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The Minnesota Nurses Association began a strike this morning that will last until Thursday. About 15,000 nurses have walked out
after negotiations with Allina, Health Partners, Essentia Health, M Fairview Health Service, Childrens, North Memorial Health and St. Lukes broke down over the weekend.
Northfield Hospital + Clinics issued a statement on Friday that said the strike does not affect their system, but they could see some ripple effects.
According to the statement, some surgeries may have to be postponed or rescheduled. It will definitely affect the ability to transfer patients, but the statement also said that Northfield Hospital is ready to handle more and more acute patients during this time period.
NH+C will continue to perform urgent and emergent surgeries. Emergency surgery services continue to be available 24hours a day, 7 days a week at Northfield Hospital. People with a serious or life-threatening condition should go to the Emergency Department without reservation, especially those with major trauma, a head Injury, stroke, severe bleeding, chest pain, abdominal pain, difficulty breathing, severe pain, newborn fever, or suicidal thoughts.
The NH+C statement did caution to expect extended wait times in the ED, Urgent Care, and clinics, and said those who cannot wait should call 911.
As the hospital does expect to be very busy over the next three days, the statement asks for patience with the staff and the situation.
Elective surgery patients who are affected will be contacted directly by NH+C one day in advance of their scheduled surgery if it needs to be rescheduled.
There are clinic options for non-urgent in-person appointments, Video Visits and eCare. Those looking for an appointment should plan ahead as getting an appointment may take longer.
Finally, the statement asks one and all to take care of themselves and each other. Prevent illnesses and injuries whenever possible and seek out care when it is necessary.
Fossum addresses question of voter fraud
Despite all evidence to the contrary, rumors persist that the 2020 Presidential election was rife with voter fraud. 
This past summer, the state director of elections, David Maeda, addressed the Rice County Board of Commissioners to assure the people of Rice County that the elections across the state, and in Rice County itself, are sound. Maeda even singled out the County Director of Property Tax and Elections, Denise Anderson, as a great example of the high-quality people who are in charge of elections around the state.
Last week, with an important election day approaching in just under two months, Rice County Attorney John Fossum echoed Maeda’s sentiments, saying he believes Minnesota uses the “gold standard,” when it comes to running an election.
“We use paper ballots, and an optical reader,” he said. “That way there is a record of the vote, and the paper ballots can be reviewed against the optical reader report, and votes can be confirmed.”
All the equipment used by the county is certified by the Secretary of State’s office, he said. And a public demonstration of that equipment has been made in order to re-assure voters.
He said there have been a handful of cases where his office has charged someone with wrongful voting, but that has usually involved someone convicted of a felony registering to vote and then doing so. Convicted felons are not allowed to vote in Minnesota, however the state Supreme Court is currently reviewing a challenge to that law.
Fossum said the county continues to receive data practice requests from people who are investigating the alleged voter fraud in the 2020 election, and his office tries to process those requests as quickly as possible.
“Our office reviews those and turns them around as quickly as we can. Sometimes people are asking for things that don’t exist, and then they get frustrated because [they have to be told that what they are looking for doesn’t] exist. But we can’t generate data. We can only provide the data that we have and that our Director of Property Tax and Elections has.”
Election day is Tuesday, November 8th.
Jeff Johnson’s full conversation with Rice County Attorney John Fossum can be heard here
Civil Air Patrol squadron will highlight cadet programs during open house
The local Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol, based out of Stanton Airfield, will host an open house tomorrow night. The public is 
invited to come learn about the Civil Air Patrol, what they do, how they help, and how anyone can get involved.
Civil Air Patrol is the longtime auxiliary of the United States Air Force. The organization operates a fleet of nearly 2500 single-engine and small unmanned aircraft and is responsible for nearly 90% of all continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions. The 60,000-member organization also performs homeland security and disaster relief missions. Operating as a nonprofit organization, CAP also plays a leading role in STEM and aerospace education, and its members serve as mentors to about 25,000 young people in the CAP Cadet Program.
Major Randall Knox said in Minnesota, the CAP’s main focus is on cadet programs. The primary objective is to develop leadership skills in young people, which will serve them well for the rest of their lives. Some of the training will involve what he called “imposed discipline,” and putting cadets into some challenging situations. The goal is to help them develop more internal discipline and grow in character.
Knox also noted that while they focus on cadet programs, there is always room for adults to join as well.
Both adult and cadet members of the squadron will be on hand to talk about their aerospace education programs, emergency services programs, and their various cadet programs as well. Attendees will be able to learn about rocketry, drones, CAP aircraft, and flight simulation. The Stanton Composite Squadron Color Guard will present the colors and demonstrate their skills and abilities.
The Stanton Composite Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol open house will run tomorrow night from 6-8pm. For the best source of information, look for their Facebook page.
Jeff Johnson’s full conversation with members of the Stanton Composite Civil Air Patrol squadron can be hard here
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