News Cut: July 24, 2008 Archive

More counties to spring for public defenders

Posted at 7:10 AM on July 24, 2008 by Bob Collins (8 Comments)
Filed under: Crime and Justice

Out in Nobles County (Worthington), the County Commissioners confirmed what public defender Lisa Kloster ("A Day in the Life of a Public Defender") told me would happen once the Legislature cut the budget for public defenders -- it would be another expense the state bailed on by passing the costs lower on the governmental food chain.

The commissioners passed a resolution to continue funding public defenders for cases involving termination of parental rights and child protection cases, the Worthington Daily Globe reports.

"That left us in a lurch -- the court systems and the counties. If this isn't an unfunded mandate, I've never seen one," Judge Jeffrey Flynn of the Fifth Judicial District told the commissioners this week.

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Automakers adjust

Posted at 9:26 AM on July 24, 2008 by Bob Collins (3 Comments)
Filed under: Economy

So, the New York Times was right. Sort of. Ford has decided small cars are the way out of a constant flow of red ink, and some truck assembly plants would be converted to auto production.

So close. The St. Paul plant had a good news-bad news day. Good news that it's going to stay open for two more years (well, good news except perhaps for the people who took a buyout on the expectation it would close in 2009), but bad news that it won't be converting to auto production and stay open beyond 2011.

Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally had a plan to return Ford to profitability in 2009. That plan has now been scrapped, too.

But big isn't entirely out at Ford. Among the initiatives announced today is a seven-passenger Lincoln.

There's at least one more adjustment the automakers need to make, as a quick scan in a car dealer's lot revealed to me this morning. Can you spot it?

Update Ford says electric cars commercially feasible by 1977 (h/t: Michael Wells)

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The only thing we have to fear...

Posted at 11:14 AM on July 24, 2008 by Bob Collins (4 Comments)
Filed under: Things that are puzzling

When nobody was looking, a new front opened on the war on terror -- Yankee Stadium.

The Yankees have banned sunblock, the New York Post reported.

Four weeks ago, Stadium officials decided that sunscreen of all sizes and varieties would not be permitted, a security supervisor told The Post before last night's game.

"There have been a lot of complaints," he said. "We tell them to apply once and then throw it out."

For fans who bring babies or young children to cheer on the home team, the guard had suggested they "beg" to take the sunblock in.

Seeing the giant bag full of confiscated sunscreen Saturday, one steaming Yankee fan asked whether he could take one of the tubes and apply it before heading into the park.

"Absolutely not," the guard told him. "What if you get a rash? You might sue the Yankees

But a few days ago, after the howling protests, the Yankees relented ... to a point. Team spokesman Jason Zillo said the Yankees will still not allow sunscreen in aerosol cans in the stadium.

(h/t: Michael Wells)

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Greg Thompson's war

Posted at 3:52 PM on July 24, 2008 by Bob Collins (6 Comments)

A few weeks ago -- July 4th -- MPR producer Sasha Aslanian produced The Vietnam Tapes, featuring the pictures and audio diary of Dan Kleven of Willmar, Minn., who spent 11 months in combat in Vietnam in 1970.

It resonated from Minnesota to Kentucky, where Greg Thompson, now an attorney, contacted us to share his thoughts of his experiences in a different war. Thompson served in Iraq, mostly in civil affairs, helping to put things back together and establish a relationship with the Iraqis.

He sent me his pictures and we chatted on the telephone for about 90 minutes recently. I've edited both down and provided the following presentation to give you an idea of what it was like in Greg Thompson's war.

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