Open letter to Mayor Larson and Duluth City Councilors

I am disappointed and surprised that Visit Duluth lost the tourism funding.

At the request of Mayor Gary Doty, Council and tourism industry I authored the special tourism sales tax bill several years ago. The bill was controversial, so mostly bar owners and citizens were at the Capitol daily. My Duluth legislative colleagues were lukewarm, but I got a lot of help from Sen. Doug Johnson, who  chaired the Senate Tax Committee and the fact that I was on House Tax Committee, we were successful. 

I chaired House Economic Development, International Trade and Tourism Committee and was very interested in tourism on local, state, national and international levels. The year we passed the bill we had a million tourists, a couple of years later  three million and now more than six million. 

There is a saying in Bosnia (where I grew up) that you do not change horse that is pulling the plow!

I read Emily’s quote that Visit Duluth should go through city bidding process. I am aware that that is done on all levels of governments. However, tourism tax is not part of general fund of the city. It is a special fund collected/paid by the hospitality industry and they, with Visit Duluth, should decide how to use the fund. They are more qualified than Belmont Corporation in the Twin Cities!

Thank you for your attention!

Mike Jaros
Duluth, Minnesota                                                    

Out of sight

There are no walls or borders in outer space, which is open ended and uncharted. The tourist industry now can offer rides in space for a very steep price, with luxury included. You are not hampered by gravity or a poor view of distance. No carnival rides can compete with this.

Far below, though, out of sight, there are moving, masses of people seeking only safety from smugglers and murderous predators. The lawlessness and treachery is unbearable for families seeking security and stability.

Gerald Norrgard
Duluth, Minnesota

Let’s cut them out!

Amid the chaos of events swirling around us, I still maintain that the “Repukeagains” asserting that Jan. 6 was merely a tranquil visitors’ tour is analogous to saying that Hitler and Mussolini were part of a Welcome Wagon committee!

When will those on the right begin to acknowledge that they were part of an orchestrated attempt to take over our country and end democracy as we know it?

It’s time to call this crap what it is – simply a lame scheme to turn America into nothing but a tin-horn dictatorship.

Those brain-scrubbed nerds and nerdettes need to be smacked on their selective posteriors!

Let us cut them out of our body politic the way a gifted surgeon would remove a growing malignancy!

Ken Bracken
Minneapolis Veterans Home