In her latest newspaper column updating her constituents, Franson (or the hapless minority communications staff person who may have drafted this) channels the great American horror writer H.P. Lovecraft, morphing the limbs of her majority caucus colleagues into those of the children of Cthulhu.
The legislative session is coming to a
close and the tentacles of Democrat legislators are out and reaching to
extract the hard-earned dollars out of your wallet! . . .
Bluestem has no idea whether the Alexandria Lakes Area Tea Party has sought tax-free status, but if it has, its latest project will pose no questions about the application. Their sanity, perhaps.
According to a PDF posted on the group's website, the conservatives have launched a worldwide prayer request asking people everywhere to pray for the conversion of billionaire hedge fund manager George Soros to Christianity. To pray--"perhaps more than once a day":
The Alexandria Lakes Area Tea Party (ALATP), Alexandria, MN, would like to invite you to participate in a world-wide prayer campaign for the conversion of George Soros from atheism to Christianity. Please say a prayer everyday for the conversion of his soul—in fact, perhaps more than once a day. This prayer campaign must be done to the Glory of God--not to glorify the tea party movement.
We are asking that you spread this message to anyone on your contact list via Email, Facebook, Twitter, and the like. We are hoping that by midsummer, the whole world will be praying for Mr. Soros.
A Jew born in Hungary, Soros and his family managed to escape extermination by Nazis in World War II by assuming false identities and hiding, according to his website. He is an atheist who "believes that people of faith and faith communities contribute to the
public’s understanding of pressing social issues and often add a
principled, moral aspect to debates that are too often dominated by
politicians, statistics and polling," a FAQ on his religion notes.
Yes, this is the place that elected and re-elected Mary Franson to the state legislature. The PDF is embedded below.
Political representatives in the Alexandria area say their
constituents do not support the gay marriage bill that was signed into
law by Governor Mark Dayton on Tuesday afternoon. Many, however, are
celebrating the decision.
Within minutes of the bill passing in
the Senate, Pastor Scott Keehn of Alexandria received a text message
from a couple in his congregation asking him to perform their ceremony.
He accepted.
“All this really does is expand the definition of
marriage to include loving couples who had been excluded,” Keehn said.
“It’s about granting civil and social rights.”
The church council will still have to approve same-sex weddings, but Keene believes that it will do so. The article notes:
. . .The First Congregational United Church of Christ has an “open and
affirming” process, meaning it accommodates for all people to be able to
worship.
“I think this will be a good thing for the Alexandria
community,” Keehn said. “Our government made the right choice in this
matter.”
. . .Pastor
Keehn is a member of the Inclusion Network (IN) in Alexandria, an
organization that educates the community about differences and promotes
the value of diversity. Steph Alexander will be speaking on the
transgender experience at Foundation Hall in Alexandria on June 19. For
more information, visit www.inclusionnetwork.org.
Photo: Rainbow wedding cake.
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This may be difficult to believe, but as a long-term school board member, I do not make this statement lightly. I have personal experience as a board member, where state statutes were changed and eventually school curriculum and speech had to conform. I was then chided for public comments on school issues when I used terminology that was not politically correct.
. . .With regularity Mr. Gruenhagen inserts his own biases into school
board meetings with not the least provocation. Abortion, homosexuality,
safe sex, evolution and countless other topics that do not appear on
the school board’s agenda are brought to the fore, repeatedly, and
forced onto unsuspecting school board members, administrators and
individuals in the viewing audience. To do so is rude, a violation of
school board decorum, a waste of attendees’ time and a disruption in
the flow of otherwise quality public meetings. He ignores the expert
advice of the superintendent of schools, two architectural firms, a
construction management firm ... Incredible! . . .
Jodi Braband, Doug Grams, Loren Mathews, Nancy Morris, Mark Rudy Glencoe-Silver Lake School Board
The link to the Glencoe paper at the earlier Bluestem post doesn't work anymore, but a diligent researcher could find it in a copy of the print edition.
In other countries and in the state of Massachusetts, where gay marriage has become the law, we have observed that citizens who would not succumb to politically correct speech have been charged with hate crimes and their parental rights infringed upon. (See www.massresistance.com for more information.)[Link is live in original MCC post online]
When signed, this bill will become the law of our state. We are a nation of laws, however we still have the right as citizens, parents and school officials to passively resist the gay agenda coming into our schools.
MassResistance is a Waltham, Massachusetts-based anti-gay group[4][5] that promotes socially conservative positions on issues relating to homosexuality, abortion, anti-bullying, gun control, the transgender community and same-sex marriage.
