A Minneapolis Truth Teller

"Grow up Minneapolis. Time to change. Time to return to the nice city you once were. And Betsy - time for you to go back to la-la land."

I have said many times that truth tellers are in short supply. Amen to that! As most know by now, yesterday was not a red letter day for Mayor Betsy. In fact, I think she wanted to find a rock to crawl under. She held a presser to tell the media she FINALLY was able to get rid of the burr under her saddle - that would be her police chief. Not only get rid of her, but introduce the new chief. And tell the minions that Minneapolis was again, "One Minneapolis".

Whoops! Hold the phone Mayor! Seems like you were firing the wrong person! Well maybe the wrong person. I personally don't think Harteau has been a highly effective police chief. But she is only a small part of the problem in Minneapolis. One of the protesters who came to Betsy's presser to make his feelings known, was a friend of Philando Castile. And he was pissed. 

When Betsy said she was getting rid of the chief and promoting the assistant chief, the place erupted. "We don't want him either! And Mayor, we really don't want you! You are the problem. You need to go, and take your entire staff with you!" Wow! So much for "One Minneapolis". Betsy had just run into the worst kind of person she could imagine - a truth teller. 

What is the problem then, in Minneapolis? It is very simple. It is being run by idiots. The council looks and acts like the bar scene from Star Wars. Not just a few of them - all of them. These are the "managers", the gurus of the city. Mayor Betsy and the Minneapolis City Council. 

The young man wearing the "I Am A Man" tee-shirt was yelling truths at Betsy. No, this city is not all right. It is beset with big time problems. And having the Mayor running around sprinkling fairy dust on everything, does not cut it. Having the ideologues on the city council drive Minneapolis business interests out of town while ignoring the growing poverty problem, also does not cut it. 

There is only one hope for Minneapolis before it turns into a smaller version of Chicago or Detroit. Clean house. Bring in adults to run the place. The hippies, yuppies and the dippiest who are currently in charge, need to go sit in Powderhorn Park and write some poetry. Adults who understand gentrification, poverty, hunger, policing, attracting and retaining business, and just plain common sense, need to be hired immediately. 

One more truth this young man shouted at Mayor Betsy - "This is our house". Bingo, Betsy. You may be focused on the upscale growth of the warehouse district, but there are still a bunch of people who live in your city who are being squeezed out of affordable housing. "This is our house" means "we live here" to that young man and his friends. In other words, they live in realville.

One final thing before I close this out. ANY police chief worth his or her salt would look the Mayor in the eye and inform her that "broken window" policing will be enforced. And part of "broken window" policing is turning illegal immigrants over to ICE. Being a sanctuary city is a huge statement in and by itself. It says Minneapolis does not care to enforce the law. And until immigration law changes, what we have is the law of the land.

Grow up Minneapolis. Time to change. Time to return to the nice, well run city you once were. And Betsy - time for you to go back to la-la land.