A Vision for Aitkin: A Platform for Progress here in Aitkin and otehere small towns - from Kevin R. Hagen and ReimagineAitkin.com
contact me at: berserker50@gmail.com
9-30-2024/contact me at: berserker50@gmail.com - video links wil lbe right here! youtube, facebook, instagram and....????
I attended what was supposed to be a 'meet and greet' at our local coffee shop, but it turned into an unexpected Q&A session with my mayoral opponent, Gary Tibbits. Although I wasn’t fully prepared, I held my own and learned a lot about how Aitkin operates. Here's my takeaway: if annexation is your only plan for fiscal stability, you’re doing something seriously wrong. Relying on the same people, tools, and systems that caused these problems will only make things worse. It's clear the city's leadership has blinders on, unwilling to think outside the box. That's unfortunate because my vision can pull Aitkin out of this inefficient, resource-draining cycle. By embracing efficiency and innovation, we can breathe new life into Aitkin, creating a legacy that benefits everyone—not just a few protecting their investments. We must let nature be our guide and build a true community in the process.
Hey.. I am having a campaign podcast/party on Friday October 11th 2024 at Sampguita here in Aitkin.
Party is All done folks - thansk for showing up and you can see the Podcast (Nonplussed) on Rumble here - https://rumble.com/v5ilwyl-ep-39-takin-aitkin.html?e9s=src_v1_ucp -
see Sampaguita on facebook! and @204 Minnesota Ave N, Aitkin, MN 56431) - thank you Richard!
9-29-2024 -If given the opportunity, I would like to see hundreds of new non-government, good-paying-sustainable jobs in Aitkin. Our town should be filled with solar arrays and greenhouses( like Spain!) , prioritizing local food production and energy independence. Growing our own food and harvesting our own energy should be top priorities. This is how we control our future and not allow the 'powers that be' to do it. The truth is the real power lies with those who control our country—the oligarchs and the military-industrial complex and the illusion of left and right poltiics is just that, an illusion of choice, but we do not have to accept it in its entirety. By eating our own food and using our own energy we can maintain some autonomy while becoming a beacon of light for other towns and communities around the globe.
education - young folk - How about a community kitchen where we to cook. to store food and to grow?
SADLY - the town of Aitkin is run by folk with blinders on and Who cant see two feet in front of their faces aka their own lil world. Aitkin could be a beacon for 'autonomous hope' in a sea of blind destructive consumption physically, mentally and emotionally. Maybe i should return to my 'misanthropic' self? I may as well. THrow in some humor like days of old and go to bed thinking ... I tried, albeit was 'my way'. Of course, the end result for me would be... I told you Fkrs so! I told you, but you wouldn't listen. I wont stop telling and or inviting folk to learn, to become aware but thats not how Americans function. They wait til its too late and this time around it wont leave room for another chance. Who knows, maybe a lil luck and someone will step up and bankroll an intentional community( ic.org) for my family and friends and I. Short of that there is not money enough, not time enough or resources to do it myself. Ic.org shows where people across the globe are reconnecting to nature and givng themselves a solid chance at not ony surviving in this world but living a quality life too while treaching others to do the same.
Kevin R. Hagen for Mayor of Aitkin, Minnesota: A Vision for Our Future
(calendar of events will be posted soon
Aitkin: A Town Connected to Nature, Technology, and Each Other
Aitkin is at a crossroads, and we have the opportunity to shape our future in a way that embraces the best of what our town can offer. As your mayor, I will lead Aitkin with a vision centered on nature, technology, and sustainable job creation, all while fostering a strong sense of community and self-reliance. Our town will become a model for how small towns can thrive in the modern world, not just by surviving but by leading the way.
Harvesting Our Own Energy and Food
Our reliance on global food systems is a vulnerability we can no longer afford. We need to take control of our food production through innovative indoor and outdoor growing techniques, ensuring that our town is resilient and self-sustaining. Imagine community greenhouses, vertical farms, and gardens in every neighborhood. We will tap into Nebraska’s greenhouse success stories and create our own.
Why arent we blanketed with solar panels and producing our own low cost clean energy? Why do we have our energy dollars going out of the town along with jobs?
In tandem, we’ll harness the power of solar, wind, and geothermal energy. We will look to examples like the Nebraska greenhouse project and bring those solutions here, ensuring Aitkin becomes a leader in renewable energy. We'll even explore unconventional feedstocks like cattails for ethanol production, creating a closed-loop system where nothing goes to waste. Speaking of waste we can utilize human waste as in urine as other towns have done. There are working successful models here in USA and acorss the globe and we must embrace them and mimic them.
Sustainable Job Growth and a Thriving Economy
Our focus on food and energy will drive sustainable job growth. By creating jobs in agriculture, renewable energy, and recycling industries, we will offer new opportunities that align with our values. These aren’t just jobs—they’re careers that contribute to a better future for our community and our planet.
Tourism and Recreation: Nature at Your Fingertips
Aitkin has the potential to become a destination for those seeking the beauty of nature combined with modern amenities. We’ll enhance our parks, lakes, and wildlife areas, connecting them with world-class biking trails. Whether you’re into lake life, park life, wildlife, live music, or biking, Aitkin will have something for everyone. Our town will be a place where families and singles alike can visit, relax, and have a good time without worrying about logistics. Solve problems like: my wiffe and I wanted to eat dinner and lsiten to live music but there was no airbnb available. Why not?
