Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
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“All Nationalism is Idolatry” blared the headline of an opinion paper in California, arguing that “the Christian scriptures contend that all allegiance to the God of love is paramount, and yet all modern (and ancient) nation-states enact a religious pageantry that demands the total allegiance of its citizens.” Of course, this is a serious accusation. In ”Moral Man and Immoral Society,” Reinhold Niebuhr “the selfishness of nations is proverbial. It is therefore probably inevitable that every so...
Our consciences ought to be enraged by the effort the state is making in relation to oil that belongs to the Three Tribes under Lake Sakakawea. But before getting into the specifics, we need context to grasp the infamy of the proposed action. The white man came to the Great Plains where he acquired the land by killing and exiling the Native Americans who lived here. Then he took their land– 70,000 square miles. That’s 280,000 quarters, 45 million acres. Next came the malicious slaughter of 30...
Riding a wave of anti-abortion sentiment, 89 Republican legislators have opted to make an issue of NDSU teaming up with Planned Parenthood to sponsor six days of workshops to train teachers how to talk with students about sex. The signatures were recruited by Senator Janne Myrdal of Edinburg and supported by two faith-based organizations, Concerned Women for America and the Family Policy Alliance. A petition has been defined as a list of people who can’t say “No” so it is difficult to measu...
“Meeting will come to order,” Chairperson Ork Dorken of the Community Homeland Security Committee proclaimed as he banged his chipped Coke bottle on the table to encourage the town’s 13 electors to hurry. “We have serious business for this review of our security program,” Ork added. “Shouldn’t this be an executive session with only town citizens present?” asked Old Sievert. “Let’s lock the doors for security.” “Okay! Okay!” responded Holger. “I know you and Dawg had a spat but that is no reaso...
Bob in WW II A cold November breeze drifted over the family that had gathered on the depot platform to see Bob leave on the mixed mail-passenger train that served the community. Bob had finished boot camp and came home for a quick three-day leave before being sent to North Africa where the Allied forces were in trouble. For the 20th time, Dad looked up the track to see if the “Goose” was coming. A light appeared, the train rounded the curve and glided toward the platform. The train slowed and...
Unknown to most people, there is a relentless struggle in society between those who have and those who have not. A recent Gallup poll, “Majority Rejects Idea of Haves, Have-Nots Divide in U.S.,” created the impression that there was no such divide when in fact 41 percent felt otherwise. So the headline was correct but the impression was wrong. Eighty-one percent of adults with incomes above $100,000 consider themselves as haves, which they should because they are the haves. On the other han...
The bottom fell out of church membership between 1999 and 2018, spelling serious trouble for the well-being of Christendom in the decades down the road. According to a comprehensive poll taken by the very creditable Gallup organization, 70 percent of Americans were church members in 1999. This dropped to 50 percent by 2018. The drop impacted all Christian religions. Between the periods of 1998-2000 and 2016-18, church membership among adults dropped from 69 percent to 52 percent. Catholics lost...
Before launching into our main topic this week, I want to demonstrate that if you hang around long enough you can see history repeat itself, case in point: federal revenue sharing. Back in 1967, U.S. Treasury people were shocked to discover that the nation had more money than it could spend. So they started talking about giving some of this surplus to the states and called it revenue sharing. Well, the National Governors’ Conference was not about to pass up free federal money so it quickly o...
“I’m going to run,” announced Old Sievert as he joined the other 12 town electors in the community hall for the spring planning conference of the Homeland Security Committee. “That may be kind of risky, you using a cane and all,” noted Josh Dvorchik. “I haven’t seen you run in weeks.” “Well, this is it,” Old Sievert continued. “I’m running for president. All the eligible and their dogs are out there. Why not me?” “First, you need a campaign manager and presidential exploratory committee to ge...
For centuries, philosophers have tried to rationalize the underpinnings of governments. We are supposed to be in some make-believe contract to bond together for mutual security, shared services, negotiating conflict and keeping the peace. Even in the best of years, our society has struggled to bring a diverse people together to perform its assumed role. Because our system of government is complex, political scientists classify it as status quo, a polite term for doing as little as possible....
For the past several months, the political dialogue has been focused on the involvement of Russian operatives in the American democratic processes. Whether or not American politicians were involved in collusion has been the primary point of inquiry. Those who have suspected evil have talked liberally about these Russian activities undermining democracy. The Russians have been brilliant by applying their tactics to America’s great weakness— an electorate that is gullible because it lacks a con...
We have almost reached the end of the legislative session and don’t know what kind of higher education board suits North Dakota. Neither have we figured out what a “legacy” fund is. North Dakota has had one for 10 years and no one seems to know what it is. It was created when the Legislature saw gushers of oil – and taxes – pouring out the Bakken around 2008 and wondered how they would control spending with all of this money oozing around. So they proposed to the people that we build a wall ar...
