Editorial

​‘No one wants to work anymore.’ Why?

December 19th, 2024

By Sabrina Hornung

sabrina@hpr1.com

I’m really sick of the “Nobody wants to work anymore” narrative. Like, really sick. I can’t hide the eye rolls and I don’t even try to hide them anymore. In fact, I feel like they’ll get stuck in the back of my head if I stifle them.

Instead, when folks bring this up, they need to be challenged with questions about what we’re offering our workforce and ask the tough questions about housing, childcare and the average age of folks around…

Read more...


​What The Hell Just Happened

November 21st, 2024

By Jim Fuglie

jimfuglie920@gmail.com

Okay, so last month I promised you a woman President of the United States. So much for my predictability quotient.

Lesson 1: Never promise something you can’t control. And nobody, not even Melania, can control Donald Trump.

The rest of my predictions were not too bad. I just missed a big one. By a mile. I predicted Republicans were pretty much going to sweep North Dakota, though. I got that right.

But I was pretty confident all along that Donald…

Read more...


​Political Chaos

October 16th, 2024

By Jim Fuglie

jimfuglie920@gmail.com

As a political columnist, I know I should be writing an election preview for the issue of this paper that comes out just a couple weeks before what is being labeled, once again, as “the most important election of our lifetime.” Okay, so here goes my election preview:

  • In North Dakota, the Republicans are going to win. Pretty much everything.
  • In the United States of America, we’re going to elect our first woman president.

Well, now that we have…

Read more...


The Little Newspaper That Could

September 19th, 2024

Happy 30th Birthday HPR

By John Strand

jas@hpr1.com

Thirty years ago some gutsy UND student journalists hanging at Whitey’s in East Grand Forks got enough liquid courage to create their own damn newspaper. Then with drinks raised, they toasted the paper’s name, the High Plains Reader. The first issue was dated September 8, 1994.

There's been a lot of water under the bridge since then. Hundreds of editions, thousands of pages and bylines. Countless contributors and advertisers. The…

Read more...


We still have glass ceilings to shatter

August 15th, 2024

We’re making progress.

By Sabrina Hornung

sabrina@hpr1.com

Yay Kamala! It is such a relief to see a candidate for POTUS who is actually capable of doing the job and preserving our representative democracy. And, of course, she’s female and endorsed by Hillary Clinton, the best-qualified presidential candidate of the century so far.

But after cruising social media for the last few weeks, it’s quite apparent that our nation has an extremely unhealthy attitude toward not only women,…

Read more...


Prayers are not enough

July 18th, 2024

Recovering from Pennsylvania

By John Strand

jas@hpr1.com

Holy shit, America! Is this a path we want to stay on? Is this the tipping point or brink we’re at? Is it a sign of more to come, or a come to Jesus moment where we decide enough is enough?

The unbelievable reality that a 20-year-old kid would decide to take a semi-automatic long rifle and attempt to assassinate former President Donald Trump at a political rally in Pennsylvania yesterday is stunning beyond words. Thank God he…

Read more...


​Our opinion: Let’s explore what’s best for future generations.

June 20th, 2024

The WFF Unified School District?

By John Strand

jas@hpr1.com

Both the Fargo and West Fargo School Districts are strategizing their futures. This is necessary, because of immensely challenging financial and geopolitical changes facing both districts.

While both districts are weighing options, there’s one very glaring option missing that neither is considering, at least to our knowledge. We’re remiss when we do not put all potentialities before the decision makers and ultimately the…

Read more...


The end of the Zandbroz era

May 16th, 2024

Our opinion: Has Fargo lost its cool?

By Sabrina Hornung

sabrina@hpr1.com

On April 24, The Forum reported that Zandbroz Variety would be closing its doors after 33 years, and the announcement hit like a ton of books.

