December 2006

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12/29 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

We remember Mexican-American civil rights leader John Gonzalez at Corpus Obscurum.

THESE DAYS

China has come up with an earthquake prediction system which relies on the behavior of snakes.

University of Washington's Rick Keil and Jaqui Neibauer, using sophisticated laboratory equipment, are tracking the increase in vanilla and cinnamon in Seattle's Yuletide sewage. [via Obscure Store]

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Minneapolis media dude ruminates on Superman III, presidential politics, and comic books in his brand new blog From Minneapolis media dude, with love.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Take the BBC Sex I.D. Test [via Pharyngula]

From Best Week Ever: The 10 Gayest Moments of 2006

Dana Carvey and Stephen Colbert are the Skinheads from Maine

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"He had never been elected period, so I never felt that he deserved to be there to begin with. Later on we became friends and he was a very, very sweet man."

— actor Chevy Chase, on the late President Gerald Ford, whom he spoofed during the 1975-76 season of Saturday Night Live

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 29, 2006 6:42 AM | Comments (1)

 

Crime blotter: Mother always said "Never stick a gun in someone's face if you're not prepared to use it"

Filed under: Crime

On December 19 at 10:19 p.m. police officers were dispatched to Burnsville Center on report of an armed robbery. The victim told the cops that a white male wearing a hooded sweatshirt and a bandana over his face accosted her in the mall parking lot. According to a criminal complaint filed in Dakota County District Court, the assailant pointed a gun at her and demanded money. However, the victim did not initially believe it was a real gun. She laughed at him and entered her vehicle. The assailant eventually fled in a vehicle with four other males inside, but not before the woman was able to record the license plate number.

The vehicle in question was subsequently stopped by police officers in the parking lot of a SuperTarget in Savage. There were four juveniles and one adult, Brian Dunn Kelly, inside the vehicle. Officers also recovered a sub-machine gun, a magazine for the weapon, and numerous .9 millimeter rounds. According to the complaint, Kelly admitted attempting to rob the woman at gunpoint. He allegedly told the officers that he needed money for Christmas and that he was shocked when the woman laughed at him. The 18-year-old Bloomington resident has been charged with one count each of second degree assault and attempted first degree aggravated robbery.

Posted by Paul Demko at December 28, 2006 1:34 PM | Comments (0)

 

Blue Harte: A quick look at the politics of the Strib's new head honcho

Filed under: Media

The news of the impending sale of the Star Tribune to Avista Capital Partners has generated no small amount of schadenfreude among the newspaper's critics. Naturally, much of this glee arises from the $530 million sale price, which is less than half what McClatchy paid for the paper less than eight years ago. But for "Red Star" haters in the local blogosphere, the most exciting aspect of the sale is the supposed potential for a shift in the paper's editorial policies.

At Pair 'O Dice, the heavy breathing Tom Swift put it thusly:

The sale to the private equity firm guarantees that the papers' editorial content will now accurately reflect the directions of Avista's media portfolio manager in New York rather than the daily talking points memo couriered over from Plato Ave.

Oh, really?

Not to be a buzzkiller, but it appears the personal politics of new Avista head honcho Chris Harte should meld quite nicely with those of the current Strib regime. Harte, who is expected to assume the role of chairman of the board at the Strib, is a longtime Democrat. A few years ago, he contemplated a run against Susan Collins, the moderate Republican Senator from Maine, and since 2000, he has contributed more than $37,000 to assorted Democratic candidates and causes.

For the most hopeful warbloggers, though, there is one glimmer of a good news in Harte's resume. In August, he donated $2,000 to the re-election campaign of Joe Lieberman.

Posted by Mike Mosedale at December 28, 2006 11:10 AM | Comments (0)

 

12/28 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Britt Robson discusses the Wolves's fourth quarter woes at Balls.

We remember the organizer of the first World Council of Churches at Corpus Obscurum.

THESE DAYS

About 40 per cent of the world's population is infected with Toxoplasma gondii, a common parasite which can increase a women's attractiveness to the opposite sex but also make men more stupid, an Australian researcher says.

Many German mothers-to-be are reportedly trying to delay labor until after January 1 so their births coincide with a new government initiative that gives parents 25,500 euros to ease their financial burden.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Former St. Paulite Chris Cope lives in Cardiff, Wales, and blogs about St. Stephen's Day, alcohol-infused Christmas goodies, and second-hand Redd Foxx anecdotes at Dancing the Polka with Miss El Cajon.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Fifty things we know now (that we didn't know this time last year)

The hand-fart version of Bohemian Rhapsody

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"It's such a loud recognition that global warming is real."

— Natural Resources Defense Council senior attorney Andrew Wetzler, on the Bush Administration's proposal to list the polar bear as threatened under the Endangered Species Act

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 28, 2006 6:40 AM | Comments (0)

 

12/27 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Britt Robson discusses the emergence of Randy Foye at Balls.

THESE DAYS

Nobel laureate Steven Chu is urging scientists to study how termites process food to learn how to produce pollution-free energy.

Former President Gerald R. Ford died Tuesday at age 93.

Italian politicians have condemned the brief appearance of two pairs of dolls representing gay couples in the parliament's nativity display.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Tim and Jayson are a couple of gay Minneapolitans blogging about local theater, dining, music, clubbing, and more at GLBT Minneapolis.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

An existential moment between Kermit the Frog and Peter Sellers (with chickens)

10 myths and 10 truths about atheism

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"For them to say they have some sort of moral regard for their clients is incredible—they're a penny-pinching, conniving company."

— Buffalo '66 actor/director Vincent Gallo, on online payment service PayPal's refusal to be associated with Gallo's website, where he sells his sexual services and sperm

"This controversy has... made people dust off their Constitution and actually read it."

— Representative-elect Keith Ellison, speaking at the annual convention of the Muslim American Society and the Islamic Circle of North America about his taking the oath of office on a Quran

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 27, 2006 6:40 AM | Comments (0)

 

12/26 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Britt Robson eulogizes the Godfather of Soul at Culture To Go.

Jack Sparks delivers a Minnesota Christmas card at the Other Side of Country.

We remember the original Lionel Jefferson at Corpus Obscurum.

THESE DAYS

Canadian police arrested a suspect in a nightclub parking lot murder after they posted a clip from the surveillance camera on YouTube.

