October 7th, 2015
From Carnivorous Mighty Mites To Vegetarian Monsters
When our spacecraft Voyager 1 took pictures of earth from four billion miles away in 1990, scientist Carl Sagan looked at the pictures and described the image in his book Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space: “Look again at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us….Every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there—on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.”
Just maybe we should continue to…
October 1st, 2015
A Black Man Who Wants To Eat At The Dining Room Table All Of The Time
Since the institutional murder of New York City’s Eric Garner for selling loose cigarettes, the institutional murder of Detroit’s 12-year-old Tamir Rice for loitering in a park, the institutional murder of Baltimore’s Freddie Gray after his severed-spine ride in a police paddy wagon, the institutional murder of Ferguson’s Michael Brown, the institutional murder of Charleston’s Walter Scott, and the thousands…
September 24th, 2015
So far we have determined that humans started to walk upright about six million years ago. It took us another 3.4 million years to invent stone tools. Some human pyro discovered fire about 1.9 million years ago. We haven’t discovered many of our other unique accomplishments since then until we domesticated unruly cats in 7,500 B.C. The Chinese added to our brain buzz by making wine in 7,000 B.C. The Egyptians invented papyrus in 3,000 B.C. We started to clean our armpits with soap in…
September 16th, 2015
Why the 99 percent is so pissed it isn’t going to take it anymore.
Why are Donald Trump and Dr. Ben Carson leading Republican polls for the 2016 presidential nomination? Why is Bernie Sanders beginning to overtake the “inevitable” Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in Democratic polls? Only because Hillary is better known than Bernie.
Who in the hell is Bernie Sanders? He could be the local dogcatcher or pimp. Many don’t know he is another politician -- but anything that walks…
September 9th, 2015
The obituary of Dr. Oliver Sacks, 82, who died on August 30, appeared on the front pages of national newspapers, with a photo of him holding a three-pound human brain in one hand.
That brain has over one trillion cells, with a 100 billion of them acting as neurons linking up millions of networks that give us intelligence, creativity, emotion, consciousness, and memory. If the wrinkles in the cortex could be ironed out, it would cover a very large office desk.
Known as the poet…
September 3rd, 2015
Corporate cults and the industrial revolution: it ain’t over until it’s really over
Business and labor have been battling each other since the invention of the cotton gin and the loom revolutionized the textile and clothing business in England and America in the early 19th Century.
In a very short period of time steam engines running complex machinery made the factory floor a hellish place to work in extremely poor lighting. Machines were not fenced in, so moving parts often injured…
August 26th, 2015
As a farm kid I learned early that it’s always wise to stay upstream from the herd when they are near or in a creek on a hot day. When belly deep in water the tail always goes up when the head goes down for a drink.
Wendell Berry is an 81-year-old farmer-poet-essayist with the message that we humans must live in harmony with the natural rhythms of the earth or perish. He believes that small-scale…
August 19th, 2015
Sometimes I wonder why this little poem by E.E. Cummings has stuck in my brain for over a half-century: “Buffalo Bill’s defunct … who used to ride … a watersmooth-silver stallion … and break onetwothreefourfive pigeonsjustlikethat … Jesus he was a handsome man … and what I want to know is … how do you like your blue-eyed boy Mister Death?” Could be a very important question! This column is about death, so I am going to call on two experts, an…
August 12th, 2015
Esther Jenner, 89: “He’s A Very Good-Looking Woman. I Loved Him With All My Heart—And I Certainly Love Her With All My Heart.”
Some people have said that 89-year-old Esther, the mother of her 65-year-old daughter Caitlyn Jenner, screwed up her pronouns in making the above statements. I don’t think so. She was simply saying that her son Bruce is her son and now Caitlyn is her daughter---and that her child remains her child regardless of transgendering from male to female. I think…
August 5th, 2015
What’s Worse Than Being A Young Black Transgender Without Green In Red Religious Georgia?
In 2004 a young mulatto senator from Illinois by the name of Barack Obama gave an electrifying speech to the Democratic National Convention about the United States: “There is not a liberal America and a conservative America. There is a United States of America. There is not a black America and a white America, a Latino America, and Asia America. There is a United States of America.”
In 2007 he…
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By Alicia Underlee NelsonMore than 1,000 pro-worker events are planned for Thursday, May 1 across the country, including rallies in Fargo-Moorhead, Grand Forks, Minot and Jamestown. East Grand Forks and Bismarck will host protests…
From concerts and car shows to Japanese art and Juneteenth celebrations, there's so much going on around the region this summer. This year's High Plains Reader Summer Events Calendar is back and bigger than ever. It's packed with…
Saturday, May 24, 7 p.m.The Aquarium above Dempsey’s, 226 N. Broadway, FargoBe a part of a 20+ year tradition: ten bands enter The Aquarium and just one leaves with the ultimate prize — 300 cans of Hamm’s beer and the coveted…
By John Strandjas@hpr1.com One description that perhaps aptly describes the mental state of many lately is that they feel they are attached to a string. Or several strings. Call it the notion that people are played like puppets,…
By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comPerhaps it was by IVF — the Know-Nothings are “concepting” notzeesIn the middle of the 19th century the Republican Party morphed to the Know-Nothing Party for a short time. Members quickly…
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.com Of the many photographs that help tell the story “I Know Catherine, the Log Lady,” the one of David Lynch dressed as FBI Regional Bureau Chief (and later Deputy Director) Gordon Cole saying…
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 There appear to be differences in the incidence of mental illnesses between men and women. For example, women are more likely to be diagnosed with depression, post-traumatic stress…
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…
