Last Word

Sorting fact from fiction

March 18th, 2020

by Sarah Haeder
sarahhaeder@hotmail.com

As a registered nurse at Red River Women’s Clinic, I work with the public almost daily. When news of this outbreak first came out, I was worried about my risk for COVID-19 exposure. However, after receiving information from the National Abortion Federation, the CDC, and our medical director my worries were eased. We were given lots of good instruction on how to operate our clinic and reduce the chance of exposure as much as possible.

Then I woke…

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Is this Twilight Zone episode ever going to end?

March 18th, 2020

photo by Sabrina Hornung

by Waylon Hedegaard
retiringwithcats@gmail.com

There is nothing quite like a major crisis to put ideologies and government into stark relief. Enter the Trump administration and our current pandemic. I doubt there has been a time with more bumbling incompetence than what we are currently witnessing. Is this a comedy? A tragedy? Is there a difference? Is this Twilight Zone episode ever going to end?

We’ve known about the Coronavirus for more than two and a half months, and we’ve known…

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I Am Not Here for You

March 11th, 2020

by Caitlin McDonald
mcdonald555@gmail.com

One of my favorite feminist ‘YEAH!’ stories is one that Tina Fey tells, about when Amy Poehler first joined Saturday Night Live. Everyone was writing and bantering ideas in a room together, and Amy acted out one that was kind of gross, a fart sketch or something. Jimmy Fallon said ‘Ew, that’s not cute!’ and Amy snapped back, ‘I’m not here to be f*cking cute for you.’ Now that sets a tone.

You painted a naked woman because you…

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Are you ready for a revolution?

March 11th, 2020

by Waylon Hedegaard
retiringwithcats@gmail.com>

As we all can see, battles are raging for the soul of the Democrat party. Who are we? Who are we becoming? Who do we want to be?

Many want a return to the elegance and decency of the Obama years, and that option certainly has its attractions. Who wouldn’t want a highly educated, thoughtful president who constantly reads and improves himself?

Unfortunately, judging by this primary season? About half of us. These progressives do not view a…

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Barack Obama’s Wingman vs. Vladimir Putin’s Wingman?

March 11th, 2020

Step #3. Beware the One-Party State

“The parties that remade states and suppressed rivals were not omnipotent from the start. They exploited a historic moment to make political life impossible for their opponents. So support the multi-party system and defend the rules of democratic elections. Vote in local and state elections while you can. Consider running for office.” – Timothy Snyder, On Tyranny

“…Hitler’s originality lay in his realization that effective revolutions,…

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A Republican Senator with a Spine – 24/7

February 26th, 2020

Governor Bill and Lydia Langer voting CA 1940

Step #8. Stand Out

“Someone has to. It is easy to follow along. It can feel strange to do or say something different. But without that unease, there is no freedom. Remember Rosa Parks. The moment you set an example, the spell of the status quo is broken, and others will follow.” - Timothy Snyder, On Tyranny

“It is a mistake - as events since September 11 have shown - to suppose that a government can promote and participate in a global economy and at the same time act…

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The Affliction

February 26th, 2020

by Zach Nerpel
zachnerpel@gmail.com

The battle against contentment rages in 2020. The acts of caring for one’s health and finding peace in doom seem to sap the mind of interesting motivations. You find your days melding into each other, not in the fugue of depression, but in hapless uneventfulness. Looking forward to cooking dinner and plans for dinner, become the most engaging thoughts you have left. You think about it while driving and your fried rice is the highlight of the…

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Trump’s and McConnell’s War on Democracy at Home and Abroad

February 12th, 2020

“Donald Trump sits on a wall;
But Donald Trump fears a great fall.
All would-be king’s horsemen, and would-be king’s men;
Still keep him propped up there, again and again.” - Chicago Dog, 2/2/20

Step #5. Remember Professional Ethics
“When political leaders set a negative example, professional commitments to just practice become more important. It is hard to subvert a rule-of-law state without lawyers, or to hold show trials without judges. Authoritarians need obedient…

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Badlands Watch: ‘We Will Get That Project Stopped’  Badlands Family Challenges Bridge in Court

February 5th, 2020

The Little Missouri State Scenic River valley north of Medora. photo by Bill Kingsbury

The Little Missouri State Scenic River valley north of Medora. photo by Bill Kingsbury

I have written before about this stupid, harebrained, boneheaded, senseless, vacuous, selfish, destructive, egomaniacal, (insert your own adjective here), idea of the Billings County Commissioners to put a bridge over the Little Missouri State Scenic River a dozen or so miles north of Medora. I’m going to keep writing about it until it goes away.

Six months ago, it looked like the bridge was just a…

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Iranian Pride and American Prejudice

January 29th, 2020

“On January 16, 1979, the self-styled ‘King of Kings’ (the Shah of Iran) was…forced to seek exile abroad. To understand the reason for this unexpected dénouement, it is necessary to note that the Shah was essentially a western creation. Once before he had been forced into exile, in 1953, when he tried to oppose a popular (democratically elected and anti-Communist) Prime Minister, Dr. Mohammad Mossadeq, who had nationalized the oilfields at the expense of (the) Anglo-Iranian Oil…

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