November 9, 2010 – 6:15 pm
While I don’t discount the possibility of some negative effects associated with wind turbines (“Wind energy’s ripple effects,” Dr. Gary Carlson, Star Tribune, November 9, 2010), there’s no such thing as a free lunch. I’d rather see locally owned wind turbines surrounding many rural communities in Minnesota, providing clean energy and local economic benefits without [...]
November 7, 2010 – 8:02 pm
If you care about the fate of the Earth and the society our children, grandchildren, and subsequent generations will inherit, you owe it to yourself and those generations to come to spend part of your Friday evening at the Northfield Ballroom (1055 Highway 3 North). Richard Heinberg, award-winning author of eight books, including The Party’s [...]
After a two-year hiatus, I’ve decided to make and sell rain barrels again this summer. (My primary motivation: the prospect of four more years of college tuition payments, including the coming overlap year with both of my kids in college. As Ludwig van Beethoven famously said, “The amount of money one needs is terrifying”…) My [...]
When I last walked out of an office where I was employed in a full-time permanent job, Hilary Clinton had just been appointed to a high-level Administration position–heading husband Bill’s health care reform initiative in 1993. Since then, I’ve done a lot of interesting things: I was a full-time, stay-at-home dad with my two young [...]
January 30, 2009 – 12:34 pm
Winter lovers, rejoice: there’s a lot of great nordic (cross-country) ski activity over the next few weekends. I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s (Saturday, January 31, Carleton College Upper Arb) Nordic Ski Fest, the annual fund-raiser for the Northfield High School Nordic Ski Team. Coach Dan Kust (at right) has done tremendous work with the ski [...]