SCHMID: LOOKING BACK FROM THE LEFT COAST - NOVEMBER 16, 2015
ONE LAST TIME A third and last round of voting for UND nickname options is scheduled for mid-November to choose between Fighting Hawks (46% in the second round) and Rough Riders (28%). Nodaks (26%) was not far behind, but fell off the wagon. It’s a little hard to see how Fighting Hawks can fail in the next round.
UNTIL HE DIES A letter to the Herald from Brett McClintock of Grand Forks attempts to explain why, for some, the Fighting Sioux nickname is more than an identity for UND athletics. “The pride that is associated with the name Fighting Sioux is more than just a name and logo. It is a part of who we are. It evokes a sense of pride in not only UND athletics, but also the spirit of being North Dakotan. The Fighting Sioux name and logo . . . is about being proud to live in this great state with a people who stand for so much good. So, while the media (particularly the Fargo Forum) might criticize the ‘Fighting Sioux Forever’ crowd, you won't strip of us our pride . . . Yes, I will be ‘Fighting Sioux Forever,’ and that will stay with me until the day I die.”
WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING ON AT UND?” -- Herald columnist Tom Dennis referring to incidents at UND which collectively border on dysfunction. High ranking faculty members and a campus police officer have recently been arrested, there are claims of poor morale and low confidence from faculty and students, and the school has a $5 million budget deficit. Dennis says the disturbing headlines over the past number of months indicate the question is fair and “UND should consider a campus wide effort at getting an answer.”
GOOD NEWS lies on the horizon for UND. Former ND governor and former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer will serve as UND’s interim president when President Robert Kelley retires in January. Schafer says he is not a candidate for the position. He is an ideal choice for interim presidency and has the experience and credibility to pave the way for a full time successor. The faculty is not pleased with the decision and would prefer one of their own, which would exactly be the problem. Schafer comes without baggage.
NEEL KASHKARI has been appointed president of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank. His selection is unusual -- Fed presidents are usually academic economists -- Kashkari has a financial background, worked at Goldman Sachs and was a key aid to Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson. ND is one of six states in the Fed’s Ninth District (Minneapolis).
FORUM COMMENTARY often comes in slashing, attention-getting style. Columnist Mike McFeely attacks Valley News Live (a competitor of his employer) for “conniving” and “bullying” New Americans and Lutheran Social Services and luring “knuckle-draggers out from under their rocks.” The header reads “McFeely: TV station's immigration 'stories' not based on facts.”
MCFEELY’S THEME is that Valley News disparages New Americans to boost ratings. He contends immigrants don’t cause any more crime or problems than any other group of people. In support of his contention, he cites the fact that New American households account for only 15 percent of households receiving food stamps. McFeely doesn’t seem to recognize he is arguing against himself -- his facts demonstrate New Americans are about five times more likely to get food stamps than an average household. It gets worse, blogger Rob Port reports that the New American population in Cass County is just over 3 percent, but represents 33 percent of welfare recipients.
WILLISTON is throwing out man camps. They have to close by July 1 and the buildings need to be removed by September 1. This is a bone to commercial property owners in Williston where apartments are only 60% occupied and hotels only 55%.
MCKENZIE COUNTY is the center of ND oil activity and needs the best law enforcement it can get. That may not be in the cards in the short term. Sheriff Gary Schwartzenberger and Detective Michael Schmitz are both answering criminal charges -- the sheriff for misusing a department credit card in Las Vegas and the detective for lying about drug use. State law makes it difficult to suspend or remove public officials in those circumstances.
WOES IN COAL COUNTRY “No other state was left in a worse position than North Dakota.” -- Erik Telford, President of the Franklin Center for Government, commenting on new EPA regulations which are particularly hard on the coal industry. Eighty percent of ND’s energy comes from its seven coal plants. Telford says, “If the Clean Power Plan is not overturned in the courts, residents in several states could be hurt with few environmental benefits to show for it.”
NO COMMENT NEEDED “Linnares, a best-selling author and psychotherapist from Brazil, was named one of Glamour magazine's 50 (one from each state) Hometown Heroes.” -- Fargo Forum. The Forum article also mentions Chris Linnares is the wife of Forum publisher and Forum Communications CEO Bill Marcil Jr. A profile of Linnares in Glamour magazine indicated that when she came to the U.S. she experienced culture shock and depression. A woman volunteered to help her learn English -- Linnares said “Through this one connection I went from powerless to powerful.” Her columns in the Forum and programs she sponsors have made Linnares a Fargo celebrity.
THE GUV WENT TOO FAR “The governor should have anticipated that reaction, and used it to moderate his impulse to be so generous to his longtime staff.” -- Tom Dennis at the GF Herald in reference to nearly $100,000 in retention bonuses Gov. Dalrymple awarded to a few close staff members. The general bipartisan reaction was that the governor, now in his final term, had overplayed his hand.
