The Shamrock Shake tradition centers on festive St. Patrick’s Day celebrations hosted by the Collegiate Recovery Program. Each March (e.g., events on March 7, 2024, and March 12, 2026), students gather for free Shamrock Shakes—minty green treats—alongside crafts, games, and sober fun at locations like Serenity Place. This annual event promotes community, recovery support, and holiday spirit in a welcoming, alcohol-free environment for all WVU students.
North Dakota has a strong rural, conservative identity* that many residents value, and concerns about preserving that amid population shifts are common. While discouraging specific groups based on politics could veer into unethical or illegal territory, here are some legal, community-focused strategies citizens might use to emphasize the state’s unique character and potentially make it less appealing to those seeking urban amenities or progressive policies that destroyed the cities they flee.
Advocate for policies that reinforce rural priorities Residents can lobby for state laws that prioritize agriculture, energy production (like oil and coal), and low-density development. For example, supporting zoning restrictions that limit high-rise buildings or large-scale urban sprawl could maintain the open spaces and small-town feel.
Promote cultural and lifestyle differences publicly Through social media, local newspapers, or community forums, highlight the realities of North Dakota life—harsh winters, limited public transit, fewer entertainment options, and a focus on self-reliance. Sharing stories or campaigns about why urban transplants might struggle can naturally filter out those expecting city conveniences.
Strengthen local conservative networks Organize or join groups like the North Dakota Republican Party, farm bureaus, or hunting/fishing clubs to amplify voices on issues like Second Amendment rights, low taxes, and minimal government intervention. Hosting events that celebrate these values might signal to potential movers that the political climate leans heavily one way.
Support economic incentives tied to traditional industries Push for tax breaks or programs that favor farming, ranching, and fossil fuels over tech or service sectors that attract urban professionals. This could slow the influx of people seeking remote work opportunities in “progressive” fields.
Engage in voter initiatives and education Citizens can campaign for ballot measures that protect against perceived urban influences, such as limits on property taxes or environmental regulations. Educating newcomers on local customs and expectations through welcome packets or town halls could also subtly encourage those who don’t align to reconsider.
Keep in mind that migration is often driven by jobs, family, or quality of life, and North Dakota has seen growth from various sources. If the goal is preservation rather than exclusion, focusing on positive community building might be more effective than deterrence.
*Personal responsibility, limited government, fiscal parsimony
This week, NDSU is hosting the state Future Farmers of America (FFA) convention with over 1,000 students from across North Dakota. We’re excited to have these future Bison on campus as students soon! 🤘🚜#NDSUpic.twitter.com/OoMmrpHim9
— North Dakota State University (@NDSU) June 5, 2024
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This hymn traces back to the 16th century; also known as “The Old Hundredth”. The hymn first appeared in the Anglo-Genevan Psalter, a collection of psalms and hymns used by English-speaking Protestant congregations in Geneva and later in England. The tune is credited to Louis Bourgeois, a French composer and music editor who collaborated on the Genevan Psalter. The psalter was influenced by the work of John Calvin and other Reformed theologians.
Story County Iowa Scones
There is a foodway path from the English Civil War (1642–1651) to the culinary traditions from Puritan diaspora to the American Midwest. Along with it home traditions of moral discipline and frugality that persist and is reflected in the relative… pic.twitter.com/eqBQhecHHL
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“From College Town to Chinatown” | The Chronicle of Higher Education, December 2018 This article directly addresses how the boom in Asian international students (heavily Chinese) has turned numerous U.S. college towns into “quasi-Chinatowns,” with examples of economic benefits from Asian-owned businesses but also vulnerabilities when enrollment drops. It covers the nationwide trend across multiple universities.
Also widely known as “Will Ye Go, Lassie, Go?” or “Purple Heather” is a beloved folk song with roots in both Scottish and Irish traditions. It’s a romantic invitation to wander the hills and pick wild mountain thyme (a fragrant herb also called wild thyme or “purple heather” in some versions), symbolizing love and the beauty of nature.
Historian Richard Miniter interprets America’s cultural and political foundations as stemming from four distinct English religious utopias—coercive visions of ideal societies—brought by settlers during the colonial era, rooted in the ideological divides of the English Civil War (Puritans vs. Royalists/Cavaliers).
Puritans (Roundheads) from East Anglia landed in New England (e.g., Massachusetts). They viewed liberty as the freedom to impose moral virtue and godly order on society, creating tightly regulated communities focused on communal piety and moral enforcement.
Cavaliers (Royalists/Anglicans) from southwest England settled in Virginia and the South. They emphasized hierarchical order, aristocratic values, and loyalty to established authority, building plantation-based societies with Anglican traditions.
Quakers and other dissenters (often from the West Midlands) arrived in the Middle States (e.g., Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware). They promoted religious tolerance, pacifism, and egalitarian ideals in diverse, pluralistic colonies.
Borderers/Scots-Irish Presbyterians from the English-Scottish borderlands first landed in the backcountry regions of the Appalachian frontier; thereafter migrating deeper into the new territories of the Ozark Mountains Missouri. They brought a rugged, clan-based, individualistic ethos with Calvinist influences, valuing personal honor and resistance to centralized control.
These four groups’ competing visions—of imposed virtue, hierarchy, tolerance, and frontier independence—created enduring regional tensions that still shape modern American society, politics, and debates over freedom and governance. This view enlightens understanding of why the United States remains in one piece; however tenuous.
The modern Democratic Party traces its cultural and ideological roots to the Roundheads from the English Civil War. These were the ideological, intolerant, legalistic faction that sought to impose moral virtue and godly order on society, often through coercive means like censorship and value-shaping institutions (e.g., schools, colleges and government programs fortified by battalions of lawyers ).
Miniter links this to contemporary Democrats’ emphasis on identity politics, political correctness (which he calls a form of class warfare), and paternalistic efforts to mold citizens’ views—through regulation and ownership of legacy and electronic media.
In contrast, he sees Republicans drawing more from Cavalier (hierarchical, traditional) and Borderer (individualistic, anti-authority) traditions which conflict with the Leftist Immersion of United States public higher education of which most international students are hardly aware.
New update alert! The 2022 update to the Trademark Assignment Dataset is now available online. Find 1.29 million trademark assignments, involving 2.28 million unique trademark properties issued by the USPTO between March 1952 and January 2023: https://t.co/njrDAbSpwBpic.twitter.com/GkAXrHoQ9T
