Readers Write: TikTok, environment, East Phillips, Soo Line Community Garden

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Minnesotans should keep in mind several facts about the TikTok bill heading to the U.S. Senate (”House OKs bill forcing TikTok sale — or ban,” March 14).

First, there are 170 million Americans who use this app. The Chinese Communist government can use this to gather information on these users and controls the videos they see. This poses a huge national security threat that needs to be addressed.

TikTok can continue if the Chinese government sells it to a United States company. Oracle, for example, has expressed interest in purchasing a stake in TikTok in the past.

Second, if the U.S. House bill is signed into law, the TikTok app will remain on users’ phones. They can continue using TikTok. What’s banned would be new users downloading the app, and tech upgrades being performed going forward. Small businesses that use TikTok would not be out of business overnight.

Third, banning TikTok does not interfere with First Amendment rights. You can express your views on YouTube, other apps, podcasts, books, etc.

Fourth, there is precedent in banning an app like TikTok. Grindr, a gay dating app, was also owned by the Chinese Communist government. It was forced to divest once it was realized the Chinese government could use the information to blackmail users in the military and government.

Finally, TikTok is controlled by the Chinese Communist Party. Videos criticizing Chinese policies, pro-Taiwan videos, etc., are restricted. Anyone who says TikTok is immune to Chinese control is being incredibly naive.

The U.S. Senate should pass this bill quickly. Our national security is too important.

Jim Piga, Mendota Heights

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I hope the users of TikTok realize the Chinese government doesn’t allow Facebook, Google or Instagram in that country. Why should we allow TikTok in the U.S.?

I am glad there is a possibility of shutting it down in the United States. Even more so that it has bipartisan support to end it. China shouldn’t have access to our data.

With all the savvy of Silicon Valley startups, surely there is a replacement platform to TikTok in the works if there isn’t already one.

I hope our leaders continue the path forward to ending its run in the U.S.

Cynthia Syverson, Minneapolis

Much praise and gratitude must go to Emily Miller and Sonja Trom Eayrs for participating in an extensive lawsuit against the Environmental Procrastination — or is it Pollution — Agency (“The mess around factory farms and water quality in Minnesota is only getting worse,” Opinion Exchange, March 11).

It is simply outrageous and unacceptable that we allow factory-farmed animals comprising nearly eight times the population of Minnesota to suffer under such inhumane and unhealthy conditions. These CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations) are a blight upon the welfare of our state, let alone the impact of the unwholesome and unnecessary eating of the flesh of farm animals.

In addition to the harmful effects on humans, nonhumans and the environment mentioned in the commentary, attention must also be called to the noxious, illness-producing stenches emanating from these shameful operations. An article in Tuesday’s paper (“Scientists fear microplastics may pose large health threat,” March 12), describes how microplastics floating in the air can absorb “hitchhikers” — potentially including CAFO odors and chemicals, affecting primarily the lives of nearby residents.

It is now hoped for and required that the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals steps up to the plate and makes the EPA come to its senses.

Kai Laybourn, Bloomington

Regarding “Foundry in Mpls. closer to compliance” (from Feb. 7), there’s a new effort in the state Legislature to address pollution that has long plagued working-class communities.

Last year, the East Phillips Neighborhood Institute (EPNI) won a protracted fight on land use and pollution, securing the right to purchase the old Roof Depot warehouse site in Minneapolis. The site was slated to become a refueling station for city vehicles but is now being transformed into a community farm and neighborhood space.

Despite this major victory, the neighborhood is still harmed by the nearby Smith Foundry, which has operated since 1923. Last year, a surprise Environmental Protection Agency inspection found the foundry out of compliance with multiple regulations, including exceeding emissions limits on fine particulate matter, which is known to be hazardous to human health.

Efforts to bring the foundry into compliance and reach a settlement with the EPA are ongoing, but the people of East Phillips cannot afford to wait: Their health is on the line. Children in the neighborhood suffer from asthma at rates more than double the Minnesota average.

New bills introduced in the Minnesota House and Senate, HF 4231 and SF 4316, would revise state law to enable cities like Minneapolis to shut down industrial polluters, whose harms in densely populated areas are now well known. The two bills are currently in the committees on local and state government in both the House and the Senate.

The science around environmental health — and the East Phillips neighborhood itself — have changed immensely since the Smith Foundry began operation. It’s past time the law changed, too, giving local legislators the control they need to protect their communities. Tell your legislators to support HF 4231 and SF 4316.

Brian Wagenaar, Edina

As a former teacher at Whittier Elementary, I can say Soo Line Community Garden is the best place in the neighborhood for students and the community to learn about environmental science and how our relationship with nature is symbiotic (“Mpls. community garden trail in Park Board’s hands,” March 11, and “Not a park? Says who?” Readers Write, March 13). This means everything from pollinators to the hawks that perch above, gazing below for rodents to snack on, which in turn helps our vegetable yields. Some children have discovered that tomatoes taste pretty good! It’s a place of giving and wonder.

Installing a high traffic multipurpose ramp will limit childhood discovery by removing plots, community spaces, and take the focus away from what most people and living things come here to do.

Growing organic vegetables has offset the cost of food, which helps a teacher’s pocketbook more than ever today. We also donate to people in need, through direct giving and also to the Joyce Uptown Foodshelf.

As a bike commuter on the greenway in summertime, I love to feel that temperature drop as I pass by the garden. It’s a green space that cools the city in more ways than one!

I know that together we can come up with better ideas for an access point. Sprucing up the Nicollet Avenue ramp, which is just a few blocks east, would draw people into Eat Street and help businesses.

Please don’t rip apart this habitat that takes care of us as much as we take care of it!

Leah Mark, Minneapolis