MINOT, N.D. — You folks all remember the time a bunch of state governments got together and mandated that a certain percentage of smartphones be delivered to retails for sale? Americans would never have adopted the iPhone if the government hadn’t forced manufacturers and phone dealers to make them available, right? Wrong. The government never…
The NDGOP is governing successfully, and the Bastiat Caucus hates it
MINOT, N.D. — Car alarms are pointless. On paper, they make good sense. What better way to alert you to someone tampering with your car than a lot of loud honking and beeping? Only, when was the last time you heard a car alarm and assumed someone was up to something nefarious as opposed to…
Will scorning people inspire them to get vaccinated? Watch the discussion live at 11 a.m.
“We are not supposed to insult these people for their decision to not get vaccinated. We are supposed to understand their position,” columnist Mike McFeely writes. “But should we be empathetic toward those with no good reason for not getting vaxxed?” “Most are supporters of Donald Trump and to call their decision-making deplorable is worse than insulting their…
The PRO Act aims to enrich unions by exploiting workers
MINOT, N.D. — There is nothing wrong with labor organizations or the concept of collective bargaining. Labor unions can serve an important function amplifying the voices of workers, generally, and providing important benefits such as counsel and other protections to individual workers. There is something deeply wrong with forcing Americans to be members of unions…
Biden’s capitulation to the Russians is almost enough to make a person miss Donald Trump
MINOT, N.D. — I’ve been accused of being too hard on Trump supporters. Or, more specifically, lumping all Trump supporters together. Putting the Republicans who voted for Trump because the alternative was Hillary Clinton, and then Joe Biden, in the same category with QAnon aficionados who think the Jan. 6 riot was a “false flag” operation put…
Lawsuit against North Dakota’s voter ID wasn’t about winning legal fees
MINOT, N.D. — It’s ironic that the greatest victory that can be claimed by the lawyers who filed suit against North Dakota’s voter ID laws is that the state has to pay for their legal fees. Allow me to give you the backstory. In 2018 North Dakota was home to one of the highest-profile U.S. Senate races in…
‘Freedom Phone’ is the apotheosis of monetizing the conservative ghetto
MINOT, N.D. — Have you heard about the Freedom Phone? It’s a product being hawked by a 21-year-old kid named Erik Finman who lays dubious claim to the title of “youngest bitcoin millionaire.” The phone’s premise is that it represents a pushback against Big Tech’s efforts to serve as the speech police. The Freedom Phone won’t censor apps…
There’s a dog that’s not barking in District 24
MINOT, N.D. — In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s “The Adventure of Silver Blaze,” everyone’s favorite Victorian-era detective solves the case of the missing racehorse by noting “the curious incident of the dog in the night-time.” What did the dog do in the night? It didn’t bark. In District 24, home to the latest front in…
Maybe the way to fight vaccine hesitancy is to do less?
MINOT, N.D. — North Dakota’s progress on vaccinations has stalled. In March, the state averaged 6,013 doses administered per day. In April that average was 3,980 per day. By May we were down to 1,492 per day, and June saw the daily average drop to 1,023. So far in July, we’re averaging just 563 doses,…
It’s not wind or solar that’s been keeping your air conditioner running right now
MINOT, N.D. — It’s been a hot summer, as is often the case in our part of the world. This week, in particular, has been a scorcher. We’ve all been leaning on our electrical grid to keep those air conditioners running and our homes and offices bearable. And guess which source of energy has been…