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	<entry>
		<id>https://www.conservapedia.com/index.php?title=Secular_Talk&amp;diff=1171799</id>
		<title>Secular Talk</title>
		<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.conservapedia.com/index.php?title=Secular_Talk&amp;diff=1171799"/>
		<updated>2015-09-19T02:03:43Z</updated>

		<summary type="html">&lt;p&gt;Abelgutierrez: &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;hr /&gt;
&lt;div&gt;'''Secular Talk''' is an left leaning online news show on [[YouTube]], hosted by Kyle Kulinski. The focus of the show is modern American politics from a largely [[liberal]] and [[secular]] perspective.  Kulinski is a [[New Atheism|New Atheist]]/[[agnosticism|agnostic]] and admires [[Richard Dawkins]], but he does not always agree with fellow New Atheists on particular points.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=As67_rhvTVY&amp;amp;utm_content=bufferc3b1d&amp;amp;utm_medium=social&amp;amp;utm_source=twitter.com&amp;amp;utm_campaign=buffer New Atheists Vs Progressives]&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt; Like many agnostics/atheists, Kyle Kulinski engages in public profanity (see: [[Atheism and profanity]]).&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=As67_rhvTVY&amp;amp;utm_content=bufferc3b1d&amp;amp;utm_medium=social&amp;amp;utm_source=twitter.com&amp;amp;utm_campaign=buffer New Atheists Vs Progressives]&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==History==&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Kulinski currently resides in New York. He started Secular Talk show in 2008. He is part of The Young Turks network.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==Format==&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The show consists of short videos of a few minutes, which he usually cuts from longer speeches made by conservative politicians and journalists, and he provides rebuttals from a [[atheism|atheistic]] and [[secular]] perspective. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==Political/ideological views of Kyle Kulinski ==&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
* He is in favor of a women's choice to [[abortion|abort]], but makes an exception for late term abortions which he disagrees with.&lt;br /&gt;
* He has indicated that [[Bernie Sanders]] is the best Democrat 2016 presidential candidate.&lt;br /&gt;
* He recognizes [[global warming]] and supports  actions to solve it.&lt;br /&gt;
* He is generally pro-[[feminism]], but is against third-wave feminism. &lt;br /&gt;
* He is socialistic and admires social democratic Scandinavian countries.&lt;br /&gt;
* He is pro-homosexual marriage.&lt;br /&gt;
* He is pro government funded sex reassignment surgery of prisoners.&lt;br /&gt;
* He wants all election candidates to receive government funds and wants to ban private and corporate campaign contributions.&lt;br /&gt;
* He is a proponent of [[Obamacare]] &lt;br /&gt;
* He support a single-payer government funded health-care system and supports free college for all.&lt;br /&gt;
* He believes in high taxation of wealthy individuals and corporations.&lt;br /&gt;
* He is a critic of [[Islam]].&lt;br /&gt;
* He is a critic of [[Israel]].&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
== Opposition to Christianity==&lt;br /&gt;
He frequently criticizes [[Christian]] journalists, public figures and politicians.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
== See also ==&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
*[[Essay: Debate challenge to atheist Kyle Kulinski]]&lt;br /&gt;
*[[Essay: New Atheist Kyle Kulinski defeated]]&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==External links ==&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
* [https://www.youtube.com/user/SecularTalk Secular Talk on YouTube]&lt;br /&gt;
* [http://seculartalkradio.com/ Secular Talk official website]&lt;br /&gt;
* [http://twitter.com/KyleKulinski Kyle Kulinski on Twitter]&lt;br /&gt;
==References==&lt;br /&gt;
{{reflist|2}}&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category: Secular Talk]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category: Atheism]]&lt;/div&gt;</summary>
		<author><name>Abelgutierrez</name></author>
	</entry>
	<entry>
		<id>https://www.conservapedia.com/index.php?title=Madalyn_Murray_O%27Hair&amp;diff=1170285</id>
		<title>Madalyn Murray O'Hair</title>
		<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.conservapedia.com/index.php?title=Madalyn_Murray_O%27Hair&amp;diff=1170285"/>
		<updated>2015-09-09T00:01:58Z</updated>

		<summary type="html">&lt;p&gt;Abelgutierrez: Size&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;hr /&gt;
&lt;div&gt;[[File:Madalyn Murray O'Hair-Wikimedia.jpg|thumb|300px]]&lt;br /&gt;
'''Madalyn Murray O'Hair''' (1919 - 1995) was an activist, founder of [[American Atheists]], and famous for her stern opposition to religion, who in 1960 filed and won a [[lawsuit]] (''Murray v. Curlett'') against the [[Baltimore]] City [[Public School]] System, claiming that it was unconstitutional for her son to study the [[Bible]] at school; this lawsuit, combined with another, would reach the [[Supreme Court]] and result in the banning of [[prayer]] and recitations of Bible verses in American public schools in June, 1963.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt; [http://www.who2.com/madalynmurrayohair.html Madalyn Murray O'Hair Biography]&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
