Eric Olson
For State House District 11B
Welcome! I am Eric Olson and I am running to be the next Representative from Minnesota State House District 11B and I hope to earn your vote in the 2022 election. For those who do not yet know me, I look forward to meeting you in the campaign and learning what we can build together for our district. I grew up in Pine City. The supportive community gave me a place to grow securely and the experiences that prepared me to face the world. While I have lived many other places in my adult life, I have returned here because I value what our area is and what it can be. I am running in large part because I want to see our communities grow and thrive.
The Leadership Our District Needs
In these days of loud division and anger, you’ll find that I am a different type of candidate. Perhaps the greatest founding idea of our nation was that 13 distinct colonies with their own people, ideas, and values could agree to make one nation. By pulling from the strengths of each and allowing the free sharing of ideas to refine our weaknesses we become not just greater, but better over time. They felt this strongly enough that the original motto of our nation was “From Many, One“.
Connect
Let’s begin with a bit about What I stand For
Civility Above All – We are One District, One State, and One Nation. I am asking to work for our district, not to fight for it
Vision
Actionable Issues
Addressing Economic Inequality – The progress of digitalization and automation that drive so much of the modern economy is concentrating power and wealth at an increasing rate. We need to ensure that our district is not left behind. If you’d like to learn more about me and the experiences that continue to shape my life and decisions, read on.
Environmental Protection – Climate Change is here now and we need to adapt. This is the most serious issue facing all of us today. In the coming world, as it has been, water is at the heart of Minnesota.
Any Minnesotan who sees our shorter, warmer winters, the longer dry times, and the heavier rains when they come know that climate change is here today and that it is already hurting us. Because carbon dioxide remains in the air for hundreds of years after we put it there, what we are experiencing today is the product of what we did in the early 1900s. This means it is not going to get better anytime soon and will get much worse regardless of what we do today. Adapting to this is the greatest challenge of our time and calls for us to work together.
Issues
How Can You Help?
- Volunteer– Contact my campaign at Eric.Olson.DFL@gmail.com.
- Donate– https://secure.actblue.com/donate/campaign-fund-of-eric-olson-1 Your donation may be eligible for the MN Political Contribution Refund (PCR) program. If you have not already taken advantage of that program this year, EMail our campaign to request a PCR receipt and complete the Department of Revenue Form. Then mail those to the MN Department of Revenue (by tax day) and you will receive a check reimbursing you for the first $50 per person ($100 per household).
- Talk to me– If your group or community is working on issues to help our district, I want to learn about them so I can find out how best to support your efforts.
Send me email or an invitation to your meeting so I can listen.
Give
The core logo is designed and drawn by James Melvin. Thank you.
About Eric Olson
Education – I am the son of teachers and spent time as a teacher myself, including some time at Pine City High School. From my third grade teacher, Mrs. Moss, who taught me to look for the patterns that hold the world together and appreciate their beauty to my world history teacher, Mr. Farquharson who instilled an appreciation for the many cultures and viewpoints that the world has to offer, to the choir director, Mr. McAfee who gave me the courage to stand in front of people and sing, and more in between than I can possibly mention, I received an excellent education here that I can compare favorably to people in any of the dozens of countries where I have worked. Perhaps more than anything else, the education we provide to our children is the key to the future success of our region, our state, and our world. I value an education that teaches what it means to learn and that is grounded in experiences since I feel these are the main requirements for success in the coming world.
Our Environment – I grew up fishing and hunting with my father and learning to love the outdoors. More than anything, however, my time as a park ranger for the National Park Service shaped my view of how we must treat our world. We must balance our use and enjoyment of our natural resources with the need to leave them unimpaired for future generations. As our population and our capability grow, this balance becomes ever more critical. For any who have not read it, I recommend “A Sand County Almanac” by Aldo Leopold.
Science and Technology – It is in this area that I have spent most of my career and done most of my thinking. I have degrees in Physics and Math. I worked for a long time with computer software. There are two key factors in this that influence who I am. First, and most importantly, I believe that we all work with a model of the world in our heads. Sometimes that matches the real world and sometimes it doesn’t. The two greatest assets of human character are the strength to hold firm to the truth and the humility to acknowledge it and change when logic proves our beliefs are wrong. I think Lincoln expressed that well in his second inaugural address: “with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right”. Second, and more practically, I have experience working with the technology that drives and connects the world in the new economy. I have done work for many of the world’s largest corporations. Technical jargon and new capabilities do not frighten or awe me. I think these skills are needed more than ever in our legislature.
Religion – I am a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and my Christian faith informs all of my values and my decisions. With that said, in my travels, I have found friends of many faiths and of no faith at all that has taught me much and made my life richer and all these beliefs are a key part of the many that make up our one nation. It is difficult to summarize faith in one statement, but as it drives my political life, the closest I can come is a quote from Paul’s letter to the Romans: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” God sets a standard of ethical life that is as much a part of the universe as quantum mechanics, but that neither I nor any person can meet. Yet, God joyfully forgives my failures and asks me to strive to be better.
Global Understanding – Our nation and our district are becoming more diverse. The flow of such broader ideas and viewpoints is the fuel that drives our democracy and the food that strengthens our nation. In addition to my technical degrees, I have a degree in history which has been a longstanding interest. I have traveled and worked in more than 70 countries and this experience helps me to understand what works and what doesn’t in a variety of systems. Perhaps my most valuable experience was the time I spent in the US Peace Corps in Zimbabwe. First, this taught me the value of service to our nation. Second, it taught me what can be accomplished with limited resources and simply listening carefully to the aspirations of the people.
Ready to take the next step and support Eric?
Get Involved
Talk to me– If your group or community is working on issues to help our district, I want to learn about them so I can find out how best to support your efforts.
Send me an email or an invitation to your meeting so I can listen.
Don’t Forget to Vote!
Tuesday, November 08, 2022
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Donate
*Your donation may be eligible for the MN Political Contribution Refund (PCR) program. If you have not already taken advantage of that program this year, EMail our campaign to request a PCR receipt and complete the Department of Revenue Form (hyperlink to their website, https://www.revenue.state.mn.us/political-contribution-refund). Then mail those to the MN Department of Revenue (by tax day) and you will receive a check reimbursing you for the first $50 per person ($100 per household).
