In an Aug. 12 Community Voices article Phil Krinkie, president of the Taxpayers League of Minnesota, again sings the siren song that more revenue will not help the state's declining education results. (Remember, this is the same man who in September of 2007 at an educational forum stated "class sizes of 100, 200 or more" would not be detrimental to the education process.)

Sen. John McCain should have a tremendous appeal with voters over the age of 55: He's old and he still has high aspirations. This should inspire those of us who are old enough to join AARP, yet find we have to continue working for another 1 to 15 years or even longer, the way the cost of living is going up.

We have all heard the label "comic genius" applied to our foremost creators of humor. But genius has little to do with what is amusing. The successful humorist simply recognizes funny words and uses them.

Massive state underfunding has made taxpayer-approved levies an unfortunate necessity for Minnesota schools. Since a district's ability to balance its books depends on elections, how a school district asks voters for an increase is very important.

How much can you learn about a person by glancing at his or her open email box? No fair reading the mail — just the in and out boxes. You would find subject lines, dates and times and the person's contacts. A Privacy Impact Assessment (PDF) published recently in the United States asserts that this information is not private. Speaking for every email and Web user, the authors say:

The Toronto based Zenn Motor Co.'s CEO and founder, Ian Clifford, recently predicted to a Metro North Chamber of Commerce audience in Mounds View that 90 percent of the city-core trips of conventional cars could be replaced with electrical vehicles. His perspective is well worth hearing.

I was biking home from work last week when I came across Lyndale Avenue's busiest intersection, at Loring Park. Everything was typical for a Friday evening at 6:30 — dense traffic, lots of commotion, heat radiating off the concrete — with the addition of a Pro-Tibet protest. Approximately 50 protesters stood on the sidewalks with signs and flags, hoping to alert the multiple lanes of passing traffic. And, as the custom goes, cars driven by supporters let out punctuated honks of agreement in order to encourage the activists.

Recently released data on the statewide education standards for math and reading tests show more schools in Minnesota falling behind. The list of "failing" schools grew by more than 200 from last year to a total of 937 of 1,951 schools not making "adequate yearly progress." This year's list is up dramatically from last year's list of 727 schools not meeting the standards of the "No Child Left Behind" law.

News item: CBS Evening news anchor Katie Couric apologizes for reporting that the Republican National Convention proceedings will be held in Minneapolis and not St. Paul.

Security recruiting for the Republican convention is beginning to sound like a bad scene ready to happen. Small-town deputies, volunteering to flush out the forces, bring to mind Marge Gunderson, the pregnant cop out of "Fargo" film fame.

Using cost-effectiveness to justify a future-oriented public investment is gaining currency. In an era when budgets are tight and demand for accountability is growing, Minnesota public agencies and nonprofits are looking for ways to measure cost-effectiveness. Having evidence of a return on investment, it's believed, will help move their issues closer to the front of the funding line with taxpayers and private donors.

The images are unforgettable — a huge city, filled with millions of people, with a thick, choking shroud of air pollution obscuring the newly constructed sports facilities for the 2008 Summer Olympics. Those who shake their heads and comment, "That could never happen here," when they see these images on television or in a newspaper may be surprised to know that it is happening here in Minnesota, even as you read this.

Most Americans would agree that when anyone sees wrongdoing, the right thing is to speak up about it. Doing so is even more important if public health and safety is at stake. But when federal employees blow the whistle on lax enforcement at the Food and Drug Administration, or political interference at the Environmental Protection Agency, or many other instances of waste, fraud or abuse at federal agencies, they risk dismissal or exile to a dead-end job.

As cities work to prepare budgets in anticipation of the Sept. 15 deadline for certifying preliminary levies, several current issues can lead to more questions from homeowners and others about how property taxes are determined.

A 1,200-pound slab of concrete veneer falling on cars from a freeway overpass might have gotten less attention in Minnesota but for its timing six days from today's anniversary of the I-35W bridge disaster. This time, thank God, no one was hurt, although a couple of cars were damaged and traffic was backed up for hours.

In this summer of our discontent, battered by rising gas prices and falling 401k values and perhaps health-care worries too, it’s tempting on our time off at the lake to block out  all the seriously bad news with trashy novels or escapist videos. Read more ...

By Dane Smith

Americans, especially during a presidential campaign, are divided about the role that religion should play in the political process. While most of us believe that "the state" should be separated from regulating religion, most Americans also believe that the traditional values advanced by Christian-Judeo religious faith are central to the values of the nation. Read more..

By Chuck Slocum

Earlier this month, the Bush administration's controversial "enemy combatant" detention policy took an unexpected turn in federal court. A July 15 decision from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals held that President Bush possesses the authority to hold foreign national Ali Saleh Al-Marri on American soil indefinitely, without providing him access to a criminal trial. Thirteen months earlier, a separate opinion from the Fourth Circuit had come to the exact opposite conclusion. Read more...

By Matt Ehling

"What's going to happen to our elders?" That was my first thought when I learned that some grants that helped fund Minnesota's 43 Living-at-Home/Block Nurse Programs (LAH/BNP) were not renewed during the most recent round of Department of Human Services Community Service/Services Development (CS/SD) grants. Read more...

By Mary Gallagher

Old topics (stadiums and smoking bans) and new ones (light pollution and good grammar) sparked lively comments from Minnpost readers recently. And don't miss the poetry inspired by North Dakota missile silos...