The federal government, having bailed out the banks, is now bailing out grocery stores. A grocery store in Michigan, North Dakota, received a $70,000 USDA Rural Development grant to get the store up and running after closing down. The store also received a $60,000 unsecured loan courtesy of North Dakota taxpayer from the Red River Regional Council with a below market interest rate of 4%.

Governments run on tax dollars. What that means is that government can only function by taking money from consumers (citizens). They do it in a myriad of ways. They tax income, they tax consumption, they tax property, etc… Therefore, government depends on citizens earning income (to pay more in taxes), consuming more with that income (to pay more in taxes), and making improvements to their property (to pay more in taxes). Why then are government leaders in North Dakota so eager to stick it to consumers whenever they have the chance?

One day after the news broke that the VeraSun ethanol plant near Hankinson, ND wasn’t going to open on-time because of market conditions, Gov. Hoeven’s energy policy commission announced that that state’s policy should be to produce 450 million gallons of ethanol annually.

According to an Associated Press story, that goal should be reached when all of the currently operating and current plants being built are running at full capacity. Remember, that the CEO of VeraSun said,

"Given the current volatility in the market, we believe that delaying all three of these startups is the prudent decision for the long-term benefit of our company and shareholders. Ethanol is currently being sold at a deep discount to unleaded gasoline, which has caused us to delay the startup of these facilities until the outlook for ethanol selling prices and overall margins improve."

Socialism preys on the weak. We are told we have to behave certain ways or we are labeled hate-mongers, greedy, or heartless. We must do things that “feel” good which means logic is sometimes thrown out the window. Even those who know they are not being logical have no qualms about governing by emotion rather than by logic, whether that’s a personally held belief or they are beaten down by the do-gooder brigades. There are three interesting things happening in North Dakota that challenge us to remain rational.

1. Climate Change Conference.
2. Ethanol subsidies.
3. Students are not achieving proficiency in K-12 schools.

The North Dakota Department of Public Instruction has Sunshine on Schools fever. In two recent newspaper articles in the GF Herald & Bismarck Tribune DPI officials have commented on Sunshine on Schools. A couple things can be concluded from those comments:

• DPI officials use Sunshine on Schools
• DPI officials like Sunshine on Schools
• DPI suffers from an “ideas” deficit DPI officials definitely use Sunshine on Schools.

DPI Superintendent Wayne Sanstead told a GF Herald reporter that he “used it this morning.” In a Bismarck Tribune article he has also acknowledged that the information contained in Sunshine on Schools is correct. Assistant director of school finance and organization Jerry Coleman even acknowledged that he “like[s] what [the North Dakota Policy Council is] doing.”

If the Cold War taught us anything it is that central planning does not work.  History has shown us that no one person, nor group of people, is qualified enough to “manage” an entire economy, an entire society, or everyone’s private property.  The Cold War was a great example of how capitalism (freedom) triumphs over socialism (central planning).

Despite our ability to look back into history with 20/20 vision, the political class in North Dakota tends to fall on the side of central planning.  Examples of central planning are all around us.  Here are the two biggest central planning tools used by politicians and community leaders across the state:

• Economic development grants
• Economic development loans
• Comprehensive growth-management
• Comprehensive land use plans

Over the past several weeks, the NDPC has published two fantastic articles that deal with the age old struggle between central planning and individual freedom: Cato Institute Scholar Randal O’Toole wrote Burleigh County Comprehensive Plan is Anything but Rational or Comprehensive and NDPC economic policy fellow Brent Bartsch wrote Good Intentions are not Enough.

Remember the public outcry when a US Senator from Alaska wanted $223 million from US taxpayers to build a bridge in Alaska? That quickly became the symbol of wasteful spending in Washington DC.

Wasteful spending, however, is not exclusive to the federal government. The state of North Dakota has funded some “BS” projects, as well.

The Fargo Forum is running a series of “news” articles about the proposed ½ cent sales tax increase.  I think this would be a good time to talk about three topics related to that proposed sales tax increase:

1.       What is the plan and what is the Greater Fargo-Moorhead Economic Development Corporation (GFMEDC)?

2.       How the new tax money will be spent.

3.       The Fargo Forum’s coverage of the plan.

Before I explain what the proposed tax and what the GFMEDC are, I want you to keep a quote, written by Thomas Paine – author of Common Sense, in the back of your mind: “We still find the greedy hand of government thrusting itself into every corner and crevice of industry, and grasping at the spoil of the multitude… It watches prosperity as its prey and permits none to escape without a tribute.”

On May 7, the Fargo Forum published an op-ed about an attempt by some US Senators to let states lift ethanol mandates.  The proverbial BS started when the op-ed listed the reasons why consumers should be forced to buy ethanol.