A Community Tied to Nature
We need to rethink our town’s aesthetics by integrating nature into every aspect of our environment. Lawns and manicured grounds have their place, but they should not come at the expense of our pollinators and indigenous flora. By promoting natural landscapes, we will bring back the beauty and biodiversity that our town has lost. Colorful food gardens and tree-lined streets will become a hallmark of Aitkin, attracting both visitors and wildlife. I need the high school to take on a cattail project where we use them as feedstock for biofuel and instead of using corn at 150 gallons per acre we use cattails for 5-7000 gallons per acre. Cmon Aitkin youth! solve a problem and earn a living for life!
Reducing Crime Through Community and Opportunity
Reducing crime is not just a goal; it’s a necessity. By creating sustainable jobs, fostering a sense of community, and providing opportunities for all, we will dramatically reduce crime. This is not about accepting the status quo—it’s about taking proactive steps to ensure everyone in Aitkin feels safe and supported.
A Return to Quiet Nights and Dark Skies
We chose Aitkin for its tranquility, yet light and sound pollution have begun to creep in. We will work together to reduce these disturbances, ensuring our town remains a peaceful refuge. Through creativity and a commitment to preserving our natural environment, we will rid our town of unnecessary noise and light, reminding us why we love living here.
Innovation in Waste Management
Our town will lead the way in waste management by implementing programs that recycle all materials—from construction to transportation, restaurants to manufacturing. We will become a zero-waste town, turning waste into resources and ensuring nothing is left to harm our environment.
A Town Ready for the Future
We live in a time of rapid change, and we must prepare for the challenges ahead—whether it’s economic shifts, the rise of automation, or global crises like pandemics. Aitkin will be a town that’s ready for anything, with a strong, self-reliant community that supports each other.
Education and Infrastructure for a New Era
Education will focus on the knowledge and skills our residents need to thrive in this new world. Our roads and biking trails will be updated to support a connected, active lifestyle. We will embrace multi-generational living, pooling resources, and showing that our history of individualism can evolve into a community-centered approach that works in the modern world. A community center for health that would include a large kitchen for teaching how to cook the locally grown food and how to store it long term for survival. We need a pool and a place for the youth to enjoy themselves and learn.
A New Vision for Aitkin
We are too dependent on outside sources for our happiness and freedom. It’s time for Aitkin to become self-reliant, innovative, and community-driven. We will look to other successful small towns for inspiration, but we will also blaze our own trail, becoming a shining example for others to follow.
I’m Kevin R. Hagen, and I’m running for Mayor of Aitkin, Minnesota. Together, we can create a town that thrives, not just today, but for generations to come. Let’s build a future where Aitkin isn’t just a place to live—it’s a place to flourish.
Join me in this vision for Aitkin, where nature, technology, and community come together to create something truly extraordinary.
It is imperative we understand just how destructive and unsustainable our current civilization has become and IT cannot be changed from within the same system that got us to this point. This civilization and the systems that surround it must be made obsolete via new systems of local living like we are proposing here in Aitkin..
Using 'working' models across the Earth we can now replace the multitude of dysfunctional systems we now use and experience in OUR communities like: Food, Energy, Housing, Education, local law and Criminal Justice System, Addiction and Mental Health in general and... at the same time we positively change our lives and communities and in fact...
WE also prepare ourselves for survival as we face numerous near term chaotic scenarios.
As mayor my mission is to pull folk together so that Aitkin becomes a town where comfort, safety, creativity, fun and prosperity are not just ideals, but realities for everyone. We all want a place where we can earn a living, enjoy nature/life, good healthy real food, great entertainment and especially 'live' music(revive live) and... lottsa art! To feel confident about the future... together. It is imperative we lose this facade of strength in this insane 'rugged individualism' which honors a lifestyle that divides us! We must work towards coming together as we embrace Nature, our only tangible and immutable commonality: our only life source. Aitkin is on the verge of achieving this “good life” for all, there are exemplary folk here in town for sure, but we’re at a crossroads and the path we choose now will shape the town’s future for generations to come.
I know that the majority of this path lies in making the natural world our focal point, our 'commonality'. We must strengthen our local economy based on a healthy relationship with the natural world while keeping a majority of our money and resources circulating within the local economy. Too often, we allow our hard-earned dollars to leave town— especially with food and energy. We must transition out of this cycle of division to create a strong sense of togetherness and build local commerce that benefits our community first. I'll get back to those areas. One additional 'key' area is enhancing our accommodations for our fabulous local live music experience: airbnb, add'll housing, glamping/camping and to connect our town to the world-class biking trails next door in Crosby-Ironton. These moves would open huge opportunities and give us a return on investment for generations! On a larger scale we must insure that we are self-sufficient in food ( and get healthy!) and energy production that will greatly enhance our local economy and to protect ourselves from the changes of outside forces (covid) and the possible chaos that lies ahead.(more on that later).
Do I have all the answers? Of course not, but I believe that as a community we can address and solve most problems thrown our way if.. we can see and understand a plan and fully trust each other to use our most valued common purpose: nature and its offerings. Solutions exist through nature, and many of our challenges have already been solved 'locally' by other small towns here in USA and worldwide. It’s time to look forward, to embrace change, and together, we can not only transform Aitkin, but also become an example for other towns to follow. thereby reimagining civilization itself. We are all connected as human beings and as life itself
All information and videos and podcast schedules will be here SOON! daily videos... weekly podcast and special events for the mayoral campaign.
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