Andrew McAdam of Michigan State University and his colleagues have discovered squirrels can somehow predict which years trees will produce massive amounts of seed, and produce an extra litter of pups months ahead of these unusually large harvests.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Augsburg student Ben Kimball blogs on religion in relation to politics, terrorism, art, and more at Ben's Blog.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

From Pavlov's dog to Dolly the cloned sheep: The Top Ten Animal Geeks, the non-humans who have made outstanding contributions to science

MSNBC's Ten Worst Songs of 2006

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"We need the God-fearing script, the script that really deals with compassion and deals with the word of Jesus and God, and believe me, people will rally behind it because we need it... [In Rocky Balboa] The last thing that (Rocky) hears before he enters the ring is Scripture, and that's what gives him the strength."

— actor Sylvester Stallone, promoting his latest movie in a November conference call to Christian leaders

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 26, 2006 6:07 AM | Comments (0)

 

Crime blotter: white riot

Filed under: Crime

On December 8, at roughly 11:30 p.m., Minneapolis police officers were dispatched to a residence on the 3700 block of Bryant Avenue N. to investigate a disturbance. Upon arrival the officers attempted to disperse a large group of African American males gathered outside the home. According to a pair of criminal complaints filed this month in Hennepin County District Court, two white males, brothers William Kenneth Saarela and Daniel Jay Saarela, then emerged from the residence and began yelling racial profanities at the group. Officers ordered the pair to go back inside the house, but they initially refused. The police then radioed for additional squad cars. At some point during this confrontation William Saarela stated that he was going inside to get a handgun.

The group of black males was eventually persuaded to disperse. Shortly afterwards, according to the criminal complaints, multiple shots were fired from the rear of the residence. Officers then heard a male voice inside the house hollering threats. "I'm going to fucking kill you," he allegedly screamed. "You're fucking dead." Officers then ordered all occupants of the house to come outside. The Saarela brothers were both arrested after being tased. William has been charged with making terroristic threats, obstructing the legal process, and intentional discharge of a firearm. Daniel faces counts of making terroristic threats and obstructing the legal process.

Posted by Paul Demko at December 22, 2006 12:39 PM | Comments (0)

 

12/22 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Pizzaman counts his automotive blessings during this yuletide season on the Streets of Pizza.

Chihuahuas using pee pads and ODing on cookie frosting: Christmastime with Diablo Cody on the Pussy Ranch.

Today's Song du Jour is by Joe Henry at the Walsh Files.

THESE DAYS

An unidentified CEO of a media company paid $280,000 for an original 1860 handwritten copy of the classic poem that begins "'Twas the night before Christmas" and read it to friends at a party.

A British mother who was criticized by a doctor for smoking a cigarette moments before her caesarean operation has won more than 44,000 pounds for her "hurt feelings."

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Nadja and Sean are blogging their way through the restoration of an old St. Paul home at American Four-Square Renewal.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

5,000 years of religion in 90 seconds

When mathematical constants go on a blind date

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"She says things that come to her mouth, she's not smart, she's crude, she's ignorant and to be honest I look forward to suing Rosie... Rosie's been a loser for a long time. Her magazine failed, she got sued. She folded up like a tent."

— Donald Trump, in an interview with Access Hollywood, threatening to sue comedian Rosie O'Donnell for comments made on The View implying Trump staged the recent Miss USA press conference to help publicize the upcoming season of his show The Apprentice

"I was going to die. You don't have much time to say goodbye. I just said: 'Shit I'm going to die.'"

— New Zealand skydiving instructor Michael Holmes, after falling 15,000 feet when both of his parachutes failed, landing in a blackberry bush, and only suffering a punctured lung and a broken ankle

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 22, 2006 7:09 AM | Comments (0)

 

12/21 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Britt Robson blames Coach Casey for the Wolves coming up short against the Lakers at Balls.

THESE DAYS

A dwindling birth rate is expected to cut Japan's population by 30% over the next 50 years, a survey by the government has said.

Starting next month, Best Buy will sell a "ConnectedLife.Home" package that features a computer with software coordinating a high-definition TV, light switches, a thermostat and two remote cameras at a cost of $15,000.

Using data from a national health survey, researchers found that teenagers living in sprawling suburbs were more than twice as likely to be overweight as teens in more compact urban areas.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Surly Dave is a conservative Christian who blogs about his recovery from depression, the joys inherent in handlebar mustaches, and the lousy way the church markets itself at Surly's Soap Box.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

The Top 13 Worst Slogan Translations Ever

The 10 most dangerous toys of all time

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"It is effectively open season on the songwriter."

— "A Whiter Shade of Pale" songwriters Gary Brooker and Keith Reid, responding to a court decision giving Procol Harum organist Matthew Fisher a 40 percent share of the musical copyright for his "distinctive and significant contribution to the overall composition" of the 1967 hit

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 21, 2006 6:56 AM | Comments (0)

 

The coming Muslim majority

Filed under: Politics

Muslims are overrunning the country. That's the message delivered by Rep. Virgil Goode (R-VA) to his constituents recently. Proof of this invasion: the election of Keith Ellison to Congress and his stated intention to take his oath of office on the Qur'an. In a letter obtained by the C-Ville Weekly, Goode cites Ellison's victory as proof that the nation's immigration laws need to be radically overhauled.

"The Muslim Representative from Minnesota was elected by the voters of that district," Goode notes, "and if American citizens don't wake up and adopt the Virgil Goode position on immigration there will likely be many more Muslims elected to office and demanding the use of the Koran. We need to stop illegal immigration totally and reduce legal immigration and end the diversity visas policy pushed hard by President Clinton and allowing many persons from the Middle East to come to this country."

Of course there are a couple of flaws in Goode's reasoning, most notably that Ellison was born and raised in Detroit. And as previously pointed out in this space, the Qur'an "controversy" is completely irrelevant given that members of Congress aren't officially sworn in using the Bible, the Qur'an, a copy of Hustler magazine or any other spiritual text.

(Via TPM.)

Posted by Paul Demko at December 20, 2006 11:00 AM | Comments (34)

 

12/20 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Check out Pizzaman's new wheels rolling down the Streets of Pizza.

THESE DAYS

More than nine out of 10 Americans, men and women alike, even extending to women born in the 1940s, have had premarital sex, according to a new study.

