News you can use
News you can use
Sorted by date Results 2422 - 2446 of 3214
Montanans love to talk about how special our state is. For those from some place other than Montana, you may think that we mean our beautiful mountains, the vast golden prairies, and incredible blue sky that never seems to end. And you would be right — we do mean that. But what really makes Montana special is the people. The people of our state are kind and generous. We are the type of people who celebrate together during the good times, and look out for each other when times get tough. Montana is particularly lucky because t...
Even Solomon knew we need to hear a familiar voice from time to time. And what could be more familiar than the mournful Coo-OOO-oo-oo-oo of the bird that in our country is called the mourning dove. In Mexico she is la paloma. But that doesn't mean I invited her to stake out a homestead in the hanging planter outside my back door. The planter itself is colorful, a traditional flat-backed, painted hanging wall planter. I suppose Senora Paloma looked around and decided the many...
By Young Republican Caucus You often hear Republicans talking about the downfalls of big government. The face of the Republican Party is changing and as members of the “next generation” we feel it’s vital to the state that we serve to explain why we must uphold this ideal, and why you should, too. There are four principal areas that our joint Republican caucus agreed on at the beginning of the session to guide our priorities: • Strengthening jobs and the economy; • Putting students and parents first; • Safeguardin...
The recycling community is well aware that April 22 is Earth Day. It is today that recycling businesses, organizations and savvy schools advertise their products and/or sponsor events to celebrate taking care of the earth and, hopefully, positively impact others to do likewise. It is a day that celebrates preserving a clean environment for the future. But, shouldn’t that be everyone’s responsibility, every day? Most people would agree that Americans use a lot of resources and produce a lot of garbage. Take a look at the lan...
In Montana, the Legislature is responsible for establishing the state programs to benefit the public, while the executive branch is charged with administering them. That structure has worked very well for decades, and is referred to as the separation of powers. When the power of the purse is taken over by the executive branch, that’s when we start having problems. In 2011, then-Gov. Brian Schweitzer established — without legislative authority — “free” health clinics for state employees and their dependents to use “free of...
Many on the left and in the media are praising Senate Bill 405 as a “bipartisan” health care solution. However, one thing is clear to the conservative legislators I serve with: SB 405 is an all-or-nothing expansion of Obamacare for Montana. There was no compromise in the drafting of this bill after it was rubber-stamped by the governor and the sponsor shot down all amendments in committee. Make no mistake about it, this bill is a massive expansion of Obamacare in our state and will add tens of thousands of new par...
Just when life in my neighborhood returned to normal: 8,000 motorcycles roared out of town. 50,000 tourists followed. Lingering snowbirds flew north. An unexpected and welcome rain shower blessed, washed and renewed the atmosphere. Geckos came out of hiding to skitter across my walls. Peace and quiet defined both day and night. Peace. Quiet. Too quiet. I rolled over in bed and looked at my clock. I distinctly recalled winding it last night. Poor thing expired halfway between...
If you don’t already know who 61-year-old Ruskin, Florida, mailman Doug Hughes is, you should make it your business to know. He’s just spent the last 2 1/2 years planning and executing a spectacular, death-defying stunt that has landed him in jail, and he did it for you. He did it for America. He did it on the White House lawn. Hughes flew an ultralight airplane-helicopter hybrid, called a gyrocopter, through restricted air space over Washington, D.C., and landed on the Whi...
Just before Easter, the Senate passed my Senate Bill 416, which is the only major infrastructure bill that might have a chance to pass. SB 416 passed the Senate on a 47 to 3 vote. Today SB 416 will be heard in the House Appropriations Committee and to pass the House it must get a two-thirds vote as it has a bonding component. This bill is one that no one particularly stomachs, but is a compromise bill that has a chance to pass. Just before Easter, Sarah Swanson Partridge and...
The three most importand tools in my barn are duct tape, bailing twine and WD-40. The first two on the list are in a constant battle for Top Tool, the primary go-to solution in any farming-ranching or equine handling emergency. For problems that are mechanical or generally metal in nature, WD-40 has been invaluable. It pitches in doing everything from starting an engine to breaking free a rusty bolt, and one time I used it as rattle snake repellent which, strictly speaking...
I never know. I never know what each day might bring. I think I do. I’m always wrong. Back when my children were youngsters, I used to pray, literally pray, for a boring day, just one boring day, please. At the same time, if one of my youngsters dared mouth, “I’m bored,” invariably I got a gleam in my eye and whipped out a list of positive motivational activities, i.e., jobs to do. Interestingly, following the initial attempt, my children were never bored. I never said li...
It’s one of those priceless moments in film: In the saddle, crusty old Curly (Jack Palance) turns to wise-cracking Mitch (Billy Crystal) and asks: “Do you know what the secret of life is?” A wry grin on Curly’s weather-beaten face. “No. What?” Mitch quietly responds. “This” says Curly, holding up one finger. “Your finger?” puzzles Mitch. “One thing. Just one thing,” Curly replies. “Just one thing” to change the world. “Just one thing” to make life worth living. “Just one thing” that makes everything else “click.” April is Nat...
