News Cut: February 19, 2010 Archive

Five at 8 - 2/19/10: A tour of headlines

Posted at 8:09 AM on February 19, 2010 by Julia Schrenkler
Filed under: Five by 8

Bob Collins? He's out today. Let's roll up the rug and rock a little with the Retribution Gospel Choir, courtesy The Current.

Now on to the news.

1) Fire in the headlines. Yesterday Collins had the Austin-based plane crash updates which now accounts for two deaths. A Minneapolis neighborhood also lost a business building in their community. From James Lileks, courtesy his Bleat:

See MPR's on-site scenes from that fire.

2) Is there an easy answer? Any answer? According to the LaCrosse Tribune, Craig Meyers, the college student who drowned in the Mississippi river was intoxicated. As reported - in 2007 - by our own newsroom, La Crosse struggles to stop drinking and drowning.

3) Yesterday we asked, "What makes someone a Minnesotan?" I found other viewpoints in the (unrelated) Twitter search results for #ImFromMinnesota.

4) Tiger Woods is back in the news by holding a press conference today at 11 a.m. ET. NPR's Monkey See Blog says he's taking The Worst Possible Route To Redemption and Fox Business Network outlines What Tiger Woods Needs to Say. (Caps both theirs from the respective link titles, left for emphasis.)

5) There are renewed calls to remove gray wolf from federal protection.We have a related slideshow about wolves in Northern Minnesota. One of the images is a graphic/clear depiction of a domesticated dogs' remains, so it may not be for everyone.

Bob's notes reveal some information...I've nabbed some points from him:

TODAY'S QUESTION

Sen. Evan Bayh says Congress is trapped in partisan gridlock that keeps it from addressing serious problems. Chief among those problems is the deficit, which is averaging about $1 trillion a year. Is our system of government broken?

WHAT WE'RE DOING

Bob is off today, so posting (at least by him) will be light.

Midmorning (9-11 a.m.) - First hour: New York Times travel writer Matt Gross talked with a group of young travelers who have documented their travels with a twist, now documented in the MTV series, The Buried Life. The group sets out to not only visit new places but accomplish something from their list, like give a toast at a stranger's wedding. Matt Gross and frequent flyer expert Randy Petersen also give tips on finding the best fares and the latest on accumulating miles.

Second hour: Folk trio The Wailin' Jennys won the Canadian version of a Grammy award by wooing fans with their organic three-part harmonies. They've performed on A Prairie Home Companion and with Roseanne Cash.

Midday (11 a.m. - 1 p.m.) - First hour: Congressional scholar Norm Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute, on the way Congress works, and doesn't work.

Second hour: Rev. Joseph Lowery, speaking at the JFK Library about his leading role in the civil rights movement.