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Hiram Foster

Crystal, MN
Commenter for
5 years 26 weeks

Recent Comments

Posted on 10/19/09 at 11:40 am in response to The first meeting of Stadium Task Force No. 1,347: Seriously ... some ways to solve the Vikings dilemma

Last comment (for a while).

"7. The Vikings must open their books to the public, and those finances must be examined by auditors appointed by the Legislature. If there is public funding or financing to be had here, we need to understand the differences among the Vikings and other NFL teams, particularly those in the NFC Central division."

Why? If the Vikings move, it will be because they have a better offer, and I am pretty sure that offer will not come from any of the existing...

Posted on 10/19/09 at 11:32 am in response to The first meeting of Stadium Task Force No. 1,347: Seriously ... some ways to solve the Vikings dilemma

"Why don't you buy the billionaire a new stadium?"

I can't speak for Jay, but my guess that even as a highly paid Minnpost.com correspondent, he probably doesn't have enough money in his bank account to cover the check.

Posted on 10/19/09 at 11:29 am in response to The first meeting of Stadium Task Force No. 1,347: Seriously ... some ways to solve the Vikings dilemma

"As chairman of this Task Force, I hereby order and direct staff to begin conversations with Mr. Wilf, his aides, lawyers, accountants and locker room attendants to investigate the prospect of the state of Minnesota gaining a sizable ownership stake in the team as part of any stadium deal."

Why would we want to be owners of the Vikings? Can we be sure that the Vikings will pay a dividend sufficient to justify the cost of purchasing an equity interest in the team? How would we view...

Posted on 10/16/09 at 06:51 am in response to Bankruptcy expert speculates Star Tribune might go 'Chapter 22'

I would be surprised if the Star Tribune ceased business operations in 2010 but I wouldn't rule that out. While there are obstacles to the possibility, I would be considerably less than surprised if the Strib found a way to merge with the St. Paul in all or maybe just some of their operations.

Posted on 10/15/09 at 12:38 pm in response to Bankruptcy expert speculates Star Tribune might go 'Chapter 22'

As long as the Strib's owners owe the company's debt to themselves, further bankruptcy proceedings, should there be any, will be about rearranging the ownership structure among themselves as circumstances change over time. Basically, they will be rearranging the deck chairs on a boat they hope is not the Titanic.

Posted on 10/15/09 at 12:32 pm in response to Bankruptcy expert speculates Star Tribune might go 'Chapter 22'

While I wouldn't rule out multiple restructurings both inside and outside bankruptcy courts (after all bankruptcy attorneys need to eat too), as long as the owners of the paper owe the money to themselves, the restructurings will be more matters of legal form, than anything having to do with the substantive prospects of the underlying business.

The business problem of the Star Tribune is very simple. It quite simply needs to bring in more revenue, in ways that don't cost it too much...

Posted on 10/16/09 at 10:44 am in response to Small update on looming MN political calendar changes

Election laws are very difficult to change because the people who are in a position to change them are without exception people who have succeeded under the existing system. In addition, there is virtually no change that is considered politically neutral.

Posted on 10/12/09 at 08:21 am in response to State Rep. John Lesch joins National Guard

One might thing so, but Rep. Lesch's problem is that he is something of a nut.

Posted on 10/09/09 at 06:33 am in response to In a change of position, ethics panel says Ellison must report cost of Saudi trip

Rep. Ellison in particular and Congressmen in general should understand that ethics rules at best establish a minimum standard of conduct. They are not a shield to protect legislators from appropriate constituent questions and the public's right to know.

Posted on 10/07/09 at 11:42 am in response to O'Reilly asks whether ACORN voter efforts illegally aided Franken election

O'Reilly doesn't seem to know how elections work.