Editorial

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…

We’ve come far but still have far to go

March 11th, 2015

President Obama delivered an impassioned speech in Selma, Alabama this past weekend marking the 50th anniversary of the Sunday Bloody Sunday marches. It was when peaceful voting rights protestors, lead by Martin Luther King, Jr,. were beaten by police in what many see as a turning point in the civil rights movement. Some have said Obama’s speech was one of the finest of his Presidency.

Many of the speakers at the anniversary, including President Obama, spoke of how far we’ve come…

Happy three year!

March 4th, 2015

Raul Gomez and Diane Miller

Thank you to our wonderful writers at HPR

March marks my third year anniversary as HPR’s editor-in-chief. I’d like to take this time to recognize some folks that make my job possible (and wonderful): HPR’s core writers. Our staff and readers so highly treasure their voice, their hard work and their dedication to quality journalism.

Greg Carlson / Kensie Wallner Photography

Film editor Greg Carlson is an exceptional writer whose movie reviews are featured in HPR every week. There are few people in this community with the…

More info needed on Thomas Bearson

February 25th, 2015

This week, we take a look at two issues in the news we found worth commenting and taking a stand on: the unsolved homicide of Thomas Bearson and the Keystone Pipeline veto by President Obama.

Recently, we editorialized about the need to find answers on the case of NDSCS student Andrew Sadek who went missing and was later found dead. That also should apply to the mysterious case of NDSU student Thomas Bearson, who also went missing and was later found dead. The similarities are a bit…

Rail Safety is an Urgent Need

February 18th, 2015

Our Opinion/ Every son, every daughter, every brother and every sister ought to be free from discrimination in ND

The North Dakota Industrial Commission and State Legislature owe countless millions of citizens here and across the nation responsible action to assure highly flammable and explosive Bakken crude oil traveling our highways and railways is safe.

The Mount Carbon, West Virginia, train derailment and explosions Monday are yet one more wake up call to the oil producers, regulators…

‘Imma Let You Finish’

February 11th, 2015

My all-time favorite rapper, Kanye West, is right on track to win D-Bag of the Year 2015.

Yes, it hurts a bit to admit that. While, as a fan, I’ve tried searching for words to defend him, the only conclusion I’ve been able to come up with is that Kanye got what he deserved.

After Beck won the Grammy for Album of the Year last Sunday night, Kanye nearly hijacked the stage to protest his win. Instead, in a post-Grammy interview, West went on to say the Grammys made a huge mistake and…