It was founded by Brian Camenker in 1995 as the Parents' Rights
Coalition, and in 2003 it changed its name to Article 8 Alliance. It
adopted its current name, MassResistance, in 2006.[3][6]
MassResistance's activism takes several forms, including promoting its views via its website, blog, email, lobbying, and voters' guides.[7][8][9][10][11]
The group has been critical of former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney for maintaining moderate positions on LGBT rights during his term as governor.[8][12] The Southern Poverty Law Center has designated MassResistance an anti-gay hate group,
in part for its claim that suicide prevention programs aimed at gay
youth were "put together by homosexual activists to normalize
homosexuality".[3][5]
In 1996 MassResistance's leader, Brian Camenker claimed that suicide prevention
programs aimed at gay youth actually were “put together by homosexual
activists to normalize homosexuality”. MassResistance also asserted that
groups such as the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN),
which support school anti-bullying programs, actually want to "lure
children into homosexuality and, very possibly, sadomasochism".[3]
MassResistance has also insisted that gays were "trying to get legislation passed to allow sex with animals", later adding, "They [gays and lesbians] are pushing perversion on our kids".[3]
MassResistance has made claims that no homosexuals died in the The Holocaust of World War II, that the "pink triangle the Nazis
forced imprisoned gays to wear actually signified Catholic priests",
and that "gays are dangerous to kids". They have also made comments
regarding "skyrocketing homosexual domestic violence"[3][30] and called a gay pride
event a "depraved" display that featured "a great deal of obviously
disturbed, dysfunctional, and extremely self-centered people whose aim
was to push their agenda".[3]
If that's where the Glencoe Republican gets his information when he goes online, no wonder he's so afraid. Gruenhagen goes on in his column to cite one "self-confessed homosexual" coming after his religious rights:
As an example of this threat to religious liberty, University of Minnesota constitutional professor Dale Carpenter, a self-confessed homosexual, errantly wrote an editorial arguing that the religious freedoms in our Bill of Rights is “limited to the right to worship” only in our churches, instead of the current robust religious freedoms we enjoy. In truth, it is the right of each American under the Bill of Rights to act in accordance with their conscience and religious beliefs in the public square, not just in our churches. As you can see by the professors comments, the threat to religious freedoms is real.
What was Carpenter's "errancy"? Here's the editorial (the link to which Gruenhagen forgot to provide, unlike the one to the hate group) in the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Dale Carpenter: The rites and rights of marriage. Here's part of what Carpenter said:
. . . Nor is there any basis for fearing a flood of
lawsuits against religious individuals or businesses. Consider an
obvious fact: there is no right to sue simply because you don't like
what someone else believes or does. You must have a legal basis, a
"cause of action," spelled out in the law. The Minnesota Human Rights
Act ("MHRA") prohibits discrimination by businesses against people
because of their race, sex, or religion.
Since 1993, the MHRA has also prohibited businesses from
discriminating against a person based on sexual orientation in jobs,
housing, and services. In 20 years, despite what opponents predicted at
the time, there have been very few claims of such discrimination in
Minnesota. This is partly because there are comparatively few gay
people, partly because most businesses have no interest in
discriminating against customers and hard-working employees who happen
to be gay, and partly because the MHRA specifically allows religious
nonprofit associations and schools to discriminate against gays.
There is no additional cause of action provided in the marriage
bill. That's why it's puzzling that opponents claim business owners and
others with religious objections will be punished for their religious
beliefs. On what ground would a gay person sue a business owner or
religious association simply because he's now married?
If he did not have a valid claim before passage of the marriage
bill, the newly married gay person will not have one now. If a religious
organization was exempt from compliance with the MHRA before the
marriage bill, it will be exempt afterward. In case there was any doubt
about this, the marriage bill explicitly states that it "does not alter
or affect the protections or exemptions provided in" the MHRA to any
"religious association, educational institution, business, labor
organization, place of public accommodation, employer, or other person."
The exemptions in the MHRA are already among the most expansive in the
country, especially where claims of anti-gay discrimination are
concerned... .
Carpenter really didn't get into a discussion of schools, so Gruenhagen's representation of the editorial is peculiar.
It used to be that Bluestem could depend on local sources for news of toxic metal preacher Bradlee Dean's latest rantings and not have to listen to his radio show ourselves. But since his lawyer initiated yet another lawsuit (we'll let Wonkette explain), those heroes of fee speech have been silenced while the legal eagles work things out.
Funny how a guy like Dean who describes himself as a son of liberty works that way.
Minnesota-based Religious Right activist/rock star Bradlee Dean went
ballistic on his radio show yesterday in response to his state’s new
marriage equality law. Dean warned that Gov. Mark Dayton, who signed the
same-sex marriage bill into law, is at “war with God” and is “about to
find out what it’s like as to what the fallout is when you throw rocks
towards God, he’s going to learn how gravity works.” He added that
Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, who backed his state’s marriage equality
law, and other pro-gay rights “criminals” will face divine justice as
well.
Listen to the audio at RRW. Tashman points to some classic Dean schtick:
Dean even seems to believe that every gay person in the country
showed up for yesterday’s celebration of the marriage equality law in
order to “push their propaganda and their agendas on the American
people,” just as Saul Alinsky commanded.
“They come from all over the country to do this so what you’ve seen
was probably the whole lump of the population of the homosexual
community in the United States of America,” Dean said. . . .
Dude, I've already bore my cross. It's called the prayer that rocked the capitol. I''ve already done my part. I was asked to step up by the Minnesota Family Council. Nothing but a bunch of spineless capitulators, burned hippies that think they're all that and a bag of chips, and yesterday we found that the bag of chips was open and they were stepped on.
