Editorial

We’re not so different you and I

July 6th, 2016

It’s been about a week since we returned from Norway. The experience itself was life changing. While Raul and I were there for ten days, the students had a month to immerse themselves in the culture of Oslo and dig their fingers deep into the underground dirt of what makes the city truly unique.

Three people out of 11 had the opportunity to meet up with their Norwegian relatives, while your editor had an opportunity to reunite with her German cousin. Exploring a foreign city with two…

Norwegian Firearm Legislation

June 23rd, 2016

By Tom Bixby

On July 22, 2011, Anders Breivik murdered 77 young people on the island of Utoya, in Norway. Norwegians call it 22 juli, July 22nd, and it’s as familiar to them as 9/11 is to us.

In Norway, to own a gun, you apply to the police authority in your district for an acquisition permit (ervervstillatelsen). You specify the firearms for which you will be responsible. The permit to buy is valid for a year.

The dealer selling the gun sends the original permit to buy to the police,…

Apotheosis

June 15th, 2016

Words will not do justice to what’s on my mind. This will not be a traditional editorial. Rather, it’s a personal communication to HPR’s readers and others in our community.

I’ve had many titles over the years, here at HPR and elsewhere. There is nothing I’m more proud of than being part of The Little Newspaper That Could’s storied journey for two-plus decades. The bond with thousands of readers is not easily explained, yet it is real and heartfelt.

This week something big…

HPR skips across the pond for our first international issue

June 9th, 2016

It’s time to let the cat out of the bag. We will be working with ieiMedia, Valley City State University journalism instructor Steve Listopad and eight journalism students from across the nation and Canada. They have been overseas since the end of May. Their intent is to imbed themselves in Norwegian musical and cultural events as part of their “Oslo Rocks!” Project. And Rock it does..On June 12 Raul and I will be skipping across the pond to Oslo Norway to join them.

This particular…

Where do we go from here?

June 1st, 2016

By Tom Bixby

tom@hpr1.com

We’ve read Grace Lyden’s timely and thorough “9 things to know about Block 9, Fargo’s future high-rise,” in the Forum. One of the nine things is that there will be 20 condominiums on floors 13 to 17, purchase prices in the million dollar range.

She goes on: “While this is described in proposals as a ‘high-end condominium,’ Kilbourne Group says Block 9 will not gentrify Downtown.”

Lyden quotes from another document. “Kilbourne Group projects,…

Keep Your Eyes On The Road

May 20th, 2016

Start seeing motorcycles

It’s that time of year, the weather’s beautiful, and there’s nothing better than feeling the sun in your face and the wind in your hair. Needless to say--bike season and lake season is in full swing.

As motorists it is our duty to be fully alert while behind the wheel. We must realize that while in a vehicle we have a ton of components moving at an unmeasured velocity. Bikers and bicyclists don’t stand much of a chance when it comes to impact.

According…

Art for art’s sake

May 6th, 2016

Last week John Strand mentioned how fortunate our community is to have access to so many wonderful amenities such as our many large and small concert venues, theaters, and gallery spaces. Not only do they aim to entertain but they also aid in the cultivation of community and overall awareness of the arts no matter what age you are.

As the largest city in the state of North Dakota -- the size of our community aids in our advantages. These facilities would not be here if there were no…

Wrangling the lean green Earth Day scene

April 20th, 2016

Wednesdays at The High Plains Reader office have a frantic yet positive energy to them as we strive to make our deadline and give Fargo-Moorhead the best darn paper we can. Though this morning,with a smile on his face, John Strand urged us to look out the window and to observe a few NDSU students outside picking up garbage in observance of Earth Week.

Earth Day has been in our consciousness since the spring of 1970. According to earthday.org, it was founded by Gaylord Nelson a US…

FARGO LOVES ‘FARGO’

April 14th, 2016

It’s hard to believe that the movie “Fargo” was released 20 years ago. If it wasn’t for “Fargo,” would bomber hats have such a spot on our heads and in our hearts? Would the phrase “Uffda” be spoken with simultaneous irony and sincerity? Yeah, sure you betcha--but no one else would know or care as much. With its dark humor, frigid cold outdoor imagery and Midwest kitsch.

The Coen brothers certainly put us on the map. First with the “Fargo” feature, and once the…