24 for ’24: The most-read opinions

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The following excerpts are from Minnesota Star Tribune Opinion commentaries and editorials published in 2024 ranked by highest online readership.

(1) “Dear Caitlin Clark … ,” by Asitha Jayawardena: “Thank you for being an electrifying, transcendent athlete who is actively changing the world of sport. But mostly, thank you for helping me be a better dad.”

(2) “A reality check on the ‘Tampon Tim’ meme,” by the Minnesota Star Tribune Editorial Board: “There’s nothing radical about Minnesota’s new law” on the provision of free menstrual products to school students. “Instead it’s a smart, low-cost measure to address educational achievement gaps, one that many states are embracing.”

(3) “Cruelty after an inspiring family moment,” by Jill Burcum on behalf of the Editorial Board. “Gus Walz loves his dad and is proud of him. It’s not OK to mock him or his family for that.”

(4) “A memo to the Trump campaign from a former Walz student and dormant Republican,” by Doug Vose: “Make the campaign about the Trump tax policy. Make it about China. Make it about the border. Make it about anything other than leadership, decency and competency. Because if you don’t, and this becomes a character debate, you’re way out of your league.”

(5) “What I’ve observed about Mary Moriarty, my 2022 opponent,” by Martha Holton Dimick: “I’ve known Mary Moriarty for 25 years. She was willing, as a defense attorney, to walk close to the ethical line to free the suspected criminal defendant she was representing. This personal pattern became more damaging as she rose up the ranks and became chief public defender.” (Note: Moriarty did not respond to this article but published other commentaries during the year describing her goals as Hennepin County Attorney.)

(6) “My time for choosing: I’m a Republican and I’m endorsing Harris and Walz,” by Michael Brodkorb: “I know that many Republicans are conflicted about [Donald] Trump. … To them, I say this: You have a choice.”

(7) “The myth of great teacher pensions,” by Bob Manning: “It’s in everyone’s best interest to support pension reform.” Without it “we face an educational crisis that will be as difficult to reverse as a large boulder crashing down a mountain, with no one left to push it back up again.”

(8) “The pros and cons of Tim Walz as a potential vice presidential nominee,” by Steven Schier: “His unbroken record of political success in Minnesota means he cannot be counted out in this new national competition.”

(9) “A rousing Minnesota unwelcome for Donald Trump,” by Ken Martin: “After being swept out of power in 2022, the Minnesota GOP should be sprinting away from Trump and his MAGA agenda. Instead, they continue to dig themselves into a deeper hole … .”

(10) “On Gaza, Minneapolis City Council out of its lane, meeting out of control,” by LaTrisha Vetaw: “Many scholars study this full time. Many people before us have tried unsuccessfully to solve the issues. What makes my colleagues think they know the answers?”

(11) “Allina’s lab work move is another blow to the well-being of patients,” by Matt Hoffman: “I have never in my career even considered not having [same-day] lab testing available for my patients and it certainly does not reflect the appropriate standard of care for the metro area.”

(12) “We were friends for years. Trump tore us apart,” by Art Cullen: “I am not the enemy of the people, dude — we were in Cub Scouts together.”

(13) “What America needs to know about Tim Walz of Minnesota,” by John Phelan and Bill Walsh: “He is making the rounds of national talk shows bragging about his record. A closer look reveals little to brag about.”

(14) “Extremist ideology has already hijacked Minnesota’s social studies classes,” by Katherine Kersten: “Minnesotans will likely be surprised and disturbed to learn that our state’s new K-12 social studies standards are littered with … buzzwords [that] are at the heart of ‘decolonization’ ideology.”

(15) “The trouble with Minneapolis: Why we’re leaving after all these years,” by Steve Sefton: “How many thousands of residents, workers and visitors have to leave the city, or refrain from coming to it, because of safety concerns before the leaders care?”

(16) “Minnesota’s updated abortion laws are caring, not cold,” by Jill Burcum on behalf of the Editorial Board: “It should come as no surprise that lawmakers focused on reproductive health in 2023.”

(17) “Uber and Lyft, don’t miss your exit,” by Eric Harris Bernstein: “Policymakers need to champion workers and fair markets over monopolistic middle men.”

(18) “This land is our land. But it sure feels like their land,” by Maggie Koerth: “It’s a half mile of lakeshore in a city that tends to favor public ownership and access to the waterfront. But … the public has all but lost the ability to use it.”

(19) “Let’s make it President Harris after all,” by Robin Washington: “President Joe Biden should resign … so that Kamala Harris becomes the 47th president.”

(20) “Keep Uber and Lyft rolling in the Twin Cities,” by the Editorial Board: “Too much is at stake to push the rideshare companies out of this market.”

(21) “Move to Canada? Better think twice,” by the Editorial Board of the Chicago Tribune: “If you ask Canadians these days, you might be surprised to hear them urging you to stay put.”

(22) “A golf legend’s family is dragged through the muck,” by Jill Burcum: “President Donald Trump appeared at a rally in the Pennsylvania town where Palmer was born. In his remarks, Trump thought it would be sporting to lionize the size of the dead golfer’s genitalia.”

(23) “As a Black woman, I can vouch for a white, male VP prospect from Minnesota, Tim Walz,” by Sheletta Brundidge: “Tim Walz knows how to go ten toes in for Black women, and in the words of that great American prophet LL Cool J, he’s doing it well.”

(24) “The damage done by Trump’s fraud,” by the Editorial Board: The “ ‘complete lack of contrition and remorse borders on the pathological.’ ”