Furst Draft

'Liberal heaven Minnesota'

A reader comment with return address "Larry Kirkland" about health care:

    Jay, I see the results of the question on how people feel about the latest
health care reform package indicated the less than 7% of respondents LOVE IT
and
only 16% think it is BETTER THAN NOTHING.....while over 76% HATE IT. These
numbers,
from right here in River City (liberal heaven minnesota), seem to be right
in
line with most national surveys I have seen as to what % of people like
dislike it.

From everything I have read in the PB prior to and after the vote, I think
it
would be 'fair' to say, THE PB LOVES IT !!!   and has done their very best
to
help SELL it...over and over again.....article after article after
article....
slant after slant.

Do you really think you are serving your readership (at least 76% of them
anyway)
well by so flagrantly representing the positions that you (PB; editors & ???
owners ??? & who else????) so obviously have taken on this issue?  I always
thought a newpaper was intended to (at least somewhat) represent the
community it serves...........maybe not?

Obviously I disagree...this reader or any other is welcome to go through our coverage of the health care reform epic and show me examples of bias. Even in the P-B editorials, I believe they're been less than wildly enthusiastic.

Also, there's no statistical value in the online reader surveys...and to say that we represent the community we serve doesn't mean we endorse the political view of every reader, or that we tailor editorials to fit majority opinion. That would be fairly dull and pointless, wouldn't it?

Make delinquent taxpayers foot the bill

Here's an intriguing idea from a reader...probably won't make it into the Answer Man column, since it doesn't really call for an answer:

Who pays the Post-Bulletin to print the Olmsted County delinquent tax list? Perhaps the cost should be divided equally to each property owner and put into their overdue taxes. -- An Up-to-Date Taxpayer

I'm guessing the paper would probably ask the county to pay up front for the legal advertising, in that case...not sure we'd want to leave it to the deadbeats.

Mr. Up-to-Date also notes, in a postscript: "Cheaper to owe the county than borrow money; interest is so minute."

How much information is needed on the victim of a mysterious death?

Some online readers have complained about the story on the front page today regarding the man whose body was found in the woods on Rochester's north side. They say the story was insensitive to the victim and his family, and that it's nobody's business who he was.

We thought the story was necessary for a few reasons: He died under unusual or mysterious circumstances and people naturally have questions about that, and it seemed almost disrespectful to the man NOT to tell his story in at least a few more details.

Here's my comment on the story...you can read the other reader comments that preceded it:

Jeff explained our rationale well -- and most news organizations have done/would do the same. Our initial story was fairly short and police-oriented -- TV did a story that night with the young man who discovered the body, and that story attempted to sketch in a few details about who the victim was. What we did with today's story was try to fill in a few more details about a death that clearly had an impact on friends, family and the community. The story also attempts to answer some natural questions the average person would have about the circumstances of this death. I thought the tone and approach of the story was sensitive and appropriate.
We obviously would wish the family had been available to talk with us. We did make them aware that we'd need to do a story regardless, and frankly, we did need to do a follow story. Didn't necessarily need to go on the front page, but as it turned out, I thought it was appropriate there.

'Make everyone smoke Lucky Strikes'

An odd comment from a reader regarding the crow problem in downtown trees:

   Killing two birds with one stone: In response to your story about crows and then the article about smokers, the smokers should go to Central Park. that way the crow problem may be alleviated by a grand smoke-out. But one caveat would be, PETA would be up in arms about the secondhand smoke being inflicted on the crows.

   Now we just need to do more about the smokers who continually throw their butts on the ground. Maybe that could be fixed by making everyone smoke Lucky Strikes.

   

Fair-trade chocolate at Calvary Evangelical Free Church

Feedback on yesterday's Easter candy story:

Dear Holly,
 I read your article Bunny Business regarding the huge Easter candy sales. I was hoping you would mention the important issue of fair-trade chocolate.  Did you know 70 % of the world's supply of cocoa beans come from the west coast of Africa? That there are 15,000 estimated  children working in cocoa farms? Also these children have to work up to 100 hours a week and the youngest worker is 6 years old. We can change this with our purchases of chocolate especially by buying from non profit organizations like the Not For Sale Campaign. By buying fair trade/slave free chocolate we ensure no child is used, farmers and workers are treated fairly.Fair trade chocolate is available at stores like The Good Food Store but it's also available in chocolate egg and bunnies as well? We at Freedom Boutique get it from Sweet Earth Chocolates and it is delicious. We're selling it at Calvary Evangelical Free Church to raise money for a safe house in Peru, Veronica's house. Also available are Sweet Earth chocolate bars, proceeds go to "invisible children" in Uganda to help them build a school for these rescued children.
Thank you for your article and for more information of child labor check out http://www.laborrights.org/stop-child-labor/cocoa-campaign
 www.sweetearthchocolates.com and www.notforsalecampaign.org
Thank you and have a great day,
Patty Brown
Freedom Boutique

