March 31st, 2016
Expensive “free speech” doesn’t mean anything
Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) and the Earth Institute at Columbia University has surveyed 157 countries to find the “world’s happiest place” based on such facts as Gross Domestic Product per capita (GDP), social support, healthy life expectancy , freedom to make life choices, generosity, and income. All of the top ten “happiest” are countries that have some form of Democratic Socialism government, led by…
March 24th, 2016
The battle between Republican crony-casino capitalism and Democratic socialism
After listening to Republican candidates for the 2016 presidential nomination claim “America is going to hell” and other undesirable places, President Barack Obama in a recent magazine article counterclaimed: “For all of our warts, the United States has clearly been a force for good in the world.”
“Warts?” My God! “Treason!” Admitting we have warts before the entire world? “Un-American!”…
March 18th, 2016
A New Listing In The Real Estate Business
Because of the “new” world economy there’s an increasing gaggle of golden geese millionaires and billionaires building monster homes on exclusive streets in cities and country estates around the world. Many want to continue to live in London, Europe’s financial center. They want to live near other ultrarich in or near Kensington Palace Gardens, the most expensive property in all of Britain. But there’s a catch. There are…
March 10th, 2016
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Killing Cats And Dogs, Selling Human Heads, And A Little Cannibalism
I got a severe case of the heebie-jeebies the other night during the Republican debate when Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, and Ted Cruz were in the middle of yelling at each other and exchanging insults and lies at warp speed. One of these guys might become leader of our temporary civilized “free” world?!! I thought of a few lines from Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” When Atticus Finch, the lawyer defending…
March 3rd, 2016
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Even before Justice Antonin Scalia’s body at that exclusive Texas ranch-resort had assumed room temperature, leaders of the American Taliban, the Republican Party, said it would be useless for President Barack Obama to nominate a replacement because Republicans would not allow an up-or-down vote on the Senate floor.
Other Republican right-wing nuts twitterized and facebooked that they were sure Democrats had killed him. Donald Trump, the savior of the white…
February 27th, 2016
Shouldn’t Everyone Carry Blood-Red Poppies?
Every time a soldier was shot and fell in the satiric movie “Oh What A Lovely War” the screen went red and a red poppy grew. The symbol of a red poppy for a death on the battlefield came out of the horrendous casualties in World War I.
In the most costly battle of the war for both sides, the battle of Somme, France, in 1916, Britain suffered 60,000 casualties on the first day. In the month following, the Allies advanced the front five…
February 18th, 2016
Humans have always had a thing about contact sports to take their minds off the real world when life gets heavy. They packed the Roman Colosseum to watch Christians and criminals eaten by lions and tigers. They used their thumbs to save a fallen gladiator because he had performed well or was a cute blond—or to kill a loser who showed temerity or cowardice in battle.
When New Guinea tribes got bored and wanted barbecue on their menu they raided other tribes…
February 11th, 2016
What makes billionaires think they know what’s best for society? Could it be lots of money?
When 2,500 billionaires and global leaders met in Davos, Switzerland, in January of 2016 to discuss who was going to get the largest slices of the economic pies baking in the ovens of capitalism, the dominant topic in both daily discussion panels and nightly bar rooms was TRANSITION, or the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
The founder of the World Economic Forum, Klaus Schwab, described it as…
February 4th, 2016
How 62 people gathered as much wealth as the poorer half of the world’s population
Perhaps it all started when the U.S. Supreme Court decided that money is speech, corporations are people, and declared in the Citizens United case six years ago that politicians could not be corrupted by money.
Have you ever seen a formula like this: Dollars=Words? What are words worth today? Much more than yesterday. The world’s rich are having a daily word auction. The World Economic Forum Union of…
January 28th, 2016
The world is becoming a better place—but are we becoming a better people?
The other night I watched James Billington of the Library of Congress award 82-year-old Willie Nelson the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. I am not a fan of country music, Willie’s main talent, but he often crosses into jazz, blues, folk, rock, and Latin, is a guitar virtuoso in all those genres—and has the crackly, nasal voice of a tired cowboy or bartender. He has sold millions of records,…
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By Bryce Vincent Haugen By his own account, Edwin Chinchilla is lucky to still be in the United States. As a 12-year-old Salvadoran, he and his brother were packed into a semi with a couple dozen other people and given fake…
By Michael M. Miller Rev. Salomon Joachim, pastor of Zion Lutheran Church, Beulah, North Dakota., delivered an address to the Western Conference of the Dakota District of the American Lutheran Church in 1939. His presentation was…
February 21, 6-8 p.m.Turtle River State Park, Arvilla, NDEnjoy a self-guided hike in the picturesque woods of Turtle River State Park. The trails will be lit with luminary candles. After the hike, warm those bones by the fire at…
By Sabrina HornungThe quote, "The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command” from George Orwell’s iconic novel “1984” has come up in conversation more times than…
By Ed Raymond‘Dakota Attitude’ should be read by all North Dakota studentsI have been meaning to write about this book by James Puppe for several years, but the world has been in such a mess I thought I should write about …
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…
Friday, March 13, 4-10 p.m.Brewhalla, Fargo, 1702 1st Ave. N., FargoPolish up those dancing shoes and come hungry for this ticketed event you won’t want to miss. Expect unlimited samples paired with wine and beer from 20+…
Saturday, March 7, 7:30 p.m.Fargo Theatre, 314 N. BroadwayFM Opera’s Artistic Director and tenor Joshua Kohl will be sharing the stage with internationally-renowned tenors Anthony Ciaramitaro and Luke Norvell to perform a variety…
By Greg Carlson The great documentary filmmaker Laura Poitras had to work diligently to convince Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh to be the subject of one of her films. Most accounts and reviews of “Cover-Up,”…
Saturday, March 7, 4-8 p.m.Swing Barrel Brewing, 814 Central Ave., MoorheadEmpty Bowls is a nationwide, grassroots, artist-led movement to support hunger related organizations in their communities. On March 7, prepare to fill your…
Saturday, January 31, 6:30-9 p.m.Transfiguration Fitness, 764 34th St. N., Unit P, FargoAn enchanting evening celebrating movement and creativity in a staff-student showcase. This is a family-friendly event showcasing pole, aerial…
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 Liverani In January 2026, the 2026-2030 dietary guidelines for Americans were released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. They are supposed to be revolutionary and a “reset” from the previous ones.…
January 31, 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.Viking Ship Park, 202 1st Ave. N., Moorhead2026 marks 10 years of frosty fun! Enjoy sauna sessions with Log the Sauna, try Snowga (yoga in the snow), take a guided snowshoe nature hike, listen to live…
By Vern Thompson Benjamin Franklin offered one of the most sobering warnings in American history. When asked what kind of government the framers had created in 1787, he replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.” Few words…