Baba Brinkman, who has a master's degree in medieval and Renaissance English literature from the University of Victoria, has adapted some of Geoffrey Chaucer's satirical "Canterbury Tales" into rap.

An anti-abortion group, the American Life League, is lobbying Washington, DC's Trinity College to stop Speaker of the House-designate Nancy Pelosi from attending mass.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Cartoonist Barrett Chase from Duluth blogs on macaroni & cheese variations, trying to justify an iPod upgrade (I'm with you there), and balancing novel writing with sitting on the couch watching TV at The Product.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Red and green snack season is here, which means it's time for another edition of the Ludic Log Golden Crap Shack Awards

Bruce Willis yippe-ki-yeas back into theaters next July 4th with Live Free or Die Hard.

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I'm looking forward to a new, interesting chapter of my life. I get to meet a lot of people I would otherwise not meet."

— Former Minneapolis City Councilmember Dean Zimmerman, to Strib reporter Randy Furst, on being sentenced to 2.5 years at the federal prison in Yankton, South Dakota

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 20, 2006 12:01 AM | Comments (3)

 

Kings of the blogosphere: Minnesota edition

Filed under: Blogs/Web

With more than a half million votes cast in 45 categories, two Minnesotans have walked away with top honors in the 2006 Weblog Awards. PZ Myers, an associate professor of biology at the University of Minnesota Morris (and former CP profile subject), won the Best Science Blog category for Pharyngula. James Lileks, Star Tribune columnist (and former CP profile subject), won Best Individual Blog for The Bleat.

In a post noting his honor, Myers was characteristically self-deprecating. "I have no illusions, though: this really isn't a recognition that I have the best science blog, it's evidence that I can put together a really good PR campaign that will turn out the vote for a meaningless weblog award." As of this writing, Lileks has yet to make mention of his triumph in his daily Bleat. The day previous, though, he made it clear that it was on his mind, writing: "Hey: that award is announced on Monday. Hope I win; hope I deserve it."

Posted by Mike Mosedale at December 19, 2006 3:31 PM | Comments (0)

 

12/19 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

It's Diablo Cody versus a pasta cake at the Pussy Ranch.

We remember NBA All Star and jump shot pioneer Paul Arizin at Corpus Obscurum.

THESE DAYS

Military officials said that more than 5,000 Scottish soldiers are having to share their kilts because defense chiefs have not finalized a contract to buy enough of the garments.

Naveed Sattar, professor of metabolic medicine at the University of Glasgow, said that oversized clothing should have obesity help line numbers sewn on them to try to reduce Britain's obesity crisis.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Jason Motylinski blogs about switching to Wordpress, raising baby Riley, and the curse of the reusable coffee filter at Computer Jargon.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Google circa 1960

From Men's Health: 15 things you don't know about your penis

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I don't know who to blame. Democrats are blaming Republicans. Republicans are blaming Democrats. But the million people who were expecting (mosquito) bed nets don't know who to blame. They just know that a promise made by the United States to keep their families safe is in danger of being broken next year."

— U2 frontman Bono, failing to get assurances from the Democratic leadership that $1 billion in planned U.S. aid to fight AIDS and malaria in Africa would not be lost if Congress freezes agency budgets in the coming year

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 19, 2006 6:06 AM | Comments (0)

 

12/18 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

In Flames, Roe Family Singers, and Bizarre are just a few of the acts playing around town tonight. Check out Chuck Terhark's City Planner at Culture To Go for a complete itinerary.

Brit Robson breaks down a difficult weekend for the Wolves at Balls.

THESE DAYS (IN THE LAB EDITION)

The stimulation of hunger, Yale Medical School researchers announced, causes mice to take in information more quickly, and to retain it better, and that's very likely to be true for humans as well.

Researchers from the University of California at San Francisco have found that neural stem cells repair damaged brain tissue in laboratory mice far better than previously believed.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Jessica Hopper is a City Pages contributor who also blogs about live music, Joan Didion, etiquette regarding riding on a wheelchair-bound person's lap, and gerbils in toilet tubes at tinyluckygenius aka the Unicorn's tear.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

It's not Christmastime without a little tune from the Jingle Cats

Find yourself on the Map of the Internet

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"You could go through her drawers, closets, medicine cabinets, and even her garage. People were rifling through her lingerie closet..."

— Star reporter Jessica Schimmel, cover Tori Spelling's recent yard sale

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 18, 2006 6:45 AM | Comments (0)

 

Somalia simmers

A talk with local attorney Hassan Mohamud about his native country's current tensions

The news from Somalia in recent days has been grim. Both The New York Times and The Washington Post carried lengthy stories yesterday detailing the country's slide towards a new war. There have been recent clashes between troops affiliated with the Islamists who now control Mogadishu and much of the country, and Ethiopian army troops. The Ethiopian troops are in the country at the behest of Somalia's weak, U.S.- and U.N.-backed transitional government, which is now largely confined to the city of Baidoa. Eritrea--which has fought several bloody border wars with Ethiopia in recent years--has also been rumored to be funneling arms to the Islamists, raising the prospect of a ruinous regional war. With Minnesota's climbing population of immigrants from the Horn of Africa, the tensions are of acute interest to many local residents.

In 2002 Hassan Mohamud became the first Somali law school graduate in Minnesota. He is now an attorney with the Legal Aid Society of Minneapolis and teaches Islamic law at William Mitchell College of Law. Mohamud is also the imam of Al Taqwa Mosque in St. Paul and president of the Somali Institute for Peace and Justice. I spoke with him by phone yesterday about the situation in his homeland.

Mohamud says that the Islamists are extremely popular inside Mogadishu and elsewhere, having restored order and some social services for the first time since the fall of dictator Siad Barre in 1991. "They brought peace and security to a large part of the country within 16 days where the international community could not help the Somalis for 16 years," says Mohamud, noting that he's in regular contact with numerous family members living in Mogadishu. "They told me that they have had peace like they have never seen since 1991." The Islamists have also brought bans on television and music, and the beginnings of morality enforcement on the streets.

Mohamud believes that the U.S. is no longer seen as a credible arbiter in the region. He criticizes the country for its hasty withdrawl from Somalia in 1993 after 18 U.S. soldiers were killed in the Battle of Mogadishu. More recently, Mohamud says, the U.S. has drawn the ire of many Somalis for supporting the removal of the U.N. arms embargo on the country and lending covert support to various warlords. "Putting this altogether people have doubts whether the U.S. can play an objective and fair role to establish peace in Somalia," he says.

