Lightning Round -- 070317

Weekend reaction:

• CNN doesn't really believe Trump is prescribing violence against journalists in general, or CNN journalists in particular. What it does believe is that they can regain the upper hand in their continuing struggle with Le Grand Orange, which has been going badly for them. And if that doesn't work, and it won't, at least they get to enjoy some high dudgeon, which is better than the high colonic they've been receiving lately. 
• The minimum wage in Minneapolis will be going up to $15/hour. It won't work unless they can force similar wage floors in the rest of the metropolitan area. St. Paul might go along, but I think the smarter suburbs understand it's a horrible idea and will stay put. I'm not convinced the local city governments in Roseville and New Brighton are terribly smart, however. If they hold fast, we might start seeing some new restaurants in the area.
• We now have Sunday liquor sales in Minnesota. Having spent my formative years in Wisconsin, and my young adult years in the Chicago area, I speak from experience in these matters. Having Sunday sales is just a convenience and what people will find is that it's not a big deal -- it just means if you run out of hooch at your Sunday party, you can load up again. We're a long ways away from how things operate in Wisconsin, where you can buy a bottle of Jack Daniel's at Walgreens.
• The current tweet at the top of Trump's feed is one worth noting:  

  

  Culture of death

This case, if you haven't been following it, concerns an infant with a rare disease who does not have good long term prospects. The British National Health Service has decided his life isn't worth saving and is planning to pull the plug on him. Gard's parents have raised sufficient funds to bring their son to America to see if anything can be done for him, but the NHS is barring them from bringing him here. They have spoken, you see. This is where the "death panel" discussion meets the road, and where the single payer version of healthcare comes into stark relief. What happens if the single payer won't pay? You die. And in the case of the NHS, you don't even get to take matters into your own hands. Your life only has as much value as the grandees say it does. I'm going to bet the NHS gets its way, but I'm grateful that Trump is putting the pressure on them.