Our View: Hi-Line darts and laurels, January 10, 2014

Laurel — William Rugg will be in Havre next month to assume the position of provost at Montana State University-Northern. Northern is in the middle of a variety of projects that will have an impact on the university for years to come. Rugg will be in the middle of it all. We wish him well. We hope he knows from the beginning how important Northern is to Havre and the Hi-Line.

Laurel — Ravalli County Commissioners booted Jan Wisnewski out as chair of the county’s planning commission. It seems like they have a lot of reason to do that. Among other things, Wisnewski told the commissioners what certainly seems to be fabricated story about Hill County officials making disparaging comments about Native Americans.

Dart — Admittedly, it’s hard to get honest answers from people who are being incarcerated for serious crimes, but Montana officials were pretty willing to dismiss the results of a U.S. Department of Justice survey that indicates there is a pretty high rate of sexual abuse in the state’s Deer Lodge facility. Corrections Director Michael Batista said the figures seemed high to him, and it sounded almost like he shrugged off the incidents of abuse, saying he was short-staffed. Judges sentence people to prison to deprive them of their civil liberties under harsh conditions. The inmates deserve that. They don’t deserve to be raped. Prison officials should take allegations of sexual abuse very seriously.

Laurel — Montana State University Extension service did a great job of operating Cabin Fever, the program aimed at giving area residents a time to learn about some interesting topics in the middle of winter. The sessions this year were highlighted by talks by Temple Grandin, a world-reknowned expert in both cattle and autism. But many other valuable programs were presented.