“It is a foreshadowing of poverty, prison, and even death. It tells the story of children — who through no fault of their own — have been corrupted and abandoned by a system that places no value on the traditional nuclear family.”

“Ramsey County District Court Judge Robert Awsumb issued a temporary restraining order “to preserve the status quo” until questions related to state labor laws raised in lawsuits filed by the St. Paul Police Federation and Firefighters Local 21 can be decided, he wrote.”

“In last Tuesday's municipal election, 52 percent of voters approved Question 1, an ordinance that puts a hard annual 3 percent cap on rent increases. It makes no allowances for inflation or exemptions for vacant apartments and new construction that are typical in other rent control policies.  The new ordinance doesn't go into effect until May 2022. Nevertheless, several real estate companies with large projects in the works have already announced that they're pulling their permit applications.  That includes Ryan Companies. Local NBC affiliate KARE 11 reports that the company pulled applications for three buildings in its proposed 3,800-unit Highland Bridge project.”

“A mass shooting at a crowded Minnesota bar early Sunday left at least 15 people shot — including a young woman who died — and “bullet holes all over,” according to local police.  Officers found a “hellish situation” when they arrived at the Seventh Street Truck Park bar in St. Paul about 12:15 a.m., cops said in a statement.”

“A Black Lives Matter chapter founder in Minnesota has resigned, claiming that the organization isn’t concerned about helping black communities or helping improve the education quality in Minneapolis, according to a video published last week.”

“Black Lives Matter protesters in Minnesota dropped to a knee and set off to march over a fatal police shooting — only to return when they learned it was a white carjacker who had fired at police, according to reports.”

“St. Paul's year-end crime statistics for 2020 showed a notable, double-digit increase for every major category except rape and residential burglary. Property crime is also up 13% for the second straight year, according to preliminary police data released Wednesday.”

“Flu cases are unusually low for the 2020-2021 season compared to previous years, according to data from the Minnesota Department of Health.”

The Minneapolis Star and Tribune kindly decided not to put this behind a paywall for me so I hope you all can see these maps.

"ST. PAUL, Minn. (CN) — A federal judge declined to give his blessing Tuesday to a consent decree temporarily waiving Minnesota’s requirement that absentee voters get a witness to sign their ballots, less than a week after a state judge approved a similar agreement.

The decision from the bench was hailed by Republicans, who raised alarms when Ramsey County Judge Sara Grewing approved a separate consent decree waiving the requirement last Wednesday. That order remains intact and it’s unclear whether U.S. District Court Judge Eric Tostrud’s decision will impact it. "