Andrew Owen

For no particular reason, thinking about how the Minneapolis Aquatennial was concocted by business men in 1940 to water down the memory of a 1934 Union victory that happened in spite of violent and deadly opposition

youtu.be/Fpu5a0Bl8eY?...

The problem with the pathetic quiet of so many local elites during the ICE crisis isn't really that they failed to meet some partisan political bar, it's that they failed to meet a basic *civic* bar.

We need a new class of local leader who loves the city + state as much as its everyday people do.

Is it Braess’s paradox if adding a new link prompts the owner of an existing link to employ radical regulatory capture to block the new link’s opening and preserve his profitable monopoly of a network bottleneck?

If you cannot do it with people watching, what you're doing is not "law enforcement," obviously.

It is legal to observe ICE, and the people committing "obstruction of justice" here are not the observers. This should be 100000000% obvious.

So, some missing combos:

- big air bobsled
- figure skating sprint
- downhill curling

The Racist Supreme Court Cases That Cemented Puerto Rico’s Second-Class Status The devastation wrought by Hurricanes Irma and Maria has reawakened many Americans to the existence of Puerto Rico as well as the archaic laws and...

Never thought this piece from 2017 would apply to the Super Bowl halftime show but here is some FURTHER READING

If your head coach allows the sound of an electric blender during game time, here are some easy *super bowls* of snacks for the New Year's Day training table. PIGSKIN PLEASERS 2 tbsp toasted almonds 2 slices crisply fried bacon I thin slice onion 1 C creamed cottage cheese 1½ tsp Worchestershire sauce Put cheese Worchestershire sauce and onion into blender, cover and process at high speed

a few FASCINATING TIDBITS from my research into the history of seven-layer dip

1. This appears to be the first published use of the term "super bowl" to as a pun referencing a bowl of football snacks. Dec. 31, 1971.

SHAKESPEARE IS ALWAYS RELEVANT ABD NECESSARY.

I love this guy, very calming using historical analogy reading his city council for filth.

Aren’t we paying them to do… something… too?

roefamilysingers.bandcamp.com/track/blacke...

It's S-curves all the way down

It is not illegal to watch, record, follow, or track immigration officers. It *is* illegal to threaten, punish, or point a gun at them when they've done nothing illegal. If all these people were doing is observing, this is a crime. As are all the similar videos.

We can't let this become normal.

happening this morning in Minneapolis -- ICE agents drawing guns on observers. I reiterate again that it is only a matter of time before DHS kills more innocent people in Minnesota. Congress needs to shut this shit down right now.

Evergreen and for the whole country.

If this ends before they get to your town, you’ll have some meals prepped and you will have made some friends. You cannot lose.

“Unconscionable,” Jon thought as he found an email address online for the lead prosecutor, Joseph Dernbach, who was named in the story. Peering through metal-rimmed glasses, Jon opened Gmail on his computer monitor. “Mr. Dernbach, don’t play Russian roulette with H’s life,” he wrote. “Err on the side of caution. There’s a reason the US government along with many other governments don’t recognise the Taliban. Apply principles of common sense and decency.” That was it. In five minutes, Jon said, he finished the note, signed his first and last name, pressed send and hoped his plea would make a difference. Five hours and one minute later, Jon was watching TV with his wife when an email popped up in his inbox. He noticed it on his phone. “Google,” the message read, “has received legal process from a Law Enforcement authority compelling the release of information related to your Google Account.”

A retiree wrote this email to a DHS attorney. Within five hours, DHS demanded Google turn over records for his account.

A Kafkaesque form of domestic surveillance, intimidating Americans for lawful speech.

New from us at the Post: www.washingtonpost.com/investigatio... @johnwoodrowcox.bsky.social

This attitude underlies so much of the chaos of the past year — change the rules *while people are in the process of following the rules* and then punish them for following the "old" rules. It undermines the very *idea* that security or stability can be found anywhere other than blind loyalty.

Text of lawsuit by Gateway project vs. US government for failure to fund the cross-Hudson tunnel.

The key issue: The US government suspended funding for this vital infrastructure project because that project used DBE contracting, but the DBE contracting was *required* by the US DOT's own rules!

This makes the Jan 23, 2026 action the largest strike in Minnesota History, and depending on which number you use, 3rd in American History after the massive national strikes of 1919, or the Great Railroad Strike of 1922. I note with extreme interest that mainstream media didn't report these facts.

Poll Shows Massive Participation in Minnesota Shutdown Against ICE 1 in four Minnesota voters took part in January 23 day of action, or had a loved one who did.

A new poll finds that 1 in 4 Minnesota voters took part in the Jan 23 shutdown against ICE, or have a loved one who did. Of those, 38% DID NOT WORK, either because they made the choice to stay out, or their workplaces closed. By me, @thomasbirm.bsky.social, @bloomekatz.bsky.social

Deportation is a transportation issue The words deportation and transportation share a common ancestor in the Latin portare, meaning "to carry." Their prefixes define their intent: trans-port is to carry across; de-port is to carry away or off. Both relate to the porta—the gate or threshold. In the context of the state, transportation is the crossing of the threshold to enter or circulate; deportation is the forced movement back across it.

Deportation is a transportation issue

The words deportation and transportation share a common ancestor in the Latin portare, meaning "to carry." Their prefixes define their intent: trans-port is to carry across; de-port is to carry away or off. Both relate to the porta—the gate or threshold. In…

I’ve been fascinated by the story of the 1st Minnesota since I first heard it. I wrote this to connect some dots that feel like they point in the same direction, even if they start 160 years apart.
andrewowen.bandcamp.com/track/first-...

Handmade roundabout sign is great

Trump's trade war took a toll on shipments in the Twin Ports last year Cargo shipments at the Port of Duluth-Superior slumped last year due to headwinds driven by unfavorable market trends, shifting trade lanes and President Donald Trump’s trade war.

In 2025, just 560K tons of grain moved through the Duluth port — the lowest level since 1890.

1890!

In the StarTribune, weather is specifically blamed, but tariffs aren’t even mentioned.

Here’s a better report on the DLH shipping disaster from Wisconsin Public Radio.

www.wpr.org/news/trumps-...

Violating hospitality is one of the oldest proscriptions across so many cultures.

Some jawdropping CBP crime statistics here...

First Minnesota

Inspired by the 1st Minnesota Infantry Regiment and... *gestures widely*

It's CC-SA; I'd be honored if you listened, performed, or improved it!