It’s been a long time since I’ve felt so absolutely convinced that the future of our country will be secure. The reason is our youth … the youth who have been maligned, criticized and bullied by the adult world as though there were no good kids left. I’ve always understood the kids were taking an unfair hit from the superwise …
Please join me in saying NRA? No Way! and using #NRANoWay on social media. My Facebook friend, Steven G. Johnk, better known as Spider, created this graphic (on top of this blog). It’s right in line with what many of the survivors of the Parkland, Fla., school shooting are saying. Here are the comments of three Marjory Stoneman Douglas High …
The National Rifle Association’s key talking point rolled out as predictably as the sad reality that another mass shooting will happen soon in a U.S. school. “This is not the time to discuss gun control.” Let’s add just one word to the key talking point: This is not the ONLY time to discuss gun control. In fact, it’s EXACTLY the …
Word comes this week that the organizing committee for a group of North Dakotans who want to raise North Dakota’s Oil Extraction Tax back to the level it was at before the Legislature cut it in 2015 has decided to postpone its initiated measure campaign. Postpone but not abandon. A wise choice, I’d say. Although the group already has its …
There is a meme that makes the rounds on my Facebook feed after every school shooting that makes my blood boil. It takes the form of two letters. The first says “Dear God, Why do you allow so much violence in our schools? Signed, a concerned student.” The response reads “Dear Concerned Student, I’m not allowed in schools. God” I find …
Because America leads the world in news, it is incumbent upon us to periodically review current events so that when an undocumented immigrant stops you on the street and asks, what the hell is going on, you’ll know. This may also come in handy on your ACT, SAT or POS test. 1. According to former North Dakota GOP chairman and …
A rare cloudy day in Arizona is a treat, “the mountains get moody and dramatic,” according to Eric Bergeson, who recently took a trip southeast of Tucson through some ranch country and then over the Santa Rita Mountain range.
Geno Crandall scored a team-high 28 points and Dale Jones added 16 points to lead the University of North Dakota men’s basketball team to a 86-81 Big Sky Conference overtime victory over Northern Arizona University on Saturday in Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. Marlon Stewart chipped in 13 points and equaled his career-high with nine assists for the Fighting Hawks (10-17 overall, 5-10 BSC). …
The University of Idaho men’s and women’s tennis teams swept the University of North Dakota by identical 6-1 scores Friday in Choice Health & Fitness in Grand Forks. In singles competition, Alex Mailes was the lone Fighting Hawk to earn a win for the men’s team, while Zahra Finnigan was the only UND woman to win a match. The men, 1-4 on …
Geno Crandall scored a game-high 17 points and Kienan Walter chipped in 15 points to lead the University of North Dakota men’s basketball team to a 61-57 Big Sky Conference victory over Southern Utah on Thursday in Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. The Fighting Hawks upped their season record to 9-17 overall and 4-10 in BSC play. Jade Cohee led the T-Birds …
Around the country and right here in Fargo-Moorhead, there are victims of abuse, both men and women, who suffer in silence. They are silent because few believe them when they voice their concerns. The dumbing down of America at the national level does not help. Look at the people who the president has surrounded himself with: Rob Porter, accused of …
Most of my Democratic friends have a hard time understanding why I like Kevin Cramer. I think it’s because they’ve never been a part of a brotherhood. Let me explain. I’m was thinking about this Wednesday because of Gary Emineth’s announcement Tuesday that Kevin Cramer would run for the U.S. Senate against Heidi Heitkamp. Thanks for that, Gary. I’m sure …
Grand Forks photographer Michael Bogert has braved the recent spate of cold weather to capture these wildlife and landscape in rural Grand Forks County.
