The Rules of Engage U

Cover by Jordan Nelson

What does a flood-plagued region do when there is no flood?

Potpourri of Precious Piffle

Several times during the year I end up with a lot of subjects I would like to write a column about, but many of them don’t deserve a lengthy diatribe—just a few short jabs and then a haymaker. Here are some from my collection.

Caitlin and Caley: Cello and Trumpet, Acoustic Rock

At a serendipitous open mic one summer night in 2006, Caitlin Benson and Caley Pieper met on stage at the old Red Raven Espresso Parlor in downtown Fargo.

‘The Five-Year Engagement’

The story of chef Tom (Jason Segel) and academic Violet (Emily Blunt), plays out in “The Five-Year Engagement” with a mixture of novelty and familiarity akin to the plots of countless romantic comedies produced since at least the advent of synchronous sound.

Navigating Cinco and Seis de Mayo

This week we kidnap a holiday and meet a professional mixologist; he’ll tell you why your head hurts on Seis de Mayo.

Bike revolutions

We may shape shift between bus, bike, car, or foot, but we share the road everyday and we need solidarity for each other. Whose streets? Our streets, let’s use them as much as possible!

Best Bets 5-3-12

Pizza Squirrel

Upon waking, she asked her significant other to grab her winter boots that had been sitting outside throughout the night from off the front step. To which he obliged as he was on the way to the door to bring in the morning paper anyway. When he brought them back into the house, it was discovered with much chagrin that the boots were filled with tightly packed pizza crust bits.

An Un-Pleasant Experience

This week, the Cass County Board of Commissioners stifled the democratic rights of a group of people in rural North Dakota’s Pleasant Township. The group of 15 residents petitioned Cass County to de-annex their land from Cass County to Richland County. The group is unanimously dissatisfied with the Cass County leadership and asserts that their interests are not being heard concerning the flood diversion plan. The Cass County Commissioners swiftly squelched these residents’ opportunity to bring their issue to a public vote because they felt the residents represented a small group, when in reality, they represent a large amount of land mass in Cass County. The County stopped the petition request for de-annexation by relying on an obscure rule of government that allows the County Commission to be the gatekeepers on allowing this issue be on the ballot, so they denied the petition and prevented a public vote.

View the Meeting of the Cass County Board of Commissioners here: