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I happened to read the article in the Sunday Metro section about shocking crime in downtown Minneapolis ("Downtown Minneapolis is back. So is the violent crime") right after I read the Star Tribune editorial about the candidates for Hennepin County attorney ("Advance Dimick, Winkler in race to be top prosecutor"). There is a startling disconnect between the surge in crime and the generalities expressed by the candidates favored by the Star Tribune Editorial Board. Neither Martha Holton Dimick nor Ryan Winkler appeared to have a specific plan to help reduce crime in downtown Minneapolis. Both seemed more concerned about incarceration rates and racial disparities in policing. In fact, Dimick defended a more lenient approach to prosecution in an opinion piece last week ("Martha Holton Dimick: I'll put the work back where it needs to be," July 29), seemingly proud of the fact that we have the fourth-lowest incarceration rate in the country.

They are not the only ones seemingly without a plan. Tim Mahoney, owner of the Loon Cafe, spoke for many of us when he said he's still waiting for Mayor Jacob Frey and the City Council to introduce a plan to curb the violence. Businesses in downtown Minneapolis and the people who support them deserve better from our leaders.

Nat Robbins, Minneapolis

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As a retired Metro Transit chief of police, I know firsthand the importance of making the right choice for Hennepin County attorney.

We can't have impulsive leaders in the Hennepin County Attorney's Office. Ryan Winkler is levelheaded and strategic, and that is why I am voting for him for Hennepin County attorney. He wants the input of people around him, which I'm sure will be good within the County Attorney's Office, within the community and other agencies he works with.

I watched the public conversation around Question 2 on policing in Minneapolis. Winkler is one of the candidates I saw vocally express opposition. As a resident of Bloomington, I see how Minneapolis public safety issues flow into my city. Our communities need a balanced leader in the county attorney.

Law enforcement practices need reform, there's no doubt about that. Winkler is a candidate who is aware that the police shouldn't be our only concern, although it is a big concern. That is why he worked with Booker Hodges, who is now the Bloomington police chief, to introduce a peace officer recruitment bill to improve the pool and bring in more people from the community. Better applicants will lead to better police.

Winkler will hold toxic policing accountable while still working with police chiefs on better prevention practices. He realizes that it is all connected and that we need to be able to look at multiple issues at the same time, rather than being hyper-focused on the issue that brings in the most shares and retweets.

Most importantly, he will be progressive in his approach but will also respect the rule of law and keep calm under any scrutiny that might come with that. He is the leader we need at this time, and he is the leader I will be voting for on Aug. 9.

Jack Nelson, Bloomington

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Paul Ostrow would be a great Hennepin County attorney. Ostrow has current and long-term past experience as a prosecutor in more than one county attorney's office. He has the temperament to lead the office with a steady hand. He also has experience in local politics that will serve well in the current political climate.

Ross Arneson, Mankato, Minn.

The writer is a retired attorney.

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Thank you for recognizing with your editorial endorsement the extensive experience in the criminal justice system that Martha Holton Dimick will bring as Hennepin County attorney.

As a lifelong resident and elected official representing half of north Minneapolis, I have worked side by side with Dimick in several of her roles. She was the first North Side community prosecutor appointed by then-Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar. In that role my colleague Don Samuels (who represented the other half of the North Side) and I had direct contact with Dimick along with police officers and members of the community. We were able to express our concerns about chronic violent offenders that were impacting our neighborhoods. The strategy worked to decrease violent crime on the North Side. I also watched as she prosecuted sexual assault crimes that were very difficult and won victories for victims that had been ignored in the past. I then observed Dimick's work as deputy city attorney as she managed the city's criminal division. She ran a hardworking department that successfully prosecuted misdemeanors, which included livability crimes that make for unstable neighborhoods. She knows how important these efforts are since she has been a homeowner in north Minneapolis for 20 years. She was an advocate for restorative justice programs and specialty courts.

As a judge she was tough but fair.

There is no other candidate in this race who has her breadth of experience, and I enthusiastically support her.

Barb Johnson, Minneapolis

The writer is a former Minneapolis City Council president and Fourth Ward council member.

Gary Marvin Davison and I have never met ("Election concerns about schools should focus on the school board," Opinion Exchange, July 30). From what I see he is concerned about education in Minneapolis Public Schools. Davison never took the time to speak with me. All I ask is when anyone wants to publicly say something about my expertise in math, reading, writing or economics, please provide accurate information.

To set the record straight: I lived in Mexico for five years and Thailand for 13 years. In Thailand I spent 10 years conducting research in language acquisition. We developed a very robust way to teach English.

Additionally while in Thailand, I discovered/developed a way to teach high school algebra to elementary school students. Before returning to Minneapolis, I taught two typical Thai fifth-grade boys (English-language-learner students) math. They started with one-step algebraic equations (solve for x, x + 5 = 7) and they finished with more than 110 exercises on radicals (11th grade math) in one semester with an 80-minute block schedule. Along the way they learned to graph equations of a line and parabolas.

In other words, I have personal hands-on experience to close the achievement gap in math and reading. My Minneapolis school board vacancy application was coherent and specific enough, contrary to the claims in the commentary. After I submitted my application to fill the vacancy, I left a phone message with each board member telling them I was interested in the vacancy but I was not going to lobby for the vacant position. I know that one of the two people whose name was put forward by the board to fill the vacancy lobbied the board members nearly every day.

In closing, if anyone wants to speak with my former students and/or their parents in Thailand to verify, I will be happy to arrange a meeting with them.

Harley Dean Meyer, Minneapolis

The writer is an at-large candidate for the school board.

Doug Martin, General Mills' chief brand and disruptive growth officer, discussed the new Good Rewards program which, the article "General Mills adds loyalty app" (Aug. 3) claims, is the food company's "first brand loyalty program."

I beg to differ.

As I child, one of my responsibilities was to cut the Betty Crocker coupons off of my Cheerios and Lucky Charms boxes and from my mother's Bisquick and cake mix boxes. We saved these and redeemed them, by mail, for numerous kitchen items, including cookware, dishes and, most importantly, Oneida flatware.

As a new bride I started my own box of Betty Crocker coupons and, until the program was disbanded, redeemed them regularly. I still have a pint berry box of coupons in my cupboard, mostly as a nostalgia item, but also to be used in the off chance that General Mills rehabilitates the program, a successful venture that, most importantly, did not invade my privacy, track my behavior and allow a corporation to, as Martin states, "make some suggestions."

An app that "provides a detailed look" at my behavior is never going to engender my brand loyalty.

Karen Cyson, St. Cloud