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**************Eating Liberally -- The 4th Thursday of each month -- Valentino's, 1443 42nd St Sw, Fargo, ND -- 6:00 p.m.
This is a time to get together and eat and talk , just time for our friends. There is no format, dues, agenda etc., We can meet anytime or place we decide, picnic pot luck, local food, anything we want to, even invite speakers. But for now please show up, eat and talk to like minded friends. No need to RSVP just stop by and eat. email Trana if you like.
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| The Grand Forks Herald's Editors Are Cowards |
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| Written by Chet | |||||||||||
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The Grand Forks Herald, today, joins the Forum in hiding behind vague references to nobody in particular when criticizing them. Today's Herald has an editorial about how awesome USDA Rural Development loans and grants -- administered by former Democratic-NPL legislator Jasper Schneider -- have been for North Dakota's economy. Those loans and grants, the editorial notes, are funded in large part by federal stimulus money. Here's a snippet from the Herald's editorial today: Often the loans are required for projects to proceed because private lenders are reluctant to take a risk without the federal money on the table. So developers and rural officials can leverage private money because of USDA Rural Development’s participation. Indeed, without the federal role, many projects would not proceed. That would have been the situation in recent years with the new Jamestown hospital and health care facilities expansions and improvements in Williston. The irony in all this is that the agency can do what is has been doing so effectively because it is using so-called “stimulus” funding. That’s the federal money that has been savaged by some of the same people whose communities have benefited from the money, including legislators who decry the stimulus, but seem to have no problem taking center stage at ribbon-cuttings for stimulus-funded projects in their towns. Grand Forks Herald (emphasis added) Again, who are these people "decry[ing] the stimulus" and showing up for ribbon-cutting ceremonies? How would a well-informed citizenry ever know? Isn't it the job of our newspapers to tell us things, and not just allude to them, or hint of them? Why are the cowards in the editorial offices at Forum Communications so afraid to tell us who they are talking about? Is it because of threats from their papers' owners? Is it because they're afraid they'll stop getting advertising dollars from friends of the unnamed politicians? Is it because they're afraid of losing their jobs? What are they afraid of? [NOTE: The picture of North Dakota Senator John Hoeven (R) at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Jamestown Regional Medical Center, above, which was funded, in large part, by federal stimulus dollars through USDA Rural Development is unrelated to this blog study and purely coincidental.]
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Comments (2)
big jake
said:
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The title of this blog study may seem familiar to you. I wrote a similar post in April of 2012 entitled "The Fargo Forum's Editors are Cowards." You should go read that study. (|
... What misunderstood topic. Let us go back in time to when all of this nonsense began. Rural American went into strategic decline beginning in 1952. Those who supported these policies(top of the list is the Farm Bureau and the extension service/land grant universities). The decision was made to liquidate rural America and the mechanism employed was to lower farm income via price supports. It worked incredibly well. However, country bankers were screaming so to mitigate them economic collapse, USDA created Rural Development. It slowed down to outward migration. Water and sewer, low income housing, airports, golf courses and the list goes on, was provided by the taxpayer. Of late, the definition of "Rural" was changed so we could accomodate things like the Jamestown Hospital. As long as the pork continues to flow and those who get it are fully convinced that they deserve it, nobody pays attention to what is really going on. Our local bankers who disdain goverment involvement as wrong, maybe socialistic, are patently risk averse. They support nearly any project as long as they have virtually no risk. The same is true of today's crop insurance. Our political leaders have convinced us of the necessity of this insurancy while in reality, it supports the insurance industry extremely well as well as our friendly bankers. As an aside to point out just how silly all of this is, when a farmer has a claim against the hugely subsidized crop insuranre, nobody even bothers to send him a check for his loss--it just goes directly to his bank--he never sees it. Jasper administrates a program that is pure politics. Those who have curried favor with campaign contributions or a local banker giving a wink to the Sen. or Rep, or just some inane formula to distribute this money. Yes, local contractors, etc. benefit. Yes, local businesses benefit. Yes the local bank benefits. Yes, the local folks get some benefit. However the taxpayer carries the burdon of the policy to shrink Rural America. Please, if you doubt any of this, look up the "Adaptive Plan for Agriculture". sirca 1962. While never official policy, all aspects of this plan have been carried out and still are. It is neither Republican nor Democrat. It is policy. The press has never dealth with this. I doubt they will. The Hearald has become more like the Forum and that is sad. Much of this is like our Foreign Policy. We really know very little. I am more concerned over what we think we know that is just not so. A functioning media is essential to keep us informed. Not much of that taking place. I would submit to you that is we knew more, we would find the solutions to the seemingly intractable National problems. It does not require rocket science. |
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Chet
said:
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Apology I've gotten a couple emails from one of the editors (I think) at the Grand Forks Herald. He's been asking me to correct this blog post. He has pointed out to me that it is the editors of the Herald's sister newspaper, the Fargo Forum, that are cowards, and not the editors of the Grand Forks Herald. I suppose he makes a good point, in part. On the other hand, I wonder why he and his courageous newspaper haven't pointed out the Forum's editors' cowardice publicly and only done so in private emails to me. Here's another thought: If you think something I've written here is inaccurate, you can quickly make your case by posting a comment here, just like I'm doing now. If, on the other hand, you chose to send me an email asking me to make a correction, please keep in mind that I do this in my free time. I don't make a bunch of money doing this. I read your emails when I have free time. I write content when I have free time. I make corrections when I have free time. There is nobody to complain to if I'm slow in responding; I'm it. So, again, if you disagree or think I've made a mistake, your best bet is to point it out in a comment. That's how blogs work, really. Or you can wait and I'll correct it or post a comment like this one correcting my mistake when I have time. Thanks. |
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