The New York Times’ Richard Pérez-Peña reports: “More than H.I.V. More than dysentery. More than malaria, influenza, cholera and measles — combined. In the 10 months since a mysterious pneumonia began striking residents of Wuhan, China, Covid-19 has killed more than one million people worldwide as of Monday — an agonizing toll compiled from official counts, yet one that far understates how many have really died. It may already have overtaken tuberculosis and hepatitis as the world’s deadliest infectious disease, and unlike all the other contenders, it is still growing fast.”
In the Star Tribune, Jessie Van Berkel writes: “Gov. Tim Walz’s approval rating has fallen to 57%, dipping eight percentage points during a summer of urban unrest and a continuing COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new Star Tribune/MPR News/KARE 11 Minnesota Poll. The survey of likely Minnesota voters also showed that as the coronavirus case count has climbed, so have concerns about the virus. … Democrats were more likely to say they would seek a vaccine, with 54% saying they would immediately get inoculated, compared to 42% of Republicans. The political divide was even more pronounced on concerns about becoming seriously ill from the coronavirus. Among Republicans, 30% said they were either very or somewhat worried about getting sick, compared to 71% of Democrats.”
For the AP, Amy Forliti reports, “The Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled Monday that schools must allow students to use locker rooms that are consistent with their gender identity, saying a suburban school district violated the rights of a transgender student by keeping him from using the boys’ main locker room. The parents of the boy identified as N.H. sued the Anoka-Hennepin School District last year, claiming the district violated his rights to equal protection under the Minnesota Human Rights Act when it forced the student, who was on the boys’ swimming team, to use a segregated locker room. The appeals court found it is unlawful to segregate a boy from his peers just because he is transgender.”
At City Pages, Hannah Jones reports, “On Tuesday afternoon, one of the Lakeville Area Schools’ internal emails made its way onto parents’ screens. It pertained to a letter dated September 15 and was addressed from the district’s director of administrative services to superintendent Michael Baumann. ‘Recently a number of employees have inquired about the possibility of displaying Black Lives Matter posters in their classrooms,’ the letter explained. ‘Based on an analysis and interpretation of School Board Policy 535… it is my conclusion that displaying such posters by employees in the workplace would be in violation of this policy’. … Cut to Tuesday evening, when several parents attended the district’s school board meeting, masked up and ready to share some choice words on the subject. This, they insisted, was not a ‘political’ matter at all. ‘I’m concerned that we’re running away from discussions on real issues that are impacting our world… Again, this is not about politics, this is about humanity,’ one parent said.”
The AP reports: “The Wisconsin Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments Tuesday in a case that could result in the purging of about 130,000 people from voter rolls in the hotly contested battleground state. However, it wasn’t clear if the court would rule in time to affect the Nov. 3 election that was just five weeks away. Attorneys for both sides didn’t expect a decision until after the election. The arguments come in one of several closely watched lawsuits in Wisconsin.”
Also at City Pages, Jay Boller writes, “Kirk Cousins — the divisive, highly compensated, mortality-aware quarterback who has led the Vikings to an 0-3 start — is bad. And now, in all its omniscient glory, the invisible hand of the market reflects that fact… at least in terms of jersey pricing at Mall of America memorabilia shop Pro Image Sports. That’s where you can score a stitched Cousins jersey for $49, a price that plummeted from $150 last week, store manager Jesse Kern tells us.”
The Star Tribune’s Jenna Ross says, “Musicians in the Minnesota Orchestra have approved a two-year contract extension and a 25% pay cut. In a deal announced Monday, the orchestra’s board and union musicians ratified an amendment outlining work rules and compensation cuts during a pandemic that has taken a financial toll, nixing live audiences through at least the fall. If, after a year, the whole orchestra returns to performing for full audiences, those pay cuts would be reversed.”
