All politics is local, Kristi Noem

Governor Noem of SD

There is something sad about a woman in her 50s who thinks she can still look like she's in her 30s. This observation was a response to a comment I posted to a Yahoo! News article about Kristi Noem. Noem is popularly understood to be such an "attractive" female governor. She is part of the near-monopoly political party in our neighbor to the west: South Dakota. 

Politically it appears we in western Minnesota have become an extension of South Dakota or the Dakotas in general. The top Republicans get carried away with national politics. CW suggests this should hurt them. "All politics is local," right? 

And when it comes to natural disasters like flooding, wouldn't you think a laser focus is called for? Doesn't U.S. history have a number of political heavy-hitters who got taken down because they failed the basic test of political leadership? It's not about your political party's "talking points" at any time. 

A natural disaster is the real test, away from tax cuts and abortion etc. And certainly away from presidential politics which might be your ticket for appearing on "Face the Nation." 

Doug Burgum of North Dakota prioritizes his crusade for Donald Trump. If North Dakota voters wish to keep supporting this sense of priorities on Burgum's part, they are welcome to it. But I'm suggesting that real catastrophic natural disasters spring up. They wash away, so to speak, what seems to be the routine of political conversation. 

It's tough to cancel an appearance on a nationally known TV discussion program. Especially those on Sunday morning. You learn to spell the last name of George Stephanopoulos. It's the lure of power and attention. It must be intoxicating because a big name can be taken down at the polls by surprise. That's when the pols face their most fundamental test. 

At the city level this happens with big snowstorms and traffic problems. 

 

A poser

Is it fair to speak of South Dakota Governor Noem as "attractive?" People seem to observe this without a second thought. Seems that Noem gets up in the morning with full understanding of how she is seen. But isn't this kind of a throwback in our culture? 

"Good-looking women," well based on what? And, as opposed to what? "Plain-looking women?" Or, "homely women?" Egad. 

Being thin was once such a high priority. Certainly was when I was growing up. A "fat" person would cause those nearby to sort of poke each other and whisper "look at that person." Like an oddity. Today we think nothing of seeing extremely heavy people everywhere. No comment. 

And of course we should not judge in a mean way. But this phenemenon actually does not bode well for public health. We want a drug for the problem. Bring on Ozempic. I wouldn't touch the stuff. Heard of "Ozempic face?" You see, people don't necessarily look "better." 

Noem is very thin and this conforms to the old values for how we judged attractiveness. She maybe looks a little anemic? I have observed as much. Does she think that maybe her long flowing hair makes her look sexy? And is it misogynistic to even be hashing over such thoughts? 

Let's consider that "misogyny" is a relatively new word for most of us. Just in the last few years has it circulated in a common way. As a kid or young adult I never would have heard it. And back then, Bob Hope would parade Raquel Welch out on stage for "entertaining the troops" in Vietnam. The actress Welch knew full well why her services were sought. 

I remember a sociology prof from my college days who talked about "secondary sexual characteristics." Welch fit the profile for having all of these. The nation tuned in to those annual Christmas specials on the tube. I doubt there were many family discussions about the offensiveness of putting forward Welch as a symbol of the "bombshell babe." Our culture then just understood it. With a shrug you might say. And how were all the supposed "plain-looking women" supposed to feel in reaction? They knew who they were, just like the likes of Welch knew how her appearance "turned on" men.

Naturally, the biggest offense about the Bob Hope Christmases from Vietnam was the Vietnam war itself. If you are shocked at the absurdity of what MAGA represents today, be assured it's on par with similar odd and illogical phenomena of our nation's past. You would have to identify the Vietnam war as "exhibit A." Hey, I grew up with it. 

 

Don't look back, Kristi

Kristi Noem has this image of being so popular in South Dakota. The bigger they come, the harder they fall. For the time being she can feel affinity with the likes of George Stephanopoulos. And be taken seriously as VP candidate, this in spite of the damaging episode with her deceased dog. Deceased because of her. 

Cruel and unacceptable? Those might be strong suits in connection with the leader of MAGA who has been found responsible in official court proceedings for sexual assault. That bad enough for you? We have learned that nothing is bad enough to discourage fervor in MAGA ranks, pilgrims. So why not Noem the dog-killer for vice president? Fits right in. 

Pay no attention to what Trump might have said publicly about this. His word typically means nothing. Being offensive and disgusting scores points. But here's my question: what about at the hyper-local level? I mean in the context of "all politics is local." Severe weather has brought a deluge to southeast South Dakota. With the rain pouring down, the "attractive governor" who really is in her 50s abdicated, in effect, as she chose to attend a political conference and do a TV interview. 

Catastrophic floodwaters closing in? Toward McCook Lake? She had a higher priority to attend to: a political fundraiser. Ahem, an out-of-state political fundraiser. 

The locals failed to get adequate warning about the dangers at hand. Well it's just government, right? And Republicans are known for not really liking to govern. They don't like passing legislation to solve problems. They act irritated by it as they continually talk about cutting taxes which in their mind is equated with income taxes. 

Local property taxes? One of our state representatives from here in western Minnesota, Jeff Backer, said to Marshall Hoffman "that would be the county." Yeah, bother them with your complaints, not me. Yeah, like our local county commissioners are super liberal big careless spenders. Well they are not, they are quite the opposite. 

If the county spends "X" amount it is because they have to. Backer wants to wash his hands of it. "Don't bother me," in effect. 

