Katherine Kersten
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May 6, 2012
We've got a vivid picture of the Republicans and conservatives in our midst. They're a sour, dour lot—close-minded, tight-fisted and intolerant. Some are businesspeople, greedy and self-interested. Others are rednecks, poorly informed, clinging to their guns and religion.
Apr 7, 2012
For Americans who don't share Christian beliefs, Easter—Christianity's holiest day—may mean little more than a family brunch and childhood memories of colored eggs hidden in all the usual places. To many of us, it's merely another Sunday.
Mar 11, 2012
The issue of Minnesota's racial learning gap—one of the worst in the nation—is heating up at the State Capitol. It's about time. University of Minnesota President Eric Kaler has called the gap "a catastrophe coming right down the pike at us."
Feb 23, 2012
Minnesotans have always taken pride in our public schools. But today, an education train wreck looms just around the corner.
Feb 23, 2012
Minnesotans have always taken pride in our public schools. But today, an education train wreck looms just around the corner.
Feb 12, 2012
Minnesota's yawning racial and ethnic academic achievement gap is among the nation's worst. In nationwide tests of fourth-grade reading, for example, our state's black and Hispanic students lag three years behind their white peers. In recent years, only Washington, D.C., has consistently had a wider gap of this kind.
Jan 30, 2012
The wreck of the Costa Concordia hit a collective nerve as the giant cruise liner capsized off the Tuscan coast on Jan. 13.
Minnesotans may have responded with a special shudder. The disaster called to mind another horrific incident involving the demise of an engineering marvel—the collapse of our own Interstate 35W bridge in August 2007.
Jan 15, 2012
What was Tom Emmer thinking when he applied for a faculty position at Hamline University? Surely he knows that our campus intelligentsia generally view conservatives like him as knuckle-dragging Neanderthals.
At many campuses, Emmer might have made it to the second round of interviews if he had been a disabled "person of color" or confused about his sexuality. But even then he probably couldn't have overcome the cardinal rule of campus "diversity" -- diversity of political views will not be tolerated.
Given his rejection by Hamline (after he thought he had a job), Emmer might be pleased to know that some aspiring conservative faculty members who are victims of political discrimination are gaining new traction through the courts.
Jan 1, 2012
As we turn the calendar's last page, tradition dictates that we look back at the year's major themes and events and preview "emerging trends" in the year ahead.
But what if we were to focus instead on polishing the lens through which we view the events slipping by us, and the unknown challenges that await? In 2012, our project could be to renew the centrality in our lives of the virtue of hope.
Dec 18, 2011
Democrats' flagship campaign theme for Nov. 2012 has emerged in full force in recent weeks.
It's this: Behind all our nation's economic problems—from abysmal unemployment numbers to sky-high deficits—lurks a greedy businessman.
