Editorial

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…

What happened to Andrew Sadek?

February 4th, 2015

The family of the late 20-year old college student deserves answers

This week, a report on the death of a Wahpeton college student made headlines nationwide and across the world. Andrew Sadek, a 20-year-old student at ND State College of Science, went missing last May right before he was to graduate. In June he was found dead with a gunshot wound to the head. An autopsy couldn't determine cause of death, whether suicide or murder. His mother, Tammy Sadek, citing some discrepancies in the…

Best of February

January 28th, 2015

Frank Waln, performing at Sing Our Rivers Red event on Feb. 9

Hello, February. What a calendar lineup we have here in Fargo-Moorhead.

BeethovenFest | All of February

Kicking off with a free screening of “Beethoven Lives Upstairs” and an All-Beethoven Concert by the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony on Jan. 31, the area’s first ever BeethovenFest will be a month-long community-wide event celebrating one of the most important and influential composers of all time. Check out our story inside this week’s issue for more details.

Fargo Winter Blues Festival…

MLK Day Awards Recap

January 21st, 2015

(Guest editorial)

On Martin Luther King Day 2015, Fargo-Moorhead saw an opportunity to bring out the best in what capped off a great year in human and social relations activism within our community. The 15th annual MLK Day Celebration and Award Ceremony highlighted organizations and individuals who deserve to be most proud of bypassing stigmas, ignorance and arrogance toward those less fortunate or inadequate to fully grasp their interpretation of the American dream.

As I entered the…

We, the dream team

January 14th, 2015

Why of all U.S. cities does Fargo have such an amazing college football program? My friend and I pondered this question as we drank coffee and ate fries while watching the game at the Wurst Bier Hall last Saturday.

Sure, our team doesn’t have quite as much prestige as the Oregon Ducks, Seattle Seahawks or the New England Patriots. But for a community our size, this is about as first-rate as it can get – “this” being four national championships in a row, wins against big,…

A new year’s resolution

December 23rd, 2014

High Plains Reader will be on vacation for two weeks. We’ll hit the shelves again on Jan. 15. Happy holidays to you all!

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As a child, I was obsessed with sports. In particular, I loved playing basketball. I practiced nearly everyday, alone and outside. In my imagination, as I practiced by myself, I had an opponent and I would absolutely school him or her every which way. I out-dribbled her. I out-scored her. I out-ran her.

I even once said out loud that I would be the first woman in…

Last minute holiday gift ideas

December 17th, 2014

So You Think You Can Dance / Photo by Lee Cherry

Stuck on gifts? Here’s some random, fun ideas. Best yet, they are all available in town. Prices may vary.

-A selfie stick

An older gentleman by the name of Jim Bastian sells a contraption of this sort at a kiosk at West Acres according to Prairie Biz mag. Yes, selfie sticks are a thing … for better “groupie” shots.

-Tickets to the Steve Miller Band

I’m a joker. I’m a smoker. He’s coming on March 20th. Scheels Arena.

-“Burrito tour” gift card

I made this up … but it’s…

One election, not two

December 12th, 2014

Our Opinion / How any special election is structured could hugely affect the functionality of Fargo’s City Commission for months on end.

Some call it a potential conundrum. Sitting Fargo City Commissioners are required to tender their resignations should they choose to run for the mayor’s seat vacated when Denny Walaker died. Conceivably, that could result in a real mess.

Let’s look at this issue piece by piece.

The City Commission is required to set up a special election in order to…

Rest in Peace, Dennis Walaker

December 3rd, 2014

Our heartfelt condolences and prayers go out to Mayor Walaker’s family, friends, and colleagues

Sometimes, what’s ordinary can be extraordinary. That’s how we saw Fargo Mayor Dennis Walaker, as an ordinary guy, a people person. After a brief and public battle with cancer, his death Tuesday night rocked the city.

We have absolutely no doubt that Denny Walaker would not be comfortable at all with the wave of accolades and kudos directed at him right now. On the surface, he was your…