News you can use
News you can use
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Clarena Brockie and Tony Belcourt are running for the Democratic nomination for a two-year term in the Montana House for District 32, which includes Rocky Boy's and Fort Belknap Indian reservations and adjacent areas. Belcourt is seeking his third term in the House. He is CEO of Chippewa Cree Construction Co., and has been involved in a variety of community activities on the reservation and in the general Hill County community. Brockie has been involved in numerous school and church activities in Harlem and Hays. She is now...
People need pets; except tropical fish, which are a form of fungus. Your typical dog or yak provides unconditional love, devotion, and a furry surface to caress — much like your Fed Ex driver. They may even cough up a hair ball just to give your life purpose. The pet, that is. Joe Barnhart Have you ever wondered how pets began? Neither have I. No doubt it started with Tyrannosaurus Rex puppies where cavekids were constantly nagged to "get the backyard cleaned up." Today, pets are diligent companions. I spend frolicking hours...
I was half listening to my radio. The woman's voice said something like this: "I'm retired. Retirement isn't the end. Retirement is another phase. I worked hard all my life. Now I can live." "Whoa," I responded. "I've worked hard all my life too, but it would be a crying shame if I had to wait for retirement before I could live. What's that supposed to mean?" Sondra Ashton The past few days, every time I turn around, a reminder to live fully has popped up smack in my face. I...
TV/movie studios and record labels are fighting for their survival against an army of cyber-pirates. This is nothing new. The same acts and feelings of desperation have always popped up when new technologies were developed, from when VCRs and audio cassettes first allowed people to copy tapes to when radio and television beamed media into people's home so they didn't have to buy records or movie tickets any more. Zach White And with every advance in technology the companies eventually have realized that people like the new,...
He may look like the stuffy academic type, but James Lipton, host of Bravo channel's "Inside the Actors Studio," knows how to play nice with the politicos. After a cartoon in The New York Times suggested that presidential candidate Mitt Romney should take acting lessons from Lipton to "learn how to appear more relatable," Lipton played along by submitting a blog post of suggestions to New York Magazine. In his blog op-ed "How to Act Human," Lipton suggests, among other things,...
One of the primary reasons many outdoors-minded people have chosen to live in Montana is the love of the landscape and the unlimited outdoor opportunities this great state has to offer. Montana is a sought-after destination by many who want to experience the beauty and rich wildlife resources available to all. In this new technological age, and with the greater ability to commute elsewhere, Montana is becoming a popular home base for many. However, many Montanans may take for granted what we have today and may not realize...
More than 30,000 Montanans are unemployed. Our country is $16 trillion in debt. And if Obamacare is allowed to be implemented as currently written, Montana's current budget surplus could be wiped out within 24 months from exploding Medicaid payments. This is not the time to bail out public pension funds in Montana. I have laid out an economic expansion plan that deals with pensions at a later date, once our economy recovers and more Montanans are back to work. We need to keep our priorities on what's most important right now,...
Maybe we could then combine the pool budget for this year with the budget for next year to do the most needed repairs. Maybe the person who made that comment was me. You know how small towns are. The next day half the citizenry were in a panic and an uproar. "Did you hear? The city is going to close the pool. Where will our children go if they cannot go to the pool?" In a mere 24 hours, my suggestion, which had been ignored at the meeting, had now become gospel truth. Sondra...
The role of the press in our country is quite unique. They are called to be the most inquisitive amongst us. Their importance and power is specifically enumerated in the First Amendment to our U.S. Constitution: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press … ." In the words of Socrates (470 BC - 399 BC) the press should be counted on to "follow the story wherever it leads." Rick Dow I would like to thank t...
My bag is packed. Soon I will be on an airplane with my cousin Shirley from Harlem and my cousin Maxine, who lives in Helena. Our destination is Louisville, Ky. We'll pick up a rental car, cross the Ohio River and drive the winding River Road to Elizabeth, Ind., and out into the country toward Laconia and our Aunt Mary. We go to join with Indiana family to celebrate Aunt Mary's 98th birthday. When I return to Indiana, I return to my first home, to a reunion with Indiana...
Should workers and employers have only seven to 10 days notice before they face a unionization election? Apparently, that's the union boss standard being forced on Montana's workplaces. If these so-called "ambush elections" become enshrined in federal labor regulations, we'll see a steady rise in forced unionization and the discord and disharmony such activity brings to our workplaces. No one disputes the right of employees to freely join a union and collectively bargain for their rights. But joining a union is a big...
As the end of the school year rapidly approaches students in the class of 2012 have already began to make plans for graduation. Graduation is the culmination of a K-12 journey that is cause for celebration. On Sunday, May 27, at 4 p.m., family, friends and the community will gather inside the Havre High School gymnasium to commemorate this joyous occasion. Unfortunately there are students who started that journey that for varying reasons will not be present at the ceremony. It is an unsettling truth, and we as a school...
I started reading the Women's Health Magazine article "First bite warning: Foods that make you do bad things," which explains how eating sugary, fatty and other junk foods starts people on a crazed, junk food binge. Duh. I was hoping to read that lima beans cause carjackings, or canned asparagus has been linked to adultery and tax fraud, or fried liver and onions is the leading cause of sociopathic behavior in teens. Nevertheless, I'm sure I'm right. ——— Denver telev...
