Dakota Beacon

“These two servants of God serve the people of Olivet Lutheran very well, yet have made mistakes of a painfully public nature.” --  Bishop Bill Rindy of the E. ND Synod of the ELCA was himself a little pained as he responded to questions about two Fargo Lutheran pastors arrested for drunken driving.  One slid his car into a snow bank in the middle of the night; the other came to help.  An unrelated woman also arrived on the scene and was arrested for drunken driving -- Fargo police said this was the only DUI threesome they could recall.

Lisa Johnson of Grand Forks also had a night to remember.  She wore her full-length fox and coyote fur coat to the exciting Sioux/Gopher hockey game -- the coat was a sensation, she said, "I had a ton of people complimenting me on it."  After the game, the night was still young and Lisa and her entourage gaily toured around Grand Forks in a party bus.  Then they capped their excellent night with an early morning breakfast at the Big Sioux truck stop.  One tiny mistake: Lisa left the luxurious fur draped over a seat in the bus -- it was gone when she returned.  The $12,000 fur was a gift only two days before from her fiance, a Minto farmer.

Cute little children wore ladybug outfits and sang -- this was an effort by Kenmare second-graders to persuade the Legislature to make the ladybug the official state insect.  The Fargo Forum was waiting and ready: “The ladybug? The kids can do better.”  The Forum prefers the honeybee, but since they were on the subject they wanted to point out that the Legislature has a spotty record on these matters.  The Forum belittled the choice of the American elm as the state tree and said the elms would all be dead of Dutch elm disease before the Kenmare ladybug children become adults.

Keep it in the family.  Sen. Kent Conrad’s decision to retire in 2012 sent shock waves through ND political circles, turning preliminary senate strategies upside down.  State chairman for both parties said they had deep benches ready to go.  Democratic Chairman Mark Schneider listed nine possibilities including his son Mac and his nephew Jasper, as well as brother-sister duo Heidi and Joel Heitkamp.  Lest this sound too inbred, it should be acknowledged that all four are experienced holders of elective office.

Gov. Dalrymple made an emergency declaration covering four counties and the Spirit Lake Tribe, reflecting a new sense of urgency about Devils Lake.  The Legislature has been asked to appropriate $5 million to design a controlled outlet for the east end of the lake.  The National Weather Service forecasts a 50-50 chance the lake will rise three feet this year above its present level.

Articles about Devils Lake are often accompanied by a picture of the Spirit Lake Casino, an island connected to the mainland by roads slightly above the water line.  If the lake rises much further, the casino will become an island without roads. 

It can be a mistake to forecast the future by extrapolating the past.  Retirement home workers and others who care for the aged have been in great demand in ND.  Herald economist Ralph Kingsbury cautions that trend may be ending and there may be an increase in demand for those who teach and care for children.  His preliminary analysis of 2000 census data indicates the number of jobs is rising faster than population, suggesting ND is getting younger.

Two disparate voices weighed in on the Fighting Sioux controversy:

Columnist Lloyd Omdahl views ND as having four branches of government, the usual three plus the Board of Higher Education.  He believes the Legislature’s attempt to override the BOHE’s decision to retire the nickname is unconstitutional and “none of the Legislature’s business.”  Omdahl seemed to concede, however, that public opinion may be against the BOHE decision.  One wonders what provisions there are to correct the BOHE if it should overreach.

Retired Herald sports columnist Virg Foss quotes a former WCHA coach who said about the Fighting Sioux hockey program: “They treat the symbol with the ultimate respect.  Always did.  What a travesty of justice that we need to be so PC in a time we are searching for heroes.”  Foss said: “No matter what UND’s teams are called in the future, nothing will ever be as distinct as the Fighting Sioux name, Or the classic Sioux jersey, voted the best in all of hockey, worn with pride by fans and players.”

A Bismarck Tribune editorial finds failure to control costs is the essential flaw in health reform.  The Tribune said, “It does no good to expand health care coverage, if we can’t afford it as a nation.”  The editorial said it was urgent that Congress address tort reform and cost controls.

Fuzzy Words.  Williston is going through a period of hyper-growth and newcomers and older residents don’t always get along.  The Williston Herald set out to calm the waters: “In 2011, let’s drop the negative attitudes and stop telling people to leave simply because they have an idea to do something differently. At the same time, newcomers should realize some things are done a little different up here.”  Sensing it may not have been perfectly clear, the Herald added, “Sometimes, change is good, and sometimes it’s bad.”

The USDA’s Rural Development agency will guarantee a $5 million loan for a new Holiday Inn in Williston.  ND’s congressional delegation nodded approvingly, saying the oil boom has caused a housing shortage.  OK, a new hotel would be nice, but shouldn’t it be left to private investors?  Why does the Dept. of Agriculture need to get on the hook for a hotel for oil industry staff?

Another USDA program helps farmers buy high tunnel greenhouses -- essentially sheets of heavy plastic stretched over hoops to make a quonset shape.  The high tunnels allow farmers to extend the growing season by a month or more for crops such as tomatoes.  The U. of Minn. at Crookston is a leader in this field.  Farmer Earl Snell is particularly pleased with the federal program.  The program typically covers about half the cost of a tunnel, but Snell is black and qualifies for a subsidy of up to 90 percent under a provision for “historically underserved producers.”

“I have been waiting and hoping for years that this day would come.” -- the reaction in 2008 of a Bismarck Tribune reader to the news that Olive Garden was coming to town.  Olive Garden is a restaurant chain, albeit a good one, with 730 locations including Bismarck and Fargo.  Grand Forks is the next ND candidate for ecstasy. 

DAKTOIDS: It wasn’t entirely surprising, but is still disturbing.  Research indicates Grand Forks residents are more than twice as likely as average Americans to watch the TV show “My Name is Earl.”