Via MNspeak: In the state of Minnesota, it is illegal to sell an American flag made in another country. Hooray?

Actually, no. Not hooray. Here’s how I think this is the biggest logical contradiction ever:

1. This law, it can be assumed, was passed as a sort of attempt at American Pride. We have our own economy, damnit.

2. Those who would do this sort of thing, protectionist xenophobes, are all about USA #1 and all that (well, the rest of us are too, but more smartly so, I’d say).

So:

3. Wouldn’t we want China to be making our flags? What bigger slap in the face is there than to say “We’re too good to make our own flags. You make them for us.” And then you toss them a penny. That’s American Pride all the way, man!

I say we make a law that says only the countries we hate the most can make our flags.

Either way, this law is pointless and dumb.

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Just a crazy example of how worlds collide through the internet.

Originally uploaded by Opheliac9.

Like Jason, I found out about the Flickr photo via Twitter. It was like, “Hey, I know that guy in the picture! And I know who took the picture! And it’s all on the internet right now as it’s happening!”

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live.eat.play.twin cities: DIY St Paul walking tours

Minnescoota, for the Minnesota scooter enthusiast.

Minneapolis Issues Forum: Dyna Slyter, who part-times in Starbuck, MN, asks folks to give her one reason to come back to Minneapolis. The response is a resounding, “Pffffffft, whatever.”

MPLS Mirror: Recapping a presentation on the five problems the MPD faces in preventing crime and keeping neighborhoods safe and how they’re trying to address them.

Minnov8: On bringing broadband to every Minnesotan, completely with analogy to railroads.

Gather: Michael Caputo likes the 5-day skyway leases being granted for the RNC, because it’s better than the current state of Saint Paul skyway suckitude quiet.

TC Daily Planet: Another South High/MTN project, this time on bicycle culture.

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Fringe is fast-approaching. This year’s Fringe Festival schedule is now available for viewing. Shows run July 31-August 10 in 18 venues in Uptown, the West Bank, and North Loop/Northeast.

Start planning your schedule now with a little preview help from one or both Fringe-For-All showcases or at a library near you. I found it to be as helpful in ruling out some shows as it was in selecting shows.

Now’s the time to sign up to volunteer. It takes about 500 volunteers to man the Fringe each year. Working one show gets you a ticket to one show. You can be a box officer, usher, sidekick, on-call box officer, or a lobby meister. There’s training, a manual, and a t-shirt! Who doesn’t like a free t-shirt?

I’ll probably be volunteering this year, so between that and accidentally scheduling a weekend in Grand Marais over the first weekend of the festival, I’ll be seeing less shows than usual. In the past I’ve taken vacation time for this. This is hands down one of my favorite events of the year in the Twin Cities.

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Under Construction

(’Under Construction’ uploaded on June 27, 2008 by justthejustman1 ) 

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Courtney and Max “Bunny” Sparber, that is.

Pictured is Max as his jetpack tour continues in San Francisco thanks to Courtney.

VIA MnSpeak ‘producers at Pixar were so touched and motivated by Courtney’s reaction to the Wall-E trailer that they flew her out to San Francisco to party with them’

Read More: Feeling California…

Have you seen the movie?

(Photo uploaded on June 2, 2008
by Eda Cherry )

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What little local and national mainstream media I’ve consumed this week has all mentioned the upcoming “4th of July” holiday in one way or another (weather, sports, recreational events, etc).

And it got me thinking about something that concerns me every year around this time…Why is Independence Day, arguably one of our country’s most sacred and important holidays, the only holiday we refer to by the day of the year?

No one calls Halloween the Thirty-First of October or Christmas the Twenty-Fifth of December. That would sound odd now, wouldn’t it? Yet Independence Day has become the Fourth of July in popular culture almost unapologetically.

As our culture and media increasingly focus more on vacation, barbecues, fireworks, Taste of Minnesota, parades, et al, I often feel it’s disrespectful and irreverent to fog over the true meaning of Independence Day in the name of political correctness.

True, the adoption of the Declaration of Independence is associated with July 4, 1776 — the day our forefathers declared independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain in one document that summed up provisions of Natural Law and principles of justice.

And while much has been written about the decision to seek independence rather than seeking traditional colonist rights as British subjects, I think we tend to forget about the sacrifices made to have the freedom to partake in cheese curds at Taste each year on July 4th.

What do you think?

