Service to Community

Brad Spencer and his family

Why take on the hassles and inconveniences of running for office?
by Charlie Leck

I've written before, here on this blog, about my admiration for the Mayor of my town. He's a totally dedicated and honest man who loves his community and wants to serve it.

Local, community politics is a real hassle. Thank goodness there are people willing to tackle the job, put up with inconveniences and dedicate their time to making a small city run better. My hats are off to these people. There are lots of reason why I could never do it. I don't intend to do an accounting of those reasons here.

One angry fellow confronted me once, shaking a finger at me and letting me know what he said was the plain truth: "You don't run for office here in this town because you know you could never win!" That may be. I don't know.

I've always told myself that I don't run because I'm too thin skinned. I witness how hard these local officials work -- the time they put in that takes them away from their homes and families -- and then they reap tons of criticism for what they do. I couldn't take such personal criticism. I just couldn't handle it. For me, it's not worth it.

So now I'm involved in helping a local resident win office as a City Councilperson. He's not thin skinned. Though he has a lot of patience and concern for residents of the community, he's also a tough character who will not be afraid to take action after he weighs all sides of a particular issue.

He's proven his love for his community and his dedication to it. He is a long time Cub Scout leader. Boy, is that an important job. What an effect such a leader can have on the lives of kids. He doesn't just dabble at it. He works hard for his kids and he's determined to making scouting an important experience. He's also a member of the local sportsman's club. Such a club does more, you know, that just promote hunting and fishing. They're deeply concerned about the environment and the wild life that lives in our area. Our candidate is also a leader of a local lake association committed to keeping the lake, on the shores of which he lives, clean, healthy and beautiful. He also spent six years on the Planning Commission of our community -- most of them as the Chairperson of the commission.

Well, you've got to be proud to put in time for a guy like that and so that's what I'm doing. Getting him elected is about the most important thing in my life right now because our town needs some good sensible leadership to give our good mayor a hand.

The election is on November 3rd and I'll take great pride in voting for Brad Spencer and for the remarkably capable incumbent councilperson, Lynn Betts. I hope my neighbors will think about voting for the same two candidates.

I Fear the Far Right

The Atmosphere Created by the Crazy Right is Crazy!
by Charlie Leck

In a recent column by Thomas L. Friedman, “Where did we go?,” the author establishes the same fear that has plagued me lately. The atmosphere is crazy – nuts! Rational, sensible and calm debate has disappeared. Shouting, insulting and cussing is now the style in political disagreement. I have friends who send out the sickest emails that I could ever imagine possible.

It all sounds cute. Holler and scream and claim that the opponent is unpatriotic. Call the opponents liars and cheats. It’s an awful atmosphere and I am ashamed of such Americans. What happened to the old days when we could disagree and yet respect each other?

In the last few days, Tom Friedman has said what frightens me and what all of us choose to ignore.

“Others have already remarked on this analogy, but I want to add my voice because the parallels to Israel then and America today turn my stomach: I have no problem with any of the substantive criticism of President Obama from the right or left. But something very dangerous is happening. Criticism from the far right has begun tipping over into delegitimation and creating the same kind of climate here that existed in Israel on the eve of the Rabin assassination.”

I fear for our President. I’m sorry. I’m probably not supposed to say it. There are too many crazies roaming around in the world. There aren’t enough Secret Service agents to watch them. Too many of these crazies believe the President is a nutty guy.

I have never felt this fear before. Never!

I hope I am being overly dramatic. I’ll be the first to admit it in seven years, if nothing happens.

Friedman doesn’t linger on this fear he expresses. His major point is that we need to give our Presidents, whoever they are and with whatever party they are aligned, a true sense of legitimacy, so they can operate efficiently in governing the nation and dealing with world problems. That was standard operating procedure in America until the birth of the far left and far right political movements.

“Again, hack away at the man’s policies and even his character all you want. I know politics is a tough business. But if we destroy the legitimacy of another president to lead or to pull the country together for what most Americans want most right now — nation-building at home — we are in serious trouble. We can’t go 24 years without a legitimate president — not without being swamped by the problems that we will end up postponing because we can’t address them rationally.” [Thomas L. Friedman]

The Tenth Amendment to the Constitution

Part VII
Crazy Congresswoman Michele Bachman argues any kind of public option or government health care service would be unconstitutional.
by Charlie Leck

In yesterday’s blog I wrote about “a deer in headlights.” On the same subject, there is Michele Bachman.

Can anyone figure out how to turn off her microphone?

The Congresswoman from the 6th Congressional District of Minnesota is at it again. Lately she’s been arguing that the Supreme Court would throw out any legislation the Congress passes that attempts to nationalize our health care institution – or even federalize any portion of it (like a public option).