For as long as the Art Shanty Projects have been around, a few years now, I’ve vowed to go — yet have never made it — until Sunday. Of course, 16-degree temperatures were no deterrent. After all, the sun was shinning. Plus, I have a warm hooded coat, terrific fur-lined boots and toasty leather gloves. Armed with my sharp metal-pointed German …
The University of North Dakota men’s hockey team gained a weekend split with Colorado College with a 5-1 National Collegiate Hockey Conference win Saturday night in Ralph Engelstad Arena. The Tigers won 4-2 Friday night. The win put UND in a tie for third place in the NCHC with Western Michigan University and snapped a six-game winless streak. The Fighting …
The University of North Dakota women’s basketball team dropped a 68-55 Big Sky Conference decision Saturday to Idaho State University on Senior Day in Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. The win was the first for ISU (15-8 overall, 7-5 Big Sky) in Grand Forks in six tries. UND (11-13 overall, 4-9 Big Sky) was led by Lexi Klabo, who had a …
I’ve been hearing northern Cardinals but had not seen one close up until Saturday. They don’t migrate — one of the handful of species that live in Minnesota all year. I photographed this female (above) under one of our feeders in Bloomington. We’ll soon be hearing more of them. Both the males and females sing in earnest in March and …
This might be the shortest blog post I’ve ever written. Or will ever write. But it’s an important one, so if you are concerned about the possibility of an oil refinery being built next to Theodore Roosevelt National Park as I am, please take just one minute to read it. I had a chance encounter with Gov. Doug Burgum this …
Despite spectacular goals by defensemen Christian Wolanin and Colton Poolman, the University of North Dakota men’s hockey team dropped a 4-2 National Collegiate Hockey Conference decision to Colorado College on Friday night in Ralph Engelstad Arena. The win for the Tigers (12-11-4 overall, 6-8-3 NCHC) left them just one point behind the Fighting Hawks (12-9-8 overall, 6-7-4 NCHC) in the …
Many of the healthiest diets that are being touted these days include fish. And there is good reason. Several kinds of fish and seafood contain omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential to human health. But why are they essential? According to the Harvard School of Public Health and the Mayo Clinic, among others, omega-3 fats are special because they have been shown …
I’m about to break two rules. Never argue with someone who buys ink by the barrel. Never get in a pissing match with a skunk. This one’s a two’fer because it’s the skunk that buys ink by the barrel. The skunk is The Bismarck Tribune, which has just pulled off the slickest “bait-and-switch” gambit I’ve seen in a long, long …
The University of North Dakota women’s basketball team upended Big Sky Conference leader Weber State University 80-67 on Thursday night in Betty Engelstad Sioux Center, giving coach Travis Brewster his 100th career win. The Fighting Hawks (11-12 overall, 4-8 BSC) were led by Jill Morton, who had a career-best 25 points. Lex Klabo also scored 20 points and had nine rebounds, …
I think Lady Liberty would be crying right now if she were human. Given the events of recent days, echoing the worst days from our history, I cannot fathom what it would be like to be an immigrant, a nonwhite person or a dreamer. The executive and legislative branches of government right now are treating humans like cattle in their …
Places I’d like to visit again? Monet’s Garden. Claude Monet, one of the giants of Impressionism, is among Dorette’s and my favorite artists. We’ve seldom missed an opportunity to see his work. We’ve also twice visited his estate near Meudon, France, a short train trip from Paris. Traveling with us last year was Avery Dusterhoft, Dorette’s granddaughter, who brought along …
Are you reading this on Thursday, Feb. 8? Then you’re perched at the pinnacle of year-round efforts to persuade you to step up with support for North Dakota charities’ good works. For 24 magical hours, three Fargo-based funders — the Impact, Dakota Medical and Alex Stern Family Foundations — are together matching every donation of $10 or more made to …
Well, the groundhog saw his shadow, so six more months of Mueller. The president might have basked for a while in the glow of his triumphant State of the Union address, of which a whopping 43 percent of Democrats and 109 percent of Republicans approved. Instead, he released The Memo, which instantly changed the tune from Kumbaya at a campfire …
I’m gaga over the Winter Olympics. My family and friends know this. I have been for decades. I like the Summer Olympics, too, but the Winter Olympics, for me, are the pinnacle. Perhaps it is because I live in the north country and have dabbled in many of the sports, downhill and cross-country skiing as well as ice skating and …
Note: I am reprinting (reposting?) below a story I first ran three years ago this week. It’s about tomatoes. I was thinking about it because today I am preparing my basement “greenhouse” for spring. I’m getting ready to plant peppers, which need to be started indoors really early because they take a long time to ripen on the bush. We …
One thing about the Super Bowl is that if you’re not disappointed by the outcome of the game, you can be disappointed by the halftime show. This year it was Justin Timberlake’s turn to disappoint. Part of the problem is that we’ve set the bar for the game’s show unreasonably high. Also, everybody is a critic, myself included. To begin, …
