Elizabeth Baier puts together a piece for MPR asking if, you know, maybe the media are overhyping this swine flu thing. "There's an element of panic that's involved that may be out of proportion to what's going on," she quotes Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research, saying, "How people react to a pandemic is often more dangerous, if not deadly, than the pandemic itself." Do you think? But then just for drama and balance, Baier tosses in that "Under the worst-case scenario, U.S. government planners estimate 2 million people will die if the Mexican swine flu becomes a global pandemic. Hospitals will be overwhelmed and schools would close. Baseball stadiums and houses of worship would be empty. As entire societies turn inward, the global economy would take a direct hit. Trust for America's Health, an independent health group, estimated in 2007 that a severe pandemic would shrink U.S. output by about 5.5 percent." So, you know, relax already.

Shortly after 7 a.m. WCCO-TV was reporting the school-closing in Rocori-Cold Spring over a kid with flu symptoms.

By 7:30, Fox9 had another school also locking up for the day. Do I hear five schools by 10 a.m.?

Everybody, it seems, has money problems these days, but yours can't be as bad as Denny Hecker's. The Strib's David Phelps reports the latest body blow to the Twin Cities' most ubiquitous, self-promoting car salesman. (Did you ever hear his radio show?) A Hennepin County judge ruled in Chrysler's favor against Hecker, meaning he officially owes the rapidly down-sizing car company more tahn  $470 million. And that doesn't have anything to do with the $100-plus million he owes Hyundai. It appears the only money Hecker has left is roughly $9 million tied up in two houses out in the western suburbs. The details of his $50 million "personal loan" will be interesting when they eventually come out.

If the fat lady sang at Brookdale Mall, at least then we'd know someone was alive in the place. Jackie Crosby reports that Barnes & Noble is the latest mall tenant to bail on the center, which now has a 50 percent vacancy rate. Crosby quotes a local commercial estate consultant saying, "This doesn't have anything to do with the current economy. The events that precipitated the decline of Brookdale began in the mid-1980s. It hasn't had attentive ownership for decades." Really? Nothing to do with the current economy?

Rachel Stassen-Berger produces a piece for the PiPress relating the Coleman recount with Tuesday's startling announcement that Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter was switching teams. Now Al Franken truly could be the vital, dam-loosening 60th vote. Her best quote comes from Coleman's mouthpiece, Cullen Sheehan, a fellow who has produced a lot of Hall of Fame-worthy implausible official responses in his young career. This time, Sheehan says, "Senator Coleman's focus remains on the thousands of Minnesota citizens who have not had their voices heard or their votes counted." It seems cruel and unusual to make Sheehan repeat it every day. But if that's what they've got. ... MPR's Tom Scheck brings in a Washington University professor who believes Republicans will now intensify their efforts to keep Coleman's case alive. But that may not qualify as news.

Today's edition of the Strib's Minnesota Poll shows substantial support for President Obama's economic policies by 55 to 35 percent, generally considered a healthy margin. Kevin Diaz interviews local citizens for a range of thought. Among the naysayers is the guy who grumps, ""They [the government] have no business getting into business because they really don't know how to run a business. They're tying the hands of the auto industry, and they're tying the hands of the banks." There are plenty of people who'd like to see the government shackle the hands of some bank executives.

Brian Johnson and three colleagues reporting for Finance & Commerce, cover the American Planning Association meeting in Minneapolis and deliver a survey of current thinking on national infrastructure and the realities of the stimulus money's effects. One expert from D.C. says serious money may remain bottled up until the lame-duck session of Congress after the 2010 elections. The same guy says, “We need to spend the next 50 years building the infrastructure for tomorrow. ... We are not there yet in terms of appreciating the importance of that.”

How many times has Jason the movie slasher come back from the dead? Well, the Strib's Judd Zulgad blogs that Brett Favre, now officially separated from the New York Jets, is saying, "At this time, I am retired." Uh huh. That's right. He said, "At this time." Talk about manna for every sports talk jock in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

The Twins bounced back from Monday's dismal performance against Tampa Bay, winning in the bottom of the ninth when Justin Morneau hit what was essentially an inning-ending double play ball against a five-man infield. But somehow he beat it out. The PiPress's Phil Miller quotes the big guy joking, "My speed usually kills us. Hopefully, when Joe (Mauer) returns, I won't have to use it anymore. Make him run around the bases."