HOME OF THE ??? For the first time, the University of North Dakota hockey players will take the ice this season without the well-known Fighting Sioux logo and name on their jerseys. That's because UND?is technically no longer the home of the Fighting Sioux, after several years of controversy over the nickname and logo ended with an agreement to remove the Fighting Sioux from jerseys and other items. The NCAA, which years ago deemed the nickname "hostile and abusive," is allowing thousands of Sioux logos to remain at the Ralph Engelstad Arena, although the logo at center ice has been removed. Hockey will still be hockey, however, no matter that UND?teams don't really have a nickname at the moment. In the minds of many fans, the Ralph Engelstad Arena will always be the home of the Fighting Sioux, and not even an official name change will change that for them.
KEYSTONE PIPELINE PROTEST We're worried about the future of this entire project now that we know actress Daryl Hannah is opposed to the project, which would ship oil from Canada to Gulf Coast refineries. Hannah and a 78-year-old landowner were arrested for trespassing on private property in protesting the construction of the pipeline in Texas. And we thought the biggest opposition to the pipeline, which would include a northern section that would run near North Dakota's western border, was President Barack Obama and other Democrats. Hannah and others oppose the project because they claim the tar sands oil could cause the pipeline to erode and leak, and that refining the oil would contaminate the air in that region. We appreciate Hannah's concern, and we hope all aspects of the project are fully studied and the project is constructed as safely as possible. Now, please work on "Splash 2."