SCHMID: LOOKING BACK FROM THE LEFT COAST - APRIL 11, 2019
A MULTIPLE HOMICIDE this week resulted in the death of the owner and three employees of RJR Maintenance and Management (property management) in Mandan. The victims died from stab and gunshot wounds. This is the largest murder of this type in ND since 1992. Chad Isaak (44) of Washburn was arrested — he has no criminal record and lives in a mobile home park managed by RJR. A motive is unknown.
PARADOX OF FARMLAND VALUES A StarTribune article indicates Minnesota farmland values are only slightly lower than the 2012 peak, despite farm incomes which are the lowest in decades. In Iowa, where 80 percent of farmland has no debt, only 1/2 of 1 percent changes hands in a year. Numerous reasons were given for such low sales and high prices, but perhaps the biggest reason was omitted. The average age of farmland owners is high. They can derive good incomes by renting their land and, upon their deaths, pass appreciated property to heirs free of income taxes.
TARGET STORES in ND will follow a company-wide plan to pay starting wages of $13 an hour in June rising to $15 an hour by the end of 2020. Target currently pays its lowest-paid workers $12 an hour. Costco pays a minimum wage of $15, while Walmart offers $11. In Minneapolis, where Target is headquartered, the minimum wage for large companies is $9.86 an hour; ND’s minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, the same as federal. Target has stores in ND’s four largest cities and Williston — its wage scale will be disruptive to most other retailers in the state.
BEST CITIES FOR BUSINESS “This data is indicative of one shift in industry in the United States, away from the former manufacturing hubs of the Mid-Atlantic to western states currently in the midst of an oil boom.” — An explanation why 15 of 20 small cities (50-250,000) chosen as best for business are in central western and Midwestern states. Fargo was selected as the nation’s best small city for business, while Bismarck was No. 4. Billings, Mont., Columbus, Ind., and Rochester, Minn., rounded out the top five. The study was released by the Chamber of Commerce.
BEST STATES TO RETIRE WalletHub elves were busy again this week cranking out state rankings. They attempted to establish which is the best state for retirees considering affordability, quality of life and health care. Florida is the best state, South Dakota was next, followed by Colorado, New Hampshire and Virginia. ND was No. 19. Kentucky was the worst, trailed by Rhode Island, W. Virginia, Vermont and New Jersey.
TAX-FRIENDLY STATES WalletHub also listed the most and least tax-friendly states. Alaska was the most friendly , ND neighbors Wyoming and SD were next, followed by Florida and Nevada. ND was close by at No. 6. Who were “bad boys?” Minnesota led that list, followed by Maryland, NY, Illinois and Maine.
ND IS NOT INNOVATIVE WalletHub next tackled innovation-friendliness. ND bombed — ranking 46th. The main factors considered were investments in education, research and business creation. The study was cited by a member of the Valley Prosperity Partnership as a reason ND should diversify its economy by investing more money in research at its two larger universities.
THE DAY DINOSAURS DIED Bowman, ND, broke into the national news this week because of an article in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences about “ the layer of sediment that recorded the extinction of dinosaurs and most other life on Earth as a result of the catastrophic asteroid strike.” A geological snapshot of the 66-million-year-old catastrophe has been found in a cow pasture near Bowman. The region has been the site of fossil excavations and important discoveries for years — Bowman is tucked into ND’s southwestern corner.
A NO WIN TRIAL The trial of former Minneapolis police officer Mohamed Noor has attracted national attention. He is charged with negligently killing Justine Damond, an unarmed Australian woman. A small courtroom was selected because of the potential for disturbance by supporters of both the accused and the victim. Noor is Somali and Damond is white. Noor and his police partner were dispatched to investigate a possible crime — in the confusion of darkness, Noor shot Damond who made the report for help. Because of racial overtones, almost any decision in the trial will dissatisfy one side or the other.
“RAISE HELL, make people uncomfortable.” — U.S Rep. Ilhan Omar (37), the first Somali member of Congress, speaking to a Muslim-American audience in Los Angeles. Omar represents Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District which has a large Somali population — a political science professor views her seat so safe “She didn’t even have to campaign.” A Forum article reviewed the time when she was a largely invisible student at NDSU. Omar was a single parent who often visited her Minneapolis family on weekends and did not participate in campus activities or associate with the local Somali community.
DAKTOIDS: Construction at the new Trinity Health campus in Minot has been suspended because of a series of high-profile accidents — a Minot Daily News editorial said the campus is vital to the health and economic viability of the community . . . A Creighton U. report signals solid economic growth for ND and other Plains states over the remainder of the year . . . Washington state legislators are proposing a rule which would effectively ban shipment of ND crude oil by rail into that state. ND regulators say the proposal is not backed by science.
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