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It has been just over 20 years since I retired from the Minneapolis Police Department. Now, the last City Council member whom I actually worked with, Lisa Goodman, has departed ("25 years getting 'Impossible done,' " Dec. 30).
She was memorable from day one. She was not one to delegate all problems to staff. I was a deputy chief when she was first elected. With some frequency, she stormed into the chief's office madder than the proverbial wet hen. Frankly, we all, including Chief Robert Olson and his executive assistant, Medaria Arradondo, took turns experiencing her wrath and trying to fix her problem.
One of my intercepts came when members of the canine unit had conducted a training exercise in Kenwood Park. They had door-knocked and had distributed fliers, but inevitably not everyone gets the word. Some of her constituents were unnerved by all the police activity and brought it to their council member. After an explanation and a promise to do better, she allowed us the benefit of the doubt. We knew she'd be watching.
In short, the city will always need a Lisa Goodman and we were lucky to have this one. For her 25 years of service she brooked no equivocations. Our city is better in a hundred ways we will never know, because of Lisa.
Gregory Hestness, Minneapolis
HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT
Where are the alternatives?
The other week we learned that the Nenookaasi camp eviction in Minneapolis was delayed indefinitely. Now we learn the Frey administration is evicting this Thursday, no explanation, just repeats of previous reasoning ("Minneapolis planning to shut down homeless encampment next week," Dec. 30).
I live around the corner from Nenookaasi. I was safely at work when someone was shot and killed. I pass by the camp frequently, though. Occasionally I stop in for a visit. It's not been scary. Just normal activity. Someone is always drumming.
I understand why the nearby neighbors want the camp closed — that gunshot was outside their homes, and they fear more violence. But I can't blame those who are without housing or are burdened with an addiction for the situation. I put the blame squarely on elected officials like Mayor Jacob Frey, charged with spending our money, including building care systems. They have done virtually nothing to address the core problems since 2020 (the previous camp there was horrific — spreading crime, garbage, needles far around corners and down blocks).
Camp Nenookaasi, on the other hand, has accomplished something quite remarkable inside the banners encircling it — keeping people safe, alive, and loved — all with volunteer labor. Nichole Mason and the other women managing the camp deserve respect, admiration and gratitude. Evictions are brutal and destabilizing for camp residents and surrounding neighborhoods. How can we destroy a community that many built, evicting the camp without a humane and equally loving alternative? Adding mattresses to shelter floors from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. is not housing people.
Mary Ellen Kaluza, Minneapolis
AID IN DYING
Facts and scare tactics
In response to opinion pieces like that by Jesse Bethke Gomez ("Aid-in-dying would worsen health care inequities," Jan. 1) that assert that medically assisted dying would cause medical practitioners and society to pressure people with disabilities to choose assisted death, consider the following:
Oregon initiated the Death With Dignity Act (DWDA) in 1997, and 10 states have adopted similar legislation. The Oregon law specifies that: a patient "must be 1) 18 years of age or older, 2) capable of making and communicating health care decisions to health care practitioners, and 3) diagnosed with a terminal illness that will lead to death within six months." The online 2022 annual report from the Oregon Health Authority states: "Demographic characteristics of DWDA patients were similar to those of previous years: most patients were age 65 years or older (85%) and white (96%). The most common diagnosis was cancer (64%), followed by heart disease (12%) and neurological disease (10%)."
Advocating for services for people with disabilities should not be confounded with fearmongering about legislation that would permit people with imminent terminal conditions to choose to not prolong the inevitable.
Les Everett, Falcon Heights
MOST-READ OPINIONS
That's not who we are
Reading the Jan. 1 list of the most-read opinion pieces of 2023 left a very sour taste. Based on most of the opinions and associated comments, one would think we reside in a very dysfunctional state. Allow me to offer a more balanced opinion to begin our New Year properly.
We have built a state that is known for our work ethic, pragmatism and healthy lifestyles. This year, both CNBC and U.S. News gave our state a top-five ranking for places to live. These weren't aberrations — national polling consistently places us in the top five states for many important livability factors, including labor force participation, economic opportunity, Fortune 500 companies per capita, education and ACT scores, happiness, places to raise a family, and life expectancy.
We have worked hard at investing in benefits for the common good, and it shows. Most important, we continue to lead the country as the "nicest" state in the union — something our country desperately needs more of right now.
Mark Andersen, Wayzata
THE MIDEAST
Oversimplifications
Regarding the Dec. 31 letter "Geopolitics: Consistency matters," I would like to suggest that so does accuracy. The parallels between Gaza and Ukraine are not vague; they are starkly different situations. Russia invaded Ukraine by unilaterally bombing and invading the country. Hamas, the governing leadership in Gaza, invaded Israel, murdered, tortured and raped citizens on Israeli soil, and took hostages back to Gaza, where it stills hold them captive. The situation in the region continues to be desperately complicated and dangerous. There is more than enough blame to go around to almost everyone involved. It would be helpful if readers researched their claims more carefully before writing.
Adele Evidon, Minneapolis
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A Dec. 30 letter writer states that if only people in the Middle East had equal rights there would be no more horrible attacks. Then why has Hezbollah been firing missiles into Israel from Lebanon? Why have Houthis from Yemen done the same and have threatened ships passageway through the Red Sea, and why has the puppetmaster Iran supplied money and weapons to these terrorist groups except because it advocates the destruction of the state of Israel?
If I were an Israeli, I think I would have reservations about what the letter writer believes would occur.
Stephen Vincent Elston, Golden Valley
STATE FLAG
What flies in Crow Wing
With regard to the Crow Wing County Board's proposed letter to the governor and Legislature on the new state flag design ("Old flag fans want it to keep flying," Dec. 29): I have been visiting my grandparents near Crosslake in Crow Wing County for my entire life, driving to their cabin and around the Whitefish Chain and pontooning around the lake in the summer. By far, the flags most often on display are the American flag, Scandinavian flags and Minnesota Vikings flags; I can't think of a single dock on the lake that flies the current Minnesota flag. In fact, the only Minnesota flag I can remember being flown nearby is at the local fire station (a government building).
It appears that Crow Wing County residents vastly prefer to fly flags other than the current Minnesota flag. I believe County Commissioner Paul Koering's proposed letter against the new state flag is more about sowing cultural division and creating a problem where none exists. It is unfortunate that Koering's instinct is to automatically dismiss such a well-researched and -designed flag, the result of the hard work of a diverse and collaborative group representing the entire state. The new flag has the potential to help unify Minnesotans around the state for years to come, and I thank the members of the Flag Redesign Commission for their service.
Ben George, St. Paul
