Monday, January 25

Tonight is Burns Night. For the last couple of hundred years Scots around the world have celebrated the legacy of the poet Robert Burns, by gathering to read his work, speak of his life and eat his favorite dish. To be frank it's a dish held in almost global disdain, so much so that one person has decided she needs to be its guardian and defend its honor. Minnesota Public Radio's Euan Kerr recently met with this person, who for the last two weeks has been going to extreme lengths to make sure those who want it can have all the Haggis they need. "Haggis?" you say. "That Scottish stuff made from sheep guts?" Yes indeed.

The Legislature gets back to work today. Governor Jesse Ventura is expected to deliver his budget proposal to lawmakers on Thursday. Joining us now with her perspective on the activity at the Capitol is Judy Cook, a lobbyist representing a mix of industries including retailers, drug manufacturers, highway construction companies and electric utilities.

This weekend, divers explored the bottom of Tadd Lake in Atwater looking for what might have poked mysterious holes in the ice on the surface. Star-shaped holes on Tadd Lake and another lake near Willmar have led to speculation that meteors or perhaps part of a plane fell out of the sky over west-central Minnesota last week. Reed Schmidt is chief of the Atwater police department.

If 18,000 Northwest Airlines ground workers ratify a new tentative contract in early February, the only worker groups with open contracts at Northwest will be the flight attendants, mechanics, aircraft cleaners and inspectors. The ground workers reached their agreement with the airline on Saturday. Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports.

Farm advocates from around Minnesota will be in St.Paul this week to talk with lawmakers about farm problems. In northwestern Minnesota a new program called Farm Wrap offers legal, and financial advice to farmers on the edge. Perhaps more importantly, it gives desperate farmers a place to turn. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Gunderson reports.

With last week's release of a federal report indicating driver error was to blame in last December's Holidazzle accident, the focus is now turning to the city of Minneapolis's potential liability. A police officer was behind the wheel of the van when it accelerated into a crowd injuring eleven people and killing two others. Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports.

Many Internet stocks suffered a setback last week. So this week, Wall Street will watch to see if the big Internet bubble has broken. Here's what Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Farrell thinks.

The Grand Portage Passage sled dog marathon has a winner. Mitch Seavey of Seward, Alaska and his 10 dogs crossed the finish line at 7:17 a.m. this morning. The 300-mile race began at noon on Sunday. It is sponsored by the Grand Portage Band of Chippewa; Brian Shurburne is marketing director for the Grand Portage Lodge and Casino.

The Maplewood City Council has voted to approve a new family homeless shelter in the St. Paul suburb. The decision was welcomed by advocates for the homeless, but came amid strong opposition from some local businesses and residents. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo reports.

City workers in Minneapolis and St. Paul would be able to live wherever they want, under a bill passed by the Minnesota House. For the past few years, both cities have had residency requirements for new employees. The issue sparked heated debate between urban and suburban House members, and prompted Speaker Steve Sviggum to threaten to remove disruptive lawmakers from the House Chamber, a comment he later reversed. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports.

A controversial project that opens child protection hearings to the public has gotten mixed reviews after its first six months. Supporters of the project hoped that opening the once-closed hearings would spur more people to help abused children through adoption or foster care. They also believed the public would help determine whether the child protection system is working. Opponents argued the publicity would harm children whose cases came under the glare of media attention. But as Minnesota Public Radio's Elizabeth Stawicki reports it appears neither has happened.

The Lipizzan horse is an emblem of old-world culture. Bred for war, for royalty, and for show since the 16th century, the white stallions are best known for their performances at the Spanish Riding School in Vienna where they display their airs above the ground; acrobatic leaps and moves performed to classical music. For the past twenty years, some of these equine aristocrats have been bred and trained in Minnesota on an isolated Cass County farm. Kurt and Margrit Jordi are the state's only breeder of Lipizzans; but as Mainstreet Radio's Leif Enger reports, a recent tragedy has the Jordis struggling to keep their business alive.

A group of Minnesota hog farmers have been taking their case, and their pork -chops, directly to the people. Yesterday they held a truck sale in a Twin Cities suburb, offering prices as low as 60-cents-a-pound. The farmers want to draw attention to low hog prices that are hurting them, while supermarket prices stay high. As Minnesota Public Radio's Eric Jansen reports, shoppers braved wind and cold to get a deal and support farmers.

This year Minnesota's burgeoning season of sled dog races includes the Beargrease, the Grand Portage Passage, and the Great Trail Race in Hinckley. Together the three races offer $130,000 in prize money; enough to draw mushers from Alaska and the Northwest. Later this morning MPR's Mainstreet Radio Unit will examine the mushing phenomenon. As a teaser for that show we have a profile of Duluth musher John Stetson who ran the 1999 Beargrease mid-distance race, 150 miles. He says he loves to race because it's the ultimate test for a musher and his or her dogs. Mainstreet Radio's Amy Radil reports.

