Eden Prairie: Where all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average

Tuesday, 13 July 2010 19:14 Last Updated on Monday, 19 July 2010 14:15

Eden Prairie is the #1 place to live.

According to the Sun-Current, City Manager Scott Neal spent "a couple of months" lobbying Money Magazine for the honors, and we all know Scott Neal likes to lobby!  (Remember the MAC lobbying debacle a few years back?)

News of the honor spread quickly as Neal spent the morning delivering 17 cakes to sites around the city, reminding employees at the Community Center, "you work in the number-one city in America."

I wonder if Ron Case will say it's the Republican majority on the Council who have made Eden Prairie #1?  Afterall, under his party's leadership we were only #10.  I wonder how "Best City" looks on a City Manager's resume?  Pretty good, I bet. 

Funny though, I did note the higher than average Eden Prairie property crime rate in the Money story.   My mom had her purse stolen from a car in EP (this was years ago) and just nine months ago I had bills stolen from my mailbox (the criminals then created fraudulant checks from my checking/routing numbers and stole a bunch of money from my bank account- I now can't put any bills in my own mailbox) and last month I had $400 worth of my small business's merchandise stolen off my front step.(My conversation with an Eden Prairie Police Sergeant was downright humorous about that incident...)

When I moved here six years ago there was one house for sale in my neighborhood, now there are at least fifteen.  I hope some people want to move here now that we're ranked #1....hopefully it's good PR and somebody contemplating moving to Minnesota because of our phenomenal tax environment, chooses EP.   We definitely need younger families moving into Eden Prairie.

Now, on a less-cynical note.  I like living here too.  There is something about this suburb--and I don't know what it is- but it draws you in. I have met some of the best friends a gal can have here in Eden Prairie.   I've found a great support system through church and through local politics.  The location is superb for commuting around the metro.  20 minutes to downtown, 15 minutes to 50th and France,  20 minutes toLake Minnetonka, 20 minutes to my parents in Lakeville.  The EP Center is the best family-friendly mall I've been to (okay, we need a Macy's, but other than that...) and it has every convenience you could want.  I'm 3 minutes from nail salon, 4 minutes from a Homegoods store and 5 minutes from a great steak and a glass of wine, what else could a girl ask for?  Notice, no government connections to the things I like about living here.

Somehow, in such a short time, I feel like I've lived here for decades.  (And I didn't even need a magazine to tell me what I already know.)  So, take that local liberals.  I'm not going anywhere (well.....unless Mark Dayton...oh, no, I won't even go there.) 

Now, if we can just win #1 in snow removal, then I'll be singing from the rooftops!

The Untouchables

Wednesday, 07 July 2010 20:54

Inspired by the media's ability to magically take campaign-stop statements and spin them into all-out class warfare, I've decided to hit the road and start tracking the DFL candidates.  I have a bunch of kids that tag along and I don't have a press pass, so this could be tough.  But when there's a will, there's a way...so let's figure this out.  Where will the DFL candidates be?

Let's hit the websites....Mark Dayton's looks promising.  Right on the home page it says "Meet Mark".  Oooh, cool.  I can even translate into Spanish at the click of a button.  Wait a second.  This is just telling me about Mark Dayton, it's not telling me where I can meet him.  Try again.  Connect to his Facebook page...I can see where he's been and he mentions a few parades where he's going in Northwest Minnesota, but there are no details with times or exact locations.  I see nothing about any metro appearances.

Margaret Anderson Kelliher's Facebook page also lists where she's been, not where she's going and her website lists three events- a fundraiser, the August primary date and Election day.  Okay.  Nothing.

Matt Entenza's website lists ZERO events.  Just a lot of stuff about Matt and "who he is."  Matches the TV spots I see.

Contrast those with Tom Emmer's which links "Events" from the home page with a detailed list of every parade he's marching in, when he's lining up and maps to get you there.  Emmer has been absolutely, positively everywhere in the last few months mixing it up with the voters who will elect the governor this fall.  It's a safe-bet that he'll say many more things that set-off the liberals and worry the Minn-Mods. 