But I was really happy to hear that they were in a room in the capitol praying to Je-s-us that he would come and do something for them that he himself commanded them to do, but they're unwilling to do what God called them to do and then they wonder why they continuously get . . . the backwards results that they continuously get.
Why are we losing the day? Because you're not man enough to stand up and play the man, you're not willing to bear your cross and therein lies the problem.
We can't thank RRW for bearing the cross of monitoring Dean now that the locals can do so no longer.
In the meantime we'll wait to see just what the devil Dean means when he says,"play the man." That may explain a great deal already.
Screenshot: Dean praying at the Minnesota House. The prayer, which questioned the President's faith, was stricken from the record.
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An frac sand industry-friendly compromise has been reached in the Minnesota legislature over mining near trout streams. Meanwhile, a new report commissioned and published by the Wisconsin Farmers Union, the Wisconsin Towns Association and the Minneapolis-based IATP suggests that industrial sand mining falls short as an engine of job creation.
The lawmaker who has pushed this year for tougher state regulation of
the frac sand mining industry said DFL legislative leaders have reached
a compromise on the legislation.
Lawmakers agreed Tuesday to create a
new Department of Natural Resources permit for companies hoping to mine
silica sand in certain sensitive areas in southeastern Minnesota, said
Sen. Matt Schmit, DFL-Red Wing. Schmit said the regulations will be part
of the spending bill that covers natural resources, the environment and
agriculture.
Schmit and DNR Commissioner Tom
Landwehr had been pushing to prohibit sand mining within one mile of a
trout stream or spring in the "Paleozoic Plateau Ecological Section" of
the state, which includes Dakota, Goodhue, Houston, Fillmore, Olmsted,
Wabasha and Winona counties. The compromise expected to gain conference
committee approval would instead require a hydrological study and DNR
permit for any mine within a mile of a trout stream but not springs,
Schmit said.
"What this gives us is stricter
scrutiny in the most sensitive regions of southeastern Minnesota,"
Schmit said. "If that study proves that mining will have no or limited
impact on our waters, then we can move forward with the DNR permit, so I
think this is a good compromise. I do think it gives notice that the
areas around our trout streams are going to be watched very closely and
creates an incentive for mining to take place elsewhere.". ..
In a retreat from tough language that would have put much of
southeastern Minnesota off limits to frac sand mining, state officials
have reached a compromise that will allow mines near the region’s trout
streams, but only if companies follow new permitting rules.
As part of a deal announced Tuesday, Sen. Matt Schmit,
DFL-Red Wing, said he’ll drop his effort to ban frac sand mining within a
mile of any trout stream in the southeast corner of the state. The ban
was embraced by Gov. Mark Dayton until a compromise emerged at a recent
meeting with Schmit, industry lobbyists, three state agency heads and
organized labor.
If the deal goes as expected, the 2013 legislative
session will end without sweeping statewide environmental protections
sought by a throng of “fractivists” from areas around Red Wing, Wabasha,
Winona and other parts of the bluff country known as Minnesota’s
Paleozoic Plateau. . . .
New report challenges industry gospel on job creation
Those cheerleading the strip mining of Minnesota's Bluff Country carry on about jobs, usually citing figures promotedby the Heartland Institute, but those projections have their critics. Yesterday, the WFU and other organizations released a new report about the economics of Wisconsin's industrial sand mining.
The study, conducted by Thomas
Power, a retired University of Montana economist and an expert on the
economics of mining, concluded that the economic effects of silica sand
production used in mining is likely to be quite small.
Drawing from data collected by the
federal government and the state of Wisconsin, production could create
about 2,300 jobs, but that's less than one percent of total employment
statewide. The frac sand region creates about the same number of jobs in
all categories every two months, Power said.
Power cites the following as reasons
for mining's poor performance in creating healthy economies:
• Fluctuations in demand
• Increasing mechanization
• Mines depleted more quickly
• Workers commute long distances, families live elsewhere
• Small local economies can't supply mines
• Impacts on the environment make the region a less attractive place to live and visit
• Can discourage other businesses by paying high wages and degrading the environment
Photo: Citizens seeking legislative relief for themselves and trout were disappointed by a compromise with weak protections for trout and other living things.
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Early Wednesday morning, Bluestem watched the Senate debate on the bill to allow home child care providered and personal care assistants the ability to organize.
. . . The bill would allow two groups of workers to vote on whether to form a union:
-- Licensed and unlicensed in-home child care providers who care for children receiving state subsidies.
-- Personal care attendants who care for the disabled and elderly in their homes.
Supporters say the bill secures greater access for recipients and
better working conditions for providers. But the issue has sparked the
ire of Republicans who have been fighting the bill all session, focusing
most of the debate on including child care providers. They
argued it's just the DFL's political payoff to organized labor that
helped them grab the majority in last fall's election.
Majority Leader Bakk spoke out, concluding [partial transcript from video below]:
"It just gives this group of workers, that don't have the right to have a
vote, an opportunity to decide if they can form a union and form a
bargaining unit so that they can bargain for some of the things that my
union card has provided for me. My whole working career with the
carpenters union, I've had health insurance provided for by my employer
through a Taft-Hartley labor management trust fund.
