Readers Write (Dec. 6): Tony Sutton, Herman Cain, headlines, Garrison Keillor, Kardashians, Vikings, school discipline

It gave me a good laugh to read about the Minnesota Republican Party and its financial troubles ("Sutton resigns as head of the state GOP," Dec. 3).

This from the party that constantly rants about big government and a budget that is not balanced. They often talk about American families having to sit around their kitchen table and balance the family checkbook.

Maybe the new leader of the party should get on the phone and ask one of those families for help.

WILLIAM D. BIEBER, MAPLE GROVE

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I suspect the GOP's finances will be back in the black quickly if the party applies its time-honored formula of cutting spending while simultaneously asking for less from donors.

BOB GOLIGOWSKI, BROOKLYN PARK

Family values candidate Herman Cain has dropped out of the Republican presidential race. However, there is good news for his supporters on the religious right: The front-runner in the race has demonstrated similar moral and family values. All is not lost.

JAMES M. BECKER, LAKEVILLE

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After reading the Dec. 3 columns by David Brooks and Paul Krugman, we were slightly puzzled and a little disgusted. Both articles were well- written, spoke to the point and provided numerous examples to support their thesis.

Neither article was overtly tied to a political bias, and each writer clearly, succinctly and intelligently stated their cases. Above the article, one of your editors blithely chose the heading "I'm with Stupid," with arrows pointing down to each piece.

CRAIG DUNN AND CANDY HART, ST. PAUL

The two articles showed that two people who are thoughtful and well-intentioned can come to opposite conclusions. I have the utmost respect for Krugman, a Nobel Prize winner.

While I seldom agree with Brooks' view of the world, he communicates in a thoughtful and respectful manner.

Your thoughtless and small-minded heading over the articles does nothing to encourage discourse but instead diminishes us all with name calling.

PAUL N. SCOTT, BLOOMINGTON

It's unfortunate that Garrison Keillor never received the advice of my mother: "Always leave a party while you're still having fun" ("Keillor rethinking retirement plans (again)," Dec. 4).

Apparently, he can't decide whether or not to give up the helm of "A Prairie Home Companion," a show I stopped listening to a long time ago.

If he still wants to be a part of the show, I suggest he use his gifts -- writing and delivering monologues, stories and skits -- and leave the singing to those who can sing.

MARY LOETSCHER, NEW ULM, MINN.

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Who benefits, and for that matter, cares about the antics of a millionaire, celebrity family, whose lifestyle 99 percent of Minnesotans will never experience anyway?

Maybe c.j. should consider a move to Tinseltown in order to fully participate in the "only" world that seems to matter to her.

MICHAEL ROIGER, SPRINGFIELD, MINN.

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I am retired and love to watch the Vikings on TV. I do not attend any of the games but follow the team closely. I celebrate their wins and cry at their losses. I have a simple solution to help fund the new stadium.

After all, the Indian casinos enjoy a monopoly on this business, and the state pays for the road system leading to the casinos.

JOANNE IRISH, PLYMOUTH

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Your editorial, "An alarming trend in school discipline" (Dec. 3), is so full of misleading details that I don't know where to begin. I am a black male with 17 years of teaching experience in St. Paul and have some of my own "data." First, black students where I work are more disruptive than the other students. Secondly, some of these students have no respect for authority and appear to take pleasure in disrupting class. This article implies that teachers are disciplining/suspending these students too quickly because of their race and that we're setting them up for failure in the future when they will be held accountable for their behavior. It's time for my community to do some serious soul searching and have courageous discussions on this issue. My message for those who believe teachers are at fault: Spend an entire day in an urban classroom. Then ask yourself if you could be an effective teacher with all of the "minor" distractions.