Deep Freeze

It's cold. The high temp today will be -5, with a wind chill not to be mentioned. Our ability to tolerate conditions like today's is what distinguishes us from other blue/purple states. We are the coldest large US city. We glory in it. But, it hasn't been this cold for three years. Global warming, anyone?

I have speculated before that Minnesota's cold climate is the cause of our odd political arrangements. We elect weirdos. Some of them are amazing, like the late Paul Wellstone. Some provide needed comic relief and a subject of conversation when meeting strangers at conferences, like Jesse Ventura or Michele Bachmann. Some become pretty good statemen, like Walter Mondale. And some are brought down by their strange accents and squeaky voices, like Hubert Humphrey.

This disparate group shares an ability to shrug off temps that max out at -5 degrees. This should make them pretty effective in DC. But we have a mixed track record. Maybe it's the natural contrariness that arises when you open the door and your eyelashes freeze. And contrary doesn't always play well among the smooth and powdered types who usually dominate the national political process.