Members, in the
first of every month I draw defined pension fund because I'm retired
from there--a pension fund of over thirty years of contributions that my
employer put into that. This union card put food on the table for my
family my whole life. It bought that car that sits out on the south of
the Capitol lawn. It put my kids through college.
Because without it,
you're alone and you have no power to improve your standard of living
because you stand by yourself. But in a union, you have the opportunity
to get together and there is power in numbers and you can raise the
standard of living of the whole. "
Here's a video clip. The remarks come near the end:
Photo: Tom Bakk speaking for the right to organize.
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Bluestem's been an unabashed fan of Vicki Jensen ever since we got to know her and husband Trevor via the Minnesota Farmers Union. While we didn't always see eye-to-eye on some farm policy, her strong positions on education and women's issues clinched the admiration.
Now she's getting the news coverage her political courage in yesterday's Senate vote deserves. The Mankato Free Press's Dan Linehan reports in Gay marriage hits home for minister:
Sen. Vicki Jensen, a Democrat who lives in Owatonna and also represents
Waseca, was the only south-central Minnesota legislator to speak on the
floor. Her district supported last fall’s constitutional amendment
banning gay marriage 57 percent to 43 percent.
She said the issue was clarified for her by the 2009 Iowa Supreme Court
case Varnum v. Brien, in which that court decreed that Iowa’s law
restricting marriage to opposite-sex couples violated the state’s
constitution.
“At the heart is the doctrine of equal protection, and that’s my opinion as well,” Jensen said.
In other words, the government has to treat same- and opposite-sex
marriages the same because there’s no legal reason to treat them
differently.
Jensen said the Capitol was filled with supporters and opponents of
the bill, similar to the scene last Thursday when the House voted.
“There was just so much excitement and people
here. I’m so proud to have been a part of it. I think it’s democracy at
its best. It was a great experience.”
Jensen said she studied the issue over and over
again before deciding to vote for the bill. She looked at the 2009 Iowa
Supreme Court case that struck down the law forbidding gay marriage in
the Hawkeye state, saying it was unconstitutional to deny rights to
same-sex couples. She said that case offered clarity on the issue.
“I’m somebody who puts a lot of heart and passion
into every vote, whether it’s taxes or gay marriage. I study what I can
to understand every implication.”
Several supporters of the gay marriage bill took to the People’s Press’ Facebook page to thank Jensen for her vote
“Thank you Senator Jensen for voting for equal rights for all!” wrote Julie Perkins Dunn. “Why I voted for you!”
Jimmy Harris wrote that marriage in the legal sense has nothing to do with God, or even love, for that matter.
“It is a system to determine property division,
probate, child custody, insurance, and the like. Those questions of law
should absolutely apply to every citizen equally,” Harris wrote.
Senator Vicki Jensen (DFL-District 24) said, "I could never and I would
never deny the kind of recognition and all the other positive things I
get out of my marriage with my husband, to anyone else."
Campaigning last year, Jensen had told voters in her district that she opposed the amendment to restrict marriage and supported the freedom to marry for all loving couples. They supported the amendment but also elected her.
Photo: Senator Jensen presiding over the Minnesota Senate last week. Definitely not an Emo Senator, although she replaced one.
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Bluestem's world headquarters recently relocated to sunny Maynard in order to be closer to the upper Minnesota River, loveliest of prairie rivers.
The local watershed protectors, Clean Up the River Environment (CURE), will be hosting the Minnesota River History Weekend and Minnesota State Water Trails 50th Anniversary on Friday through Sunday. If you're a reader who wonders why the dirty hippies out here make such a fuss about threats to the upper valley's tranquility, consider checking this out:
Friday evening:
Grab some popcorn at Granite Falls' famous local Popcorn Stand and head over to watch a film and listen to great speakers!
with producers John Hickman and Jon Carlson (7 PM). This film tells
the story of people from all walks of life - academics, farmers,
natural resource professionals, anglers, homeowners, students, paddlers,
politicians, and citizen activists - who are working together to solve
the problems facing the Minnesota River. Read more about the film and speakers here.
with Erik Wrede, MN DNR Water Trails Coordinator and special guest Paul Ryberg (8 PM). Minnesota has the first and largest Water Trails system in the nation. Come
learn about the early years of the system, and the trip planning
resources and paddling opportunities that are now available. Plus, special guest Paul Ryberg will tell stories about growing up on the Minnesota River with his
family that will be honored for their efforts to "unleash the
recreational giant of canoeing." Read more about the presentation and
speakers here. Read more about the presentation and speakers here.
PRESENTATION. Reconnecting the Minnesota River by Luther Aadland, River Scientist, MN DNR (9:30 PM). His
work, research, and publications have included a wide variety of topics
that integrate physical and biological processes of rivers and the
design of river restoration, nature-like fish passage, dam removal,
erosion control, and flood damage reduction projects. Read more about Luther here.
