What does a "frivolous challenge" look like? / more

We're gathering up-to-the-minute recount news, publishing Minnesotans' blogs from the international climate change conference in Cancun, and bringing you the best holiday entertainment round-up in town! And we need your help to keep on bringing you the news. What does a "frivolous challenge" look like? By Mike McIntee, The Uptake The buzz word on day one of Minnesota's Gubernatorial recount is "frivolous".MORE » Closing the American Indian achievement gap in Minnesota schools By Melissa Olson, TC Daily Planet According to a 2009 report to the State of Minnesota, only two of five American Indian high school students in Minnesota graduate high school within four years, as compared to four out of five white students.MORE » VISUAL ARTS | Jila Nikpay's "Faces of New America": Coming to a library near you By Sheila Regan, TC Daily Planet Photographer Jila Nikpay takes a look at the changing identity of immigrants in America in her new exhibit Faces of New America, which will tour libraries in MELSA (Metropolitan Library Service Agency), an alliance of over 100 public libraries in the seven-county Twin Cities metro area. The project, funded in part with money from Minnesota's Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund, begins its tour with at the Minneapolis Central Library, where it will be on view from December 1 to January 30.MORE » Minneapolis Central Library THEATER | "The Harty Boys Save Christmas," thanks to Comedy Suitcase, at the Bryant-Lake Bowl By Jay Gabler, TC Daily Planet On Sunday night at the Bryant-Lake Bowl, the most magical moment in Comedy Suitcase's The Harty Boys Save Christmas had nothing to do with presents or snow or mistletoe: it was when a young child laughed out loud, with a contagious giggle, at a punch line involving Ayn Rand. I can tell you how Santa gets down those chimneys, but I can't tell you quite how Joshua English Scrimshaw and Levi Weinhagen pulled their magical feat off.MORE » Bryant-Lake Bowl Efforts to halt loss of public housing may be short-lived By Charles Hallman, Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder The nation's public housing system has been needing reform for several years, said the U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) secretary during a Twin Cities visit last week. But just when it looked like such reform might finally take place, in comes a new Congress with different ideas. MORE » Partisan representatives left election workers feeling "under attack" on day one of the recount By James Nord, The Minnesota Daily A verbal dustup between representatives for Republican Tom Emmer and nonpartisan recount officials in Hennepin County was one of many instances on Monday that left table judges feeling "under attack," county elections manager Rachel Smith said.MORE » REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK | Who's next for St. Paul school board, as Varro leaves? By Mary Turck, TC Daily Planet This afternoon, a press release from St. Paul Public Schools announced that Vallay Varro is leaving the school board post she won just a year ago.MORE » Inside the Daily Planet, 12/1/2010 THEATER | At the History Theatre, The Christmas Schooner wobbles but stays steady on its course  by Bev Wolfe, TC Daily Planet • Song and family underscore the History Theatre's warm reprise of the holiday musical The Christmas Schooner. Written by John Reeger with music and lyrics by Julie Shannon, this play was last performed at the History Theatre in 2002. It is a charming family entertainment and a viable alternative for families tired of the usual holiday fare. Black Bear Crossings provides more than just a free Thanksgiving meal by Kristal Leebrick, Park Bugle • The shopping list for Pam Glass's Thanksgiving Day meal includes four 25-pound turkeys, 75 pounds of potatoes, 10 pounds of cranberries and enough pumpkin to fill at least 20 pies. MUSIC | Jazz balladeer Mina Agossi: Inspirational nights, and unforgettable days by Dwight Hobbes, TC Daily Planet • Intriguing vocalist-composer Mina Agossi's style isn't quite what readily comes to mind when you think of jazz balladeers. Hers is a distinctly reflective voice, a sensibility intrinsically her own. You can, of course, hear hints of the masters in her tonality and phrasing. Think, for instance, Sarah Vaughan. Her material is rich and varied from standards ("I Won't Dance," "When the Saints Go Marching In") to pop ("And I Love Her") to rock ("Spanish Castle Magic," "Voodoo Chile") to, of course, originals ("May I Sit At Your Table," "Lost In The City"). MOVIES | James Franco and Anne Hathaway will host 83rd Academy Awards by Barb Teed, TC Daily Planet • James Franco and Anne Hathaway will serve as co-hosts of the 83rd Academy Awards, Oscar telecast producers Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer announced today. Both have previously appeared on the telecast but not in hosting capacities. NEW IN BLOGS THE KNOTHOLE VIEW | Remembering my mom: A life full of love—and baseball by Jean Gabler • The baseball season ended the last week of October—the same week that my mother passed away after five months of medical setbacks. To me, the coincidence seemed fitting. GROUND ZERO | To Hell or Connaught: The "free market" puts Ireland on a starvation diet – again by Rich Broderick • Johnny O'Broderick was my first direct ancestor to emigrate from Ireland to the United States, eventually sending back enough money for his wife, Mary, to book passage and follow him a few years later. CLIMATE CHANGE | COP 16 in a nutshell  by Bridget Rathsack • COP 16 (Conference of the Parties 16) is being held in Cancun, Mexico at the Cancunmesse Convention Center, with an estimated attendance of 15,000-20,000 people.  Attendees include official country delegates, the media, and non-governmental organizations (which is where our delegation falls).  The Convention, established in 1994, holds yearly meetings to negotiate future climate change issues internationally, with a focus on adaptation, mitigation, technology transfer, finance mechanisms, and forest and land use. ARTS ORBIT | You sure this is how Richie Havens got famous? Part VI: The nice thing about networking by Dwight Hobbes • If you've made a favorable impression, you're spoken of fairly well and the potential for opportunities materializes. If you're badmouthed, your name quickly becomes mud and doors shut in your face faster than grain can go through a goose. MINNEAPOLIS OBSERVER | Urban phenology: it's party time for the crows by Sharon Parker • During a recent late-afternoon visit to the Mississippi Market co-op on West Seventh in St. Paul, I noticed that the stand of tall trees between the co-op's parking lot and the river appeared to be a crow gathering spot.MORE »
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