Last Word

​Saving lives, shattering myths

December 21st, 2016

I commend ND media outlets for raising awareness about the opiate epidemic and heroin overdoses in our communities. Stories about recovering addicts reduce stigma and shame, providing hope for those who still struggle with addictions; meanwhile, stories about people who died of an overdose offer a cautionary tale. Most importantly, media coverage about the epidemic can ignite social change and be the impetus for evidence-based policy reform.

Unfortunately, some of the coverage is…

Read more...


​Some Christmas poetry

December 14th, 2016

I’d be lying if I said James W. Foley was one of my favorite poets. Hokey might be the best word to describe him (but kind of wonderfully hokey). Foley, North Dakota’s longtime Poet Laureate (way before current Laureate Larry Woiwode) has been dead 75 years now, but there’s a renewed interest in his work, as evidenced by a series of new reprints of some of his 20 books of poetry, and you can now buy most of them in new, paperback editions, (Alibris.com is the best place) for less…

Read more...


​‘Our Water Is Our Single Last Property’

December 7th, 2016

The most consistent argument made by North Dakota regulators and the owners of the Dakota Access Pipeline against the protest actions of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is that the Tribe entered the pipeline approval process too late; they should have made their feelings known earlier in the process.

In mid-November, just a couple weeks ago, Energy Transfer Partners (ETP) CEO Kelcy Warren told reporters “I really wish, for the Standing Rock Sioux, that they had engaged in discussions way…

Read more...


Time for a reset in the Democratic Party

November 30th, 2016

By Bob Valeu

bvaleu@yahoo.com

Okay, a week is often a lifetime, let’s move on. Let’s redirect and focus our energy and political will on 2018. One great thing about our republic is that we, the citizens, get a chance every two years to make the decision on what direction, politically, our country will take. The clock is ticking, don’t be distracted any longer. Time is of the essence!

The Democratic Party needs a reset. We must focus on three things: middle-class stagnation; the…

Read more...


​A matter of context

November 16th, 2016

By Samantha L. Montano, M.S.

samanthalmontano@gmail.com

A few weeks ago I noticed a billboard in downtown Fargo that reads “All Lives Matter.” As a person who believes in equality, I was taken aback.

Some people have interpreted the slogan “Black Lives Matter” to mean that other lives do not matter. This belief led to some responding by saying “All Lives Matter.” First, let me say that I strongly agree that all lives do matter, regardless of race, gender, religion, or…

Read more...


​Historical Facts

November 16th, 2016

By Davin Wait davin.wait@hcsmuseum.org

I’m writing to address a common misconception about immigration. Our political and media climate has been more frequently lending itself to arguments and assumptions on the issues that are not grounded in historical facts.Immigrants are not new to our community. Fargo-Moorhead exists on the Red River, where Ojibwe and Dakota people fished for sturgeon or namé, the “king of fish.” French and English fur traders and their descendants, the…

Read more...


​This is their death knell

November 11th, 2016

The day after the election, I expected to be depressed but I rose invigorated. I have never been more centered on my core beliefs than I am right now. Hillary Clinton was a bad candidate only in that she herself couldn't bring this out in me. Donald Trump's presidency, however, has made me remember who I am. I am resolute. I have never been more ready to destroy them than I am now.

I am their Death.

I don't expect many readers of the High Plains Reader to have supported Donald Trump, but…

Read more...


Corporate worship and compromising the police profession

November 2nd, 2016

“For the soldier’s (or policeman’s) trade,…is not slaying, but being slain. This…the world honors it for. A bravo’s (or hired gun’s) trade is slaying; but the world has never respected bravos (or hired guns)…the reason (the world) honors the soldier (or policeman) is, because he holds his life at the service of the State.”

–John Ruskin

“This is not about the pipeline…This is not about the protesters. This is about the rule of law.”

--Morton County Sheriff Kyle…

Read more...


​The Roots of Republican Party Dishonor: Part II

October 26th, 2016

“War Is Hell” -General William Tecumseh Sherman, USA

“War is a Racket” - Major General Smedley Butler, USMC

“Americans are an ahistoric people. We come to new situations asking ‘what’s the problem?’ when a more appropriate inquiry might be, ‘what’s the story?’ And the way we now get the news…strengthens this tendency toward the here and now at the expense of a longer view.

“It is a momentous thing to use American military power. The lives of Americans, allies,…

Read more...


​Of oil refineries and national parks

October 19th, 2016

By Jim Fuglie

jimfuglie920@gmail.com

I’m calling it “The Great Meridian Energy Smokestack Scam.”

Meridian Energy Group is a California-based oil refining company which has proposed to build an oil refinery in western North Dakota. The company has received zoning approval from local government and has submitted applications for groundwater and air quality permits to the State of North Dakota. State agencies which issue those permits have the applications under consideration. There.…

Read more...


Tracker Pixel for Entry nicholes Tracker Pixel for Entry EmpireAUG2021 Tracker Pixel for Entry Farrms Tracker Pixel for Entry Aquarium Tracker Pixel for Entry hjemkmost Tracker Pixel for Entry MidwestRoadTripAdventures

Recently in:

By Winona LaDukewinona@winonaladuke.com The business of Indian Hating is a lucrative one. It’s historically been designed to dehumanize Native people so that it’s easier to take their land. ‘Kill the Indian, save the man,”…

By Winona LaDukewinona@winonaladuke.comThere’s not really a word for reconciliation, it's said in our language. There’s a word for making it right. To talk about reconciliation in terms of the relationship between Indigenous…

December 16, 18-20, 12 p.m.Fargo Theatre, 314 Broadway N., FargoDon’t miss an annual Fargo Theatre holiday tradition. The Red River Theatre Organ Society presents (almost) a full week of holiday concerts on the Mighty Wurlitzer…

By Jim Fugliejimfuglie920@gmail.com Okay, so last month I promised you a woman President of the United States. So much for my predictability quotient. Lesson 1: Never promise something you can’t control. And nobody, not even…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comWill God Ever Text Margaret Back and Answer Her Prayers?More than 50 years ago a young Judy Blume wrote about 13-year-old Margaret Simon in a contemporary realistic novel titled “Are You There,…

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 In this land of hotdish and ham, the knoephla soup of German-Russian heritage seems to reign supreme. In my opinion though, the French have the superior soup. With a cheesy top layer, toasted baguette…

By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.com Local band Zero Place has been making quite a name for itself locally and regionally in the last few years. Despite getting its start during a time it seemed the whole world was coming to…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com Writer-director Nicole Riegel’s sophomore feature “Dandelion” is now playing in theaters following a world premiere at South by Southwest in March. The movie stars KiKi Layne as the…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comIn 1974, the Jamestown Arts Center started as a small space above a downtown drugstore. It has grown to host multiple classrooms, a gallery, performance studio, ceramic studio and outdoor art park.…

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 Josette Ciceronunapologeticallyanxiousme@gmail.com What does it mean to truly live in a community —or should I say, among community? It’s a question I have been wrestling with since I moved to Fargo-Moorhead in February 2022.…

Rynn WillgohsJanuary 25, 1972-October 8, 2024 Rynn Azerial Willgohs, age 52, of Vantaa, Finland, died by suicide on October 8, 2024. Rynn became her true-self March 31, 2020. She immediately became a vocal and involved activist…

By Curtis W. Stofferahn, Ph.D.Curtis.stofferahn@email.und.edu In June, two events markedly contrasted the difference between two different visions of agriculture: precision agriculture and regenerative agriculture. The dedication…