July 26, 2001 - Lawmakers who represent Columbia Heights announced a plan today to keep guns out of the hands of violent offenders forever. Senator Satveer Chaudhary (SAHT-veer CHOD-ree) and Representative Barb Goodwin introduced a state initiative for a lifetime ban on firearms possession at a Capitol press conference. The proposal comes on the heels of last week's shoot out between a convicted double murderer and three police officers. Alledged shooter David Byrne was legally in possession of a number of firearms because he had properly applied to have his civil rights re-instated. He was allowed to do that ten years after completing his prison sentence. This would change under the Chaudhary/Goodwin proposal State Senator Satveer Chaudhary (SAHT-veer CHOD-ree)
July 25, 2001 - A tiny insect is proving to be a big problem for some Minnesota farmers. Native Chinese Aphids are munching their way through soybean fields in the southwest part of the state. Experts aren't sure of the best way to stop them. The aphids, which feed on the juices of the soybean plant, were first found in Minnesota last year in Houston County. Ken Ostlie (AHST-lee) is an entymologist at the University of Minnesota extension service. He says the bugs reproduce at an astounding rate:
July 24, 2001 - Several World War Two veterans from Minnesota and Wisconsin will be honored tonight at Fort Snelling at a screening of the H-B-O special BAND OF BROTHERS. The show is a ten-part miniseries based on Stephen Ambrose's best-selling non-fiction book, which follows the Company E 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment from basic training through the end of the war. Wisconsin native Norman Neitzke (NIGHT-ski) joined the company in 1944, just before his 19th birthday after completing jump training at Fort Benning, Georgia:
July 23, 2001 - The W-N-B-A is midway through its fifth season, with 16 teams fanned out across the country. But with both attendance numbers and t-v ratings slipping, many wonder how much longer the league can hang on. But WNBA President Val Ackerman isn't among them. She looks at the numbers and doesn't hesitate to say the league is here to stay. She's in the Twin Cities to watch tonight's match-up between the Minnesota Lynx and the Houston Comets at the target center. She says the W-N-B-A isn't the only professional team struggling for T-V viewers:
July 10, 2001 - MPR’s Greta Cunningham talks with Jacquelyn Mitchard about her book "A Theory of Relativity," which opens with a fatal car crash and focuses on the question of who should raise the orphaned baby girl left behind. Cunningham says the book was inspired by a real-life court battle.
May 8, 2001 - A St. Paul art history professor who secretly photographs women and then kills them is John Sandford's villain in his new book "Chosen Prey." In the 12th book in a best-selling series, Sandford's detective hero, Lucas Davenport wrestles with his personal life even as he chases the serial killer through the Twin Cities. Sandford was a reporter for the St. Paul Pioneer Press newspaper. He left journalism several years ago to begin writing the "Prey" books.
May 8, 2001 - A St. Paul art history professor who secretly photographs women and then kills them is John Sandford's villain in his new book "CHOSEN PREY." In the 12th book in a best-selling series, Sandford's detective hero, Lucas Davenport wrestles with his personal life even as he chases the serial killer through the Twin Cities. Sandford was a reporter for the St. Paul Pioneer Press newspaper. He left journalism several years ago to begin writing the "Prey" books. Sandford told Minnesota Public Radio's Greta Cunningham sticking with the same main character though so many stories introduces some challenges.
December 22, 2000 - Weather permitting, Minnesotans will see partial solar eclipse on Christmas day. A solar eclipse occurs when the sun, moon and earth are positioned nearly in a straight line. The moon comes directly between the sun and the earth, casting a shadow on the earth's surface. People in the Twin Cities will see about half (55-percent) of the sun disappear. Places farther north will see more solar coverage. University of Minnesota astronomy professor John Dickey says if you didn't know the eclipse was coming--you might not even notice it.
December 21, 2000 - The search for a new U.S. attorney in Minnesota is underway. Five names have been mentioned so far to replace Todd Jones, who will resign next month. President-elect George W. Bush will make the appointment. The President usually gets a list of nominees from the state's senators. But because Minnesota will have two Democratic Senators, it's not clear who will make the recommendations. David Lillehaug was Minnesota's U.S. attorney for four-and-a-half years. He left the post to run as a Democratic U.S. Senate candidate. Lillehaug says the U.S. attorney is the chief federal prosecutor for all federal criminal cases in Minnesota. The U.S. attorney also represents all federal agencies that sue or get sued in the state. Lillehauge says the job has a lot of power.
December 6, 2000 - Minnesota author Vince Flynn is out with his third political thriller called "The Third Option". Flynn's previous two books "Term Limits" and "Transfer of Power" were both on the New York Times Best-sellers list. "The Third Option" opens with the President trying to battle terrorism in Libya and Iraq. Since diplomacy and military intervention are not working, the President and his security advisors are forced to employ "the third option"- covert action. Flynn's expert CIA spyman Mitch Rapp, known by the code name "Iron Man" reappears to save the day. Flynn says he realizes critics have complained that Rapp is the perfect spy, maybe too perfect, but Flynn says that's all part of his job as an author.