Get those events up DFL'ers, I have some questions for you.

Here's a Tip: Let the Market Decide

Wednesday, 07 July 2010 20:25 Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 July 2010 20:54

The amount of hoopla over GOP gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer's comment that Minnesota employers should be allowed to count tips into minimum wage calculations is astounding.

First- there are 43 other states who have the same law.  Why?  Because the government shouldn't dictate to private business what they should pay employees.  They especially shouldn't dictate it beyond the current federal minimum wage laws.

I've worked in the restaurant industry doing finance.  I also worked as a hostess when I was younger.  Here's a secret:  the more tables seated, the higher the turnover in tables, the more money you make.  (Assuming you're a hard worker.)

If somebody believes that they'll only make $2.13 an hour as waitstaff, it's highly improbable that they'd take the job.  If they don't take the job, the restaurant has no waitstaff.

Now- let's look at a basic scenario.  Waitstaff gets paid $6.00 per hour by the employer- employer is given the OPTION to pay them $2.50 an hour and the employee has to make up that $3.50 per hour in tips.  That equates to one table per hour with a Republican customer and a $18 tab (or with a Democrat a $24 tab.)

Employer saves $3.50 per hour, $140 per week, $560 per month, $6,720 per year multiplied by an entire waitstaff this is a TON of money.  Money that would most likely be spent on expanding or improving the business.  (Newflash to those who have never been in the restaurant business:  there is not a lot of extra cash and most cash gets thrown right back into growing the business or saving money to handle the downturns.)  

Perhaps a restaurant owner chooses to hire a better chef at a higher salary, word gets out that the food is excellent and business grows.  Perhaps they decide to take out some new advertising to bring in new business.   Perhaps they open a new patio or buy some nicer tables and chairs.  Maybe they save up to open a second location.  All of these things could give them the competitive edge they need to survive in this crappy economy.  And if they're able to survive they don't have to layoff employees, if they're somehow able to thrive maybe they can even hire more employees.  Have you been to a restaurant lately?  Unless it's McDonalds, they're all struggling.  How much in commercial property taxes does the government lose when one closes?  How much in sales tax, income tax? 

Just as most waitstaff isn't getting rich, neither are most restaurant owners in Minnesota.  Perhaps MPR, and the Strib and all the other media outlets might survey business owners (an institution like W.A. Frost just minutes from the pols in St. Paul doesn't count.) Survey them on how much they make and what they think about the government dictating their wages.  Or what they think about taxes in this state and business regulations.  No.  The easier thing-- the simplistic thing-- is to write dozens of articles about a candidate's remark made at a campaign stop leading their readers to conclude that he's somehow after the poor.  How absurd.  Forty-three other states are doing exactly what Tom Emmer proposes.  Right-wing extemist states like Massachusetts and New York.  At least one candidate is leading a debate about these issues...issues that will mean either the prosperity or future indebtedness of our state.

Here's a law I'd like to see:  Every person running for political office, or writing for a major news outlet, should be required to run a business before opening their big mouths about wages.

The Most Important PAC in Minnesota (for Conservatives)

Tuesday, 06 July 2010 15:54 Last Updated on Wednesday, 07 July 2010 09:56

When conservative activist Jennifer DeJournett ran for school board in uber District 279 (Osseo, Maple Grove) a few years back, she looked around for campaign funding from PACs that directed money to conservative women candidates.  "I was basically laughed at, nothing like that existed,"  says DeJournett.

There's a plethora of PACs on the left that focus on women from national organizations like EMILY's List and NOW to the Minnesota-based Friends of the DFL Women and Women Winning.  All of these groups deem a candidate's worthiness for endorsement on one issue:  abortion.

Women Winning has been around since 1982.  When women my age were riding around on banana seat bicycles and gleefully playing with Barbie dolls without a thought to how anatomically correct or incorrect they might be-- the 1970's ERA crowd was establishing their mission to get more pro-Abortion candidates elected to office in Minnesota.  They've had a tremendous impact.  According to DeJournett's research, in 1981, 12% of the state legislative seats were held by women, in 2010, 35% of seats are held by women and all of the growth is from the DFL.  Today, there are thirty-three DFL women in the Minnesota House and ten GOP women.  In the Senate it's nineteen DFL women to eight GOP. 

