Gadfly

​A collection of stuff

September 14th, 2016

Potpourri

Every once in awhile over the years I have written a column, a potpourri of unconnected, incongruous comments based on items in a little folder I keep. I hope they are interesting—and that they make a point.

1. About 25 states have accepted or are proposing to legalize the use of medical or recreational marijuana—or both.

I have often written that it was primarily impossible to keep people from inhaling, ingesting, or using various equipment from bongs to syringes to get drugs…

Read more...


​Income inequality, wars, and $400,000 helmets

September 7th, 2016

Will we ever get our priorities straight?

The Pilgrims of the Massachusetts Bay Colony were the first Americans to pledge support of wounded war veterans after members of their “militia” were killed and wounded during the massacre of native Pequots in 1636. Caring for our veterans after 400 years of war has now become a trillion-dollar business.

In addition to all of the costs of my training, and support for active and reserve duty for eight years in the Marine Corps, I have used the…

Read more...


​Who would believe it? Michele Bachmann or an African gray parrot?

August 31st, 2016

It’s getting to be a real bizarre world out there

We have The Donald, once a classic psychopathic Democratic ass who is now running for president of 325 million people as a crazy psychopathic Republican elephant. He likes his name in twenty-foot high gold letters on everything.

We have former Minnesota Representative Michele Bachmann, a religious Dominionist nutcase who believes Barack Obama is the Antichrist, who says he will lead all of us to the Christian Rapture in which the saved…

Read more...


​DNA, transplants, and modern science

August 24th, 2016

“He’s got a good head on his shoulders” may have an entirely new meaning

They have done it to mice, rats, and dogs. Humans could be next. About 220 years ago Queen Marie Antoinette of France, famous for her sarcastic “Let them eat cake!” lost her head to the guillotine when the executioner pronounced, “Off with her head!”

Perhaps soon a French doctor will order, “Off with her head!” and then carry it to another operating table so it can be transplanted to a fresh,…

Read more...


​When will the door of mercy open to gays?

August 17th, 2016

When will Christians recognize the science of genetics?

When some Fargo Catholics walked the seven-mile pilgrimage last week from the “holy door of mercy” on the Sts. Anne & Joachim Church to the “holy door of mercy” of St Mary’s Cathedral, I wonder if they thought of members of the LGBTQ community passing through those holy doors without prejudice, without labels of being “intrinsically evil,” but with the complete “religious freedom” from the Vatican to pass freely…

Read more...


​Don’t put your head underwater

August 10th, 2016

It’s time to dump the poisoned Olympics into Rio’s cesspool

First it was politics. Then it was money. After that, more propaganda. Now it’s the ugly combination of politics, propaganda, and money.

In the ancient Olympic Games, athletic participation was so pure and honorable that a truce was called, so spectators and athletes could travel in safety to the game sites through wars. The winner got a chariot ride home through the gate or breach in his city’s walls. The winner was…

Read more...


​For the common good?

August 3rd, 2016

The era of cutthroat hyper-capitalism

We have been down this rock-strewn pathway before. It happens about every three generations because humans have short attention spans, and those who forget history usually repeat it.

Capitalism works for everybody only with the condition that we have social mobility--which can only be achieved through education. Everybody has to have a shot at the “good life” by having access to a good education. We now have had about three decades of crony,…

Read more...


​Of black and white elephants

July 27th, 2016

Old and new normals

In the old normal, until the 1980s, we had lynchings by the Klu Klux Klan and others marked by racial hatred and economic inequality. In the last 30 years we have added conceal and open-carry laws and an absolute tsunami of guns on the streets to the volatile mix of race and economics. This is the new normal now—and it will not change until we erase income inequality—or the guns.

Some thought the election of Barack Obama in 2008 to the presidency would herald a new…

Read more...


​Patriotism and an uncivil race war

July 20th, 2016

Do not pass go, go directly to jail, and never earn any money

Since the light for the philosophy “Greed is Good” was turned to green by Ronald Reagan 35 years ago, local and state governments have increased spending on putting people in jail three times more than they spend on educating the young—and old.

Data from 1980 to 2013, according to the Department of Education, increased spending on putting people in the slammer by 324% while spending on education increased only 107%. In…

Read more...


All about sex

July 13th, 2016

Warning: this sex column may endanger medieval thinking

This column is all about sex. Isaiah (44:2) in the Bible reminds us of its importance in the overall scheme of things promoted by The Almighty: “Thus says the Lord who made you, and formed you in the womb, who will help you, do not fear.”

The Bible does talk about how all-powerful God is. He created the vast galaxies, hundreds of billions of stars, the majesty of mountains, and the man and his spirit.

It reminds us that God not…

Read more...


Tracker Pixel for Entry Nicoles Tracker Pixel for Entry NewSalem1 Tracker Pixel for Entry blackbird Tracker Pixel for Entry Nicoles Tracker Pixel for Entry 7Clans Tracker Pixel for Entry Seven

Recently in:

By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comNorth Dakota communities will join a “nationwide day of defiance” against authoritarianism and President Donald Trump’s policies on Saturday, June 14. A range of "No Kings" events…

Back-to-school season is on the horizon, but there's still plenty of summer left. Check out our favorite August attractions and events in North Dakota and western Minnesota. And if if you missed them, here are a few excellent May…

June 21, 11 a.m. - 11 p.m.Fargo Theatre, 314 Broadway N., Fargo“We Watch Shudder,” Fargo’s favorite horror podcasters, bring on the darkness during the longest day of the year. The Darkest Day of Horror Film Festival features…

Fighting the good fightBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com Over two thousand rallies took place nationwide June 14 as part of the “No Kings" protest. Ten of those protests were held in North Dakota, with thousands in attendance.…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comWe need Paul Revere on a Harley: “ants and autocrats are coming!”The Asian needle ant has been nesting in the American South since at least 1932. It probably hitched a ride on a freighter from…

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 The weather warmed up quickly here in the upper Midwest this spring, sparking prime eating season. This means burger battles, food trucks and lake-season food travel. The 2025 Downtown Fargo Burger…

By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comThe Moorhead Public Library will offer three free, all-ages outdoor concerts featuring regional bands this summer. The series begins on June 12 with the Meat Rabbits, a group that blends…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com The June 9 death of musician Sylvester Stewart, known much better by stage name Sly Stone, saw an outpouring of tributes, memorials and appreciations from some who knew him personally and many…

By Deb Wallworkdwallwork@icloud.comI first met Catherine Mulligan at a party at her house. It was a small gathering, spontaneous, just a few people over for dinner. Directed toward a stack of plates and bowls and a big pot warming…

By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comAct Up Theatre, in partnership with Minnesota State University Moorhead, will present “The Sound of Music” on June 10-14. All shows are at 7:30 p.m. at the Minnesota State Moorhead’s…

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…

The drug that keeps re-purposing itselfBy Ellie Liveranieli.liverani.ra@gmail.com There is a drug that is getting a lot of attention nowadays all over the world. It has various commercial names (Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus), but…

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@rocketmail.com Working in the Bakken oil fields of the Williston Basin is so different from my home in Fargo. I'm not judging, because the people working and living in western North Dakota are very…