“If you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu.”

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I spend almost all my time attempting to figure out how I can braid storytelling and organizing. I’ve been attempting to not just organize communities around ideas, but also organize ideas, making sense of the din around us, the tunnel vision that too often exists in the justice world, the lack of recognition of the ties that bind injustice together, and the ways and whys we too often ignore who we are for what we do. Continue Reading

Open enrollment time: Should you renew or change your health insurance?

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Every year that annoying notice comes. It’s open enrollment time. During this time, you can make choices about health insurance. You can compare deductibles, calculate premiums, check coverage, and read policies. Or you can do nothing, and your insurance will automatically renew. If you have employer-sponsored insurance, individual insurance, MNSure insurance, or Medicare, you need to decide. Continue Reading

Star Tribune runs full-page anti-transgender ad

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The Minnesota Child Protection League, an anti-LGBT group that opposes LGBT inclusion in the state’s public schools, bought an ad in the Sunday Star Tribune. The ad says, “A male wants to shower beside your 14 year old daughter. Are you okay with that?”The ad is part of a push by MNCPL to stop the Minnesota State High School League from passing a policy that would provide inclusion for transgender athletes. The Catholic Church and the religious right have mounted a campaign to block it. In the process, they’ve perpetuated false stereotypes about transgender people, including the myth that transgender students will prey on fellow students in locker rooms, showers, restrooms and hotel rooms. According to many law enforcement, civil rights and sexual assault prevention organizations, the idea that transgender inclusion will put anyone at risk is unfounded.Related article: State athletics league mulls transgender inclusion in sportsThe Minnesota State High School League is “a voluntary, nonprofit association of public and private schools with a history of service to Minnesota’s high school youth since 1916.” The MSHSL oversees much of the athletics in the state.According to the proposed policy, transgender high school students can play on the team of their choice (male or female) but must have a physician’s documentation and in some cases must have begun hormone therapy to “preserve competitive equity.” The MSHSL policy also provides transgender students avenues for corrective action if a school district does not comply.The MSHSL will meet on Wednesday, Oct. 1, and Thursday, Oct. Continue Reading

Jeff Strate: A Mike “Stretch” Gelfand sighting

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Joan Rivers, Lewis Black, Jackie Vernon and Phyllis Diller were among the comedians Mike “Stretch” Gelfand and I talked about yesterday (September 4th) during a retreat to a Linden Hills caffeine pump, a kind of comfort zone for chronically under employed Wi-Fi junkies. We were unaware that Joan had passed away in Manhattan earlier in the afternoon but understood that she was on her way out.I recalled a scene in the riveting 2010 documentary “Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work” in which a stoked-up heckler in a rural Wisconsin casino fails to shame Rivers for pitching one-liners about Hellen Keller. With cinema verite footage, the film (co-directed by Edina native Annie Sundberg) essays a survivor recapturing her perch as one of America’s most funny and edgy comics.This is a Community Voices submission and is moderated but not edited. The opinions expressed by Community Voices contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the TC Daily Planet.We inconclusively pondered why Joan had allowed herself to be booked into a dead end comedy club in Wisconsin. Late of the KQRS Morning Show and with a textured life as a newspaper man, Canterbury Park horse racing tout, public relations flak, sports cableTV co-host, and cab driver, Mike Gelfand has also earned pocket change by booking Twin Cities comics into upper-midwest clubs. Continue Reading

Is Minnesota ready for recreational marijuana?

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Minnesota State Fair polltakers are narrowly opposed to the legalization of recreational marijuana in the state but strongly support same-day voter registration and lean toward increasing the state’s gas tax for road and bridge construction.Conducted by the nonpartisan House Public Information Services Office, the annual poll at the House of Representatives booth during the 12-day Minnesota State Fair is an informal, unscientific survey of issues discussed in prior legislative sessions and may be topics of discussion in 2015.Of the 7,607 people filling out a ballot in 2014, 48.1 percent are against the state allowing the recreational use of marijuana for persons age 21 and older; however, 43.3 percent support the idea. Nearly 9 percent of those taking the poll were undecided or had no opinion.Do you think Minnesota should legalize recreational marijuana use? Take our poll and see the results.The 2014 Legislature passed a law for use of medical marijuana for nine specific illnesses, but not for recreational use of the drug. Only the use of pills, oils or vaporizing of a cannabis compound through a device similar to an e-cigarette is allowed. 2014 Minnesota House State Fair Poll ResultsFifty-four percent of polltakers support raising the state’s gas tax by 5 cents per gallon to help fund the backlog of highway and bridge needs across the state. More than 40 percent are against the increase and 5.5 percent were undecided or had no opinion. Continue Reading

MUSIC REVIEW | Journey and Joan Jett electrify the Minnesota State Fair

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The Minnesota State Fair was given an explosive final farewell to the 2014 Grandstand Concert Series as Journey and Joan Jett & the Blackhearts came together for an amazing rock sound that electrified the myriad masses out of their food comas and on to their feet.Joan Jett and the Blackhearts opened the show at 7pm sharp, ripping right into “Bad Reputation” and keeping the energy level high as people scrambled to get to their seats and enjoy the show. Jett was absolutely stunning on stage, exuding charm, energy, and a playful stage presence that was captivating. Joan Jett and the Blackhearts know what they’re doing, and they do it well, as they blasted through almost an hour of straight forward, high-octane rock and roll.Journey then took the stage following a fairly lengthy intermission and captivated in their own right. While Joan Jett has that wonderful, fast, heavy hitting sound that conjures visions of energetic nights in small venues, Journey is almost pure arena rock. Journey is sing-along rock, it is “bust out your lighters and sway to the tune” rock, and their performance brought you to all of those moments, from the classic “Any Way You Want It,” to the track with the greatest music video ever in “Separate Ways” (which brought a ridiculous and completely unexpected pop from the crowd), to the more mellow sounds of songs such as “Lights” and “Open Arms.”Arnel Pineda is an amazing frontman, a man with an incredible amount of energy and a million dollar smile who knows how to work a crowd, and while he was given plenty of time as the face, each band member was given their own chance to shine, and each of them did. Continue Reading

MUSIC REVIEW | Local heavy hitters come out at MN Music On-A-Stick at the Minnesota State Fair

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MN Music On-A-Stick on Saturday, Aug. 30was a celebration of the great variety and quality of local music we have in Minnesota. Hosted by The Current, one of the most astute observations came from Mark Wheat when he noted that all but one of these bands (Bob Mould) has emerged since The Current went on air in 2005. The Current has been a force to promote local bands–from Americana to Hip Hop and we saw it all on stage.Cactus Blossoms started the show. The crowd was still drifting in but there were dedicated music fans sitting and waiting under the stage for the show to start. Continue Reading