Bizarre Letter to the Editor From Rep. Mark Olson

Rep. Mark Olson wrote a weird, rambling LTE in the West Sherburne Tribune last week:

Sunday, February 25, 2007

Reader: Letter ridicules me

TO THE EDITOR:

Good letters to the Editor provide important public dialogue that can help keep our government following "the consent of the governed." I strive to remain grateful for the citizens who participated in the 2006 campaign debates, as well as Mr. Tom Beckfeld's most recent attempt to promote good public discourse.

Good public discourse should be based on clear, substantive, fact based and respectful statements; without innuendos, ridicule, or false statements. The latter of which creates perceptions that do not at all reflect the realities and are very difficult to respond to.

Mr. Beckfeld's Feb. 10 letter explained his offenses from press releases submitted by my office. He states that I wrote these press releases like I am being interviewed by someone else and quoted myself; he then suggests that everything should be a quote from me and that quotation marks are only needed when someone else is being quoted.

In response, after many years of Mr. Gary Meyer, the editor accepting press releases in this exact same format from my office, Sen. Betsy Wergin's office and others, the editor responded to Mr. Beckfeld by changing the next press release from my office to be a written statement from me without any quotes. While in the very same newspaper the editor published another good press release, submitted in the same format from the area's Foster Grandparent Program unedited.

Yes, editors can certainly print whatever pleases them. However, the fact is, press releases have long been written by media support personnel and submitted to the district papers. In this case, Mr. Beckfeld's letter ridiculed me for a long established practice previously known and accepted by Mr. Meyer whose response gives credibility to that ill-founded ridicule. I certainly hope Mr. Beckfeld does not consider sending a letter of ridicule against such a wonderful program like Foster Grandparents as he has me.

In addition, in my opinion two of the recent articles about my family crisis published by this paper contain falsehoods or misperceptions at best. It should at least be noted that everyone needs to learn about today's common artful practice of marginalizing people to make them appear on the fringe and unaccepted. While it is effective, it is also very destructive and should not be used or permitted in any respectful paper.

Mr. Beckfeld does it, many before him in the last campaign did it. When this paper publishes articles about the serious nature of my family crisis without even asking the person they are writing about a single question, I submit this paper may also be practicing today's destructive strategy of marginalization. It's today's plague of journalism and public discourse which must be refuted. I appreciate the editor's commitment to public discourse, and hope that in the future this medium will be used with respect and facts.

Mark Olson

Big Lake, MN

Another LTE about Olson's arraignment:

Sunday, February 25, 2007

Reader: Olson gets benefit

TO THE EDITOR:

Last November Rep. Mark Olson was arrested for two counts of fifth degree assault. Many letters to the editor by both Olson's supporters and detractors encouraged us to not judge too quickly and to respect the Olson's privacy.

I can support that view, but Olson's statements at his pre-trail hearing last Friday and those of his attorney are disturbing. Olson's lawyer all but accused his wife of creating this incident saying "she was coming after him and he was trying to control the situation."

Olson said he hired his new lawyer to move the process along in a swifter fashion, but his actions showed no such desire. First he asked for a new arraignment to start the process all over again. When that was denied he asked for a trial date in June after the session was over.

The Judge offered him three trial dates, one in March, April and May. Olson took the last one. Later Olson told reporters he hoped to get the trial moved up.

So why not take the March date? Could the reason be that Olson does not want to have the House in session should he be found guilty of the charges against him? His efforts seem to be aimed at delaying the inevitable ethics investigation and his possible expulsion until the next session in January 08 rather than bringing this matter to a close and moving on.

Olson has gone from asking forgiveness to blaming his wife. Trying to "control the situation" is not an acceptable excuse for family violence. Olson ran on the issues of personal integrity and responsibility for one's actions. It's past the time for him to apply this slogan to himself.

Jeff Strand

Princeton, MN

Sherburne County DFL Website Commentary on Rep. Mark Olson

Commentary by Tom Beckfeld on the Sherburne County DFL website:

The Mark Olson Update!

