuesday.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Shyestviolet lives in Northeast Minneapolis and blogs about Project Runway, pontooning, ear joints, and the Sass of the Week at Is That All You've Got?

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Kevin Smith discusses his Superman scripting adventure

My Cubicle not sung by James Blunt

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"Something about this relationship feels otherworldly to me, like it was designed by a power and a hand greater than my own. Whatever this friendship is, it's been a very fun ride."

-- Talk show host Oprah Winfrey, describing her totally non-sexual relationship with her best bud, Gayle King, in the August issue of O

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 19, 2006 6:16 AM | Comments (0)

 

Minneapolis by the numbers: Natural disaster edition

Filed under: Minneapolis

Yesterday, the editors at Money magazine ranked Eden Prairie the tenth best place to live in the entire United States. On the heels of that strange pronouncement comes a marginally less dubious claim: Minneapolis is one of the safest cities in the nation--that is, when safety is measured by vulnerability to natural disasters. The list was devised by an outfit called "Sustain Lane," which looked at 50 major cities and calculated the likelihood that residents would be impacted by hurricanes, earthquakes and so-called "super tornado" outbreaks. Minneapolis came out in the number eight position. Mesa, Arizona and Milwaukee were tied for top place, while Miami edged New Orleans for the most hazardous. No word on Eden Prairie.

Posted by Mike Mosedale at July 18, 2006 2:27 PM | Comments (1)

 

Entenza: former AG candidate, future house husband

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

DFL attorney general endorsee Matt Entenza, under siege lately for his wife's HMO ties (first detailed in a January City Pages cover story, here) and the blowback from his dirt-digging against Mike Hatch, abruptly withdrew from the AG race this morning.

The text of his statement appears below the jump; the Minnesota Democrats Exposed blog and others are hearing rumors that former Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman will enter the fray in his place.

MATT ENTENZA'S A.G. WITHDRAWAL STATEMENT

For the past 12 years, I've been a public servant fighting for Minnesotans. We have had a lot of successes during that time bringing better health care, better schools and better consumer protection, including implementing the first Do Not Call List in the State.

I got into the race for Attorney General to continue fighting for Minnesotans; to keep them safe, to protect them and their families, to protect their healthcare and to help them fight the challenges they face everyday.

Fighting for important public issues is one thing, and fighting in politics is quite another.

While I'm confident that I can win the race for attorney general, obviously in this environment staying in this race would hurt the Democratic Party and the progressive issues we care about so deeply.

I have seen this before. And I have fought this fight before and won--in 2004. I know now as I did then that with enough time, I can fight my way through this and prevail.

But with so little time and so many attacks, from anonymous faxes to attacks on my family, it is impossible to fight these attacks and win this race without it taking a serious toll on the people and the party we care about the most.

It has been my honor to serve the people of this state. I am proud of my record in public service and even more proud of my wife. I am confident the voters of Minnesota would see these attacks for what they are: politics pure and simple.

So today I am ending my campaign for attorney general. I believe public service and politics is bigger than any one person, any one problem or any one party. And I am hopeful that despite what has happened today, the future for Minnesota and Democrats is brighter today and will be even brighter tomorrow.

This decision will not change my desire to fight on behalf of the people of this wonderful state. This decision is the best thing for Minnesota and the best thing for Democrats.

Thank you.

Posted by Steve Perry at July 18, 2006 12:02 PM | Comments (6)

 

Subversive on the Set?

Filed under: Media

A local TV news blog that's too good to believe

Okay, not so awesome you'll drop your bookmark for Slate or anything, but KARE-11's Scott Goldberg's new blog seems good enough to put in your queue. Provisionally, anyhow: The early entries were way heavy on "tune in tonight for an interesting segment on hockey pucks"--doubtless a consultant's idea of how TV personalities ought to use the web to build relationships with viewers. But about four posts ago Scott, whose bio includes some heavy reportorial bona fides, seemed to veer off the snappy-banter track and into the realm of the truly interesting.

Scott's top post urges viewers to read a newspaper. Two posts down, he pokes the beast even closer to where it hurts:

The weather. What you're about to read is strictly my opinion.

Is it just me, or are we (the media) absolutely freaking out about this? I don't get it. Just yesterday, we were telling you to get ready to live in a nuclear oven and don't expect any rain anytime soon.