DeJournett was motivated by these numbers as well as the lack of resources available to conservative women candidates and set out to change things, establishing the VOICES of Conservative Women PAC less than one year ago.  While the easy thing to do would have been to simply make her PAC the antithesis of Women Winning and seek Pro-Life candidates, DeJournett rejected the narrow definition of a conservative woman.  While the Board of VOICES happens to be women who are all Pro-Life, a question about abortion doesn't even appear on the candidate questionnaire.  "This resulted in a bit of a break in the initial group, there were those who wanted this to be a main goal of the PAC.  There was a lot of discussion, but it was decided that the candidates who we seek to endorse will be soundly conservative on the issue that matters most to the women we know...the pocketbook issues of spending, budgets, taxes, the economy."

As an under-forty woman, I grew up when things were pretty darn equal.  I got to play sports in school from a young age and had every choice of career opportunity.  While I've experienced the occasional sexist comment (and still do,) worrying about my sex and perceived slights has never held me back from accomplishing things.  It doesn't slow down VOICES either.  "We're not focused on gender and identity politics.  We're interested in finding ways to knit candidates together across the ballot whether they're running for school board or state senate.  Fiscal issues bond the candidates we choose to endorse."  DeJournett says.

DeJournett and VOICES co-Founder Pamela Punt attended campaign training from the left-leaning White House Project in Washington D.C. last fall.  It was this event that sparked the thought of "let's do this from the right, let's do this in Minnesota."  VOICES studied the liberal women's PACs and how they worked with each other to elect candidates and decided early on that her long-term goal was to challenge Women Winning in Minnesota.  A tough challenge....the PAC raised $200,000 during the 2008 election cycle.  "They're the gold standard and are highly successful at raising money," says DeJournett.

While Women Winning is hosting swanky luncheons at the Depot downtown, VOICES is hosting yard sales in the suburbs to raise money for their cause. While names like Ridder, Pillsbury, Lilly, and Cowles appear on the Board Member and donor lists of Women Winning, VOICES boasts no high-profile names, but has consistently been building email lists of smaller donors at events all over the metro area.  While Women Winning hosts fluff events like "Wine, Chocolate, and Choice", VOICES is hosting intellectual events like the recent "Evening of Insight" with the Director of Academic Freedom from the CATO Institute talking about the perils of state and federal mandates in public education.  But the major difference comes in the age-gap...Women Winning's board is an entire generation removed from the VOICES of Conservative Women Board, who are all under forty.

While resources for VOICES are scarce, one of their best resources is DeJournett herself.  Her trademark sweet-toned voice can get going a mile a minute when the subject is political strategy.   But don't let her ultra-friendly personality fool you, she's a native of the south side of Chicago and not only understands hardball politics, she's plays the game well too.  She's also a wiz in the arena of modern political communications with a fully integrated website, Facebook, and Twitter presence to keep members up to date.  Their competition, meanwhile posts a total of 17 Tweets over three months saying profound things like "Women still have a long way to go."   (If I had to guess I'd say a young paid intern is trying really hard to drag them to 2010.)  

VOICES communications savvy extends to the ads they've produced. To-the-point and effective, they've piqued the interest of potential donors around the country. 

There's great irony in the fact that the liberal-feminist agenda requires women be so rigidly defined in the political world by one single issue.  It's time to move on, it's time to grow up, it's time to move into the 21st century and understand that our equality hinges upon judging women by our individual minds not our common biological anatomy.   

There are hard-working, young conservative women ready to change the status quo.  Put some big bucks behind that sort of talent and you can be assured that the women winning in Minnesota elections will be conservative ones.

Disclosure:  I'm a proud donor to the VOICES of Conservative Women PAC, and if you're tired of liberal women representing us at the school board and City Council level as well as in St. Paul, you should be too.