“America will never be a socialist nation,” prophesied President Trump in his Feb. 5 State of the Union Address. He may have been wrong about some things in the past but this time he is absolutely right. Communism will never work anywhere in the world as long as human beings are human beings. It failed because we are greedy and selfish. Therefore, we do not subscribe to the Marxist idea of “from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs” no matter what the early Christi...
Hate caught up with New Zealand last week when a white supremacist slaughtered 50 Muslims at prayer in two mosques. With a lapse in memory of history, we’re looking at evil hopes of a new Aryan race. White nationalism is sweeping the western world, casting hate wherever minorities appear. It has reared its ugly head in the United States, where Christian people have dedicated the secular government to being “one nation under God.” For a nation of professing Christians, hate and white natio...
The old adage that history repeats itself because no one was listening the first time is playing out for us again in Washington and Bismarck. In Washington, we are hearing a chorus from the new left to impeach President Trump - and do it now. Now these folks have good reason for wanting revenge. They represent constituencies that have been abused and intimidated by an arrogant Trump administration. Minorities have been paying a high price for Trump and they are mad – so mad that they are a...
All states in the Union except four, including North Dakota, have annual legislative sessions. But we wait until we have enough business for a session or problems go to Washington to be solved. By the time the biennial crowd hits Bismarck, conflicts have multiplied and the Legislature takes on the appearance of a Roman coliseum in which scores of conflicts run concurrently until the last gladiator falls. In this short space, we can comment on only a couple. The Creeping Marijuana Menace As you...
The people of North Dakota don’t trust the Legislature. As a matter of fact, they never did. In the first place, the Legislature has shown little respect for the people. When the people enact legislation through the initiative, the Legislature spends considerable time at subverting the intent of the voters. In the recent general election, the people initiated a constitutional amendment to protect the integrity of legislative politics and expose interest group money. The measure passed with a con...
“This is the year!” Herb exclaimed to his longtime buddy Gordon on the assembly line over in the plastics factory. “So for what reason is this the year?” Gordon asked. “We’ve both passed at least 50 but without showing any favoritism to other years.” “This is the year I’m running for president,” Herb declared. “President? Of the United States? You will be just one more stranger in the crowd,” Gordon warned. “You need name ID – your dog doesn’t even know you. What makes you think you can run for...
In the present acrid climate of partisan politics, it is remarkable that several legislators would even propose partisan elections for North Dakota local governments. Sponsors of the measure have had very limited hands-on experience in local government and since their rise came the political route they have concluded this is the only way to elect qualified officials. It smacks of self-aggrandizement. The arguments offered by the sponsors in favor of partisan local elections were specious and...
Judging the bills that are introduced biennially, it appears that the North Dakota Legislature has a running war with the people. In that respect, this session is no exception. In November, just three months ago, the people adopted a constitutional amendment creating an ethics commission and making several changes to detect and monitor corrupt activities in state government. One bill, introduced by Senator Tim Mathern (D-Fargo), was developed to honor the wishes of North Dakotans for Public...
“We got to get somebody down to that legislature,” asserted Orville Jordan as he burst into the town’s converted ZCBJ hall for a meeting of the Homeland Security Committee. All 12 of the other city electors were huddled around the old heater close to the stage. Orville was a retired depot agent who didn’t leave when the railroads rolled the tracks up, leaving a 12-foot track bed running through the middle of town. It could be used for sledding if one had a short sled. Of course, there were no...
Back in the days of the Roundtable, the knights insisted that the king have a moat to be a respected member of the Council of Kings. Consequently, a tradition grew making moat ownership a prerequisite for being a king. Over in Washington D.C., the Republicans and Democrats have reached an impasse over the construction of a wall between the United States and Mexico. The Trump faction is standing firm for a 30-foot wall while the Democratic counteroffer has been 150 feet of chicken wire. Nobody...
When President Donald Trump demeaned Viet Nam Hero John McCain, Republicans rolled their eyes and said nothing. Democrats demonstrated political rage. When Trump talked about sexually assaulting women, Republicans rolled their eyes and said nothing. Trump dismissed it as “locker room banter.” Democrats demonstrated more political rage. Trump has repeatedly attacked individuals and groups while bullying them into silence with his scepter. He has done his best to destroy civil discourse and has...
Beginning with this first publication in January, the New Farmers Political Almanac will bring fresh insight into political prognosticating in North Dakota. Since Dave Barry just finished a dubious review of 2018, this is an appropriate time to bring out reliable foresight. January will be dominated by a meeting of the legislature consisting of many Republicans and few Democrats. The Republicans named a reapportionment commission designed to gerrymander the remaining Democrats out of office....
As we engage a new year, our minds speculate about the future. In 2019, will Puerto Rico disappear and turn up next to Australia? Will earth warming hit the ice caps and cause flooding in Omaha? Will any border states petition Canada for asylum? Some questions do not even need a trained prognosticator to foresee the future. Even though geniuses, James Madison and Alexander Hamilton were unable to predict the future of the new United States of America. Here are a few of their failures recorded...
