19 Sep 2024

Get out your dirndls and lederhosen! Oktoberfest 2024 is here.

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It’s September, and that means … Oktoberfest!

Look, we know it’s confusing, but we didn’t make up the timeline for this historic celebration, which began in 1810 with the wedding feast of Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese in Munich. The party lasted five days, and ever since then, Germans around the world continue to celebrate it each fall.

Surly Brewing is taking things to another level this year, offering an entire menu of Oktoberfest specials through Sept. 21, which is the date of their version of the festival — called SurlyFest, of course.

Here are some local Oktoberfests that we think are worth checking out — at least they’re where we’ll be celebrating. Prost!

SurlyFest

A giant pierogi topped with red cabbage and pastrami is on the menu at Surly until Sept. 21. SurlyFest takes place on Sept, 21 in the brewery’s giant beer garden. (Courtesy of Lisa Antony-Thomas)

This festival, held in Surly’s sprawling beer garden, includes non-polka live music, Surly versions of Oktoberfest food (don’t miss the giant pierogies topped with stuffed cabbage, melt-in-your-mouth pastrami or schnitzel) and of course, Surly’s crisp version of Oktoberfest beer as well as other Surly favorites. They’re offering dirndl and lederhosen crafting, stein-holding competitions and more. Admission to the Sept. 21 fest is free, and the event runs from 11 a.m. until midnight.

Surly Brewing Company: 520 Malcolm Ave. S.E., Minneapolis; surlybrewing.com/event/surlyfest-2024/surlybrewing.com/beer/surlyfest

Twin Cities Oktoberfest

The biggest local Oktoberfest, held at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds, features a plethora of live music performances. The No. 1 North American German dancing group, SG Edelweiss, will be performing both days of the fest on the weekend of Oct. 4-5. There will also be performances by Elk River German Band, Shirts and Skins Band, Josh Norman Musik Miesters, Kris and the Riverbend Dutchmen, The Stand Ups and many more. All the German food you can think of will be there. Vendors include Gerhard’s Brats, Aki’s Breadhaus offering traditional German baked goods, Pierogi2Gogi, German-style chicken and turkey legs served by Big Guys BBQ and sweet and savory pies from Sara’s Tipsy Pies. The events run from 5-11 p.m. on Friday and 12-10 p.m. on Saturday. All ages are welcome and tickets are available now.

The Minnesota State Fairgrounds: 1265 Snelling Ave., St. Paul; tcoktoberfest.com

Utepils Brewing

Utepils is celebrating Oktoberfest on Sept. 20-21, holding a variety of events (even kid-friendly ones!) in their tap room, beer garden and parking lot. Northeast Pretzels and Gerhard’s Brats are serving both days. Purple People Feeder and Hopper’s Mini donuts join the party on Saturday. There is free admission on Friday, where happy hour lasts from 11 a.m.-5 p.m., and there is a free meat raffle and music by Uncle Muskrat. On Saturday, admission is free until 2 p.m. After that, it is $8 unless you’re wearing traditional German attire. There are multiple contests, including a stein-holding contest for both adults and kids, a pretzel-eating contest and a best dressed contest. After all the activities, from keg tapping to polkarobics, Some Sh*tty Cover Band will end the evening.

Utepils Brewing: 225 Thomas Ave N Minneapolis; utepilsbrewing.com/events/oktoberfest-2

Waldmann’s Oktoberfest

For two weekends at Waldmann (Sept. 20-22 and Sept. 27-29), there will be 28 musical performances from Tom Retka & The Jolly Huntsmen to Adam Sandhurst and the Jolly Jammers playing Minnesota German polka and German-American brass. SG Edelweiss will be making an appearance here as well. To break up all the dancing, there are women’s stein-holding competitions. Kids can play as actors in live storytelling by Gustav Doc’Tain, and everyone can enjoy the zPuppets Rosenschnoz show. Admission is $7.50 for adults and $3 for kids 12 and younger.

Waldmann: 445 Smith Avenue Saint Paul; waldmannbrewery.com/oktoberfest/

Malcolm Yards Marketober

The second annual Marketober will occur at the market at Malcolm Yards on Sept. 29. There will be beer samples from 16 local breweries, including their Oktoberfest beers. Guests receive a free pint of beer at the Boxcar Bar, and entry into a raffle. On the patio, Mr. Paul’s Po’ Boys and Jams will serve bratwurst po’ boys, Martes Tacos will offer pretzels with the choice of queso or mustard and Schell’s Brewing will host Bock Poking. Tickets are $15.

