Letters to the Editor

​Eliminate unneeded special tax break first

August 5th, 2015

To the editor:

So how many new police officers can Fargo hire by eliminating the two-year property tax break for new homeowners? To think this community still has this tax break is mind binding. With local unemployment and interest rates well below five percent, new homes will sell without giving any special tax favors to the Home Builders Association.

The City Commission, the Park Board and the School Board can easily reduce their spending levels close to the rate of inflation or even a…

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​Over $400 raised at Beers for Bernie fundraiser

August 5th, 2015

To the editor:

“Why not?” I thought. Why not roll up my sleeves and really try to do something about the oligarchy we find ourselves in, which only seems to get worse by the minute. So I went to the coffee house meeting along with 40 other folks of all ages. We accomplished much that night. I have never volunteered for a campaign and I’ve never been so jazzed in all my life. On June 29, more than 150 people showed up to our first fundraiser. We raised over $400 at Beers for Bernie…

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​Contrast: Bernie vs. Hillary

July 22nd, 2015

To the editor:

As the race for the Democratic nomination for president in 2016 heats up, there needs to be a very clear distinction made between the two frontrunners, Hillary Clinton and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. That distinction can be summed up in one subject of particular importance not just to labor, but to all middle class and working families in America: the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement and in particular the fight against what was called “trade promotion…

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​Moorhead students to pay more in tuition

July 9th, 2015

To the editor:

With a $2 billion surplus, we had a great opportunity this year to make college more affordable for Minnesota students – and for good reason. Many families and students struggle with the cost of a quality higher education, and Minnesota ranks fourth in the nation in student debt.

Unfortunately, students at the Minnesota State University in Moorhead recently learned that they will receive a tuition hike next year. Raising tuition is essentially a tax increase, because…

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More Police Are Not The Answer

July 1st, 2015

To the editor:

The conversation of race is happening all around us in cities like Ferguson, Baltimore, Los Angeles, New York, Detroit, Chicago, Spokane, McKinney and Charleston. People are asking ‘Is racism a problem?’ In the face of these discussions we are raising the same questions here at home. Shootings, murders, knife fights, bar brawls leading to death, high speed police chases, an officer suicide, a new police chief and police raids, sometimes with SWAT teams occurring more…

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​Raising awareness: Kidney disease

June 24th, 2015

To the editor:

I was diagnosed with kidney disease in January 2010. This is the toughest thing that I ever went through in my life, and I want to help others avoid what I am going through.

Over 26 million Americans have chronic kidney disease (CKD), yet only 10 percent are aware they have it. There are more than 450,000 people in the U.S. on dialysis for kidney failure, and Medicare spends over $87 billion on the care of people with CKD. Investment in research and programs to improve…

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​Dead aren’t worth it

June 17th, 2015

To the editor:

The Army Corps says the cost to protect the graves of those buried in cemeteries upstream of the diversion project is $14 million, and it’s not worth it. The proposed Fargo diversion will cause those cemeteries to flood. They’re wrong, and it’s sad. They have already paid more than $10 million for a clubhouse at a private golf course, but a modicum of respect for the people who devoted all they had to give us life and a future isn’t worth it. Residents of North…

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Fargo’s gamble with with $60 million taxpayers’ money

May 14th, 2015

Fargo’s Diversion leaders have spent $60 million in taxpayer funds on a ring dike, buyouts and a golf course for Oxbow, ND. Oxbow is located above the floodplain, had already bought out its flood prone houses and, according to its mayor, had just recently completed near 500 year level flood protection. Its existing 18 hole private golf course, heavily in debt with a history of losing money, did not deserve a public bailout.

Fargo’s Diversion leaders gambled this huge sum on the…

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​Empty sloganeering

April 8th, 2015

To the editor:

After reading Rob Port’s column titled “Time to End the Corporate Farming Ban” I came to the frightening conclusion that he perhaps knows even less about farming than I do. It certainly left me none the wiser about any benefits of this bill.

Given his self-proclaimed expertise in this matter, I would have expected more of a marshaling of the facts and a logical analysis to support his position that passing this legislation was a good thing. However, most of his column…

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​Fargo’s City Hall: A candidate’s perspective

March 25th, 2015

In January of last year I wrote an opinion piece for The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead challenging the new city hall proposal. I was concerned that our commissioners were not prioritizing needs over wants. I was also curious about the price tag since, at the time, we had very little information as to where the building would be or how big it would be.The original estimate for Fargo’s new city hall was $8-12 million. Predictably, the city hall I thought we were debating morphed into a $30…

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