Last Word

​The Winter Olympics vs. A Nuclear Winter

January 17th, 2018

Minotaur– An ancient Greek monster with the head of a bull and body of a man.
 - Encyclopedia Britannica

“Therefore, the tormented spirit that glared out of bodily eyes, when what seemed Ahab rushed from his room, was for the time but a vacated thing, a formless somnambulistic being, a ray of living light to be sure, but without an object to color, and therefore a blankness in itself. God help thee old man, thy thoughts have created a creature in thee; and he whose intense thinking…

Read more...


​Basic healthcare is a right, not a privilege

January 17th, 2018

By John Phillips  hpr@hpr1.com

In 2010 there were over 1.5 million individuals declaring bankruptcy. Although many courts decline to ask reasons for filing bankruptcies, many legal experts believe that over 60% of bankruptcy are the result of the inability to pay for medical bills in the United States. With such a large portion of bankruptcies being the result of exorbitant hospital bills, it begs the question "Why is the American healthcare system one of the most expensive in the…

Read more...


​One man’s tax break is another man’s betrayal

December 27th, 2017

Art courtesy of Daily Trump CartoonTreasonthe offense of attempting to overthrow the government of one’s country or of assisting its enemies in war. – Webster’s Dictionary

“(Thomas) Jefferson seems to have had none of (James) Madison’s fear for the tyranny of majority opinion. Let everything come out, and the judgment of the common people will be sound. Over and over again, he writes of the essential ‘goodness and wisdom’ of the common people.”
– Alistair Cooke

The desperate and fearful hatred…

Read more...


​Tax incentives have outlasted their usefulness

December 13th, 2017

Downtown Fargo, Roberts Street - photograph by Sabrina HornungBy Tony Gehrig

tonygehrig@gmail.com

I do not blame any company for seeking incentives. Rather, I blame the government for giving them away. Incentives represent an unfair and unsustainable tax system that affects real people.

Some proponents, mainly those receiving the incentives, are attempting to rebrand incentives as a good thing for everyone. Many even advocate for expanding them even further and for longer durations.

In Mike Allmendinger’s recent letter published in The Forum, and…

Read more...


Real disasters vs. fake assurances

December 13th, 2017

“…no clean power is without its drawbacks, and every kind of energy source has its pluses and minuses.”
– Henry Petroski, author of "To Engineer is Human"

“For highways (Robert) Moses, America’s greatest builder, dispossessed 250,000 persons—more people than lived in Albany, Chattanooga, Spokane, Tacoma, Duluth, Akron, Baton Rouge, Mobile, Nashville or Sacramento. For his other projects, he dispossessed tens of thousands more; More significant: a disproportionate share of them…

Read more...


Privatizing air traffic control would cut off our communities

December 6th, 2017

By Matthew S. Lynch
matthew@aviationacrossamerica.com

Agriculture is critical to the economy of North Dakota. Today, about 90% of the state’s land is used for agriculture, with 40 million acres devoted to farming and ranching. Nearly a quarter of the state’s population is employed in the agricultural sector.

To help produce the food that fuels the nation, many farmers depend on aircraft to provide aerial application services, survey land, transport tools, and get to multiple plants and…

Read more...


​Family lawyers misleading public about shared parenting

December 6th, 2017

By Robert Franklin, Esq.
hpr@hpr1.com

The latest information on North Dakota family courts comes from the organization Leading Women for Shared Parenting (LW4SP).

It teaches two important lessons. First, whether children maintain meaningful relationships with both parents, post-divorce is mostly a question of which judge decides the case.

Second, North Dakotans need to take with a huge grain of salt what family lawyers and the State Bar Association of North Dakota (SBAND) say about…

Read more...


A thank you note for Vladimir Putin

November 29th, 2017

“…there is a hunger all over America for a discussion about economic truths, for a counterattack on the ferocious assaults that are taking place against working families, and for a practical plan on how we can reverse the obscene politics that favor the rich over the middle class and the disadvantaged in our nation.” - Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT), The Speech, 12/31/10

“I never forgot that it was Hillary (Clinton) in 2003 who told some of the party leaders to pay attention to a…

Read more...


An open letter to the white working class

November 24th, 2017


By Gary Olson olsong@moravian.edu

I’m writing this letter as the proud son of the working class. My father, who never attended college and was our family’s breadwinner, worked as a Greyhound Bus ticket seller, part-time mail carrier and grocery store stock boy. When he died of a sudden heart attack at age 47, he was working the night shift as a hospital orderly. I was 12 years old and my younger brother was seven.

Because my dad was a World War II vet, we had a very modest house,…

Read more...


A gold star and a sad face for everyone

October 25th, 2017

By Anthony Paul 

[Editor’s note: This piece contains language that some readers may find offensive]

It has been all over social media and the news lately, how our president and commander-in-chief called and spoke with one of these gold star families, the family of a fallen soldier.

This has been common practice with most presidents in recent years. However, President Trump has fallen under scrutiny for words he was overheard saying, “He knew what he signed up for.” Half the country…

Read more...


Tracker Pixel for Entry MidwestRoadTripAdventures Tracker Pixel for Entry NewSalem1C Tracker Pixel for Entry Cottonwood2 Tracker Pixel for Entry Seven Tracker Pixel for Entry Hjemkomst Tracker Pixel for Entry Bismarck1

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…