Opinion - The Timberjay

A biased case against Trump

Michael Shellenberger, a leading investigative journalist, founder and president of Environmental Progress, Time Magazine “Hero of the Environment,” and Green Book … more

6/13/24

Please take another look

In last week’s Timberjay, letter writer Robert Tisovich encouraged readers to take a close look at professional athlete Royce White, the candidate for Senate who won the party endorsement at … more

6/13/24

People must make the effort to inform themselves

Many are choosing to follow a leader, who still believes he won the last election and continues embarrassing, unimpressive behavior. Those who are influenced must find such appealing. Say what you … more

6/13/24

Question me an answer...or the art of asking good questions

In a previous column I suggested that if people everywhere would improve their listening skills, salted with a bit of compassion, that one change could enhance peace and understanding around the … more

Betty Firth | 6/13/24

Democracy vs. Donald Trump and his allies on the Supreme Court

My husband and I are planning a trip to Europe this fall to visit Normandy, site of the landing of Allied troops fighting against the fascist powers, led by Germany, to maintain democracy in the free … more

6/7/24

Refusing responsibility

One might anticipate that sitting through weeks of a criminal trial, in which 20 witnesses and reams of documents pointed to your guilt on 34 felony counts, might encourage at least a few moments of … more

6/6/24

Stauber’s hypocrisy is astonishing

In a May 1 congressional hearing, Rep. Pete Stauber pointed his finger at Secretary Deb Haaland, the first Indigenous person to be a U.S. cabinet secretary, and accused her of ignoring Indigenous … more

6/6/24

Another open letter to Pete Stauber

To Pete Stauber, MY Eighth District Representative: I contacted your office numerous times before and after Jan. 6, 2021, first asking you to step to the plate and publicly support the results of the … more

6/6/24

America needs a loyal opposition

In 1973, I lived in Winnipeg, Manitoba for a year. One of my friends was Lawrie Cherniak, who was on the city council and whose father was Saul Cherniak, finance minister in the provincial … more

6/6/24

Words that say it all about today’s GOP

To understand how much the Republican Party has changed, just consider the following words, spoken by former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, who is currently the GOP’s candidate for the U.S. Senate … more

6/6/24

It could happen to any of us

I found myself agreeing with Donald Trump as I listened to his opening statement at his post-conviction press conference last week. He said, “If this can happen to me, it can happen to … more

6/6/24

The life of a professional meeting watcher...

An alternative job title for a journalist is professional meeting watcher. We go to all those city council, school board, township, and zoning meetings and write them up. Those of you who prefer … more

Catie Clark | 6/5/24

The U.S. is no longer the dominant superpower

It was an article of faith, through most of my life, that the United States was the world’s dominant power. We had the most powerful military, the biggest and most vibrant economy and the most … more

Lee Hamilton | 5/30/24

Franking abuse

A recent mailing from U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber’s office caught our eye for what looks like another misuse of the congressman’s franking privilege to disseminate material nearly … more

5/30/24

Legislators come through when Legislature doesn’t

In the normal course of the legislative cycle, this was a year the Minnesota Legislature was expected to pass a bonding bill to fund. To be sure, it was to be smaller than usual, given the $2.6 … more

David Colburn | 5/23/24

Media misinformation

The major media in the U.S. are continuing to fail the public, and that failure is playing a major role in the current state of the presidential race. If polls can be believed, large majorities of … more

5/23/24

There is hope where there is help

I found out my mom was an alcoholic when I was 17 years old. That was devastating, but eventually shed some enlightenment for me on our household dysfunctions. I shouldn’t have been surprised, … more

Betty Firth | 5/15/24

Politicians for sale

Rarely has a presidential candidate been so blunt. During a meeting with some of the country’s top oil executives at Mar-a-Lago last month, Donald Trump reportedly pushed them to raise a … more

5/15/24

Hikers losing ground

Social media has its uses. Unfortunately, it tends to generate more heat than light. That was certainly the case with a recent post on the Facebook group, “What’s Up Tower MN,” that … more

5/9/24

Road trips: exploring and simply meandering

The almighty road trip is a favorite activity in my household. Journeys too often get second billing to destinations. For that reason, the road trip gets top billing in my house. Many a weekend has … more

Catie Clark | 5/9/24

The road to recovery (the rest of the story)

As promised in my last column, “Facing the fear and finding hope”, that appeared in the April 5 edition of the Timberjay, I’m resuming the story of Kelly Cramer and her recovery … more

Kathleen McQuillan | 5/1/24

This isn’t democracy

“I have a spoiler alert: There’s nothing wrong with trying to influence the election. It’s called democracy.” So said defense attorney Todd Blanche last week as he tried to … more

5/1/24

Discovering the past through digital newspaper archives

If there’s one thing I’ve loved about the digital age, it’s the ready window into history provided by searchable online newspaper archives. It’s become a regular practice of … more

David Colburn | 4/24/24

Corporate piracy

“Where is the outrage?” That was the question rightly asked by fellow publisher Reed Anfinson, of Benson, Minn., in an op-ed that appeared last week in this newspaper and many others … more

4/24/24

Voyageurs National Park

In a perfect world the National Park Service and the businesses that serve users of Voyageurs National Park would work as partners with the goal of making the experience of park users the best that … more

4/17/24