In the News…
Students Rally Against Loan Cuts Grand Forks Herald, May 21, 2006 Recent college graduates communicated their distaste with the student loan program Monday during a student-led rally outside the Bank of North Dakota in Bismarck. About 25 participants protested tuition hikes, student loan cuts and low wages. Speakers said the problems amount to a lack of leadership by policymakers. Participants held signs saying, "Don't Cut Student Loans to Give Tax Breaks to Millionaires" and "Stop Making it Worse!" They also called the offices of Gov. John Hoeven, Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., and Rep. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., encouraging them to continue supporting "Reverse the Raid on Student Aid," a bill pending in Congress that would cut student loan interest rates in half. |
Can't We Do Better? High Plains Reader, May 5, 2006
By Ryan Gustafson College is nearly out and students around the state will return home for the summer. Thoughts of next year and the paperwork to come will be the furthest thing from their minds as they contemplate how best to spend their summer vacation. The furthest thing from the minds of many of our elected officials, however, is how to make college affordable and make it possible for young people to stay in North Dakota after graduating. A quick review of the rampant hypocrisy surrounding the education debate:
Can’t we do better? |
Can't We Do Better? Western Concept, Dickinson State University student newspaper, April 24, 2006
By Staff Writers As parents and students prepare paperwork for financial aid filings next year, they're finding it more difficult than ever to pay for higher education in North Dakota. The North Dakota Board of Higher Education recently approved a 9 percent increase in tuition at campuses across the state. "This creates another roadblock for prospective students," Ryan Gustafson, Communications Director for the North Dakota Progressive Coalition, said. "A good government removes roadblocks - it doesn't make them worse." |
Privacy Worries Motivate Requests to Close Records Grand Forks Herald (AP), March 12, 2006 North Dakota's sunshine laws assume government records, and meetings of government boards, are open to the public unless part of the meeting, or information in a record, is exempted from the law. Public agencies have the option of disclosing information that is exempted from the law. Only information that the law deems confidential is barred from public release. Mark Trechock, director of the Dakota Resource Council, a Dickinson (N.D.)-based landowner and environmental group, said lawmakers should closely examine any requests to close off information held by local or state governments. "I think the open records law is a great tool for ordinary folks in North Dakota to figure out what is going on," Trechock said. "It's a great tool for people to become engaged in civic affairs, and any attempt to take those rights of access to information away is, to me, really an attack on democracy." [...] Don Morrison, director of the North Dakota Progressive Coalition, which has monitored feedlot development, said keeping feedlot information confidential as a terrorism safeguard "was one of the more ludicrous arguments that we have heard." "They really do want to hide from the public the fact that these feedlots are coming," Morrison said. "They don't want the public to be part of the process of finding out information about what is planned, and what is going on." |
Asbestos bill won't help victims Ed Christensen, The Forum (Fargo), February 18, 2006 When it comes to matters of illness, we listen to our hearts and look to compassion. Right now, they both are telling me not to trust the proposed Fairness in Asbestos Injury Resolution Act, which should really be named the “Asbestos Bailout Bill.” Mesothelioma is a type of cancer caused only by asbestos fibers. Public personalities like Warren Zevon and Steve McQueen both died, through no fault of their own, at the hands of this preventable disease. Thousands die unnecessarily each year due to asbestos-related illnesses they should have been protected from years ago. If the “Asbestos Bailout Bill” goes through, I’m afraid there will come a day when these victims will have to fight mightily to get what they most certainly deserve. To put it simply, the trust fund is inadequate. Not to mention the burdensome claims process will leave thousands without a glimmer of hope. When I was introduced to politics as a child, I was taught that the lawmaker’s job was to protect us from harm. Yet we are one of only two industrialized countries who have not banned asbestos. What matters most are the rights of the victims. Do not let the asbestos industry’s negligent policies run roughshod over people poisoned by asbestos. It is a moral imperative that our lawmakers continue to make progress in asbestos public awareness by rejecting this bill. Then they should outright abolish this hazardous material and promote more medical research. That is the only fair resolution. |
Alito's opinions draw mixed reactions By Janell Cole, The Forum (Fargo), January 10, 2006 |
Alito's Nomination Could Hurt North Dakotans Over Time Erin Entzminger, Letter ot the Editor, Jamestown Sun, January 16, 2006 The potential lifetime appointment of Sam Alito to be Supreme Court Justice will just add another reminder to the extreme partisanship our nation faces. His association with the utmost right Republican operatives does not promote a desirable balance to the highest court. Alito’s record on standing up for large corporations could end up hurting North Dakotans in the long run. His views show that overcoming economic inequality is not one of his highest priorities. I do not know what the future holds, but I do know a justice in charge of upholding the Constitution, who is biased, is no hero. We need a moderate, one who would be the best choice for everyone, and not just a good choice for corporations and those with power. Click here to read the entire article |
Wal-Mart Movie Causes Stir By Amber Poulson, KFYR-TV Bismarck, Nov. 15, 2005 Robert Greenwald produced a new movie "WalMart: the High Cost of Low Price". Members of the North Dakota Progressive Coalition debuted the film last night and the scenes caused quite a stir. |
House Budget Plan Prompts Concern By Stephen P. Wagner, The Forum (Fargo), Nov. 9, 2005 Kayla Pulvermacher said she’s worried a proposed federal budget bill will force her two younger brothers to bypass a college education. The 22-year-old North Dakota State University senior was the first member of her family to attend a four-year school. Now a budget bill, with debate expected on the U.S. House floor Thursday, could cut $14.3 billion in student loans nationwide while raising fees and interest rates. Pulvermacher said her family also may see cuts through farm programs. “It is important to me to see my younger brothers have the same opportunity as me,” she said Tuesday during a news conference called by the North Dakota Progressive Coalition. “They (lawmakers) need to find a different alternative.” |
Student Futures at Stake By Andrea Johnson, Minot Daily News, Nov. 9, 2005 MSU junior Mike Sadowsky was one of several students at a press conference to protest the federal budget reconciliation bill. The students say the bill will cut $14 billion from student loan programs and funding from other social programs. A vote on the bill is possible this week in the U.S. House of Representatives. Sadowski said his student loans don't cover all his bills. He currently works 25 to 30 hours per week to cover rent, food and the tuition not covered by his student loans. He said other students aren't as lucky as he is and could be forced to drop out altogether if their student loans are cut. "I'm afraid it will price students out of college," he said. |
Sunshine: The Best Antiseptic for Corporate Welfare By Greg LeRoy of Good Jobs First, Nov. 8, 2005 The most heart-warming disclosure victory story in years – are you listening, Hollywood? – came last spring in North Dakota, a wall-to-wall “red” state not known for its labor-friendly policies. A dogged grassroots network, the North Dakota Progressive Coalition, capped off a four-year campaign by winning a disclosure law passed by both houses of the legislature and signed by the governor. The campaign climaxed during a three-week period in February and March when members of the coalition stood outside the state capitol in Bismarck every morning – in blowing snow and temperatures that dipped as low as zero Fahrenheit – creating a gauntlet to leaflet the legislators as they arrived to session. |
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Bill requires subsidy reporting