November 20th @ 5:30 pm

Northwestern Manufacturing, which would become Clyde Iron Works in 1901, was founded on October 21, 1889.  Its early success drove the construction of a dedicated building in 1907, where several firsts were achieved: first to use internal combustion engine for a hoist, first to use a silent chain drive for a hoist, first to build a welded steel crane, and first to build a crane capable of lifting in excess of 4,400 tons.  Clyde was called to duty during the world wars and was awarded the Army-Navy “E” for excellent war manufacturing service.

After World War II, employment dropped by half.  In 1961, Clyde built the world’s largest portable hoist to pull the lines for New York City’s 4,200-foot long suspension bridge, the Verrazano-Narrows.  In 1976, $3 million was poured into the Duluth plant in retrofits and at least one new building.  Nonetheless, in 1986, Clyde Iron’s Duluth operation closed and moved to St. Paul.

After serving various purposes under several different owners, the 10+ acre complex was bought in May 2003 by Duluthian Alessandro Giuliani.  He undertook a 24 million dollar transformation.  The complex has been an exciting restaurant and entertainment complex since 2010 and now will be visited by around a dozen Lake Superior Freethinkers.  Those who dare can order the Sudden Death Burger with smoked bacon, tomato, jalapeños, pepper jack, and habanero mayo.
 

Sunday, November 3rd, 2019.

Thomas Paine: Freethinking Founder of our Country

The lecture will outline the life of the freethinking founding father Thomas Paine, his beginnings in rural England, his meeting with Ben Franklin in London, and his travel to America where he attacked  the monarchy and inspired the fight for independence with his powerful pamphlet, Common Sense.

We’ll cover his time in France during the French Revolution, and the writing of The Age of Reason, which would earn him the hatred of his country for its questioning of the Bible and for its daring call to reason, his last years, forgotten and reviled—and the renewed appreciation for this supreme political writer and thinker.

Jane Whitledge of Duluth is a published poet currently working on a book collection.

  9:00  Coffee and Conversation
  9:30  Breakfast Buffet Available
10:00  Formal Program Begins

Duluth Radisson Harborview
505 West Superior Street
Duluth, MN 55802
(218) 727-8981

Let’s gather again at the home of Our Flounder for drinking and thinking on Saturday, November 23rd.  The fun starts in the late afternoon, around 4:00 pm, rain or shine.  Bring something to share: maybe something you have cooked or some ‘spirits’ to loosen up the mood.  We will reflect on current events, laugh with old friends, and maybe share some gossip.  Dr. Bill’s home is at 2931 Greysolon Road in Duluth. You can park anywhere on Greysolon, but not on 30th Avenue!   (218) 724-4176.

This debate was held on September 11, 2019 and broadcast on C-SPAN2 BookTV on September 21st.  You’ve missed it, but you can probably still watch it at your own convenience by clicking …

HERE

Legend has it that Rosa Brochi ran what was politely called a “boarding house” at this location and thus began its tradition of offering 100% satisfaction. In fact, this is the location of the old St. Nicholas Hotel and well outside of the designated red light district in the alley behind the Club Saratoga. Also, there is no historical record of a Rosa Brochi ever living in the area and some suspect it is the name of co-founder Mick Paulucci’s actual grandmother.

Mick’s dad was Jeno Paulucci who started Bellisio Frozen Foods in 1990 (it recently sold for over a billion dollars) and owned Duluth’s Republic Bank since 1986 (49% interest in it was just purchased by Superior’s National Bank of Commerce).

Mick and his partner, antique collector Andy Borg, brought us Grandma’s Restaurant in 1976 with a magnificent atmosphere and world renowned wild rice soup. They also provided our wildly successful marathon, Little Angie’s, the Sports Garden, Adventure Zone, and the Bellisio Italian Restaurant. Andy Borg bought out Paulucci’s shares in 2014.

We will gather at the original Grandma’s Saloon and Grill at the base of the Aerial Lift Bridge in Canal Park at 5:30 pm this Wednesday (October 16) for fun and frolic and free thought.

Moral Behavior in Animals:
Implications for Freethinkers

On Sunday, October 6th, Charles Gessert will present the short film Moral Behavior in Animals.  Then he will lead a discussion that includes ideas from that video and from the 2011 book The Bonobo and the Atheist.  Both are the work of Franciscus “Frans” de Waal, a Dutch primatologist and ethologist, professor of Primate Behavior in the Department of Psychology at Emory University, and director of the Living Links Center at its Yerkes National Primate Research Center.  Dr. de Waal is a member of both the United States National Academy of Sciences and the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences.  He has written numerous books on primate social behavior addressing issues such as conflict resolution, cooperation, inequity aversion, and food-sharing.  Does this work suggest that we can explain and expect morality in human animals, even without religion?

  9:00  Coffee and Conversation
  9:30   Breakfast Buffet Available
10:00   Formal Program Begins

Duluth Radisson Harborview
505 West Superior Street
Duluth, MN 55802
(218) 727-8981