But real people at the local level are left with our difficulties. Natural disasters come along. It can happen anywhere. And that is the real test of political leadership. Not being an "attractive women" who seeks appearances on the "Sunday morning shows."

  

Addendum: I could probably use a stiff drink, just after publishing something where I had to spell "Stephanopoulos" and "misogynistic." 

 

Perpich vs. Janklow

Here's a comment I posted to a Yahoo! News article on Noem and South Dakota:

 

Rudy Perpich when he was governor of Minnesota got a splash of attention when he said South Dakota was "50th in everything." The official rejoinder was given by Bill Janklow. Remember him? For some reason I'm thinking of Jason Ravnsborg too. Where did he end up? You can only use your military creds as cover for so long.

 

"Edward" responded:

I know people from Flandreau and I met Janklow a few times when he was governor. He asked for me to speak at a business conference he organized in Sioux Falls in 1997 or so. He was smart as a whip, arrogant, and sometimes cruel. Very complex person. In high school he was part of a group of guys who gang-assaulted a girl from the Flandreau Indian School. Everyone knew but his adoptive parents were bigwigs in a little town and in that era Flandreau was near apartheid. He always drove recklessly and should have been charged with criminal vehicular homicide when he blew through that stop sign. The guy he hit was a Scott from Hardwick MN, just east. We did business with his grandfather. 

 

The image below from the "Babylon Bee" has been passed around quite a bit, shows SD Governor Noem with the assignment of taking Joe Biden "behind the shed." Dispatched like a Noem canine. In Biden's case, based on advanced age and cognitive challenges. Biden struggled in first debate, everyone says.

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Time to attack thicker vegetation

Normally I don't write at night but here I am. I'm refreshed from taking a nap, recovering from some lawn mowing. No routine lawn mowing, this was. This was an "attack" on the overgrown section in back, on north end, where lots of tough weeds always come up. Lots of hard stuff in comparison to grass. So I'm concerned of course about wear and tear on my equipment, specifically my walk-behind mower that I purchased a long time ago at Eul's. 

Eul's! We'll remember that business name for a long time. We have never forgotten Willie Martin with the groceries. I went to high school with Mike Eul. The one child of Rit and Ione who did not stick around to be in the family business. We have lost Mike to the next life. He was Class of '73 like Willie and Rachel Martin's oldest child Edith. 

Edith had a parallel with Mike: unlike her siblings she did not stick around with the family business. Married a minister. I would have to assume that was Wisconsin  Synod. Can I identify that as a "fringe" synod? What about our Zion Lutheran with the Missouri Synod? Fringy? I'm not the one to characterize, but I do know that the Wisconsin Synod considers the Pope to be the antichrist. Oh yes they do. 

Didn't ultra-conservative politician Michele Bachmann leave her Wisconsin Synod church? For that reason in fact? Tough when you have to alienate all the Catholics. How should you explain yourself? 

Normally I prefer mowing my nice ordinary green grass with my walk-behind. I even try to avoid any small branches in my path: concern about being hard on the mower. What I did today requires adjustment in one's thinking. It was time to be in "attack mode" with my yard. I'm sure my neighbors heard some pretty intense sounds! Mower would "kill" at times, as it'd get momentarily overwhelmed. 

After my initial shock at having to do something so intense, I adjusted and had no problem with it. I knew there was risk to the mower, either breaking it somehow or dulling the blade. I got through it well with no evidence of damage. Praise be to God I guess. And it is tremendously satisfying. Actually had not done this in a long time. 

It was just a few years ago that I prioritized cleaning up the rear of my property. My father established a shelter belt of trees there. The trees grew bigger and the weeds multiplied. My neighbor to the west described the rear of the Williams property as a "jungle." He wasn't upset or at least he wasn't showing it. I told him in an email that if I had just continued to do nothing about it, I would have "one heckuva windbreak." 

And that was very true. But the time came for some tidying. This involves having the friendly tree guy, Craig Beyer, come by sometimes. If my father only knew the landscaping bills he was bequeathing me! Well I can shoulder it. And now this evening, right during the presidential debate which I have chosen not to watch, I can feel satisfaction about my back yard. 

Why this project at this time? Well we have all become aware of a wet spring with its consequences. It may be climate change. At least our local dam is not at risk of breaking unlike elsewhere in the state. But we do have a proliferation of wildlife, that's for sure. Some enjoyable to have around, others no. 

I gave Sharon Martin, Edith's sister, the heads-up about how skunks are seen along the biking/walking trail east of town. I had never seen them there before. The juvenile skunks can be kind of cute if you can disregard the main issue with this animal. Actually I think that if you don't provoke them, you're in the clear. It's still not a welcome sight. 

A few days after I talked with Sharon, she confirmed to me that she did see them! Be aware, everyone. 

And so I have noticed the proliferation of critters out where I live. A different neighbor of mine to the west told me that he recently dispatched six skunks. He live-traps them and then takes them out back and shoots them. That's the kind of animal I'm focusing on here: skunks. An animal to really get your attention. Stay tuned. 

A friend tells me that such critters are "in town." Be advised. So I mowed to try to minimize what's available for them to eat. 

It's getting dark now, Thursday night, and conditions are cool, windy and wet again. And we're getting close to July 4? 

I try to ignore the presidential debate but I'm quite interested in how the Indiana Fever are doing tonight. They're playing at Seattle. Right now it doesn't look good.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Giants with Mays almost came to MN

The image shows Willie Mays in 1951 as member of the Minneapolis Millers who played at Nicollet Park. The Millers had Ted Williams on board for a time too.

