I note some lamenting over the votes of state Rep. Robin Brown&8217;s on the transportation bill. Attorney Matt Benda even suggests she is &8220;over her head in the office.&8221; Tiny Brandt doesn&8217;t like her, and Mr. Neil Chalmers believes the tax is too much and just wild &8220;liberal spending,&8221; etc., etc.

There are some failures here folks that we overlook: 1. If you drive 15,000 miles a year, the increase in tax is about $50 per year. 2. The Department of Transportation says it needs $2 billion per year for the roads and bridges. 3. The Department of Transportation is part of the executive branch of state government. So what is there the governor does not understand in his branch of government?

I had a grandson pass over the Interstate 35 bridge 25 minutes before it fell into the Mississippi, and 13 people died in that bridge failure. Tell me and tell the relatives of those 13 dead that $50 per year is too much! Tell it to my grandson!

Let me tell about some wild spending that the so-called &8220;liberals&8221; and Robin Brown did not cause! 1.We have given the Twins baseball team and owner Carl Pohlad $400 million. 2. In due time we will give $900 million to the Vikings for a stadium. Carl Pohlad and the Viking owners are all billionaires many times over. 3. The Bush administration has increased the national debt from $5 trillion to $9 trillion. That $4 trillion means a $40,000 added debt for every child under 20 in America! So if a writer has to turn down the wishes for his 4-year-old child, wait until the debt has to be paid. Note! I have not mentioned the $1.7 to $2.7 trillion cost of this crazy war, and no end in sight!

There are two ways to fund roads and bridges: 1. Tax and pay for them. 2. Bond, then tax and pay off the bonds and interest. If anyone thinks that &8220;manna&8221; from heaven in the form of cement, tar, gravel, etc., are

about to fall from heaven, forget it! The last time it fell, it was the form of unleavened bread. We need cement, tar, gravel, etc.

The road from Albert Lea to the Rochester turnoff and the road from Ellendale to Owatonna should be proof enough for all. In the metro area people are avoiding the bridge that separates Ramsey County from Washington County. It is ready to fall down!

Thank you, Robin Brown, and all who voted with you.

Robert Sherman

Albert Lea

What is their secret to long-term farming?

The farming population has a large group who has continued in business well beyond the typical retirement age of 65.

I would like to find out what their secret is to being successful for so long. We typically ask centenarians what their secret is to a long-life. So what do these long-time farmers know that the rest of us don&8217;t know?

No names are required. The answer can be as long or short as the writer wishes. I would like to know if the writer is a man or woman, a little bit about the farm and in what state it is located.

If someone wants to mail a letter, please e-mail me for an address. The results will be published.

Julie Gay

agriculturelookahead@yahoo.com

Rochester