T. S. Elliot wrote that April is the cruelest month, but I’d argue that. It comes in the winter. Winter is more than a metaphor for the twilight of a life, the final whirl of child’s windup toy as the coiled spring inside releases the last of its energy and it freezes in suspended animation, a monument to a life …
I just read on The Forum’s website that Gov. Doug Burgum is taking free tickets to the Super Bowl. “Burgum and first lady, Kathryn Helgaas Burgum, will be attending the game at the U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis as guests of Xcel Energy, which leases a suite at the venue, Burgum spokesman Mike Nowatzki said.” “’So they are not paying for …
Today was a red-letter today in North Dakota history, specifically N.D. conservation history. This morning, at the Bismarck Public Library, the film “Keeping All the Pieces” was released by the Badlands Conservation Alliance and the North Dakota Wildlife Federation. Presented by Jan Swenson, BCA executive director, and Mike McEnroe, of the North Dakota Wildlife Federation, this 15-minute film dramatically captures …
Lent is just around the corner, so that means meatless meals for some people. In a lot of cases, that means fish or seafood. Here’s a tasty dish that fits the bill from True North Seafood (truenorthseafood.com), which for six generations has been fishing the waters of the Bay of Fundy, located between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. …
With all of the news relating to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, some terms have been loosely thrown around. A number of talking heads have been referring to the investigation of the Russian matter as “treason.” That is not correct. Treason is defined as “the practice of spying or using spies, typically by governments to obtain political and military information.” …
The last major threat to the visual integrity of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, at least that I can recall — though there have been many skirmishes with the oil industry — was in 1989, when the Western Area Power Administration came really close to putting a huge transmission line along the east boundary of the South Unit of the Park. …
I don’t like to brag, but I’m not a white supremacist. I’m a pale pinkish beige, touch of gray, slight kale-green hue supremacist. Gray geese, they call the two of us in the press, although, honestly, they don’t pay any attention. Effing chromos, otherwise. Me, or I, except after c, and the other bloke in the mookie genus, Roy, are …
“The Prairie Post Office: Enlarging the Common Life in Rural North Dakota.” K. Amy Phillips and Steven R. Bolduc, history by Kevin Carvell. North Dakota State University Press, 2017, 102 pages, color photographs, maps and other illustrations. Box 172, Rhame, N.D. That was my childhood address in Slope County. Our school bus driver was also our rural mail carrier, driving …
In retrospect, this picture captured what was one of the most important days of my life: June 6, 1965. Gasp! That’s more than half a century ago. I’m not certain who snapped the shutter, although I think it was my sister, Susan Vorland Hanson. It was graduation day at the University of North Dakota. I’m with my parents Kermit and …
Last summer, I wrote an article about a North Dakota Bad Lands rancher who built himself a big bridge across the Little Missouri State Scenic River on federal land without getting permission. I wrote then, last July, “The folks at the BLM office don’t seem to know anything about the bridge or the road or the water pits, but they …
The University of North Dakota track team racked up more than 20 personal records at this past weekend’s UND Indoor. Among those was pole vaulter Kyley Foster, who broke her school record vault with a clear of 13 feet, 1.50 inches, and Josh Pillath, who broke the school record in the heptathlon with a score of 4,778 points. The Fighting Hawks will enjoy …
They call them “gawker slowdowns.” Delays caused by curious spectators unable to resist checking out a major accident. While we may shake our heads and feel bad for the victims, there’s often a bit of relief, maybe even some sadistic satisfaction it wasn’t us involved in that car wreck. I grew up in the Twin Cities, earned my degree from …
Christian Wolanin scored for the University of North Dakota and Kohen Olischefski tallied for Denver University as the Fighting Hawks and the Pioneers skated to a 1-1 overtime tie in National Collegiate Hockey Conference play Saturday night in Ralph Engelstad University. Denver (14-6-6 overall, 8-4-4-3 NCHC) picked up the extra point as Ian Mitchell scored on 3-on-3 hockey after a …
Visitors to this blog may recall that I like to scam scammers. You know, the ones who steal a Facebook friend’s identity and use FB messaging to try to get you to send them some of your hard-earned money. I like to fight back in my own little way by writing back. Wasting as much of their time as possible. …
The official comment period has passed on that sleazy company Meridian Energy’s request for an Air Pollution Permit for an oil refinery beside Theodore Roosevelt National Park. I’m guessing the State Health Department got an earful. Friday, on the last day of comments, my friend,Sarah Vogel, our former state agriculture commissioner and one of the state’s best attorneys, sent me …