Secrets of the City

The 2008 Minneapolis/St. Paul Republican National Convention Host Committee will soon disband and hand over close to $7 million in leftover funds to three local foundations: the Minneapolis Foundation, the St. Paul Foundation, and the Minnesota Community Foundation (the last two being under one umbrella).

Clearly, the money will come in handy, but how do we feel about this … uh… controversial convention being the source of so much community funding?

Uhhh… ok, here you go. And just in case you need food for thought, here’s some truly important fodder, hair and all.

And…. yes, the firearms deer season opener has finally arrived (almost)!

Gov. Pawlenty is on his way to Thief River Falls.  Hundreds of deer hunters are preparing for Saturday’s opener at the Oakdale Gun Club in Lake Elmo. Nearly 500,000 Minnesotans will exercise their right to bear arms [and kill] this Saturday. And the DNR is already complaining about the rise in deer poaching.

Where will you be?

Whatever you do, keep your eye on the road!

The Lion’s Tap in Eden Prairie has won a lawsuit against McDonald’s, crediting them with the “Who’s Your Patty?” phrase.

Thirteen-year-old Daniel Hauser, who gained acclaim for running away to avoid chemotherapy treatment earlier this year, is scheduled for his last round of chemo this morning.

The School Nurses of Minnesota association will be honored today at 4:30 at the Doubletree Hotel in St. Louis Park for 100 years of professional service in the state.

Joyce Preschool — “an independent, nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide children from diverse ethnic, linguistic and economic backgrounds with developmentally and culturally appropriate preparation for success in school and lifelong learning” — just earned accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Apparently, newly re-elected Minneapolis Mayor, R.T. Rybak thinks we’ll all be just a little bit happier with a chance to “rock out.” In an effort to honor the band’s contribution to the indie music industry, Rybak will proclaim November 7th “Suicide Commandos Day” this Saturday as they reunite for two special 10-and-under shows at the Walker Arts Center at 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., and a late acoustic set at The Dakota at 11:00 p.m. Granted, the Commandos may have helped to put the Minneapolis music scene on the map, paving the way for our great 80s boom, but how do we feel about this Rybak’s first big re-election move?

Note: Meanwhile, Rybak has also filed paperwork for his gubernatorial run.

Most likely, the topic of the day will be yesterday’s Fort Hood, Texas shootings, the largest mass murder ever on a U.S. military base. Nidal Malik Hasan, a major and Army psychologist trained to treat soldiers under stress, opened fire in a crowded medical facility, leaving 13 dead and 30 wounded (including the gunman). Amongst those wounded was Minnesota local Keara Bono, 21.

Ms. Bono, who attended high school in Olathe, Kansas, lives in Minnesota with her husband, according to the Kansas City Star. Ms. McCarty [her mother] said Bono was on the phone with her husband during the shooting and he heard shots and shouting before the line went dead.

I believe I have found the possible grave sights of the 10 men listed on the Kensington rune stone. No joke; I have kept my find to myself for several years. There seems to be a lot of interest in this subject, right? I have short attitude with putting my discovery to light because this new evidence could be the proof being sought to validate the Kensington stone and its story. However, I will not release the sight location until I’m guaranteed credit for the discovery. This evidence includes mooring stone holes, grave sights, and what appears to be a petrified camel hoof. So far, my attempt to communicate this historic find has gotten nowhere. I am frustrated that I have found what historians have been looking for for a 100 years, and yet they seem happy staying with the myth rather than seeking proof of the truth.

[Editor's Note: Local DP Bo Hakala recently worked on a rune stone documentary that has been airing on the History Channel over the past few months. See the trailer here.]

… was famously uttered this day (11/5) in 1971 at the Met Sports Center in Bloomington (where IKEA is now located) following Elvis Presley’s kick-off concert to a 15-city North American tour. Al Dvorin made the announcement (”Elvis has left the building. Thank you and good night.”) in an effort to quiet the fans who continued to call for an encore.

The phrase actually goes all the way back to 1955 with Elvis’ final appearance on The Louisiana Hayride radio show. The Met concert wasn’t his only Minnesota appearance, either. Elvis also performed a matinee show at the St. Paul Auditorium in May, 1956, before that evening’s performance in Minneapolis.

According to The New York Times, pigs from a commercial herd in Indiana tested positive for swine flu. “Last month, tests confirmed that several show pigs at the Minnesota State Fair contracted swine flu, also known as the H1N1 virus.” Are they trying to blame the Minnesota pigs for infecting the Indiana pigs?!

How ’bout them Gophers? Another crime, another suspended player, or two. Not off to a very good start, are we?

We’ll not say a word about them Yankees. Shhh.

Are we tired of Tom Petters yet? It’s going to be a while (probably another month or two). But whistle-blower Deanna Coleman completed her testimony yesterday, claiming to have written more than $1.2 billion in company checks to her boyfriend and her brother (who, incidentally, are not the same person). Of course, the real story is all about Breath Blasters.

And did you hear that Proctor police had to repost the now-famous “DWI Chair” on eBay after being notified that it was not a La-Z-Boy at all? The bid was up to $10,099.99 at the time of this post, down from $43,000 during the first round of bids.

TwinCities.com just published a story about an online protest for “a story that was never going to be on television.”

An NBC affiliate in Duluth aired promotional ads over the weekend for an exclusive interview with Donald Blom, the man convicted of kidnapping and murdering a young Moose Lake woman 10 years ago.

In the ad, audio of Blom professing his innocence accompanied an image of the victim, Katie Poirier.

The ad, aired several times on KBJR-TV, touched a nerve with viewers, and one of them even started a page on the social networking site Facebook to boycott the segment.

It turns out the whole thing was just one big misunderstanding (or one employee’s unethical behavior), but the report points out two items worthy of note (and a bit of irony): 1. The station (much like other news entities) is still trying to adapt to a new age of viewer interaction. 2. TwinCities.com reporter John Brewer can be reached at 651-228-2093.

No?