Readers Write: One Minnesota, drunken driving, burial assistance

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

•••

The writer of “ ‘One Minnesota,’ my foot” (Nov. 17) clearly expressed a lot of anger. But with anger, distortion usually comes with it.

Calamitous nationwide loss? It wasn’t. The numbers say otherwise, but those of us who did not vote for Trump acknowledge that he won.

You’re going to scrutinize Gov. Tim Walz’s every pronouncement (which you deem to be “fake”) and his agenda (deemed “tired”) and his supposed “love affair” with socialism (if you even know what socialism actually is).

I get it. You and many of the folks you claim to speak for are angry. The agenda and talking points put forward by the Democrats this past election didn’t speak to the things you are looking for from government. Fair enough.

The problems of the folks you claim to speak for are problems we all want solutions to. These problems are systemic and they have long historical tentacles. Their complexities don’t lend themselves well to “silver bullet” solutions. Any solution that will actually work must be reflective of a variety of points of view. Diversity of opinions and points of view is essential to problem solving and should be welcomed, not condemned.

The elections are over. We all need to show up and get to work. We need to listen to one another and respect our democratic process, which over time is the only thing that has safeguarded our liberty.

Gregory Olson, Eden Prairie

•••

I’m glad the writer of “ ‘One Minnesota,’ my foot” got another opportunity to vent to the readers. I would, however, like to ask him what part of the surplus spending he would like to have back? Meals for kids? Child care help? I would also like to ask him to tell us where there has ever been a mine holding pond for hazardous residue that has not leaked? Please, tell us. Otherwise, we will think you just want to cut taxes for your buddies.

Fredric Rau, Hugo

•••

About the wording regarding voters’ choice of Donald Trump’s agenda — “massive national mandate” — stated in a letter to the editor on Nov. 17, the percentage of the popular vote Trump earned for president in 2024 was about 49.9%. That does not warrant the use of that term. Also: Thank you, Minnesota Star Tribune, for focusing on people’s real-life, daily connections to public land and spaces. In the Strib Voices section, I found people giving the gift of writing to folks in Grand Marais (”Letters from Grand Marais”). Folks enjoying their right to support public land use in their neighborhood and a young person’s musing about the beauty and history of the public land on the Mississippi. Keep reminding us of these daily life experiences so we can be helped in moving through divisive times.

Marcia Willett, Edina

•••

Can we please stop giving space to the man who wrote “ ‘One Minnesota,’ my foot” in the Sunday Readers Write section? This frequent contributor has repeatedly shown us who he is and what he considers to be fair game language-wise when describing things he disagrees with.

His Sunday letter, which your editors saw fit to highlight, no less, is loaded with non-truths and downright lies. He gets away with this Gish gallop of BS-level complaining by loading his letters with sufficient garbage as to induce exhaustion in anyone attempting to refute.

Just one example: “Across the nation your party is plotting to destroy the Trump agenda — which is backed by a massive national mandate.” Emphasis mine.

As of Nov. 9, Trump’s percentage was 51.4% while Kamala Harris’ percentage stood at 48.4%, per Newsweek. Since then, the percentages have edged closer, as not all votes were tallied by that date. The difference stands nearer to 49.9% to 48.2%. Exact numbers have yet to be published.

That hardly qualifies as a mandate. The House and Senate are also very near 50/50, both slightly in the GOP’s favor. Nearly half the country disagrees with the adjudicated felon’s policies going forward. Plenty of Minnesotans were and are happy with the Democratic administration, Gov. Tim Walz’s agenda, and his successful handling of our state thus far. Speak for yourself, but don’t speak for all of us.

I get that the Star Tribune wants to give time and space to both sides of every opinion, but can we please limit it to politeness and truths? At least half of Minnesota would rejoice.

Becky Huebner, Inver Grove Heights

•••

Who is being divisive? Front page of Sunday’s paper: “Dems plan state-level Trump fight.” I clearly remember Kamala Harris saying that we all would work together, no matter the party, for all Americans. Ha! Luckily, the majority of America did not fall for those lies. And now the Democratic Party is showing its real colors ... hatching plans to block every change that America resoundingly voted for. Time for the Democrats to accept the fact that America does not want their woke agenda! Listen to the people ... stop the hatred!

Kay Osterman, Brandon, Minn.

I just finished reading the Nov. 17 article “Hallucinations cited for DNR specialist’s arrest” by Dennis Anderson. I was disappointed to see that a half page of the sports section was dedicated to trying to somehow vindicate a man who was highly intoxicated while driving a state-funded vehicle on Minnesota roads. As an ER physician, I see daily how drunken driving impacts and at times ends the lives of people, both the drivers and also the passengers and innocent bystanders. To get a blood alcohol level of 0.26 (as was reported in the article) and be able to operate a motor vehicle let alone stand upright indicates that a person is very familiar with alcohol. And it also would strongly suggest that this is not the first time one has been behind the wheel of a car while intoxicated. I don’t doubt that the gentleman discussed in the article is a decent person. However, to donate half a page of your newspaper to telling of the exceedingly rare syndrome that he might have and to imply that this somehow may have impacted the multitude of poor decisions that were made leading up to the arrest does a great disservice to your readers and to the families that have been destroyed by drunken driving.

Michael D. Zwank, St. Paul

Thank you to Hennepin and Ramsey Counties and their partnerships with local funeral homes, like Oakwood Funeral Home in Maplewood, for compassionate burial assistance with persons and families in financial need (“Burial aid strained as costs rise,” Nov. 17). As the article explained, funeral costs for burial services — like many services these days — are rising, which places pressure on providers as well as families and those facing their mortality. As my husband and I explore our own intentions for end-of-life care and burial, we are interested in learning more about emerging options that offer both financial and ecological sustainability. My hope is that the counties can also look into green and natural burial practices that also offer dignity, compassion and respectful care as options for people in need. Thank you for continuing to publish articles exploring these options and how we can care for our dead, our communities and the earth as well.

Nancy M. Victorin-Vangerud, Minneapolis