SCHMID: LOOKING BACK FROM THE LEFT COAST - FEBRUARY 22, 2021
WHENCE THOU GOETH Carson Wentz will be traded to the Indianapolis Colts. The former Philadelphia hero is rapidly becoming its goat. Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes wrote: "Carson Wentz is anti-Philadelphia in every possible way: soft, selfish, and stealing money. He betrayed this franchise and this city like no athlete before him.” Wentz will not leave everything in Philadelphia — the quarterback will take a $128 million contract ($70 million guaranteed) with him.
TRIBE VERSUS TRIBE The Standing Rock Sioux are allied with environmental activists to close the Dakota Access Pipeline. The Three Affiliated Tribes on the Ft. Berthold Reservation, a major oil producer, oppose closing the pipeline and contend they have not been considered and consulted on the issue. Gov. Burgum has asked the Corps of Engineers to keep DAPL operating while an environmental review is conducted. He said shutting down the pipeline “would have devastating consequences for the state” and a “chilling effect on infrastructure investment” across the country.
SHOULD BIG HAIRY BRUTES COMPETE WITH GIRLS? The ND House has passed a bill (65-26) to preserve fairness in girls sports. Opponents say the bill discriminates against transgender student athletes. The proposed regulation says that a trans male (male to female) may not compete in a contest for girls until he has completed testosterone-suppression treatment. A trans male (female to male) who has completed gender transition may no longer compete in a contest for girls.
BURGUM: WE’RE GRATEFUL Lowest in deaths and new cases per capita in the past week, a 2-week positivity rate under 3%, second lowest positivity rate among all states last week and among the top five states in testing per capita. Also, among the highest states in vaccination rate. Gov. Burgum rattled off the state’s accomplishments and said “with our economy open, children in school and key COVID-19 metrics among the lowest in the country — (this strong position) is a testament to the fact that our well-tested emergency response systems and processes have met the challenge of the biggest health emergency in 100 years.”
DREAM REALIZED The Jamestown Fire Department badly needed a million dollar ladder truck, but didn’t have the money. They decided to make the purchase anyway and asked the public to donate $333,000 and pleaded with the state for the same amount. At first, it seemed a little fanciful, but Cavendish Farms gave $50,000 and Great River Energy (operator of an ethanol plant and electrical generating plant) gave $250,000. Both businesses could potentially need the truck. Other donors (31) took the total up to $478,000. House majority leader Chet Pollert from Carrington sponsored legislation for the state contribution.
COAL WRESTLES WIND About 60% of electricity produced in ND is from coal, while 27% comes from wind. As coal declines and wind takes its place there are two major concerns. First, that the state may be losing a reliable electricity baseload to provide power when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine. Secondly, there is concern that the transmission grid may have difficulty accommodating increased wind power. The Legislature is studying these problems. One proposed bill seems especially hostile to wind — it would require each wind producer to guarantee contracted backup. A wind developer said it could force new wind out of the state.
BLACKOUTS Cold weather hit the region — a near-record minus 59.6 degrees was reported at Metigoshe State Park. ND utilities can handle extreme cold, but certain electric cooperatives in ND experienced brief blackouts this week. The outages resulted because power was funneled to southern states by the grid administrator to mitigate a crisis. Coal advocates seized the moment to emphasize the need for a coal baseload, because natural gas and alternative energy proved inadequate in some states. Meanwhile, a large amount of natural gas was piped south from storage in Baker, Montana — much of that gas from the Bakken.
MINIMUM WAGE Yes, ND’s minimum wage of $7.25 is too low — on average $2.00 lower than neighboring states. A GF Herald editorial said that ND had kept “the minimum wage brutally and unfairly low.” That said, the editorial stated, “A doubling of the federal minimum wage should not happen.” Rather, “regular incremental increases — ones that are fair to both workers and businesses — are the best route forward.” The Herald said many businesses hit by the pandemic and the retail collapse rely on minimum wage workers and adding to their expenses now could be disastrous.
UPPER MIDWEST INCOMES Here is the range of 2019 individual incomes for ND and adjoining states: Minnesota leads with $75,000 median income, ND is $65,000, SD $60,000 and Montana $57,000. What does it take to crack the top 10% in each of the states: respectively, it’s $234,000, $210,000, $185,000 and $192,000.
WHOSE BIAS? The Forum papers in ND have been increasing the number of SD articles, particularly, the Dickinson paper. Still, an editorial in the GF Herald critical of SD Governor Kristi Noem seemed a little out of the norm. Noem had chastised regional media for underreporting the negative aspects of President Biden’s decision to shut down the Keystone XL pipeline. She claimed the reporting was biased. The Herald said that since she had been so biased for former President Trump, she was the wrong one to be hectoring the media. Why were the guys up north so interested? Their involvement becomes more understandable if you know Publisher/Editor Korrie Wenzel was formerly with the Mitchell, SD, Daily Republic.
“MINNEAPOLIS TAXPAYERS shouldn't hold their breath. Rural Minnesota will continue to have one hand out while punching the big city with the other.” — Forum columnist Mike McFeely. He said the Minneapolis metro area pays 66% of the state’s major taxes while the 80 rural counties pay only 34%. When aid is distributed from the general fund the metro area gets back only 54%. This is the context in which the rural counties are unwilling to reimburse Minneapolis $150 million for damages suffered from the George Floyd riots. McFeely characteristically sees the rural attitude as “divisive, mean-spirited and racist.”
DAKTOIDS: December ND oil production remained about where it was in November at 1.19 million barrels a day . . . On February 14, 1923, it was reported in Minneapolis that a “Black Dust Blizzard” had created drifts in Minnesota. Where did they say the dirt was from? North Dakota . . . ND deaths in 2020 were a 20% jump over 2019; of the 7,937 total deaths in 2020, 1,120 (14%) were from the coronavirus.
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