June 14th, 2020
The Last Decoded Message From Hitler’s Bunker In 1945: “Closing Down Forever”
Well, well, well, now we finally have our own little Hitler in his White House bunker, assuming command of the military because, as a genius, he knows more than any of his generals and admirals. He has his own propaganda-guy-Goebbels and the “state TV network”, Fox News, which serves as his Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda 24/7. He has his own vice-president Goring in William Barr, his…
June 7th, 2020
The U.S. Is A Failed State On A Rudderless U.S.S. Titanic--Captained By A Caliban
And yes, it’s headed directly for a huge iceberg. There is no evidence that Donald The Lyin’ King has read anything beyond a menu or a porn star’s telephone number. His tweets are void of any reference to classical literature or American or world history. I’m sure he has never read any of Shakespeare’s plays.
Donald is a perfect caricature of Caliban, a major character in Shakespeare’s The…
May 31st, 2020
Are We Close To Hearing The Last Clicking Of A Stoplight?
Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan, a Pulitzer Prize-winning New Yorker, has been creating provocative and entertaining columns for many years. She also was a speech writer for President Ronald Reagan. I call her a true conservative, not a fake one, because she actually believes everyone has “place” in a society. In May she had a fascinating experience. She has been walking the streets of New York for more than half a…
May 24th, 2020
Democratic Socialism Rescues Disaster Capitalism—Again
Our elected representatives are currently appropriating trillions of taxpayer’s dollars to save our economy from the ravages of COVID-19 and disaster capitalism. Here we go again. Economists who have studied capitalism for many years say that recessions and depressions happen about every 8 to 10 years between bull and bear markets. The last Great Depression started in 1929 when Wall Streeters opened up upper-story windows and…
May 17th, 2020
Something Is Not Rotten In Denmark
William Shakespeare, writer of my favorite play Hamlet, was born in Stratford-on-Avon, England during a plague year. Thomas Nashe, a contemporary, wrote a short poem A Litany in Time of Plague to commemorate serious plagues in England during 1564, 1582, 1592-93, 1603-04, 1606, and 1608-09. These are lines from the first stanza:
“Rich men, trust in wealth,/ Gold cannot buy you health,/ Physic himself must fade.
All things to end are made,/ The plague…
May 10th, 2020
Two American Con Men With An Insatiable Appetite For Wealth
Phineas Taylor Barnum was born poor in 1810 in a rural village in Connecticut where survival was determined by cunning, smarts, drive, and ruthlessness. He had an insatiable appetite for wealth. Some say it was from when he learned to count. He conned his way to becoming a wealthy man during our first Gilded Age in the latter half of the 19th Century.
Donald John Trump was born rich in 1946 in New York City and later used his…
May 3rd, 2020
Swift: “A Good Fat Child Will Make Four Dishes Of Excellent Nutritive Meat”
When Donald the Lyin’ King proposed that COVID-19 might be able to be controlled by injecting bleach, Lysol, sanitizers and other disinfectants into the body, the very idea was so nut-crazy I thought of two satiric works of Jonathan Swift that attacked the policies of English and Irish politicians in the 18th Century. Born in Dublin in 1667, he trained to be a priest at Trinity College and spent much of his…
April 26th, 2020
Master Sergeant Roddie Edmonds: “Because We Know Who You Are….
In 1944 as a prisoner of war in a German labor camp M/Sgt Edmonds was the leader of the American prisoners. One morning at roll call the German commander demanded that all the Jews in the formation step forward. Edmonds said: “We are all Jews here.” The German officer pulled his Luger from its holster and put the barrel against Edmonds’s forehead and commanded: “Sergeant, One last chance. You will order the Jews to…
April 19th, 2020
Hey! Hey! Hey! Supremes! How Many Badgers Did You Kill Today?
We are in the middle of a deadly COVID-19 pandemic that may last years, but we have been attacked for 244 years by another pandemic which started in Philadelphia when 56 white guys signed a proclamation that “all men are created equal.” I guess signing it wasn’t much of a problem for 27 who owned slaves or made lots of money off the slave trade. But it started a pandemic of voter suppression decimating us every year…
April 5th, 2020
The 14th Century Black Plague Started Something Beyond Thoughts And Prayers
I see Donald the Lyin’ King has decided that Easter will not be a good time to fill churches--but maybe April 30 will be. King Donald had talked so much about the virus and April he reminded me of the words of one of my favorite poets T.S. Eliot in his first lines of “The Wasteland,” an epic poem about humankind: “April is the cruelest month, breeding lilacs out of a dead land, mixing memory and desire,…
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By Alicia Underlee NelsonLocal groups will speak out against current and projected federal budget cuts in downtown Fargo this Saturday, April 26. The Red River Valley chapters of Fearless and Indivisible will lead a protest from…
By Prairie Rose Seminolems.prairierose@gmail.com I was a child who walked behind my parents into classrooms and kitchens, spaces of song and prayer, where teachings lived in the air and settled on my shoulders. I didn’t yet have…
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Saturday, May 3, 7 p.m.-MidnightPlains Art Museum, 704 1st Ave. N., FargoDon’t miss the art party of the year! What goes on at the gala? There’s a silent art auction with music by Low Standards and DJ Star IV, hors d’oeuvres…
By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comIt’s no secret that there are folks among us who make our communities a more vibrant place through both their actions and means of creative expression. Heck, you could be one of them yourself.…
By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comThere is a big difference between ears and legsOur English language adds words to dictionaries every year because there are more than 6,000 languages on earth and we do communicate with friends and…
By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…
By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com After a very inspiring conversation with Kayla Houchin of Sonder Bakehouse a few weeks ago, I decided that it’s an appropriate time to write a column about some of the sweet people who are involved…
Mooncats and Pert Near Sandstone play Empire TheatreBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comThe MoonCats describe themselves as “Americonscious Campfire Folk.” They have a clear acoustic folk sound with a sense of whimsy — think…
By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.comRyan Coogler goes big and bold with “Sinners,” a sweaty, bloody vampire movie set in 1932. The filmmaker stuffs this universe with enough ideas to serve a limited-series season of episodic…
By Raul Gomez Modern Man was a gentle soul. If you were down or just wanted a friend, he’d be there for you. I remember the first day I met Modern Man. It was Jeremiah Fuglseth and me. He wanted to write about this legendary…
By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comHigh Plains Reader had the opportunity to interview two mysterious new game show hosts named Milt and Bradley Barker about an upcoming event they will be putting on at Brewhalla. What…
By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…
By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…
By Ellie Liveranieli.liverani.ra@gmail.com I remember when I was young, probably 11 years ago. One morning I was not feeling well because of my period. After I got ready to go to school, I went back to bed and it was hard to get up…
By Alicia Underlee NelsonProtests against President Trump’s policies and the cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are planned across North Dakota and western Minnesota Friday, April 4 and…
By Vern Thompsonvern.thompson.nd7@gmail.com Our trucking business has me driving almost daily from gas plants in western North Dakota's oil patch to Canada. I haul natural gas liquids (NGLs) products we used to see flared off at…
