News

​Better watch your ax!

March 20th, 2019

Triple Ax Lanes - photograph by Ryan Janke

Marcel Baumgartner and her boyfriend, Erik Kalberg, took an anniversary trip to Minneapolis in November and came back with a crazy idea – to open Fargo’s first ax-throwing range. Four months later, they opened Triple Ax in south Fargo.

“We kind of did [ax-throwing] as an anniversary thing and we fell in love,” Baumgartner said.

She said that after they finished throwing, they suggested to the owners of the range that they should open a range in Fargo. That approach didn’t seem…

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​City preparing for historic ‘unmerciful’ flood

March 16th, 2019

Flooding in the Fargo-Moorhead area - photograph provided by F-M Area Diversion

FARGO – The National Weather Service has predicted widespread flooding from the Great Lakes to Devils Lake to the Red River of the North River Basin, saying the risk is elevated because of packed snow, deep frost, and above-normal ice thickness.

“March has been and will likely stay unmerciful,” the National Weather Service reported.

“There is an elevated risk of spring flooding along the Red River mainstem, current soil moisture is near normal with winter precipitation well…

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Un-masked

March 13th, 2019

Design by Raul Gomez

FARGO – The “Alt-right” may be attempting to reform its public image after the deadly 2017 “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, but leaked chat logs from white power group servers on Discord reveal they’re just as fanatic, and some elected North Dakota politicians sympathize or are secret supporters of neo-Nazi and white supremacist ideology.

Media outlet Unicorn Riot released more than 770,000 messages from chat servers associated with Identity Evropa last week,…

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​Momo: ‘There is a syndrome under my bed’

March 13th, 2019

A teenager scrolling through Momo Challenge apps on WhatsApp - photograph by C.S. Hagen

FARGO – Early morning, March 5, A.H. awoke complaining she hadn’t slept well. Usually, she slept soundly, only bright lights and loud, terrible singing worked to wake her up for middle school.

“Why didn’t you sleep well?” A.H.’s father said.

“Because I was thinking of Momo,” A.H. said. “I’m not scared of her during the day, but at night I imagine she’s under my bed.”

“That’s the first sign Momo has got you in her targets,” A.H.’s father said. He liked to…

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​How’s your roof?

March 13th, 2019

A collapsed roof in Clay County - photograph by Mike Stulz

The winter is continuing its unrelenting onslaught against us here in the Red River Valley 9.1 inches fell in Fargo over the weekend and more was forecast as this story went to press.

With all the snow we are taking on, and with temperatures slowly creeping up, we decided it would be a good idea to get some advice on how to handle issues homeowners may be experiencing due to the snow and ice.

One area of concern is snow on roofs. Several buildings in the region experienced roof collapse…

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​There is a rise in violent speech and threats made to silence women leaders

March 7th, 2019

Left to right - Representative Ruth Buffalo, Representative Karla Rose Hanson, and writer Josie Danz.

BISMARCK to FARGO – Two progressive female legislators and a writer have been threatened or harassed in North Dakota recently in conversations, social media posts, and telephone calls.

On Thursday, Representative Ruth Buffalo, the state’s first elected female Democratic-NPL Native legislator, said she was threatened on Facebook after Valley New Live POVnow questioned Buffalo’s stance of supporting Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar, who some say is anti-Semitic.

“I think Ruth…

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The U.S.-China Trade War has Substantial Implications for Everyday Farmers

March 6th, 2019

By Abigail Brooks

Amid the trade war between the United States and China damaging tariffs have been put into place from both sides. Currently, the United States has implemented tariffs affecting $250 billion of Chinese goods. In retaliation, China has put tariffs affecting $110 billion of U.S products into place. Farmers in the United States are one group that is undoubtedly being affected by the recent tariffs. North Dakota is an example of a state where farmers are seeing noticeable…

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The new McCarthyism

February 27th, 2019

Design by Raul Gomez

BISMARCK – In the most collective state in the union socialism is a dirty word, and top elected politicians are already using “Wolverine”-style fear tactics to rally the far-right troops two years before the 2020 Presidential election.

Many say the McCarthyism, or “McCarthywasm,” a moniker once offered by Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower, dog whistling is the GOP’s next war cry.

Similarities to the 1984 movie “Red Dawn,” starring Patrick Swayze, cannot be…

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​Rockin’ around the clock

February 27th, 2019

Fargo's snow equipment - photograph by Ryan Janke

Fargo Public Works has been working around the clock since late December to clean up after a series of blizzards and winter storms. It has been hard for the department to try to keep up with the snowfall, but Public Works Director Ben Dow said he is committed to continuing the fight.

As of Feb. 24, Fargo had broken its 40-year-old record for February snowfall. After another 1.1” on Feb. 26, Fargo was sitting at 21.4” for the month and 47.8” for the 2018-19 winter season.

Average…

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​West Fargo police officer arrested

February 25th, 2019

West Fargo Police Sergeant Ryan Denis - West Fargo Police Department

WEST FARGO – A West Fargo Police Sergeant was arrested Sunday night after he crashed into a snow bank in the area of 19th Avenue East and Beaton Drive, according to a police report.

Patrol Sergeant Ryan Denis was arrested on charges related to driving under the influence after police dispatch was notified about a reckless driver. While officers were heading toward the scene, Denis crashed into the snow bank, police reports stated.

The North Dakota Highway Patrol was called out to the…

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