December 1, 1979 - On this Weekend program, Joe and Nancy Paddock speak on farm life and read poetry at the Farmers Union Convention.
December 17, 1979 - Author and journalist David Halberstam speaking as part of the Minneapolis Public Library's "Portrait of a Lifestyle" program. David Halberstam talked about the media and its effect on us. Halberstam’s books include "The Powers That Be", a critique on the media, and "The Best and the Brightest,” examining the motivations behind U.S. policy in Vietnam.
January 4, 1980 - Donald Anderson, director of the Mid-American Solar Energy Complex, speaking at a conference on alternative energy and energy conservation held in Mankato, and sponsored by the Region Nine Development Commission. Donald Anderson is a former professor of Electrical Engineering at the University of Minnesota and helped develop solar energy products at the Sheldahl Company in Northfield. Mid-American Solar Energy Complex is a 12 state Midwestern group which is working on the technical, financial, and political aspects of solar energy.
January 12, 1980 - James Bill, professor of government at the University of Texas at Austin and director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, speaking at University of Minnesota’s Coffman Union on the events in Iran. Bill spent much of his adult life studying Iran and the Middle East and has lived there as well. In his speech, he shares his perspective on reasons behind Iranian revolution, and repercussions.
January 19, 1980 - Sonia Johnson, feminist and equal rights amendment (ERA) supporter, speaking at the University of Minnesota. Johnson was excommunicated from the Mormon church after she spoke out for ERA and against church political activities against ERA. Her address is part of a country tour in trying to rally renewed support for the Equal Rights Amendment. In her speech, she says she took on the political arm of the church and lost - a political arm that she says is actively campaigning against passage of the ERA and using deception as a key tool.
January 24, 1980 - Governor Al Quie delivers his second "state of the state" address to a joint session of the Minnesota legislature. Reaction to the speech follows.
January 31, 1980 - Minnesota House of Representative Majority Caucus Leader Irv Anderson presents a DFL response to Governor Al Quie's State of the State address.
February 7, 1980 - Representative Jim Wright (D-Texas), House Majority Leader, speaks to the national press club about synthetic fuel production and other issues.
February 8, 1980 - Novelist Tim O'Brien's book "Going After Cacciato", inspired by his tour of duty in Vietnam during the war, won the national book award for fiction last year. O'Brien reads from his current work, "The Nuclear Age", when he was at Worthington Community College.
February 23, 1980 - John Holt, an author and educator, speaking at Unity Unitarian Church as part of that church's Wider Ministry Lecture Series. The title of his talk is, "Education versus Learning." For years, Holt has been raising eyebrows with his analysis of how we teach and learn. He’s published eight books and scores of articles on the subject.