News you can use
News you can use
Sorted by date Results 1127 - 1151 of 3212
I’ve spent my career fighting for our public lands, and I have a track record of delivering results for Montanans. Growing up in Montana shaped who I am and the values I carry with me. Like many Montanans, I know how lucky we are to spend time outdoors on our public lands — hunting, fishing, hiking and camping — making long-lasting memories with friends and family. Generations of Montanans have fought to protect our public lands, rivers and streams. That fight continues to this day. We need to be clear-eyed about the threa...
We are pleased to announce that the Montana Cattlemen’s Foundation has been awarded a $50,000 grant to benefit our Beef On Every Plate program! The grant was issued by the state of Montana to help increase food security for Montanans hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. For those of you who are not familiar with this program, ranchers donate cull cattle and MCA pays for the processing of the beef into one-pound hamburger packages. We then arrange delivery to the local food banks. Since we began this program, we have p...
Putting water to beneficial use in a semi-arid state like Montana is dependent on two truths. Water must be physically available, and the corresponding truth is that there must be a legal right to use that available water supply. As the recent failure of Drop 5 on the St. Mary/Milk River Diversion system and the impending lack of adequate supplies in the Milk River later this summer make clear, the infrastructure to make the physical delivery of that water must be rebuilt and repaired. We must be thankful that the irrigators...
I know what you’re thinking, because I’ve been thinking it, too: What this pandemic — and, frankly, all of 2020 — needs is a good old-fashioned treasure hunt. Someone already found the $1 million treasure stashed “somewhere” in the Rocky Mountains by art dealer, author, multi-millionaire and part-time oddball Forrest Fenn. He hid that treasure more than a decade ago, and June 6 he announced someone had finally gleaned the location from his writings and they claimed the prize....
Now and then, I am reminded how utterly unimportant I am. Sometimes a nudge from memory. Or a “knowing” I’d forgotten. Being alone as much as I am with only a couple flesh-and-blood people to talk with, face-to-face with appropriate two meter social distance, I have a tendency to be inward. Self-centered is the better term. I begin to think my thoughts are important, that they matter. When people are around, I voice my thoughts and friends laugh at me, put me in my place...
I’ve worn out a pair of slippers. To be fair, I wear slippers quite a bit under normal circumstances, but over the past four months my slipper use has exceeded previous records. I was reading the news one morning (I imagine you know what that’s like). The takeaway for me was that I was going to be wearing slippers for a while. I looked down at my slippers and gave in to the inevitable. I ordered new slippers. I’ve actually forgotten what shoes I own. I looked in my closet and...
I trust everyone had a fun safe Fourth of July, our Independence Day. This past month or two has been a real test of the fabric of our nation and the loss of very valuable pieces of history is devastating. Now protesting is one thing but looting and trashing historical monuments is a crime in more ways than one. Don’t get me wrong, I did not do well in history in school, but I hope what I do know is breaking the law is wrong. If you do not pay attention to what has happened in the past, you are doomed to make the same mistake...
I just wanted to be a real adult, but it ended up like that Pleasure Island scene in Disney’s “Pinocchio” where our little, wooden, not-a-real-boy makes seemingly innocent, but morally delinquent, life choices and starts turning into a donkey. This week, my computer asked me — yet again — if I wanted to download the most recent version of my system, and normally — by which I mean every time since the first personal computer arrived in my home — I hit cancel or no or whateve...
Last week I forbade, with wagging finger, I forbade Leo, our Rancho gardener who mothers all of us oldsters, to get sick. The next day Leo landed in the hospital. No, he does not have the virus. But we all had a frightening couple days while Leo was sent to a specialist in Guadalajara for advanced imaging. That’s doctor-speak for a second guess. Leo’s got the rocks, as they say it here in Mexico. The doc said it will pass. The gall stone giving him such pain is tiny and sho...
A decision by the United States Supreme Court last week could put Montana’s quality public schools at risk. The U.S. Supreme Court issued a 5-4 decision in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, holding that states must offer taxpayer dollars to private religious schools if they provide tax money to secular private schools. Though the program at issue was small, it could have major effects if future political leaders in Montana don’t maintain our commitment to fully funding public schools. In short, with the Supreme Cou...
My husband, Peter, and I miss having a dog. I see a lot of dogs on the trail during my daily hike, and so Peter (who is always full of good ideas — usually about things I should do) suggested I carry dog treats. Dog treats have changed my life. When I see a dog approaching me on the trail, I say, “Can I give your dog a treat?” Now and then someone will say, “No, she doesn’t need one.” These dogs look to me like they might have a different opinion. But most dog owners are...
Ever hear of Rudy Stanko, well-known in Montana two-plus years ago? Rudy “Stinko” you say? Well, maybe. Here’s the story. Rudy liked to speed, and it was easy for him to do so because from 1955-1974 and again from 1995-1999, the speed limit in our state was “reasonable and prudent” in the opinion of the arresting officer. This worked well enough when the spirit of the law was respected, but then along came Rudy. In one three-month period, he was clocked exceeding 100 mph three times. Our law enforcement and judicial...
