I was deeply offended at your insinuation that Crocs are anything less than the finest advancement in footwear since the invention of the cushion insole [“Clog Wild,” April]. Have you ever worn a Croc? I suspect not, because if you had you would be aware of their superior support, breathability, comfort, and engineering. These are … Read more
Thanks for your excellent piece by Tom Bartel, “Guns in the City” [April]. It’s great to read a balanced, level-headed article about gun ownership in our city—one that dispels the myth of the slack-jawed, chew-spitting, ignorant “gun nut.” People who are anti-gun either by choice or by default often view a gun owner as some … Read more
This was a great article on the gun culture of the area. The overwhelming majority of firearms enthusiasts are not crazed nuts just hoping for some punk to “make their day.” We just want to protect our house and family from the worst that could happen. Thanks. –Adam Houtkooper, Burnsville
The article about handguns by Tom Bartel is an interesting piece to find in a magazine that claims on its website to favor “contrarian” viewpoints. Bartel acts as a marketing mouthpiece for the nine-billion-dollar firearms and ammunition industry—hardly a contrarian thing to do. I might have found it more contrarian if Bartel had investigated whether … Read more
June 2004 — Jane Kempf, Chaska teacher find time to coax a young reader and neighbor, Santiago Rodriguez near Usquil, Peru. Second photo: The Rake translated by Julia Antonsen, Mound, MN in Charat, Peru pronounced (shar ot). Listening from left to right are father-in-law Santos Rodriguez, Chimbote, Peru, neighbor, Jane Kempf, Mound, and a Peruvian … Read more
Paul of Maple Grove (the one in the middle) writes: While on an Hawaiian cruise, we visited Fanning Island, Republic of Kiribati located 1000 miles south Hawaii. Here’s hoping the natives enjoyed your mag as much as I did. (This may be our most remote Red Handed submission yet!) Author(s) and Location: Paul Cardinal
Some people will go to the end of the world to read The Rake– Annie and I are among them. Author(s) and Location: Larry Berle
I crave depth. Sometimes I read the McNews but always thirst for more. Your magazine is a deep drink of cool water in an ADD-media world. I can hardly wait for each issue to come out, and I devour every article (and yes, even the advertisements). Kudos especially for “The Long Walk” [April]. When I … Read more
What a lovely article Jennifer Vogel wrote about walking in dear old Minneapolis. I’m a complete walking geek myself–walking to work and many other places because I choose to. It grows from a love of the city (whatever that city may be–Seattle now, or Shanghai, Hanoi, and or wherever I’ve lived) and what I can … Read more
I’m sure Santino Fontana will be great as Hamlet. But you’re wrong to suggest that casting him is somehow authentic, rescuing the part from inappropriately “fat, bearded, balding guys.” “The Prince of Denmark is twenty or so years old” says Straight Talk [March]. No, Hamlet is thirty. The gravedigger in Act Five, when asked how … Read more