Tonight, it's raining.

So if you were listening to us, you would have thought your garden (and possibly your family) was heading toward certain death in the next couple of days.

I suppose it's still possible that we're going to see some heat indices of 100 or even 105 degrees over the weekend. And, of course, that means you should take precautions to keep yourself and your family from overheating and/or getting sick.

But isn't this July? Don't we expect this?

Don't all of these stories about hot weather in the summer and cold weather in the winter start to make us look kind of silly?

Yes. If you ask me.

Two posts below that is a roundup of protest music links. And everything in between is literate and occasionally witty. Pay Scott a visit before the something accidentally prompts the consultants to do a little homework for a change.

Posted by Beth Hawkins at July 18, 2006 10:45 AM | Comments (2)

 

7/18 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

THESE DAYS

Consumer magazine found both Starbucks' and Gloria Jean's Coffees' super-sized chilled coffee drinks contained more fat than a McDonald's Big Mac hamburger and a medium Coke combined.

The Bush administration says it plans sweeping changes in Medicare payments to hospitals that could cut payments by 20 percent to 30 percent for many complex treatments and new technologies.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Sojourner is a local student who posts on his/her pagan religion, as well as other religious philosophies at A Pagan Sojourn.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Top 10 vehicles with the highest fuel efficiency

Pug Bowling — the best revenge?

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"Is your spare tire a ticking time bomb?"

-- CNN host Paul Zahn, promoting a segment on tire recalls for last night's episode of Paula Zahn Now

"Well, I think Mellencamp's performance was not very good to begin with, and the comment put it over the top."

-- Former Vice President Dan Quayle, through a spokesperson, on walking out of a John Mellencamp concert in a Nevada casino when the singer dedicated "Walk Tall" to everyone who had been hurt by the policies of the current Bush administration

"In terms of the style of its propaganda, this is a party in which Joseph Goebbels would feel at home."

-- Power Line blogger Paul Mirengoff, on Democrats claiming that President Bush is responsible for the outbreak of war in the Middle East

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 18, 2006 6:13 AM | Comments (2)

 

Mayor Coleman on living wage ordinance: never mind

Filed under: St. Paul

Two issues were constantly mentioned as being at the top of St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman's agenda when he took office in January. The first was a comprehensive smoking ban, similar to the one already enacted in Minneapolis. On that front Coleman took swift action, signing off on a measure prohibiting smoking in bars and restaurants after less than two weeks in office.

The other issue that was supposedly a priority for Coleman was enacting a more stringent living wage ordinance. Supporters of such a measure want any business that receives $100,000 or more in municipal funds to be required to pay a living wage (currently calculated at roughly $12 an hour). The Mayor's enthusiasm for this proposal, however, seems to have waned since he took office.

According to a letter sent to the Mayor last week by Bernie Hesse, director of special projects at United Food and Commercial Workers Local 789, negotiations have deadlocked over three loopholes that Coleman wants incorporated into the measure. Under the current proposal, some part-time and seasonal workers would be exempted from the wage stricture. In addition, companies seeking waivers from the ordinance would not be required to open up their books to the public. Finally, Coleman is seeking to exempt all secondary tenants with stores smaller than 45,000 square feet from the living wage law.

Hesse points out that this would allow national retail chains such as Borders and Aldi's to ignore the ordinance. "I'm tired of subsidies going to companies who ferociously fight us every time we try to organize their workers," he says.

Hesse's letter takes Coleman to task for failing to follow through on his campaign pledge. "You promised to help pass an effective ordinance and your staff now seems to be entrenched on a number of deal breakers," it notes. "We have been loyal and we have worked hard on the living wage issue, and we want you to do the right thing by crafting an ordinance that will be effective."

Other supporters of the living wage measure are more guarded in their comments. "We have been in very tough negotiations with them for the last couple of months," says Ryan Greenwood, political director of Take Action Minnesota, a new political organization formed from the merger of Progressive Minnesota and Minnesota Alliance for Progressive Action. "We are hopeful of getting a good outcome and the next week will decide if that happens."

