Jeannine Ouellette’s puzzling article [“The Death & Life of American Imagination”] seems to cite the regimentation of children’s lives and the role of technology as a threat to the development of imagination. As a girl in the ’50s and ’60s, I faced far more restrictions to my imagination and free play than any kid today.
But the greatest threat to imagination goes unmentioned: the intrusion of religion into the schools. It may not seem so bad here in Minneapolis, but there are parts of the country where the schools are not focused on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). They are afraid to teach anything that might threaten third century AD notions of cosmology or biology. There is a brain drain due to restrictions on research (stem cells, etc.) and government science is censored on the subjects of reproductive health and climate change.
Minneapolis doesn’t have to do all this to limit the development of its children, however. Its school board has merely decreed that education be withheld from anyone not rich, not white, or not a resident of the southwest quadrant of the city.
If you’ve been resenting the lack of story time for adults, then this evening’s 
The comic book has come a long way since 
Melissa Fay Greene
For the last couple months, and through the end of the year, 
Artistic Director Ronen Koresh takes on the history of American music (or at least a couple formative decades) with the 
At the very green age of 14, Australian singer-songwriter 
While 
No actress has commanded the screen as well as 
Surely you’ve seen 
One of these photos—a scruffy dog isolated in the center of
The supposedly big news is that 
This is the most informative seminar on hip-hop microphone skills the Twin Cities will likely ever experience. While 
Along with Sarah Ruhl (see 
Seventeen years in the making, 
Join us this evening for a highly charged 
You heard it here first, folks: 
There’s nothing quite so rewarding as hearing an author read his/her own work. Good or bad — the author’s own rendition opens a new avenue for interpretation, and a very important one at that. Granted, I’ve heard my fair share of wretched readings in the past, suprising ones that blare out the distinction between pen and tongue, that remind us that writing is something to be done in silence. But somehow I highly doubt that’s what is in store for us this evening as Loft instructors 
If you prefer a good political thriller over poetry, you might want to head out to Galleria this evening to meet New York Times bestselling author 
“Low-cut gowns.” That’s all my boyfriend had to read (in the ad copy) before agreeing to accompany me to 
Roasted zucchini, red pepper and onion tapanade with a
The New Yorker is forgiven the 
While there are certainly several other great things to do tonight, I myself will be attending the opening of 
A wackier theatrical option for the evening would be the 
Don’t miss 
New York Times
Stacy Malkan, author of 
“So these are the famous Beatles,” says one of the many
Brooklyn band 
Once again, The Rake is honored to promote an event in which one of our very own staff members is participating. Apparently, it’s a big year for our sales team — at least on the artistic front. Last month, our sales coordinator, Mary Olson, had an art exhibit; and this month, another member of our sales team, Valerie Rigsbee, is performing in Frankenstein Incarnate: The Passions of Mary Shelley. The 
John Abercrombie
Pickup on South Street
The first performance of the 
Yesterday was the opening of a new