Editorial

Time to make things safe

May 13th, 2015

Heimdal derailment reminder that infrastructure hasn’t been improved yet

We’ve had two close calls with train derailments in North Dakota, with Casselton and now Heimdal. How long are we going to wait before those close calls become a tragedy? The problem is this, many years into the oil boom, infrastructure hasn’t caught up to production. But there’s no excuse for why it’s not happening any longer. Industry points the finger at state and federal officials and vice versa. It…

Save Family Farms in North Dakota! Refer Senate Bill 2351!

May 6th, 2015

“[Bonanza farming/1873-1920] encouraged large scale agriculture in the Red River Valley of the North...The bonanzas relied on professional farm managers...[and] were worked by migrant workers ranging from as few as 15 to as many as 1,000 per farm,...[who] were divided into teams of five to twenty men under a supervisor who was referred to as the binder boss or plow boss, depending on the job...Homesteaders [family farmers] did not like the bonanza farmers because they did not do…

A list of masterpieces

May 6th, 2015

As promised, here is the list of masterpiece songs as suggested by our readers and friends in response to my April 1 editorial, “The Masterpiece Challenge.”

This is not a complete list. And it includes plenty of tunes that others would never dream of calling a masterpiece. We included every suggestion sent to us, with the exclusion of instrumental and classical pieces, as well as some songs that were from a person who suggested several. I had to cut the list somehow so it would fit…

Post Special Election

April 29th, 2015

A special election was held in Fargo on Tuesday to elect a new mayor and city commissioner due to the death of Dennis Walaker. Congratulations to Mayor Tim Mahoney, who ran a campaign that proved he was by far the most credible and competent candidate to lead Fargo in the future. Under Mahoney, Fargo will continue its tremendous growth and leadership in the state of North Dakota.

The results in the Fargo City Commission, however, give us pause. Conservative Tony Gehrig came out…

Rock the vote

April 23rd, 2015

More than 200 nominees are up for HPR’s Best of the Best awards. Final voting is now underway. Folks can vote for their favorite local bar, artist, chef, band, restaurant and more here: bob2015.hpr1.com.

The winners will be announced at our party at the Avalon West on May 28. All are welcome at this free event. There will be live music, an awards presentation and many opportunities to network with some of the finest local business owners, artists, bartenders, restaurateurs and more.…

Extreme members beget extreme decisions

April 15th, 2015

Not a week goes by without some infuriating action by the North Dakota Legislature during its current session, which is expected to wrap up near the end of this month. This week the North Dakota House removed funding from a bill aimed to improve access to sexual assault exams as well as funding for two rail safety measures. This comes as the house prepares to finish the session without fixing the flawed Voter ID law, without passing medical marijuana legalization and, of course, failing…

Anti-discrimination redux

April 8th, 2015

ND State Capitol

While still in session, the 64th Legislative Assembly needs to right this wrong

North Dakota’s LGBT anti-discrimination bill down in flames. People in an uproar. Family members fighting on social media. Finger pointing rampant. Some threatening to leave the state. Others forewarning we are now seen in the same light as Indiana. Young people starting online petition drives. Hints of an initiated measure.

Surprised? Absolutely not. Disappointed? Beyond words.

Where we go from here, and how…

The Masterpiece Challenge

April 1st, 2015

Our opinion / Not all songs are equal

We have listening challenge for you, High Plains reader.

But before we state our challenge, let’s talk about the inequality of popular music.

That’s right. Not all songs are equal. Some songs are undoubtedly superior to their contemporary counterparts. Of course, as a fan of music, you know this. But have you ever considered calling your ultimate favorite songs masterpieces?

In music, perhaps it’s more kosher to reserve the term masterpiece for…

Fargo Commission breaks open meeting laws

March 25th, 2015

When the public is locked out and the doors are closed, the rules sometimes bend

The Fargo City Commission held a special meeting early Monday, Nov. 10, to discuss the impending exit of Police Chief Keith Ternes. The meeting notice sent to media Sunday night, Nov. 9, made no mention of the commission’s intention to go into a closed, executive session, which the commission did in fact do the next morning.

This writer, on behalf of HPR, filed a complaint with the Attorney General shortly…

So “No!” to Institutionalized Discrimination

March 18th, 2015

Adding sexual orientation to our enumerated list of protected classes should be a no-brainer

North Dakota, albeit late in the game, now faces an opportunity in the Legislature to turn history around and to finally afford simple and equal protections under the law to our state’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents.

Senate Bill 2279 squeaked through the state Senate and goes before the House of Representatives next. The bill simply adds sexual orientation to the list of…