Webblog

Political views were discussed as they pertain to the plains. The plains are typically socially conservative. However, North Dakota has some interesting contradictions. The state typically votes Republicans for the State Government, but sends Democrats to Washington. An interesting point was brought up that Republicans usually keep property taxes down, and Democrats make sure everyone in the US gets taxed. The purpose of this would be to keep property taxes low, but distribute money to the plains states. Another contradiction that was discussed was the relationship between the two provinces- Alberta and Saskatchewan. Alberta was regarded as the "Texas of the North" while Saskatchewan is arguably the most social province in Canada. The idea of radical ideas was supported by some of the organizations/cooperatives. The National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry was a cooperative that purchased bulks of machinery to make it cheaper for individuals. This coop was broken up due to political differences. They did have some legislative control when they were at their peak. The Farmer's Alliance was another coop that formed the People's Party. This group had some socialistic views. These socialistic/nonpartisan views had some role in the establishment of the Bank of ND. National Healthcare was discussed based on Tony Douglas's views. Last of the discussed coops were the AAM and Farmer's Union. Famous individuals like Parrington, Hofstadler, and Kraenzel were debated. These three were all liberals that came from or supported the radical views of the plains.
This lecture had some interesting point of views. I have wondered myself why we are not necessarily straight-ticket voters in ND. These perspectives made sense. I agreed with one suggestion that was brought up- if the people of this state think they did a good job, we vote them into office again. That was my thought when I, a Republican, voted for Pomery. I think he has done a good job in office so I re-elected him. I am a little leery about the radical views. They do have some truth to them, but I still think the plains are very conservative. I found the American Agriculture Movement fascinating. I vividly remember hearing about them taking tractors to DC. One doesn’t want to tick off a farmer/rancher with a tractor or rifle in their possession!~Chris Schmaltz