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TC Biz Journal: Wal-Mart found guilty of violating Minnesota’s labor laws. “[Dakota County] District Judge Robert King Jr. ruled after a nonjury trial that Bentonville, Ark.-based retail giant Wal-Mart owes employees $6.5 million, and faces up to an additional $2 billion in damages.”

MinnPost: “[Minneapolis Mayor R.T.] Rybak has been elected as vice president for communications of the National Conference of Democratic Mayors, which means he’ll be a spokesman on national urban issues for that organization.”

TC Daily Planet: South High School students, with the help of the Minneapolis Television Network, produced a video of interviews with undocumented workers their age.

Rhubarbarism: Amazon bookstore is staying open but the cooperative ownership is ending. Nice further discussion on co-ops in the Twin Cities.

Patent Pending: St. Cloud State’s masters program in regulatory affairs is entering it’s second year. This is near and dear to my heart, since I work for Satan Big Pharma. Their focus is mainly on servicing the medical device industry, but any industry regulated by the FDA faces similar challenges.

TC Daily Planet: Dan Wilson tells the story behind Semisonic’s “Closing Time” “I figured Wilson would be sick of playing ‘Closing Time’ by now, but he managed to revive and re-contextualize this once-ubiquitous hit single in a refreshing way.”

MPR: Six MnSCU schools to pilot textbook rental programs.

MnIndy: All the while I was worried about Lowe’s buying ad space in our parks, Toyota already had a deal in the works.

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Andy Driscoll is the host of KFAI’s Truth to Tell, a show I have come to love and a must-listen for anyone who is curious about the issues we face in the Twin Cities metro. While something about Andy’s voice vaguely creeps me out, dude has been around a long time, knows his stuff, and knows all the players.

Apparently Archbishop John Nienstedt’s cancellation of St. Joan of Arc’s Pride celebration got Andy’s dander up. This commentary is included in the show notes. I’ve not yet listened to the 6/25/08 episode of TTT (”Sexual Violence and Offenders” is the topic), but I presume he read it on air as well.

A Question for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis

Let us digress for a moment to ask this question of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis: what in God’s name is going on with you people that you feel compelled to impose some Neanderthal view of sexuality and sexual orientation as if Jesus Christ himself would condemn all who don’t reproduce, never mind their deep devotion to their Lord and their church? What earthly, let alone, heavenly, harm - other than Archbishop John Nienstadt’s personal and professional disgust with gays and Lesbians, could possibly be driving this idiotic intervention over St. Joan of Arc’s annual celebration and worship of Gay Pride week in the Twin Cities? Is the Church so insulated from public view that it doesn’t sense the rank hypocrisy of this unwarranted authoritarian exercise in light of its own clergy’s sexual history?

Now, I haven’t practiced pure Catholicism in 50 years, but I’ve watched my former faith take ten steps backward recently for every inch gained in behalf of the seriously wanting human condition over those years and cannot help but wonder if Christ himself isn’t turning over in his heavenly home over this prehistoric return to religious fascism.

St. Joan of Arc has been a model of Vatican II principles, providing an overarching cover for all Catholics, including the disaffected, welcoming all of God’s children under its large umbrella. That congregation and others of similar bent are getting hammered into submission by a theoretically celibate male hierarchy which apparently believes that a return to the catacombs is the only way to maintain its iron-fisted authority over purely personal choices to somehow stave off the devil’s entrapment.

What nonsense. And a truly sad commentary on a religious government that was showing such promise that it could live up to its name: Catholic. The name literally means universal, all-encompassing. Universal includes everyone exercising their free will under the teachings and example of their Lord himself. So. Since when did a few men with robes assume the authority to define that term for their own narrow application?

Shame on you, Your Excellency. This will backfire big time, as it has for so many years in other arenas of dicta, driving many Catholics into exile and cynicism.

©2008 Andy Driscoll

Amen, Andy!

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You know, sometimes I don’t like compromise.

I was excited at the prospect of all bars in the Twin Cities metro area (or even just the cities themselves) having 4 a.m. bar closing times. But, thanks to our wonderfully effective, not-stupid, puritanical phobia of alcohol (despite our great love for it, both from our economy and our stomachs), there are only thirty-two bars that even have the option of staying open, assuming they pay $2500. Which many of them won’t.

I wanted to be happy and excited about this, but not one of these bars is a bar I’ve been to more than once, which is to say none of my favorite bars are on the list. Dag, yo.