Remember lead poisoning? Years ago scientists delivered the ominous news that lead from peeling paint and polluted soil was poisoning millions of American children. Years later, after education and a lot of clean-up, the threat is greatly diminished. But not among poor people who live in America's inner city neighborhoods. A one-of-a kind program in Minneapolis' Phillips neighborhood teaches people how to avoid lead poisoning and helps them clean up lead contaminated houses. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Olson reports.

The Minnesota Department of Economic Security predicts the state's economy will need to fill one million jobs by 2006. Some businesses are already reporting a "worker shortage," not enough skilled employees to fuel the economy's continued expansion. And policy experts expect the problem to grow. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo has more.

The St. Paul City Council is trying to find a way to allow a major employer to expand its downtown headquarters while also preserving a few landmark buildings. The St. Paul Companies dropped tentative plans to expand on the site occupied by the Orpheum Theater and adjoining apartments after the city's Heritage Preservation Commission recommended giving the property historic designation. Mayor Norm Coleman accused the commission of jeopardizing thousands of downtown jobs and dismissed three of its members. Now the council may set up a task force to work out a compromise. Council president Dan Bostrom says the St. Paul Companies still appears interested in the site.

Governor Jesse Ventura today unveils his plan for spending the state's money. The St. Paul Pioneer Press reports that the budget will include over $500 million in new money for K-12 public schools and $250 million in additional spending on higher education. Legislators and lobbyists have been eagerly awaiting this day, because Ventura's budget will give them a better sense of the new governor's priorities and his politics. Minnesota Public Radio's Martin Kaste reports.

The 1999 St. Paul Winter Carnival opens tomorrow. The annual rites of the 10-day festival include a torchlight parade, ice and snow sculpting, a royal ball and a fireworks display. One of the main attractions this year is a 200-foot-long snow slide in Como Park, a Carnival tradition that organizers have revived in recent years. Hampton Smith is with the Minnesota Historical Society. He has studied the history of the St. Paul Winter Carnival and says snow slides were a big draw in its earliest days.

Minnesota's telecommunications laws were written well before today's world of wireless phones, satellite communications, and Internet access. Now, legislators and telecom experts say the laws should be re-written to bring them up-to-date. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo reports.

It's a strange scene: 500 pairs of shoes piled on stage, dancers crawling out from under the heap, while a woman in a leopard-print pillbox hat sits in a chair trying on pair after pair. This is The Lives and Death of Cinderella, a performance work being presented this weekend at the College of St. Catherine. Performance artist Laurie Van Wieren created the piece which reflects her quirky style. In the past that has included everything from shoes and wigs to fireworks. Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Stucky reports.

The budget is getting higher marks from Democratic lawmakers than from Republicans. Senate DFLers generally like Ventura's stance on taxes and tobacco money, while House Republicans question whether the Governor is living up to his fiscally-conservative campaign rhetoric. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports.

Governor Ventura says he's struck a good balance between tax relief and spending in his budget for 2000 and 2001. The Governor laid out his spending plan yesterday evening for legislators and the media, and Minnesota Public Radio's Martin Kaste has this report.

Governor Ventura says he'll give Minnesota schools more money, but they'd better get results in the classrooms. The Reform Party Governor unveiled his first budget proposal Thursday, and 70 percent of the new spending is dedicated to K-12 and higher education. Lawmakers from both parties are welcoming the funding proposal, and his call for accountability. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports.

The Department of Natural Resources has doubled the number of walleye that can be harvested this year from Lake Mille Lacs. Last year's quota was 260,000 pounds. This year it will be 550,000 pounds. Rick Bruesewitz is a treaty biologist for the DNR. He says one reason for the increase is that walleye born in 1996 grew faster than expected.

Even though Sunday's Super Bowl game will be Viking-less , it will still be a special day for residents of International Falls. The town's favorite son, legendary football great Bronko Nagurski, will be named to sports commentator John Madden's All-Millenium Football Team. Nagurski played for the Chicago Bears in the 1930s and '40s and is considered one of the best to ever play the game. But as Tom Robertson reports from Bemidji, Nagurski never forgot his small town roots.

A new report by the state legislative auditor finds "numerous weaknesses" in the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's feedlot program. They include outdated rules, inadequate inspections, and inconsistent enforcement. Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Losure reports.

Arts Calendar:

Verdi's opera Otello which is being staged by the Minnesota Opera at the Ordway Music Theatre in St. Paul, starts tomorrow and runs through February 6th.

Also this weekend, the Minnesota Dance Theatre presents a collection of dances drawing on a variety of international musical influences. It's called A World Journey and will play at the Fitzgerald Theatre tonight and Sunday.

A new play by Minneapolis native Kim Hines opens tonight at the Illusion Theatre in Minneapolis. It's called I Believe I'll Run On...And See What the End's Gonna Be. It tells the story of a family living in South Minneapolis. The play runs through March 7.

And the folks in New York Mills are accepting entries for this year's Great American Think Off. The topic this time: "Which is more dangerous: science or religion?" 750-word essays on that subject will accepted through April 5th.

Joining us now with some more thoughts on what's going on in the arts world is Patty Hegman, an arts producer with KTCA-TV.

Meteorologist Mark Seeley analyzes the weather.