The Tenth Amendment:“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

Well, take a chaw on that one! Then think about the preamble to the Constitution and what it says:

“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

The old girl is going to have a hard time arguing this one in any kind of debate. All she’s doing is providing her challengers in the 2010 election with the ammunition they need to make her look like a ding-dong – if that hasn’t already be conclusively illustrated and established.

If you want to read about Bachman’s argument in extensive form, go to this excellent article in MinnPost by Eric Black, one of my favorite news writers.

"Is there no longer freedom of speech in this chamber, Mr. President?....Mr. President...MR. PRESIDENT?....You can turn my microphone off now."
- Michele Bachmann-May 16, 2004, Last day of 2004 Session

Hitting a Deer at 70 MPH

There’s nothing like hitting a poor deer, standing in the middle of the freeway, at 70 MPH… believe me!
by Charlie Leck

Anne was driving. We were chatting away about the most insignificant things. The cruise control was set on my big Lincoln LS V8 at 70 MPH. We were about 90 minutes from home and anxious to crawl into our lovely TemperPedic bed. Anne had been at a continuing education program and I had tagged along just to be a good husband and to spend time with my lovely, lovely sweetheart. We’d had a good time, but we were ready to be home again.

Fargo wasn’t the most exciting town to visit. I tried my best to find all that was good, beautiful and meaningful in the community, but, as friendly as the place was, I was ready to be home.

We were approaching Alexandria, Minnesota. The speed limit on the Interstate is 70 MPH, so Anne set the cruise control right on that number. Other cars and trucks passed us like we were standing still.

Suddenly, in a moment of extraordinary surprise, a big deer was standing right in front of us, dead-still, looking in through the windshield, and staring us in the eyes. What a beautiful creature! Her eyes were wide and she was as surprised as we. It was, momentarily, one of the most beautiful pictures I’d ever seen.

Wham! Crash! Pow!

Anne didn’t even get to the brakes. At 70 MPH we slammed into the big doe and she flew up on to the hood of our car and then, somehow, thankfully, flew over the top of our car and off toward the shoulder.

We were still at full speed. Anne still hadn’t reached the brake. It happened all that suddenly. gauges on the dashboard went boing-boing, the lights were gone and the engine was sucking wind. When we got the big car stopped and out of danger we could hear it really protesting.

"Shut ‘er down, Newt, cause it’s all over. "

My wonderful car was ruined. I had babied it since the day I bought it. It was one of my favorite automobiles. This sweet thing had 139,000 miles on it and had needed very little special care. It had been a wonderful car and I loved driving it.

Now she was done-for!

One of the subjects about which we were chatting as we drove along was the need to think about a new car. What should we do? It was tough for me to decide. I had enjoyed this car so much. I knew it was time, but it was difficult to let go. I had a crush on this car. It had been wonderful to me and had taken care of me so sweetly.

There’s nothing quite like a deer in headlights. What beauty! What splendid, peaceful acceptance!

This morning, as I was typing this, Anne announced that she’d caught a mouse in her new ZAPRAT electrocution devise.

“Good going,” I called down, “you should’ve been a hunter – mice, deer!”

She didn’t laugh!

FARGO is a Coen Brothers Movie

What makes these Minnesota natives so good at making movies? Is it the Minnesota in them? (Burn After Reading)
by Charlie Leck

Sunday’s local newspaper carried a long story about the Coen Brothers and their Minnesota roots that is well worth reading – especially if you like the movies that the Coen Brothers make. The story is by Colin Covert

I like the quote with which the StarTribune story opens. It explains a lot about what has been happening on my blog lately.

" 'Everybody's interested in where they grew up,' said Ethan, 52, the filmmaking team's co-writer and producer. 'As you get older, you get more interested in it as opposed to fading away.'

" 'It's hard for us to imagine a story unless we have a real specific sense of where it's taking place,' said Joel, 54, the writer/director. And there's no place they know better. Minnesota is 'totally part of our identity,' Ethan said. 'The combination of being Jewish -- specifically Minnesotan -- is big and important.'

" 'An actor's body and voice are what they have to work with,' Joel added. 'Being from Minnesota is what we have to work with.' "

I remember the earliest movie by the brothers (Blood Simple). It was called strictly B grade and it appeared that future Coen Brothers’ movies would be the same. I didn’t look forward to anything outstanding out of them.

Then they came with Raising Arizona and, well, they certainly fooled me, which isn’t really very difficult, and they fooled the entire film industry by becoming one of the most popular cinema producing teams in America and, perhaps, in the world. After doing a few – Millers’s Crossing, Barton Fink and The Hudsucker Proxy (none of which can I remember), they’ve given us a steady list of really popular and, if I may say it proudly, really wonderful flicks.

Fargo

The Big Lebowski

O’ Brother, Where Art Thou?

No Country for Older Men

Burn After Reading

I left out The Man Who Wasn’t There, Intolerable Cruelty, and the Lady Killers, just because I didn’t see them.