 

Horace Stoneham. The name register with you? Maybe not. We're plumbing baseball history here. Going way back, as it were. We're going back to when Minnesota was seeking big league status in the sport. Imagine the Twin Cities being shy of big league status. Well, there was a time. 

That time included the first five years of my life. As a preschooler I could not have paid much attention. I gathered years later that U of M Gopher football was the really big-time sport in Minnesota. But that was just one team. And it was not the big league pros. 

The history of getting big league ball for our far north location is pretty involved. We had a ballpark located in the Twin Cities suburbs to dangle for the big league interests. You would think that would be enough, right there. You would think the pro sports owners would be salivating to come to Minnesota. 

Up through the early and mid '50s, "a trip west" in big league baseball meant St. Louis or Chicago. Amazing! Perhaps it took a while for plane transportation to develop and be reliable. Nothing promotes nostalgia more about big league ball than to conjure up images of the ballplayers on trains! They probably developed more cohesion as a unit with the arrangement, the forced togetherness. 

The Robert Redford movie "The Natural" did a good job of impressing the memories. A strange thing about that movie, incidentally - very strange I'd observe - is that it romanticized baseball before integration. Why not an issue? I would suggest it was because of Redford's reputation as a progressive. He got slack. 

I wouldn't slam the movie: the players themselves were always just pawns. I remember the biopic about Jackie Robinson a few years back. Chadwick Boseman starred. A scene that pops back for me was where the Leo Durocher character - the Brooklyn manager - advises his team about how black players were on the way: "They're good and they want to play," he told his Dodgers. 

Major league baseball of today would want such ambition to return, I suggest, because blacks have withdrawn from baseball and gravitated to football and basketball. They certainly flourish in the latter two sports - a tip of the hat. 

Well, the advancing black players in the '50s included Willie Mays. Willie Mays! In the news recently for having passed on. RIP Willie, you had unmatched talent, impressive career longevity and were controversy-free. You plied your talents for us all to enjoy, congratulations. Born to play baseball. 

But would he be a baseball player today? Good question. Surely he could excel in the other two sports I cited. Many of the top MLB stars in my childhood were African-American or black. Tony Oliva was a Cuban black. Vic Power was from Puerto Rico where he grew up in a culture with no racism. Fascinating. 

Anyway, Horace Stoneham was owner of the Giants. His name appears in Minnesota baseball history annals. The name appears in the "what might have been" category. Most significantly, Mr. Stoneham came close to bringing his New York Giants to our Minnesota. It was a real flirtation. 

He noticed the success of the Braves after their 1953 shift from Boston to Milwaukee. So as a result, to use the wording of the Wikipedia profile of Stoneham, "Stoneham decided to move his Giants to the Twin Cities of Minnesota." Intriguing to read all this now. 

Willie Mays could have come to our state to enjoy the prime of his career. The team had many strengths as it would win the National League pennant in 1962. Committed as Stoneham seemed to be, we know of course that he and Mays did not come here. Stoneham broke bread with Walter O'Malley, owner of the Dodgers. O'Malley related that he was negotiating to transfer his Dodgers from Brooklyn to L.A. 

"California here we come." The culmination of inevitability. 

In previous times California had the Pacific Coast League which had a talent level nearly as good as the majors. The actor Chuck Connors played there. 

O'Malley was set on continuing the rivalry with the Giants, as both the Dodgers and Giants had been storied denizens of The Big Apple. How could New York City lose two major league teams? The power and prestige of that market? Left with just the A.L.'s New York Yankees for a few years? And when the National League came back in 1962, it was as if MLB was punishing NYC - the Mets were hugely non-competitive. 

O'Malley suggested that Stoneham contact the San Francisco mayor. "Stoneham soon abandoned his Minnesota plan and shifted his attention, permanently, to San Francisco," Wikipedia tells us. 

But just think how close Minnesota was, to getting a completely different team with a different set of star players, from the Senators-turned-Twins. Yes we got the Senators with the crusty, cheap, curmudgeonly owner Calvin Griffith. We tried making his image charming. Never really worked. 

Of course Minnesota was gaga for a time, may I say, with orgasmic pleasure over the Twins being created. How could we be denied big league ball before 1961? Strange. But it finally started in '61. And in '62 we chased the Yankees and finished second in the A.L. when only one team from each league played post-season. That is hugely strange too. I'm sure economics explains. 

I was six years old when the Twins and Vikings started. The new big league world was just in time to treat my generation of the boomers. 

Baseball reached a climax in 1965 of course. But we lost that cotton pickin' Game 7 of the World Series to those Dodgers of L.A. After that the orgasmic quality of the support faded, to be revived well down the road in 1987 with a completely new generation of players. We had forgotten the mere thrill of having big league baseball. We had forgotten the novelty of the once shiny new Met Stadium. We had begun taking things for granted, got spoiled maybe, and leave it to my boomer generation to get spoiled. 

Today! Heavens, look how we bask in big league sports ventures with so many sport-specific stadiums. If anyone thought the Metrodome would be the "last word," home of the Twins, Gophers and Vikings, well forget it! So we're more spoiled than ever? Maybe. Do we appreciate it all? 

I remember the thrill of having the Timberwolves established here, 1989. I was 34 years old. 

Minnesota dazzles today. And just think how we could have dazzled with Willie Mays and Orlando Cepeda! Mays played with the Minneapolis Millers in 1951. Cepeda played with the old St. Cloud "Rox." 

