‘Letter to the Editor’ Archives
Frank Reflections: How much more death and destruction will we endure?
by Frank Erickson “Military interventions” are murder! They can never be trusted! How can they be trusted when the factor that puts them into motion is a smaller country”'s lack of relative defense? There is talk of United States “military intervention” into Venezuela. Here”'s an idea: the world powers come together and attack Washington D.C. by a “military intervention” to stop the U.S. from doing all their “military interventions!” Representative Ilhan Omar is strongly opposed to “military interventions” upon smaller defenseless countries. This is very encouraging. Rep. Omar”'s first months in office have been rough. How does a Black Muslim Congresswoman illicit more trouble than two White Christian male politicians who started the Iraq War murdering over 200,000 Muslims? White supremacy runs Washington D.C. and Minneapolis! The Iraq War and those that started it are no different than a war [...]
Letter to the community: Why is YWCA unwilling to have open and fair conversation?
By Doris Overby Midtown COmmittee for due process We have been deeply concerned that the Minneapolis YWCA management and Board chose not to involve the general membership in decision making regarding the new costly pay to park system. We believe that it is now necessary to send this letter to each member of the YWCA Minneapolis Board of Directors. Even more disconcerting is the lack of due process in the YWCA”'s decision to suspend the memberships of Doris Overby and Dick Taylor. Management”'s unwillingness to fairly and openly negotiate a reconciliation has impeded the reinstatement of the memberships. We believe the management”'s decision to suspend without due process constitutes a glaring injustice. We are further concerned that management may have used surveillance cameras to identify a member who was peacefully exercising her First Amendment rights to inform members of the controversy that had developed over the abruptly imposed parking system and [...]
Frank Reflections – Rental housing supply and demand: gratitude or greed?
by Frank Erickson More than 42,000 renter households in Minneapolis, even though employed full-time, pay more for housing than they can afford. Without these 42,000 rental households, there wouldn”'t be the high demand for rental housing; there would be supply glut. Are there 42,000 potential renters on waiting lists who can afford the units with high rents? How can tens of thousands of renters who cannot afford their rents, be the foundation for raising all rents? These 42,000 households, who cannot afford their rent, are the core of “supply and demand.” The landlords have nothing without renters. Capitalism is wicked. Renters have no choice. Renters have to pay their rents. Ironically, they drive up their rent by paying rents they cannot afford. All “supply and demand” sees is rent paid. It doesn”'t see nor does it care if the renter went without food to pay the rent. All capitalism needs to justify raising rent is that [...]
