Say Anything Blog

Julie Neidlinger has a great rebuttal to another one of those “emptied prairies” stories that seem to appear in various media outlets now and then.  This latest one was in National Geographic.

As a denizen of the wide-open prairies of North Dakota I always find these articles to be silly.  Yes, many rural communities are “dying.”  Their population is shrinking, thus many of their businesses and schools are closing up.  It is sad in a sort of nostalgic way, especially for people who grew up in such communities or had close ties to them.  But such is progress.

Technological advancements in the agriculture industry - as well as in communications and transportation - have made it possible for one person to farm more land than ever before, and do it without even necessarily living on that land.  Thus, fewer people need to live in these small farm communities.  Farming not only employs fewer people, but those people still employed by it can generally afford to enjoy the benefits of living in the larger communities of the state while still farming their land.

Which is why the urban population in North Dakota has been growing for years even as the rural population shrinks.

Now, to an arrogant reporter who undoubtedly lives on one of the coasts, North Dakota’s tiny communities (even some of those we consider to be “big” communities are pretty small by most standards) probably seems terribly boring and morbid.  No Starbucks?  No theater?  Spotty cell phone coverage?  It’s enough to send a pampered media type into a coma.

In reality, North Dakota isn’t dying.  It’s changing, yes, but with the state at near full employment and our economy humming along the only real problem we have is a group of political leaders who are too busy spending the tax surpluses that humming economy is producing to give any of it back.