Readers Write: Minnesota state song, public health, social security

Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes letters from readers online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

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Reading Sunday’s paper, I saw the story of how some state representatives at the Capitol in St. Paul are presenting a bill to add two more songs alongside the state song “Hail! Minnesota” to give the state three official songs (“More tunes worthy of Minnesota’s state song,” March 16). The two songs they want to add are Prince’s “Purple Rain” and Bob Dylan’s “Girl from the North Country.” Yep, both Prince and Dylan were Minnesotans, but as far as I can tell that’s the only connection.

“Purple Rain” doesn’t even mention Minnesota in the lyrics at all, so there’s musically no connection. Brian Setzer lives in the Twin Cities, and yet the Stray Cats' “Rock This Town” doesn’t make the list because again, there’s no musical connection. Dylan’s “North Country” doesn’t mention the state by name either, and if you look at the lyrics, they describe a location that’s dark, stormy, brutally cold and extremely snowy with howlin’ winds and frozen rivers (are you sure he’s not singing about North Dakota?). And it doesn’t paint a pretty picture of the girl either, because either she dumped him or he dumped her, and he feels sorry about the whole thing. I don’t think that’s how we as Minnesotans want others to think of our great state.

As a radio personality who developed and hosted the very popular “Minnesota Gold” radio show that featured Minnesota rock ’n’ roll bands and their music from the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s, please allow me to suggest a song that is more representative of all the good things our state has to offer:

In 1975 the band Northern Light from Minneapolis recorded the song “Minnesota” on Glacier Records about a man who made his way to California to escape the Minnesota winters and now deeply regrets the decision, missing the snow, fresh air, pine trees, starry skies, golden leaves, sweetness of the corn, wheat and hay, the clear blue lakes and the waters that glisten in the sun back home. He gives up on California and makes his way back to his state, Minnesota, the gateway to the soul.

Now, dear politicians in St. Paul, what song do you think best represents Minnesota? Prince with a song that doesn’t mention our incredible state at all? Dylan who writes about a dark, cold and gloomy place? Or a local group that sings proudly about how wonderful Minnesota is and how this is the place to be?

If you’re going to add a new state song to go with “Hail! Minnesota” I vote for “Minnesota” by Northern Light. Both songs sing about how amazing and great our fantastic state is, and how special we are to be Minnesotan! You can listen to “Minnesota” here.

Kevin Busse, Prior Lake

I read the commentary “The re-emergence of old bad ideas such as that vaccines cause autism (they don’t!)” in last Sunday’s newspaper with admiration for the author and trepidation for his theme. Why would we repeat studies on vaccines and autism when we have seen the initial research retracted and additional studies that demonstrated it is not true? The MMR vaccine is safe and effective.

Minneapolis had a measles outbreak last year. We are lucky that it was not as bad as the one that Texas is dealing with. And yet our government is encouraging doubt. This puts our kids at risk.

The true impact of another study is not the safety and efficacy of the MMR vaccine but whether the current administration is willing to put politics ahead of public health. We should be working to increase vaccination. That is what will prevent history from repeating itself.

Matt Flory, St. Louis Park

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President Donald Trump repays Anthony Fauci’s outstanding public service by disappearing him, stooping to the tactics of a tinpot dictator (“Fauci mural at NIH was meant to inspire. It’s gone,” March 16). Fauci has helped this nation fight every major disease crisis from AIDS in the 1980s to COVID-19 in the 2020s; Trump lied to the nation about COVID and then suggested we fight it by injecting ourselves with bleach or using the animal dewormer ivermectin. You tell me whose image should be blotted out of the nation’s history.

Steve Schild, Falcon Heights

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It seems inevitable that each day brings new grist for the sardonic mill. In Orwellian fashion, Fauci is now an “unperson.” His image in the halls of the National Institutes of Health has been defaced (literally) and his is a name not to be spoken. Simply put by yet one more immigrant:

“Americans are no longer interested in blind faith adherence to demonstrably fallible ‘experts’ like Anthony Fauci,” spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement.

Pots and kettles ...

Harald Eriksen, Brooklyn Park

There were several letters in last Sunday’s Minnesota Star Tribune pertaining to Social Security. I hope my comment here provides additional information. I have read of raising the cap on incomes taxed to pay into Social Security benefits, and that is done regularly. Perhaps the cap needs to take in higher income levels. The bigger challenge is in addressing the extreme wealth differentials we now have prevailing in our society. Higher-income individuals have professional guidance in avoiding income taxes, and the tax code makes it possible for high-income people to pay less in income taxes than those with much lower incomes.

I have read a proposal to ask extremely wealthy people to pay some annual percent of income into Social Security, to assure that benefits for people of ordinary income levels can be paid. Multimillionaires and billionaires are not struggling, nor will they in retirement. I agree with those who suggest there should be a relationship between what is paid in and what is received in benefits, but the huge disparities in wealth in the U.S. make this challenging. Even a small annual percent of income paid in annually at certain levels of income would assure the stability of the Social Security Trust Fund for all Americans who pay in.

Laura Haule, Minneapolis

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I challenge anyone in the Trump administration, in the so-called Department of Government Efficiency or any Republican in Congress to call up the Social Security Administration as John Q. Citizen, no VIP treatment, and see them get a response by a human being to a simple question without being put on hold for hours and/or told by them to call back in 20 days or more.

Because of the ridiculous actions of this administration, DOGE and Republicans in Congress, it is agonizing to get help. Before this chaos, SSA was very helpful, friendly and willing to explain and problem-solve. Now there isn’t anybody there. They’ve all been fired/let go/retired or unable to handle the workload. Trump keeps pushing “no taxes on Social Security.” Just don’t tell them that those taxes go back into the pot, and no taxes would mean running out all that much sooner. Then? Bye, bye! Thanks so much, Trump. I’m sure we all voted for this!

Liz Streiff, Minneapolis