New Hampshire legislators prove it’s not just Montana senators who feel it’s their elected and sworn duty to crush children’s dreams. A group of Bozeman elementary kids and their learned presenters went before the Montana Senate with a detailed and researched proposal that Scobey soil be declared the state soil, and the bill sponsor, JP Pomnichowski, D-Bozeman, explained that the soil helps grow Montana’s $4.7 billion agriculture industry, said an article by The Associa...
Like anyone, I have my “up” days and my “down” days. But, really, it is all about keeping life in perspective and finding balance. Take today, for instance. I leave the house for my morning walk at first light. I like to greet the sun. And as thoughtful as those words sound, it is as much about walking in the cool of the day. Perspective. Balance. Generally, I walk between 45 minutes and an hour. Don’t think I’m covering the miles. I am a mere two months away from hip-replace...
Montana residents assume that our state government supports the basic American goals of freedom, fairness and equal justice for all — the founding principles on which our nation and constitution were established. Yet some Yet many of our state leaders are overlooking a policy that denies Montana citizens a basic constitutional right. Some tribal people, as citizens of Montana, are not granted some civil rights — such as open meeting laws — that other Montana citizens take for granted. The “Right to know” is guarantee...
Jon Tester Seems like every time I turn on the TV, I see another pundit or politician calling for greater American military intervention in response to ISIS, or heading to war with Iran, or cleaning up after some other conflict around the world. While these threats are real and must be taken seriously, America can no longer afford to go it alone. We spend billions overseas every year and put thousands of young American men and women in harm’s way. And we pay for it by taking out new loans — mostly from foreign countries lik...
Laurel — Havre Police did a great job in capturing an escapee last week. Eric Bruce Fowler escaped from a Warm Springs drug and alcohol center for addicted inmates. He ended up in Havre. When local police tried to apprehend him, he took off in a car driven by a friend. A wild chase ensued that ended up outside of Chinook. Several other police agencies joined in the effort. We’re not the biggest fan of high-speed chases for fear they endanger police officers and bystanders more often than the criminals. But in this case, off...
In the months I have been in Mazatlan, I have collected referrals for several ways to enhance my poor command of Spanish. But all seem to be formal classes. No thank you. If small children point and laugh at me for my misuse of tense or gender, so be it. My desire is to understand, be understood, and interact in everyday situations. Like most gringos, I start with the elementary please, thank you, and where is the bathroom. From there I progressed to a smattering of weather...
Despite my long, sordid history of being unable to snap out of my obsessive obsession with, well, random obsessive things, I had fully planned on writing this week about something besides my house project. It would’ve happened, too, if I hadn’t suddenly realized that I am doomed. Duh-ooomed, I tell you. I could have written about any number of disasters, weird news items or politics, or the trifecta of disastrously weird politics, or even weirdly disastrous politics, whi...
Today’s column is brought to you by anxiety, a wholly owned subsidiary of deep dilemma, which is on a mission to provide my every thought a bumpy ride on the worry bus to crazy town. The problem is that thoughts are like seeds, like billowing fluffy-bottomed seeds off a cottonwood tree. Our brains produce these cottony seeds by the millions. They float around aimlessly, getting sucked into your lungs, drug into the house and mashed into the carpet. They pile up in drifts and,...
Lynn Hamilton Another litany of constitutional arguments from the gun lobby, Senate Bill 143, The “Higher Education Rights Restoration Act,” is designed to promote fear, grab headlines, undermine confidence in government institutions and public safety and boost gun sales. This is a bill looking for a problem. Statistically, college campuses are significantly safer than their larger communities. Campuses regularly examine safety and security and have invested millions in improvement projects recommended by students and emp...
I woke up homesick. I want real weather, I said to myself. I’ll take any distraction to keep myself from dealing with the deeper problem. Weather, indeed. Tip of my iceberg. Winter’s never been my favorite season. But spring came early to Montana this year. (The computer is a great tool.) I don’t trust an early spring. Nevertheless, I daydream warm Chinook winds, tulips and iris shooting sprouts through the sun-drenched ground, lilacs nursing baby buds through the chang...
March is upon us and with the change of calendar comes the dawn of springtime and many decisions for Montana farmers. And this year, these decisions include several important choices on federal safety net programs that could make a big difference for you, your family and your farm through 2018. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency is urging you, and farmers and landowners across the nation, to finalize your decisions on updating crop yield histories and reallocating base acres for new safety net p...
Last week I explored, in part, the idea of who knows me better: the people doing the health screening who said I’m now short and fat, or my Chinese Zodiac which says I’m “vain and high tempered” and the boar is my enemy. This week, I’m giving the Internet pop-quiz crowd a chance to tell you: Who is the real Pam Burke? These quizzes are one of the latest rages on the Internet. Working off your answers to a few simple questions, they tell you really important things like: Wha...
Laurel — Leroy Keller should make us all proud. He donated blood this week, just as he has done frequently for almost 60 years. As of this week, he has donated 35 gallons of blood. That's a record for the Havre area, and we’d bet it’s close to the record for Montana. Giving blood is not that difficult. It just takes a little while. It’s not painful. And people feel good after doing it. We hope more people follow Leroy Keller’s lead. Laurel — Janna Hoehn of Hawaii has volunteered countless hours in an effort to locate photos o...
