Dakota Beacon

From the far corners of our vocabulary comes this seldom heard word. In an age dominated by pop culture and high tech entertainment, “honor” is a word finding little use in conversation much less as a concept in practice.

Too bad. If ever there was a time to stress honor in conduct, that time is now. From the macrocosm of the political to the microcosm of the family, the absence of honor leaves a chasm of ruptured relationships.

The fact is, general opposition to Common Core is mounting steadily and more people are becoming aware of its dreadful implications.

Instead of expanding the $30 million conservation fund to $80 million, the governor should say "we already created a fund to do this, but the Measure #5 folks weren't happy about that because it wasn't set up exactly the way they wanted it to be set up with unlimited tax dollars to spend on special interest programs."

At some point in the future, this state is going to see a budget crisis - it won't be next year, or the year after, but some day, these decisions to grow government so massively will come back to bite the people making the decisions.

Leadership requires decisions to be made, and that doesn't always translate into spending other people's money.

Growing government to fight other liberal attempts to grow government even more will not be a winning strategy for Republicans in the long term.

There are very strict and restrictive guidelines to follow as to the qualification of those appointed to the citizen’s accountability board that will be created to govern the entity created by Measure 5.  Read the fine print.  Most North Dakota citizens, of any educational level, would not qualify to serve on the board.

Good Sense says - Vote No vote on Measure 5.  Leave the decision for the spending of these millions of dollars to the vote of the legislators who we can vote out of office.

THERE’S GOLD IN THEM THERE . . . ; “WHAT THE GRIZ LEARNED IN FARGO”; NO THANKS; THE WEST WANTS THE MONEY; AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION . . . ; IS SOMETHING ROTTEN IN MINNEAPOLIS?; OF COURSE, THE BOARD MEMBERS ARE ALL DISMAYED; PROPAGANDA WAR IN THE TWIN CITIES; FAMILY FIGHT, AMTRAK DELAYS; AT LAST SUBWAY IS OUT; AN ECONOMICS LESSON IS NEEDED FOR REPORTER; EASY FOR YOU TO SAY; 

TEX HALL IS DOWN; MINNESOTA HAS A SPECIAL CONCERN; LUTHERAN SOCIAL SERVICE; WELCOME THE PEOPLE WE NEED; SHIRVANI WAS RIGHT; ND COLLEGES WEAK REGION; LOOKING FOR BLACK LUTHERANS; A SMALL CASH PROBLEM; WHAT’S GOOD FOR THE GOOSE IS GOOD FOR THE GANDER; DAKTOIDS

Today, ISIS’s ultimate goal is the destruction of America and the establishment of a global caliphate. If ISIS’s jihadists are not stopped, their path can easily be predicted. Initially they are targeting regimes in Damascus and Baghdad. From there it’s on to Amman and Cairo, Dubai, the wealthy Persian Gulf countries and Riyadh. Israel, seemingly abandoned by the United States, will be overrun despite its nuclear arsenal. Simultaneously, or shortly thereafter, the caliphate will use subversion and terrorism to consume European social democracies.

As long as public education is the "law of the land" and those controlling it have virtually unlimited access to our pocketbooks, we cannot fix this failed system

So how can you tell if you are a liberal? Political party affiliation does not help. There are liberal and conservative Democrats just as there are liberal and conservative Republicans. Calling oneself an independent doesn’t help, either. An independent is still inclined to lean liberal or conservative or a mixture of both.

There are ways to measure a person’s tendency toward liberalism. Review the following array of beliefs of modern day liberals. For every statement with which you agree, give yourself one point. The more points you acquire, the greater your tendency to think like a liberal. Here goes.

The reason why heavyweight boxers have always received more money and exposure (satisfied the market more) than lightweights is because the heavyweight world champion is the world champion. This is the same reason men’s professional sports command greater revenue and exposure than athletic arenas for juniors, the handicapped or collegians — or for women. The best male athletes are the best athletes. Other sports categories exist to provide other people with opportunities to compete, have fun and build character. They are not jobs programs.

The truth is that not just sport but all of nature’s and man’s world is a place defined by varying degrees of quality, not equality. This is no doubt why the Bible barely mentions the notion, except when referring to weights and measures. It’s also why I tend to doubt that anyone who has ever pondered equality deep

There currently appears a rather lengthy article in “GQ” (formerly “Gentleman’s Quarterly”) titled “Son, Men Don’t Get Raped.” The article opens with a few eye-opening statements. Sexual assaults in the military are becoming more common. More than half the victims of sexual assault are men. “GQ” alleges that 38 men are sexually assaulted every day. More military men are assaulted than women. The article further alleges that Pentagon figures indicate that almost 14,000 men were sexually assaulted in 2012.

For the record, new recruits have never been allowed to question the authority of their superiors. Even seasoned subordinates seldom challenge the boss. There has always been a power structure in every military organization from time immemorial. If the military culture itself were at fault, then how do you account for the spike in male-on-male sexual assaults if not for the fact that sexual norms and mores are being forcibly changed? In fact, how do you account for an increase in male-on-female assaults if not for the same reason? All military organizations are authoritarian to the core. If this disintegrates, there is no military – period.

