Opinion - The Timberjay

Rep. Stauber should focus on the disaster in Washington

We have a constitutional crisis in the making in Washington, D.C., but Rep. Pete Stauber is spending his staff resources playing politics back here in Minnesota. In a release sent to media in the … more

Marshall Helmberger | 2/13/25

How about some Russell Stover heart-shaped chocolates?

I’ve been considering the feast day of Saint Valentine; the celebration of love and affection is moments away. And I gotta say, “the universe has not been showing my aging body much … more

Scarlet Stone | 2/13/25

Tom Musech really stepped up to help

This past Saturday the North Star Draft Horse Association hosted a sleigh ride in order to help out the Cook Area Food Shelf. Considering the roads were bad from the all-day snowstorm and … more

2/7/25

We all need a little sisu right now

“What world needs now, is” sisu, Finnish sisu! “Sisu, The Finnish Art of Courage,” authored by Joanna Nylund, offers the Finnish word as a verb, not a noun, but as something … more

2/7/25

Vote No on Option B, again

Perhaps many of you remember the case of an appointed clerk/treasurer just down the road in the city of Tower. The appointed clerk/treasurer had the support of the city council (even though the … more

2/6/25

It pays to put your name on their checks

The effect of driving out the immigrants, “illegal” or not: it opens up the jobs delivering food or washing cars. Who is going to have to take those jobs now? The working poor … more

2/6/25

The oligarchs are taking over

I just talked to a friend out west who works for the federal government as a law enforcement officer in the Forest Service. He has received a letter from the Trump administration stating that his … more

2/6/25

Trump’s impetuousness could lead to war

Iran is facing “the most precarious moment in its modern history,” according to David Ignatius of The Washington Post. “Israel’s attacks have left Iran nearly naked … more

2/6/25

America is losing any claim to decency

I’d like to add a little bit to the Timberjay’s great coverage of President Trump’s fascist regime. This is the sixtieth anniversary of my 1965 service in Vietnam. It’s not … more

2/6/25

The most important person in Ely? Don’t ask AI

Faced with the possibility that I could be replaced soon by AI, I began an investigation into how well AI actually works. The first thing I noticed was the number of AI programs available. It seems … more

Catie Clark | 2/6/25

Brain Balm: A meditation for when you’re sitting in the ER

Here’s a balm that you can rub onto your mind to stop it from jumping from worry to anger to fear. It’s an easy, old practice that some people do for years at a time. Even though … more

Jean Gendreau | 2/6/25

Musk’s takeover

Correct us if we’re in error here, but by our reading of the U.S. Constitution, it is the U.S. Congress that holds the purse strings of the government. The Congress allocates funds and it is up … more

2/6/25

School trust lands

Opponents of the sale of approximately 80,000 acres of school trust lands in the Boundary Waters should check their calculators. Those opponents include Rep. Roger Skraba and Eighth District U.S. … more

2/2/25

Trumpian mayhem 2.0

And so, it begins – the second term of‘the man who would be king,’ the convicted felon, the mob boss, rising from the ashes like a Phoenix. He hit the ground running, already … more

1/30/25

Harsh immigration policies affect all of us

No matter how you voted in the most recent election, I appeal to all of you to consider the impact on individuals, families, and society as a whole as a result of the immigration policies being … more

1/30/25

Beware the chaos now headed our way

My dad used to tell me America will always have more than our share of dingbats, because so many of our ancestors were forced to leave their home countries for reasons other than poverty. They … more

1/30/25

A board is only as good as the supervisors we elect

Candidate Bassing was correct on one thing in her recent letter. She stated supervisors have recently had “plenty of chances to appoint” a clerk and treasurer. The last appointed clerk, … more

1/30/25

Give the SafeTech proposal a fair hearing

I don’t believe that the modern, sustainable, Ely-Tower-Babbitt ambulance service, envisioned by the EBCH/SafeTech proposal should be declared dead. It’s too good of a plan and it … more

1/23/25

Presidency is already going to Trump’s head

It is unlikely that Panama, Greenland, and Canada will start a war with the United States. Trump, however, indicated he might start a war or wars with them using military force to accomplish his goal … more

1/23/25

The board has been picking our clerk and treasurer for years

In the Jan. 10 issue of the Timberjay, Paul Thompson placed an ad touting the benefits of our township operating under Option B. We have been doing so, in a way, in the last few years already: … more

1/23/25

Pros and cons of driverless cars

Do you like waiting in traffic? If you say yes or simply don’t mind traffic, then don’t read any further. If you are bothered by traffic jams, slowdowns, or any other stop and go traffic … more

1/23/25

Elections have consequences

Regarding the upcoming Greenwood Township ballot question on allowing the board, rather than the registered voters, to choose their clerk and treasurer, please vote NO! The positions are … more

1/23/25

Minnnesota State Senate shows working together is possible

As the 2025 Legislative Session begins, the Minnesota State Senate finds itself in an unprecedented position. Following the tragic passing of former Majority Leader, Kari Dziedzic, our chamber is in … more

Sen. Grant Hauschild | 1/23/25

Building trust in communities...one person at a time

There is a LOT going on in this human space between heaven and Earth as Donald Trump becomes our 47th president. Emotions are rampant, whether despair or jubilation, anticipation, or angst. I imagine … more

Betty Firth | 1/23/25

American oligarchy

Just days before Donald Trump took the oath of office this past Monday, now former-president Joe Biden used the bully pulpit of his office to warn Americans that the democracy we’ve known since … more

1/23/25