Bill banning "Asian carp" advances; Asian leaders say term is offensive

Yesterday, the Senate Environment and Energy Committee unanimously voted to ban the term "Asian carp" from Minnesota statute. The bill now advances to the Senate floor.

The vote came after testimony by two Asian leaders who characterized the term "Asian carp" as offensive and racist.

"The commissioner of natural resources shall not propose laws to the legislature that contain the term 'Asian carp,'" the bill says. "The commissioner shall use the term 'invasive carp' or refer to the specific species in any proposed laws, rules, or official documents when referring to carp species that are not naturalized to the waters of this state."

During testimony, Sia Her, executive director of the Council on Asian-Pacific Minnesotans, said, "The response to this species has been and we believe will continue to be overwhelmingly negative, and thus we feel reflects very negatively on our community of Asian Americans."

Her's sentiment was echoed by Jean Lee, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of Children's Hope International.

Using the term in statute and state-produced materials is tantamount to "using government agencies to promote racist and government attacks on people as a race," Lee said.

Lee said she recently saw a Minnesota Department of Agriculture-produced poster at the airport that exemplified her concerns.

"It said 'Wanted, Dead or Alive' -- in big letters it said 'Asian,' [and] in small letters it said 'carp,'" Lee said. "The message was very clear."

The bill's chief author is Sen. John Hoffman, D-Champlin.

"Why would we voluntarily nickname an invasive species after a group of new and important citizens and a continent representing their homeland?" Hoffman asked.

"It's not going to be a part of Minnesota statute," Hoffman continued. "It's [in] one statute at this point and this changes that."

Hoffman said the DNR has no objections to the bill.

"The problem is [the fish are] invasive, not Asian," Hoffman said. "It's kinda like the word 'handicapped' -- we don't use that anymore."

Source: http://citypages.com

Ribbon Cutting at Yard House Restaurant

Name: Ribbon Cutting at Yard House Restaurant
Date: March 11, 2014
Time: 4:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Event Description:

Come welcome new TwinWest member, Yard House!  Opening March 13th, Yard House is a brand new restaurant in St. Louis Park featuring American cuisine and a wide variety of beers on tap. 

The restaurant took its name from the 3-foot-tall glass containers originally designed in Great Britain and used to hand stagecoach drivers after a long journey by horse drawn carriage. Each Yard House location features a center island bar and an endless fleet of tap handles ranging from classic lagers to more obscure ales. The glass-enclosed keg room is essentially the pulse of the operation housing as much as 5,000 gallons of beer at a time. Three to five miles of individual beer lines stretch overhead from the keg room to the island bar maintaining a constant temperature of 34-36 degrees keeping the beer consistently fresh and perfectly chilled for every pint. Guests can sip their favorite draft beer from the popular half-yard, traditional pint or six pack sampler.




Source: http://twinwest.com

Timeless Advice For Small Business Costs

Small business costs are often the reason that many businesses either fail or do not begin in the first place. For some small business owners, the business startup cost can be so intimidating that they lose their dream before they even get started. For other small business owners, small business costs can put a strain on the finances set aside for the business. Between paying employees, stocking inventory and finding the time to manage a business, small business costs can be a good reason for a small business to fail rather quickly. Fortunately, entrepreneurs have access to a number of options to relieve some of the stress of small business costs.

In order to access the financial assistance to help cover your small business costs, your first essential step is to create a business plan. A well-written business plan will lay out your plans for how you plan to create revenue for your company along with attaining a certain amount of success. Additionally, a business plan also gives you a plan to follow along for your new venture. Most importantly, though, a business plan helps to convince investors and other institutions that you are a good risk for them to put their money into. Put more simply, without a business plan, you are unlikely going to get a business startup loan.

A business plan for the sole purpose of receiving a small business startup loan must contain several components. The first few pages include the Executive Summary and the Table of Contents. After this is the company description. This is one of the most important sections of a business plan. Your company description will give potential investors a short history of your small business along with the future you are planning for it. It describes plans you might have to expand your business. For purposes of getting small business startup loans, this is one of the sections that loan providers and investors are most interested in.

In the company description, you will want to avoid mentioning that your business is a startup business. Startup businesses are considered very risky investments by most investors. As an alternative, outline details of what you have contributed to the industry that you are currently in or plan on entering. Without sounding arrogant, mention some details or things that you have changed or something you have done differently than others in your market that has proved to be successful. Also, discuss how your business has grown in recent months or years and don't be shy about your predicted growth. Your excitement and passion regarding your new business needs to be seen in the writing of your business plan to help increase your chances of getting a business startup loan.

One of the last parts of a well-written business plan, but certainly not the least important, is your marketing plan analysis. This is an explanation of your demographics using facts and figures and a study done about your new, potential customers and clients. This section also explains your advertising plans, especially your target market and how you intend to reach them. This section must show that you have done extensive research, appropriate with your market to ensure that your product or service has a large demand. In order to obtain small business startup loans, you will also need to include a sound financial plan, including pro-forma financial statements for your new business.

With the worries and frustrations of starting a small business, small business costs are generally the biggest worry. Thankfully, in today's society entrepreneurs can obtain business startup loans and other forms of capital to carry them through the slow times and help them finance their small business. The professional and most effective way to acquire a small business loan will be to create a well-written, though out business plan. Without a plan, most investors and banks will not give your business a second look.

Source: http://www.business.vic.gov.au/

Minnesota farmer erects 50-foot snowman [PHOTOS]

 Needing to move snow away from his greenhouses, a Gilman farmer named Greg Novak got creative.

With the help of a silage blower, fenced-in silos, a 61-foot auger, and a 55-gallon barrel, Novak built a gigantic snowman, Granddaddy, that is 45 feet wide at the base and 50 feet tall, according to the St. Cloud Times.

Wanna head up to the St. Cloud area and get a look at Granddaddy for yourself? The extended forecast indicates temps won't rise above freezing until the end of the upcoming weekend, so you've still got a handful more days before Novak's creation begins to go the way of the wicked witch.

Source:  http://citypages.com/

5 Signs this is the Worst Winter Ever in Minnesota

No, it's not just you: This is the Worst Winter Ever in Minnesota.

Although it's something we all feel as soon as we walk outside, quantifying why this is the Worst Winter Ever isn't as straight forward.

Is it the snow? Is it the number of days when the temperature never got above zero? Is it the sheer number of pot-holes?

It's all of those things. Here are the five signs this is the Worst Winter Ever in Minnesota.

Source: http://blogs.citypages.com