Welcome back to The Flyover, your daily digest of what local media outlets and Twitter-ers are gabbing about.
More Over Prince, There’s a New Famous Minnesotan
Former TV host Tucker Carlson continues to hit his head on every branch as he falls out of the tree. In his latest attempt to prove he’s still a big player in the reactionary loonosphere, Tucker invited Larry Sinclair on his straight-to-X video show. ("Straight-to-X" sure makes it sound more interesting than it is.) Who is Larry Sinclair? Well, you may know him as the man who claims that in 1999 he smoked crack and had sex with Barack Obama. (We guess 9/11 truly did change everything.) But the important thing to know is that Sinclair, like many other world historical figures, is from here. He is from Minnesota. He is a Minnesotan.
Sinclair also claims that he wasn’t Obama’s only drug- and fuck-buddy back then. Were any of the prez's other sex partners from Minnesota? We’ll never know because, according to Sinclair, Obama had them murdered. (Sinclair has a long, colorful history that includes 13 different aliases, multiple prison stints, and having reportedly failed a lie detector test when he first made the Obama sex claims in 2008.) As we wonder whenever any news happens, we have to ask: Is this good or bad for Minnesota? Hard to say! On one hand, it’s hard not to be proud of a Minnesotan who had sex with a future president. On the other, Sinclair clearly made this shit up. So, we’re torn.
Readin’, Writin’, and Illegal Chokeholds
If you hang around the internet long enough, you’ll hear of a little something called Betteridge’s Law: Whenever a headline poses a question, the answer is “no.” So when Chris Ingraham’s story for the Minnesota Reformer asks “Do cops make school safer?”, we can all see where this is headed. A little recap: The DFL passed a law forbidding SROs, or student resource officers (or, even more simply, cops) from using chokeholds and certain other extreme forms of restraint on students in Minnesota schools. Republicans, who hate the idea of unpoliced children, want Tim Walz to call a special session of the legislature, and the guv, who has a soft spot for authoritarianism, is wobbling on the issue.
But, Ingraham asks, are SROs even a good idea? He cites a recent SUNY/RAND study showing that schools who hired SROs experienced a slight decline in fights, robberies, and threats of violence. But there’s a severe tradeoff—these schools have nearly twice as many suspensions, expulsions, and arrests. Ingraham quotes Lucy Sorensen, the lead author of the study, as saying, “The fact that [SROs] increase discipline for minor incidents means that they are contributing to a more punitive school climate overall and not fulfilling appropriate roles and responsibilities.” So, do our schools need cops? It all depends on whether you think schools are places of learning or four-year holding cells from which the police can recruit future prison inmates.
So... No Third Precinct Downtown, Then?
Just yesterday we told you that the Minneapolis City Council had OK'd a plan to put MPD's Third Precinct and First Precinct under the same downtown Minneapolis roof, a compromise that would put it just outside the boundaries of the actual Third Police Precinct. Except now, reports the Star Tribune's Dave Orrick, City Council is hitting the brakes, citing confusion over costs and the length of time cops would be there. "It's my understanding this is being built as a temporary space for the officers, which I am in full support of," Council Member Emily Koski said at a meeting today... which is kind of true, and kind of not true. The plan as proposed would put officers there for about 10 years, a length of time that apparently surprised council members, leading to a unanimous vote to delay their decision.
Oops! Skyway Taco John’s Owes over $90K.
Last July, the sole Minneapolis Taco John’s, aka the Skyway Taco John’s, closed abruptly with no explanation. Racket mourned the loss, as did other taco enthusiasts around town. But like an autopsy for a person who died under mysterious circumstances, a new lawsuit may shed some light on the reason for our loss: rent debt. According to an August 29 filing unearthed by Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, skyway property owners ABDO-1 LLC claim that S and C Royals Inc., the franchisee of this particular Taco John’s, owes them a total of $93,947.33. And that number continues to grow: In true landlord style, ABDO-1 alleges that TJ’s failed to exit their lease properly, and is on the hook for rental payments through October 31. A few months ago the company told Bring Me the News that Taco John’s was "looking forward to returning to the skyway and Minneapolis soon." In the meantime, folks will have to score Potato Olés at one of the 50-plus locations outside Minneapolis.
