“Saying that ‘it’s time to question laws that senselessly expand the concept of self-defense and sow dangerous conflict in our neighborhoods,’ Attorney Gen. Eric Holder on Tuesday called for a reexamination of so-called stand your ground laws,” writes NPR’s Mark Memmott It was just such a law that hovered over the trial of George Zimmerman Read more →
Photo by Henry Burrows via Flickr “Parents who think their children don’t pay attention can take heart. They’re doing their best to emulate your bad TV-watching habits,” writes NPR’s Nancy Shute. Parents have been told repeatedly that setting rules and banning TVs in children’s bedrooms will help limit TV time. But those much-researched and oft-touted Read more →
“The acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin is reverberating far beyond Florida, writes NPR’s Karen Grigsby Bates. “On Sunday, President Obama acknowledged the strong passions the verdict has incited. He asked Americans ‘to respect the call for calm reflection from two parents who lost their young son.’” Many people are Read more →
“No doubt about it, the mosquitoes are bad this year after a very wet spring,” writes MPR News reporter Sasha Aslanian. But exactly how bad are they? Every week, the Metropolitan Mosquito Control District sets traps and counts them. In the lab where scientists empty the traps, it seems the tables are turned on the Read more →
Through the Public Insight Network, MPR News collected the stories of over 125 Latinos in Minnesota who trace their roots back to 17 different countries. The demographics of Minnesota are changing and the growing Latino community is an important part of that change. The first wave of Latino migration to Minnesota began in the early Read more →
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sK3e-UCJXi0 Minnesota’s wolf population has dropped by about 24 percent since 2008, according to new survey numbers released Tuesday by the state Department of Natural Resources, writes MPR News reporter Elizabeth Dunbar. The new numbers likely mean fewer wolves will be allowed to be killed during the next hunting season this fall and winter, said Read more →
Minnesotans rejected a proposed constitutional amendment last fall that would have required voters in future elections to produce photo identification before casting a ballot. But, MPR News reporter Tim Pugmire writes that a photo identification requirement to vote in Minnesota could again surface as a newly-formed state task force launches a study of electronic poll Read more →
Ground Level from MPR News: It looms in the heart of town, perhaps an old school or a hotel, stone or brick, big and empty. Infrastructure from the past but no longer in demand, it occupies high ground, an architect-designed, iconic building made of solid local materials. It once was a town’s soul. Now it’s Read more →
Two overarching themes are emerging from Egypt. The overthrow of the democratically elected leader Mohamed Morsi by the military is a blow to the potential of democracy in the region, but others contend Morsi and the leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood overreached and abused their power. More from the New York Times: From Benghazi to Read more →
Fireworks at Battle Creek in St Paul, photo by NVJ via Flickr For the first time since the city began celebrating Independence Day, Red Wing is going without a fireworks display. A committee that raises money to fund the show failed to convince enough businesses and individuals that it was worth lighting up the sky Read more →
Michael Olson