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Jesse Ventura was on Wait Wait (NPR’s “oddly informative news quiz”) back in May.

Metronet Library Wire. “Metronet is one of seven state-funded multitype library networks created by the Minnesota Legislature in 1979. Unlike the regional public library systems, which were also established that same year, the multitype networks serve all types of libraries—school, public, college and university and special libraries—in their respective regions. Metronet’s region is the seven county metropolitan area including the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.”

Am I crazy, or did KFAI.org get a design refresh? I suppose both could be true.

Aaron says Electra Tune is a great place to have your car serviced.

live.eat.play.twin cities celebrates the perfect Minnesota summer night.

Johnny Northside has a marketing plan for North Minneapolis. It’s pretty detailed, and with a counter-point/counter-counter-point in the comments. (via The Deets)

David Brauer tells us why the oxo-biodegradable bags the STrib is now delivered in are not actually that environmentally friendly.

MNspeak now requiring registration to comment. And y’all complained when we did it.

Bob Collins loves the blimp. I assumed it was here for that golf tournament thingy that was going on all week.

At a minimum, the Urban Renaissance Coalition blog is always good for a frothy rant on the issue of the day. More often than not, it’s a case of well-placed righteous anger that’s just a little bit lacking in coherent argument. Por ejemplo: “Minneapolis Community Engagement … Why is this so difficult” and “Juneteenth shooting .. Where is the outrage”

Graeme Thickins has the scoop on the Minnesota Cup business plan competition at Minnov8. Semifinalists were named last week.

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While the Minnesota Zoo is always a favorite, there’s a special place in my heart for the Como Zoo.

According to Wikipedia (which someone has yet to update to reflect the new Tropical Encounters Exhibit):

The first zoo in Saint Paul was on Harriet Island when in 1897, the city of St. Paul received a gift of three deer. Additional animals followed, when more room was needed to house the animals they were moved to facilities at Como Park.

Set within the lush 384 Como Park in North Saint Paul, Como Zoo has all the animals you would expect at a zoo (including many the Minnesota Zoo doesn’t) — namely lions, tigers, (polar) bears, seals and penguins.

And…Sparky!

Since I was too little to sit up in a stroller, I’ve been coming to Como to see Sparky the Sea Lion. Sparky turned 52 years-old this year, and he’s looking as spry as ever.

His new show is called “Sparky’s Coastal Journey” and features all sorts of propaganda about recycling, polar bears and global warming. Apart from the messaging, Sparky turns on the stereo, jumps through hoops, barks and waves on command — all to the delighted satisfaction of the children under 10 in the crowd (including myself).

This summer Como also has a temporary walk-through butterfly exhibit in the shape of a giant caterpillar. At any time there are 300 butterflies fluttering throughout the 2,500 sq. ft. greenhouse.

It’s the best butterfly garden I’ve ever seen and is highly recommended for a trip in itself.

Parking is free, and the donation to attend the zoo is a suggested $2 adult/$1 children donation.

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Originally uploaded by swirlspice.

This was posted at the Hennepin County Service Center in Eden Prairie. I forgot to take note of who produced the poster, and of course when I googled “DWI Counties of Doom” this photo is the only thing that came up.

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Get local with a Dan Israel & The Cultivators Music Video.

In the words of famous music critic Homer J, Rockstars . . . Is there anything they don’t know?

What’s in your shuffle?

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Minnesota Public Radio is head and shoulders above the rest of Minnesota’s major media outlets in terms of audience involvement and has been for a long time, so I probably shouldn’t be surprised that they’d host their own BarCamp-style event, but it blew my mind grapes a little.

Along with the MinneBar/MinneDemo folks, MPR presents PublicRadioCamp.

Minnesota Public Radio produces tons of really interesting content, data, audio, meta-data and feeds. PublicRadioCamp will be a day spent collaboratively remixing and mashing up these goodies.

In addition to their public feeds and data-sources… we’ll have the same highly-granular access to audio-clips, transcriptions, photos, etc. used by their own newsroom. Their newsroom uses them to create their on-air and web-stories. What could you do with them?

Expect studio tours and other goodies.

Saturday, July 12th, 2008, 9:00am (registration at 8:30am), at The UBS Forum at MPR studios in downtown St Paul.

I have nothing to offer in terms of actual technical skills, but this looks like great fun to attend (and I’m unavailable that day, dammit). I hope there’s some sort of organized public display of the results.

(via @sandentotten)

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