Recent content from Jill Burcum
Trust me, you don't want to know what a floating car feels like
You can get into trouble in matter of minutes, maybe even seconds, on a flooded road.
![People danced in the streets of New York (above) and other cities, blew horns and shouted "the war is over" by way of celebrating the Armistice ending](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/BI6TWYQEISA7ERQQQ2GOTZMS6E.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
When will it be over?
Church bells won't ring out and we won't be dancing in the streets but, with vigilance, COVID-19 will someday be more manageable.
![A couple walk past a sign in front of Dash of Sass clothing store along Main Street during a "Masks Up, Surf City" banner campaign to prevent coronavi](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/OCVGHHU74IQ7EFGF6ATROU23KU.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Lessons from a COVID infection: my own
Unlike the president, we don't get helicopters and exotic experimental drugs. The reality is that it's a waiting game — if you're lucky.
![A Red Cross demonstration in Washington during the influenza pandemic of 1918. Nearly everyone who survived the 1918 flu pandemic, which claimed at le](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/HJCF4422UHNHG7S2SEYRNXMKC4.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
My great-grandfather wasn't hit by the first wave of the 'Spanish flu,' but the second
Memories of that pandemic and its survivors give rise to worries.
![Dr. Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, spoke alongside state leaders](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/RKOFWLCRMEQY3HFBIKUZVRMY4U.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Coronavirus pandemic: What's 'normal' now? What's next? An interview with Michael Osterholm.
'I say straight-faced we will never ever go back to normal'
![Mark Andrew's iPhone was stolen at the Mall of America on Thursday. When he pursued the thief, he was attacked by the perpetrators accomplices.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/XUGTPII3V3QVXJA53SAVPHYFI4.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
High-profile iPhone grab is new hit to metro-area sense of safety
The device made former Minneapolis mayoral candidate Mark Andrew the target for an attack at a Mall of America Starbucks.
![Jim Nobles, Legislative Auditor and Carrie Meyerhoff, Evaluation Manager released an evaluation report on the Law Enforcement's use of State Databases](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/XQRRS5TSNM7UCP3JXMRGYCRBEE.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Minnesota's auditor has earned praise and another term
For three decades, Jim Nobles has brought accountability to state government.
Sept. 30, 2003: Town says farewell to slain student
Classmates and Cold Spring residents flock to Aaron Rollins' funeral.
![U.S Rep. John Kline, R-Minn.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/3UFSX3VLTIDV52E6SIUBUN754Y.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Ideology ratings: Minnesota's John Kline and Al Franken
The National Journal calculated its rankings based on roll-call votes on key issues.
![Known as the flying squirel, Ellis Coleman does a flip after clinching a spot on the U.S. Olympic Greco-Roman wrestling team.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/2B6BLNEO3NF3LBD4I6US3HVCZI.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Olympic wrestling: Tradition and ideals take a fall
The Olympics without wrestling will sting especially hard in Minnesota.
![Illustrations: America's cultures.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/BQPJMQGWOUUEZAOBH4VOY2527Y.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
The United States -- a nation of nations
America's stew is more complex than you think. But somehow its people usually find common ground when it matters most.
![Former Sen. Alan Simpson, 81, dances gangnam style to get his message out about the fiscal cliff.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/OSCKHQ5HPE3I6S7B7QKGY26FFI.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Fiscal responsibility, gangnam style
An 81-year-old former senator has a message about the fiscal cliff for the "old coots" in Congress.
![Health care: A prairie vision](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/7L3IDXI5IC7HUHADHL5TEOPY2A.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Health care: A prairie vision
By administering Medicaid at a local level, an initiative in southwestern Minnesota hopes to save money and improve care. It could well be a pioneering model.
![Minnesota State Patrol Trooper Carl Hoffman](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/VR3J7QZTEAXO7BUN5SGIN53OD4.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Rescue effort is a point of pride
Minnesota State Trooper Carl Hoffman did Minnesota proud this week with his quick, life-saving thinking.
![Key test for Bachmann: Bridge bill needs House passage](https://arc-vid.stimg.co/01-29-2024/t_a34a080e73bf481c8b2cbb9591135bc3_name_5kw_720x404.jpeg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Key test for Bachmann: Bridge bill needs House passage
Bachmann needs to prove she's a workhorse, not a show horse. Now's her chance.
![Mitt Romney](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/ZENEUO7S462OROWX43CL6QRSFQ.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Romney falls short on Medicare reform
The GOP presidential candidate's Medicare reform plan is a miss.
Sunshine act inaction: Industry letter may clear the way
A letter sent Tuesday by medical-industry heavyweights is striking in this era of antiregulatory fervor.
![President Barack Obama](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/TNSSRAV6HQACOZ5FCE6A5TJSYM.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Editorial: Obama deficit plan - the debate is familiar
What's needed is real tax reform. But don't expect it.
![Daniel Garcia, 34, cools himself with water while wearing a t-shirt on his head to protect himself from a 90-degree heat while working his landscaping](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/ZWI2TQXPJPZANOP35AOSH5YGZI.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
In praise of heat
It's impossible in this Amazon rainforest heat to venture outside and not feel like a soggy, oversteamed vegetable in less than a minute.
![Jill Burcum](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/VRTIIK5XQOWYOLOAX7I4JF43PE.jpg?h=120&w=180&fit=crop&bg=999&crop=faces)
Jill Burcum: Will Wisconsin be the GOP's 'overreach' moment?
Also weighing in on Walker's behalf: Americans for Prosperity, a group with strong ties to billionaire oilman David Koch. Koch was the Libertarian Party's 1980 vice presidential candidate; his platform called for abolishing Social Security, the minimum wage and almost all federal agencies while legalizing recreational drugs, suicide and prostitution.
Jill Burcum: Appraising Pawlenty: 'Swagger' was noticed at summit
Tim Pawlenty may not have won the straw poll at the recent Family Research Council's Values Voter Summit, but his speech got an ad hoc "Best of Class" award from a contributor to the conservative political magazine American Spectator.
Jill Burcum: Event for hikers
In late September, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he'd request maximum leniency and expediency in handling the case of three American hikers detained by his nation since July. So far, his promise has meant nothing. Minnesota native and journalist Shane Bauer, his girlfriend Sarah Shourd and their friend Josh Fattal remained imprisoned in the notorious Evin Prison in Tehran.
Jill Burcum: The stimulus in only 1,588 pages
The economic stimulus plan has a price tag within shouting distance of $1 trillion. So what does that mindboggling amount of money buy the nation?
DEVICE MAKERS ENTER FRAY
Expect to hear more on health care reform from an industry that's largely stayed out of the headlines in the ongoing national debate -- medical device makers.
Jill Burcum: 'Death panel' fears: Mayo Clinic refutes them
The Economist magazine dubbed Mayo Clinic one of the nation's most influential voices in the health care reform debate. President Obama has cited the Rochester medical center in many speeches.