Responds to letter on Jan. 6 riot

From Larry Kenney

Plymouth, Minn.

(formerly of Glenwood)

This letter is a response to Steve Nestor’s Letter To The Editor printed in the Feb.13, 2023 Pope County Tribune.

I have noticed that some conservative networks try to present a few statements that are true and several that are not and then contend that all the statements are true.

Your letter seems to try to do the same thing.

You make several inaccurate statements:

1) You state that there was one death during the January 6 insurrection.  In fact, there were four. See New York Times, 1/5/2022 issue and FactCheck.org 11/1/2021 article “How Many Died as a Result of Capitol Riot.”  None were police officers, but two officers committed suicide shortly after the Jan. 6 riot.  Although neither suicide is considered a “line of death duty” demise, one has to ask, but for the riot, would the officers have committed suicide?  The answer is not clear.

2) You say that a female demonstator was “murdered.” Ashli Babbitt was shot as she tried to force her way into a hallway adjacent to the House chamber, where members of Congress were  sheltering.  It was the officer’s duty to protect the members of Congress.  The DOJ never brought charges against the officer for violation of 18 U.S.C. # 242,   a federal criminal civil rights statue.  The DOJ investigation found no evidence that the officer was not acting to defend himself or members of Congress. See  DOJ press release 21-052.  Your statement that she was murdered is an opinion, but is not legally factual.

3) With regard to the makeup of the House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, you say that the two Republican representatatives were hand picked.

That is true, but there is history behind that action.  Kevin McCarty demanded that Jim Jordan, Jim Banks, and three other named Republicans be seated on the Committee.  Both Jordan and Banks had a history of disruption and were rejected by Nancy Pelosi.  McCarthy made a tactical error in then withdrawing all Republican nominees to the Committee.  Pelosi subsequently nominated Republicans Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger to the Committee.  See USA Today, “Who Is On The January 6 Committee,” published 6/8/2022.

4) You say “Oh, by the way, both were not elected this past midterm,” when discussing the Republican members of the Jan. 6 Committee.  That comment is incorrect.

Liz Cheney was defeated in her primary election and Adam Kinzinger did not run for reelection.  At a minimum, it is misleading to say Kinzinger was not reelected when he did not even run for Congress.

I could go on, but the newspaper publisher wants comments to be brief.  If you are going to make comments, you might want to spend more time researching the accuracy of same.

Finally, you ask “So, this was boring?”

Um, yes, again, it was.

Lawmakers need to prioritize senior care

B. Jason Garcia

Executive Director

Glenwood Retirement Village

On February 27, 2023, the Minnesota Department of Management and Budget released its February Budget and Economic Forecast which appear stable, with a $17.5 billion balance projected for the next biennium, mostly left over from the current biennium.   

As state lawmakers decide how to best allocate funding, priority must be given to strengthening pay and retention of essential senior caregivers to address the ongoing crisis in senior care.

According to LeadingAge MN, almost 20,000 senior caregiver roles statewide remain vacant. Last October, admissions requests for senior care settings were denied 11,000 times due to caregiver shortages.  When seniors can’t receive professional care in their communities, the burden falls directly on families to find a solution.

In some cases, seniors face discharge delays in hospitals, backing up our already overcrowded healthcare systems. This problem will only get worse unless lawmakers prioritize funding for senior care.  In a system where the legislature directly influences the wages providers can offer to caregivers, they have a moral responsibility to prioritize funding senior care and addressing this crisis.

Bipartisan legislation that would increase reimbursement rates and funding for senior care settings is currently working its way through the legislature. If passed, this legislation would take meaningful steps towards paying caregivers the higher wages they deserve and strengthen the caregiving workforce for Minnesota’s growing senior population. We ask for support of HF 733 and SF 780 to recognize caregivers.

We thank our local legislators for their ongoing support.  We ask the public to please connect with our local legislators and the governor to prioritize and support adequate funding for senior care.

Rep. Anderson’s party has supported under-reach on climate change

From Ralph Woehle,

Glenwood

Representative Paul Anderson’s article in the February 20 Tribune discussed proposed Minnesota legislation requiring small gasoline engines to be replaced by electric engines. He called it overreach and said we might shop in South Dakota for gas mowers if such legislation passes. However, most of the national governments of the world have long recognized the climate change problem but have done so little it might be called underreach. Mr. Anderson’s Republican party has supported underreaching.

According to climate scientists we are overshooting any acceptable amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and are primed for disastrous warming in the future. To help stop that we must reduce carbon dioxide emissions. We can do that by converting our electric power production to clean sources like the solar gardens already in Pope County, to stop using coal or natural gas to generate electricity. At the same time, we must convert most gas and diesel engines to clean energy engines, most likely electricity.

Small electric engines work well with battery capacity available now. John Deere is planning to roll out electric lawn tractors. Xcel energy, in cooperation with solar garden and windmill companies, is moving toward clean electricity. Xcel is also facilitating off-peak power charging. When electric lawn mowers become available you might get one from the John Deere dealership in Glenwood or Morris and charge it quickly and cheaply in your garage on locally produced electricity via Xcel. That would keep your business here.

There are advantages of electric motors. They are technically simple and require little maintenance. You can say goodbye to smelly gasoline, and greatly reduce the use of lubricating petroleum. Because electric motors deliver strong torque consistently, transmissions are not required. And though they may cost more to purchase, the operating costs are very low. I like that they are quiet.

So, if you convert to electric lawn tractors, you can support businesses operating in and around Glenwood. You can have a lawn tractor that offers advantages over a gas-powered model. Most important, you can make the earth a better place for future generations.