News you can use
News you can use
Sorted by date Results 653 - 677 of 1423
As Montana farmers, we grow a huge variety of food. Our counties differ vastly in size, climate and soil. But one thing is consistent for all producers: Not one of our 56 counties has ever regulated our seeds. So why does Senate Bill 155 exist? In 2013, Bayer and Monsanto presented draft legislation for politicians to chip away at local control of the seed market. They wanted to make sure that local farmers couldn’t stop them from developing test-plots and moving in next door. The bill language in SB 155 is nearly an exact c...
Editor, I am a resident in a nursing home in Eureka. I am very worried about my quality of care as the government wants to reduce our Medicaid for long-term care. I have multiple sclerosis, diabetes, and arthritis in my knees and hands, and I can’t walk. I worked as a superior court clerk in San Diego with a leg brace using a cane. On Christmas Eve at work I lost my eye sight in my left eye due to my MS optical neuritis. I also had bathroom problems. I took a disability retirement after working 19 years. I only went on Medica...
Editor, The recent budget proposal from the White House included a shocker: The president wants to eliminate the 21st Century Community Learning Centers initiative, the main federal funding stream for afterschool programs. More astonishing was the rationale the White House offered: The budget chief said there’s “no demonstrable evidence” that afterschool works. He is flat wrong about that. Study after study has provided evidence that afterschool programs work. They help improve students’ grades and test scores, and they al...
Editor, Let us not give up on Senate Bill 206, which has been tabled. Call the Legislators and ask them to reconsider passing this bill. Daylight saving time needs to be abolished. It does a lot more harm than it does good. Call in at once. Sincerely, Arlene Blessing Grest Falls...
Editor, Senate Bill 93, sponsored by Sen. Tom Richmond, is an attempt by the Montana Petroleum Industry to water down a rule recently — Dec. 14, 2016 — enacted by the Montana Board of Oil and Gas Conservation. SB 93 cuts the distance of notification of a proposed drill site from 1320 feet to 990 feet and does not include notification of schools, hospitals, and businesses within this distance. This bill decreases the number of individuals given specific notification and fails to protect vulnerable populations. The 2015 leg...
Sen. Jon Tester, In 2006 the United States Senate unanimously confirmed Judge Neil Gorsuch to a seat on the federal 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, without dissent or criticism. Please inform Montana what Judge Gorsuch has done since 2006 to cause you to be unwilling to announce support for his confirmation now. What decisions has he written since 2006 that are unacceptable to you? What breaches of professional ethics has he committed since 2006 that cause you to withhold support? Please tell Montana what has changed about...
Editor, We enthusiastically support Greg Gianforte for Congress, urging Montana voters to elect him to the House of Representatives in the special election on May 25th. We also urge Montana voters to not be deceived by the Democratic Party misinformation about Greg. First, Greg is not a rich outsider to Montana. He moved to Montana nearly 20 years ago, long before he became a millionaire. He and his wife, Susan, began their business at their kitchen table in Bozeman with $5,000 and went on to make it an extremely successful...
Editor, Greg Gianforte’s ads and website show him with about a week’s worth of beard growth. My guess is that some big-money-funded focus group showed that voters thought that the week of stubble made Gianforte look more rugged or common. I can just picture the political consultant’s memo: “Go with a week’s growth on your beard, an old camo hat, no tie, and wear a canvas shirt, so you will look like a real Montana working man.” Greg, you aren’t fooling anyone. We know you are from New Jersey. We know you sold your software...
Editor, Thanks to Montana Actors’ Theatre for staging “Jesus Christ Superstar.” The time and talent that went into that production was over the top. Thanks again. Bonnie M. Mosbrucker Havre...
Editor In 2015, Havre was selected by Humanities Montana for a “Hometown Humanities” grant following a rigorous application process. Over 30 events scheduled by local volunteers throughout the year reached audiences of all ages and featured speakers, authors, musicians and artists recognized regionally for their expertise. Programs were offered in elementary, high school and college classrooms, at the North Central Senior Citizens Center, at the Hospital and HRDC meeting rooms, the Havre Historic Post Office, and a local chu...
While I understand that in today’s culture there are males who identify as female and vice versa, like most Montanans, I am strongly opposed to boys and men being allowed to use girls’ and women’s locker rooms. It’s just common sense that school girls should not be required to shower alongside boys and men. We cannot let political correctness become more important than our privacy, safety and dignity, especially in public places where we undress. I, for one, want to see those values protected. Here’s a little history o...
Editor, Congress is moving quickly to enact the American Health Care Act. This bill goes beyond its stated purpose to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act by fundamentally restructuring Medicaid. If this bill becomes law, Medicaid would no longer be a guaranteed benefit available to seniors, children and people with disabilities who qualify; instead, it would be a fixed dollar amount, a per-capita cap, that would be used to pay for only some of the services for some of the program-eligible people. This proposed change...
Editor, I am writing to express my concern with Rep. Kerry White’s proposed resolution, House Joint Resolution 9. This resolution seeks to release Montana’s Wilderness Study Areas from consideration for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System. As a strong supporter of public lands and the ideals behind wilderness, I strongly oppose this resolution. HJ9 would release about 1 million acres from their federal Wilderness Study Area designation and protection. White views these lands solely through an eco...
