Readers Write (Oct. 24): Minneapolis ballot question, 'allocation nation,' birds, MNsure, abortion, judicial races

An Oct. 22 letter concerning the upcoming vote on removing the law known as 70 / 30 from the Minneapolis charter contained some inaccuracies. I'll try to clear them up.

The letter writer said that by the removal of 70 / 30, neighborhood restaurants will be allowed to "sell unlimited amounts of alcohol." That's just absurd. Minneapolis' neighborhood restaurants are granted liquor licenses only after a business plan is approved, and food has to be the main focus of the business. If 70 / 30 is repealed and a neighborhood restaurant tries to shift the focus of its business away from food, the city has made it abundantly clear that it will revoke the liquor license of that establishment or possibly even shut the place down.

Neighborhood restaurants are generally started by chefs, and they are creating some of the most interesting food in the city. To casually suggest that they would love the opportunity to get out of the food business and into the bar business (which they won't be able to) is not fair to them or their profession.

The fact is our neighborhoods are stronger when we support our neighborhood restaurants. The value they bring to our city can't be overstated, and the unnecessary burden that 70 / 30 places on them is holding them back. I hope my fellow residents will vote yes on ballot question No. 2 this Election Day.

The writer is communications director for Citizens for a Modern Minneapolis in Support of Yes on 2.

I am so tired of the myth that "the traditional values — freedom, personal responsibility and respect for property" that Gregg J. Cavanagh cites ("All quiet, too quiet, in allocation nation," Oct. 22) are the reason for the success of this country. These are obviously admirable qualities, but many middle- and upper-class Americans can look back and see that their ancestors got significant help from the government through programs such as the Homestead Act and the G.I. Bill. We shouldn't expect people at the median household income to pay more so that the 1 percent can build their savings accounts. I wish that corporate leaders would pay people a living wage out of the goodness of their hearts, so that these people could pay more taxes, but without regulation and government programs, this just doesn't happen. We will be free to be a country without a middle class.

In its Oct. 18 editorial ("Keep bird deaths in perspective"), the Star Tribune quoted me as saying that "[p]eople keeping their cats indoors would have a far greater impact on bird survival than whatever happens with the stadium." True enough. However, the editorial did not point out that whereas the Minneapolis City Council voted unanimously to chastise the new Vikings stadium for not adopting potentially "bird-proof" glass last year, it unanimously supported trap-neuter-release programs for feral cats. In other words, it's OK for cats to kill the same birds that the Vikings stadium is supposed to protect! Seriously, this should be the new definition of disingenuous.

Why does insurance business as usual deserve front-page headlines?

Regarding Nikki Yaeger's Oct. 15 commentary "To the pro-life activists with posters": Her contention is that pro-life activists should quit using gruesome posters and focus on providing "information and compassion." She introduced herself as being "pro-choice but not pro-abortion." That strikes me as uncertain, confused and perhaps even "conscience-ridden."

Yaeger assures us that women who are demonized by the pro-lifers are fully informed, sincere, "occasionally" regretful and not murderers. One thing lost in her presentation is that abortion affects at least two other "people": the, uh … "abortee" and the father. I'm sure she would accuse me of unfairly discounting her sincerity in presenting this analysis of a very controversial issue. But perhaps, in like manner, she is discounting the sincerity of the pro-life activists.

Pro-lifers believe sincerely in what they are doing! I must ask Yaeger: What if these activists are right and fetuses actually are full-fledged human beings? Would that change the conversation?

As an attorney, I am often asked by friends and neighbors which judges they should vote for on the ballot. For the two Supreme Court races, I recommend they visit the website www.mnjudges.org. The Minnesota State Bar Association sent a questionnaire to each of the candidates in these two contested races and posted their responses on the website. We did this to make it easier for the public to find information about the candidates.