Opinion - The Timberjay

Memories of my favorite childhood holiday...

Boo! While I hold special memories of Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, and other holidays, the holiday I’ve perhaps loved the most over the years is Halloween. The first Halloween I can recall … more

David Colburn | 11/2/23

Judicial power grab?

The conservative activists on the U.S. Supreme Court appear eager to take an axe to one of the most important and widely-cited legal precedents in American jurisprudence using a case involving … more

1/24/24

As veterans dwindle, Memorial Day history repeats

“An appeal to the people of Tower and Soudan to observe Memorial Day this year in a manner that will pay fitting tribute to the soldier and sailor dead was made by Nelson-Jackson Post No. 245, … more

David Colburn | 5/25/22

Reveling in the annual madness of March

The annual American ritual of March Madness, the popular name for the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament, is in full swing, and I am once again caught up in the fray.As a child of … more

David Colburn | 3/22/23

Let’s talk....why not?

From an early age, I recognized that my family was better off than some others and was aware of inequality between groups of people, as well. I questioned why that was and why we weren’t doing … more

Betty Firth | 1/24/24

VNP incident

Back in August, the Timberjay filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the National Park Service, seeking information on an incident that led to the alleged tasing of a local … more

1/11/23

What’s good for our workers is good for us all

I grew up on a tree-lined street one mile from the General Motors Tech Center. The people of my neighborhood, like iron miners on the Iron Range, organized decades before I was born for better wages … more

Kathleen McQuillan | 1/11/23

The right to write: thoughts on our constitution

What is it that makes people write? Many writers say that they can’t not write. Some people have to sing, some people have to dance, some people have to take apart cars. I am driven to … more

Betty Firth | 8/30/23

Spreading intolerance

This is a disturbing moment in American society as emerging forces seem intent on taking us down a dangerous path toward intolerance. It’s a destination we must avoid. We know that feelings of … more

6/7/23

From away in Ely: reflecting on geographic exceptionalism

“From away.” That’s what natives of Maine call everyone else. It’s a succinct way of summarizing geographic exceptionalism. Geographic exceptionalism is everywhere, even in … more

Catie Clark | 8/30/23

Thoughts on the growing wedge of wokeness

To listen to Florida governor and Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis and others of his ilk, the greatest enemy facing America today is, oddly enough, wokeness. DeSantis has declared war … more

David Colburn | 6/7/23

Summer of the arts

What a difference the arts can make here in the North Country. While our region has long attracted artists inspired by the region’s natural beauty, our area communities are benefitting from an … more

8/10/22

Why your voice and your feet and your vote count

Why Your voice and Your Feet and Your Vote CountI’m writing on Tuesday, Aug. 9, the day of the primary elections in Minnesota, and I’m feeling nostalgic about times in our democracy that … more

Betty Firth | 8/10/22

Biden and Israel

The United States has long been a friend to Israel and that’s appropriate. But sometimes friends have to tell a friend when they’re in the wrong, and it is well past time for the Biden … more

4/10/24

It must be a sign...our favorite travel game

Some people collect seashells or coins. Others collect art or Hummel figurines. In my household, we collect signs. To be accurate, we drive around and take photographs of signs. The long-suffering … more

Catie Clark | 4/10/24

Men and violence

America has a problem with violence committed by men. That’s indisputable, as the front and back pages of newspapers and the nightly news broadcasts across the country attest every single day. … more

11/9/23

Will the mothers’ legacies live on?

During March, we’re reminded of the many great women who have carved frontiers and unlocked doors for women and girls. We marvel at their passions pursued, barriers overcome, and outstanding … more

Kathleen McQuillan | 3/29/23

Fearing those we see as different from us

An important subject has been on my mind for days. It’s about the innate fears we carry of people we see as “different” from us— strangers, “outsiders”, people who … more

Kathleen McQuillan | 11/9/23

Deadwood’s historic haunted Bullock Hotel

Ever since I was a little girl and would go see western movies with my dad at the Tacora Theater in Aurora, I have been interested in American history, the Wild West, the gold rush, and ghost towns. … more

Scarlet Stone | 10/26/22

I can cross Scotland off my bucket list

In the last two columns I have been writing about my trip to the United Kingdom in late March to early April. This is the third and final installment and then I will go back to my regular nonsense. … more

Scarlet Stone | 6/1/22

I’d like a word, please...

Sometimes I just need a good rant about how we sometimes massacre our perfectly good language. January’s full moon was the Wolf Moon, so what better time to howl about it? To balance the … more

Betty Firth | 1/18/23

Ambulance impasse

Representatives from Greenwood Township and the city of Tower should stop talking past one another and sit down to discuss what is really at issue in their ongoing impasse over financial support for … more

2/1/24

The rise of the digital voice clones – are you next?

Instead of having to read his insightful articles, how would you like to have Marshall Helmberger read them to you? To make that happen now, Marshall would have to record himself reading each article … more

David Colburn | 2/1/24

History has lessons about today’s dangerous leaders

Bad things happen when good people become complacent and forget that they need to stand up and stop the evils happening on their doorstep. These are two true stories. Ignore them at your peril. The … more

Catie Clark | 2/1/24

Who’s bugging you recently?

Is this what we were fantasizing about on a brutal 30 below night? As we damned the ice dams causing a rain forest in the kitchen, were we dreaming of participating in an involuntary blood drive, … more

Betty Firth | 6/14/23