Saturday's events include Paddling Theater, with options for riding on large fur-trading style canoes or on your own craft. Sunday is a self-organized paddling on the Chippewa River, Hawk Creek, Minnesota River and Yellow Medicine River meet at Memorial Park.
Talk politics for any length of time with Rochester area businessman Chris Holloway, a transplant from the Show Me State, and it's clear the Missouri native's no Republican in Name Only, but a principled conservative who favors small government and individual liberty.
He's worked to elect conservative Republicans in both states. He just finished a round of service on the Olmsted County Republican Executive Board. He co-chaired the BPOU's finance committee with 2008 Republican congressional candidate Brian Davis.
He also spent the last year or so working to defeat the amendment to restrict the freedom to marry in 2012, then pitching in to help pass the Clark/Dibble bill to extend marriage equality to all committed couples.
The Minnesota House passed its version of the bill in a bipartisan vote on Thursday, and the state senate will take up the bill shortly after it convenes today at noon. Governor Mark Dayton has pledged to sign the bill into law. While the bill has the votes to win in the DFL majority, marriage equality supporters are still wooing Republican senators.
"All Minnesotans should have the same rights and
freedoms," Holloway says. "I have friends who wish to marry. Straight allies across the state want marriage equality. It's obviously important to a lot of Minnesotans."
Holloway hopes to one day marry his partner of six years, though he's clear on the distinction between civil and religious marriage. "I'm a life-long Catholic," he said, "I strongly believe in religious freedom and the right of churches and other faith communities to decide who they will marry and who they will not."
In fact, Holloway voted for a 2004 amendment to the Missouri state constitution to restrict the right to marry to one man and one woman. "It's been hard to explain my vote to people in the Minnesota campaign, but I felt that without the amendment, I there was no protection for freedom of religion, the religious component of marriage.'
"The [Missouri] campaign against the amendment didn't do a very good job explaining this," he said, observing that Minnesotans United--and legislation it supports--has stressed the exemptions that guarantee religious freedom.
'In fact, last year's amendment would have written religious restrictions by the state into the constitution," he said. "There are churches that want to be able to marry committed couples regardless of identity.'
Holloway wants his own state senator, Carla Nelson, and the Rochester area's other Republican senator, former Majority Leader Dave Senjem, to vote yes today.
First, the bill supports Republican values that put individual liberty above government control. 'As Republicans," he said, "we talk about smaller government,
staying out of people’s lives. When I weigh positives of this bill against negatives, it's a pretty clear
choice. Carla [Nelson] should vote yes."
Second, the consequences of the bill will be good for Minnesota. 'It’s only going to positively affect Minnesotans," Holloway said. "It’s pretty simple."
'It's good for children. It’s going to positively affect the children of same-sex couples. The children will receive the legal protections of marriage. Having married parents will help them be more accepted as they grow older.'
'When I look to other states where same-sex marriage is legal," Holloway continued, 'I’ve seen nothing negative."
Were Senator Nelson and Senjem to vote yes, they would be a validating Republican principles.
"Ultimately, individual freedom is a Republican ideal,' Holloway said, "and at the end of the
day I would hope more Republican legislators would be able to see that."
Editor's note: One of the first people Bluestem interviewed for our series of posts about supporters of the freedom to marry was Naomi Wente, a gifted University of Minnesota--Morris senior. Wente graduated from the U this weekend.
We reached out to Naomi's mother to see if she and Naomi's father might be interested in being interviewed for a post that shared their views on tomorrow's historic vote on the Dibble marriage equality bill in the Minnesota state senate, the last step before the measure goes to Governor Mark Dayton's desk. The goal would be to appeal to Senator Dave Senjem to join Senator Branden Petersen (R-Andover) in voting for marriage equality.
This is her response.
Dear Senator Senjem,
This past week has been important to us as parents for two reasons. First, our daughter, Naomi Wente, graduated from college yesterday. Naomi has been recognized by many for her strong passion for helping others here locally and internationally. At the age of 14, she was recognized for her work in Cambodia. She led a campaign to help keep girls in school called: One Toilet at a Time. The idea was to help girls overcome the problem of the lack of sanitation. She wanted to take away even one reason for girls not going to school. Yesterday, our grown daughter, no longer a girl, achieved her goal: a college degree!
Your notes of congratulations have been sent for her national awards, state service learning projects, and international competitions. She has a photograph of you and her after receiving the Olmsted County Youth Commission Award. I am thinking that as you did for her high school graduations, you and your office will be sending congratulations to graduating seniors again this year.
We hope that one day she might get a chance to say congratulations to you -- congratulations for standing on the side of dignity, justice and joy. When I met you in the state capitol a few weeks ago, and in a letter last week, I shared with you the story of Naomi wondering if she would ever hear the word, "Congratulations" at her wedding. Our amazing daughter who has motivated so many to join her in her quest for justice over these years is now needing your support and motivation to support her -- to support her in her drive to see marriage equality in Minnesota.
Tomorrow we could do just that -- we could shake your hand and say congratulations to you for taking a strong stand on supporting Marriage for all.
