I understand the need for masks, social distancing and all the rest. What I don't understand is why Gov. Tim Walz is treating rural Minnesota the same way as the seven-county metro area. I challenge him and his advisers to visit the tiny towns, the towns being strangled by some of these measures.
I doubt there is a small town with a restaurant that is able to afford patio heaters so they can offer outdoor dining. In these small businesses, there are times you will not see more than three or four people dining. Our small rural towns are dying quickly enough! Their needs are different, and they should be treated differently.
I am a Democrat and I voted for Gov. Walz, but as a person living in a small rural town, I can say that the DFL better wake up and realize it is different in the outstate areas. If they do not, I can envision Minnesota going red by the next election cycle!
Deborah Mathiowetz, Foley, Minn.
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Minnesota's battle with COVID-19 reminds me all too much of my late father's battle with bipolar disorder. His mood swings were well-contained by medication, which unfortunately had uncomfortable side effects. Every time his mood improved on medication, he'd stop taking it to avoid the side effects, and inevitably, he'd crash again.
We see this roller coaster with COVID-19 infection and hospitalization rates. When we take preventive measures — shutting down and masking up — the pandemic improves, but the side effects suck. When the measures begin to work and we feel safer, we revert to normal and the disease roars back. Gov. Walz is correct to prescribe more restraint even as we think infections are waning, because the disease is still there, waiting for us to stop the treatment. So Minnesota, please follow Gov. Walz's prescription. Please take your medicine till we're cured.
Andrew Kramer, Marine on St. Croix
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I was so struck by the juxtaposition of three stories in the Dec. 17 edition of the Star Tribune. Two stories outlined the heroic lives of Lidia Menapace ("WWII resistance fighter later fought for feminism") and Janine de Greef ("Starting at age 14, she spirited downed Allied airmen to safety"). These two women, in their youth, put their lives at risk during the long years of World War II by joining the resistance. Through remarkable tenacity, following their own moral compasses, they helped save hundreds of allied soldiers and Jewish civilians, putting themselves at great risk. Those stories were a balm to my soul after seeing the front-page picture of the maskless men and women laughing while drinking beer and downing burgers at an illegally opened bar/restaurant ("Defying the law, paying the price"). Surely we can muster enough humanity in the coming months to avoid situations that literally put at risk the lives of not only all those bar patrons but all those persons whom those patrons subsequently come in contact with. We can all learn from the examples set by Menapace and de Greef.
Paul Kaminski, Golden Valley
COVID AND NATIVE COMMUNITIES
Here's what needs to be done, and how to learn from it afterward
Concerning the article titled "Impacts of COVID-19: American Indians in Minnesota experience worse than reported" (Opinion Exchange, Dec. 16) by Nicole MartinRogers et al.:
Thanks to my colleagues for sharing this important report. American Indians across the state have long suffered well-chronicled disparities in health. COVID-19-related illnesses are exacting a toll upon the Native American population in ways that are often not well enumerated. Unfortunately, this has also been a historical issue that has provided a magnifier effect on the historical health outcomes we have become all too familiar with.