I understand that the media has been going on about this anti-bullying business for over a year now. After Justin Aaberg's suicide last year in nearby Anoka, the issue has not gone away. Recently, a 15-year-old in Ottawa, Ontario took his own life because he couldn't wait for things to get better. He was bullied because he did not want to play hockey, but rather do ice skating.
This is not exactly the news we wanted to hear, considering that the economy has veered itself slightly off the recovery track. The loss of 800 jobs to Minnesota's economy may seem like a drop in the bucket, but it is not. Not after the budget mess this state endured this summer.
Since age 6, I was attracted by the excitement of the race. Of Richard Petty and his all-conquering light blue #43 Plymouths and Dodges in NASCAR. Of Mario Andretti conquering Indy car and Formula 1 in an eight-year span. Of the tragedies each variant of motorsport we experienced as fans of drivers we fondly remember today.
I understand why the 3-Series is both loved and hated by everyone. It is a symbol of prestige and performance. When you make it in life, the 3-Series is on your shopping list. If you want an enthusiast sedan for under $35,000, you consider one. Or, you avoid anything having to do with the Roundel for something closer to your taste and style for the same amount of money.
It is a locally-published book compiling a century's worth of automotive writing by the best of the best – or, other related pieces. In 2010, Motorbooks in Minneapolis produced Life is A Highway: A Century of Great Automiobile Writing, under the editorship of Darwin Holmstrom and Melinda Keefe. It has been a pleasure to revisit some of my heroes of automotive writing through this fantastic compilation.
The quote above was tweeted on Tuesday while in the midst of taking photos across downtown Minneapolis and fielding a round of press releases on my Blackberry. When automotive journalists get news from the industry, we try our best to analyze it for you. Some opinion comes out, but only based on analysis rather than pure editorial.
TweetToday is National Coming Out Day. This is a day that even us who have been out for years can take the time to inspire those who are not open about their own sexual orientation. As they always say: "It takes one to know one." My story is simple: I always have to do a …
When the year began, fuel prices scaled up towards the $4.00 a gallon threshold. The result was a rise in smaller vehicles – passenger cars and crossovers.
A journalist's tools are vital to his or her success. The most prominent tool of this journalist was one forged from the ideas of a visionary. Thank you, Steve Jobs, for making the work of a lot of us in the working press – myself included – much easier today. Godspeed, Mr. Jobs.
It started when I drove my first Toyota Prius ten years ago at a Farmer’s Market on Madison's Capitol Square. What surprised me about that Prius was how it drove like a normal small sedan, despite a few sonic differences. There was some initial resistance based on some quirkiness in the styling inside and out along with the concern about battery life and overall reliability of the system.