America’s Founders regarded a free press as so vital to the new nation that they took care to include that right in the First Amendment to the Constitution. Founders spoke glowingly about the press as a pillar of democracy and guarantor of liberty. Thomas Jefferson, for instance, famously wrote in 1787 that “were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.” George Washington framed the issue of free...
Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov — who has also been known to bust a move singing rap — has written a poem to honor Turkmenistan’s wheat and the farmers who grow it. “I wish success to the farmer, the whole world warms itself with wheat,” read the poem attributed to Berdymukhamedov in a June 30 Agence France Presse article, which was picked up by news agencies all over the world. Berdymukhamedov, who parlayed his early dental career into a presidency, told Turk...
The week has been filled with emails sailing back and forth between myself and my friends in the States and in Canada. We each are settling into a way of living that might be our new norm for months, even longer. It had been on my mind a long while, since I’m the only northerner on the rancho, to write a group letter lining out my own boundaries for safety during this COVID pandemic. Sooner or later, people will come filtering back. Rather than address them one at a time, I t...
Editor, Thank you to everyone who attended The Atrium Grand Reopening Celebration or purchased raffle tickets for the event. We at The Atrium had a great time hosting the event and seeing everyone having a good time. Hopefully, this event is only the beginning of The Atrium putting together a number of new events and activities for people in the community. The Atrium Mall is one of the oldest buildings in Havre, and we feel it is also an important landmark in our community. For that reason The Atrium should be a place to show...
The raven nest was the big news this spring. Our neighbor, Joe, who belongs to every social organization in town, found himself with very little to do. So, every afternoon, Joe parked himself in his Adirondack chair and watched the ravens — frequently with a cocktail. This pair of ravens got a late start, I thought. There was another pair I passed on my walk every day. They did some quick renovations on an existing nest and got right down to business. But this pair in our b...
The senseless death of a black American has ignited civil protests around the globe. We will always remember George Floyd’s name and the 8 minutes 46 seconds that Minneapolis police officers assisted a fellow officer in pinning Floyd’s neck to the ground until he remained motionless. While viewing current news coverage, it is evident that our nation is on the precipice of major societal change akin to the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Only time will tell if our nation will build on the victories of that movement and...
Sworn law enforcement officers in Montana adhere to a high code of ethics which says, “As a law enforcement officer, my fundamental duty is to serve the community; to safeguard lives and property; to protect the innocent against deception, the weak against oppression or intimidation and the peaceful against violence or disorder; and to respect the constitutional rights of all to liberty, equality and justice.” Officers we know in Montana would be the first to say that there is no room on their force for those who violate thi...
As the country celebrates its birth as a nation, one of the most patriotic things Montanans can do is stand up and be counted — in the 2020 Census. Or, more accurately, go online and be counted. Or mail in the census form. Or chat with a census worker. Every 10 years, the country counts how many people live in the United States of America. The stakes are large. Results of the census determine how much money Montana gets from the federal government. That’s about $2 billion a year now. The equation is simple. The more peo...
The annual migration of miller moths is officially in full swing, and researchers at Colorado State University have said we should expect to see abundant numbers this year. Unfortunately, their assessment is spot-on accurate. One night this week I even had to abandon my office to escape repeated onslaughts from these gray-brown nuisances — my metal-handled swatter no longer able to bear the strain of our dual. I could hear a few of them clamoring around the ceiling light t...
Life is such a mixed bag of tricks, isn’t it? In the morning we slide out of bed, make coffee, check the obits to see if we made headlines, put our two hands (some of us are greedy) in the bag and pull out the tricks of the day. Such a mix. Michelle from Oconahua up the road wrote, “Ana’s Mom was hilarious. Always cracking people up in town. She was quite the outspoken young person, the youngest and last of 18. She was the favorite of her father. He was a strict and hones...
I think my next-door neighbors might be superheroes. They both work with computers (at least that’s what they say) and then, every spare moment, they are off doing superhero-type things. My neighbor, Jason, runs 100-mile marathons. He’s even done a few 200-plus-mile marathons. These are held in the mountains. He starts running before the sun is up, runs up a mountain all day, then runs down a mountain all night, then runs up another mountain the next day. He wears a hea...
Police in their traditional role will always be necessary. But it’s time to consider options other than the police for many problems’ facing society where traditional policing is not needed. It’s time to “restructure” our approach to policing. Adaption is America’s strength, and organizations stuck in the past are left behind (remember Kodak?). Our public safety systems, including our police, also need to adapt and address change. This is not just a big-city issue. In our public services, Montana faces many of the same ch...
Having documented policies is a clear showing of intent, purpose, commitment and accountability, and builds trust with owners, managers, partners and others. Recent reluctance of the Hill County Park Board to explain, develop and document policies is eroding trust in managing our Beaver Creek Park. Some feel they should not be confined by policies. Some are afraid of being accused of violating policy and, therefore, it is better to not have policies. Without rules, regulations or policies, some folks that cut hay in the park...
