A brain ‘going bad,’ Duluth fracking boost, mixing Red Bull with the St. Paul Cathedral

Derek Boogaard: a brain 'going bad'

In the final part of a three-part look into the death of former Wild player Derek Boogaard, the New York Times asks, "Did hockey cause a degenerative brain disease?"

'Fracking' means new business for Duluth port

"The Moezelborg arrived Sunday morning loaded with bags of ceramic proppant, also called ceramic sand, for use in a controversial process to increase production of oil and gas wells," reports the Duluth News Tribune.

Minn. GOP tries to pull party together, organize for future

"As the critical 2012 presidential election year approaches, the Minnesota Republican Party is in disarray, trying to unravel the after-effects of the 2010 election, which saw the GOP capture the Legislature but lose the governor's race," writes MPR News' Tom Scheck.

Utne Reader - but not magazine's staff - relocating from Minneapolis to Topeka

"Founded by Eric Utne in 1984 as a sort of Reader's Digest of the alternative press, the magazine has seen a circulation decline to about 115,000." Now reports the Pioneer Press. Ogden Publications "plans to cut the magazine's editorial budget in half, from $500,000 to $250,000."

The Saint Cloud Times reports: The Waite Park mail processing center continues to be one of four locations in Minnesota that could be closed as the U.S. Postal Service plans major cutbacks to help the agency avoid bankruptcy next year.

However, while the postal service made an announcement on Monday that it was moving forward with a proposal to change service standards, no decision has been made about individual facilities, according to Peter Nowacki, a Minneapolis-based spokesman for the USPS.

"The postal service announced today that it was going to the Postal Regulatory Commission for an advisory opinion on changing delivery standards," Nowacki said. "It's a system-wide move and we don't know when any final decision will come. We don't have one yet."

Union accepts Dayton's offer for American Crystal negotiations

Governor Dayton recently proposed new talks between the American Crystal and it's locked-out workers. Hot Dish Politics posts a response from union, "We whole-heartedly accept Governor Dayton's offer to resume contract negotiations with American Crystal Sugar and to continue them until a deal is reached."

Op-Ed: Governors could push talks along

"Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton's offer to host contract talks between locked-out workers and American Crystal Sugar Co. management should be welcomed by both sides," writes the Forum of Fargo-Moorhead editorial board. "The recent history of the talks suggests that an honest broker can help close the gap."

Minnesota court upholds gun ban

News Cut writes: "A lifetime ban on handgun ownership by people who have committed a crime of violence does not violate the Constitution, the Minnesota Court of Appeals has ruled."

Conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly endorses Michele Bachmann

"Social conservative Phyllis Schlafly has endorsed Michele Bachmann for president and is urging Iowans to caucus for her," Bachmann's campaign tells The Des Moines Register.

Vikings, commission fighting over Metrodome lease

The Pioneer Press reports: "The Metrodome roof collapse that forced the Vikings to move two games last season automatically extends their lease another year, contends the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission.Nonsense, counter the Vikings."

Crashed Ice daredevil sporting event coming to St. Paul's Cathedral Hill

"Red Bull has picked St. Paul," reports the Pioneer Press "as the venue for some unusual extreme sports recently: mountain bikers racing through the skyway system. Homemade flying machines crashing into the Mississippi River. Skateboarders grinding on a concrete skateboard park built on top of a river barge.

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