Fewer mosquitoes is good, right? … Right?

The cyberattack on roughly 36 communities’ water systems in Minnesota was likely the work of Iranian hackers. If it was Iran, it fits into a pattern of increasing cyberattacks across the U.S. since the beginning of hostilities in February.

Minnesota continues to climb the charts of U.S. News and World Report’s ranking of best places to live. In 2023, the North Star State placed fifth, then fourth in 2024 and 2025. We’re now sitting at third, but don’t get too excited: second place went to South Dakota and first is … Utah. 

If you’re into acronyms that are a colossal mouthful, you should look into MAWQCP — the Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Certification Program. The program offers “knowledgeable advice and assistance to farmers on evidence-based practices that protect water quality.” 

On Wednesday, Rep. Tom Emmer said, “We are not creating a new Somalia. If you do not want to be an American, you do not want to assimilate, then get the hell out of here. Go back to where you came from. You don’t belong here.” Historian Kevin Kruse highlights the parallels between Emmer’s xenophobia and the abuse which likely greeted his German forebears. 

The good news? You are in fact seeing fewer mosquitoes around this summer. The bad news? It’s predictably linked to climate change and drought.

Start hoarding your Nut Goodies, because the Pearson’s manufacturing facility on West Seventh is closing this fall.

Yemeni and Egyptian coffee shops are springing up around the Twin Cities, providing a compelling cultural alternative to chains. 

“In a post-Operation Metro Surge landscape,” writes Ali Elabbady, “cultural coffeehouses play vital roles, not only as a space for communities to congregate and care for one another, but as a better reflection of the communities they seek to serve.”

The State Fair’s new 230-foot Ferris wheel is 75 feet taller than the old one, and it was installed with an eye towards celebrating America’s 250th birthday — one random car contains a Ben Franklin re-enactor who will read you the complete text of the Constitution while you’re stuck at the top, if you’re lucky.*

And finally: This 2013 oral history of Soul Asylum’s “Runaway Train” brings a lot of detail to what went into turning a scruffy bunch of Minneapolis punks into a double platinum juggernaut.

*not true.

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