Twenty months ago, I wrote The Forum about "North Dakota nice." My wife and I were pleased with how airline workers in Bismarck handled our lost-baggage crisis and how the Reynolds (N.D.) Grocery and our delightful hosts, Joy and Neil, rescued a wonderful lasagna dinner.

Now, Mike McFeely of Forum Communications writes about "North Dakota nasty" in his column published July 28. He peels back the Band-Aid hiding an unpleasant change - citizens complaining about the cost of refugees, an overwhelming vote favoring Trump's white nationalism, Islamophobia, etc.

Head-smacker of all is the incident between Amber Hensley and a group of Somali-American women in a Walmart parking lot, precipitated by the declaration, "We're going to kill every one of you (expletive) Muslims."

How about the reaction of many-Hensley, fired from her accounting job, is the victim!

Peace prevailed when Fargo Police Chief Todd facilitated reconciliation between the parties.

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Unfortunately, I recently experienced something alarmingly similar.

My wife and I had rented a car in Calgary, Alberta. At 8:45 a.m. July 24, we entered Grand Forks, and by 3:30 p.m. July 25, four different drivers, two of them women, tightly tailgated our Chevy Cruze and repeatedly honked their horns.

Granted, two times I slowed to make right turns, but my actions were reasonable under the circumstances.

I was greatly puzzled by these events because nowhere on the trip had anything like it occurred.

The second afternoon, outside the La Quinta Hotel, I rounded the car to secure packages from the trunk. That's when I stared dumbfounded at the red-lettered and red-numbered Alberta license plate. Could it be? I know, I know. Locals will cry out, "But we've always loved Canadians!"

Still, I recall when locals pledged solidarity with Indians and vowed "Fighting Sioux Forever," yet when the DAPL protests occurred, not a single University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux hoodie or sweatshirt could be seen on the TV screen.

So much for "forever."

Beard is a graduate of UND and native of Reynolds, N.D.