Mohamud professes to be uncertain whether Somalis in Minnesota are providing financial assistance to the Islamist movement. "What I know is that they have overwhelming support inside of Somalia because of the peace and law and order," he says. "If you have the support of your people inside of Somalia you don't need any support from outside."

The Somali Institute for Peace and Justice recently hosted a forum in Minnesota attended by supporters of both the Islamist movement and the transitional government. "As Somalis are divided back home they are divided here also," he notes. But Mohamud says the dialogue revealed that ultimately both sides are seeking similar goals. "Somalis now they are tired of war," he insists. "They are ready to talk."

But as Mohamud's converstations with people inside the country have revealed in recent days, it may be too late for dialogue. "There are some clashes, but it's not major," he notes. "But when you talk to them they will tell you it is [just] a matter of time."

Posted by Paul Demko at December 15, 2006 11:59 AM | Comments (0)

 

Strib's Gyllenhaal headed to Miami

Star Tribune editor Anders Gyllenhaal has been named executive editor of the Miami Herald. Strib editorial staffers got the word from publisher Keith Moyer during a 10 a.m. meeting today in the newsroom.

Gyllenhaal, who came to the Minneapolis daily from the Raleigh News and Observer in 2002, will leave the paper in February. He was formerly a reporter and editor at the Herald. (Romenesko has posted the memo announcing the move.)

No successor has been named at the Strib. "Let the fisticuffs begin," says one veteran reporter.

Posted by Paul Demko at December 15, 2006 10:41 AM | Comments (0)

 

12/15 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Do cemetery plots have expiration dates? Do hens produce more poop than they do eggs? You've got the questions and Cecil Adams is the man with the answers, as we welcome The Straight Dope to City Pages every Friday.

Imogen Heap, Jessy Greene, and Dakota Dave Hull are just a few of the acts playing around town tonight. Check out Chuck Terhark's City Planner at Culture To Go for a complete itinerary.

THESE DAYS

Millions of commercial Web sites and personal blogs would be required to report illegal images or videos posted by their users or pay fines of up to $300,000, if legislation drafted by Sen. John McCain came into law.

Belgians reacted with widespread alarm to news that their country had been split in two—before finding out they had been tricked.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Minneapolis poet Reetsyburger blogs on blind hunting, the tragedy of sauerkraut-less brats, and loving what you once hated as a child at Reetsyburger's Refuge.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Matt Damon impersonates Matthew McConaughey on Letterman

Fan Pop's Top 10 Creepiest Fast Food Mascots

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"There is killing, of course. It is a video game. But the basis of the game is spiritual welfare."

— Troy Lyndon, the CEO of Left Behind Games Inc., defending the Christian video game in which New Yorkers are recruited and converted post-Rapture to battle the Antichrist

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 15, 2006 6:47 AM | Comments (0)

 

UnitedHealth Exec Lois Quam profiled in WSJ

Filed under: Business

Monday's Wall Street Journal ran a long and newsworthy profile of Lois Quam, who has recently been elevated to a management position just behind new CEO Stephen Hemsley in the Minnetonka-based, multibillion-dollar health care conglomerate UnitedHealth Group Inc.

WSJ, which had a hand in toppling former UnitedHealth CEO William McGuire by its superb reporting on the company's back-dating of stock options for McGuire, says Quam "will play a key role in an effort to restore shine to the company's public image." Unlike McGuire, Hemsley shuns the limelight and Quam is being encouraged to step into the breach.

Here are some other highlights from the WSJ story, written by Vanessa Fuhrmans and unavailable to even online readers without a paid subscription.

* In addition to overseeing UnitedHealth's senior-care and Medicaid-related HMO businesses, Quam was temporarily put in charge of the company's internal human resources department recently, in an effort to boost morale among UnitedHealth's 55,000 employees.

* Earlier this year, Quam's own UnitedHealth stock options were worth roughly $35 million, but a 22 percent drop in the stock and UnitedHealth's repricing of some options have changed that value.

* Quam has earned a sterling reputation inside the company through a variety of large and skillful actions. She turned a Medicare demonstration project into a $1.5 billion business called Evercare. And because she had brokered a deal to sell supplemental Medicare policies to AARP members back in 1997, Quam persuaded the powerful seniors organization to endorse UnitedHealth's entry into the Medicare Plan D market earlier this year, making the firm far and away the largest supplier of Plan D drugs to seniors. Quam also was a major player in UnitedHealth's $8.1 billion acquisition of PacifiCare Health Systems Inc., and presided over the integration of PacifiCare's senior and Medicare business (the majority of the company) into UnitedHealth.

* Of perhaps greatest interest to Minnesotans, Quam decided against locating a major new component of UnitedHealth at the company headquarters in Minnetonka, which the WSJ referred to as the "obvious choice." Instead, she set up an innovation center to plan for new Medicare and senior-related products and services in southern California, where PacifiCare was headquartered, calling it "the right choice."

Posted by Britt Robson at December 14, 2006 11:35 PM | Comments (0)

 

Crime blotter: flauting the law

Filed under: Crime

On June 16 two flutes worth over $3400 were stolen from the Schmitt Music store in Burnsville. Three days later the business was robbed again. The loot: two more flutes valued at more than $3200. The stolen instruments were subsequently pawned at four different area pawnshops for a total of $676.50. On July 12, Burnsville police officers were again dispatched to Schmitt Music to investigate an attempted theft of expensive flutes. According to a criminal complaint filed last week in Dakota County District Court, employees of both the music store and one of the pawn shops identified Brandon Tremayne Watkins (a.k.a. Brandon Tremayne Bray) as the serial flute thief. Watkins allegedly admitted pawning the four flutes, but denied stealing them. He has been charged with receiving stolen property and theft. According to records maintained by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the 29-year-old Maple Grove resident has been convicted of 24 previous crimes, including 11 counts of theft.

Posted by Paul Demko at December 14, 2006 11:30 AM | Comments (0)

 

12/14 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Britt Robson discusses the Spurs' victory over the Timberwolves at Balls.

Gogol Bordello, DJ Lady Miss Kier, and Lura are just a few of the acts playing around town tonight. Check out Chuck Terhark's City Planner at Culture To Go for a complete itinerary.