The Market at Malcolm Yards: 501 30th Avenue SE Minneapolis; malcolmyards.market/event/marketober/

Fulton Oktoberfest

Fulton Oktoberfest goers can enjoy a variety of specialty Bavarian-based beers, including Fulton’s own Oktoberfest Festbier released on Aug. 12. Bands like Doctor Kielbasa, Richie Yurkovich & Polkarioty and Alperstein Band will perform as well as SG Edelweiss. Fulton’s Kitchen and Lowry Hill Meats will offer foods from juicy bratwursts and gigantic Bavarian pretzels. There are activities for all ages with a tent dedicated to kids, stein hoisting and a brat toss. Fulton Oktoberfest, the weekends of Sept. 20-21 and 27-28, uses tokens only. Before then you can attend the Stein Swap from Sept. 7-17, where you can trade gently-used steins in good, drinkable condition for tokens. One stein equals one token, limit 10 steins per person. Otherwise, admission is free and tokens used for food and drinks are available to purchase.

Fulton’s NE Brewery: 2540 2nd St. N.E., Minneapolis; fultonbeer.com/events/fulton-oktoberfest

Gasthaus Oktoberfest

With beers imported from Munich, Germany, you can hop into Gasthaus Oktoberfest on Sept. 20-22. There will be all sorts of food from potato salad to strudel, live music from the Bill Koncar Band and Sunday is packed with activities for the kids. On the flier, you will see a tribute to Artie Schaefer, the polka voice for Gasthaus Oktoberfest who passed in 2022. Stefani Kiihn of Roseville, Minnesota won the corresponding logo contest for the fest in June.

Gasthaus Bavarian Hunter: 8390 Lofton Ave N, Stillwater; gasthausbavarianhunter.com/2024-oktoberfest/

Smorgie’s: It’s Oktoberfest at Smorgie’s, the affordable eatery across from the Xcel Energy Center, from Sept. 21-Oct. 6. Come in your lederhosen or dirndl and receive a free Oktoberfest beer, then enjoy specials like the Jager Schnitzel for just $12 — $15 with a Paulaner Oktoberfest, or Schnitzel Sticks for $8. Single pints of Oktoberfest are just $5.

Smorgie’s: 127 W. 7th St., St. Paul; smorgiesbar.com

 

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19 Sep 2024

Katja Hoyer: Germany has gotten more conservative, not more radical

by | posted in: Adventure | 0

For the first time since the Nazi era, a far-right party made a significant political breakthrough in Germany. The Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) won a regional election this month in the state of Thuringia and came second in neighboring Saxony. Visceral angst for democracy has befallen the country, but all is not as bleak as it seems.

As the rise of the far right is hogging the limelight, it obscures the bigger picture: German society hasn’t become more radical. It’s become more conservative. For years, moderates have failed to offer credible center-right politics on the ballot, but that may be about to change. Expect German politics to shift right, though not as far as many fear.

Domestic and international media have read the rise of the AfD as a peculiarity of the former East Germany, because that’s where both Thuringia and Saxony are and where Brandenburg is — a state the AfD is also predicted to win when it holds its elections on Sept. 22. But eastern Germany is no radical outlier. It’s the canary in the coal mine, a region that craves stability, having lost a quarter of its population since German reunification. It’s exposed to the same forces that drive voters to the right in countries like France or Italy. Income and wealth are still lower than in the former West Germany.

In fact, economic anxiety over things like the cost of living and housing is felt by the majority of Germans, according to a recent study. These issues were closely followed by immigration, which just over half of both West and East Germans named as a concern.

Public safety is also a growing issue, especially for women, as another survey found. This isn’t an irrational fear. Violent crime reached a record high last year and more than a third of all crime suspects were foreigners, which links public safety to immigration.

As early as 2018, a government-commissioned report found that 90% of the rise in violent crime seen in the state of Lower Saxony was indeed attributable to young male migrants. Yet neither then-Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) nor their coalition partners, the center-left Social Democrats (SPD), pushed to control immigration. Merkel allowed more than 1 million asylum seekers into the country in 2015/2016. Her successor Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s left-leaning coalition of SPD, Greens and Free Liberals (FDP) oversaw an even larger influx of people in 2022.

