Block E - Even Liberals Have Had Enough

There were some great letters in the deadtree edition of the Red Star today regarding the slaughter at Block E, particularly the first one on the linked page, because they identified themselves as liberals (i.e. attended "A Prairie Home Companion"):

More officers needed

My husband and I and two other couples thoroughly enjoyed "A Prairie Home Companion" at the State Theatre followed by a wonderful meal at the M & S Grill Saturday. I have always felt comfortable in downtown Minneapolis.

However, I cannot say the same for that evening. The atmosphere was more charged than usual, and I was glad to be in a group of six. Many large and small groups of young people walked right through us, shouting at one another and across the street. One man in a bus shelter dropped his pants. All this in only three blocks on our way to dinner from the theater.

Several thousand patrons left the show and entered Hennepin Avenue at a predictable time, yet no police were evident. In fact, we saw no police to or from the theater or dinner until we arrived at the 7th Street Ramp to go home and saw three squad cars parked across the street at the Marriott. Perhaps an incident there required them.

In the April 2 article regarding the senseless murder Friday night of a Minnetonka man who had simply been out for the evening with a group of friends, Mayor R.T. Rybak said, "Officers got to the scene immediately to keep it from getting worse .... You could hardly put more officers on the street." Mayor Rybak, you must put more officers on foot on the street. Perhaps the raucous crowd could have been dispersed earlier, and the shooting victim's family would still have their loved one.

JUDITH SHANLEY PETRIE, ARDEN HILLS

When you lose the liberals, R.T., you've lost the war.