DAKTOIDS: A Minnesota official estimated that about one percent of the state’s economy is derived from the ND Bakken . . . A new ND governor’s residence is proposed to be 18,000 square feet and designed in a Frank Lloyd Wright Prairie School style.
UNTIL HE DIES A letter to the Herald from Brett McClintock of Grand Forks attempts to explain why, for some, the Fighting Sioux nickname is more than an identity for UND athletics. “The pride that is associated with the name Fighting Sioux is more than just a name and logo. It is a part of who we are. It evokes a sense of pride in not only UND athletics, but also the spirit of being North Dakotan. The Fighting Sioux name and logo . . . is about being proud to live in this great state with a people who stand for so much good. So, while the media (particularly the Fargo Forum) might criticize the ‘Fighting Sioux Forever’ crowd, you won't strip of us our pride . . . Yes, I will be ‘Fighting Sioux Forever,’ and that will stay with me until the day I die.”
WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING ON AT UND?” -- Herald columnist Tom Dennis referring to incidents at UND which collectively border on dysfunction. High ranking faculty members and a campus police officer have recently been arrested, there are claims of poor morale and low confidence from faculty and students, and the school has a $5 million budget deficit. Dennis says the disturbing headlines over the past number of months indicate the question is fair and “UND should consider a campus wide effort at getting an answer.”
GOOD NEWS lies on the horizon for UND. Former ND governor and former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer will serve as UND’s interim president when President Robert Kelley retires in January. Schafer says he is not a candidate for the position. He is an ideal choice for interim presidency and has the experience and credibility to pave the way for a full time successor. The faculty is not pleased with the decision and would prefer one of their own, which would exactly be the problem. Schafer comes without baggage.
NEEL KASHKARI has been appointed president of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank. His selection is unusual -- Fed presidents are usually academic economists -- Kashkari has a financial background, worked at Goldman Sachs and was a key aid to Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson. ND is one of six states in the Fed’s Ninth District (Minneapolis).
FORUM COMMENTARY often comes in slashing, attention-getting style. Columnist Mike McFeely attacks Valley News Live (a competitor of his employer) for “conniving” and “bullying” New Americans and Lutheran Social Services and luring “knuckle-draggers out from under their rocks.” The header reads “McFeely: TV station's immigration 'stories' not based on facts.”
MCFEELY’S THEME is that Valley News disparages New Americans to boost ratings. He contends immigrants don’t cause any more crime or problems than any other group of people. In support of his contention, he cites the fact that New American households account for only 15 percent of households receiving food stamps. McFeely doesn’t seem to recognize he is arguing against himself -- his facts demonstrate New Americans are about five times more likely to get food stamps than an average household. It gets worse, blogger Rob Port reports that the New American population in Cass County is just over 3 percent, but represents 33 percent of welfare recipients.
WILLISTON is throwing out man camps. They have to close by July 1 and the buildings need to be removed by September 1. This is a bone to commercial property owners in Williston where apartments are only 60% occupied and hotels only 55%.
MCKENZIE COUNTY is the center of ND oil activity and needs the best law enforcement it can get. That may not be in the cards in the short term. Sheriff Gary Schwartzenberger and Detective Michael Schmitz are both answering criminal charges -- the sheriff for misusing a department credit card in Las Vegas and the detective for lying about drug use. State law makes it difficult to suspend or remove public officials in those circumstances.
WOES IN COAL COUNTRY “No other state was left in a worse position than North Dakota.” -- Erik Telford, President of the Franklin Center for Government, commenting on new EPA regulations which are particularly hard on the coal industry. Eighty percent of ND’s energy comes from its seven coal plants. Telford says, “If the Clean Power Plan is not overturned in the courts, residents in several states could be hurt with few environmental benefits to show for it.”
NO COMMENT NEEDED “Linnares, a best-selling author and psychotherapist from Brazil, was named one of Glamour magazine's 50 (one from each state) Hometown Heroes.” -- Fargo Forum. The Forum article also mentions Chris Linnares is the wife of Forum publisher and Forum Communications CEO Bill Marcil Jr. A profile of Linnares in Glamour magazine indicated that when she came to the U.S. she experienced culture shock and depression. A woman volunteered to help her learn English -- Linnares said “Through this one connection I went from powerless to powerful.” Her columns in the Forum and programs she sponsors have made Linnares a Fargo celebrity.
THE GUV WENT TOO FAR “The governor should have anticipated that reaction, and used it to moderate his impulse to be so generous to his longtime staff.” -- Tom Dennis at the GF Herald in reference to nearly $100,000 in retention bonuses Gov. Dalrymple awarded to a few close staff members. The general bipartisan reaction was that the governor, now in his final term, had overplayed his hand.
DAKTOIDS: A Minnesota official estimated that about one percent of the state’s economy is derived from the ND Bakken . . . A new ND governor’s residence is proposed to be 18,000 square feet and designed in a Frank Lloyd Wright Prairie School style.
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