When we last left Mark he was flush from victory having been elected to his 8th term. But less than a week later he was being released from the Sherburne County Jail, Charged with 2 counts of 5th degree assault after an alleged altercation with his wife.  After a weekend in the drunk tank a tearful Olson seemed subdued and contrite. (A weekend in the drunk tank will do that to you). He begged forgiveness from his constituents, God and his wife in that order. God may have forgiven him but his wife had no objection to the six-month restraining order placed on Olson. His constituents have yet to be asked their opinion. Now three months later the subdued and contrite Olson is a thing of the past. Olson is now saying (through his lawyer - the 3rd since this began) that Heidi is to blame. “She was coming after him,” his lawyer said. “He was trying to control the situation.” While we can only speculate on Heidi’s motives, After viewing Olson’s long winded speeches on the House floor many a Representative understood Heidi’s need to throttle him, anything to get him to stop speaking.  Olson said he hired his new lawyer to speed the process along. Mark is the first person I know of who hires a lawyer to increase the speed of anything.  This speedy lawyer’s first action of Olson’s 4th court appearance was to ask for a new arraignment to start the process all over again.  “Denied!” the judge said. Speedy lawyer then asked to delay the trial until after the legislative session in late May. Denied again, the Judge then offered three dates for Olson’s trial, March, April and May. Wanting to move the process ahead as quickly as possible Olson Jumped on May 9th.   When questioned by reporters after the hearing Olson said he would try to get the date moved up. Yea sure.  Clearly Olson is trying to delay this as much as possible to avoid the ethics hearing that’s sure to follow.  Many of his former Republican colleagues have already called for his resignation should he be found guilty.  The longer he delays the longer he receives that government check and the health insurance that goes with it. If he can get the House to delay until next session Olson will receive these benefits until next January and by then the whole matter will all have blown over.

How bad is he?

After Olson’s personal problems arose the House Republican caucus voted to kick Olson out of the Republican caucus.  There wasn’t a single vote in his favor. In Olson’s 14 previous years of lackluster service he has offered few bills or amendments of any substance. This year without even Republican backing Olson may be at his most ineffective point ever. One can be reasonably sure that if Olson wants it, it won’t get done. That’s good news for those of us who like schools, transit, separation of church and state, lower property taxes and the like. It’s bad news for those of us who had hoped for someone to represent this district.

Rep. Mark Olson in "Toxic 13" List

Christopher Truscott:

There is cause for concern, however. While 186 GOP and DFL representatives and senators came together and helped move Minnesota forward, more than a dozen Republicans opted to side with their special interest masters rather than listening to the advice of the best scientists and voting for the greater good of the people they're supposed to represent.

Was the ULTra Personal Rapid Transit Test Track Bulldozed?

Last October, Rep. Mark Olson sent this letter to the Sherburne County Citizen:

Mr. Avidor called PRT an “imaginary transportation concept”. This is puzzling because PRT has been developed entirely from existing technologies. There is also one being built at the Heathrow Airport in the United Kingdom; website info: www.atsltd.co.uk...

If you take a look at www.atsltd.co.uk, you find pictures of a test track for ULTra like this one:



If you use Google Maps, you'll find no trace of the ULTra test track at that site:



UPDATE: The bulldozing has been postponed.

I received the following today:

I can confirm that the ULTra PRT test track in Cardiff is still in place, and is still used from for testing, development and demonstration.

-Chris Vinestock
Operational Manager/Rheolwr Gweithredol
Transport, Infrastructure & Waste Service/Gwasanaeth Trafnidiaeth, Seilwaith a Gwastraff

... and where is the Raytheon test track?

Another PRT Lawsuit?

That's the rumor. No filing yet.

Stay tuned...

Rep. Mark Olson's Attorney Blames Victim

From the Star News:

Paul D. Baertschi, a pinch-hit attorney for Olson, told the Star News Friday after the court appearance Olson did not assualt his wife and he had no intent to hurt or place his wife in fear. He went on to say "she was coming after him, and he was trying to control the situation."

...Nice guy, huh? Olson beats up his wife and then says through his lawyer that she attacked him first. Not unusual behavior for men who batter women according to experts:

Batterers often minimize or deny the abuse, or they blame their partners for provoking it. He may minimize the severity of her injuries, or outright deny that he caused them. Unfortunately, "victim-blaming" is prevalent in our society. Sometimes abusers play mind games with their victims trying to make them feel crazy. Often violent behavior towards women is justified by saying things like "she asked for it" or "she needed to be put back in her place." In so doing, the blame and accountability shifts from the abusive behavior of the batterer to the "weakness" of the victim.