She, her son and granddaughter suddenly disappeared; ''The evidence that has been disclosed does not point to a single conclusion. One would think that the disappearance of a well-known family such as the Murray-O'Hairs would be front page news but the papers have been strangely silent. Where is the Murray-O'Hair family? Are they dead or alive? Why has there apparently been no investigation?'' &amp;lt;ref&amp;gt; [http://www.positiveatheism.org/writ/ohairs2.htm What Happened to Madalyn, Jon, and Robin?] &amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;      &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;lt;blockquote&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;quot;There is no God. There's no heaven. There's no hell. There are no angels. When you die, you go in the ground, the worms eat you.&amp;quot;  Madalyn Murray O'Hair. &amp;lt;ref&amp;gt; [http://www.crimemagazine.com/ohair.htm The Murder of Madalyn Murray O'Hair:America's Most Hated Woman.] by Lona Manning &amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;lt;/blockquote&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
In 2001, her son, her granddaughter and Madalyn's dismembered bodies had been located on a ranch in Austin, Texas. David R Waters, a fellow atheist associate had been charged with the crime. &amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;[http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/people/o/madalyn_murray_ohair/index.html Madalyn Murray O'Hair, NYTimes]&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==Life==&lt;br /&gt;
O'Hair was born in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania on April 13, 1919, the daughter of John Irwin and Lena Scholle Mays.  She grew up there and in Ohio, graduating high school in Rossford in 1937.  Her parents were Presbyterians and attended church regularly, but it was apparently during her teen years that she became an atheist&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Secular-Philosophies/Who-Was-Madalyn-Murray-Ohair.aspx&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;.  In 1941 she had her first marriage to John Henry Roths; this marriage was separated due to World War II and the enlistments they made to the Marine Corps and Women's Army Corps.  In 1945 she engaged in an affair with a married man while stationed in Italy; the result of which was a son, whom she named William J. Murray after the father; she had since divorced her husband and had taken up the name &amp;quot;Murray&amp;quot;.  By 1952 she had earned two degrees: a bachelors from Ashland University in Ohio, and a degree from the South Texas College of Law; she never, however, capitalized on her law degree by going before the Texas bar and becoming a lawyer.  A relationship with boyfriend Michael Fiorillo resulted in another son, Jon Garth Murray, being born in 1954.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Her life was filled with pornography.  Her house had figures of mating animals, and she would often describe her trips to X-rated theaters, stating with some delight that she was the only female in the building.  As son William stated later:&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;lt;blockquote&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
When I was a young boy of ten or eleven years old she would come home and brag about spending the day in X-rated movie theaters in downtown Baltimore. She was proud of the fact she was the only woman in the movie house watching this filth. My mother’s whole life circulated around such things. She even wrote articles for Larry Flynt’s pornographic magazine, ''Hustler''. My mother lived in spiritual death as Paul writes: ''&amp;quot;But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth.&amp;quot; I Timothy 5:6''&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;http://www.rfcnet.org/news/default.asp?action=detail&amp;amp;article=144&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&amp;lt;/blockquote&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
She was also a communist, going so far as to attempt an unsuccessful defection to the [[Soviet Union]] in 1960, taking both sons with her.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/vol18/issue12/pols.ohair.side3.html&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
== Debate with Dr. Walter Martin ==&lt;br /&gt;
Madalyn Murray O'Hair did particularly badly in her debate with Dr. [[Walter Martin]].&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
http://defendingcontending.com/2009/01/01/debate-walter-martin-vs-madalyn-murray-ohair/&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt; For example, when she claimed [[Atheism and the Bible|there were supposedly were contradictions in the Bible]], Dr. Martin asked her to provide an example of one and Ms. O'Hair did not and could not offer even an alleged example of one.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
http://defendingcontending.com/2009/01/01/debate-walter-martin-vs-madalyn-murray-ohair/&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt; In addition, Ms. O'Hair did a poor job defending against the issue of [[Atheism and mass murder|atheism and mass murder]].&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
