25 is the new number

**HEAD'S UP: a one-way flow of traffic down Second Street (west-bound) in Brooten has been set up, and stop signs stopping traffic on Central Avenue (main street Brooten) have been established. Please spread the word that there are stop signs that are in places we are not accustomed to.** (LINK: https://bit.ly/3dmYa9k.) I've watched at least six cars or trucks blow straight through the intersection without stopping. However, I am thrilled to report that the first person who I saw who made a complete stop was a member of the B-B-E Class of 2021. Bravo! Now we have to get everyone else to pay attention there!

At 11 a.m. today, the Minnesota Department of Health released their weekly COVID-19 report for zip code population increases of new cases. We have no additional detail on whether those with these "cases" are infected or show symptoms. To be fair to the MDH, that level of detail would be difficult to assemble in a short period of time each week.

Belgrade’s increase in their zip code area was from 266 to 282 cases (16 new) in a population of approximately 2,622 people. In Brooten, the zip code area increase was from 131 to 140 (9 new) in a population of approximately 1,466 people.

For the record, the most new cases reported in a one-week period for Brooten was 19 cases, which was in late November of 2020.

Once again, the increase for Elrosa was zero new cases, the trend that’s held since mid-December 2020.

For the zip code area of Alexandria, they have reported 66 new cases in the last week with a population of about 23,000. For the Willmar zip code area (similar population to Alexandria), they reported 37 new cases in the last week.

Other area zip code increases for the past week:

Sunburg - 1

Spicer - 10

Glenwood - 18

Pennock - 3

New London - 9

Murdock - 5

Kerkhoven - 5

Freeport - 3

Melrose - 7

Paynesville - 22

Sauk Centre - 16

I'm not sure what's going wrong in Hennepin and Anoka counties, but their day-over-day case numbers exploded in the last 24-hours. The new cases reported yesterday (April 14) were as follows: Hennepin County 280 new "cases" and Anoka county 99 new "cases" ...today they have 413 new (97% increase) in Hennepin County and 196 new (98% increase) in Anoka County. In Hennepin County, they've had strict COVID-19 rules in place on their daily life, their business life and other aspects of life across their communities. Worse than all that, their schools have been heavily, heavily restricted, causing unfathomable harm on their school-age children and families of those children. You'd think by now that a county like Hennepin would have their act together when it comes to COVID-19? They know all the Walz-mandated rules, right? There is wall-to-wall media coverage plus endless hysterical messaging from the Minnesota Department of Health. 

It almost makes a person wonder whether or not any hot air that comes from the MDH does any good! "Almost makes a person wonder."

And don't get me started on CNN, where a technical director by the name of Charles Chester was recorded saying "Fear really drives numbers" while he was explaining how CNN provided its coverage of COVID-19 over the past 13+ months.

To be sure: CNN is a collection of the worst human beings on earth.