Dakota Beacon

It’s a full court press. The ND governor’s office and Chamber of Commerce are laying out a program called 2020 & Beyond to build on the state’s success and visualize and plan the future. Eight business reps from the state’s eight largest communities will join six legislators to lead the program. Bill Marcil Jr. of Forum Communications and consultant Kathy Neset co-chair the committee. Gov. Jack Dalrymple wants to see career opportunities in the state expand beyond traditional paths to a variety of professional pursuits including engineering and medical technology.

The state is changing so rapidly that big picture thinking is needed. But one can’t help believing "2020 and Beyond" has an additional purpose -- to avoid charges that the state’s response to the oil boom is “too little and too late.” Ryan Taylor, potentially Dalrymple’s Democratic opponent for governor, made that charge in a letter to the state’s papers. These are opening salvos in the 2012 governor race.

News editors in ND face interesting choices. There is much news outside the oil patch, but at times news from the oil patch is so dramatic that it can’t be ignored. On Sunday, January 28, the Forum’s front page was dominated by articles related to western ND: “Ripples of oil boom felt in Fargo,” “Oil Patch fire departments stressed by increase in calls,” and “Grand Forks businesses reaping benefits of oil boom.“ The top article in the Bismarck Tribune was “Williston Walmart becomes a mecca for oil job seekers,” an account of how newcomers survive winter in the Walmart parking lot.

In December, Herald columnist Ralph Kingsbury was puzzled by GF’s surprising economic growth. The article in the Forum (noted above) provides part of the answer. GF firms, particularly in construction, engineering and architecture, are growing because of new business in the oil patch. While some of the businesses have placed branches in Williston, others continue to operate from GF because of severe shortages of housing and other amenities in the west.

The sudden growth of the ND oil industry is causing colleges and universities to reexamine there curriculum. A new department at UND is offering degrees in petroleum engineering and enrollment is climbing rapidly. Bismarck State is adding courses in energy management. The Bismarck Tribune welcomed the new president of Dickinson State and urged him to shift the school’s focus from ranching to the oil industry.

Each day, BNSF Railway runs 33 trains through Minot, more than one an hour. The 33 includes an average of two unit crude oil trains -- 110-car trains devoted exclusively to oil. The cars need inspection and maintenance -- BNSF has just opened a $30 million shop in Minot to handle growing freight volumes in ND.

Marc Landblom of Dickinson says “the chaos in northwestern North Dakota is heartbreaking.” Landblom identifies himself as an outfitter in the Badlands. He says, “The whole point of camping is to see the stars and enjoy the sounds of the natural world, not listen to the machines and passing trucks while watching the orange flare light flickering over the hills.” The purpose of his letter in the Bismarck Tribune: “Please help keep the oil exploration out of the Little Missouri National Grasslands.”

In January, there were two unrelated murders in small Montana towns near the ND border. Both murders are alleged to have been committed by workers attracted to the oil patch. An article in the Billings Gazette tells how population spillover from ND is straining the resources of northeastern Montana. Sidney Mayor Bret Smelser says they must educate Western Montana on the need to get more state oil revenue allocated to cities affected by the Bakken oil field.

Oil is flowing in ND and so are drugs. Fu Wong was pulled over for a traffic violation in Mandan. The Oregon man was found to have 45 pounds of marijuana, a taser, a big knife and various drug paraphernalia. Traffic stops suggest I-94 is a river of drugs flowing from the W. Coast.

When is race relevant in reporting? Newspapers are concerned about racial prejudice, stereotypes and sensationalism, and, especially in ND, there is an awkwardness about reports involving race. A February 2 article in the Jamestown Sun told of an upcoming trial related to the murder of a Somali immigrant who arrived in Jamestown in March 2011 and was murdered in April. Race was not mentioned, although this will possibly be the first black-on-black murder trial in ND history. The victim is black and a co-defendant is a black ex-convict from Minnesota. On the same day as the Sun article, the Bismarck Tribune defended itself against a charge of racial bias for not reporting a misdemeanor case involving black victims.

We are informed by economists that if a group is given special benefits the size of that group invariably expands. Residents of ND’s Indian reservations receive a host of special subsidies that, predictably, maximize the size of the needy groups and promote fraud. The reservations are rife with conflict of interest and corruption. The Spirit Lake and Turtle Mt. reservations are near the front of that line. There is rarely a month that goes by without a report of fraud, usually involving tribal officials and federal programs, at one of the two reservations. In January, Justin Yankton of Ft. Totten, former secretary-treasurer of the Spirit Lake Tribe, was found guilty of defrauding a federal fuel assistance program. In December, Patricia Robertson of St. Michael, a coordinator of the same program, was sentenced for embezzlement.

State and federal authorities are dismayed by their inability to control crime on Indian reservations. Weak courts and law enforcement on the reservations, plus jurisdictional confusion, are a big part of the problem. Individuals commit crimes and hide on reservations. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports the indictment of 24 members of the Native Mob, a structured, violent gang that “wields power from the Twin Cities to reservations throughout Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.” Minnesota had a statewide prison lockdown to keep word of pending arrests from getting out. The indictments were the result of coordinated efforts by various law enforcement agencies.

Billy beats up people and threatens city councilmen; his brother Cody also delivers beatings and knocked an elderly neighbor unconscious. The teenage Deese brothers terrorize the small town of Wimbledon (240) in Barnes County. The Deeses’ mother calls the charges a “witch hunt” and says the family has been treated unfairly in Wimbledon. Why did the boys go astray?

A cluster of five counties in central ND is seeing a resurgence of meth. The problem was subdued about five years ago, but is becoming a problem in Stutsman, Barnes, Eddy, Foster and LaMoure counties according to their Drug Task Force. The chief of police in Jamestown attributes a lot of the problem to orginal offenders now getting out of jail.

DAKTOIDS: Trouble, trouble. ND uses a formula to value farmland for property taxes -- the formula indicates a 30% one-year tax increase is on the way . . . Williston is adding 2,000 housing units; Dickinson 2,300 . . . Until the 1960s, ND towns with at least 1,500 people probably had a movie theater. Valley City with 6,800 people is closing its last movie theater . . . Williston native and basketball Hall of Famer Phil Jackson is working on a memoir called “Eleven Rings” . . . Dickinson and Williston have housing prices averaging a little under $200,000 -- the highest in the state.