THESE DAYS

Following the discovery of a unique fossil in Inner Mongolia, China, it appears that mammals might have taken to the air before birds.

Along with billions of dollars in funding for the Justice Department and the State Department in Congress' year-end spending bill is a little-noticed provision that would require Web sites that feature "sexually explicit" content to contain special labels to make it easier to keep kids away from them.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Matthew David Tolic blogs on lobster trivia, Jay-Z's enormous hands, and tag-team lasik surgery at his new blog Humdrummy.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

A frustrated songwriter puts his skills up for auction on eBay [via b3ta]

A museum in New Haven, Connecticut, is displaying a 23-piece exhibit of the late Pope John Paul II's larger-than-life-size St. Peter's Square nativity scenes in miniature form

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"It does not take a very brave man to go out and corner a girl in the middle of spring break who had four drinks."

— U.S. District Judge Richard Smoak, sentencing the founder of the "Girls Gone Wild" video empire, Joe Francis, to community service for his company's guilty plea to federal charges of failing to monitor the ages of the women in its videos

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 14, 2006 6:38 AM | Comments (0)

 

Best Buy: Preferred by hooky-players two-to-one

Filed under: Business

Business Week has a nifty trend piece about the changing work culture at the Minnesota-based electronics retailer, Best Buy. According to the magazine, by the end of 2007, all 4000 workers at the company's Richfield HQ will be permanently relieved of that most odious burden of the working stiff, the time clock. Instead, under Best Buy's so-called "Results Only Work Environment," corporate employees will be judged strictly on the basis of what they accomplish, not the long hours they log (or don't log) in their cubicles.

More interesting yet is the manner in which this seismic shift took place:

Another thing about this experiment: It wasn't imposed from the top down. It began as a covert guerrilla action that spread virally and eventually became a revolution. So secret was the operation that Chief Executive Brad Anderson only learned the details two years after it began transforming his company. Such bottom-up, stealth innovation is exactly the kind of thing Anderson encourages. The Best Buy chief aims to keep innovating even when something is ostensibly working. "ROWE was an idea born and nurtured by a handful of passionate employees," he says. "It wasn't created as the result of some edict."

Will it work in the long run? Who knows? In the meantime, it's a good bet the Best Buy will see a dramatic uptick in job applications from golfers, anglers and other inveterate hooky-enthusiasts.

Posted by Mike Mosedale at December 13, 2006 4:14 PM | Comments (0)

 

McCain and Pawlenty, sittin' in a tree?

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

The New York Sun is the latest publication to fuel speculation of a possible McCain-Pawlenty 2008 presidential ticket. Among other things, the conservative newspaper takes note of the big fat wet kiss McCain planted on Pawlenty during the most recent campaign: "I know of no one who will make a greater contribution to the future of America than this great leader," McCain said of T. Paw. "This is the kind of leadership that I'd like to pass the torch to." Really don't need a gypsy to read those tea leaves there, do you?

Pundit/blogger Jim Geharghty also cites two other factors that auger in favor of a McCain-Pawlenty bid: the tactical importance of the upper Midwest to the GOP's 2008 prospects (Karl Rove is said to have referred to Minnesota as "the Holy Grail") and, more importantly, the sudden scarcity of sitting GOP governors who would make for a viable running mate.

Writes Geharghty:

This year's elections eviscerated the GOP's supply of governors. In Maryland, Governor Ehrlich's term is likely to be deemed a historical accident. Governor Taft is loathed in his home state of Ohio, where Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell was roundly defeated in his bid to become governor. And Governor Schwarzenegger, who may have the most impressive election performance of all the Republican governors, would require an amendment to the Constitution to qualify as a running mate. The year 2006 provided such a poor environment for Republican issues that Governor Daniels of Indiana - the former White House budget director - has run into trouble with his constituents over a change in policy on daylight-saving time, and his unpopularity was cited as a factor in the Republicans' loss of three House seats in his state.

Posted by Mike Mosedale at December 13, 2006 2:52 PM | Comments (1)

 

12/13 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Three questions with "Level_13" curator Jamie Schumacher in Chuck Terhark's City Planner at Culture To Go.

THESE DAYS

A report released yesterday by Democratic staffers in Congress found that official Capitol Hill gift shops were selling pins, pendants, charms, and spoons containing dangerous levels of lead.

Analyst company Forrester Research is claiming Apple's iTunes has experienced a collapse in sales revenues this year.

WordNetDaily columnist Jim Rutz claims soybean products are a "devil food" turning kids into homosexuals.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Minnesota attorney Nathan Hines blogs on consumer laws and rights at the HLO.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Cassius Clay, before he was Muhammad Ali, and Liberace perform together on Jack Paar's television show.

FBI Agent George Lopez enlists former professional Ping-Pong phenom Dan Fogler to infiltrate a secret Far East society run by Christopher Walken in Balls of Fury.

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"That video that Kanye West put out is the most worthless piece of crap I've ever seen in my life, and he uses my image to catapult himself on the public."

— 1970s motorcycle daredevil Evel Knievel, who's filed a lawsuit in federal court in Tampa against rapper Kanye West claiming infringement on his trademark name and likeness in West's video for "Touch the Sky" in which the rapper takes on the persona of "Evel Kanyevel"

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 13, 2006 6:48 AM | Comments (0)

 

Cold cash

Filed under: St. Paul

Towing companies set to further filch St. Paul parking violators

This winter has so far been kind to parking scofflaws. More than two months into the frozen season we're yet to see a single substantial snowfall. Consequentially we're also yet to endure the uniquely Minnesotan brand of torment known as a snow emergency.

Global warming aside, it's inevitable that at some point this winter enough snow will fall to trigger such a declaration. And when this happens those hapless souls in St. Paul who run afoul of the city's parking strictures will pay a much steeper price to re-claim their vehicles from the impound lot. Tomorrow the St. Paul City Council is slated to approve a resolution increasing the impound lot fee by $23.67, to a total of $123.07. In other words a jump of 23.8 percent. The fee increase will take effect on January 1.

St. Paul's towing contract is subject to an annual competitive bidding process. So any fears that the city might be attempting to balance the municipal books on the backs of parking scofflaws are unwarranted. City Council president Kathy Lantry speculates that the jump is due to spiraling gas prices. "They probably didn't make a dime," she says of the last contract period. "They're probably trying to make up for it now."

Despite this massive increase St. Paul still can't quite compete with Minneapolis. Snow emergency violators on the other side of the Mississippi are charged $138 for the privilege of having their vehicles towed. Then, of course, there's the $34 fine for violating the law. It's a wonder we don't have more homicides at the impound lot.

Posted by Paul Demko at December 12, 2006 2:44 PM | Comments (2)

 

12/12 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

El Vez, Human Hands, and Cafe Scientifique are just a few of the acts playing around town tonight. Check out Chuck Terhark's City Planner at Culture To Go for a complete itinerary.

Another embarrassing presidential gaffe uncovered at American Idle.

We remember the last black veteran of World War I at Corpus Obscurum.

THESE DAYS

Kevin Pugh of Cedar Bluff has been fined $279 for tossing a pig over the counter at the Holiday Inn Express in West Point, Mississippi. Russell Crowe would be proud.

When the State Department recently asked the CIA for names of Iranians who could be sanctioned for their involvement in a clandestine nuclear weapons program, the agency refused, so the State Department turned to Google.

Popular singer Mariah Carey is trying to put a stop to adult starlet Mary Carey's attempt to trademark her name.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Tim Elliott blogs on wine prices, wine website reviews, taste tests and more at Winecast.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Premiere magazine's 20 most overrated movies of all time [via Fimoculous]

Tom DeLay's blog

Vanity Fair reveals Dick Cheney's Google searches [via Tild]

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"This opens up the fun of hunting to additional people, and I think that's great. When they aim the gun the guide tells them, aim two inches higher or two inches lower and you're on the target, and you're off and running."

— Texas State Rep. Edmund Kuempel, filing a bill for the 2007 legislative session that would allow legally blind hunters to use a laser sight

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 12, 2006 6:25 AM | Comments (0)

 

12/11 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Britt Robson discusses the Timberwolves' four-game winning streak at Balls.

After six years, the neo-con job jar is still pretty full at American Idle.

Sean Lennon, Jeremy Enigk, and Hoobastank are just a few of the acts playing around town tonight. Check out Chuck Terhark's City Planner at Culture To Go for a complete itinerary.

THESE DAYS

A plan to build a mosque in the Houston suburb of Katy has triggered a neighborhood dispute, with community members warning the place will become a terrorist hotbed and one man threatening to hold pig races on Fridays just to offend the Muslims.

An aspiring actress, Zhang Yu, is waging a one-woman campaign against the use of the casting couch in China's film industry by posting clips of herself having sex with famous directors on the internet.

The Indian Council of Medical Research said its initial findings from a two-year study showed 60 percent of men in the financial capital Mumbai had penises too small for condoms designed to meet international size specifications.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Josh Hawkins blogs about advertising, marketing, and social media tactics at Splintered Channels.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

What the Chipmunks sound like slowed down

The worst Christmas specials and TV movies ever

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"Because Hollingshead is a first-time writer, we wished to discourage him from further attempts."

— the editors of Literary Review magazine, honoring author Iain Hollingshead with the Bad Sex in Fiction Award for his novel, Twenty Something

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 11, 2006 6:45 AM | Comments (0)

 

A Win-Win Situation

Filed under: Minnesota Politics

It was sad to read in today's Strib that people automatically assume Attorney General-elect Lori Swanson will be a figurehead unable to exert her will because she has offered her former boss, Mike Hatch, a position in her new administration. Swanson knows better than anyone what she'd be getting into by inviting Hatch on board. When I wrote an extensive profile of Mike Hatch for this paper nearly eight years ago, Lori Swanson was one of the first people Hatch recommended I speak with to find out what makes him tick. Swanson not only served with Hatch during his two terms in the Attorney General's office, she was with him in private practice, and before that at the Department of Commerce.

On at least a half-dozen occasions when he was AG, at times far removed from elective politics, Hatch referred to Swanson as "the real brains behind this operation." As solicitor general, it was Swanson who managed 160 lawyers and juggled 2000 cases in the office. It was Swanson, for example, who conducted the interviews and laid out the problem of hospitals charging those without insurance a higher room rate and then using strong-arm collection tactics to make them pay. The case she built resulted in the first-ever settlement in the nation where hospitals have agreed not automatically nail the uninsured with the inflated sticker price of a hospital stay. That's one of dozens of prominent cases where Swanson worked in conjunction with Hatch and Hatch's other top deputy, Kris Eiden (who has agreed to stay on under Swanson) to go after powerful business interests on behalf of the little guy.

Ethics expert David Schultz is quoted in the Strib as worrying about whether Hatch would be perceived by citizens as actually running for two offices this fall, Governor and Attorney General. But let's take that logic a step further: Many more people voted for Swanson for AG than Hatch for Governor. You can parse that two ways: Either the public has endorsed Swanson's right to independently run the office as she sees fit, or they were secretly hoping Swanson would do exactly what she did and invite Hatch back in. But either way, Swanson and Hatch weren't duplicitous about their joint agenda. Swanson, an electoral neophyte, campaigned hard on continuing the policies she and Hatch had established. Where's the ethical subterfuge? If Schultz is looking for voters feeling burned by a bait and switch, he should talk to conservative Republicans who had no idea Tim Pawlenty would endorse universal health insurance for children just a week after the election.

But back to Swanson: It wasn't as if she was given a free pass by the party insiders because of her proximity to Hatch. On the contrary, the DFL first endorsed a guy, Matt Entenza, whose wife is a powerful executive in the health care industry Hatch and Swanson so assiduously investigate; a guy who did clandestine opposition research on Hatch. Then, after Entenza quit the race over that scandal, the DFL executive committee weighed in on behalf of a sitting State Senator weeks removed from a spirited statewide campaign for governor. A former U.S. Congressman and state legislator also jumped into the primary. Swanson whipped them both, then trounced Rep. Jeff Johnson--regarded as one of the strongest AG candidates the Republicans had fielded in years--in the general election. Without question, Swanson's association with the Hatch regime helped her with voters. But if she was a bumbling public speaker, or an obvious Hatch bobo without a mind of her own, it would have come out during the campaign. Instead, the opposite occurred: People were pleasantly surprised by Swanson's poise on the stump and her command of the issues.