http://defendingcontending.com/2009/01/01/debate-walter-martin-vs-madalyn-murray-ohair/&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
== American Atheists organization's leadership and excess weight challenges ==&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
See also: [[Atheism and obesity]] and [[New Atheism leadership's problem with excess weight]]&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Madalyn Murray O'Hair, the founder of the American Atheists organization, was overweight.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;http://www.flickr.com/photos/alan-light/229583104/&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt; One of the last pictures taken of Madalyn Murray O'Hair features O'Hair standing before a cake as can be seen [http://www.dallasobserver.com/content/printVersion/276262/ here]. As of December 28, 2010 the pictures of some of the members of their board of directors showed members who were facing challenges in terms of their body weight. &amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;http://www.atheists.org/about/Board_of_Directors&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt; The pictures of the American Atheists board of directors can be found [http://www.atheists.org/about/Board_of_Directors here].&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
== See also ==&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
*[[History of Atheism]]&lt;br /&gt;
*[[Resources for leaving atheism and becoming a Christian]]&lt;br /&gt;
*[[Atheism and beliefs]]&lt;br /&gt;
*[[Atheism is a religion]]&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
== External links ==&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
*[http://crimemagazine.com/ohair.htm The Murder of Madalyn Murray O'Hair:America's Most Hated Woman.] by Lona Manning.&lt;br /&gt;
*[http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/madalyn_ohair/ Madalyn Murray O'Hair.]&lt;br /&gt;
*[http://www.atheists.org/ American Atheists] Official site.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==References==&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;lt;references/&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
[[category:Atheists]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[category:Religion and Politics]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[category:Communists]]&lt;/div&gt;</summary>
		<author><name>Abelgutierrez</name></author>
	</entry>
	<entry>
		<id>https://www.conservapedia.com/index.php?title=North_Dakota&amp;diff=1170278</id>
		<title>North Dakota</title>
		<link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.conservapedia.com/index.php?title=North_Dakota&amp;diff=1170278"/>
		<updated>2015-09-08T23:53:29Z</updated>

		<summary type="html">&lt;p&gt;Abelgutierrez: Map interfered with the alignment of the text.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;hr /&gt;
&lt;div&gt;{{USState&lt;br /&gt;
|name=North Dakota&lt;br /&gt;
|flag=North_Dakota_State_Flag.gif&lt;br /&gt;
|motto=&amp;quot;Liberty and Union Now and Forever; One and Inseparable&amp;quot;&lt;br /&gt;
|nick=The Peace Garden State&lt;br /&gt;
|capital=Bismarck&lt;br /&gt;
|governor=Jack Dalrymple&lt;br /&gt;
|gparty=Republican&lt;br /&gt;
|senator1=Kent Conrad&lt;br /&gt;
|s1party=Democrat&lt;br /&gt;
|s1phone=(202) 224-2043&lt;br /&gt;
|s1email=http://conrad.senate.gov/contact/webform.cfm Contact&lt;br /&gt;
|senator2=John Hoeven&lt;br /&gt;
|s2party=Republican&lt;br /&gt;
|s2phone=(202) 224-2551&lt;br /&gt;
|s2email=http://hoeven.senate.gov/contact_form.cfm Contact&lt;br /&gt;
|population=&lt;br /&gt;
|date=November 2, 1889 (39th)&lt;br /&gt;
}}&lt;br /&gt;
'''North Dakota''' is a northern [[Midwest]]ern state; it is part of the [[Great Plains]] and became the thirty-ninth state to enter into the union on November 2, 1889.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt; It entered on the same day as [[South Dakota]], but is given status first because of alphabetical order.&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt; The state capital is Bismarck, and the largest city is Fargo. North Dakota is the only state that has a state-owned bank in the nation.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;http://www.banknd.nd.gov/bndhome.jsp&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt; North Dakota is located in the center of the North American continent. The exact geographical center is located 97 miles NE of [[Bismarck]], 15 miles SW of [[Rugby]]. &amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;http://hypertextbook.com/bent/photos/geographic.center.html&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
==Politics==&lt;br /&gt;
[[File:ND-map-1958.jpg|340px|thumb|1958 map.]]&lt;br /&gt;
Since 1940 North Dakota has voted [[Republican]] for president (except in 1964), but elects many [[Democrat]]s to [[Congress]]. The current governor of North Dakota is [[Jack Dalrymple]], a Republican. &amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;http://governor.nd.gov/&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==Elected Officials==&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
===Federal===&lt;br /&gt;