Yet the majority of the public is conservative on immigration. In a survey this month, more than three-quarters of German respondents demanded a U-turn on an asylum policy that all the main political parties are associated with. This benefits the new anti-immigration parties, which is why the AfD is now polling in second place, behind the conservatives but ahead of the governing groups.

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Many German voters also blame centrists for the fact that the German economy is “stuck in crisis,” as the Ifo Institute for Economic Research put it. To name just two examples of economic self-harm: Merkel’s government accelerated the end of nuclear power, which once provided a third of electricity. Now Germans face some of the highest electricity prices for consumers in the world. And neither she nor Scholz opposed the deeply unpopular decision by the European Union to ban the sale of traditional combustion engine cars from 2035, spelling deep trouble for Germany’s iconic car industry.

Certainties have been eroded at every level, a trend exacerbated by war in Ukraine and the pandemic. Young people especially worry that they might not be able to enjoy the standards of accommodation, public safety and prosperity their parents had. Many want the government to halt the social and economic trends of recent years, and their positions have shifted right in accordance. A study of 14-to-29-year-olds suggested that more than half of them think the state is doing more for refugees than its own people. The study predicted an AfD win in this demographic — and that’s what happened in Thuringia, where the party won the under-30 vote with 35%.

Germans of all ages have lost faith in the established parties. In one recent survey, 77% of East Germans said they didn’t think the state was able to fulfill its responsibilities, and 69% of West Germans agreed. This loss of trust is what drives people to the political fringes in search of change.

Yet worried people are also risk-averse. A centrist party that can deliver a stable economy and control immigration will gain voters back from the untested AfD. Take Germany’s car industry. CDU leader Friedrich Merz has called for an end to the unpopular and damaging 2035 ban on combustion-engine sales because “we can’t decide in politics which technology will be the right technology to preserve prosperity and protect our climate in 10, 15 or 20 years,” without veering into the extreme demand to abandon all existing climate agreements that the AfD has called for.

Similarly, immigration isn’t a zero-sum game. As former British Prime Minister Tony Blair put it in his new book On Leadership, “Most people can accept that a certain level and type of immigration is essential, but they worry when they think the whole system is broken.” It’s about exercising control over who is in the country rather than branding immigration as “the mother of all crises,” as Thuringian AfD leader Björn Höcke does.

It seems German centrists are finally beginning to listen. A spate of recent terror attacks, the historic AfD victories and the gloomy news that car giant Volkswagen AG is considering factory closures in its home country for the first time, have all served as a belated wake-up call. Scholz’s government has announced that it wants tougher measures on immigration and public safety, for instance. Of course, it may be too little too late: A survey this month suggested that only 15% of voters are happy with the government’s work.

The survey also showed, however, that the Christian Democrats were beginning to pick up votes — and that they would currently win a national election with 33% — nearly twice as much as the AfD would get. Merz, who is keen to distance the CDU from his predecessor Merkel and reset it as a traditional conservative party, has called for stronger measures on immigration and for a rethink on economic policy. If he can pull this off and assemble a team of competent and authentic leaders, his party should draw voters back from the margins.

If the centrists want to stabilize German politics, they have to ensure the political spectrum is balanced. Merkel pulled the conservatives so far to the center that she left a huge power vacuum to the right. Given that the CDU/CSU dominated West German postwar politics for half a century, almost always gaining more than 40% of the vote, the onus is on them to move toward their former votership.

Similarly, the SPD was once the party of workers. In the European elections in June, however, the AfD took that role, winning in this demographic with 33%. Here, too, the question should be what centrists can do to win their core voters back, not what those voters have done wrong.

In light of the tumult of recent years, many Germans are looking for more conservative options on the ballot. It’s up to the centrists to provide them.

Katja Hoyer is a German-British historian and journalist. Her latest book is Beyond the Wall: A History of East Germany. She wrote this column for Bloomberg Opinion.

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19 Sep 2024

Today in History: September 19, state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II

by | posted in: Politics | 0

Today is Thursday, Sept. 19, the 263rd day of 2024. There are 103 days left in the year.

Today in history:

On Sept. 19, 2022, Great Britain and the world said a final goodbye to Queen Elizabeth II at a state funeral that drew presidents and kings, princes and prime ministers — and crowds who thronged the streets of London.

Also on this date:

In 1796, President George Washington’s farewell address was published. In it, America’s first chief executive advised, “Observe good faith and justice toward all nations. Cultivate peace and harmony with all.”