Their most recent film is A Serious Man. I’m not going to deal with the movie here because I haven’t seen it yet and you can get a good report on it in the StarTribune story cited above. And, if you want to read some of the reviews of the movie, try any of these:

The Chicago Reader

Hollywood Reporter

A Slide Show from the New York Times

I’ll tell you this: I can’t wait to see it.

Let’s build this as our case: Anyone who can make movies like the list of hits I mentioned above must be a damned good film maker. The Coen Brothers are damned good and I can wait to see how they treat Minnesota in A Serious Man.

Last week they appeared here, at the Walker Art Center, in a reception to honor them and their careers. 600 locals were on-hand there for a preview screening of their new film. Covert gives us a little tease about the movie in his article.

"A Serious Man follows hapless Jewish physics professor Larry Gopnik through his comedically dreadful midlife crisis. Both the Coens' parents were academics, but their longtime producer, Minneapolis native Bob Graf, cautions against mistaking the film for autobiography. Still, said Graf, who joined them on Fargo, ‘It certainly is inspired by the place and time in which they grew up.’ ”

The film had a small budget (15 million), but that never stops the Coens from making a great flick. They don’t go out to create Star Wars type movies. They look for something else and it usually has something to do with the absurd. The brothers have a large cult following now and these movie-goers expect something creative and even strained from the Coen brothers. They’ve certainly gotten their share of Oscar nominations and winners. Film professionals are willing to work for the Coen brothers because they know they’ll have fun and they’ll be allowed to exercise their creative sides.

The brothers also use plenty of local talent and even common, off the street, kind of people. In their newest film they used local teenagers and a local rabbi and a cantor.

I’m anxious for the opening of A Serious Man. I’ll wait a week or so and then go to a senior discount matinee as I almost always do.

Fargo is Not Just a Coen Brothers Movie

It was a forced visit, but I found it pleasant enough.
by Charlie Leck

The first non-native settlers took up residence in Fargo, North Dakota in about 1869. The railroad workers came in the following year and began building the roadbed and laying the tracks toward the west. It was easy work in five-sixths of North Dakota. Not much got in the way.

Fargo is flat. Much flatter even than the Twin Cities, which has, at least, some hilly spots like Kenwood and out along Groveland Terrace. Saint Paul has its famous Cathedral Hill and the big cliffs that drop down to the Mississippi River on either side. Fargo has none of that. The city must often be held captive by the ravages of the mighty winds that build up speed and roar across the state.

The railroad company was the king in those early years of Fargo. The old railroad Station on Main Avenue is a spectacular, historic building. A visit to the historical museum finds a great deal of material about the railroad on exhibit. Another smaller, but attractive station is right in the heart of downtown. Several of the big railroad companies roared through Fargo on the way to the Pacific Northwest.

Frankly, I’ve found Fargo a pretty pleasant place. The people of Fargo out-Minnesota us in respect to their hospitality and kindness. This is a remarkably clean and neat community and it seems to be well organized. It’s easy to navigate around town and find destinations.

North Dakota State University is the gem of the community. The campus and its various properties, like the agricultural research center, take up a huge percentage of the community. It’s a little known school nationally (unless you follow collegiate hockey closely), but you should all know that it is a fine academic institution out here on the windy prairie.

The community seems to have its weaknesses. I searched for fine restaurants by using Google and the first hits sent me down to Excelsior (MN) to dine at Jake’s Irish Pub and up to Winnipeg to dine at a downtown establishment way up north. But, we learned the rule: If you want fine dining in Fargo, go to Moorhead. That’s the Minnesota town just across the river. There we found John Alexander's Restaurant and Martini Bar (see more about this restaurant below). It was better than good and nearly sensational. The service was top notch and the menu was creative and had something for every taste and appetite. I’d give it four out of five stars. There’s also a fine Italian dining establishment in Fargo that gave raves in all the reviews I read about it: Sarellos. We’ll try it this evening.

Here’s what’s good about a trip like this to Fargo. Anne, my wife, was in a continuing education class for two days and I got a lot of reading done, watched a football game on television (the Gophers beat the Northwestern University Wildcats) and I took a couple of long naps. I also got in a long walk through the University campus and found a way to drive down near the Red River to get a good look at it.

The river was flowing slowly and gently. It was hard for me to believe that it had been a raging monster this spring and that thousands and thousands of volunteers had fought to hold it back from swallowing Fargo. Before the white man came, this was an important place for the natives who lived here in relative peace. The bison also gathered here in the hot summer to cool themselves and to drink happily together. This river flows north from just south of Fargo, getting its life from the confluence of the Bois de Sioux and the RiversOtter Tail and ends where it enters Lake Winnipeg, in Canada.