Mark and I will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary in just over a month. We have been privileged to live our lives with two children who have enriched our lives. Mark and I have brought both children to church from cradle to adulthood. We have volunteered with them for local events as well as internationally in Cambodia. Our family has stood up for human rights together -- all four of us speaking at hundreds of schools, churches, community groups and organizations as well as academic conferences. People have told us how fortunate we are that our family is so strong and have asked us why our kids are so amazing. We share that while we have our own ups and downs, we are so proud of our children. I believe it is due to our deep faith -- and our charge, as Christians, to live the word of Jesus. Because our faith calls us to be faithful to each other in our marriage, we hope Naomi will have a chance to do so through marriage should she find someone to share her life with as well.
Thank you for your consideration. I interviewed you 8 years ago for the Post Bulletin. You told me then that the hardest thing in your job was finding that supposed black and white area in social issues. More recently, at the Lobby Day three weeks ago, you shared with me that so many young people seem to have a different view about homosexuality. I think the youth of today are connected to their world like no other generation. They see oppression; they know injustice when they see it. Help us to help them say congratulations to you for voting on the side of justice.
Thank you from the voices of rural America. In rural Minnesota this issue impacts us greatly.
Lori Halverson-Wente
Dodge Center, Minnesota
Photos: Mark and Lori Halverson-Wente in a Scandinavian church. Photo by Naomi Wente (above); Lori Halverson-Wente (adult on left) and her daughter Naomi (foreground, right) with Cambodian girls. Photo by Trisha Greenlee (below).
This original story is underwritten by a sponsorship by Minnesotans United for All Families.
Musician Mark Gunderson and his wife Jean, a nurse in the Mayo system, see themselves as ordinary citizens who value fairness.
"We’re average middle class Minnesotans, college educated and employed in our respective occupations for many years," Mark wrote in an email interview with Bluestem. "We always try to be aware of public issues important to all Minnesotans."
The Winona couple, described by a mutual friend as "well-loved" in their community, wants state senator Jeremy Miller to vote yes for the freedom to marry when the Dibble marriage equality bill comes up for consideration by the Minnesota state senate.
"Our state Senator should vote yes for this bill because quite simply it’s the right thing to do," Mark told Bluestem Prairie. "Marriage equality is important to us because we feel it is or should be a human/civil right for people to have the right to marry who they love."
The question of civil rights for everyone isn't entirely abstract for them, but has been brought home by the experiences of a family member.
"Over the last several years we’ve had an opportunity to learn more about gender issues as our daughter navigates her way through establishing her own identity. She’s taught us a lot," Mark confided in his email.
"We favor marriage equality because this will allow same sex couples who
marry to enjoy the same benefits as heterosexual couples," he noted, adding that the passage of the bill will make the Gopher State truly "Minnesota Nice."
"Passing the freedom to marry bill will help the state become more inclusive and accessible for all families," Mark said.
The Gundersons understand that some fellow Minnesotans fear change, but Mark cited a phrase by the state's most well-known singer-songwriter in hopes of relieving that anxiety. "If we were to sit down with an opponent of the freedom to marry bill we would say: 'the times they are a changin’'. Ten years from now, no one will care."
Photo: Mark and Jean Gunderson.
This original story is underwritten by a sponsorship by Minnesotans United for All Families.
When Senator Bruce Anderson introduced a bill to name the lyrics to the little-known song, "Minnesota Blue" as state poem, few noted nor long remembered that Minnesota does have a poet laureate (many thought that one veto by former Governor Pawlenty had settled the question) .
At the time of the bill's introduction, poet laureate Joyce Sutphen, who lives in Chaska while teaching at Gustavus Adolphus, graciously suggested that given Minnesota's fine crop of poets, a better idea might be to have a webpage where readers might savor the abundant poesy in these parts. Bluestem rather liked that idea--especially if more traditional works by poets like Robert Bly and John Berryman could jostle with videos by spoken word artists like Guante and Lioness.
Sutphen served as chaplain on Friday in the Minnesota House. Via The Uptake, here is the poem she read:
Photo:Joyce Sutphen.
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Meanwhile, Schmit lanuched an air war, the Red Wing Republican Eagle's Michael Brun reports in A bird’s-eye view of mining:
While debate over mining policy continues in St. Paul, Sen. Matt
Schmit chartered flights out of Red Wing Regional Airport Friday for
reporters to get a bird’s-eye view of the impact frac sand mines are
having across the river in Wisconsin.
The roughly hourlong flight,
piloted by Jim McIlrath from Frontenac in his homemade, single-engine
plane, toured more than a dozen mines dotting the Wisconsin countryside
around Menomonie and Eau Claire. . . .
. . .The Red Wing Democrat has been an active proponent in the Senate for increased regulation for frac sand mining in Minnesota.
He
has been involved with a number of mining-related bills in his
inaugural legislative session, including sponsoring an amendment to an
environmental bill that would prohibit frac sand mining within a mile of
state trout streams in southeastern Minnesota.
