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Archive for July, 2010

Jul 21st, 2010

Summary: Today’s St. Cloud Times has a letter to the editor in which the letter writer offers a broad-ranging indictment of 6th District Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.). The letter writer characterizes Bachmann as self-centered, unresponsive to the needs of her district, meager in her legislative accomplishments, and shirking the hard work of effective governance. But it’s not until the end of the letter that the writer touches on what I consider the real problem with Bachmann: her delusion-like paranoia, her shameless conspiracy-peddling, and her incessant fear-mongering. This post contains excerpts from the letter annotated with added content for background context. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 21, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that the tragedy of war came home to Minnesota with news that five service members with local connections had died in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.


Jul 20th, 2010

Summary: Weekly report of U.S. military deaths in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), compiled from U.S. Department of Defense News Releases. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 20, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann’s outlandish behavior, uninformed, misleading, and unsubstantiated comments, and inability to craft viable public policy may have reached critical mass, crossing the tipping point beyond which Minnesota media could no longer tune out the insanity.


Jul 19th, 2010

Summary: It’s been a good week for Independent Tom Horner’s campaign for governor of Minnesota. Not only did Horner meet his July 19 fundraising goal to qualify for public campaign funds, he also attracted favorable media attention highlighting the fact that he can win in November. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 19, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that the Pentagon had identified the captured American soldier who went missing from his forward operating base in Afghanistan as Pfc. Bowe R. Bergdahl, 23, Ketchum, Idaho, a member of 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska.


Jul 18th, 2010

Summary: Twin suicide bombings kill nearly 50 people in Iraq as U.S. combat troops prepare to withdraw by the end of August. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 18, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that Iraq’s top commanders told their U.S. counterparts to “stop all joint patrols” in Baghdad, raising fresh concerns about the safety of U.S. troops in Iraq.


Jul 17th, 2010

Summary: As concerns grow about the war in Afghanistan, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is heading to South Asia on a mission aimed at refining the goals of the nearly 9-year-old conflict. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 17, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that three Minnesota National Guardsmen were killed in an attack on a U.S. base in Basra, Iraq.


Jul 16th, 2010

Summary: Reader comment removed from St. Cloud Times’ online commentary on pro-Bachmann letter to the editor for “violating the terms of service.” … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 16, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that Rep. Michele Bachmann, in addition to three likely Democratic opponents (Elwyn Tinklenberg, Maureen Reed, and Tarryl Clark), also faced a battle on a second front — a potential primary challenge from within the Republican Party.


Jul 15th, 2010

Summary: Two years ago today, I launched my campaign against incumbent U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 15, 2009 Aubrey Immelman noted that one year had passed since he launched his campaign against incumbent U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann for the Republican nomination in Minnesota’s 6th Congressional District.


Jul 14th, 2010

Summary: Eight American troops were killed in a series of attacks in the Kandahar offensive in southern Afghanistan. So far in July, 45 international troops have died in Afghanistan, 33 of them Americans. June saw more than 100 troops killed — the bloodiest month of the nine-year-old war. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 14, 2009 Aubrey Immelman provided his weekly report of U.S. military deaths in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), compiled from U.S. Department of Defense News Releases. … He also reported that July 2009 was shaping up to be the deadliest month of the Afghanistan war for U.S.-led international forces, with the number killed by mid-month already matching the highest full-month toll of the nearly eight-year conflict.


Jul 13th, 2010

Summary: Weekly report of U.S. military deaths in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), compiled from U.S. Department of Defense News Releases. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 13, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that congressional Democrats were demanding an investigation over disclosures that a secret CIA program to capture or kill al-Qaida leaders was concealed from Congress for eight years, perhaps at the behest of former Vice President Dick Cheney.



Summary: “Rise of the New Right: A Hardball Documentary with Chris Matthews” — Part 6: How the New Right Exploits the Media. … One-year retrospective: One year ago today, on July 12, 2009 Aubrey Immelman reported that six Baghdad-area churches were bombed within 24 hours on July 11-12, 2009, killing at least four people and wounding 32. Iraq has lost more than half of the 1.4 million Christians who once called it home, mostly since the war began in 2003, and few who fled have plans to return.