London's The Guardian on North Dakota

[star2city]

The following article has been briefly discussed in both the GF Herald and the Fargo Forum: The Buffalo Roam Again

Although the topic is not at all about the Fighting Sioux name, the article is relevant to North Dakotans, the Sioux Nation, and by extension, UND. The following quote pretty much sums up the article:

... something remarkable is going on in North Dakota, perhaps the least-known but most troubled state in the union.

A century and a quarter after the white man colonised the place and drove the native Americans and the buffalo to the edge of oblivion, the roles are being reversed. The Europeans are facing extinction, and the ancient inhabitants may reclaim the land. The great cinematographic story of the American west has reached its end and is being rewound.

[bisonguy]

All those lovely words from a Brit, no less. I guess we should all pack up from this wasteland known as North Dakota and move to the greener pastures of Great Brittain. There we can enjoy the rain, cloudy days, bland food, overpopulation, drab clothing, industrial pollution, mad cow disease, and poor oral hygeine . Sounds like an improvement.

This is just another example of selective media sensationalism. This was worse than the NDSU/UND women's BB feature.

[star2city]

Two other comments I wanted to make:

Conventional agriculture has no serious future here

[ScottM]

It's kind of odd, but whenever I go back to NoDak, my family's from Jamestown and Fargo, I get this feeling of great relaxation and sometimes toy with the idea of moving back. Then I look at the economic and tax structure, and the entrenched xenophobia ... no dice.

Dorgan and a few others are trying to pass a law that would give tax breaks, etc. for the Plains states' rural areas from NoDak down to Texas. However, tax breaks don't make up for the lack of economic opportunity and other things that cause most people to leave in the first place. Sad, but true.

[Elmerduf]

I'm certain that if the food was more representative of what my pioneer great-grandparents could fix on special occasions, North Dakota would be known for its cuisine!!

You must be from a German farm family! I still drool thinking about some of that food in the Wishek and Napoleon area! Unfortunately, I came from Norskie and Scotch families. Haggis and Lutefisk doesn't cut it!

[Bad Eagle]

Beware of European commentary on Indians or whites. Europeans are most anxious to appear "better" than Americans, especially when it comes to treatment of races. They always cite America's treatment of Indians and Negros as crimes far exceeding anything every committed by those genteel Continental folk. (Never mind about Hitler, Stalin, etc., or even the British treatment of her own people, which was the cause of the birth of America in the first place.)

Truth is, Europe is starting "tribes" of Lakota people over ther now. Look at

http://216.239.57.100/search?q=cache:QXwi4...&hl=en&ie=UTF-8, and

http://www.germanlakotafriends.de/ I have information from the Dakotas that shows Europeans marketing Indians. http://www.germanlakotafriends.de/wermel9.jpg

I say to you white students, always remember that people in the world are just plain ENVIOUS of America, and all things American. Don't let them intimidate you. The accomplishments of your fathers are astounding. America is a fabulous achievement. It is not perfect, nor is anyone or anything. I tell you to love America. Learn to love a "country." It is part of the human instinct. Love always closes one eye to the faults, and concentrates on the beauty.

As an American Indian, from a tribe (Comanche) known for conquest (or, at least for evicting everyone else from our hunting land, including other Indians), I salute America. I don't feel any less Comanche for so doing.

I will admit, I have self-interest in mind in my American patriotism. America left to Indians more than any other government or race would have, given similar circumstances. First of all, no one else could have won out against the Indians. Secondly, if they did, they wouldn't have left one of us standing, let alone leave us actual land. America is the best bet Indians have at this point. I'm all for protecting and preserving America, because in so doing, I help sustain the best opportunities possible for Indians.

[mksioux]

and the entrenched xenophobia ...

Please elaborate.

[mksioux]

What a depressing story. It kind of sucked me in for a while. But I think we need to keep in mind that this writer from England came over here with the "Buffalo Commons" angle for his story. After all, his story would be quite boring to his readers in England if he came all the way to North Dakota to write about a full service University or a $100 million hockey arena.

That's not to say that North Dakota isn't facing dire problems because it certainly is.

Regarding the American Indian angle, I don't think it does anybody any good (including the Indians) if North Dakota becomes so unpopulated that it loses it's infrastructure system. The story notes that the Indians are actually improving their condition because of their casinos. But it fails to mention where most of the money going into those casinos comes from. If North Dakota loses people, those casinos lose money.