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In 1881, the 20th president of the United States, James A. Garfield, died 2 1/2 months after being shot by Charles Guiteau; he was succeeded by Vice President Chester A. Arthur.

In 1955, President Juan Peron of Argentina was ousted after a revolt by the army and navy.

In 1957, the United States conducted its first contained underground nuclear test, code-named “Rainier,” in the Nevada desert.

In 1985, the Mexico City area was struck by a devastating earthquake that killed at least 9,500 people.

In 1988, Olympic diver Greg Louganis suffered a concussion after striking his head on the diving board during the preliminary round of the 3-meter springboard diving competition at the Seoul Summer Games; Louganis would recover from the injury and win a gold medal in the event the following day.

In 1995, The New York Times and The Washington Post published the manifesto of Unabomber Ted Kaczynski (kah-ZIHN’-skee), which proved instrumental in identifying and capturing him.

In 2004, Hu Jintao (hoo jin-tow) became the undisputed leader of China with the departure of former President Jiang Zemin (jahng zuh-MEEN’) from his top military post.

In 2008, struggling to stave off financial catastrophe, the Bush administration laid out a radical bailout plan calling for a takeover of a half-trillion dollars or more in worthless mortgages and other bad debt held by tottering institutions. Relieved investors sent stocks soaring on Wall Street and around the globe.

In 2011, Mariano Rivera of the New York Yankees recorded his 602nd save, making him baseball’s all-time leader in the category.

Today’s Birthdays:

Actor Rosemary Harris is 97.
Singer-songwriter Paul Williams is 84.
Singer Bill Medley (The Righteous Brothers) is 84.
Singer Sylvia Tyson (Ian and Sylvia) is 84.
R&B singer Freda Payne is 82.
Actor Jeremy Irons is 76.
Model-actor Twiggy Lawson is 75.
TV personality Joan Lunden is 74.
Musician-producer Nile Rodgers is 72.
Rock singer Lita Ford is 66.
Musician Jarvis Cocker (Pulp) is 62.
Country singer Trisha Yearwood is 60.
Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., is 59.
News anchor Soledad O’Brien is 58.
Actor Sanaa Lathan (suh-NAH’ LAY’-thun) is 53.
“Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon is 50.
Actor Columbus Short is 42.

19 Sep 2024

Loons’ defensive issues lead to 2-1 loss to Cincinnati

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Dayne St. Clair screamed and stomped in the first half against FC Cincinnati on Wednesday.

The goalkeeper’s fits were warranted as defenders in front of him let the Loons down in a 2-1 loss at Allianz Field.

MNUFC (11-12-6, 39 points) had a two-game winning streak end, while Cincinnati (17-8-4, 52 points) became the first MLS team to have 10 road wins this season.

The Loons’ problems started midway through the first half.

MNUFC center back Michael Boxall allowed Yuya Kubo to go around him, but St. Clair made a diving fingertip save in the 29th minute. But five minutes later, Kubo outraced Micky Tapias and slotted a shot past St. Clair for a 1-0 lead.

St. Clair shot an arm up in frustration.

Then Bongi Hlongwane, who was playing wingback, jogged back and allowed MLS MVP Luciano Acosta to get a shot on goal.

St. Clair yelled in frustration.

That was followed by Boxall and Tapias allowing Luca Orellano to cut across the field and score a stunning goal in first-half stoppage time to make it 2-0 at the break.

After falling into a two-goal hole, head coach Eric Ramsay pulled out Hlongwane, Joaquin Pereyra and Carlos Harvey at the half, bringing in Tani Oluwaseyi, Wil Trapp and Sang Bin Jeong. It was a big statement from the Loons’ leader.

The Loons got back in the game when Orellano was called for a penalty with a kick to Jeong’s head in the 18-yard box. Kelvin Yeboah converted from the penalty spot to make it 2-1 in the 55th minute. It was the new Italian forward’s third goal in three PKs this season.

Substitute forward Teemu Pukki nearly scored an equalizer in the 88th minute, but the Finn’s curling shot hit the corner of the goalposts. Pukki had another attempt but Roman Celentano made a save late in stoppage time.

Jefferson Diaz also had a quality chance in stoppage time, but his shot was deflected and went over the crossbar.

The Loons made two changes to the starting lineup coming out of Saturday’s 3-1 win at St. Louis: Harvey replaced Trapp in central midfield and Joseph Rosales stepped in for Devin Padelford.

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