West End News: October 9

‘Tis the season for your annual flu shot and, as usual, the Sawtooth Mountain Clinic is making it convenient for West Enders to get their shot without driving all the way to Grand Marais.
 
The flu shot clinic will be in the West End Wednesday, Oct. 22 – at the Moondance Coffee Shop in Lutsen from 9 until 10:30 a.m. and at the Birch Grove Community Center from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.
 
There is a reasonable charge for the shot, which is payable by cash or check only. If you want to charge the shot to your insurance, bring your information and card along.
 
I’m sorry to say that I’ll be missing the flu clinics this year because I got my flu shot at my recent “every-eight-year” annual physical. The flu shot clinics are a great place to catch up with your neighbors and personally thank the wonderful caregivers from the Sawtooth Mountain Clinic.
 
I was interested to read in the Duluth News Tribune that the taconite industry is having a hard time shipping their product to the steel mills due to a lack of railroad capacity, among other reasons.  Apparently, the coal and oil industries are using up so much rail capacity that some other industries are experiencing a shipping bottleneck.
 
This makes me wonder why the railroad line that terminates at Taconite Harbor in Schroeder is still in mothballs and not being used? 
 
When the Taconite Harbor power plant was sold to Minnesota Power, Cliffs Natural Resources, the former Cleveland Cliffs Mining Company, retained ownership of the rail line that runs between Hoyt Lakes and Tac Harbor. At the time, there was speculation that Cliffs would use the line to ship taconite from the Iron Range, reducing both the distance traveled by rail and the distance traveled by Great Lakes ore boats, saving time and money over the existing shipping routes.
 
The recent rail shipping bottlenecks are being blamed on a shortage of locomotives, which again makes me wonder what happened to the cool old locomotives that used to serve Taconite Harbor?
 
It seems a shame to leave such an important piece of railroad infrastructure left to slowly deteriorate. Also, the jobs associated with an active shipping conduit would be welcome here in the West End.
 
I’m always distressed to read about the decline in voting in the United States. For a long time, low voter turnout was blamed on confusing and awkward registration and voting systems, along with changing demographics.
 
Recently, voting experts are learning that the real reason voter turnout is declining is a lack of motivation.  Determining people’s motivations is always a tricky business, but some causes seem self-evident.
 
The two major political parties used to focus on grass roots organizing and large get-out-the-vote efforts on Election Day. Increasingly, both parties have become fundraising machines that use the money to fund television ads, especially in the last couple of weeks before the election.  Most of the ads are negative in tone and specifically designed to dampen enthusiasm for a particular candidate.
 
Another effect of the negative tone in political advertising is to give the impression that voting is choice between bad and worse. I certainly notice that attitude in many conversations that I have and, to be honest, I often feel that way myself
 
The Republican Party has spent the last few decades campaigning on the premise that we need less government. Voting is perceived as a government function, so it’s possible that the anti-government message is contributing to voter discouragement.
 
However, I’m an optimist at heart and I still think democracy is the best thing going in this country and around the world. I strongly urge you to exercise your right to vote in the election that’s just around the corner.
 
Here in the West End, our voting is done by mail, so the election really starts next week. The ballots go out early next week, so you should be receiving yours around Oct. 15.  You have until Election Day to return it, but I urge you to vote as soon as your mind is made up so you don’t forget.
 
This year, you can complete your voter registration online. It’s easy to find the site with a simple web search. You need to provide a valid Minnesota driver’s license or I.D. number, or the last four digits of your social security number. 
 
You can also register and vote anytime between now and Nov. 4 at the Cook County Courthouse in Grand Marais.
 
To be eligible to vote you must be 18 years old by Election Day and have resided in your local precinct for more than 20 days. You also can’t be a convicted felon or otherwise had your voting rights revoked by a court of law.
 
As discouraging as the current political climate is, the right to vote is still the basis of our civil society. All the outside money and influence in the world can’t stop us if we use our vote to make our local community – and the rest of the world – an even better place to live.