West End News: October 31

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There is a lot happening in the West End in the month of November.
 
First, couple of quick reminders: 
 
Senior Lunch at Birch Grove is always a good time and the next one is Wednesday, Nov. 6 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.  All are welcome, but give a call to Birch Grove if you are attending for the first time, so they can plan enough food.
 
The Bloodmobile will be at Zoar Lutheran Church in Tofte Tuesday, Nov. 12 from 2:30 to 6 p.m. Contact veteran blood drive coordinator Julie Rannetsberger at 663-7111 to schedule a time.
 
A couple of other big events are coming to the West End:
 
 The umpteenth annual Zoar Lutheran Church Lutefisk and Ham dinner will be Saturday, Nov. 9 at the Birch Grove Community Center in Tofte.  This church dinner has its roots firmly planted in the old country.  Eating the lutefisk is optional, but lutefisk connoisseurs tell me that it’s quite delicious, as lutefisk goes.  It helps to use a lot of melted butter. 
 
When my kids were students at Birch Grove they used to complain somewhat bitterly about the smell that lingered in the building for a few days after the dinner.
 
Tickets are available at the door and all are welcome.
 
The annual Birch Grove Community School lasagna dinner at Papa Charlie’s at Lutsen Mountains is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 22.  This is another longstanding event in the West End social scene.  Chef Chris Nies prepares the meal. The local food service suppliers donate all the food. The waiters are staff and volunteers from Birch Grove School, virtually all the money raised goes to the school and a good time is had by all.
 
The event also includes a very attractive silent auction and a fun dance to the music of the talented West End band, D’Merritt. 
 
Last year, the food sold out early, so more food is being planned this year so everyone can eat.  Take-out dinners are available this year, so if you are too busy to sit down, you can still support the school. 
 
If you have questions, or a silent auction item that you would like to donate, contact Diane at 663-0170.
 
I’ve been watching the Minneapolis mayor’s election with great interest.  Minneapolis is among a growing list of governments that are using ranked choice voting for their elections.
 
Ranked choice voting works like this: 
 
Anyone who is eligible and pays the fee can run for mayor. There is no primary election. All the candidates run in just one general election. When you get your ballot, you rank the candidates in the order that you prefer them. 
 
The ballots are counted and if one of the candidates gets more than half the votes, then they are declared the winner and become mayor. If that doesn’t happen, then the candidate with the least votes is dropped from the election. The eliminated candidate’s ballots are recounted and the votes are reallocated to the next choice on each ballot.  This continues until a winner is determined.
 
If you’ve ever held your nose and voted for the least worse of two candidates on a ballot, you can see the advantage of ranked choice voting immediately.  You can vote for whom you like, but indicate whom you can live with at the same time.
 
I personally like how ranked choice voting virtually eliminates negative campaigning and personal attacks.  If you attack one of your opponents, their supporters are highly unlikely to make you their second choice.  With personal attacks taken out of the equation, campaigns are forced to concentrate on the issues make their case for why they are the best person for the job. What a concept!
 
Ranked choice voting, in my opinion, is the way all our elections should be conducted.  It’s fair, gives voters a real choice and eliminates many of the most annoying aspects of our current system.
 
If we combined ranked choice voting with strict campaign finance rules and a set amount of time for campaigning, we would have more accountable and efficient government at every level. A guy can dream, can’t he?
 
As I speak, Sawbill Lake is skimmed over with ice in the bays and protected areas.  I don’t think this is the final freeze-up though, as warmer temperatures and rain are in the forecast.  As always at this time of year, I have my fingers crossed for smooth ice that is safe for ice-skating.
 
For WTIP, this is Bill Hansen with the West End News.