Today we have the female "Lynx" to cheer on in hoops. That would have been a hard sell for 1950s Minnesota! 

Once again, Willie Mays RIP.

I had this baseball card.

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

U of M expands on grievance studies

Lakota "tipis"

I remember a particularly good rebuttal to the idea that we need cultural diversity emphasis in our higher education institutions. Right at the moment I am thinking that these institutions have an existential challenge. Can they even survive in the kind of form that they have traditionally followed? But re. diversity that seems to have become a buzzword here at Morris, consider the following opposite point of view: "Since when has being conscious of our differences ever helped us get along better?" 

You cannot diss the logic in that. But higher education has its own survival agenda. 

"Diversity" gave academic people lots to study. And it's to the point where you can now get a doctoral degree in American Indian studies at the University of Minnesota. 

The Star Tribune talks about a "landmark report" that called on U leaders to repair relationships with tribes. Those poor U leaders: always feeling pressure to serve endless constituencies. 

Faculty themselves are a special interest: they need academic programs to offer. Talk about existential. 

The alternative to "diversity?" Well it would be the American melting pot ideal. "The great American melting pot" as you might characterize it. And it really is great, a high ideal. But the problem in the eyes of academics is that it's boring. There is nothing to study, nothing that would be the foundation for a degree, certainly not a "doctoral" degree like what we see at present re. the Natives. 

I'm sure all the terminology must be handled with kit gloves. So why are we talking about "American Indian studies" even? Why not "Native American?" Anyone risks a scolding if mishandling the words. 

Any society needs standards and for better or worse, the whole set of European standards took over in America. It happened with "Manifest Destiny." And are we to turn our backs on that? Sometimes with the kind of gestures made toward the Natives, I wonder. I feel the government has actually been very generous toward our Natives. But we need more? 

And now even our Morris community is brought into the discussion via the Star Tribune article. I'm not sure the article says enough about this. Some of us might need a primer. For most of my life I had the understanding that our campus here started out to "serve" the Indians. I have read an account that the "intentions were good" - yes I've read that - but it did not work out. Indians had too much trouble transitioning to the more "advanced" culture. 

And I have to put "advanced" in quotes because I remember social sciences instruction when I was in college. I think the emphasis here is on "anthropology." And I put that in quotes too. I think it was a faddish discipline at one time. And in anthropology, you as a student never wanted to say, to even hint, that any one body of people around the globe was more "advanced" than any other. I am not exaggerating, really truly. 

So we here in Morris cannot prop ourselves up over the tribes of New Guinea, I guess. And again I am not exaggerating. Do the social sciences professors of today still peddle this sheep-dip? Isn't it commendable to have real science and real medicine to undergird your culture, your nation? Don't we want to develop by studying how better to be healthy and live longer, to travel and to experience advanced fine arts? 

How do I feel about Indians? Well I judge all people the same. It's too simple a concept for professional educators to endorse. They need stuff to dispense in their classrooms. I would suggest they are losing this battle continually. But they keep rolling up their sleeves to see how they can bounce back. And this we see in the new Native American doctoral program. 

I take no pleasure in reminding you of this but the Natives of the pre-Columbian world did not have this big peaceable kingdom where everyone loved each other. Of course they had aspects in their routine that promoted the loving qualities. But on the whole the lifestyle was primitive. Advocates now for the Indian studies I'm sure simply want to promote the loving stuff. 

I think they called it the "Honor Song" at our UMM graduation with the drumming and chanting or wailing or singing or however it might be termed. To the untrained ear like mine it could have been a war chant like you'd hear in a 1950s John Wayne western. 

The historical record may show that such rituals existed, some benign and maybe even loving, others dark and violent. But academia is going to distort all this to try to create an exemplary panorama of life with the Native Americans. As if it serves as a model. A society with no science or medicine. 

Hollywood showed us the "medicine man" of course. Hey, maybe we'd get more reasonable billing than from the local clinic/hospital heh heh. But seriously, let's move on to the future with the real "development" that we know carries value, that would clearly make us more "advanced" than the New Guinea tribes, despite what "anthropology" professors say. And they would leap to their feet to describe me as ignorant, a fool, a knave. And that's because people like me might threaten the foundation for their professional "racket." Tenure contracts, ivory tower. 

But this has been fading quite fine on its own, without any histrionics from people like me. It's called the digital world. Daily it sweeps aside the pretense of academia. 

So, the Star Tribune cites Morris and our campus. Always nice to get mentioned in the state's prime media. We learn of the TRUTH Project that yielded a 554-page report. It's political in objective as it calls on the U to "reframe how Minnesotans view the University" - huh? - and called on U leaders to atone for all sorts of bad stuff in connection to Natives. 

Well don't you know: history in its essence is the story of the strong exploiting the weak. 

The newest version of "The Day the Earth Stood Still" had American leaders worrying about what the more advanced space aliens were going to do. Through all such strife and exploitation, we need only tap into our moral and Judeo-Christian instincts. Know right from wrong. Be caring. 

We should even be religious as long as it isn't the MAGA form of Christianity. It should be the form of Christianity promoted by Christ himself. "Diversity" studies on campuses just reinforce our differences. 

Martha-Ann Alito

Martha-Ann Alito is very conscious of having "German" blood and she now uses this to threaten people. We all know exactly where she is coming from as she is invoking the autocratic reign of mid-20th Century Germany. Slowly but surely the sinister stuff is arising again in world politics. 

We may start hearing more and more "war chants." Just imagine: the real re-emergence of Trump with real power. 

