Summit University

Protesters, journalists and old-style hippies were among the targets in the first 24 hours of police raids in preparation for the Republican National Convention.

Sheriff Bob Fletcher claimed that his operation targets only the RNC Welcoming Committee, a local anarchist protest group. However, police also targeted journalists from I-Witness video and a family traveling in a green bus and demonstrating environmentally-friendly practices such as solar panels, hydroponics and composting. MORE »

I asked my friend Barbara to help me review Fences, the Pulitzer Prize winning drama by August Wilson. The newspaper ad grabbed my attention: it shows just a baseball and one line. “The heartbreaking story of a man and his last chance at bat.” I was anticipating a feel-good story about a young man realizing his dream of being able to play baseball professionally. As you can tell, I tend to wear rose-colored glasses. MORE »

My friend Jean invited me to help her review Fences at the Penumbra Theatre. It was my first visit to the Penumbra, and it was outstanding! MORE »

The Choker. The Full Closure. The Neckdown. What do these descriptions have in common? No, they’re not extreme wrestling moves. They’re actually three of the many “traffic-calming” techniques used throughout Minnesota.

According to the Local Road Research Board, city officials are receiving increasing requests by residents to “calm” traffic in their communities. Meanwhile, elected officials and citizens can’t help but question the effectiveness of the techniques already in place. Speed limit signs often seem to serve as mere suggestions, and even the large speedometers (speed trailers) set up on streets such as North Dale and Snelling Avenue only seem to slow drivers down for the few seconds it takes to pass by. City engineers are working to come up with traffic slowing solutions that are affordable, have minimal drawbacks, and work in the long term. MORE »