Looking at these test results on the National Indian Education Study 2015 gives me a slight feeling of despair and a feeling of hope. For this reason, I do what I do. When the Office of Public Instruction has been claiming that 75 percent of the total students graduate in Montana, I wondered why the rest of the 25 percent fails. When I asked OPI to give me the schools that make up that 25 percent, all schools on or near reservations made up that 25 percent. This questionnaire validates and solidifies my belief thinking...
Editor, I was appalled and mad to see what BEH has done. I tried to put money on one of my kid’s commissary at the jail and was told they have none due to that account being closed out by BEH. They are being punished for something they are not responsible for. The tribal council needs to fix that immediately. That is physical abuse by depriving them of getting something extra to eat or drink and also has a big mental effect when they cannot get a calling card to talk to family members. I have always called Rocky Boy LiL R...
Editor, Special election candidate Rob Quist is quickly filling the hopeful Democratic, independent and moderate GOP counter to Greg Gianforte a corporatist outsider with a far-right wing neo-conservative agenda. Now, Mr. Quist, a gun owner who grew up on a ranch and wheat farm near Cut Bank is being wrongfully attacked on his Second Amendment stances by the GOP and New Jersey native Greg Gianforte. From the right , Quist is criticized for wanting to register all of your guns. These attacks by Mr. Gianforte and the GOP are...
Editor, County taxpayers pay all the costs associated with holding elections in our counties. This last election was especially expensive for all of us because ballots needed reprinting due to the unfortunate death of the Libertarian candidate. The upcoming election for replacing Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke in the House of Representatives is in the same budget cycle as the last. It’s a double-whammy to us taxpayers. County election administrators across all of Montana have a money-saving solution. Mail in ballots. A...
Editor: Our elected officials are busy in Helena wanting to steal an hour a day from each of us during the summer months. Senate Bill 206 will do away with Daylight Savings Time. With Daylight Savings, we gain an hour in the summer so we can enjoy our evenings outdoors. If this bill passes, it would mean our longest day of the summer would end around 8:30 p.m. and the sun would start peaking through your bedroom widow around 4:15 a.m. This bill is gaining a lot of traction in our Legislature. The Senate has already passed...
Editor, Farmers continue to evolve crops naturally, or with genetic selection and enhancement. In some circles, it is referred to as research. It is a constant process to find new ways to outsmart old problems: insect damage, heat or drought tolerance, less time and energy consumption to manage and prep soils and planting and harvesting a desired crop. Montana agriculture is being pro-active with the support of the Seed Bill, Senate Bill 155. Agriculture seed regulation has fallen into an administrative nightmare in some...
Editor, In 2016, Montana’s medical community experienced tremendous change and improved access to health care for many of our neighbors. With the lowest uninsured rate in the history of Montana, 93 percent of Montanans now have coverage for health care services that can improve their health and save their lives. Bullhook Community Health Center — your locally owned and managed community health center — is a leading comprehensive primary care provider in Havre and Hill County and the Hi-Line area. Providing such services as pr...
Editor, Our veterans have waited far too long for the veterans’ home in southwestern Montana. The ground has been donated to build the home, and the state has allotted our share — 35 percent — of the project cost. Currently, the only piece still required to break ground on the project is the money from the Veterans Administration. Montana is on the Veterans Administration project list, which means that the federal government has permanently guaranteed the funds. However, due to our small population, Montana has conti...
Editor, The Montana state Legislature is proposing to cut almost 100 million dollars from Medicaid health care services. A majority of these cuts will impact essential personal care services for our fellow Montanans who are elderly or low-income adults, and children with disabilities. The Department of Public Health and Human Services and the governor’s office are supporting cuts to these services basing their decision on unspent service dollars in 2016, which appear to be “excess.” What DPHHS is failing to consider is the s...
Editor: March has been recognized as Red Cross Month for more than 70 years. It is the time of year when Montana Red Cross recognizes our volunteers as true heroes. Here in Montana, Red Cross volunteers assist people during emergencies, teach lifesaving skills, donate blood, or give financial donations to help people in need. In fiscal year 2016, Montana Red Cross volunteers responded to 223 local emergencies, assisted 257 military families and trained 10,123 people in lifesaving skills. Montanans also donated 39,752 pints...
Editor, The Athletic Committee of the Havre Area Chamber of Commerce in partnership with the Havre High School and District 9C would like to extend a huge heartfelt thank you to the 60 plus volunteers who worked the Boys and Girls District Basketball Tournament at Havre High School this past week. The Chamber’s Athletic Committee secured volunteers to work the tournament, along with recruiting 25 business sponsors to host the hospitality rooms for tournament officials and coaches to enjoy. Thank you Culligan, Coke, MSU-N F...
Editor, It’s ironic that Cat Country KCTR 102.9 radio announcer Paul Mushaben opened his February 2I, 2017, post with the statement that...” It’s always the kids that suffer...” His comments about separate tournaments for Native Americans is clearly based upon race and directly impacts “the kids.” How could it not? In defense of his comments that there should be racially separate basketball teams, Paul Mushaben’s self-righteously states that the rules should be the same for both Native and non-Native teams. How very generous...