*Sen. [[Kent Conrad]] (D)&lt;br /&gt;
*Sen. [[John Hoeven]] (R)&lt;br /&gt;
*Rep. [[Rick Berg]] (R)&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
===Statewide===&lt;br /&gt;
*Governor [[Jack Dalrymple]] (R)&lt;br /&gt;
*Lt. Governor [[Drew Wrigley]] (R)&lt;br /&gt;
*Attorney General [[Wayne Stenehjem]] (R)&lt;br /&gt;
*Secretary of State [[Alvin Jaeger]] (R)&lt;br /&gt;
*Agriculture Commissioner [[Doug Goehring]] (R)&lt;br /&gt;
*State Auditor [[Bob Peterson]] (R)&lt;br /&gt;
*State Treasurer [[Kelly Schmidt]] (R)&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==Population==&lt;br /&gt;
The original native American tribes in what is now North Dakota were the [[Mandan]], [[Sioux]], Arikara, [[Chippewa]], [[Cheyenne]], Assiniboine, and Hidatsa. Today only the Sioux and Chippewa remain; they comprise about 4% of the population. &lt;br /&gt;
[[File:Fargo.jpg|thumb|310px|Fargo and other cities are growing steadily as they absorb the people leaving the declining rural areas.]]  Most settlers arrived from the 1880s to 1910, usually straight from Europe. Since then the population has held steady at about 650,000. Young people are moving out of rural areas to other states or to the few cities.  The four urban counties (containing Fargo, Grand Forks Bismark and Minot) grew from 134,000 people in 1930 to 338,000 in 2007, while the other 49 counties--heavily rural--declined from 546,000 in 1930 to only 301,000 in 2007, and the decline continues. Thanks to high prices for oil and wheat, the state is prosperous and the state budget has a surplus. Higher education is a priority; he state ranks first in spending per capita on state colleges and universities.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==Ethnicity==&lt;br /&gt;
Three out of four residents today are descended from [[German Americans|German]] and Norwegian pioneers who arrived as farmers in growth years, 1880 to 1914. Many of the German speakers came from Russia, and are known as &amp;quot;Russian Germans.&amp;quot;   [[Yankees]] arrived too; they became townspeople, not farmers. Religion has always been strong, especially in Lutheran and Catholic churches.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
===Norwegians===&lt;br /&gt;
Norwegian folk came to North Dakota with a reputation for honesty, hospitality, and thrift; they were modernizers and prohibitionists and soon acquired new traits involving good manners, a greater respect for women, more democratic ideas, and disregard for European class distinctions. &amp;quot;In Norway,&amp;quot; one pioneer recalled, &amp;quot;we were in many respects a helpless tool in the hands of the state. There we had the state church. The child must be baptized or a fine must be paid.&amp;quot; Ole Lima said that when his people came to America they became &amp;quot;a more wideawake people and more independent thinking. . . . The Norwegian, who has lived a while in America, is more civilized than if he had not been here.  He has seen more, experienced more, thought more, and all this has opened his eyes and broadened his view.&amp;quot;&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt; Quoted in Robinson (1966) p 548&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
[[File:ND-Leal.jpg|thumb|340px|The town of Leal in Barnes County in 1920, when it had 88 people; only 36 remain today--it's typical of many fading villages.]]&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
===Volga Germans===&lt;br /&gt;
On the other hand the &amp;quot;Russian Germans&amp;quot; or &amp;quot;Volga Germans&amp;quot; were traditionalists. They were germans who had lived isolated lives for generations in the Volga River region of Russia. They settled mostly in the south-central part of the state, the so-called German-Russian triangle. They brought little money and so worked poorer land, and were not as well off as other groups. No educated Germans-speaking pastors, teachers, professional men, or tradesmen had joined the peasants who migrated to America.  The older generation was still speaking German (they never spoke Russian) in the 1940s, while the next generation was bilingual.  Negatively influenced by their miseries and isolation in Russia, they saw themselves a downtrodden class cheated by businessmen and railroads; they raised large families with harsh discipline; they wanted their children to be farmers so took them out of school around age 14; they treated their womenfolk as inferior, and were slow to diversify their farms.  Many grew sugar beets. In World War I (1917-18) their patriotism was ambiguous; distrusted by their neighbors they rejected prohibition and Americanization efforts and supported radical far-left political movements such as the NPL (&amp;quot;Non-Partisan League&amp;quot;) in state elections and [[Robert LaFollette]] in 1924.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;Robinson (1966) pp. 285-87, 557; Gordon L. Iseminger, &amp;quot;The McIntosh County German-Russians: the First Fifty Years,&amp;quot; ''North Dakota History'' 1984 51(3): 4-23; Iseminger, &amp;quot;Are We Germans, or Russians, or Americans? The McIntosh County German-Russians During World War I,&amp;quot; ''North Dakota History'' 1992 59(2): 2-16.  &amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==Climate==&lt;br /&gt;
