Here’s the “money shot” from the storms that moved through the Midwest yesterday. Scott Olson at Getty Images grabbed the moment the lightning hit the former Sears tower. I’ve left it in its original size for your viewing pleasure. What are the odds of getting the shot? Apparently pretty good.
Unless something goes wrong in the next few days, Ryan Chalmers will realize his goal of traveling across the country. It took him only 71 days. Did I mention he’s pushing a racing wheelchair? This morning, he crossed the Delaware River from Philadelphia into New Jersey. He should arrive in Central Park on Saturday.
Watching this video of the rescue of two people trapped in an SUV in floodwaters on the Iowa/Minnesota border last night reminds us that although there are a lot of things wrong with the world, people who’ll jump into floodwaters to save someone else aren’t among them. Here’s the video. (Sorry, can’t embed it with Read more →
In a lot of metro school districts, the last days of school often include a trip to Valleyfair or a day playing outside, what with the grades already being in and all. Out in Hendricks, Minnesota, though, the kids learn right up until the end. Each year there’s a field trip to the Lincoln County Read more →
The inability to plan a future, time is up for old white people, want to buy a hot coleus, the angry Lego, andthe boys of Wasioja. Read more →
The NSA says spying disrupted attacks, Snowden talks, the 10-year old gets a lung transplant, an ultrasound bill advances in Wisconsin, and a new candidate for Bachmann’s seat. Read more →
How can someone leave a kid in a car seat for hours in a closed-up mini-van? Read more →
Walter Smith, 91, of Racine, Wisconsin almost made it. The World War II veteran was diagnosed with colon cancer four years ago and this week he was on the list of veterans to be honored with an “honor flight,” in which World War II vets are flown to the World War II Memorial in Washington Read more →
What do the end of the military draft, voting online, and paying extra to go to the head of the line at Universal Studios have in common? WBUR’s Cognoscenti blog says they’re all examples of the declining shared experience in America. The common American experience is disappearing. The single most important loss was President Richard Read more →
It was like old times at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison today when senators abruptly cut off debate and passed a bill requiring ultrasounds for women seeking an abortion. The Senate had debated the bill yesterday but resumed this morning. “It became popular in the ’60s,” Sen. Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin) said. “It became Read more →
Not many projects get underway around Saint Paul without cleaning up the contaminated soil under it. Read more →
The genie who won’t go back in the bottle, the ‘D’ word, let the youth sports’ berating begin, blaming the victim in assault cases, and should you tip your pilot? Read more →
In a satire piece on GlobalPost.com, Peter Gelling explores the language US journalists use when covering foreign countries. Human rights activists say revelations that the US regime has expanded its domestic surveillance program to private phone carriers is more evidence of the North American country’s pivot toward authoritarianism. The Guardian, a British newspaper, reported this Read more →
Payday Loans by Steve Rhodes, on Flickr They go by a variety of names, but payday loan shops usually have a common theme: Money is available for you, and it’s available now. Of course, it’s not as simple as that. Sure, you get your $500 or $1,000 to make that rent payment or emergency medical Read more →
Bob Collins
Nate Minor