Read the rest at the Red Wing Republican Eagle. Meanwhile, in the Fillmore County, rural Houston resident Joan Redig noted in a Letter about Senator Miller and sand mining:
Sen. Matt Schmit of Red Wing, working with Trout Unlimited, has proposed provisions to protect trout streams in Southeast Minnesota from damage resulting from frac sand mining. He wanted these provisions included in the Game and Fish Policy Bill, Senate File 796. Pristine cold water springs in our karst area create some of the best trout streams in the United States. Frac sand mining threatens to pollute this water, and disrupt the flow of springs in ways that would raise the water temperature. Death for our trout. Our state has invested millions in stocking and protecting these streams. Trout fishing has provided over a billion dollars in economic activity in the Driftless Area. These special provisions in SF 796 only apply to the Paleozoic Plateau, which is our part of the Driftless Area.
We live within a mile of an old quarry being considered for frac sand mining. It is at the head of a drainage system which feeds our springs and a stream which flows into Money Creek, a tributary of Root River. All of this is threatened because we have no state level standards to protect our region’s trout streams. Sen. Schmit proposed: a mile setback from trout streams; a limit on how much groundwater frac sand facilities could use; and limiting mining to within 25 feet of the water table. DNR Commissioner Landwehr testified we need all of these provisions to protect the trout streams and groundwater. Despite this knowledge, Sen. Miller cast the deciding vote to kill these provisions. . . .
Finish reading the letter at the Journal. Bluestem understands that there's been discussion in the environment, natural resources and ag bill conference committee, but audio archives have yet to be posted. We'll listen to see what of interest was said and report back as they become available.
Photo: A silica sand mine near Menomonie, Wis. Aerial photo by Michael
Brun/Republican Eagle.
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These are the glory days for the sons and daughters of the Gopher State.
It's mid-May, and the rhubarb is finally ready (albeit Bluestem's acre was a bit stiff from last night's hard freeze but nothing that a little stewing didn't solved), the walleye gods were good to the governor, and the Minnesota Legislature will not only adjourn on time, but the Senate's going to pass the Dibble freedom to marry bill.
Views
on gay marriage are evolving, [Former Minnesota House Speaker Steve] Sviggum said, and "I don't think it's good
for Republicans necessarily to stand in the way of the evolution of an
issue."
Democrats were out front on the issue. From Obama to the mayors
of the Twin Cities, many spoke out in favor of legalizing gay marriage.
Some Republicans are pushing their party to change.
The public affairs firm of Carl Kuhl -- once an aide to former
U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman and gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer, both
Republicans -- started working with Minnesotans United for All Families
last year to craft their message against the amendment.
Polls and surveys found that about 80 percent of 18- to
29-year-olds supported marriage equality, Kuhl said. The numbers were
similar for suburban women regardless of age. And, he said, many of the
younger voters aligned with Republicans on other issues but voted DFL
because they saw the GOP as the opposition party to same-sex marriage.
"They could not move beyond that to vote for Republicans," Kuhl
said. "And if we can't be a more inclusive party, we become irrelevant."
It's become quite popular for opponents of the freedom to marry to introduce their fear of the B-word into the discussion, while in some progressive circles, discussing opponents' perceived bigotry overshadowed any celebration of this week's tremendous victory in the bipartisan vote to legalize same-sex marriage.
This seems like an approach contrived to heighten divisiveness on both sides, rather than to heal and unite the state so that we can come together and work on some other very serious issues facing us as Minnesotans.
We doubt either side plans to deliberately chafe the body politic, however symbiotic the friction may seem at times.
After the vote, the editorial board of the New Ulm Journal concluded in Gay marriage vote:
Some fear that those who continue to oppose same-sex marriage will be
branded as "bigots." Name calling certainly can be a problem with as
volatile an issue as this, and both sides are guilty of it.
The
debate in the House Thursday was remarkable for its respectful tone.
Proponents and opponents alike spoke their pieces calmly, with obvious
emotion, but with respect for each other and their differing opinions.
We hope people throughout the state can do the same. We have to, if we want to remain a civil society.
[Representative Patti Fritz's] track record regarding altering the state's constitution is
clear: She doesn't like messing with it. She also voted against last
fall's proposed constitutional amendment that would've banned gay
marriage.
And while many said on the Faribault Daily News
Facebook page this week that they would like to see Fritz support
same-sex marriage, none spoke louder than Liz Fritz, a niece of Rep.
Fritz’s who is gay.
On Thursday, Liz Fritz said she was hurt by her
aunt’s vote but that Patti is “still my aunt and I love her.” Rep. Fritz
said her niece has never talked to her about her sexual orientation,
but that she would be open to the conversation.
Still, she said she wouldn’t change her vote.
“I make up my own mind,” Fritz said. “But I love
her as much as she loves me. We’re a very loving and supporting family,
the Fritz’s, and we’ve been through a lot.”
Not all families with LGBT members are so loving, nor are their straight relatives as unbending. Take Representative Shannon Savick, in the same article:
DFL Rep. Shannon Savick, whose district includes Blooming Prairie,
voted for the bill. She told the Associated Press on Tuesday that she
would vote for the bill, even if it costs her re-election in 2014. She
said her brother is gay, and she doesn't see why he shouldn't marry the
person he loves.