The climate is harsh [[winter]] and [[summer]], with light rainfall. Eric Sevareid (1912-1992), who survived to become a famous newscaster, recalls growing up in a village north of Minot:&lt;br /&gt;
:&amp;quot;It was a trial of the human spirit just to live there, and a triumph of faith and fortitude for those who stayed on through the terrible blasting of the summer winds, the merciless suns, through the frozen darkness of the winters when the deathly mourn of the coyote seemed at times the only signal of life.&amp;quot;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==Farming==&lt;br /&gt;
[[File:Nd-farm-map.jpg|thumb|290px]] North Dakota has always been a farm state.  The most productive area is the eastern strip in the Red River Valley, where the soils are good and the water is abundant.  Too abundant, sometimes, as the Red River (which flows north into Canada) often floods.  Farming here is diversified, with wheat dominant, along with sugar beets and other crops.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
[[File:Sod-house.jpg|thumb|300px|There are few trees on the plains, so many pioneers built houses from sod and lived in them for years despite the dirt, darkness and insects. This hand-colored photo was taken about 1905.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt; See Everett Dick, ''Sod-House Frontier'' (1937)&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;]]&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The East Central and West Central regions are dry and are given over to wheat and other grains.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The West region has considerable [[ranching]], but there is so little moisture that crops are seldom grown.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Wheat farming boomed in the late 19th century, in part because of improvements in harvesting technology, particularly the automated reaper/binder that relied on twine to tie wheat into bundles for threshing. In 1899, to meet the rising demand for twine and confront International Harvester's monopolization of twine production, North Dakota and other Great Plains states set up their own twine factories using prison labor.&lt;br /&gt;
[[File:Nd-wheat.jpg|560px|thumb|left|Wheat harvest in Benson county, 1910]]&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
===Farmers Union===&lt;br /&gt;
[[File:Nd-Farm-union.jpg|thumb|400px|State headquarters of Farmers Union in Jamestown]]&lt;br /&gt;
The Farmers Union, the state branch of the National Farmers [[Labor union|Union]] (NFU), was founded in 1927 and emerged out of the NPL in the 1920s. The Union grew rapidly in the 1930s when the [[New Deal]] (through the [[Farm Security Administration]] began funding rural cooperatives. The coops were businesses--grain elevators and retail stores--that are owned by the farmers collectively, and enjoy special tax privileges.  Norwegians in particular favored the coops and the Farmers Union. The Union has always leaned to the left, as opposed to the conservative farm Bureau Federation.  North Dakota is one of the  few states where the Union has a much larger membership than the Bureau, thanks to those coops. In 1956 there were 58,000 farmers in the state, of whom 44,000 belonged to the Union In the 1956 the Union took over the remnants of the NPL and merged it into the Democratic Party, which is officially the Democratic-NPL Party. The Farmers Union in 2009 still has 42,000 members, because it is signing up town folk to join the coops. It still lobbies on the left on major state and national issues.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==Transportation==&lt;br /&gt;
The Red River and the Missouri River are navigable, with steamships active by the 1840s.  They provided the easiest transportation until the opening of the railroads in the 1880-1900 period. The Northern Pacific, Soo Line, Great Northern, and Milwaukee Road railroads served over 90% of the population, and sold land on very easy terms to immigrants. However, once they were settled in farmers and local merchants complained of high freight rates.  The populated areas of east and central North Dakota are flat, making it easy for counties in the 1920s to build gravel roads to serve farmers.&lt;br /&gt;
[[File:Nd-old-home.jpg|thumb|400px|Before the 1950s counties operated &amp;quot;Old People's Homes&amp;quot; like this one in Grand Forks County for welfare recipients; today welfare is in cash payments, rental allowances and food stamps.]]&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
===Tourism===&lt;br /&gt;
[[Hunting]], [[fishing]] and boating are popular pastimes and draw summer tourists. The 2,300 acre tract of the '''International Peace Garden''' straddling the Canadian border was located near the geographical center of the American continent in 1932. The land was given by the Province of Manitoba and the State of North Dakota, after four years of planning by a group of distinguished gardeners. A cairn of native stone bears the inscription, 'To God in His Glory, we two nations dedicate this garden and pledge ourselves that as long as men shall live, we will not take up arms against one another.' Articles of incorporation were filed in Manitoba and North Dakota. A 100 percent Federal grant was received from the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works. A Civilian Conservation Corps camp was installed in 1934 and aided in the garden's development until 1941. Other organizations contributed. The garden houses an International Music camp, weekly encampments of the Royal Canadian Legion, the North Dakota Farm Bureau, the North Dakota Farmers' Union, Boy Scouts, church groups, and other youth activities.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt;John A.  Stormon, &amp;quot;A History of the International Peace Garden,&amp;quot; ''North Dakota History'' 1964 31(4): 205-215, &amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==Energy==&lt;br /&gt;
