Opinion editor's note: Strib Voices publishes a mix of commentary online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

•••

Cheers to Legislative Auditor Judy Randall and her predecessor Jim Nobles, who is, hopefully, enjoying a well-earned retirement. A cautionary 2007 report written by Randall during Nobles' tenure has recently resurfaced as the state Senate Ethics Subcommittee considers whether it was appropriate for Senate President Bobby Joe Champion to advocate for grant money to be directed to a nonprofit run by a former legal client. Nobles, and now Randall, deliver dozens of reports annually about many facets of legislative measures. The work produced by their office is painstakingly investigated, scrupulously nonpartisan and unimpeachable. Nobles, and now Randall, represent the highest versions of public service and when they talk, we'd all do well to listen and absorb the wisdom contained in their reports.

Jeers to the Minneapolis Police Department for moving to encrypt dispatch channels so that residents and journalists can't hear scanner audio. A city spokesman claimed a rise in social media and scanner apps to track first responders jeopardizes their safety, but the city didn't offer specific examples of where public awareness of movements has been a problem. Given recent history, Minneapolis should be more sensitive to the need for public transparency about law enforcement activity. As she often does, Jane Kirtley, a professor of media ethics and law at the University of Minnesota, said it best: "This is one more way to shut off public access to what I would call kind of operational, raw data that can actually be quite revelatory as to whether a police department is doing its job properly."

Cheers to Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges for broadcasting his news conferences with a straightforward and plain-spoken flair that includes useful pictures and props such as the orange jail jumpsuit he holds up as a warning. Hodges tells lawbreakers that if they come to the "orange jumpsuit district," they're going to get arrested. His short broadcasts give him visibility, help him connect to the community and promote the notion of law enforcement as a familiar, helpful presence. Come for the information about police work, stay for Hodges' testing his falsetto on a snippet of "I Can't Help Myself" by the Four Tops.

Jeers to the recent loss of two emerging female leaders: Minneapolis City Council Member Emily Koski, who bowed out of the city's mayoral race and won't seek re-election to the council after one term, and to former St. Paul City Council President Mitra Jalali, who stepped down from her position. Both cited the challenges of balancing their health, personal lives and workload with the demands of public service. Here's hoping we haven't seen the last of them and that they're able to find an outlet for their skills.

Cheers to Alice Lenzmeier of St. Cloud who is seeking emergency guardianship over her husband, longtime Stearns County Board Member Leigh Lenzmeier, because of what she says is his cognitive decline. She's publicly facing personal heartbreak with uncommon candor, compassion and dignity. She told a Minnesota Star Tribune reporter this week, "I don't feel the need for the whole world to watch him go downhill," she said. "And he's not doing the job. Let's be honest with that."

Cheers to two St. Paul natives. First, a rousing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" cheer for retired Twins' catcher Joe Mauer's statue, which was unveiled at Target Field, creating a new magnet for gameday photos. The sculpture has Mauer wearing his catcher's gear, which is a bonus because we loved seeing number 7 behind the dish almost as much as we enjoyed his cool pace and grace at the plate. Cheers as well to a newer hometown attraction at Como Zoo, a baby Hoffman's two-toed sloth. Zoo employees are pumping out a steady stream of images of mom, Sago, and baby looking absolutely adorable while hanging around. (Dad is Ziggy, another sloth living at Como.)

Jeers to Dallas for nabbing homegrown basketball star Paige Bueckers as the top pick in the first round of the WNBA draft. It's a great honor for Bueckers, a Hopkins native, who led the University of Connecticut to a national championship in her final college game and within days was headed to the Dallas Wings. Still, it stings that she'll be taking her abundant talents to Dallas given the NHL team formerly known as the Minnesota North Stars also moved there in 1993. And, yes, some of us Minnesota Vikings fans still hold Dallas Cowboy grudges going back to 1975. That's when Cowboys wide receiver Drew Pearson performed what appeared to be an illegal push-off just before snagging the original Hail Mary from Roger Staubach in the division championship.