Recent Entries

There hasn’t been much happening on the Canadian Pacific/ Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern railroad front lately. The Eastside Pioneers Neighborhood Association (ESPNA) has been watching, however, a few interesting things regarding the railroad.

We are watching the actions of the railroad out west of here, in South Dakota and Wyoming, regarding land acquisition and the use of eminent domain. The railroad’s continued interest in acquiring ranch land along the route of their proposed Powder River Basin Project can mean only one thing- that they intend to go through with the project.

It seems inconceivable that the CP/DME would even think of trying to follow through on the Powder River Basin project, at this point in time, as the Obama administration has expressed such negative feelings towards coal and coal-fired power plants. An administration that seemingly favors renewable energy over greenhouse gas-emitting coal fired power plants may not be too conducive to the establishment of a third rail carrier into the Powder River Basin. Building into the Powder River Basin would in effect be a major investment into the coal-fired power plants energy industry infrastructure. This could pose a significant problem for the CP/DME’s Powder River Basin Project depending on where public opinion falls on the cost of clean energy.

President Barack Obama has pledged to undertake a new policy that might be called “aggressive diplomacy” in dealing with long-standing problems in international relations.

It is aimed at peaceful settlement of issues that have threatened to result in open warfare. It would also be an abrupt reversal of the policies of George W. Bush that gave priority to military action.

An ideal place to start would be the long-standing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, which has resisted any permanent settlement. The recent attack by Israel in Gaza has demonstrated the frightful conditions that can result if no peaceful solution is ultimately reached. The U.S. could join with Egypt and other Middle Eastern nations and with our European allies in devising an agreement that could form the basis of a long-term peaceful relationship.

The tobacco companies have made news again.

The U.S. government has sued Atria, owner of the Philip Morris company, for deceptive advertising about light cigarettes. The government charged that the company’s ads stated --- falsely --- that light cigarettes are less harmful to smokers than regular cigarettes. The company denied the charge and plans to defend itself in court.

What is amazing about this is that the government is willing to take legal action to oppose a minor aspect of the tobacco companies’ operations, but has never thought of accusing them of murder. More than 430,000 people die every year of lung cancer and other ailments caused by cigarette smoking, but no one thinks about objecting to that.

The next presidential election is not scheduled until 2012.

The next few years offer a great opportunity to make much-needed changes in the way elections are conducted in the United States.

There are a number of well-defined changes that --- taken together --- could make conducting elections more efficient and could make them a more accurate reflection of what voters want to achieve.

Those changes are easy to state but difficult to accomplish. They include the following reforms:

1. Establish a universal voter registration program. Under this system, the federal government would assume responsibility for registering voters. Young people are registered when they become 18 and people who move to this country are registered when they establish residence.
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Who: Ron Halling, Minneapolis Guardian Angels and Frank Lee, national director, Guardian Angels.

What: Eastside Pioneers Neighborhood Association meeting

Where: City of Life Outreach Center, 804 East Center Street, Rochester, MN

When: Thursday, February 5, 7:00 PM

Why: From neighborhood safety patrols to school programs designed to prevent bullying and raise gang awareness, the Guardian Angels have helped communities all over the world be proactive in realizing the possibility of violence prevention.

This is an informational meeting, open to the public, regarding the history of the Guardian Angels, what they do and how they help keep a community safe.

Minnesota medical institutions--- including Mayo Clinic and Olmsted Medical Center --- have taken an important step in improving the quality of care given to patients undergoing surgery.

It involves reporting of serious errors made in treating patients in a way that makes the information readily available to the public. Annual reports on surgical errors that result in the death or serious injury of a patient have been required for several years, but the reports were not easily accessible to the public.

Now the reports are being made more frequently and are available to the news media. The result is a strong motivation to seek out the causes of errors and to take the necessary steps to reduce the number of errors.

The article below summaries the January 24, 2009, Coffee and Conversation forum entitled "Red Ink Rising: State Budget Trend Report". The PowerPoint presentation that presenters John Gonyou and Jay Kiedrowski gave can be viewed on our website at this link.

(This is the last of three columns dealing with defects in U.S. farm programs).

• 7. Given all these issues, it is clear that wholesale revisions of the nation’s farm policies and farm subsidy program are needed. If this can be done, there will be a long-term improvement in the nation’s health, in soil quality, in the lives of small farmers and in the nation’s economy.

Fortunately, there is a growing interest among farmers and others in solving these problems. The Land Stewardship Project, based in Minnesota, has long advocated major changes in the nation’s farm programs.

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Inspired by my summer internship with RNeighbors, I wrote my final paper for my Theory of Public Policy Course at the College of St. Benedict/Saint John's University in the Fall of 2008 on the changing social construction of downtown neighborhoods in Rochester, MN.

Utilizing theories of social construction from Helen Ingram, Anne L. Schneider, and Peter deLeon and personal interviews, I conclude on the current status of downtown neighborhoods (in terms of whether they are perceived as positive or negative and with high or low levels of power) and speculate briefly on policy implications from this shift in social construction.

This past summer, I was fortunate enough to have a full-time internship with RNeighbors, as part of the Jackson Fellowship through the McCarthy Center for Public Policy and Civic Engagement, of the College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's University in St. Joseph, MN.