COLUMNS

N.D. may cast one vote for president

It may sound speculative today but our only member of Congress may be casting the state’s one vote for president in January.

By Lloyd Omdahl, Columnist , December 05, 2011

Opinion Corner: Excitement surrounding NBA’s return

The NBA is back and I couldn’t be more excited for the 66-game schedule promised to tip off with a five-game Christmas Day.

By Ben Rodgers , December 05, 2011

Opinion Corner: Hard being a Vikings fan

It’s hard being a Vikings fan. It’s not quite as bad as being a Cubs fans with the Billy Goat Curse and their more than 100-year championship drought. But as far as football and futility goes, the Vikings are at the top of the list.

November 28, 2011

Thankful for my America

Living on a gravel road in a rural Arkansas county with more cows than people, I have much to be thankful for on my favorite American holiday.

By Gene Lyons, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette , November 28, 2011

You are being heard!

While each group consists of divergent motives and opinions, the tea party and Occupy Wall Street have one common thread — the demand to be heard. History tells us that this is not a new complaint.

By Lloyd Omdahl, Columnist , November 21, 2011

Repeal proposal is worse than tax itself

On Nov. 3, a committee of the Legislature received testimony and considered the merits of the initiated measure that proposes to repeal all property taxes in North Dakota beginning Jan. 1, 2012. The legislators were not impressed.

By Lloyd Omdahl, Columnist , November 14, 2011

A new restaurant chain is needed for health crisis

Open Letter to the Blue Cross Blue Shield Board of Directors: As your annual meeting approaches, you must resolve to bite the bullet when it comes to fighting the trends that will certainly lead to the bankruptcy of Blue Cross Blue Shield and the impairment of thousands of North Dakotans.

By Lloyd Omdahl, Columnist , November 07, 2011

Jamestown reader asks about help when programs close

Are public colleges and universities required to provide any transitional assistance to students en-rolled in a program and the program is closing prior to their degree completion?

By Teri Finneman , October 17, 2011

Making some ‘best estimates’ in races for 2012

Even though it is too early to start placing bets on the 2012 election, John Dwyer, president and CEO of the Lignite Energy Council, wanted the best estimates at the annual meeting of the Lignite Energy Council in Bismarck earlier this month.

By Lloyd Omdahl, Columnist , October 17, 2011

Xs and Os of PLOTS program

Over the past two decades the North Dakota Game and Fish Department has emphasized wildlife habitat enhancement and hunting access on private land through its Private Land Initiative.

By Doug Leier, North Dakota Outdoors , September 23, 2011

Obama’s war for socialism. Yes, socialism.

At some point of embittering clarity, Americans will open their eyes to the glaring significance of the Obama era and see the Power Grab Years for what they are. Whether this realization comes in time to stave off the eradication of the United States as we thought we knew it, or whether it comes too late, I predict it will surely come.

By Diana West, Washington Times , July 22, 2009

Mr. President, are we still torturing?

On Dec. 26, 2002, Dana Priest and Barton Gellman broke, in the Washington Post, the first undeniable story of American torturing of suspected terrorists. In a CIA secret prison at our Bagram air base detention center in Afghanistan, prisoners were being subjected to the by now all-too-familiar ways of “breaking” suspects during the Bush-Cheney “terror presidency.”

By Nat Henthoff, First Amendment , July 22, 2009

Potter knows where the bodies are buried

Wendell Potter is the health-insurance industry’s worst nightmare. He’s a whistle-blower. Potter, the former chief spokesperson for insurance giant CIGNA, recently testified before Congress, “I saw how they confuse their customers and dump the sick — all so they can satisfy their Wall Street investors.”

By Amy Goodman, Hearst Newspapers , July 17, 2009

The mystery of Sonia Sotomayor

Doubtless thousands of other women’s ears perked up when Sen. Charles Schumer, introducing Sonia Sotomayor at Monday’s confirmation hearing, mentioned the Latina jurist’s girlhood affection for Nancy Drew books. The smart, plucky girl-detective was a role model for many women who recognized themselves in Nancy — including Hillary Clinton, Oprah, Sandra Day O’Connor and Laura Bush, to name a few.

By Kathleen Parker, Orlando Sentinel , July 16, 2009

In Iraq, soldiers still suffering and dying

The first I heard about what happened to Lt. Col. Timothy Karcher, the last U.S. commander of Sadr City who recently signed over jurisdiction to Iraqis, was from a reader. He e-mailed me about my last column, which argued that “allies” don’t declare victory over each other (as Iraq’s prime minister Nouri al-Maliki declared “victory” over the United States), and the sooner we realize Iraq isn’t our “ally,” the better. It also bemoaned the U.S. military’s deference to Iraq, quoting top brass beginning with Gen. Raymond Odierno and including Lt. Col. Karcher, in their execution of what I, myself, consider a futile U.S. policy to Westernize Islamic cultures.

By Diana West, Washington Times , July 15, 2009