Questions about bridge
collapse point to Gov. Pawlenty’s office
BY ED FELIEN
Jeremy Hernandez was
one of many heroes Wednesday, Aug. 1, when the 35W bridge collapsed.
He was on a bus with children from Waite House, returning from a
swimming trip. When the bridge started to collapse and the bus seemed
to be ready to fall into the river, at great risk to himself, he
opened the back door of the bus and helped every kid off the bus
before he saved himself.
"I think that one of the issues that led
to the closing of the beach was definitely animal owners who don't
pick up after their pets," said Minneapolis Park and Recreation
Board Commissioner at Large Mary Merrill Anderson last week.
Keith Ellison under attack for comparing Bush
to Hitler
In the middle of last month Congressman Keith
Ellison spoke to a Twin Cities atheist group about the lack of religious
tolerance and erosion of civil liberties that have taken place since
9/11. He warned: "It is precisely in the aftermath of a tragedy
like 9/11 that we must be most vigilant about our precious civil
liberties."
"Beginning
August 13, the south parallel runway at the Minneapolis-St. Paul
International Airport (MSP) will be closed for approximately two
months to allow for reconstruction of the center portion of the
runway," according to the Metropolitan Airport Commission (MAC).
"The Federal Aviation Administration's
(FAA) local air traffic control personnel are responsible for determining
how the runways at the airport are used and the headings aircraft
are assigned," Melissa Scovronski, public affairs coordinator
for the MAC told Southside Pride last week. "The FAA's first
consideration is always safety when making these determinations,"
Scovronski said.
Apparently, America no longer needs an extensive
homeland security network to detect whether our people are under
heightened risk of another al Qaeda terrorist attack. Rather than
spending those billions of dollars, officials can henceforth merely
listen to the tummy gurgles of Bush's homeland security chief,
Michael Chertoff.
On July 19, an earthquake with a magnitude of
between 6.6 and 6.8, centered near the city of Kashiwazaki, Japan,
started a fire at the world's most powerful nuclear power plant,
causing a reactor to spill radioactive water into the sea. According
to the New York Times, the Tokyo Electric Company,which owns and
operates the nuclear power plant, admitted later that "the
force of the shaking caused by the earthquake had exceeded the design
limits of the reactors, suggesting that the plant's builders had
underestimated the strength of possible earthquakes in the region."
The Board of Directors of the Resource Center
of the Americas announced August 16 that due to continuing and insurmountable
financial challenges, the Resource Center will suspend operations.
Recall Governor Pawlenty and Lt. Governor Molneau?
There Questions have been raised lately whether
Governor Pawlenty and Lt. Governor Molneau should be recalled and
a special election held to replace them. According to the Minnesota
House of Representatives research: "Recall is a method for
Minnesota residents to recall or remove elected officials from office
before the end of their term. Minnesotans approved a constitutional
amendment in 1996 that enables recall.
Community Meeting for 46th and Hiawatha LRT station
The City of Minneapolis Department of Community
Planning and Economic Development (CPED), in partnership with a
Citizen Advisory Committee of neighborhood residents, businesses
and property owners, and other public agencies, is hosting a second
public meeting to solicit input into the study of the 46th Street
and Hiawatha LRT station area.
"Beginning
August 13, the south parallel runway at the Minneapolis-St. Paul
International Airport (MSP) will be closed for approximately two
months to allow for reconstruction of the center portion of the
runway," according to the Metropolitan Airport Commission (MAC).
Can
it happen here?
The Board of Directors of the Resource Center
of the Americas announced August 16 that due to continuing and insurmountable
financial challenges, the Resource Center will suspend operations.