Getting back to the article... Olson explained why he brought in yet another lawyer:

He said that's why he had brought in a substitute attorney to see if it could be pushed along in a swifter fashion to work out scheduling difficulties.

However, his lawyer, Paul D. Baertschi tried to get the trial postponed:

[Judge] Pendleton denied a request by Baertschi to withdraw the not guilty plean in hopes for scheduling another arraignment.

...and Olson chooses the last trial date offered :



The Elk River judge offered Olson one date in March, one date in April and one date in May. Olson chose 9 a.m. on may 7.

...then Olson contradicted himself again:

Olson told the Star News afterward it was still his hope to get the trial moved up.

Perhaps instead, Olson should plead insanity... there's no shortage of witnesses who would testify to that.

Just look at this picture of Olson when he was released from jail:

May 7 trial set for Rep. Mark Olson

The SC Times:

ELK RIVER — State Rep. Mark Olson will stand trial May 7 on two misdemeanor counts of domestic assault.

The trial date was set during a pretrial hearing today in Sherburne County District Court.

Olson had asked that the trial take place in June, after the legislative session closes, but that request was denied.

Olson has pleaded not guilty to the charges that stem from an incident Nov. 12 at the Olsons’ home in Big Lake Township.

Olson’s wife told deputies she and Mark Olson had argued and that he had pushed her to the ground three times.

Rep. Mark Olson in MPR Interview: "I Am Privileged to Serve"

MPR reporter Tom Scheck interviewed Rep. Mark Olson about how happy he is to be a "lone wolf".

Like Brandt William's MPR coverage of Gary Dean Zimmermann's investigation and trial, Tom Scheck's report paints a positive, almost heroic picture of Olson... failing to mention the one thing Olson spent much of his time doing in office... promoting personal rapid transit. On at least two occasions, at the Capitol and Minneapolis City Hall, the two jailbirds promoted PRT... together!!!

Tom Scheck doesn't have to look far for information on Olson and PRT... MPR's Don Olson reported on PRT in 2003 and Laura McCallum reported on Mark Olson, Dean Zimmermann and Michele Bachmann's efforts to pass PRT legislation in 2004.

Rep. Mark Olson's pre-trial hearing is in Sherburne County Court on Friday.

Rep. Mark Olson Reports on Rep Mark Olson

Article by Represenentative (sic) Mark Olson about Rep. Mark Olson in the West Sherburne Tribune.

Olson can't claim he's being persecuted by the local media. Pretrial hearing this Friday.

Rep. Mark Olson Unleashed

I am free to do what I want to do.”

- Rep. Mark Olson (1/27/07 Sherburne County Citizen)

Today, it looked like Rep. Mark Olson got to do what he wants to do.... he tried to block a bill because he was afraid it will permit the World Court to "inspect wells" and other scary things the voices inside his head tell him would happen.

From Lawrence Schumacher's blog:

On the House floor Thursday, debating HF 110/ SF 38, which would ratify the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact:

Rep. Mark Olson, R-Big Lake, is arguing against the bill, saying he agrees with its goals -- preserving, conserving, restoring, improving and managing the waters of the Great Lakes -- but doesn't think it's legal.

The governors of every U.S. state and Canadian province bordering the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River signed the compact and their Legislatures are being asked to ratify them now.

"This bill is so serious. We are yielding jurisdiction of this state over to international courts," Olson said. "I've got so many red flags, I don't know what to do."

Olson cited Article I, Section 10 of the U.S. Constitution, on powers prohibited of states. It says "No state shall enter into any treaty, alliance or confederation;"

The bill's author, Rep. Thomas Huntley, DFL-Duluth, pointed out that the bill is not a treaty because it has to go to Congress for approval.

The debate was only expected to last a few minutes, but it now appears that it could go on for several hours, prompted largely by amendments Olson is introducing.

All 2 hours or so of crazy Rep. Mark Olson grandstanding at the legislature at the House Television Archives web page.

Here is just a short You Tube of Rep. Ehrhardt responding to Olson: