Multiple referendums have been floated in recent years asking voters for more funding — and taxpayers have responded with a clear and resounding no. Not because we don’t support kids. We do. But because we no longer trust the system to spend responsibly.
Duluth’s health care transformation didn’t come free. It was paid for with public subsidies, neighborhood sacrifice, and long-term tax invisibility. The systems at the center of it all proudly proclaim their commitment to the community — even as the community quietly disappears around them.
The Wilfs — and let’s just call it like it is — chose not to invest in your prime. They picked the cheaper path, then wrapped it in branding and buzzwords and Kevin O’Connell’s “quarterback lab” fantasy. You’re now the face of a franchise that seems more focused on optics than outcome.
Are the Wilfs actually in this to win? Because if you strip away the branding, the marketing jargon, and the empty optimism, the facts paint a troubling picture: the ownership group is acting like financial strategists, not football visionaries.
Let’s start with the truth no one in Eagan will say out loud: the Wilf family doesn’t want to spend real money on a starting quarterback. Not this year. Not when they can pitch a rookie lottery ticket, cash in on “development” buzz, and pocket the difference.
But let’s not pretend McCarthy walked into this job. The Vikings didn’t sign a bridge quarterback to block him — they didn’t even really try. They rolled the dice on him winning the job by default, not dominance. And in 2025, that might be enough.
Duluth’s the perfect sandbox for your off-book genius experiments. Want to pilot direct wind-to-HPC microgrids? Try novel battery chemistries that need stable cool ambient temps? Prototype closed-loop lake-assisted liquid cooling that halves compressor hours?
We can’t bet the farm on whether it rains for Grandma’s Marathon. We need long-haul industries, fresh tech, world-class freshwater diplomacy, and new-school manufacturing. And we need to protect Lake Superior like it’s the last ace we’ve got — because in many ways, it is.
Extend Ham for two more years. Let him keep blocking, keep mentoring, keep representing everything you claim to value as an organization — hard work, humility, community.
His opponent tried to tag Mayor Roger Reinert with that clever little campaign jab last fall — “Risky Roger.” Like slapping a caution sticker on a snow blower: handle with care, might chew your hand off. But turns out the only real risk was if we hadn’t elected him. Because
So buckle up, Minnesota. Stock the fridge. Keep the jumper cables handy. And get ready to add one more page to our scrapbook of heartbreak. Because odds are, by next January we’ll be saying the same old line we’ve polished to perfection: “Hey, at least it’s almost Twins season.”
If I were running a local news outfit, I’d drop print tomorrow. I’d shove every last nickel into being the most relentless, indispensable, hyper-local digital news shop this side of the Mississippi. I’d break stories first, tell them sharper, dig harder than any neighboring outlet.
Essentia’s playing lawyer ball with the National Labor Relations Board’s Health Care Rule, which basically says: hospitals and clinics shouldn’t be smashed into one bargaining zoo because, you know, patients need care.
By HOWIE HANSON Let’s talk blunt truths about the Minnesota Vikings. This team — entering 2025 on the fragile hopes pinned to an untested rookie quarterback — is about to find out whether it can pound out victories the old-fashioned way. Because for all the modern spread concepts and glitzy route
Incoming forward Daniel Shlaine arrives with elite credentials after excelling at Shattuck-St. Mary's Prep and the USHL's Lincoln Stars. The 6-foot, 185-pound lefty from Russia is an elite playmaker with slick puck-handling skills and a quick release.
Hermantown boys hockey coach Patrick Andrews has said several times since the start of this season that his young and talented team will be "a work in progress." Never was this more evident than last Saturday at historic Hermantown Arena, when the Class 1A/No. 1-ranked Hawks fell