“It could cost me the election. I represent a
very conservative area. I hope I do enough good in other areas that they
will overlook that,” said Savick, a first-term representative who
defeated incumbent Rich Murray by 653 votes last November.
Bachmann: It’s no secret that our nation may very well
be experiencing the hand of judgment. It’s no secret that we all are
concerned that our nation may be in a time of decline. If that is in
fact so, what is the answer? The answer is what we are doing here today:
humbling ourselves before an almighty God, crying out to an almighty
God, saying not of ourselves but you, would you save us oh God? We
repent of our sins, we turn away from them, we seek you, we seek your
ways. That’s something that we’re doing today, that we did on the
National Day of Prayer, it’s something that we have chosen to do as well
on another landmark day later this year on September 11. Our nation has
seen judgment not once but twice on September 11. That’s why we’re
going to have ‘9/11 Pray’ on that day. Is there anything better that we
can do on that day rather than to humble ourselves and to pray to an
almighty God?
Lovely. Perhaps Minnesotans need a rhetorical Patriot Guard to shield us from this sort of nonsense?
Here's the video:
Photo: Some Westboro Baptist signs.
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On Monday, the Minnesota House passed an anti-bullying bill on a 72-57 vote. Post Bulletin political reporter Heather Carlson wrote in House passes sweeping anti-bullying bill:
“We should have a bill that develop resiliency in kids and makes them
strong,” said Rep. Steve Drazkowski, R-Mazeppa. "But this one goes the other direction. Instead of
making kids stronger, it encourages them into a path of victimhood."
Rep. Steve Drazkowski has said some strident
things during his nearly six years in the Legislature, but his
repudiation of the anti-bullying bill passed by the Minnesota House
might be his harshest rhetoric yet. . . .
Drazkowski, a Republican from Mazeppa, sent a disturbing message with
his criticism of the Safe Schools and Supportive Minnesota Schools Act.
By using the words "resiliency" and "path to victimhood," Drazkowski
essentially told bullied students to toughen up because it builds
character and makes you stronger.
Tell that to Ann Gettis, a Kenyon woman whose
21-year-old son took his own life in 2006. Gettis appeared before the
House Education Policy Committee, testifying that "I really believe that
the years of being bullied darkened his perspective." Tell that to the
families of two Rochester-area teenagers who committed suicide in 2012,
with bullying being a likely factor in their tragic decisions. . . .
Read the rest at the PB. The board concludes:
We've had occasion in the past to commend Drazkowski for his candor and
his willingness to take unpopular stands. On this particular topic,
however, he sounds a bit like a bully.
Today, Draz is stilling making heads shake. While the House was considering a bill for a legislative water commission, the Mazeppa lawmaker got a bit off topic. Representative Danny Schoen tweeted:
Rep. Drazkowski brings up gay marriage while debating a water quality issue bill.#mnleg
Today the Star Tribune newspaper ran an editorial in support of strong regulation of the frac sand industry. The editorial, entitled "Minnesota Legislature must protect trout streams," says in part:
“Schmit’s common-sense legislation, which
will likely face a critical Senate floor vote today, proposes a
reasonable 5,000-foot-setback for sand mines from trout streams and the
springs that feed them. Mining also couldn’t occur within 25 feet of the
water table. The aim is straightforward: to protect the flow of the
cold, clear waters that are the lifeblood of the region’s renowned trout
fishery and, by extension, the jobs dependent on angling tourism.
Cutting off springs or groundwater flow through careless excavation
could reduce stream flows and increase water temperature to levels
lethal to trout...The setbacks called for in the legislation are based
on the best available research and would significantly reduce the risk
of environmental damage. Waiting years to gather data for a more
tailored approach isn’t practical. The damage to critical trout habitat
may already have been done by then."
This vote is happening today on the Senate floor as early as
mid-morning. Sen. Matt Schmit of Red Wing will offer his amendment on
the Senate floor to the Omnibus Game and Fish Bill (Senate File 796) to
protect southeast Minnesota trout streams from frac sand mining and
processing.
Take Action. Contact your Senator immediately and
urge them to support Sen. Schmit’s amendment. You can find your state
Senator's name and contact information onlinehere, or by calling 651-296-0504 or 888-234-1112.
Suggested message: “Today Sen. Matt Schmit will
offer an amendment on the Senate floor to protect southeast Minnesota
trout streams from frac sand mining. I strongly encourage you to support
this amendment, which will include a setback from trout streams for
frac sand mines. The Star Tribune editorial had it right today
when it said that these setbacks "are based on the best available
research and would significantly reduce the rise of environmental
damage." I will check back in tomorrow to see how you voted on this
amendment."
You can watch the debate on the Senate floor online here.
All of the statements, opinions, and views expressed on this site by Sally Jo Sorensen are solely her own, save when she attributes them to other sources.
The opinions, statements, and views of contributing writers are their own.
Sorensen, editor and proprietor of Bluestem Prairie, served as a New Media training and strategy consultant for the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party from October 2009 through mid-April 2010. She now serves clients in the business and nonprofit sectors.
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