Chris Fredson, Coleman's deputy chief of staff, declines to discuss details of the ongoing negotiations, but insists that the Mayor continues to support enacting a substantive living-wage provision. "The Mayor's been very clear," says Fredson. "He has committed to strengthening St. Paul's living wage policy into an ordinance."

Living wage supporters shouldn't be particularly surprised by Coleman's seeming equivocation on the issue. In 2001, while serving on the city council, he voted to grant a waiver to the city's existing ordinance to Target Corp., which was seeking $7.8 million in city funds to renovate its downtown Marshall Field's store.

But Greenwood remains optimistic, citing Coleman's repeated pronouncements in support of a strong living-wage proposal during the campaign. "That is why I'm hopeful," he says. "I just remember time after time hearing him say that."

Posted by Paul Demko at July 17, 2006 10:01 AM | Comments (0)

 

7/17 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS

Steve Monaco is back with the Monday Movie Quiz at Couch Pundit!

Britt Robson interviews Jennifer Mattson, who announced yesterday she will be challenging attorney general candidate Matt Entenza in the DFL primary in September.

Jim Walsh reviews yesterday's performances by Graham Parker and the Buzzcocks at the Walsh Files.

THESE DAYS

The average British male spends 5% of take-home pay on beer and post-booze snacks.

You'll need 70,000 valid signatures on a petition if you wish to run for office as an independent candidate in North Carolina, due to their stringent ballot access requirements.

A Drake University student from Minnesota, arrested in a forgery investigation last Wednesday, is believed to have been making bogus driver's licenses for underage Iowans for two years or longer.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Congratulations to one of the more long-standing Minnesota bloggers, Crystal resident Steve Gigl, on the 4th of July birth of his son. Check out the "little burrito boy" at Perspective and Soda.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

A public service announcement: Notice Your Nuts

Mac developer Wil Shipley has bet Bill Gates $10,000 that Windows Vista would not be ready for shipping in January 2007, per Gates's claim. [via Digg]

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"As a spiritual man, I felt it would be a sin against my God for me to wear all that gold again because I spent a lot of time with the less fortunate."

-- Cultural icon Mr. T, on his decision to no longer wear his signature gold chains after visiting the hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast region

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 17, 2006 6:37 AM | Comments (0)

 

Mattson to challenge Entenza in DFL primary

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

Jennifer Mattson, an attorney, former campaign staffer for Senator Mark Dayton, and the granddaughter of former Minnesota Attorney General Robert Mattson, announced on Sunday that she intends to challenge Matt Entenza in the DFL primary to determine the party's choice for Attorney General in September.

In a personal letter delivered to Entenza on Sunday, Mattson wrote, "I concur with the attorney general [Mike Hatch] and those Minnesotans who publicly question how you could serve as attorney general while the office is investigating $30.8 million in stock options granted to your wife [United Health executive Lois Quam]. It appears to be an unreconcilable conflict. You are seeking the wrong office at the wrong time, given your personal circumstances."

In a phone interview with City Pages Sunday night, Mattson said the specific reference to Entenza's wife was from a class action lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in St. Paul on July 7 by the California Public Employees Retirement System over the way United Health grants stock options. Quam is one of United Health executives specifically cited in the suit. Attorney General Hatch is investigating United's stock option plan but not Quam specifically. He has questioned how Entenza would be able to investigate United given his wife's prominent role in the corporation.

But Mattson said her decision to challenge Entenza was finalized as she saw the fallout from last week's news that Entenza had hired an outside firm to investigate Hatch back in February 2004. "The half truths and unsolvable explanations Entenza used to try and explain what he did are frustrating. On Friday night, I was watching the party chairs discuss the issue on [the local PBS public affairs program] Almanac and knew that the DFL needs another person in this primary or Entenza is going to take down this ticket," Mattson says.
In her letter to Entenza, Mattson writes, "The public revelations about your paying a Chicago firm to secretly investigate your running mate, Mike Hatch [the DFL endorsee for Governor], and the less than candid way you have justified it, leaves us all in doubt as to the truth...The simple fact is that your irreconcilable conflict of interest and personal campaign conduct are now the dominant issues. Not only is your own election highly questionable, but you are endangering the entire DFL ticket."