[[File:Nd-oil.jpg|thumb|350px]]&lt;br /&gt;
North Dakota has considerable fossil fuel reserves. Coal is extracted from large surface mines in central North Dakota. Substantial crude oil and natural gas reserves are located in the Williston Basin, in the western part of the State. Although a low population largely accounts for the State’s low total energy consumption, North Dakota’s per capita energy consumption ranks among the highest in the Nation, in large part due to high demand for heating during cold winters and an energy-intensive economy. Industry accounts for nearly one-half of the State’s total energy consumption.&amp;lt;ref&amp;gt; See [http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/state/state_energy_profiles.cfm?sid=ND Energy Information Administration, State Report 2009]&amp;lt;/ref&amp;gt;  &lt;br /&gt;
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===Petroleum===&lt;br /&gt;
North Dakota is a substantial [[crude oil]]-producing State with an output typically equal to roughly 2% of total annual U.S. production. The State is also an entrance point for Canadian crude oil transported via pipeline to U.S. Midwest refining markets. A small petroleum refinery near Bismarck refines crude oil extracted from the Williston Basin, which covers eastern Montana and the western Dakotas, as well as a small amount of Canadian crude. The refinery produces transportation fuels primarily for the northern Great Plains States and the Twin Cities area. A small new refinery has been proposed on the Fort Berthold Indian reservation in western North Dakota. If constructed, it would be the first new crude oil refinery in the United States in decades. &lt;br /&gt;
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[[File:Nd-oil-drill.jpg|thumb|390px|Drilling for oil in 1963 in the Williston Basin, near the western border]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Ethanol]] is produced at four ethanol plants in North Dakota, and a fifth is under construction, giving the State considerable ethanol production capacity. North Dakota is a moderate consumer of ethanol in blended motor gasoline, although it is one of the few states that allow the statewide use of conventional motor gasoline. (Most States require the use of specific gasoline blends in non-attainment areas due to air-quality considerations.) Ethanol is fast losing popularity because it is expensive and by taking crops out of the food chain it raises food prices.&lt;br /&gt;
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===Natural Gas===&lt;br /&gt;
North Dakota typically produces roughly 1% of the Nation’s annual [[natural gas]] production. The majority of the State’s supply is transported via major pipelines originating in Montana and western Canada on their way to U.S. Midwest consumption markets. North Dakota has the distinction of being one of only two States that produce synthetic natural gas. The single largest source of synthetic gas in the United States is the Great Plains Synfuels Plant in Beulah, North Dakota, which annually produces more than 54 billion cubic feet of gas from coal. Overall State usage of natural gas is low, with the industrial sector leading State consumption. Over two-fifths of the households in North Dakota use natural gas as their primary source of energy for home heating. &lt;br /&gt;
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===Coal, Electricity, and Renewables===&lt;br /&gt;
[[Electricity]] generation and demand are both low in North Dakota, commensurate with the State’s population. [[Coal]]-fired plants provide nearly all of North Dakota’s electricity generation. Most of the coal used for power generation is supplied by several large surface mines in the central part of the State. State coal production is substantial, and North Dakota brings in only small amounts of coal from other States. Hydroelectric dams account for most of the State’s non-coal-generated electricity. The Garrison Dam, located about 75 miles northwest of Bismarck, is North Dakota’s fifth largest plant in electricity generation capability. The vast majority of the State is rich in wind energy potential, a dozen wind power projects are currently operational, and the State has plans for further development. Nearly three-tenths of North Dakota households use electricity as their primary energy source for home heating.&lt;br /&gt;