Why does this new Indian studies thing need to be a "doctoral" degree? More grievance studies. Like "women's studies." The whole "Ph.D." thing is pretentious. 

As a matter of pure history it is fine to examine the pre-Columbian Natives. It can in fact be very interesting. As a practical matter it is no model for how to live. The "melting pot" is. Science/medicine is. 

Whoever is going to be leading these academic studies will laugh at someone like me, a cretin in their eyes. I have dealt with this before. I think a big chunk of academia is just a "racket," self-serving, self-glorifying. Hey we all have to try to make a living. 

Be careful of talking about the emperor having no clothes. Trump liked his porn star friends when they were not wearing clothes.

 

Further blogging

I invite you to read my current post on my companion blog "Morris of Course," which relates to what is here. Specifically it is inspired by the quite dated Errol Flynn movie "They Died With Their Boots On." Indians were faceless. The soundtrack music for them projected mystery and danger. You may read this post with this permalink, and thanks:

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2024/06/popular-entertainment-reacts-to-history.html

 

The Lakota

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Are we remote? We can hear coyotes!

How can we compete with the Rochester U of M branch when we can hear coyotes out here?

 

I often welcome a sense of quiet as an older person. Nothing to get really excited about. That's nice. The exciting season of graduation is over in our Morris. Such a big deal and logically so. First it's UMM and then the high school, separated by two weeks in 2024. I remember when UMM's graduation was late and now it's the opposite. 

I also remember when we could take for granted a band or "symphonic winds" at UMM's graduation. Is this a permanent arrangement now? No band? But with the Native Americans making their presentation with the drums and chanting? Is "chanting" the most appropriate word? 

We should respect all cultures including the traditional Indian one. However I do think we can get carried away romanticizing the old Indian culture. I'm thinking of the country singer Pam Tillis when she did the classic ode. "Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon?" We're supposed to feel enthralled. 

 

Totally real

You know what I heard about three nights ago when I stepped outside my house after dark? I live on Northridge Drive which might be considered "semi-rural." I was surprised to hear the very wild sound. No crying to the blue corn moon maybe, but certainly excited about something. It was amazing to take in: clearly a pack of coyotes to the east of Morris. 

The coyote (wikipedia)

A very high-pitched wailing sound. Like what you might associate with our old Hollywood western movies, making clear you were in the raw west. 

The phrase associated with Johnson MN is surely hyperbole: "Where the pavement ends and the West begins." But the early pioneers out here definitely had experiences that could be associated with an old Hollywood western.

 

Artist's touch

Hearing the chorus of coyotes reminded me of the late artist Del Holdgrafer. Time passes and fewer of us are going to remember this distinct gentleman. What an artist! He did a little portrayal of Hitler when Hitler was contemporary. He covered so much ground and was current and topical so often. 

I was thrilled that he sometimes followed up on my cartoon suggestions. Like on the O.J. Simpson trial: he drew a man walking away from his TV and reasoning that he'd just let God be the judge of the matter. Put aside the media hullabaloo. 

I'm fascinated as I wonder how Delmar might approach Trump and that whole phenomenon. He might be too concerned and worried to even get into it. He had such a gentle soul. From Donnelly. 

Today I particularly remember a drawing Del did of a group of intrepid campers getting away from civilization. A person in the drawing who appeared to be their guide said "pretty soon we'll be getting into wilderness." The others shuddered. They were most obviously out in wilderness already! 

Is there any bigger representative of this than coyotes howling? 

Not the "real" coyote!

Coyotes look a lot like standard dogs. Where I live, I have probably heard them often in the past and felt maybe they were just domestic dogs. I mean, if it's essentially a barking sound. 

But what I heard the other night was - to repeat - right out of an old western movie. High-pitched. Just wailing. Could not have been domestic dogs. 

And if it came from east of Morris, I had to wonder if these animals were out by the river which is right next to the biking/walking trail. A former pastor of my church likes to bicycle there. He told me he had recently seen a coyote or two. Wild animals, yes, but are they dangerous? Mostly the answer appears to be "no." 

But these are wild animals. And there is precedent for being a little concerned. Taylor Mitchell was a Canadian country folk singer and songwriter from Toronto. I have seen videos of her and she was good. My, she died at the tender young age of 19. Her death was due to blood loss after two coyotes mauled her while she was walking along Cape Briton Highlands National Park's Skyline Trail. 

So I suppose we shouldn't assume anything about coyotes. In the case of Mitchell, it appeared the attacking coyotes had learned to adjust to a limited food supply by attacking moose. Taking on such a large animal, they weren't likely to feel averse to a walking human. 

So it appears that special circumstances were in effect. But "special circumstances" happen all the time. 

I wonder about the temperament and instincts of our coyotes that seem to be out east of Morris. The biking/walking trail is popular these days of summer. Many solitary people can be observed. Many people have their own dogs and it is a delight to befriend the dogs. 

I am inclined to think the "special circumstances" of the Mitchell incident were quite confined/limited. So we needn't fear? I would probably choose to go out there at full sunlight, that's for sure. An area right by a river is bound to have lots of wildlife in its myriad forms. Even skunks and raccoons. Skunks have total power over us, don't you think? 

Not welcome (wikipedia)

Any attempted intervention with a skunk on your property has risks - great risks I might add. Pest control companies do not respond to skunk calls. I assume that no matter how professional they are, they cannot guarantee an incident-free outcome! So, let the animals just mosey around as they wish? Maybe. I would not lose sleep over any other critter but a skunk. 