In Wednesday's P-B

Looking ahead to Wednesday's paper:

• Quarry Hill Park work will affect trail system.
• Training program for daycare providers pays dividends
• Lindy Lange's Family Time column highlights the Starting your Child's Music Study class, sponsored by SEMYO
• Preview of Rochester Ice Hawks at the national championships, which we're staffing in Mass.
• And a preview of Rushford-Peterson's state tournament appearance Thursday.

'An initial step toward ensuring quality, affordable health care'

Here's a voice mail from a reader, regarding a headline in the Austin Post-Bulletin regarding Mayo's quasi-endorsement of the health care reform bill:

I fairly disagree with the headline that Mayo backs health care legislation. The very writeup indicates that there are conditions and that it's a move in the right direction, but to announce it with such finality, I really disagree with that.

That's an interesting question: Did Mayo back the bill? You be the judge...here's the statement from Mayo:

Mayo Clinic Statement: Health Reform Legislation
March 19, 2010

Regardless of the outcome of the health care reform legislation
currently being considered by Congress, Mayo Clinic will continue to
work with lawmakers to ensure that the needs of patients and their
families are met. Mayo Clinic does not traditionally take positions for
or against overall legislation.  Thus, we will not take a position for
or against this bill.  We will, however, continue to point out
provisions that we believe will move the country toward patient-centered
health care, as well as areas where we have concerns.

Based on what the bill includes as of today, Mayo Clinic believes that
the proposed health reform legislation contains provisions that are
aligned with our principles for patient-centered health care reform
including provisions to:
*    Pay more for value - better health care outcomes at lower cost,
*    Create a health insurance exchange,
*    Eliminate pre-existing condition exclusions,
*    Require individuals to have health coverage,
*    Provide subsidies for individuals to purchase health insurance,
and
*    Create pilot projects that encourage coordinated care among
hospitals and doctors.

This is an initial step toward ensuring quality, affordable health care
for all Americans, but more still needs to be done.  Specifically, much
more must be done to ensure the financial viability of Medicare for
future generations, and to ensure that health care in the United States

is patient-centered, coordinated, accessible, affordable, and provides steadily improving value. Mayo Clinic is committed to assist with implementation of the legislation if it is passed as well as thedevelopment of future patient-centered reform legislation.

Does that mean Mayo backed the legislation? Obviously not explicitly, but does it appear that it was a strong non-endorsement? Other news organizations also believed that it was.

Which begs the question, did other medical centers explicitly or implicitly endorse the bill? Did Cleveland Clinic or Johns Hopkins issue policy statements of some kind? I can't find evidence of it. I've read recent articles with the CEOs of both institutions expressing skepticism, especially about the impact of Medicare expansion and reimbursement, but I haven't found institutional statements pro or con.

The always quotable Michele Bachmann

The Star Tribune correctly took this quote from Minnesota's 6th District congresswoman and ran it it in big type today:

"If it was true that we could add 30 million more people into government insurance where we taxpayers pick up and pay for 30 million more people, well then, shouldn't we annex all of Mexico and give them all health care?"

Where does that kind of thought even come from? What would trigger it -- race?

This is what change looks like

Yes, Mayo has Cesar Pelli (whose firm designed the Gonda Building), but Cleveland Clinic has Frank Gehry...and can you imagine Mayo being involved in a structure of this kind?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/21/frank-gehry-pleased-with_n_507728.html

'Cops believe Northfield teacher ate piece of ear she bit off man'

I'm not sure we'll go to the trouble of getting a wire version of this story, but here it is if you're interested -- the woman charged is from Rochester:

A teacher at a middle school in Northfield, Minn., is accused of biting off a piece of a stranger's ear while in a St. Paul cafe early Sunday and then picking up the evidence off the floor and presumably eating it.