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Stories from February 17, 2021

Cannabis bill clears first committee in Minn. House

Cannabis bill clears first committee in Minn. House

A Minnesota House panel approved legislation Wednesday to legalize marijuana, but Senate opposition will likely prevent it from becoming law this year.
by Tim Pugmire

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What growing up in a pandemic is doing to our youngest kids’ brains 

What growing up in a pandemic is doing to our youngest kids’ brains 

Could the stress of the pandemic affect children for years to come? Host Angela Davis talks to a research neurologist and a pediatrician about how early experiences influence brain development. 
by Angela Davis and Maja Beckstrom

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Walz says pandemic is ebbing and kids need to get back to school

Walz says pandemic is ebbing and kids need to get back to school, no later than March 8th, although many educators won’t be vaccinated. This is an evening update from MPR News, hosted by Tim Nelson. Music by Gary Meister

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U.S. government seizes over 10M phony N95 masks in COVID probe

U.S. government seizes over 10M phony N95 masks in COVID probe

Federal agents have seized more than 10 million fake 3M brand N95 masks in recent weeks, the result of an ongoing investigation into counterfeits sold in at least five states to hospitals, medical facilities and government agencies.
by The Associated Press

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Minneapolis beefs up security before trial in Floyd's death

Minneapolis beefs up security before trial in Floyd's death

State and local law enforcement leader said Wednesday they’re ready to keep the peace and protect people’s free speech rights during the trial of ex-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. But “we will arrest anybody who breaks the law,” the Hennepin County sheriff said.
by The Associated Press and Matt Sepic

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Explainer: How will we know we've reached herd immunity?

Explainer: How will we know we've reached herd immunity?

Health officials around the world are racing to vaccinate enough people to stop the spread of COVID-19 — but what qualifies as “enough” is still an open question. Many experts say at least 70 percent of the population needs to be protected. Health officials will watch infection trends as vaccinations roll out. And restrictions are likely to begin relaxing long before herd immunity is reached.
by The Associated Press

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UN chief urges global plan to reverse unfair vaccine access

UN chief urges global plan to reverse unfair vaccine access

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres sharply criticized the “wildly uneven and unfair” distribution of COVID-19 vaccines on Wednesday, saying 10 countries have administered 75 percent of all vaccinations and demanding a global effort to get all people in every nation vaccinated as soon as possible.
by The Associated Press

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Tell me something good: Hope for the new year

Tell me something good: Hope for the new year

This winter, MPR News with Angela Davis looked for an opportunity to bring you some good news. Times are tough, but with the presence of a new year comes hope. Use the audio player and take a listen to hear what is bringing people hope.
by Angela Davis and Myah Christenson

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Rush Limbaugh, 'voice of American conservatism,' has died

Rush Limbaugh, 'voice of American conservatism,' has died

Rush Limbaugh, the talk radio host who became the voice of American conservatism, has died. His death Wednesday at the age of 70 was announced on his website.
by The Associated Press

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Vaccinating homeless patients against COVID-19: 'All bets are off'

Vaccinating homeless patients against COVID-19: 'All bets are off'

A community health center is now immunizing the local homeless population. But vaccination logistics, already complex, are compounded by the additional barriers in communication and transportation.
by Yuki Noguchi

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Aspen Words announces 5 finalists for 2021's literary prize

Aspen Words announces 5 finalists for 2021's literary prize

The $35,000 prize honors fiction that "illuminates vital contemporary issues." This year's finalists deal with everything from Native American land ownership to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
by Petra Mayer

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Is it safe enough for kids to return to the classroom?

Is it safe enough for kids to return to the classroom?

