From readers

KEEP IT DOWN

Rant: A resident sounds off: “There was a fund-raiser for Prior Lake Athletics for Youth on Sept. 13. I support the cause but do not support the loud, obnoxious music that went until 11 p.m. Trying to put five children to bed in a development near Cleary Lake was nearly impossible, as it sounded like it was in the backyard. I was disappointed in the city allowing such noise until that late at night.”

KUDOS TO ‘KELLO’

Rave: When a less-than-perfect repair job is done, it gets lots of advertising around the neighborhood. When a good repair is done, not much is said about it. I would like to thank “Kello” for being so persistent on a difficult, intermittent computer problem that required several trips to my home, three while he was on vacation. I hope Mediacom is aware of such a good employee.”

From staff

EARLY BIRDS GET THE WORM

Rant: I’m glad the Interstate 35W bridge is reopening, but I have to wonder if it was worth striking a deal with the construction contractors to pay an extra $27 million in bonus cash to finish three months early. I understand it’s been an inconvenience to take detours, but once people adjusted to the new routes, was it really worth millions in taxpayer dollars to finish a few months ahead of schedule? I would have loved to have taken the long way home for three more months and allocated those funds toward repairing other infrastructure. – Joanna Miller

HURRAY FOR FEY

Rave: Tina Fey’s portrayal of Sarah Palin on “Saturday Night Live” couldn’t have been any more realistic without Palin herself going on the show last week. This was a shining moment for “SNL,” which sometimes appears to scramble to come up with one funny skit for each episode. I hope Fey will continue to play the Palin role as the campaign follies unfold. I wish they could have gotten an equally good Clinton impersonator for the skit, but Fey can carry the bit all on her own. – Joanna Miller

TRAEN WRECK

Rant: As I was scanning radio stations on my way to work, I stopped briefly at 92.5 KQRS to listen to a conversation about Hurricane Ike. I nearly choked on my coffee when I heard Tom Barnard’s sidekick, Terri Traen, say, “We shouldn’t save them,” referring to the people who stayed in their homes despite warnings of the impending storm. Really, Terri? If we follow that logic, I guess if you ever get lung cancer or have a heart attack, doctors shouldn’t help you because you should have known better than to smoke cigarettes or eat Big Macs. Could you imagine being injured in a tornado, calling 911 and having the dispatcher tell you, “No, help is not on the way; it’s your own fault you didn’t seek shelter in the basement”? With that attitude, maybe Traen should apply for a job with FEMA. Then again, she’s probably too comfortable churning out ridiculous rhetoric on Barnard’s show. – Lori Carlson

FIREFIGHTERS CAN COOK

Rave: When I was at the Prior Lake Fire Department’s annual chicken barbecue last Sunday, I learned the firefighters’ softball team beat up on the New Prague Fire Department during the annual softball game by the score of 19-5. What makes this sweet for firefighters is that this is the first time since 1964 that the softball team beat New Prague. Now that’s the way to break out of a slump. Congrats to the fire department on the big win. And by the way, the men and women of the fire department can also cook up one mean chicken dinner. If you haven’t attended this event in the past, mark it on your calendar for next year if you like well-barbecued chicken and a heaping of fixings. – Shawn Hogendorf

BAD EDIT

Rant: In a recent story on Fox News, they took an interview from Stephen Colbert’s “Colbert Report” and did one heck of an editing job. I mean, Colbert couldn’t have set Fox News up better. During the interview, Colbert coached Florida Congressman Robert Wexler into saying “a few things that would really lose the election for you if you were contested.” Colbert got Wexler to say he “Enjoys cocaine… because it is a fun thing to do.” Now mind you this is purely a stupid thing for a politician to do, but Colbert did everything but put the actual words in Wexler’s mouth. It was done as a joke, and if one had watched the actual interview, it was obvious how Colbert got him to say these things. Fox News took the interview, edited out Colbert’s coaching and prompting and aired the comments as if it is what he actually said completely out of context. It’s honestly amazing a news station would edit something to this point. But don’t take my word for it; check it out for yourself by searching Wexler and Fox News on youtube.com. – Shawn Hogendorf  

Do you have a rant or a rave? Send us your musings:

E-mail: rantsandraves@swpub.com

Address: Prior Lake American, Attn: Rants and Raves, P.O. Box 538, Prior Lake, MN, 55372

Guidelines: Reader rants and raves must be no more than 100 words. The deadline is noon each Wednesday.

Rants and raves that are potentially libelous will not be printed or will be edited.

Submissions will not be refused because staff disagrees with their content. Anonymous submissions are acceptable; however, including a contact name and/or phone number is helpful for staff, who may have questions about the submission.

Rants and raves may be edited as space requires. All publication decisions will be made by the editor.