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==History==&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Beginning in 1915, the [[Non-Partisan League]] ('''NPL''') quickly developed from a protest movement into a political force in North Dakota and neighboring [[Alberta]], Canada. Alienated farmers, especially Germans, demanded state government action to balance the widening gap between the price consumers paid and the amount producers received for their farm products, especially wheat.  A. C. Townley and William Irvine rallied farmers into the Non-Partisan League's ranks with the organization's commitment to voting and democracy that were not influenced by traditional party politics.  Conservative Republicans and Democrats formed an alliance to stope the NPL radicalism. &lt;br /&gt;
 &lt;br /&gt;
==Notable people from North Dakota==&lt;br /&gt;
[[File:ND-Missouri.jpg|thumb|380px|Badlands in western N.D.]]&lt;br /&gt;
*[[Dick Armey]], a former US Representative who played a significant role in the Republican takeover of the House of Representatives in 1994, was born in Cando, then moved to Texas.&lt;br /&gt;
*[[Louis L'Amour]], an author who specialized in writing Westerns, was born in Jamestown.&lt;br /&gt;
*[[Sacagawea]], who served as a guide on Lewis and Clark's expedition, spent several years living in a village in what is now North Dakota.&lt;br /&gt;
* [[Lawrence Welk]], band leader; his parents were Volga German Catholics who left Russia in 1893 and migrated to Strasburg &lt;br /&gt;
* [[Roger Maris]], from Fargo; playing with the New York Yankees, he broke Babe Ruth's home-run record in 1961&lt;br /&gt;
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==Bibliography==&lt;br /&gt;
* Anderson, Kathie Ryckman. ''Dakota: The Literary Heritage of the Northern Prairie State.'' (1990), quick look at 200 authors &lt;br /&gt;
* Arends, Shirley Fischer. ''The Central Dakota Germans: Their History, Language, and Culture.'' (1989). 289 pp.; the state's largest ethnic group&lt;br /&gt;
* Berg, Francie M., ed. ''Ethnic Heritage in North Dakota.'' (1983). 174 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
* Blackorby, Edward C. ''Prairie Rebel: The Public Life of William Lemke'' (1963), radical leader in 1930s [http://www.questia.com/read/11908002?title=Prairie%20Rebel%3a%20The%20Public%20Life%20of%20William%20Lemke online edition]&lt;br /&gt;
* Bochert, John R. ''America's Northern Heartland'' (1987), regional geography&lt;br /&gt;
* Collins, Michael L. ''That Damned Cowboy: Theodore Roosevelt and the American West, 1883-1898'' (1989). Teddy was a rancher here in the 1880s&lt;br /&gt;
* Cooper, Jerry and Smith, Glen. ''Citizens as Soldiers: A History of the North Dakota National Guard.'' (1986). 447 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
* Crawford, Lewis F. ''History of North Dakota'' (3 vol 1931), excellent history in vol 1; biographies in vol. 2-3&lt;br /&gt;
* Danbom, David B. ''&amp;quot;Our Purpose Is to Serve&amp;quot;: The First Century of the North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station.'' (1990). 237 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
* Danbom, David B. &amp;quot;North Dakota: The Most Midwestern State,&amp;quot; in ''Heartland: Comparative Histories of the Midwestern States,'' ed. by James H. Madison, (1988) pp 107-126&lt;br /&gt;
* Drache, Hiram M. ''The Day of the Bonanza: A History of Bonanza Farming in the Red River Valley of the North.'' (1964), giant wheat farms with many employees&lt;br /&gt;
* Eisenberg, C. G. ''History of the First Dakota-District of the Evangelical-Lutheran Synod of Iowa and Other States.'' (1982). 268 pp. now part of [[ELCA]]&lt;br /&gt;
* Ginsburg, Faye D. ''Contested Lives: The Abortion Debate in an American Community.'' (1989). 315 pp. the issue in Fargo&lt;br /&gt;
* Hampsten, Elizabeth. ''Settlers' Children: Growing Up on the Great Plains'' (1991) &lt;br /&gt;
* Hargreaves, Mary W. M. ''Dry Farming in the Northern Great Plains: Years of Readjustment, 1920-1990.'' (1993). 386 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
* Howard, Thomas W., ed. ''The North Dakota Political Tradition.'' (1981). 220 pp.; essays on on Alexander McKenzie, Governor John Burke, Senator William Langer, Governor Fred G. Aandahl, Elizabeth Preston Anderson, NPL and the Independent Voters' Association. &lt;br /&gt;
* Hudson, John C. ''Plains Country Towns.'' (1985). 189 pp. geographer studies small towns&lt;br /&gt;
* Junker, Rozanne Enerson. ''The Bank of North Dakota: An Experiment in State Ownership.'' (1989). 185 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
* Lamar, Howard R. ''Dakota Territory, 1861-1889: A Study of Frontier Politics'' (1956).&lt;br /&gt;
* Lounsberry, Clement A. ''Early history of North Dakota'' (1919) excellent history by editor of ''Bismark Tribune''; 645pp [http://books.google.com/books?id=BHQUAAAAYAAJ&amp;amp;dq=inauthor:Clement+inauthor:Lounsberry&amp;amp;lr=&amp;amp;as_drrb_is=q&amp;amp;as_minm_is=0&amp;amp;as_miny_is=&amp;amp;as_maxm_is=0&amp;amp;as_maxy_is=&amp;amp;num=30&amp;amp;as_brr=0&amp;amp;source=gbs_navlinks_s online edition]&lt;br /&gt;
* Lysengen, Janet Daley and Rathke, Ann M., eds. ''The Centennial Anthology of &amp;quot;North Dakota History: Journal of the Northern Plains.&amp;quot;'' (1996). 526 pp. articles from state history journal covering all major topics in the state's history&lt;br /&gt;
* Morlan, Robert L. ''Political Prairie Fire: The Nonpartisan League, 1915-1922.'' (1955). 414 pp. radical-left NPL came to power briefly&lt;br /&gt;
* Murray, Stanley Norman. ''The Valley Comes of Age: A History of Agriculture in the Valley of the Red River of the North, 1812-1920'' (1967)&lt;br /&gt;