Another former Minnesota Attorney General, Miles Lord, has agreed to become chair of the Minnesotans for Mattson campaign. Mattson describes Lord as "an old family friend and someone I consider as my mentor," and adds, "I know this is an arduous task. I don't have a campaign staff or fundraising efforts. I certainly don't have $30.8 million in stock options to use on this campaign. But I do have issues I think we need to talk about and one is that Matt Entenza is disqualified from being a public servant in this case, for this office.

"When you are a full-time lawyer, it is difficult to engage in a campaign. I will fulfill all my obligations to my clients and prioritize those over any other activity because that's what lawyers have to do. But I will also hold myself up as a person without conflict if Minnesotans would like me to be AG. I think it is necessary to give them that choice."

UPDATE: DFL PARTY CHAIR STATEMENT ON MATTSON FILING

ST. PAUL (7/17/06) -- Jennifer Mattson, a 29 year-old challenger to DFL-endorsed Attorney General candidate Matt Entenza filed for candidacy today. Minnesota DFL Chair Brian Melendez released the following statement:

"Jennifer Mattson has a history of challenging -- and losing to -- DFL-endorsed candidates for statewide office. She has nothing approximating the record and experience of Representative Entenza. She has been a lawyer for two and a half years, while Matt Entenza has been a prosecutor, a legislator, an assistant attorney general and the House Minority Leader."

Posted by Britt Robson at July 17, 2006 1:43 AM | Comments (4)

 

New Orleans dodges a bullet

Filed under: National

Estimated cost of hosting Democratic Convention in NOLA: $70 million

Estimated benefits of the last DNC convention in Boston: $50-$100 million

And those were described in the City Pages article linked above as "grossly inflated." More at Demconwatch.

Posted by Peter S. Scholtes at July 14, 2006 3:14 PM | Comments (1)

 

Spotted: Urban Timberwolf

Filed under: Spotted

Thursday, 12:15 p.m., at Winner Gas, a service station on West Broadway near Lyndale Avenue North.

An electric-lime-green Hummer with huge spinner rims and Florida plates pulls into the lot and parks next to a pump for fueling.

One excited customer comes into the store and asks no one in particular, "Hey, man, you wanna get an autograph?"

The cashier and another customer look perplexed, and the man motions outside. "You recognize him?" There's a well-chiseled black man hanging outside the Hummer, shaved head, goatee, maybe a shade over six feet in height. "That's A.C. Green, man!" the autograph-peddler says.

The cashier and the other customer are dubious. That's not the semi-legendary former L.A. Laker and avowed virgin, but the vibe is definitely N.B.A. all the way.

The excited customer heads back outside and gets a piece of paper from the Hummer driver. They exchange a soul shake and a couple laughs.

Soon enough, the vehicle heads east on Broadway toward Interstate-94. It's then that the driver's face registers: It's Anthony Carter, "AC," the currently unsigned point guard for the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Posted by G.R. Anderson Jr. at July 14, 2006 9:52 AM | Comments (2)

 

7/14 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

THESE DAYS

In its continuing crackdown on on-air profanity, the FCC has requested numerous tapes from broadcasters that might include vulgar remarks from unruly spectators, coaches and athletes at live sporting events.

Scientists in England have turned stem cells from an embryo into sperm which are capable of producing offspring.

Straight to video: Oscar Winner Michael Douglas was recently stung by a jellyfish and ordered his five-year-old son to pee on his back as a remedy.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

City Pages alum Kate Sullivan has a newish music blog at LA Weekly called Rock & Roll Love Letter.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

More dubious Muppetude from the internets: The Swedish Chef courtesy of Robot Chicken

The Daily Show was more than happy to report on Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) and his description of the internet.

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"Ken Lay was neither black nor poor, as James Byrd was. But I'm angry because Ken was the victim of a lynching."

-- Rev. William Lawson, pastor emeritus of the Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church of Houston, during Ken Lay's memorial service [via Salon]

"I also say we need to do a few other things on top of that wall, and one of them being to put a little bit of wire on top here to provide a disincentive for people to climb over the top or put a ladder there. We could also electrify this wire with the kind of current that would not kill somebody, but it would simply be a discouragement for them to be fooling around with it. We do that with livestock all the time."

-- Rep. Steve King (R-IA), discussing on the House floor a U.S.-Mexico fence that he designed

Posted by Corey Anderson at July 14, 2006 6:22 AM |