TO THE EDITOR:
Karma won again. On Sunday, August 6, 2023, the U.S. women’s national soccer team lost their match to Sweden. Many USA patriots cheered the loss as a bit of karma’s revenge for the refusal by the majority of the members of the team to place their hand over the heart or sing the national anthem of “their” country prior to the matches against Vietnam, the Netherlands, Portugal, or Sweden. The team declared that it was their right to protest social issues of the U.S. Patriots found their behavior unpatriotic and disrespectful. They were representing the country, not social factions. They only scored one victory against Vietnam and had draws against the Netherlands and Portugal. This is the earliest exit in tournament history for a U.S. team. Protestors Megan Rapinoe and Sophia Smith missed penalty kicks. The U.S. team was heavily favored but was sent packing by Sweden in the 16th round. They will not have to suffer the national anthem again. Another bit of karma is to be noted. U.S. Soccer is a 501 (c)3 organization that does not receive any money from the U.S. government. Maybe their woke sponsors can join Bud-light.
Barry VanBuren
Clearwater, MN
TO THE EDITOR:
Bret R. Collier brought up Anoka County’s withholding of funding as part of his argument that Northstar should be discontinued. (Readers should be aware the source he quoted, Center For the American Experiment, is a conservatively-biased think tank.) I’d like to jump in on this discussion and remind folks that Conservatives did everything possible to make Northstar a failure. Northstar was, is, and will become more and more of a vital and worthy transportation alternative as we use fewer fossil fuels in response to climate change. How many readers are aware the line was originally supposed to run from Rice, MN through St. Cloud to the cities? Conservatives managed to cut the service distance in half, terminating in Big Lake, fully realizing it would negatively impact ridership. The original route would have provided round-trip service for workers and students commuting to and from the cities and St. Cloud, and towns on the route. It would have also provided service for St. Cloud State and St. Cloud Tech students to commute between St. Cloud and Rice. It wasn’t easy for people to accept cars replacing horses either, but sometimes we have to accept change.
Nancy Hassett
Big Lake, MN
TO THE EDITOR:
When it comes to opening a storefront business location is as important as the product you are selling. This was the case for the Little General Store which opened last summer at Lake Street North. What a perfect location; placed at the busiest intersection of Big Lake (25/10.) It had on street parking, a huge sidewalk, great visibility and solid foot traffic. Well, The Little General Store closed early this summer. And the reasons were for the same reason it was a perfect location How is that possible you say....? First, the sidewalk and the on street parking was under the responsibility of MnDOT. Who, in over a decade has never maintained it in any fashion. MnDOT, who actually threatened businesses in the area with a $1,000 fine and 30 days in jail if they plow the snow. The store was located in Big Lake. The city has known about this problem for well over a decade and refuses to find common ground with MnDOT. And lastly, the store was located in a building managed by a landlord who failed at the most basic common area maintenance (CAM). So this past winter and spring the store owners missed out on major shopping holidays - Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentines Day and Easter. Snow was piled so high and deep parking and access to the business was impossible. Sorry to say in this case location, location, location was the business downfall. Perspective businesses beware!
George Quinn
Big Lake, MN
TO THE EDITOR:
Our dismal fiscal overview, facts from (usafacts.org/state-of-the-union/budget/ & Go to www.usdebtclock.org.) US tax revenue: $5,000,000,000,000 (Trillion); Fed Budget: $6,500,000,000,000; New Deficit: $1,500,000,000,000; National Debt: $32,600,000,000,000; Recent Budget Cuts: $383,000,000,000. Let’s remove eight zeros and pretend it is a household budget: Annual family income: $50,000; Money the family spent: $65,000; New Debt on credit cards: $15,000; Outstanding balance on credit cards: $326,000; Total budget cuts: $38.30. Got it??? How long before you would go bankrupt and lose your assets if you kept spending and spending? Our government is no longer representing “We the People” with this reckless spending. Our children and grandchildren are depending on us, it is critical to get involved and vote.
Wanda Herkenhoff
Becker, MN
TO THE EDITOR:
I was given some very sage advice when I started my career in the criminal justice system. We are responsible for the process, not the outcome. We are responsible to participate in the process with the understanding that the final decisions are out of our power and control. Recently Supervisor Bob Hassett made some unfounded allegations regarding my participation in the process of his criminal investigation. He insinuated that I initiated a criminal investigation against him. That is a complete lie. I did not make initial contact with any law-enforcement agency. After someone reported concerns to law-enforcement, and it was determined those concerns required further investigation, I was asked if I would cooperate and be interviewed for the investigation. I agreed to the interview, just as Supervisor Bob Hassett agreed to be interviewed. Once the process of a criminal investigation has started it is not only our responsibility but our duty to answer the questions asked and not obstruct the process. To say that I was on a mission to publicly cause harm by agreeing to be interviewed is irresponsible. By writing a letter to the editor, Supervisor Bob Hassett brought himself back into the spotlight and court of public opinion regarding his public admission of deleting multiple years of emails meant to be passed on to the successor regardless of content. I will now, and in the future, always agree to be part of the process. I prefer to stay on the side of cooperation versus obstructing and impeding the process.
Anne Felber
Big Lake, MN
TO THE EDITOR:
Albert Einstein published his theories of relativity in 1905 and 1915, which eventually transformed the field of physics. Einstein was a German citizen, and he was Jewish. In the early 1930’s, Adolf Hitler’s National Socialist party was rising to power in Germany, and Jewish professors were being removed from their positions. In 1931, a collection of papers entitled “100 Reasons why Einstein was Wrong” was published in Germany, Einstein is apocryphally quoted as responding “If I was wrong, it would require only one.” As of Saturday, August 8, Donald Trump had been indicted by the Biden Administration 78 times, with rumors that more indictments are on the way. If Trump were guilty, it would only require one.
Russ Armstrong
Becker, MN
