Editorial

On your mark

August 26th, 2015

Our Opinion / What kind of North Dakota we envision will bear out in who we choose to be governor

HPR leans left. That’s no secret. We like many aspects of what people call progressive movements. Yet, we also advocate for fiscal prudence.

That said, it will not come as a surprise that we are eagerly anticipating the forthcoming race for governor in North Dakota. No doubt, Gov. Jack Dalrymple’s announcement this week that he will not seek reelection in 2016 has fueled immense…

The education of a wandering girl

August 19th, 2015

Dig into Pockets of culture

By Sabrina Hornung

At the beginning of the year I relocated to my hometown. I’m not gonna lie -- I felt pretty down and out, betrayed, heartbroken and downright disgusted. Everything I owned was hastily stored in my mom’s garage in no particular order. I found myself in Jamestown contemplating my life choices. Living out of a few boxes in my grandparents’ house and sharing my childhood bedroom with my two cats, “Lion King” sheets and twin-size canopy…

Refugees coming to Fargo results in media misinformation

August 13th, 2015

More responsible reporting, less racist social media comments please

The recent uproar over 100 refugees coming to Fargo in a resettlement program administered by Lutheran Social Services was indicative of how the media can twist things and stir people into a frenzy using misinformation and race baiting. When a legal immigration program is fused with images of illegal immigrants crossing the border and the origin of where those are coming from are constantly mentioned, you have to wonder…

Love always makes a difference

August 6th, 2015

Diane Miller speaking at TEDxFargo / Photo by Dan Francis

A million times thank you to the Fargo-Moorhead community

Throughout my three and a half years of being a leader in local media, I’ve gone from thinking “I’m HPR’s best editor ever” to thinking “How on all crevices of the earth would anyone have ever considered me to be an editor?” I didn’t even know how to spell the word spelled. I thought it was spelt.

I could go on. Growing up, I was a fabulous gym-class student but just an OK English student. I had no journalism…

Starting anew

July 29th, 2015

Welcome, Sabrina Hornung and Chris Hennen; a grateful send-off for Diane Miller

We’ve known for several months that HPR editor Diane Miller will be moving to the Twin Cities. We fully expect she’ll soar to new heights in her new environs.

That said, it will be with full hearts as we wrap up Diane’s tenure as editor-in-chief here at the High Plains Reader. She’s done a stellar job to say the least and we love and respect her.

When the inevitable move away from Fargo became apparent,…

Don’t trample rights of individuals

July 23rd, 2015

A week ago, as HPR was preparing to go to press, a firestorm was unfolding in our community. Long story short – as most of you know this well – a Fargo resident was targeted on social media and it was implied that he was inappropriately taking pictures of young children at the Island Park swimming pool.

The original Facebook post included pictures of 37-year-old Kirk Ludwig, as well as his car and license plate. That post went viral. It was like someone opened a flood gate. A tsunami…

Public safety in question

July 15th, 2015

Fargo was in a bit of an uproar this week after a man was allegedly caught taking pictures of kids swimming at Island Park Pool. While he can’t be criminally charged, he was promptly banned by the Fargo Park District from all city parks. Also, Police identified the man and cited him for pot possession.

Much debate ensued on social media about the rights of the swimmers and the freedom of speech rights of the photographer. While it’s important for everyone involved to follow the law,…

Adventures in Eating: Accident Forgiveness

July 9th, 2015

Remember that reality TV series “Boiling Points”? It was a hidden camera show that survived a few season on MTV about a decade ago.

Actors would pretend they were workers in restaurants or other service-industry establishments and they’d test people’s patience essentially by being awful. They’d make people wait, sell them faulty products that they’d deny were faulty, ask odd questions and be irksome in dozens of other ways. If the customers reached their “boiling points”…

Our Opinion / The Supreme Court’s landmark 5-4 ruling on same-sex marriage rocked the country

July 1st, 2015

Love is Love

SCOTUS on marriage equality

The Supreme Court’s landmark 5-4 ruling on same-sex marriage rocked the country and the message rippled out around the world. Hear, hear!

North Dakota is one of the states that had embedded into its constitution definitions of marriage to be between one man and one woman. That too, now shall pass.

The public reaction to this ruling, predictably, has been mixed. The younger generation, especially, is ebullient. They are our future and they could not…

Downtown crime getting worse?

June 24th, 2015

Recent stories have us worried

The recent spate of violence in Fargo, including two murders, has many wondering just what is happening in our fine little city -- which doesn’t seem so small any more. Just as HPR was going to press, I witnessed an unprovoked assault outside a downtown bar in Fargo.

It’s true that with growth come changes. That’s to be expected. But all of this seems a little too much, too soon for all of us. There is so much to be proud of about in downtown Fargo.…