If Hatch can't handle someone else making the decisions, he either won't take the job offer or he'll leave. Because anyone who takes a serious look at Swanson's credentials and recent performance and concludes that she's merely keeping the office warm for Hatch's return doesn't know her. That would include House Minority Leader Marty Seifert (R-Marshall) who likened Swanson to Mrs. George Wallace in today's Strib, an offensive comment on a variety of levels, not least because Seifert himself owes his political ascent to prejudicial pandering and partisan wedge issues. Seifert is the guy who wanted to enact laws to cut welfare benefits to recipients who smoke cigarettes, cut meals for prisoners below the federal standard for nutrition while double-bunking those serving time, and ban the Pledge of Allegiance being spoken in Spanish.

Last but not least, it bears noting that Swanson is indeed charting her own course in terms utilizing the enforcement power of the AG's office. Asked during the campaign how she would be different than Hatch, she answered that she would spend more time and resources protecting consumers from unsavory mortgages and other predatory lending practices in the housing market. Yesterday she called a press conference to announce a 12-member study group charged with drafting legislation to enact four measure to protect consumers on this issue. It was her first major policy initiative. With or without Hatch, many more will follow.

Posted by Britt Robson at December 8, 2006 1:23 PM | Comments (0)

 

Mozaic Project in Uptown kicks off 2007 with a Big Dig

Filed under: Business

After the controversy over the size of its tallest building was resolved in a compromise last summer (reduced from 13 stories to ten, at 112-feet high), not much has been heard about the grand $150 million Mozaic condo-hotel-retail project that will significantly change the face of Uptown. But pending final negotiations with Xcel Energy about the cost and timeliness of relocating utility lines, the stage is set for Mozaic to start construction early next year. And the first stage involves making a huge hole in the pavement that could likewise create a large dent in the foot traffic, short-term parking availability, and, sooner or later, movie attendance in Uptown.

Specifically, Mozaic will start with the digging of a four-level underground parking facility in the current parking lot space between the Lagoon Theaters and Uptown bus terminal. Eventually, the project will also feature a luxury 140-room Graves Hotel, 72 condo apartments, nearly 11,000 square feet of restaurant and cafe space, a public plaza with steps and a ramp down to the nearby Greenway, and an expanded 1600-seat movie theater complex.

Starting work on the underground parking facility was originally slated to begin in January, but will likely be delayed for a short period due to negotiations between developers and Xcel Energy on rerouting utility lines in the area. "Right now a lot of the lines run right through the site," says Stuart Ackerberg, CEO of the Ackerberg Group, which is developing Mozaic along with CAG Development. "The way it works with Xcel, we are negotiating what it cost to relocate the lines, then it could take up to four months for another of their departments to do the work."

That was back in early November. Since then, Ackerberg and his assistant have both failed to return numerous phone calls seeking an update. Xcel Energy spokesperson Tom Hoen says that from the utility's perspective, the project remains "on track," but Tenth Ward City Councilman Ralph Remington, who represents the area where Mozaic is being constructed, says he has heard that construction will now begin in February. "We were all going to meet sometime this month, but it hasn't happened yet," Remington says.

Also up in the air is the extent to which the project will compel the six-screen Lagoon Cinema complex to reduce their movie offerings, although any major disruption would seem to be a year off. Says Ackerberg, "We're talking about a variety of different options for Landmark," the theater chain that owns Lagoon and leases space in the building that will be dramatically overhauled to accomodate the hotel and theater expansion. "Everything is being considered: Having the theaters go [completely] dark for awhile, or have some of them go dark. At what points in the process do they stay open, and when do you close completely? We're trying to analyze all of that, and everything in-between."

Noting that Landmark was one of the Ackerberg Group's anchor tenants when they developed the space for movies and offices back in 1994, Ackerberg adds that "all the options have pluses and minuses, and we want to do what works best to continue our long-term relationship with Landmark. But we are pushing for answers because we need to refine the project."

Again, that was in early November. Since then, neither Ackerberg nor Hugh Wronski, city manager for Landmark here in Minneapolis, have chosen to divulge further details. "The underground parking will take a year to develop, and during that time we'll complete the design of the hotel and other things," says Ackerberg. Then the internal staging of the two buildings will come out of the ground simultaneously on both sides of the street."

Posted by Britt Robson at December 8, 2006 7:12 AM | Comments (0)

 

12/08 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Do eelskin wallets demagnetize bank teller cards? In Star Trek, what exactly are "star dates"? You've got the questions and Cecil Adams is the man with the answers, as we welcome The Straight Dope to City Pages every Friday.

Where were you when you heard the news that John Lennon had been killed? Head over to the Walsh Files and tell Jim.

THESE DAYS

The Seminole Tribe of Florida is buying the Hard Rock franchise, including its massive collection of rock 'n' roll memorabilia, in a $965 million deal with British casino and hotel company Rank Group PLC.

Portland's so-called "festival street" seeks to reclaim streets used by cars as public places for people—blurring the boundary between pedestrians and automobiles by removing sidewalks and traffic devices.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

In Los Angeles, eccentric director David Lynch blogs the weather report, in Minnesota, the not-so-eccentric Paul Douglas will have to do.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Walt Disney presents the Story of Menstruation

Joel Schumacher directs Virginia Madsen, Danny Huston, and a freaked-out Jim Carrey, whose character becomes increasingly convinced that an obscure and dark book called The Number 23 is based on his own life.

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"The only thing that comes close to this is dueling."

— Utah Supreme Court Associate Chief Justice Michael Wilkins, discussing the case of a 13-year-old girl having consensual sex with her 12-year-old boyfriend, and both being considered victims and offenders under state law prohibiting sex with someone under age 14

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 8, 2006 12:10 AM | Comments (0)

 

Crime blotter: beheading in the suburbs

Filed under: Crime

On November 26, at 3:34 a.m, Eagan police officers were dispatched to investigate a domestic dispute. According to a criminal complaint subsequently filed in Dakota County District Court, officers discovered that Nathan David Andersen had kicked over a bird cage during the altercation. He then proceeded to tear the head off the bird (breed unspecified) with his hands. The animal, according to the criminal complaint, was kept as a pet. Andersen, a 24-year-old Eagan resident, has been charged with one count of animal cruelty.