Upon hearing the news, long-time regulars and former employees, affectionately referred to as “Zandbrozians,” reconnected with fellow Zandbrozians sharing the news and eulogizing the space and the spirit of Zandbroz with the certain somber tone of finding out that a…

Read more...


It can’t happen here

April 18th, 2024

Is this a repeating pattern?

By Sabrina Hornung

sabrina@hpr1.comThere’s a quote circulating around the world wide web, misattributed to Sinclair Lewis: "When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross." According to The Sinclair Lewis Society, it sounds like something he would agree with but there’s no proof that he actually wrote or said it.

In Sinclair’s 1943 novel “Gideon Planish,” he wrote, "I just wish people wouldn't quote Lincoln or the…

Read more...


Be the vote that mattered

March 21st, 2024

By John Strand

jas@hpr1.com

What’s that you just said? “Tell somebody who gives a shit”?

Stop reading this now if you don’t care about anyone else. Don’t waste your time. You’ll only get mad. Vocal. Obstinate. Unforgiving.

You know what we’re talking about. And you know who you are.

This is a liberal rag. You already know that. A liberal rag in a conservative state. So don’t feign victimhood if you’re reading about our advocacy of people and issues you simply don’t…

Read more...


Tracker Pixel for Entry Blackbird Tracker Pixel for Entry EmpireAUG2021 Tracker Pixel for Entry MidwestRoadTripAdventures Tracker Pixel for Entry Bismarck1

Recently in:

By Winona LaDukewinona@winonaladuke.com The business of Indian Hating is a lucrative one. It’s historically been designed to dehumanize Native people so that it’s easier to take their land. ‘Kill the Indian, save the man,”…

SHSND delves into their ornament collectionBy Jenny Yearoushistory@nd.govIn 2017 we received Christmas ornaments from the North Dakota Former Governors’ Residence. The ornaments were gifts from local chapters of the Germans from…

Saturday, December 21, 7 p.m.Drekker Brewing, 1666 1st Avenue N, FargoEmbrace the naughty and celebrate the dark side of the solstice. From 7-close, Drekker’s mavens of mischief transform their taproom. There’s a photo booth,…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com I’m really sick of the “Nobody wants to work anymore” narrative. Like, really sick. I can’t hide the eye rolls and I don’t even try to hide them anymore. In fact, I feel like they’ll…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comA new type of Civil War: “smash-and grab” capitalism and healthcare The Divided States of America has the greatest economic inequality among wealthy nations on Planet Earth and has birthed a…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com In this land of hotdish and ham, the knoephla soup of German-Russian heritage seems to reign supreme. In my opinion though, the French have the superior soup. With a cheesy top layer, toasted baguette…

By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.com Local band Zero Place has been making quite a name for itself locally and regionally in the last few years. Despite getting its start during a time it seemed the whole world was coming to…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com Writer-director Nicole Riegel’s sophomore feature “Dandelion” is now playing in theaters following a world premiere at South by Southwest in March. The movie stars KiKi Layne as the…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comIn 1974, the Jamestown Arts Center started as a small space above a downtown drugstore. It has grown to host multiple classrooms, a gallery, performance studio, ceramic studio and outdoor art park.…

By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comHigh Plains Reader had the opportunity to interview two mysterious new game show hosts named Milt and Bradley Barker about an upcoming event they will be putting on at Brewhalla. What…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

By Josette Ciceronunapologeticallyanxiousme@gmail.com What does it mean to truly live in a community —or should I say, among community? It’s a question I have been wrestling with since I moved to Fargo-Moorhead in February 2022.…

By Faye Seidlerfayeseidler@gmail.com On Dec 5, the Turning Point USA chapter at North Dakota State University hosted an event called BisonFest. This event featured Chloe Cole, a former trans kid, known for detransitioning and…

By Curtis W. Stofferahn, Ph.D.Curtis.stofferahn@email.und.edu In June, two events markedly contrasted the difference between two different visions of agriculture: precision agriculture and regenerative agriculture. The dedication…