A headline tart enough for a partisan blog!

By David Brauer

ISTANBUL, TURKEY — Traditionally, Iran's Islamic republic celebrates its birthday Feb. 11 with a massive rally, chants of "Death to America," the burning of US flags, and even an effigy contest.

But as Iranians now brace for the 31st anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution, they know that eight months of pro-democracy protest and the regime's violent reaction have transformed the relationship between rulers and ruled.

Frank N. Magid died Friday. The 78-year-old Iowa consultant brought research to TV news, and was best known in media circles as KSTP patriarch Stanley S. Hubbard's close personal friend. For the past quarter-century, KSTP’s late news has been an also-ran to KARE and WCCO; as news directors and anchor teams cycled through the operation, Magid’s influence — or meddling — is cited for holding Channel 5 down.  

On the occasion of Magid’s passing, I decided to call up Hubbard, always a good and tart interview, to ask point-blank about the criticism.

By David Brauer

Paul Ryan will not run for prez, and that’s too bad

By Eric Black

Massive job fair turnout and upbeat employer mood offer a bit of hope

In making the fight against childhood obesity her signature cause, first lady Michelle Obama "has chosen to tackle a seemingly intractable problem that has thwarted experts for the past two decades," writes Marian Burros at Politico.

NEW DELHI — Thousands of United States Marines and Afghan security forces are poised to launch one of the largest offensives of the Afghanistan war. The imminent attack - publicized well in advance by the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) - will focus on the town of Marjah in the southern province of Helmand.

Federal officials have unveiled a multipronged attack to keep Asian carp out of the Great Lakes, the Wall Street Journal reports.

REUTERS/Larry DowningArne Duncan

MINNPOST ASKS: CHRIS STEWART

A change of heart for Minneapolis board member on the value of school competition

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA — A long-awaited offensive by the weak, transitional Somali government may finally bring President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed some badly needed legitimacy, but it is almost certainly going to increase the hardship of tens of thousands of civilians who are being forced from their homes.

NEW YORK AND BOSTON — Only three days before the massive explosion that killed at least five workers at a newly constructed natural gas plant in Middletown, Conn., the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) issued urgent new recommendations on how to prevent explosions when handling or purging natural gas pipelines.

Today we’re introducing a new regular feature on MinnPost: short Q&As with people who have something to say that’s worth hearing. Think of it as an “Inquiring minds want to know” for the MinnPost reader. We’re calling the feature MinnPost Asks.

LOS ANGELES — The trial of Michael Jackson’s doctor, who was charged Monday with involuntary manslaughter and who pleaded not guilty, has all the makings of another celebrity courtroom drama. But it could also set standards for future cases of deaths allegedly resulting from doctors administering drugs improperly.

NEW ORLEANS — More than a day has passed since the New Orleans Saints won the Super Bowl, but the party is far from over. Everywhere you go, people are talking about “the boys” — Drew Brees and Co. In a city that has known far too much sorrow over the past few years, finally there is a reason to smile again.

CAPE ROYDS, Antarctica — Preservationist Al Fastier spent three long, cold days laying on his stomach in Antarctica earlier this month, chipping away at ice that had accumulated under the 102-year-old hut built by Sir Ernest Shackleton. His goal was to retrieve two crates of whisky that the famed polar explorer brought down with him — and then abandoned — after his unsuccessful 1908 expedition to the South Pole.

Arthur Rolnick pleased with Fed's role in helping to form public policies

Brazil's direct exports to Iraq have exploded from virtually nothing before the American occupation to $107 million in 2008 to $250 million last year. And poultry is leading the charge. Chicken and anything it can be turned into now make up about 80 percent of those exports.

Wrote about this last week; thought you'd like to see it. A nice gesture.

By David Brauer

The EPA has announced that 2010 production of cellulosic ethanol will reach 6.5 million gallons instead of the 100 million gallons required by the 2007 Energy Independence and Securities Act. Another highly touted biofuel, biodiesel, is encountering similar shortcomings.

The good, the bad and the ugly... The good news is that we freshened up that snow pack out there. The fluffy snow will be great for any outdoor activities that you have planned this week that involves snow f- skiing, snowmobiling, sledding, snow angels, etc.

By Todd Nelson

io9 has posted photos from astronauts Twittering in space.

How Coca-Cola fought for our right to be obese

By Eric Black

Playing off the swearing-in of Scott Brown, officially ending the 60-Dem Senate, "PBS Newshour" put up a segment about the filibuster and related issues and their panel included Minnesota's own Norm Coleman (plus MN native Norm Ornstein, plus our neighbor, former Sen. Tom Daschle of SoDak).

By Eric Black

Were local ratings "not so super" ... or up from last year's game? 

By David Brauer 

U of M study: Soft-drink consumption linked to higher risk of pancreatic cancer

Startribune.com, which last year topped a billion page views, racked up 103 million in January, its highest total ever, according to a company release.

By David Brauer

Sarah Palin's place in history

By Eric Black

MANKATO — Some challenges the Minnesota Legislature faces this year are monumental; some are doable. A record of getting half the hard things done, and all of the easy ones, should be the goal.

The latest computer runs have brought lighter amounts of precipitation into the area, but still puts the heaviest of the slowly accumulating snow just southwest of the I-94 corridor. Total accumulations from Sunday through late Tuesday will likely be around the 4" to 6" mark in the Twin Cities area.

By Todd Nelson

Jon Stewart/O'Reilly day 2

by Eric Black

One is a webcaster's loneliest number, but it may be more offers than the eclectic host has from the local radio market.

By David Brauer

FARGO, N.D. — Discussing the anti-abortion ad scheduled to run on Sunday during the Super Bowl, a CBS sportswriter named Gregg Doyel put it this way: "If you're a sports fan, and I am. ... It's not a day to discuss abortion. For it, against it, I don't care what you are. On Super Sunday, I don't care what I am. Feb. 7 is simply not the day to have that discussion."

Orchestra Hall announces 2010–2011 jazz and pops seasons

Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS) has taken a different tack in its latest big decision, the naming of Deputy Superintendent Bernadeia Johnson as the sole candidate and all-but-certain successor to outgoing Superintendent Bill Green. For this critical decision, the board of education has dispensed with its usual pretense of public input and moved directly to a unilateral and hasty conclusion regarding the future of MPS. Given that MPS officials have been talking about a national search, this comes as something of a surprise.

During this time, poverty in Minneapolis and St. Paul rose to 20.1 percent or 122,000 people. Outside the inner cities, poverty rose to 5.6 percent or 143,000 individuals, the first time period in which more people who were poor lived outside the core.