When I hear the primitive cry of the coyotes again, I will think of the Taylor Mitchell incident. I sure wouldn't head out that way after dark. 

 

So to interpret

What does it mean when we can still hear wild coyote sounds from the outskirts of our community? I suppose it means we're darn close to wilderness. 

The University of Minnesota has developed a coordinate campus here in Motown, an object of much pride always. Shall we be concerned that we're in such a remote place that we hear coyotes? I mean, concerned from the standpoint that we'd like to be sure our campus will stay viable? Or even grow? 

The growth thing frankly is hard to envision now. Maybe impossible. It would help if we could get the UMM band back for graduation. The kids who are instrumentalists should want to be there. But I guess maybe the youth culture is different from what I remember. 

Whither UMM? Whither UMM in our present circumstances where Rochester also has a coordinate campus? Oh, and I'm quite sure the Rochester campus has ambitious lobbyists for their interests. Consider the following: "Tens of thousands of new residents are expected to move to Rochester over the next two decades thanks in part to massive projects like Mayo Clinic's ongoing $5 billion expansion." The quote is from the Star Tribune. 

"How are you gonna keep 'em down on the farm," eh? I mean, when you're located in a part of the state increasingly known for being sparse in population and well, desolate. We really are known that way. 

The "Superior" company certainly pushes back. But can we compete with the Mayo Clinic and all its burgeoning? I don't know. But in the meantime we can at least feel peace listening to the wild coyote on the fringes of town. These creatures have been known to come right into a town, and they can attack small domestic dogs. 

Ah Morris where the deer and the antelope play. Well maybe not the antelope but surely deer which can be plentiful to the east too. And the coyotes. Foxes as well. Skunks? Sadly yes. 

If it's Morris versus Rochester for getting U of M resources, expansion and amenities, how do you think we'd turn out?

 

The Pam Tillis song

You can listen to Pam Tillis sing "Colors of the Wind" with this YouTube link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utfnIMIRISw

 

Addendum: Remember when the bear came into Morris? According to Morris legend, a daycare group got pretty close to the tree where the little fellow settled, looked up at it. Maybe that's a tall tale. Speaking of tall tales, law enforcement tried telling us in the aftermath that the bear was eventually allowed to just wander away, out of town. A bear that had been wounded in a parking lot downtown. 

A wounded bear, just wandering away to who knows where? I was incredulous. But I found a surprising number of people buying the story. 

"It was the DNR's bear," Richard Barry told me. Richard had a way of learning local pertinent facts. 

Liability issues for sure for whoever was responsible for the animal. I don't think it just wandered in from the wild.

 

Second in state, softball

Superb Wolverines!

Now I'm talking "Wolverines" as in a sports mascot and not the fierce wild animal. 

Are there real wild wolverines in this area? Would not rule it out. Out by the bike trail? I wouldn't know. A toast to the Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley Wolverines as they captured second place in Minnesota Class 'A' softball. What terrific memories from just recently. And let me say it was fun being along for the ride, sort of, as I wrote three in-depth blog posts on the success! It always feels like old times. Of course I used to work for the Morris fishwrap, er newspaper. 

I am pleased to communicate often with my Bonanza Valley friend Randy Olson. He responded to my final post on the Wolverines:

 

On that bunt by Jordan (Wright) - you added the YouTube link on your blog.

It already has 418 views, which is remarkable for views on a small school team!

 

I wrote back to Randy, expanding as I often do on media topics in our changing media world. "Northern Star" is the name of the newspaper that serves CGB. It holds its own although I'm surprised that it apparently does not have a website. What I wrote back to Randy:

 

Hello Randy - Thanks for recent communications obviously. We see the communications world continue to evolve, definitely an ongoing process. Quaint to look at the Northern Star newspaper, bless their hearts, as it hearkens back to pre-digital times with its approach. Well to each their own. When the details of the game against West Lutheran showed up on the "Minnesota Softball Hub" site, my theory is that it was due to the CGB crowd seeing the dearth of timely coverage. Someone must have done some prodding. I see that these "Hub" sites are associated with the Star Tribune. I wonder what their incentive is for setting these up. The vast majority seem to sit there just dormant.

I was working on my coverage yesterday and was feeling some stress which is stupid for two reasons: 1) I don't get paid to do this anymore, and 2) because my coverage is online I can always go in to correct anything. And that's the big nightmare with the print newspaper - once it's off the press it's too late! And, the post-season phase for any high school sport gets complicated. As I pointed out, CGB played a total of eight post-season games. That gets pretty involved for trying to stay on top of it, especially if you're trying to cover more than one team or more than one sport. Oh, and the double-elimination thing can be confounding! In softball if you lose your first game you're done, and then the double-elimination starts the second round. You have to file all this away.

Double-elimination makes things confusing even for the media people who are trying to stay on top of it.

So I was reminded of all this yesterday as I was at the keyboard, sweated a little. And why should I sweat? I mean, CGB's own newspaper is way behind due to only publishing once a week. From that standpoint I'm doing rings around them. But many local people will always stick up for their hometown paper because it's an ingrained habit. Although, I think the habit is getting thinner all the time. Our librarian Anne Barber told me "I never see kids with the newspapers."

For much of my career we had the two-class system for high school sports. Looking back it really was pretty unfair, but think back to when it was one-class! I remember when Hayfield played Edina in the first round of state basketball and got slaughtered. Edina! They were the powerhouse. They had a star named Bob Zender. I got curious about where he is today so I did a check and found out that he went in for a knee replacement that seemed pretty routine and then died due to a blood clot. Lordy!

