Dakota Beacon

The ND economy will keep on soaring, right?  As the nation makes a gradual recovery, the state, which didn’t participate in the downturn, will continue its growth.  Herald economist Ralph Kingsbury sees a different scenario -- he anticipates a double-dip recession that will touch ND, reduce its GDP and hurt sales and income tax collections.

Gov. John Hoeven, a candidate for the U.S. Senate, ticked off an impressive list of accomplishments on behalf of Indians at a tribal leadership conference.  His opponent Tracy Potter, also in attendance, made the best of the situation by suggesting, that since Hoeven was doing such a good job, Hoeven should stay . . . as governor.  Potter again proved to be nimble when he proposed closing military bases to reduce federal spending, as long as none of the closures were in ND.

The central Red River Valley has one of the greatest concentrations of Norwegian ancestry in the country.  Visitors from Norway sometimes remark that ND Norwegians seem more intensely Norwegian than the real thing.  Jerry Nysveen (92) of Hillsboro may have been one of the people they are talking about.  He had Norwegian parents, lived in Norway Township and had a lifetime affiliation with the Norway Lutheran Church.  He had widely differing talents -- he was a woodworker, violinist and played college football.  He married Aagot Lerfald, both graduated from Mayville State and became teachers.  After WWII, Jerry and Aagot ran many Hillsboro businesses and the farms of both of Jerry’s parents.  All this time he fiddled and sang Norwegian songs.  Following a ceremony in the Norway Church, Jerry was buried in the Norway Lutheran Cemetery.

The Herald reports more than 80,000 Somali immigrants live in Minnesota and Somalis are  becoming more numerous in ND.  Grand Forks is estimated to have about 300 Somalis, Fargo many more, and Somalis are beginning to arrive in Jamestown.  In early September, a large incident at a Somali restaurant in GF led to the detention of three Somalis by the Border Patrol.  The detained Somalis contend they were victims of ethnic profiling.

What is ND’s most popular state park?  If you guessed Grahams Island, you are correct and one of the few to know.  Grahams Island was a 6,000 acre peninsula in Devils Lake, now it is a 1,000 acre island with over 100,000 visitors each year.  Big problem -- to maintain access, the road to the island must be raised six feet -- estimated cost $14 million.  The island straddles the county line between Ramsey and Benson.  Both counties have many flooded roads and it will be a struggle to fund their share of the project.

Curtis Eriksmoen outdid himself in a September 5 column about ND baseball player Ken Hunt.  The column weaved in Roger Maris, Hunt (Grand Forks), Darin Erstad (Jamestown), Travis Hafner (Sykeston) and even Herman Munster.  The column is a must for ND baseball fans.

All’s well that ends well, not necessarily, says a Forum editorial.  A 2,400 barrel oil spill near Killdeer was contained with little environmental damage, but the Forum sees the spill as a harbinger of things to come.  More oil spills will be part of the trade-off for the prosperity generated by oil and gas.  The Forum said, “As history confirms, it’s the nature of the beast.”

A long time back, I’m not certain of the time frame, let’s say 100 years ago, 11 colleges and universities and their locations were baked into ND’s constitution.  Not a good idea, even then.  Since that time there has been a huge change in the state’s demographics, transportation, communications and needs, yet the 11 institutions are still in the constitution.  That gives politicians one more excuse to avoid the ticklish subject of reform.  Jon Backes, President of the ND Board of Higher Education, is a good example: “As board members, we understand our constitutionally defined role of supporting all 11 institutions.”  It’s a good thing buggy whips weren’t in the constitution.

A retired UND history professor says Theodore Roosevelt's speeches in ND, although ingratiating, still had large elements of affection and sincerity.  Forum writer Patrick Springer says Roosevelt’s warm words about ND “are enshrined in the state’s collective memory.”  Here’s a sampling: “North Dakota gave me my postgraduate course,” “I can never begin to say what I owe to North Dakota,” and “I never would have been president if it had not been for my experiences here in North Dakota.”  It’s hard to tell because of his comings and goings, but historians believe Roosevelt spent altogether roughly a year hunting and ranching near Medora.

T. Roosevelt was “a physically frail urban aristocrat with a Harvard education, a penchant for dressing like a dandy and a squeaky falsetto voice.”  Yet, according to Tribune columnist Clay Jenkinson, his short time in the ND Badlands caused Roosevelt to be portrayed the rest of his life as a rugged, western cowboy.  Cartoonists had a major role in maintaining that image.  Jenkinson will lead a symposium on Roosevelt at Dickinson State, September 16-18.

UND was a tender morsel (45-0) for the Idaho football team at its home opener.  NDSU was supposed to be on the menu for Kansas.  Big disappointment for 48,000 Kansas fans -- NDSU 6 - Kansas 3.  In prior years, NDSU dealt similar shocks to Montana and Minnesota. 

What has the bankruptcy of Mexicana Airlines got to do to with ND?  Well, it postponed the trip of a trade mission to Cuba by the state Agriculture Department.  Ag Commissioner Doug Goehring said they had tickets on Mexicana, which are too expensive to replace.  ND sends regular trade missions to Cuba to push sales of dry peas and beans.

Yep, that would do it.  When the Stutsman County sheriff investigated a hunting accident involving two young men, a varied stash of drugs was discovered, including hallucinogenic mushrooms.

DAKTOIDS:  Bet you didn’t know -- members of the Fur Takers say ND is widely considered the Mecca of trapping in the U.S., topping even Alaska . . . Enrollment at public universities in ND is up -- private Jamestown College had a small decrease.  Tuition, room and board for a year is $22,000 at Jamestown and about $13,000 at UND and NDSU . . . The Melroe family of Gwinner invented and designed the famous Bobcat tractor plus many types of farm equipment.  Clifford Melroe (89), the last of the Melroe brothers, died in early September . . . The Reason Foundation selected ND as the No. 1 state for highway performance and cost-effectiveness.