If you drive out along the plains on either side of the Red River you’ll discover beautiful, flat farmlands producing wheat, potatoes, sugar beets and cattle. Only the horizon interrupts the view of these massive flat fields. The colors, however, especially when the sun is very low in the morning or evening, are utterly spectacular. Tomorrow I’ll go with my camera and see what I can capture.

I couldn’t live in Fargo. There are too many wonderful things I’d miss about the Twin Cities region – great dining, wonderful museums, music centers, libraries and sports teams. I couldn’t live without those things. I’d miss our beautiful lakes also. Yet, this community shouldn’t be dismissed as insignificant. It’s a bustling metropolis and a trading partner with our own town – a lot of freight is transported both to and from the Twin Cities (250 miles away).

I’d come back to Fargo without complaint – especially so I could dine in Moorhead.

John Alexander's Restaurant and Martini Bar
I've reminded you here, on other blogs, that I am not a restaurant critic; however, I do know restaurants and I know a good one when I find it. John Alexander's, on Main and 4th Street in Moorhead, Minnesota (315 Main Street) is a really neat place and a fine restaurant.

The first thing I fell in love with is the setting. The dining room is right off Main Street in an old, restored western U.S. style building. The dining room is roomy, perfectly lighted and very modern in its decor. A big, L-shaped martini bar sits in one of the back corners and isn't at all intrusive to the diners. The tables are roomy and the chairs are comfortable. Each table is very subtly decorated in a way that doesn't take up valuable space.

I ordered a very ordinary martini on the rocks and it came in a nice, big, roomy, square-shaped glass that was pleasant to hold and easy from which to drink. Anne had a cold glass of Guinness dark ale and we shared a half dozen oysters on the half-shell with a very, very lovely and tasty sauce with mysteriously good herbs.

Anne ordered an Ahi tuna that was very large and perfectly prepared. It was a far larger portion than she ever eats, so I got a big share of it. It was spectacular and attractively presented with lots of appealing color. At $32 is was a properly priced.

I passed on all the magnificent looking, sizzling steaks that were being served all around me and went with an entree suggested by our server, Chicken Marsala. It was pan-seared in a tasty Marsala wine and Cremini mushrooms and green onions. Two large pieces of flattened chicken breasts were were presented to me over a bed of ala dente Linguini noodles with plenty of the Marsala sauce. The chicken was pleasantly warm, yet still delightfully moist and very tender.

A platter of several kinds of really tasty breads was put right between the two of us and I couldn't resist trying one of each of them. My wise and slim wife settled for just my reports on their excellence and tastiness.

The menu isn't wildly large, but it's expansive and varied and any diner could find something to his taste and pleasure. It begins with four different and attractively described steaks. I wandered around the dining room in a manner that I am sure wasn't exactly inconspicuously and peeked at the platters that were being served. The steaks looked scrumptious and each was served in a very pretty manner. Here are some of the other wonderful entrees on the menu:

Chef's Walleye -- broiled and battered and pan-seared

Herbed butter encrusted quarter chicken

Chef's meatloaf (beef)

Two bone-in pork chops -- pan-seared or battered and pan-seared

Wild salmon pan-seared with maple-pecan glaze
Or a chef's salmon of the evening

Peppered pasta primavera with chicken or shrimp

Shrimp scampi on Linguini noodles

There is also a very large salad menu and a variety of very beautifully described sandwiches like Philly-Cheese Steak, Pastrami, New York beef hot dogs, several burgers and a whopper of a BLT.

This is a very special restaurant out on the upper Midwest prairie and I'd go back to John Alexander's any time -- any time at all -- and I wish it were closer to home.

If ever you're in the Fargo/Moorhead area, make a stop at this really enjoyable restaurant a top priority.

John Alexander's Restaurant and Martini Bar on Main and 4th Street in Moorhead.

Politics at Home

When I go more than two days without posting a blog, there's usually a pretty good reason!
by Charlie Leck

I'm having a difficult time keeping up with my blog these days and there's a good reason for it, I'm overwhelmed with "stuff" to do and my head is spinning.

It all has to do with local politics. I'm running a campaign for a fellow in our community who is running for a seat on the City Council. I'm also trying to support another of the candidates as much as I can. I sometimes pour 12 hours a day into the work. There's so much to do and it is difficult to find people to help with the grunt work -- or, I just don't know how to ask for help (I really don't know which it is).

I'm taking a couple of days off from the campaign (Saturday and Sunday) and I look forward to doing some serious writing. There's plenty to talk about -- including the distant rumble of another possible war for the U.S.. Can you imagine? Isn't that just what we need now?

Don't give up on me! In the end, all this work I'm doing now will make for some mighty good blogs.

And don't forget to vote in your local city elections. Inform yourself about the candidates and vote. Your local elections, in the end, are far more important to your immediate life than the big money campaigns for national candidates. Vote! Vote! Vote!