"I don't know what to do," said Kathy. "Richard thinks he has to have a chain saw. I keep telling him we don't have money in the budget for a chain saw, but you know Richard. He is researching for the perfect model." "Are you sure he hasn't already bought one? Did you check to see if he has one hidden in the trunk of the car? And, whatever you do, don't take any trips without Richard." When Kathy and I go on a trip, Richard often takes the opportunity to buy his latest...
A recent 24/7 Wall St. website article, "The most, and least, safe states in America," looks at statistics from the nonprofit Institute for Economics and Peace to compile lists of the top 10 least and most safe states. Montana didn't make either list. The report, at http://economicsandpeace.org, says we're the 18th most peaceful state in the union. Not shabby, not awesome. Montana hasn't made other top 10 state statistics lists either: The Center for Public Integrity's least...
Graduation Matters Montana. All across the state, students are walking across the stage to receive their diplomas and celebrating this significant milestone with their families and friends. As state superintendent, I have the privilege to share in several graduation celebrations. This year, I will speak at Rocky Boy's high school graduation after being invited by two students who serve on my Student Advisory Board. These two young leaders started a peer mentoring program to improve their school's graduation rate, and both...
A gray compact car eased up to the curb in front of my house. Two women got out and started up my walk. I had seen them drive up, so I met them at the door. They seemed hesitant. A bit red-faced. One of them asked, "May we see your bathroom?" "Oh, of course." I was relieved that the purpose of their visit was neither religious nor political. "Come in." I'm used to strangers who knock on my door and ask for the bathroom tour. Generally, they follow the request with "so and so...
Graduation Matters Montana. All across the state, students are walking across the stage to receive their diplomas and celebrating this significant milestone with their families and friends. As state superintendent, I have the privilege to share in several graduation celebrations. This year, I will speak at Rocky Boy's high school graduation after being invited by two students who serve on my Student Advisory Board. These two young leaders started a peer mentoring program to improve their school's graduation rate, and both...
As a Montana newspaper editorial succinctly put it: "The greatest living issue confronting us today is whether the corporations shall control the people or the people shall control the corporations." Jim Hightower That might sound like it was written in the wake of the Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling. But it was actually in 1906, back when Montanans were rising up against out-of-state mining corporations known as the "copper kings." Those corporate powers were exploiting Montana's workforce, extracting its public...
Many years ago, when I was Back East, the newspaper I worked at was in an old-fashioned newspaper war with a paper in a neighboring community. One of the columnists for "the other guys" was a young woman who learned one day that she had cervical cancer. Many of us would crawl into a corner, fearing the future. Not this woman. She began writing a column periodically on her disease, updating readers in how things were going and how she was feeling as the cancer progressed. She knew all along that the final column would not be...
Politico, the website that is the go-to place for political junkies looking for their fix, has been paying a lot of attention to Montana in recent days. Every month, Politico lists the top 10 most closely watched U. S. Senate races in this November's elections. Once again in July, Montana's donnybrook between incumbent Jon Tester and U. S. Rep. Denny Rehberg was third on the list, trailing only Massachusetts and Virginia. Tester "won" July, Politico declared, based on his success with his campaign ads claiming that Rehberg...
When I moved back to Harlem, what was supposed to be my lawn looked to me to be a 40-acre grass-infested weed patch. In reality, huge as it seemed, my house sits on a mere two city lots with a large backyard. I was used to natural landscaping with nary a blade of grass to nurture. And danged if I was going to start. I cringed at the thought of spouting our limited water onto grass to mow to water to mow and so it goes. The first year in my transformation plan, I set out...
I ask you, "What makes a presidential election year more fun than eating roasted crickets?" Well, sure, there's watching millions being blown. Money better spent, say, reducing the federal budget deficit — but I'm just being silly. Candidates believe practice makes perfect — just in case, you know, they're elected. Dollars aside, the main attraction is election polls. It's impossible to pick up a newspaper with a nuclear sub parked on it. Go ahead, try. Yet inside papers everywhere, reliable election polls by outfits lik...
State Sen. Jonathan Windy Boy of Box Elder is running for another four-year term as the state senator from District 16. He is challenged in Tuesday's Democratic primary by the man he beat four years ago, Frank Smith of Poplar. The winner Tuesday will be unopposed in the Nov. 6 general election. Windy Boy: Age : 53 Jonathan Windy Boy Family: Single, seven siblings, daughter Jennifer, 26, two granddaughters, Jenuine Ry'Lynn, 9, and Jazmine Rose, 8. Education: Graduated from Box Elder High School in 1976, co-captain of the...
I am firmly in favor of denial. In fact, I recommend everybody stay in denial as long as possible. Willful ignorance is the land of bliss. But all good things must end. The end of my denial I blame on my daughter. Here's what happened. Her doctor ordered her to take a sleep apnea test. "That's interesting," I said. "Tell me about it." I should have kept my mouth shut. Sondra Ashton Dee Dee described her symptoms: things like waking several times a night, dreams of...