Posted by Paul Demko at December 7, 2006 10:57 AM | Comments (2)

 

12/07 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

Britt Robson offers a Three-Pointer on the Timberwolves win over Houston at Balls.

The Ex, Menstrual Tramps, and Aerosmith are just a few of the acts playing around town tonight. Check out Chuck Terhark's City Planner at Culture To Go for a complete itinerary.

THESE DAYS

An American Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency landing Monday morning after a passenger lit a match to disguise the scent of flatulence.

NBA Commissioner David Stern acknowledged that more player input should have gone into the much-maligned microfiber composite basketballs introduced this season, and is open to returning to the old leather ones.

Polish prosecutors are investigating claims that Deputy Prime Minister Andrzej Lepper employed a woman on condition that she had sex with him.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Bitter Pill takes on webpage scripting, the War on Christmas, Jesus possibly turning fish into bread, and lots of newborn baby blogging thrown into the mix.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

The ten weirdest or funniest verses in the Bible

Another movie trailer spoof, this time it's Mary Poppins as a horror flick: Scary Mary [via Boing Boing]

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"I think it's tragic that a child has been conceived with the express purpose of denying it a father."

— Robert Knight, director of the Culture and Media Institute of the Media Research Center (huh?), responding to the announcement that Vice President Dick Cheney's daughter Mary, who's been in a relationship with Heather Poe for 15 years, is pregnant

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 7, 2006 7:09 AM | Comments (0)

 

We hear the Highland Park Lollipop Guild is on the rise

Filed under: Crime

St. Paul's young gangsters need to hire a naming consultant. If they ever hope to inspire genuine fear in the general public the current collection of monikers just isn't going to suffice. According to a search warrant recently filed in Ramsey County District Court these are some of the gangs fighting over turf in the Capitol city: Get Money Boys, Lower Town Gangsters, Selby Siders, 5th and MN Boys, Grown Man Click, East Side Boys, 3rd Block, and the Get Money Girls. Perhaps the Emerson Murder Boyz could take some time out from terrorizing the North Side to provide some consulting work to their brethren across the river.

Posted by Paul Demko at December 6, 2006 1:02 PM | Comments (1)

 

12/06 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

With today's cover story we offer the Mn SAT, a collection of Minnesota questions that are too petty to recall, yet too piquant, too silly, too sticky to shed from our memory bank. Valuable prizes and bragging rights are yours to be had. Check it out here.

Les Georges Leningrad, Level 13, and Kevin Kling are just a few of the acts playing around town tonight. Check out Chuck Terhark's City Planner at Culture To Go for a complete itinerary.

THESE DAYS

A fired CIA employee, George C. Dalmas III, has pleaded guilty to charges that he burglarized 10 homes near the agency's headquarters, stealing jewelry, collectibles, and 1,074 pairs of women's underwear.

Children with asthma are more likely to be obese and less likely to exercise than those without the disease, a University of Nottingham study shows.

A Arizona grandmother found with 214 lbs. of marijuana in her trunk was convicted of drug running in what prosecutors said was an attempt to earn cash for a bingo habit.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Conservative St. Cloud radio host Tony Garcia has finally wrapped up post-election duties and is back blogging at Always Right, Usually Correct.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Who's Miss August on your calendar? Dick Cheney!?! The 2007 Official Republican National Committee Calendar

Fimoculous' Best Blogs of 2006 that You (Maybe) Aren't Reading

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"A lot of poetry and beautiful lines are said taking showers, and I hear a lot of beautiful melodies out of the bathroom."

— Academy Award-winning experimental composer Tan Dun, discussing inspiration in last Sunday's New York Times Magazine

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 6, 2006 6:32 AM | Comments (0)

 

Minneapolis fire chief: "The only thing I can come up with is that this is a whole lot of homophobia and sexism."

Filed under: Minneapolis

Embattled Minneapolis fire chief Bonnie Beskachek is making national headlines. Both the New York Times and the Washington Post have articles today detailing her travails. The first out lesbian fire chief of a major city, Bleskachek has been sued four times in the last year over allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination. Last month a city council committee rejected a deal that would have required Bleskachek to step down as chief, but retain her job within the fire department. She has been on paid leave since March. The stories in the Times and the Post are notable mainly for the vigor with which Bleskachek defends her conduct.

From the Post:

Bleskachek, 43, is furious that the city has settled the lawsuits rather than taking them to trial, where she could have told her side of the story.

"They have no evidence at all; this is all based on conjecture and hurt feelings," she said, in her home in a pleasant, modest south Minneapolis neighborhood.

From the Times:

"Being an out lesbian, which the mayor really wanted to push, the first openly lesbian fire chief, made me an easy target," she said. "The sharks smelled blood in the water."

And:

"I've worked too hard for years," she said. "If I'm such a terrible manager, if I'm such a bad leader, where are the red flags in my past? The only thing I can come up with is that this is a whole lot of homophobia and sexism."

Posted by Paul Demko at December 5, 2006 12:10 PM | Comments (4)

 

12/05 Morning Communiqué

Filed under: Morning Communique

CITY PAGES BLOGS AND NEWS

The Lemonheads, Javier Trejo, and the Darkos are just a few of the acts playing around town tonight. Check out Chuck Terhark's City Planner at Culture To Go for a complete itinerary.

THESE DAYS (INTERNATIONAL EDITION)

A theme park with a statue and memorial hall will be built at Bruce Lee's southern Chinese ancestral home of Shunde.

Professors Geoff Wainwright and Timothy Darvill unveiled their theory recently at the Society of Antiquaries in London that Stonehenge was actually a hospital.

The French government said it would make 10 million 25-cent condoms available in high schools, night clubs, cinemas, and hospitals to try to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS.

MINNESOTA BLOG OF THE DAY

Minneapolitan Ed Kohler blogs on Cajun Lucies, brie string cheese, and what's wrong with newspapers at The Deets.

[Minnesota-based blog directory]

TIME WASTERS

Road skating in Saudi Arabia

Battlestar Galactica vs. Star Wars Destroyers

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

"Rumsfeld is a failure. I don't think you should give an award for failure."

— Union League member James A. Ounsworth, protesting Philadelphia's venerable club's presentation of its Gold Medal to departing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld

Posted by Corey Anderson at December 5, 2006 6:07 AM | Comments (0)

 

Michael Brodkorb's house egged, Mike Hatch's whereabouts unknown