Fall season once again

By: 
Patrick Fisher, pfisher@newpraguetimes.com

We find ourselves once again in the fall season when trees change colors and farmers are busy harvesting their crops.

This fall, Minnesota has been spoiled with warmer than average temperatures in August and September. It’s only been over the last few weeks temperatures have begun to plummet into the 50s and 40s. Temperatures have also been cold enough for frost warnings to spring up once or twice during the night.

In the past I’ve reminisced in this column about jumping in leaves as a child or being out on a crisp day in September or October and enjoying a walk as leaves fall. Recently I received over FaceBook a photo from my brother that portrayed a beautiful fall morning. The morning sun was shining through the trees that still had leaves and those that has already lost their leaves and the sunlight glinting off the leaves on the ground. In the foreground was a bicycles as my brother is a big cycling enthusiast. I don’t know if he’s ever gone winter biking, but he keeps biking as long as he can in the fall and as early as he can in the spring.

I have a bicycle, but, unfortunately, like a lot of things I have it spends more time gathering dust. Anyone know of a bicycling club that will take beginners? I have a helmet and gloves and a bike, what else do I need?

Elections

This fall is also an election year, again. It seems there’s a lot of mud flinging this year. Actually it seems more like the mud is flowing to the point where it is a couple feet deep. With all of it the accusations flying around it seems like now would be a time for a change.

I’ve actually started to think our election cycle should be reduced. It’s an idea I’ve talked about before in my columns, but after more than a year of accusations and counter accusations I think we really need to start considering it. My idea is instead of politicians beginning campaigns a year or more before the actual election, maybe the election cycle should be limited to six months or less. To me a bonus is the general public would spend less time grumbling about the election cycle being so long. Also, who knows, maybe people’s attitudes would improve. Yes, I know I’m reaching on that last part. But really, if a candidate can’t make their position known or provide a platform on which they are running on in six months, or less, maybe they shouldn’t be running.

To make sure candidates stick to the six month time period a pretty hefty fine would be needed. Perhaps a sliding scale depending on what office the candidate is running for with something like a mayor of a major metropolitan city paying a few thousand dollars with it going up from there. Hopefully if the fine takes a big chunk out of their campaign funds then the candidate will stay within the six month period. The money from the fines could go back into the election system. Perhaps grants for towns, cities and states to buy new equipment or train election judges. It’s just an idea.

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