Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 1671
Dear Editor, At times, the Montana Legislative body is out of touch with the citizens of Montana. HJ24 does not reflect public opinion concerning public lands and waterways, as the bill purports. The bill supports Utah politicians' failed lawsuit seeking to find that federal public land ownership in Utah is unconstitutional. The courts have found that Federal public land ownership is constitutionally legal. Whether you're a MAGA, liberal, conservative, or moderate, most Montanans value our...
Dear Editor, "Our Constitution was made for only a moral and religious people." - John Adams Convincing the masses that the fairy tale economy (where reckless spending without consequences) is over is probably not going to occur. Desperate for the security of the status quo is why those on the losing end of this fantasy are angry and very vocal. While it's not without compassion that one can consider the struggle that lies before them to regain their financial security, it comes down to the...
Dear Editor, Because I am not a student of history, I want to understand present times by posing the following question: What are the historical consequences when a person with political power does the following things? 1. Makes the Legislative branch of government irrelevant. 2. Attacks judges and the Judicial system. 3. Attacks "the enemy within," including anyone who disagrees and speaks up (minorities, political opponents, etc). 4. Attacks academics. 5. Attacks allies. 6. Speaks with a...
Dear Editor, As Senators, we are charged with the responsibility to serve the people of Montana by working together to shape laws that are in the best interest of our state. As Republican Senators, we believe we have been tasked with pursuing fiscal responsibility and limited, effective government. Sadly, this session has been marked by controversy as we’ve learned one of our own party leaders may have broken the trust of Montana voters. When the Senate voted to send former President E...
Dear Editor, I received a postcard this weekend from Senator Daines and President Trump accusing the Biden administration of breaking Medicare with price controls. The only conclusion that can be drawn from the carefully constructed lies it contained is that the pharmaceutical industry's lobbyists have increased pressure on them to roll back Medicare's ability to negotiate prices on behalf of its members. The lies that Medicare's ability to negotiate on the behalf of its members will prevent...
No one ever skips breakfast because breakfast means breaking the fast. Therefore, those who say they skip breakfast eat it later in the day and call it by another name. Someone who obsessively collects things and refuses to part with them is dubbed a hoarder and said to be mentally ill, yet someone who obsessively amasses money and doesn’t part with it is defended and dubbed sane. If humans invent anti-aging technology, family pictures would look like groups of friends who happen to share the same last name. When the poo starts flying, it’s a g...
GEORGIA, I have a question, I’m happy with my life - in my late 40s, successful in my profession, solid marriage, and two wonderful sons - until my younger sister enters the room. She’s a surgeon married to another doctor; they have boatloads of money, run marathons for charity, and have the world’s most polite teen. She’s the kind of person who took up painting as a hobby, then won a major competition a year later, got an agent, and booked a gallery show. She acts modest but seems clueless about how every family event turns into a Q&A and is t...
ARIES - Mar 21/Apr 20 Aries, you may encounter some stubborn people this week, which always has the potential for confrontation. Make yourself scarce if conversations veer in the wrong direction. TAURUS - Apr 21/May 21 Things might not be lining up perfectly for a whirlwind trip right now, Taurus. Don’t let it get you down. In a few more weeks, an entirely different story may emerge. GEMINI - May 22/Jun 21 Gemini, this is a good opportunity to begin clearing up the clutter in your life. Start tackling the mess as soon as possible and enjoy the...
Dear Editor, There's an effort in the legislature to keep Montana citizens off the ballot. HB 207 hasn't made many headlines, but the bill is an attempt to make it harder for Independent, third-party, and write-in candidates to qualify for the ballot in districts across Montana. Independents already face a higher barrier to getting on the ballot than candidates from the Republican or Democratic parties, and we shouldn't make it even harder for those who don't affiliate with our two major...
Dear Editor, Concerning House Bill 320 (HB 320): I applaud Representative Walsh's rationale as stated in the Whitehall Ledger's March 12th issue on his NO vote on HB 320. He reasoned a NO vote due to the "lack of proper oversight and the risk of undermining the foundation of public education." The 32-page bill reads like IRS instructions. It is overly complex and ambiguous on the types of private education that could qualify for educational tax credits. I did manage to find the sections where...
Dear Editor, I want to give a huge shout-out and a fervent thank you to the men and women of PULSE/JVEMS and the doctors and nurses of the St. James ER and Hospital! This past week has been a whirlwind for me. What started as a touch of something on Sunday (it turned out to be Influenza A) escalated by Tuesday into something I'd never even heard of before. By Tuesday evening, I couldn't even get out of bed without falling on my face. Apparently, I'd also contracted Rhabdomyolysis! Long story...
Technological developments have gone from making life easier to making life harder (unless you pay for the latest technological development) in our lifetimes. People without teeth can close their mouths further. Due to time zone differences, some babies are born hours before others but have a later birthdate and are thus considered younger. When the Berlin Wall fell, over fifteen acres of public art were destroyed virtually overnight. If images reflect light, a video at 2x displays something at twice the speed of light. Humanity has gone from...
I am writing to bring to your attention a set of 5 bills that are harmful to regular Montanans in general, and specifically right now to the people of Libby, Montana, involved in asbestos litigation. SB 385 (Sen Tom McGillvray) creates a "governor-appointed" special court that has the same clout as a state district court, except the judges are not elected and, as such, are not answerable to the people who elected them. The special court this bill creates will also include the "asbestos court," h...
