My name is Siri Manning, and I am a senior Political Science major from Breckenridge, MN. My political beliefs have always been fairly fluid due to the fact that my dad, a pastor, has refused to go into detail about his ideas on politics my entire life in order to appear objective to his congregation….
Category: Blogs
Obama’s newfound leverage in Syria
It seems that President Obama has a chance to catch his breath. Capitalizing on Secretary of State John Kerry’s seemingly off the cuff hypothetical, Russian President Vladimir Putin and diplomat Sergey Viktorovich Lavrov pounced on the opportunity to resume negotiations in disarming Syria’s chemical weapons. Maybe, just maybe this diplomatic shift might help boost legitimacy…
Divided we stand
My name is Nikolaj Hagen, I am a senior from Osakis, Minnesota and I am majoring in Political Science and Scandinavian Studies. My political beliefs are drawn from my background as a dual citizen of the U.S. and Denmark and heavily influenced by my parents. Growing up, my parents espoused the virtues of the Scandinavian…
Arguing against intervention
Concordian debates, part I: Two student political bloggers debate American intervention in Syria See the opposing argument here. We are all fascinated by moments rich in irony, like when the builders of the Titanic promised that she was “unsinkable,” or when Brett Favre put on a Vikings jersey and ran out onto Lambeau Field to…
Arguing for intervention
Concordian debates, part I: Two student political bloggers debate American intervention in Syria See the opposing argument here. As talk of a Syrian intervention increases, Americans seem increasingly exhausted, tired of war, tired of looking out for the world, tired of getting tangled in other states affairs, and tired of paying for it. The prospect…
Calming North Korea
Threats of war from North Korea are nothing new. The Stalinist country has long played the part of the town drunk that’s been kicked out of the bar and now sits outside challenging people to a fight. Their most recent outburst of aggressive rhetoric has certainly been of a larger magnitude than has been the…
The Afghanistan Question
For the United States the war in Afghanistan is finally approaching an end. President Obama’s deadline for troop withdrawal is set for the end of 2014, and for many in America this could not come sooner. The conflict, now more than a decade old, has resulted in the deaths of over 2,000 US military personnel…
An Attack on Personhood
North Dakota is now home to the most strict abortion restrictions in the nation after Governor Dalrymple recently signed three bills aimed at eliminating abortions within the state. This direct challenge to one of the most famous Supreme Court cases, Roe v. Wade, demands that the country reexamine its stance on abortion exactly 40 years…
Rape Culture
The United States is still a country that protects rapists and sexual abusers. America has made great strides in the last 50 years toward true gender equality, but we’re still seeing blatant sexism in the news and on college campuses, especially in the last couple months. Recent coverage of the Steubenville, Ohio rape case revolving…
It’s Coffee Time
Needing a reason to get off campus? Want to feel cozy? Craving a caffeine boost? There is no better way to cover all of these things then by traveling to one of the many coffee shops in downtown Fargo. While there are many coffee shops in the Fargo/Moorhead area, there are two specific ones that…


