November 27th, 2022
By Ed Raymond
farhogadfly@gmail.com
Why Not Pass Black-White Flag Laws to Label Who Lies, Cheats, and Stinks?
We have “red flag” laws in 19 states to keep weapons out of the hands of malcontents and the mentally unbalanced who threaten family members and others with firearms or other weapons.
The American Psychiatric Association has estimated that six percent of the population will go “bonkers” each year and need mental health treatment. That means up to 20 million of us could be…
November 19th, 2022
By Ed Raymond
fargogadfly@gmail.com
That’s the Big Question Today: To Be (Democratic) or Not to Be (Autocratic)
Here we are, only 400 years after our major trouble started with the Mayflower and other ships landing immigrants and slaves on “American” soil named after an Italian entrepreneur named Amerigo Vespucci. He explored possibilities here twice between 1497 and 1504—for Spanish and Portugal kings and queens. I don’t have the room to cover any of the 65,000 years it took to…
November 16th, 2022
By Ed Raymond
fargogadfly@gmail.com
A Trivia Question: How Many Horses Have Been Elected Senator?
There is ample critical historical evidence that horses, or their varying parts thereof, have played important roles in the governing of nations for over 2,000 years. Emperor Caligula, who ruled Rome from year 37 to 41, had the qualities of Donald J. Trump as presently listed in the latest Manual of Mental Disabilities---except for one. He trusted someone.
Caligula determined that his…
November 5th, 2022
By Ed Raymond
fargogadfly@gmail.com
This Country Is Going to Hell While Politicians of Both Parties Are Dancing
It’s been many years since Corky and I did the Hokey Pokey, that dance where you forced your extremities, including your head, to flail and shake to a musical Caribbean-like beat furnished by various instruments. The common lines were similar, only substituting body parts: “Put your right arm in, take your right hand out. Put your right arm in, and you shake it all…
October 31st, 2022
By Ed Raymond
Free Speech Costs Billions and Contains Billions of Expensive Lies
Our politicians lied from the very beginning with that infamous phrase: “all men are created equal.” That is, only if you were White and owned property could you vote. Many signers of that declaration owned Black property. The big lie continued for almost a century until 675,000 Americans died in battles over freeing Black slaves and allowing Black men to vote. But then the White…
October 24th, 2022
By Ed Raymond
fargogadfly@gmail.com
Why Did One of the Most Civilized Countries Commit Crimes Against Humanity?
At the end of World War II I was thirteen and enthralled by aircraft carriers, 70-ton tanks, B-29s, and uniforms. Since then, I have read a dozen books and hundreds of articles about the Holocaust, and Corky and I have spent many hours in the Holocaust Museum in Washington. I have always wondered why human beings from one of the most civilized countries in the world could commit…
October 20th, 2022
By Ed Raymond
There Are Many Reasons Why Our Middle Class Is Disappearing
English novelist Charles Dickens, who experienced both poverty and wealth in his lifetime, included both poor and rich in his novels, particularly in Bleak House, David Copperfield, Oliver Twist, and A Tale of Two Cities. Remember Scrooge and Tiny Tim in Christmas Carol?
Raised in London in a family of eight, Charles went to work in a shoe-black factory when he was twelve because his father was…
October 1st, 2022
By Ed Raymond
fargogadfly@gmail.com
A Rich Caveman Had Extra Skins While Today a Super Rich Man Has Two Yachts
The Wall Street Journal, Rupert Murdoch’s daily recipe for the rich and infamous, publishes a section called “Mansions” every Friday. In the September 16th edition, the section bragged shamelessly that a developer was asking $250 million for a penthouse on the 129th through 131st floors of a New York skyscraper 1,400 feet tall. It had 17,500 sq. ft. of livable space, seven…
September 25th, 2022
By Ed Raymond
fargogadfly@gmail.com
From Mansion or Hovel, We All End Up Dead
We are now living in the Divided States of America, which has been developing for more than 240 years. Economist Frederic Bastiat has come up with the main reason for the division: “When plunder becomes a way of life for a group of men in a society, over the course of time they create for themselves a legal system that authorizes it and a moral code that glorifies it.”
English poet Thomas Gray captured the…
September 18th, 2022
By Ed Raymond
fargogadfly@gmail.com
Double Jeopardy: Being a Member of the LBGTQ+ Community and College Debt
In the 16th Century, King Henry VIII told the Roman Catholic Church in England to go back to Rome after Pope Clement VII refused to give him an annulment or divorce from his first marriage to Catherine of Aragon, because she did not give him a male heir to the throne—plus other reasons. Besides, he wanted to marry the beautiful Anne Boleyn, the sister of one of his mistresses.…
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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…
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.comWhat age has been determined to be the worst in world history?Historians have estimated about one third of the population of Europe died of the bubonic plague, also known as the black plague, 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 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 Anchored by the dependable Florence Pugh, “Thunderbolts*” easily tops “Captain America: Brave New World” to make it the most satisfying MCU movie of 2025 — so far. The asterisk alludes…
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…