GEORGIA, I have a question, My mother taught me that when being toasted, one doesn’t take a sip, as that’s like tooting one’s own horn. When my spouse and I celebrated an anniversary with a party, the guests toasted us with champagne. When I didn’t sip, one of the guests asked me why, implying that my marriage wasn’t something I wanted celebrated. YIKES! My choices were to “correct” the guest—which I don’t feel is right, as they aren’t one of my children—or leave the impression that my marriage was less than toast-worthy. Neither option appeal...
When was the last time you lost something? A common question around our home is, “Where are my keys?” Losing something can be quite distressing, sometimes confounding, when you blame someone else and find the keys in your coat pocket five minutes later. LOL. Jesus’ existence in history was to fulfill God’s ultimate act of love, as Christ gave up His life as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Jesus came to seek and save the lost. Albert Einstein said, “As a child, I received instruction both in the Bible and the Talmud. I am a Jew, but I am...
ARIES - Mar 21/Apr 20 Aries, forcing an agenda right now might backfire. It is best to be patient and let things unfold organically. A few new people may come to your aid this week and support you. TAURUS - Apr 21/May 21 You might need to reconsider what you have been fighting for, Taurus. A battle could be tough to win, so you must rethink your strategy. GEMINI - May 22/Jun 21 Someone in a position of power might try to convince you that their way is the best approach this week, Gemini. You are determined to stick with what you think is right...
Dear Editor, My inclination to be active in politics has been minimal. I had a farm to run and sons to raise. I marched in the '80s for reproductive rights and again in 2016 to protest Trump's presidency. I've signed the odd petition, always voted, always paid my taxes. Regardless of the political party in power and I've voted for both, I have never felt that this Republic or the democratic principles on which it is based were at risk. That has changed. We have a convicted felon with no respect...
Dear Editor, To the individual who has an opinion on the "serial killing" of coyotes. You are clearly misinformed about the benefits that such an event provides. Why someone who lives four towns east of Whitehall has an opinion on a town they don't live in is like a democrat complaining about the conditions in a third world country but doesn't send money to help. If you don't like the way we do things in Montana, maybe you should move back to whatever state you came from. A well-managed coyote...
Dear Editor, Much like cancer cells, the government, when diseased by corruption, waste, and abuse, consumes its own body. This is how a country living in a credit-driven economy meets its ultimate death. The economic model that allows unlimited credit for individuals and the government to live today on the promise of tomorrow's productivity has to have a reasonable expectation of that productivity to satisfy the debt. Add interest payments to the debt, a demographic implosion, and moral...
Dear Editor, I assume that the flyer from Americans for Prosperity (AFP) regarding my vote on HB 320, commonly referred to as the Montana Academic Prosperity Program for Scholars (MAPPS), was distributed county- or district-wide. Therefore, I felt it was important to respond. I fully support education for all and respect the desire for choices, including private, homeschool, or hybrid options. However, I firmly believe that taxpayer dollars should prioritize public education. Let’s first examine what HB 320 would have done if passed. The b...
It’s probably much less common for friends to share the same first name in fiction than in real life. You can tell if a business was founded before the internet because it uses tricks to get its name to the front of the alphabet in the phone book (e.g., A1 Storage, AAA Cleaning, etc.). Clocks with chimes are noisiest during the same hours most people try to fall asleep. Nowadays, dating apps feel like playing against someone instead of meeting someone. Cowboys are a type of wizard. They wear wide-brimmed hats, ride horses, and smoke, and i...
The halfway point of legislative session, also known as transmittal, is a flurry of activity followed by a much-needed weeklong break for the legislature. Many Montana legislators are farmers or ranchers or come from rural communities, so it can be helpful to think of legislative session in those terms: planting seeds by introducing bills or breaking new ground to find creative solutions to the challenges facing our state. Unfortunately, you also see legislators sowing division or “milking” certain opportunities for personal gain. Halfway thr...
GEORGIA, I have a question, I never wanted to be a father. After one too many scares in college, I got the snip. I didn’t tell my mother or sisters because, frankly, as much as it may upset them, our family name dying out doesn’t affect me - we aren’t the royals. Over the holidays, I messed around with a family friend's daughter several times. Yesterday, I was woken up by a furious phone call from my mother. The daughter claimed to be pregnant, and I was named as the father. My brain didn’t catch up to my mouth - I told my mom that was impossi...
If you’ve ever built a home or embarked on a major home remodel project, I bet you’ve crunched the financial numbers to see if you can make ends meet. Recently, the cost of goods and services, especially construction supplies, has spiked. One thing is for certain: No one generally sets out to start a project only to abandon it halfway through the process. Sometimes, this occurs either for economic reasons or personal reasons. An interesting example is the Ryugyong Hotel in Pyongyang, North Korea. in 1987. Construction began as this mag...
ARIES - Mar 21/Apr 20 Aries, you are in a leadership position this week, whether you realize it or not. Your confidence may inspire others to follow your lead. Just be sure not to micromanage. TAURUS - Apr 21/May 21 Taurus, stability is vital to you. This week, you may find yourself craving a deeper connection. Explore the different types of relationships in your life and make a plan. GEMINI - May 22/Jun 21 This is an excellent week for networking and making new friends, Gemini. However, be careful of overcommitting, as it is easy to fill up yo...
