Editorial

Odds were stacked against survival for The Little Newspaper That Could from Day One. But here it is, 24 years later, and the High Plains Reader still plays a vital role in the culture and fabric of our local and greater communities.

Happy Birthday, HPR!

There’s no greater testimony to the value of a local newsweekly such as the Reader than to simply note its storied journey over the years. HPR no doubt has evolved to become the people’s paper. It’s not a big conglomerate enterprise;…

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There was one quote that really resonated within me in this week’s issue of High Plains Reader and it was part of C.S. Hagen’s “Voting Methods” story. Jed Limke, the man behind the Approval Voting Army said,“...in recent years a certain apathy has seemed to hover over local elections with low voter turnout. Too many people feel their votes don’t count.”

These sentiments echoed through more than the local elections, look at the current state of the nation. It’s easy to…

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by Melissa Martin
melissamartincounselor@live.com 

Each year 44,965 Americans die by suicide, according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.www.afsp.org/.

Suicide rates increased in all but one state between 1999 and 2016, with increases seen across age, gender, race and ethnicity, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. www.cdc.gov/.

Forty-six percent of people who died by suicide had a diagnosed mental condition. Common contributing factors…

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On August 14, The Bismarck Tribune reported that “A popular insecticide could be banned for agricultural use.” Popular as it may be I can think of a whole slew of adjectives that would be more appropriate like questionable, deadly, poisonous… after all it is a neurotoxic pesticide.

According to https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/, neurotoxic pesticides kill off these pests by targeting their nervous system, but it’s not just limited to invertebrates. They’ve been known to have…

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I’m one of the most well known trans individuals in the Fargo/Moorhead area. This is because I’ve purposely put myself out there as a symbol of visibility. I’m out there to show people that you can be transgender and that you can be happy. I’m also out there to be an open contact that anyone can reach out to with questions or to find resources. In many ways, I’ve become everything that I needed but didn’t have when I was transitioning in this state.

I’m not sharing that to…

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I found myself in Forbes, North Dakota, in search of the local butcher shop. I was working on a collaborative art project at a nearby elder care facility a couple of months ago and was told that The People’s Store in Forbes had the tastiest sausage in all the land. In fact, I heard that it even rivaled that of the famous Wishek sausage, but then again my source may or may not have been from Forbes--a prairie gem with a population of a little over 50. Whenever I’m in that neck of the…

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We’d be remiss to not acknowledge the recent untimely death of Ed Schultz whose media journey was rooted right here in Fargo. No doubt a lightning rod, Schultz impacted the world like few ever do.

When HPR was new to the Fargo community, Big Eddie commonly shared his microphone with voices representing The Little Newspaper That Could. He was a big fan of the underdog. He also – by then – had developed a full blown case of hatred for the local daily newspaper organization. His…

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With all of the excitement surrounding the legalization of recreational and medicinal marijuana, why aren’t we discussing the possibilities of industrial hemp? You might not catch a buzz from it but there’s all kinds of other cool stuff you can do with it. Hemp can be used for food, fuel, fiber, pulp for paper and even bioplastics. So could we feed, fuel and clothe the world with one crop?

Maybe we’re sounding too hopeful.

It wouldn’t be the first time hemp was cultivated in our…

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One of three Red State Democratic U.S. Senators up for reelection this November, North Dakota’s Heidi Heitkamp is no doubt in the national spotlight.

That President Trump has nominated Judge Brett Kavanaugh, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, to be that next U.S. Supreme Court Justice will unleash disproportionate pressure on Sen. Heitkamp. And, to that end, we have one word of advice: “Resist.”

National media reports suggest millions of dollars will be…

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“Some people say I am trying to shut it down and that is what will happen if it gets voted through, but ultimately what I’m trying to do is preserve the legacy of the town,” said Ryan Schock, mayor of Leith, North Dakota, in an interview with KFYR-TV.

Schock made a move to disincorporate the small town of Leith in order to stop write-in candidates Michael Bencz and Deby Nelson from joining their city council. The two are believed to have white supremacist leanings and were elected…

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