The CDC says it’s safe to reopen schools, as long as certain conditions are met. Parents greeted the news with sighs of relief. But many educators are wary.
by Kerri Miller and Kelly Gordon

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Shoppers splurged in January as new stimulus checks arrived

Shoppers splurged in January as new stimulus checks arrived

Retail sales soared 5.3 percent last month compared to December, much more than anticipated, as U.S. families began receiving new federal coronavirus relief checks.
by Alina Selyukh

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Republican Doug Wardlow runs for Minnesota attorney general

Republican Doug Wardlow runs for Minnesota attorney general

Republican Doug Wardlow announced Wednesday he's running again for Minnesota attorney general. Wardlow lost the 2018 race to Democrat Keith Ellison by about 4 percentage points.
by The Associated Press

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Texas blackouts fuel false claims about renewable energy

Texas blackouts fuel false claims about renewable energy

Conservative commentators on Tuesday shared a false narrative that wind turbines and solar energy were primarily to blame for power outages across Texas as the power grid buckled. But the Texas state power agency said that gas, coal and nuclear plants actually caused nearly twice as many outages as wind and solar power.
by The Associated Press

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'A complete bungle': Texas' energy pride goes out with cold

'A complete bungle': Texas' energy pride goes out with cold

Anger over Texas' power grid failing in the face of a record winter freeze continued to mount Wednesday as millions of residents in the energy capital of the U.S. remained shivering with no assurances that their electricity and heat — out since Monday in many homes — would return soon or stay on once it finally does.
by The Associated Press

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From frigid to 40s by next week

From frigid to 40s by next week

Minnesota continues a slow warmup as we head toward the weekend. Meanwhile, slightly warmer air means increasing chances for snow accumulation.
by Nicole Mitchell

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Snow may cause tricky travel Wednesday

Despite a cold start, all of Minnesota makes it back above zero Wednesday, while light snow will make roads slick.
by Nicole Mitchell

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'The Echo Wife' layers sci-fi and murder mystery for a twisty treat

'The Echo Wife' layers sci-fi and murder mystery for a twisty treat

Sarah Gailey's new novel follows a famed geneticist whose husband uses her methods to clone her — and has an affair with the clone. When he's murdered, the two women must figure out to do next.
by Jason Heller

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Power outages linger for millions as another icy storm looms

Power outages linger for millions as another icy storm looms

Utility crews are racing to restore power to nearly 3.4 million utility customers around the U.S. who are still without electricity in the aftermath of a winter storm. Texas officials ordered 7 million people to boil tap water before drinking it following days of record low temperatures that damaged infrastructure and froze pipes.
by The Associated Press

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Walz to announce new guidance for reopening schools

Gov. Tim Walz will announce new guidance on reopening Minnesota’s secondary schools for in-person learning on Wednesday. The updated rules come days after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released COVID-19 protocols for schools, and nearly two months after Walz put out an amended road map to get the state’s youngest learners back to in-person classes. This is an MPR News morning update for Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Hosted by Cathy Wurzer. Our theme music is by Gary Meister.

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COVID-19 causes surge in food shelf visits among older Minnesotans

COVID-19 causes surge in food shelf visits among older Minnesotans

As the COVID-19 pandemic bore down on the state, the number of older adults seeking food assistance swelled across Minnesota. The state’s largest increases in food shelf use over the last year happened in the Twin Cities metro areas. But in some rural places, there has been a more than fivefold increase in visits among people who are 65 or older.
by Hannah Yang

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Walz: Students can return to middle, high school buildings Monday

Walz: Students can return to middle, high school buildings Monday

The decision follows new federal protocols on how schools should operate during the pandemic. “It’s time to get our students back in school, and we can do that now safely,” the Minnesota governor said.
by Elizabeth Shockman and Sara Porter

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Women take the lead in fighting ISIS in 'Daughters of Kobani'

Women take the lead in fighting ISIS in 'Daughters of Kobani'

Author Gayle Tzemach Lemmon recalls one of the female fighters saying "one, we were never going to let ISIS stand ... and two, we just didn't want men taking credit for our work."
by Mary Louise Kelly

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Minnesota man pleads guilty in paycheck protection fraud

A 56-year-old Minnesota man has pleaded guilty to receiving more than $1.2 million in loans in a fraud scheme involving federal programs offering help for coronavirus-related losses.
by The Associated Press

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Company agrees not to place guards at Minnesota voting sites

Company agrees not to place guards at Minnesota voting sites

A Tennessee company that had been advertising for security guards to monitor the 2020 election in Minnesota and then backed away from the idea must follow certain provisions in the future as part of a settlement agreement in federal court. 
by The Associated Press

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