TO THE EDITOR:
I would like to voice support for Ketti Green in the upcoming Special Election for City Council! What sets Ketti apart is her experience. She has been on the Planning Commission for 14 years. She is a founding member of Beyond the Yellow Ribbon, and a couple of years ago she was the Big Lake volunteer of the year. Talk about dedication!
Having experience does not mean having pre-ordained solutions for every issue the city may face. It means knowing the right questions to ask of staff, residents, businesses, etc. and truly engaging with people to get to a real solution. I have witnessed her in action, gathering information and using critical thinking to come up with the best decision for citizens and businesses. Having experience means having been through rough times and good times, knowing when to tighten the belt and when to spend smartly. It means having been around to witness and learn from other’s mistakes. It means having ideas to move forward and improve.
Ketti has been putting in the sweat-equity time to know how to be effective as a council member. She is an independent thinker that will represent all Big Lake and we would be lucky to have her!
Lisa Odens
Big Lake, MN
TO THE EDITOR:
Becker students: fire Becker Schools and get your education online.
I hold two truths timeless: 1) babies are born perfect--skin color or sexual orientation are irrelevant; 2) babies are not born to hate--- they are taught to hate by adults. Some are insecure white people, who have enjoyed white privilege, yet remain ignorant and/or poor who scapegoat others for their own shortcomings. Becker Schools indoctrinate our youth to believe a white person named Christopher Columbus discovered America and a group of white Europeans built America. It’s not that white people need to feel shame, it is about learning our real history, not the history prepackaged to make insecure white people feel secure.
Becker School’s promise to parents/students is “preparing self-directed learners to thrive in a changing global community.” Becker School board is failing white children, black children, gay children, and straight children. Each Becker School Board member (all are white) would receive an “F” for failing our children and parents on their most basic promise.
But alas! There is hope! The solution? If you have a student who is bright, black, gay, and wants an education and not a hostile learning environment, I highly recommend your student go online.
Wesley W. Scott
Clear Lake, MN
TO THE EDITOR:
I may be old fashioned but I still believe experience is critical, especially when it comes to a seat on the Big Lake City Council. Learning on the fly is ok unless it’s everyone....having said this I would like to publicly endorse Ketti Green for the open seat in this Special Election. I have known Ketti for almost 20 years and have served next to her on numerous boards and committees. She has spent almost 15 years helping to guide our city though her position on the Planning Commission...she also is a founding member of the Beyond the Yellow Ribbon group. She always comes prepared and will listen to all sides of an issue before she votes, and she’s not afraid to ask the hard questions. She has my vote and I encourage you to do the same.
Mike Wallen
Big Lake
TO THE EDITOR:
If you’re like me, then you left Avengers: Endgame content that Marvel’s 22 episode long movie-length TV show had finally ended. You got in the car and said, “That’s it. It’s over. I will never give Disney my money again”.
And then, after months of avoiding spoilers but still not wanting to cave, you finally and reluctantly got Disney+ just to watch WandaVision. You bowed to the entertainment supergiant.
But if you’re like me, you’re glad you did. Because WandaVision offers a much needed parable: one about buried grief. For over a year now, we have watched our world reckon with a global pandemic. And instead of facing this harsh reality, we have witnessed, firsthand, our own community’s inability to grieve. Like the realities of systematic racism or consumer-driven pollution, we have created for ourselves sitcom fantasies. Here, we are the hero. Never the villain. The victim. Never the oppressor. And until we allow ourselves to truly feel the weight of our own grief, as Wanda finally does, we’ll continue living distracted lives full of niceties and canned laughter that attempt to magic away the truth of our complicity in others’ hurt and the pain we cannot bear to hold.
Brody Hed
Becker, MN
