Monday, January 12

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Tuesday, January 13

President Clinton has announced plans to spend nearly 30-million dollars on training more computer programmers. According to a study conducted by Virginia Tech, one out of every 10 technology jobs in the United States is left unfilled. The President's plan comes as welcome news to many Minnesota employers who have been scrambling to find enough computer-literate employees. Minnesota Public Radio's Gretchen Lehmann reports.

At first blush, a plan to take a century-old theater in downtown Minneapolis, put it on a giant truck and move it three blocks down Hennepin Avenue, sounds a little crazy. But the group that is pushing the plan has a knack for the gargantuan. Artspace Projects, which already operates the Hennepin Center for the Arts, wants to save the historic theater from demolition and provide the city with a new performance space. Whether that makes financial sense is still a question. But as Mary Stucky reports, Artspace has acheived the near impossible before.

This month eleven Indian tribes are expected to sign an agreement with the state of Minnesota to improve enforcement of the Indian Child Welfare Act. The 20-year-old law was passed to discourage the removal of Indian children from their families and tribes. But it has gone largely unenforced. Minnesota Public Radio's Amy Radil reports on the law's impact in St. Louis County.

More than a hundred angry residents packed Richfield City Hall last night, taking city officials to task for clear-cutting two-hundred trees for a planned maintenance garage. The city council reversed its decision to build the garage at Veterans Park, but not before residents expressed outrage over the loss of trees, and the process. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports.

On Future Tense, the Clinton administration is worried about a shortage of high tech workers in the next decade. In Berkeley, California yesterday, the Administration unveiled a plan to train a new generation of information workers. Peter Jon Shuler reports.

Sports Marketing guru Pat Forciea talks about Mike Veek's decision to sell the St. Paul Saints and the future of the Northern League.

Rev. Phil Ratzlaff, a volunteer with the John Beargrease Sled Dog Race discusses the race which is going faster than expected.

Wednesday, January 14

Thirty years ago, Minnesota was a great vacation spot -- in the summer. The phrase "winter tourism" meant going somewhere else when it got cold. An innovation called the snowmobile has helped to change that, along with ice fishing, skiing, and snowshoeing. Cold weather tourism is now a major industry, bringing millions of dollars into the state each year. The Gunflint Trail, on of the edge of the Boundary Waters, is one of the state's most popular destinations. Some businesses there cater to snowmobile traffic, others to skiers and snowshoers -- the so-called "silent sports." As Leif Enger reports, the mix has been an uneasy one at times.

On Future Tense, A new report says the high-tech boom that has made California's Silicon Valley one of the fastest growing regions in the country is leaving many poor and middle-income people behind. The report by Working Partnerships USA and the Economic Polic Institute says while computer tycoons and software millionaires bid up real estate prices and plunk down huge sums for fancy cars, many other people in Silicon Valley are struggling to get by. Amy Dean is director of Working Partnerships, a grassroots advocacy and research group.

Norwest Chief Economist Sung Won Sohn discusses the Asia financial crisis and its impact on Minnesota businesses.

Judy Cook of the Minnesota Retail Merchants Association and Kevin Chandler of the Minnesota Credit Union Network discuss a proposal to restrict surchages on ATM withdrawls.

Thursday, January 15

The Saint Rose Convent has stood on the banks of the Mississippi River in La Crosse, Wisconsin since 1871 and the city's historic preservation commission wants to designate it as a historic building. But the Catholic nuns who live and pray in the convent are fighting the designation. They say the city is interferring in the practice of their religion. The preservation commission will consider the designation tonight. Minnesota Public Radio's Brent Wolfe reports.

Governor Carlson is hoping to spend $373 million more of your money this year -- while sending you a tax rebate at the same time. Minnesota Public Radio's Martin Kaste reports.

On Future Tense, Audionet, an Internet broadcast network, says it has raised an additional 22 million dollars from primary investors such as Intel, Motorola and Yahoo. AudioNet provides Web users with live and on-demand audio and video broadcasts, which include radio, sports and news events and popular music. I asked Audionet's chief executive Todd Wagner whether internet broadcasting will ever be a mass medium.

Sandy Grieve, former CEO of Ecolab, discusses the Carlson School of Business and its relationship with the local business community.

Senator Roy Terwiliger, who is planning to introduce a stadium funding package, reacts to news that baseball owners don't appear ready to let the Twins move to North Carolina.

Naturalist Kathy Heidel helps Bob Potter find a squirrel nest in the woods.

Friday, January 16

The legal battle over plans to build a massive bridge over the St. Croix river near Stillwater is on the docket in federal court later this morning in Minneapolis. Judge Ann Montgomery will hear the Minnesota Department of Transportation's claims the National Park Service did NOT have jurisdiction to block the bridge project under federal laws designed to protect designated river ways. Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports.

Another attempt is being made to pass a so-called "concealed carry" law in Minnesota. It would make it easier for legal gunowners to carry a handgun. Thirty-one other states have such laws, while Minnesota is among 12 with discretionary laws allowing local law enforcement to decide who gets a concealed weapons permit. Minnesota Public Radio's Karen-Louise Boothe reports people at a public hearing last night in Bloomington spoke mostly in FAVOR of the right to carry a concealed weapon.

The debate over managing Minnesota's wolf population got contentious last night as friends and foes of the wolf clashed over what should be done. The timberwolf may be taken off the endangered species list as early as next year, and at a public meeting in the Twin Cities, there was little common ground between the two sides. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports.

On Future Tense: A new study says four-point-six million people are actively trading stocks online. That's more than the number of people buying books, CDs, or making travel arrangements online. The research from Cyber Dialogue/Find SVP says the number of people trading online increased more than 150 percent between the second and fourth quarter of 1997, and the growth is expected to continue. The biggest player in online trading is Charles Schwab and Company. I asked Schwab executive Tom Taggart what's preventing online trading from getting even bigger.

Meteorologist Mark Seeley talks about the weather and answers the question: is it ever too cold to snow?

University of Minnesota President Mark Yudof talks about his trip to China.

Dick Ostroot talks about running in the Freeze Your Gizzard Blizzard Run, a featured event at Icebox Days in International Falls this weekend.

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