The following are Letters to the Editor, published in the Star-Observer’s print edition this past week.

One reader wrote about a potential data center moratorium. Another discussed President Donald Trump’s handling of the economy. Another wrote about the ways in which a home sprinkler system adds to fire safety.

With moratorium on data centers, go fast but don’t hurry

When it comes to data centers in St. Croix County, I think of the phrase popularized by Emperor Augustus: festina lente, or “make haste slowly.” The paradoxical phrase refers to urgency with deliberation, countered by rapid execution constrained by prudential judgment.

The Hammond Village Board turned down a proposal on a data center. Various local residents have called for a moratorium on data centers. This is fine if the moratorium is for prudent judgment, making sure the resources are there so there is no impact on the citizens of St. Croix County. If the moratorium is a guise to stop the building of all AI data centers in the county, then it is shortsighted folly.

Data centers have a voracious appetite for wattage and water. We need to make sure that our infrastructure can handle these demands with no ancillary side effects, i.e., no increases in our electric bills and no decreased water pressure because of the centers.

I moved to St. Croix County for the bucolic lifestyle and do not want to see that change. For that reason, data centers should be spread out like a savanna of trees and not clustered together. Clustering them would induce the growth of a large metropolitan city. If I wanted to live in a large city, I would have stayed where I was and not moved to the heaven that is St. Croix County.

There are cities in Wisconsin that could adapt to large, clustered AI centers. Eau Claire could build industrial parks filled with AI without changing the character of the city and may, in fact, want the growth. Wisconsin also has a large city with the potential to become the AI capital of the world. This is not a hyperbolic claim; I mean this with all sincerity. Milwaukee was once known as the brewing capital of the world — with three major breweries supported by a vast water infrastructure that easily supplied them.

The breweries are gone — Pabst Blue Ribbon and Miller moved to Texas and PBR bought Schlitz — but the water infrastructure remains. Milwaukee could easily handle mega AI data centers with little problem concerning water demands. Electrical power plants, however, would have to be built. Wisconsin could start planning and building power plants in the Milwaukee area to support large data centers. It really could become the data center capital of the world.

This is the reason why China is building three mega coal-fired plants a month. They need all the electrical power they can get to build their data centers. The U.S. and the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) are in a strategic AI “arms race.” Whoever wins will establish the kind of AI the world uses. This is why it is in the national interest of the United States to win this race.

AI will lead to much better healthcare. With AI suggestions, doctors could catch stage 0 cancers. That would mean doctors could prevent cancers before they even start to affect the body. The United Arab Emirates has AI blood filters that reportedly filter out pathogens and microplastics from the blood supply, though they are not yet approved by the FDA for use in America.

The efficiencies from AI will drastically increase productivity. Productivity increases are most directly tied to the standard of living. That means both wealth creation and better living standards for everyone, from the poorest among us to the middle class.

When the airplane was invented, people really did say, “If man was meant to fly, he’d have wings.” When the steam train was invented, many people argued that the human body simply could not go faster than 30 miles an hour. Today, airports are allowed to use lots of jet fuel and no one wants to have one in their backyard. Yet I only hear the most extreme Green Party advocates demand their abolishment. There are people who, a priori, are against data centers. If we manage the growth of data centers well, St. Croix County could keep its rural environs and still have them.

If the moratorium is for prudent managed growth so the infrastructure can handle the data centers with ease, I am all for it. If, however, it is a guise to stop them completely from coming to St. Croix County, I am against it.

Rick Coalwell 

Somerset

Gentiles means nations

Paul did not know Jesus in his earthly ministry. Did you know that? Paul isn’t mentioned in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Paul is not one of the 12 apostles of the 12 tribes of Israel, either. “These 12 Jesus sent forth and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles and into the city of the Samaritans enter ye not: but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matt 10:5-6). Paul is not with Jesus and the apostles when Jesus came back for forty days after his resurrection (Acts 1:2-4). To be qualified to be an apostle with the 12 read Acts 1:21-22. “Wherefore of these men, which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.” Read the rest of the chapter of Acts 1:23-26 and you will know who the successor to Judas Iscariot as the twelve apostles. “And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justas and Matthias. And they prayed and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, that he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place. And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.” So Matthias is the one chosen to be the twelve apostles, right? Right! Not Paul! Paul is not one of the 12 apostles of Israel. When Paul writes to or about Israel, likely you will know it (Romans 2:17). Our doctrine is found in Paul’s epistles only, not from the 12 apostles. Jesus was talking to you when you read Paul’s 13 epistles! Paul is our apostle because we are Gentiles (Romans 11:13). Gentiles mean nations. The U.S. is part of the nations.

Tim Myer

Hammond

Art of the steal

The Republican Party is fiscally conservative and lowers taxes — or so we were told.

Yet the Republican Congress handed the power of the purse to President Donald Trump, whose budget is out of control. During his first term he increased the national debt by a staggering $7.8 trillion. His second term has already added $2.25 trillion, bringing the total to $39 trillion.

Our debt now stands at 119% of GDP and costs taxpayers around $900 billion yearly in interest alone — more than we spend on defense. Thirteen cents of every tax dollar goes to interest payments and if the U.S. credit rating deteriorates further, that cost could rise sharply.

While Trump spends our taxes on wars started without congressional approval and on vanity projects — parades, arches, ballrooms, luxury planes — our representatives Derrick Van Orden and Tom Tiffany rubberstamp everything from the White House. Not the tariffs, not the wars, not the deregulation of crypto and betting markets, not the $928 million paid to a French company to not build wind farms. These would be worthy targets for DOGE’s cost-cutting mission.

Then came the “Big Beautiful Bill” — a massive tax cut for billionaires, paid for by slashing USAID, SNAP, environmental protection and research funding.

Inflation is ramping up and household budgets are tightening, while the Trump family’s net worth grew by an estimated $2 to $4.5 billion since January 20, 2025.

I wish Trump applied his “art of the deal” skills to benefit America instead of himself.

Marcus Fasel

Chippewa Falls

How a home sprinkler can save a life

Editor’s note: Roy Bolger is the president of the National Fire Sprinkler Association, Minnesota Chapter, J.F. Ahern Co – Twin Cities.

This week marks Home Fire Sprinkler Week (May 10–16) — a time to spotlight the life-saving benefits of home fire sprinkler systems. Each year, home fires kill more than 2,600 people in the U.S. and most of these tragedies happen in homes without fire sprinklers.

At the National Fire Sprinkler Association (NFSA), we know fire sprinklers are the fastest and most reliable way to stop a fire in its tracks. When installed in homes, they control or extinguish fires before firefighters even arrive — giving families precious time to escape and dramatically reducing property damage.

Today’s home fires burn faster and more dangerously than ever, making early protection even more critical. Fire sprinklers provide that protection.

Despite their proven effectiveness, fire sprinklers are still missing from most new homes. This week is a reminder that every new home built without them is a missed opportunity to save lives.

We urge local leaders, builders and homeowners to learn more and support the inclusion of fire sprinkler systems in all new residential construction. Fire safety starts with prevention — and sprinklers are prevention that works.

Visit homefiresprinkler.org to learn more, access free educational materials and see how your community is participating in this life-saving initiative.

Ray Bolger

Minneapolis