July 18th, 2024
Recovering from Pennsylvania
By John Strand
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…
June 20th, 2024
The WFF Unified School District?
By John Strand
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…
May 16th, 2024
Our opinion: Has Fargo lost its cool?
By Sabrina Hornung
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…
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…
March 21st, 2024
By John Strand
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…
February 15th, 2024
By Sabrina Hornung
When one googles “What traits are desirable in a new employee,” some of the first words that pop up “from sources around the web” include “communication,” “team player,” “leadership,” “honest,” “reliable.” Now take these words and think: How do these words best apply to my preferred candidate on a local, state, and national level?
That’s our role as voters. We elect these candidates so they can represent us and to make…
January 18th, 2024
By Sabrina Hornung
sabrina@hpr1.com
Our Opinion: Reinvigorate that sense of wonder
This month’s focus at High Plains Reader is the State of the Arts. From a regional standpoint, we’re small but mighty – and there are so many organizations that go above and beyond that deserve a shoutout and are certainly worth a day trip. A quick google search can determine dates, times, and reservations, if needed.
The Ellendale Opera House and Ellendale Area Arts Council is located just an hour…
December 19th, 2023
Our opinion: Make your mark and consider volunteering.
By Sabrina Hornung
Last September, the Fargo Forum reported that the Kilbourne Group, along with Fargo’s finest elected officials, met with the Salvation Army behind closed doors to propose they leave their downtown home on Roberts Street. They have called that space home since 1904.
According to that article, Mayor Mahoney says there are no solid plans to move the facility but they have shopped around for a potential…
November 13th, 2023
By Sabrina Hornung
sabrina@hpr1.com
Remember the legacy of the NPL.
Last Saturday I had the opportunity to attend the annual meeting and dinner hosted by the Dakota Resource Council in Bismarck. I came in feeling a little defeated, jaded with not only regional politics, but national politics and pretty much anything in between.
Michael Lansing, historian, academic and author of “Insurgent Democracy: The Nonpartisan League in North American Politics,” gave us a really effective lecture…
October 16th, 2023
By Birgit Pruess
birgit.pruess@gmail.com
Guest editorial: If you are a taxpayer, these are your horses.
If you are one of many fans of the Theodore Roosevelt National Park (TRNP) horses, here is an update on the current situation. TRNP has released 94 pages of environmental assessment on September 25, which is now followed by a month of comment collection. You can see both the assessment document and the…
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By Maddie Robinsonmaddierobi.mr@gmail.com This article discusses topics related to mental health and suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org. …
The life of a jockey straight from the horse's mouthBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comFor George Pineda, jockeying is a family tradition. But that legacy includes loss. “My uncles, Alvaro and Robert Pineda — one got killed in a…
Thursday, August 8, gates 5 p.m., show starts at 7 p.m.Bluestem Amphitheater, 801 50th Avenue S., MoorheadFormed by guitarist/vocalist Brian Setzer, upright bass player Lee Rocker and drummer Slim Jim Phantom, The Stray Cats…
Recovering from PennsylvaniaBy John Strandjas@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…
By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comHow can anyone be lonely with eight billion homo sapiens on Earth?The world seems to be in the throes of a PTSD pandemic. Even the price of happiness is going way up. Back in 2010 two Nobel Prize…
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…
HPR chats with Slug of the hip-hop duo AtmosphereBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comWhen Sean Daley, also known as Slug, the voice of Twin Cities-based hip hop duo Atmosphere and co-founder of rap label Rhymesayers was growing up,…
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…
New Minnesota sculptures include artist’s largest trollBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com According to Danish artist and environmental activist Thomas Dambo, “All trash is treasure.” So far, he and his team have built 138…
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 John Showalter john.d.showalter@gmail.comThey sell fentanyl test strips and kits to harm-reduction organizations and…
JANUARY 19, 1967– MARCH 8, 2023 Brittney Leigh Goodman, 56, of Fargo, N.D., passed away unexpectedly at her home on March 8, 2023. Brittney was born January 19, 1967, to Ruth Wilson Pollock and Donald Ray Goodman, in Hardinsburg,…
By Madeline Lukemzlnd@yahoo.com About 100 years ago the state of agriculture in North Dakota was pretty dire. Minnesota banks, grain mills, and railroads treated ND as a colony; they extracted our labor and natural resources for…
