Two congressmen — Democratic Rep. Tim Walz and Republican Rep. Erik Paulsen — joined leaders of labor unions and the state Chamber of Commerce in seeking the repeal of Minnesota’s nuclear moratorium.

Their public backing could put pressure on legislators from their areas considered swing votes in the debate. In April, a bid to lift the ban fell eight votes short in the House after convincingly winning approval in the Senate

Walz, who represents much of southern Minnesota, said he doesn’t discount concerns over long-term waste storage. But he said there are environmental consequences to keeping the nuclear ban in place, too.

“Without a baseload of other alternatives here in Minnesota, quite honestly we’ve encouraged people and forced them into the coal business,” he said. “We want to give them other options.”

I have no questions that ending this law and building nuclear is the right thing to do. I believe that newer nuclear technology is safer and more efficient than the plants of the past. (See Also: Wind vs. Nuclear Power: Which Is Safer?
) And it’s my understanding that we are now able to get more power due to recycling nuclear waste.

Still, that’s just like, my opinion man.

What do you think?

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post’s poll.

It’s a constant message on Election Day: get out and vote. It’s generally accepted that the more voters, the better. The higher turnout, the better. But what about people who admit they don’t know anything about the issues or the candidates in a given race? Is an uninformed vote better than not voting at all?

A number of people chimed in with thoughtful response and many took the safe road saying they abstain if they are uninformed.

Now it’s honest time, at some point in our voting life we’ve all voted for someone that we didn’t know much about.

Hey, we’re all friends here, I’m not judging.

@howwastheshow ponied up some truth that inspired this post:

@justacoolcat @DeRushaJ’s GQ tonight was awesome. Seriously thought about it today. Was only informed on 50% of ballot, but voted on 75%.

When I was 18 I was known for picking based on a funny name or using the infinite-naughty-possibility-generator the write-in box. ( I know write-in isn’t exactly an uninformed vote, but for all practical purposes it’s a wasteful vote)

So here’s my question:

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post’s poll.

.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) said today that the violations by Bushmills Ethanol Inc. of Atwater stretched from 2006 to 2009. They included producing ethanol beyond the facility’s permitted capacity, failure to inspect and maintain production and pollution-control equipment, and exceeding allowable wastewater discharge limits.

Because of Bushmill’s violations, the MPCA said in a statement, the cooperative of more than 400 farmers “created a situation where the facility could potentially emit more regulated air pollutants than allowed by its permit.”

I just want to know when we start to get holding the flaks, that push the BS as “green”, responsible for the damage?

This line really strikes me as interesting “could potentially emit more regulated air pollutants than allowed by its permit”

Hmmm, if only Minnesota had a group that was constantly harping about any air pollutants being bad air pollutants.

… that is if only they weren’t in bed with the Minnesota Corn Growers Association. . .

Need something to do?
Check out this video TwinkieJiggles sent me in the middle of the night.

Need a little more to do? Go follow to Public Media Camp or just check the Twit feed #PubCamp. Via @juliaschrenkler

Dollar, dollar bill. Ya’ll

.

What protest you may ask?

Here are the details, Neo-nazi group plans protest of YWCA anti-racism workshop.

A group of neo-Nazis plan to protest an anti-racist workshop Saturday at the Midtown YWCA in Minneapolis, sparking plans for counter-protests from community members.

Forty people have registered for the workshop, titled “More Than Skin Deep: Uprooting White Privilege and White Supremacy One Cell at a Time.”

I like football.

And beer.

Best Day Ever sends the Internet some beer

I asked for some beer pics yesterday and @Best_day_ever decided to play along.

It’s good to see some people still like to have fun on the Internet, drink beer, and steal a football win within the last seconds of the game. TD!

Cheers.

Football!!!!!

SurlyFest and pumpkins from the garden.

Terry Straub
Program Coordinator
University of Minnesota Extension
Hennepin County Master Gardener Program
479 Prairie Center Drive
Eden Prairie, MN   55344-5378
P:  612.596.2130
F:  952.828.7280
Preferred E-mail at:  strau097@umn.edu
Hennepin County Master Gardener Hotline:  612.596.2118

Become a Master Gardener!  Applications are now on-line at www.hcmg.umn.edu.

“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”  Marcus Tullius Cicero

In health care, we vow to “first do no harm.” If only politicians had to make a similar promise.

As a family physician, I’ve spent a lot of time debunking myths about health care that my patients see on the Internet, late night TV or in the back pages of magazines.

I never dreamed I would have to debunk myths about health care from our elected officials and supposed leaders

…Before such people presume to regulate and reform my profession, they should try holding themselves to its ethical standards

“supposed leaders” Here, Here!
Hear, all ye good people, hear what this brilliant and eloquent speaker has to say!

Please feel free to spread or debunk a myth in the comments.

.

You heard.

It’s my understanding that Minnesota has some of the best teachers in the country and in my own personal experience that held to be true. We rank #1 in Academic Achievement, 2007-2008 and rank high in almost every possible category, except salaries and price spent per pupil.

The Strib published this excellent letter from Michael Kennedy: Teachers aren’t the problem that articulates some of the obstacles teachers face and addresses the criticisms in a way that should make school administrators and politicians feel like a naughty 5th grader.

To the politicians, commentators, educational consultants and others who feel the entire problem with education is the quality of teachers in certain schools: Back off. Go sit in the corner and put on that dunce cap. We’re the best asset you’ve got, and you are either too blind to see it or too limited in your imagination to grasp the fact that we are the strongest link in the chain. We are not the problem. We are the solution, but we cannot do our work as well as we wish unless you take some responsibility for the following factors in limited public education:

He then goes on to list several factors that make or break a school system, I’ll just show you this one as it rings most true with my beliefs.

1. Stability.
Schools that work in communities with stable populations do far better than schools where the populations are in perpetual turnover. Parents and students need to know what is expected of them from year to year in order to plan for the future. Schools with a stable faculty, a stable curriculum and reasonable expectations over the long run tend to do better. Schools with populations of families that move a lot — or with administrators who shift in the winds of intimidation or indifference — do poorly.

I’m looking at you run-around-Superintendants that start a job with a shell game where one hand shuffles the curriculum to the latest fashionable teaching methods while the other hand is filling out resumes for a higher paying/profile job.

Hey Meria Carstarphen, what lesson are you teaching kids?

Speaking of St.Paul the St. Paul school board OKs $25 million in budget cuts.

My favorite comment addresses Big Pappy Timmy Pass The Taxes On Pawlenty

“First budget kuts fall on the letter “c”.
ST. PAUL, MN – AP – Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s first announsed kut today was to remove the letter “c” from the alphabet. His reasoning is that we kan do just fine with about 95% of the kurrent letters, so losing a konsonant is not as big of a deal instead of a vowel. As well, the letter “c” kan easily be replased by either the letters “k” or “s” and was just another example of government waste.
posted by halfabubble “

Now that’s satire.

I’ll bet halfabubble had some good teachers.