Why is this? Because liberals live lives of rationalization, something debating them reveals. You can make an airtight point and a leftist not only won’t cede it, he’ll disgorge a completely absurd denial of reality. Of course, that’s what a rationalization is: when you lie to yourself, bend reality for yourself.

There is strength at the grassroots level; there is strength in numbers, as long as we are united, using all tools at our disposal, to unite as a community, committed to protect our citizen freedoms.

Some contemporary American Catholics falsely think that "tolerance" is exercised by maintaining indifference towards ideas, opinion or even error, or holding that all points of view are equal. For a Church authority to embrace political correctness at such a time will have consequences which extend far beyond the parade route.

BACK ON TRACK; DELIRIOUS; BIG THINGS HEADED FOR JAMESTOW; WUNNERFUL, WUNNERFUL!; ESPN “COLLEGE GAME DAY”; WHAT’S GOING ON?; EASY COME, EASY GO; FEDS KILL FINANCIAL BUFFALO; THERE THEY GO AGAIN; “IT’S JUST ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT HAPPENS.”; WELCOME TO ND; DON’T SHOOT YOURSELF IN THE FOOT; THAT’S A LOT OF COATS;  DAKTOIDS

It is very conceivable that two to three nuclear air bursts in space over the US could essentially take down the power grid and entire communications system of the United States. After that, an opponent could leisurely orchestrate further attacks. 

There is very good reason to halt Iran’s and North Korea’s nuclear program and missile development. The United States should be focusing intently on hardening against an EMP attack. Forget the global warming malarkey.

MUSHROOMING TAX REVENUES ARE HARD TO ESTIMATE; WHOA NELLIE!; IS MINNESOTA BULLIED?; WHERE’S THE MONEY?; HAMID SHIRVANI; LISTEN TO SHIRVANI; THE TWIN TO THE SOUTH; SD DOING WELL; BRAZILIAN GOES WEST; LOLA FORGOT SHE WAS A VICTIM; MINNESOTA TERRORISTS; WARRIORS; SWEET NORTH DAKOTA; DAKTOIDS

And this president has been working overtime to destroy them ever since.  He’s not the first.  White liberal Democrats got in the game first, beginning with the antebellum traffickers , and gaining lots of ground under the likes of LBJ (all with non-white support).  His programs set in stone the racial inequalities he privately approved. 

A viable grand strategy clearly identifies the enemy and specifies a definitive end state.  Take a cue from General Douglas MacArthur, "In war there is no substitute for victory."

If, as this opinion writer suggests, President Obama has no idea what Foley's murder and the violence in the Middle East is all about, then who does? And if President Obama's limited air strikes against ISIS are not going to stop the violence, what is?

An interview with Grove City College senior, Kayla Murrish . . .

Marriages can only be improved if people are humble enough to know they may need to develop some marriage skills.

Even the most progressive-minded people are beginning to realize that the New Morality has been a disaster, even on its own terms.   It has bred a generation of savages whom it is hard to blame but necessary somehow to control. The surest of social controls, an inner sense of honor, has been denied them by paternal neglect.

. . . A CULTURAL DISASTER; DOUG BURGUM; WATCH OUT! WHY IS HE DOING THIS? POWER FOR MINNESOTA; YOU WILL HATE TO HEAR THIS; THEY WANT TO SHARE; TEACHERS NEED HOUSES; FORTUNES REVERSED; EDSELS FOREVER; DAKTOIDS . . .

Too many Americans, from high school to college and beyond, lack basic knowledge about the history of communism in the 20th century. They are unaware of the crimes and horrors of communism, despite the ideology’s 100 million victims in the last century alone. To combat this unfortunate reality, the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation (a congressionally recognized organization) has released an important resource for high school students, “Communism: Its Ideology, Its History, Its Legacy.” This curriculum, developed by Dr. Lee Edwards and Dr. Paul Kengor, is intended for public, private, and home schools across the country and features nine key lessons about the individuals and events central to the history of 20th century communism.  

But there may be a snag in that calculation that is designed to make you think you are getting more property tax relief than you really are.

But there is nothing “JV” about ISIS’s methods. We have seen them before, in different clothing: beheadings, impaling, suicide attacks, dying for a higher cause (this time for Allah to establish a caliphate instead of for a Mikado to establish an empire), boundless contempt for others, and commitment to a way of war that, like “Bushido,” resembles a death cult.

SONGS FOR A SOGGY DAY; DAKOTA PIONEERS HAD TO BE RESOURCEFUL; WHAT WOULD ELWYN ROBINSON SAY NOW?; THE OIL BOOM INSPIRES MANY DREAMERS; NOT SO FAST!; REMAIN STEADFAST; WE KNOW WHAT’S BEST FOR YOU, 2014 ACT SCORES, WHERE’S MY LODGE?; LIFE’S NOT SO BAD; DAKTOIDS

Even if it were true that cell phones “cause” these accidents, there is no way to measure how many potential accidents were avoided because of cell phones. It is not sufficient to consider the added risks associated with cell phone use; one must also consider the possibility of added benefits of cell phone use.

What has happened to the black community is spreading like a cancer to the rest of American culture. What made America great -- self-reliance, individualism, and common sense -- is being abolished as public welfare, government bureaucracy, red tape, and government mandates are imposed by a growing swarm of government agents.