* Peirce, Neal R. ''The Great Plains States of America: People, Politics, and Power in the Nine Great Plains States'' (1973) [http://www.amazon.com/Great-Plains-States-America-Politics/dp/0393053490/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;amp;s=books&amp;amp;qid=1256351845&amp;amp;sr=1-2 excerpt and text ssearch], chapter on North Dakota&lt;br /&gt;
* Robinson, Elwyn B., D. Jerome Tweton, and David B. Danbom. ''History of North Dakota'' (2nd ed. 1995) standard history, by leading scholars; extensive bibliography&lt;br /&gt;
** Robinson, Elwyn B. ''History of North Dakota'' (1966) [http://www.questia.com/read/89553282?title=History%20of%20North%20Dakota First edition online]&lt;br /&gt;
* Schneider, Mary Jane. ''North Dakota Indians: An Introduction.'' (1986). 276 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
* Sherman, William C. and Playford V. Thorson, eds. ''Plains Folk: North Dakota's Ethnic History.'' (1988). 419 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
* Sherman, William C. ''Prairie Mosaic: An Ethnic Atlas of Rural North Dakota.'' (1983). 152 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
* Smith, Glen H. ''Langer of North Dakota: A Study in Isolationism, 1940-1959.'' (1979). 238 pp. biography of influential conservative Senator&lt;br /&gt;
* Snortland, J. Signe, ed. ''A Traveler's Companion to North Dakota State Historic Sites.'' (1996). 155 pp. &lt;br /&gt;
* Stock, Catherine McNicol. ''Main Street in Crisis: The Great Depression and the Old Middle Class on the Northern Plains.'' (1992). 305pp. [http://www.questia.com/read/15562850?title=Main%20Street%20in%20Crisis%3a%20The%20Great%20Depression%20and%20the%20Old%20Middle%20Class%20on%20the%20Northern%20Plains online edition]&lt;br /&gt;
* Stradley, Scot A. ''The Broken Circle: An Economic History of North Dakota'' (1993)&lt;br /&gt;
* Tauxe, Caroline S. ''Farms, Mines and Main Streets: Uneven Development in a Dakota County.'' (1993). 276 pp. coal and grain in Mercer county&lt;br /&gt;
* Tweton, D. Jerome, and Daniel F. Rylance. ''The Years of Despair: North Dakota in the Depression.'' (1973) politics of 1920s &lt;br /&gt;
* Tweton, D. Jerome and Jelliff, Theodore B. ''North Dakota: The Heritage of a People.'' (1976). 242 pp. basic textbook &lt;br /&gt;
* Wilkins, Robert P. and Wilkins, Wynona Hutchette. ''North Dakota: A Bicentennial History.'' (1977) 218 pp. popular history&lt;br /&gt;
* Wishart, David J. ''Encyclopedia of the Great Plains'' (2004), many articles by scholars on many topics&lt;br /&gt;
===Primary sources===&lt;br /&gt;
* Benson, Bjorn; Hampsten, Elizabeth; and Sweney, Kathryn, eds. ''Day In, Day Out: Women's Lives in North Dakota.'' (1988). 326 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
* Maximilian, Prince of Wied. ''Travels in the Interior of North America in the rears 1832 to 1834'' (Vols. XXII-XXIV of &amp;quot;Early Western Travels, 1748-1846,&amp;quot; ed. by Reuben Gold Thwaites; 1905- 1906). Maximilian spent the winter of 1833-1834 at Fort Clark. &lt;br /&gt;
* Meek, Martha, and Jay Meek, eds. ''Prairie Volcano: An Anthology of North Dakota Writing.'' (1995), short works by 50 recent authors&lt;br /&gt;
* Raaen, Aagot. ''Grass of the Earth'' (1950) true, highly revealing story of one Norwegian family in 1880s&lt;br /&gt;
* University of North Dakota, Bureau of Governmental Affairs, ed., ''A Compilation of North Dakota Political Party Platforms, 1884-1978.'' (1979). 388 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
* WPA. ''North Dakota: A Guide to the Northern Prairie State'' (2nd ed. 1950), the classic guide [http://www.questia.com/read/16322595?title=North%20Dakota%3a%20A%20Guide%20to%20the%20Northern%20Prairie%20State online edition]&lt;br /&gt;
* Woiwode, Larry. ''Beyond the Bedroom Wall: A Family Album'' (1975) novel about growing up in N.D.&lt;br /&gt;
* Young, Carrie. ''Prairie Cooks: Glorified Rice, Three-Day Buns, and Other Reminiscences.'' (1993). 136 pp.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
==External links==&lt;br /&gt;
* [http://history.nd.gov/publications/ndhistory.html ''North Dakota History: Journal of the Northern Plains''], with cumulative index&lt;br /&gt;
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== References ==&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;lt;references/&amp;gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
{{USstates}}&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : North Dakota]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : The Dakotas]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : States of the United States]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : Survivalism]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : Red States]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : Purple States]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : Great Plains]] &lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : Plains of the United States]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : Wild West]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : Oil]]&lt;br /&gt;
[[Category : Oil Industry]]&lt;/div&gt;</summary>
		<author><name>Abelgutierrez</name></author>
	</entry>
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