Quaint: In my earliest years with the Morris paper, it was almost an honor system for getting press credentials for state. I'd call a day or two previous, simply tell them I wanted the credentials and the person said fine and informed me where to pick them up at the venue. Nice and relaxed. Nothing is nice and relaxed today. Where will it end? And schools today have to contract for "security!" Could not have imagined it when I was young.

Summer is finally here. Morris will have a new athletic director in the fall, we'll see how that goes. I wonder if Willmar paper will start taking us in again. Does the Forum have an ax to grind because they failed in Morris?

Oh, I continue to consider putting my blogs into hiatus. Should be a routine decision but it is not. So the question arises: If I want to do this, do I have to make a big dramatic announcement? I remember in my last year with the Morris paper, I discovered a blog called "Mr. Cheer or Die" on the MN Vikings and the NFL. The guy got a little worn out just like how I feel now, then he sprang the big dramatic announcement. And I'm not sure that's necessary. People have to understand that I have no obligation to do this, it is an at-will thing. And even if I want a hiatus, I might in the future find some new inspiration as with some new topics. At present I am sick of writing about Trump/MAGA. That stuff will keep coming at us no matter what journalists say.

"Mr. Cheer or Die" had a podcast in the days when podcasts were rare. I'm not sure what changed, but I have read that you once needed a real expensive microphone. There are so many podcasts now I'm amazed. I have lost enthusiasm for putting stuff on YouTube because I think it just gets lost in a vast endless sea now. MAYBE I'll have a Christmas song recorded just to send links to a few friends. We'll see.

Caitlin Clark is a case study in "celebrity in America." The Fever lost badly last night.

My health appears fine at this moment so I give thanks to the Lord for this day that he has given me.

- BW

If you think CGB was awesome, you're "Wright"

High school sports subsides and then we get the lazy days of summer. The laziness of summer is just now starting to be felt in Wolverine country to the west. That's the moniker for the Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley school. The softball program there really took it to the limit in '24. It doesn't get any more exciting or energizing than this: playing in the very last game of the tournament: that would be the state championship game. 

And that's exactly what those Wolverines did. My blog post on the title game is on my companion blog "Morris of Course." I am pleased to have published this on Saturday. Timeliness is nice, all things being equal of course. 

Looks like we'll have to wait on the "Northern Star" newspaper, as it does not come out until Thursday. And it appears it does not have a website. I'd really like to give them a nudge on this. It would be a polite nudge but also an urgent nudge. 

You may click on the link below to read my "Morris of Course" post about the CGB vs. New Ulm Cathedral Class 'A' state championship game. It has the headline "Boffo! CGB Wolverines No. 2 in state." Thanks so much. I have no financial incentive for doing this. I'm just a community journalist from way back. Ask Mark Torgerson. - BW.

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2024/06/boffo-cgb-wolverines-no-2-in-state.html 

Season unto itself

Wow! CGB  played the whopping total of eight games in the '24 post-season. Really a season unto itself, n'est-ce pas? The climb started with a game against Pelican Rapids. The site: Minnewaska Area. CGB showed flashes of what was to come with a 13-3 win. 

The site was 'Waska again for the second game that pitted the Wolverines against West Central Area. A 4-2 victory. 

Moving on, it was time for the most focused Wolverines to make Morris their home base for three games. All three would be against New York Mills. These games wrapped up the month of May. I happened to walk past the "softball complex" in Morris during one of the games, might have stuck around if admission wasn't charged. Of course you can still see pretty good standing out by Prairie Lane. 

Of course the Morris facility does not have real seating accommodations for fans. That's the darndest thing. The actual bleacher seating behind home plate is almost negligible. Off to the sides you do not have a full view of the playing field. Just thought I'd mention it. Shall I assume that the visiting teams always have their fans informed beforehand that they need to bring their own chairs? 

And even if you get seated outside of first and third bases, the view is not good. I have tested it. Fans have to look through the fence at an angle. You might squint. And the fence surrounding the field is too high to see over. The old UMM field at the same location had a shorter fence. Fans had great fun at the old UMM field, so I just don't get it. Wells Park in west Morris also has shorter fences. It's too bad a big occasion like the Section 6A tournament had to be in such a non-accommodating place. 

Are people suggesting alternative locations to Morris? I'm curious. 

CGB won two games and lost one against New York Mills. You might remember that New York Mills produced the basketball player who was the big early pioneer for female prep hoops: Janet Karvonen. Does New York Mills still host that "think-off" event for intellectuals and philosophers? If I remember correctly, the question one year was "does sex always have consequences?" Man, what a question to be presented for Donald J. Trump. I personally think the answer to the question is "yes." But I am the soul of caution. 

 

The big showcase

Incredible excitement at state for those Wolverines. Now the site is Mankato or actually North Mankato. I was there one year for the tournament when Morris was in it. Definitely good fan seating accommodations as I recall. How could this ever be overlooked? 

CGB played an incredibly thrilling game against Red Lake Falls which I have already reviewed on this "I Love Morris" blog site. Incredible comeback, 9-7 win. Whew! 

Next was the game against West Lutheran. Now we're into the private schools. That's how it is in state. Can the regular outstate public schools hold their own? Why yes! CGB defeated West Lutheran 8-2. 

