News

NORTH DAKOTA ECONOMIC PICTURE DIMS

April 13th, 2016

This week, North Dakota Tax Commissioner Ryan Rauschenberger announced that taxable sales and purchases in the state are down 19% to $22.9 billion, the lowest total since 2011, affected no doubt by low oil prices. This follows a $1 billion budget shortfall which resulted in agency-wide cuts in state government and a recent rejection by Governor Jack Dalrymple to calls from Democrats for a special session to deal with all of this. High Plains Reader caught up with ND Senate Minority…

ND Dems select Chase Iron Eyes

April 6th, 2016

Over the weekend, North Dakota Democrats nominated Native American activist Chase Iron Eyes to run against Congressman Kevin Cramer for US House in 2016 at their state convention. Almost immediately, Iron Eyes came under attack from the blogosphere. HPR caught up with him to find out why he’s running and to respond to the attacks.

HPR: First of all, why don’t we talk a little bit about why you decided to run for Congress?

Chase Iron Eyes: I am a lifelong North Dakotan. I call myself…

Calendar of Events March 31 - April 7

March 31st, 2016

ONGOING

ART EXHIBITS

*The Clothesline Project Exhibition explores the experiences of individuals affected by sexual assault and violence. The exhibition will run from March 29 - April 7 with a discussion taking place on April 5 at 5 PM and a tour taking place on April 7 from 5 - 7:30 PM. This event is free and is taking place on the second floor of the Memorial Union in the Gallery at NDSU.

*The Great Winter Crow Show 2016 Group Exhibit, Spirit Room, 111 N. Broadway, Fargo, thru April…

Fargo Police pressured Spring Jam venues

March 30th, 2016

For the second year in a row, the Fargo police department talked to venues who had agreed to host the annual Spring Jam hip hop concert hosted by rapper J-Sauce aka Jason Grant and tried to convince them not to hold the event. They brought up the incident at last year’s Spring Jam at the Days Inn in Moorhead which was shut down early and involved concerns about gang activity. Last year, the police mentioned concerning one of the performers was involved in gang activity.

Cambria Suites…

47th Annual UND Writers Conference “The Art Of Science,” April 6-8, 2016

March 30th, 2016

The 47th Annual UND Writers Conference, “The Art of Science,” will take place April 6-8, 2016 at the Memorial Union on UND’s campus in Grand Forks. The Conference will feature authors/artists who incorporate the hard sciences into their work. The Conference will feature readings, panel discussions, book signings, workshops, and film screenings. The UND Early Career Big Data Summit, which includes a Hack-A-Thon, will be co-located with this year’s Conference. All events are free…

SXSW 2016 the Fame Monster

March 30th, 2016

I was told several times on my trip about how Austin was the fastest growing city in the United States, How there are 1,000 people coming to the city every single day. That last figure sounded, and was indeed far fetched. The actual figure is somewhere from 110 - 150. That doesn’t account for all the people leaving the city which some estimate is as high as 55,000 per year.

Regardless, there is something special happening in this city. Whether it’s the worldwide fascination with its…

HPR goes to SXSW to meet with two indie rock kingmakers

March 24th, 2016

Fargo natives mark 20 years of running record labels

How do two brothers from Fargo manage to successfully run some of the biggest indie rock labels in the country, two of which are celebrating their 20th anniversary this year? It’s a little bit timing, part luck, hard work, and their ability to adapt to the ever changing music industry and sign exactly the right new acts on their way up.

Chris and Ben Swanson went to Fargo South high school and graduated in 1994 and 1996. In 1996, they…

Three heroin overdose deaths in seven days

March 17th, 2016

Three heroin overdose deaths in seven days

By John Strand & Tom Bixby

Law enforcement officials representing several agencies warned the public Sunday about an extraordinarily dangerous situation involving tainted or laced heroin in the FM area.

“The purpose of this press conference is to provide a public safety message in relation to several narcotic or opioid overdoses that have occurred in the FM area in the last several days,” Fargo Police Chief David Todd stated at the outset.…

Ruth Rheault speaks openly of nephew’s death

March 16th, 2016

Ruth Rheault speaks openly of nephew’s death

By John Strand & Tom Bixby

Zachary Spieker died Feb. 22 in East Grand Forks due to a heroin overdose. A 2008 graduate of Moorhead High, he excelled academically and had been named to the National Honor Roll Society, as well as the National Who’s Who of high school students. He then attended Concordia College.

Zach’s aunt, Ruth Rheault of Rollag, spoke candidly with HPR about the ravages of addiction, difficulties individuals and families…

Staying Alive

March 16th, 2016

Staying Alive: Jeremy Kelly and the F-M Good Neighbor Project

By John Strand and Tom Bixby

There are big organizations that help drug users. A small one in Moorhead goes where the addicts are and really takes care of business. HPR spoke with Jeremy Kelly, founder of the F-M Good Neighbor Project.

High Plains Reader: What’s your mission and what do you do at the Project?

Jeremy Kelly: Social justice. We go by the harm reduction model of human service in the addiction field: low-barrier…