Here's a noteworthy aspect of the West Lutheran game for yours truly: game review information is on the "Minnesota Softball Hub" reporting system. Appears this is a service presented by the Star Tribune. Most of these "Hub" sites for the various sports sit dormant. They require cooperation by a coach or other responsible party. Sometimes it happens but rarely. Maybe someone got off the shnide because they know the "Northern Star" newspaper was not going to be very timely or responsive. Things are still a little slow there in Petticoat Junction, I guess. Doesn't have to be that way. 

So I'm pleased as punch to be able to report details on the West Lutheran game, thanks to the "Hub." CGB gained a 1-0 lead after three innings. Both teams' offenses picked up in the fifth, CGB with three runs and West Lutheran with two. But the key inning was the sixth: a big four-run rally by the Wolverines. West Lutheran had zero runs in that frame. Add 'em all up and it's an 8-2 win. 

CGB scored its eight runs on nine hits and had two errors. The West Lutheran line score: 2-5-4. State semis success was sweet!

Pitching is so important in prep softball. So let's acknowledge the game's winning pitcher: Jordan Wright with the full seven innings, six strikeouts, two walks, five hits, two runs. The losing pitcher was Eleanor Rolf. Wolverines with stolen bases were Dru Stotesbery, Macy Anderson and Makaya Hennessy.

Let's move on to the hitting department where we see Addison Ward going two-for-four with two runs scored. Hannah Gary went two-for-three with a run scored and a whopping five RBIs. Hennessy had a hit and a walk received, a run scored and an RBI. Parker Stotesbery had a hit and she crossed home plate once. Chloe Cardwell drew a walk. Dru Stotesbery scored two runs and Ellen Anderson scored one. 

Jordan Wright complemented her pitching with productive hitting: a three-for-four line and two ribbies. A showcase game for Jordan to be sure. And two of her hits were doubles. Hannah Gary and Addison Ward each had a double. 

Hannah Gary's bat made noise with a home run!

 

Sports and media

How important is timely reporting for the media in our year of 2024? Can the old "Petticoat Junction" standards be countenanced any more? I mean, wait until the Thursday "Northern Star" newspaper comes out? Just once a week? In those past times, options were limited. Today there are no boundaries. Here's an email I received from my Bonanza Valley newspaper friend this morning:

 

Hello Brian, the Minnesota Newspaper Association sends weekly updates to newspaper publishers. In the latest update, they included a column from some big wig from a rural journalism advocacy group.

In a very diplomatic way, he gives a stern lecture to publishers that breaking news needs to get online - right away. Not "later in the day" or "the next day" but rather RIGHT AWAY after it happens.

In a nutshell, once the big details can be confirmed, big things need to get on your small town newspaper website right away. It needs to happen within hours at the very most.

It could be a VIP dying, an accident, something Mother Nature unleashes on the community, etc...he really nailed all the necessary points.

Dig into it and see what you can glean from what he says. I'm sure you've got your own thoughts on the matter you can add. If a newspaper does not adapt and utilize a website (or sports blog which is my main online gig) then they are just going to become more obsolete.

The Class 'A' state tournament All-Tournament Team includes Jordan Wright and Hannah Gary. The photo is from MSHSL website.
 

Remembering Section 6A

The "Northern Star" newspaper is old-fashioned in more ways than one. I consulted this paper at our Morris Public Library after the 6A playoffs. The paper sometimes refers to their team as the "Lady Wolverines." I know there was a time when such a reference with "lady" was considered totally politically incorrect. I don't know, maybe people have lightened up and maybe it's OK or benign now. 

My opinion? That's not important. Although, I think just saying "Wolverines" suffices totally. 

Let's take a look at the Friday, May 31 action. CGB split vs. the New York Mills Eagles on May 31. The loss was by an 8-5 score. Grace Cardwell had two hits, a stolen base and a run scored. Macy Anderson had a hit, a run and an RBI. Parker Stotesbery came through with a stolen base, a run scored and an RBI. Chloe Cardwell added a hit and an RBI to the mix. 

Jordan Wright's bat produced a hit. Addison Ward and Dru Stotesbery each scored a run. Jordan Wright did not fare so well pitching in this game. She took the loss in her full seven innings, striking out four. 

 

Topping 6A

The 6A trail climaxed for CGB with their 5-1 win before the fans in Morris. Jordan Wright was a hitting machine as she produced four hits. She complemented that with three RBIs and a run scored. Hannah Gary had two hits and a run. Sadie Wright had a hit and two ribbies. Addison Ward, Chloe Cardwell and Makaya Hennessy each had a hit and a run. 

Sadie Wright pitched in this one and fanned six in her seven innings in the circle. She walked three and gave up five hits and one run. Only once did a CGB batter go down on strikes.

The May 28 game: The Wolverines won 5-2 in this first contest vs. the NY Mills Eagles. CGB used a four-run first inning rally to seize the momentum. 

Sadie Wright was a hitting leader with three hits and three RBIs. Jordan Wright had two hits, a stolen base and an RBI. Hannah Gary delivered a hit and crossed home plate twice. Addison Ward had a hit and a run. Dru Stotesbery stole a base and scored a run. Chloe Cardwell and Macy Anderson each had a hit, and Makaya Hennessy scored a run. 

In the pitching spotlight: Jordan Wright with five strikeouts in her full seven innings. She fanned five batters and walked three. She gave up seven hits and the two runs.

 

A YouTube highlight

A key Jordan Wright RBI bunt is captured on YouTube! This post is on the Neighborhood Sports network. Please watch::

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6jWrH3HrcM 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com