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  • Just Ask Georgia: 11/15/2023

    GEORGIA|Nov 15, 2023

    Georgia, I have a question, How does a Thermos know when to keep something hot and when to keep something cold? I’ve been trying to trick my Thermos into making my hot coffee and iced coffee, but it isn’t working. Is there a trick I don’t know about? Want It Cold Dear Cold, When you put a liquid in a Thermos, it will keep the temperature as close to the temperature it entered at....it doesn’t decide which to make it. Though I suppose if you put hot coffee in, then a bunch of ice cubes, it could potentially get cold enough to be deemed “iced”. G...

  • Horoscopes: Week of 11/15/2023

    Nov 15, 2023

    ARIES Mar 21/Apr 20 Aries, you may see the details of a situation a little differently this week. While you may have been sticking to one way of doing things for some time, a new way may mean a breakthrough. TAURUS Apr 21/May 21 Taurus, your passion for a long-forgotten project is renewed. Dust off what you started, and see it through to completion. The results may surprise you. GEMINI May 22/Jun 21 Are you ready to communicate, Gemini? It’s time to have an important conversation with someone close to you. It may not always be comfortable, b...

  • CONNECTING POINT: Attention Seekers

    BILL LANES|Nov 15, 2023

    Do you ever sit back and just watch people? I often do but please understand this practice doesn’t make me creepy. Observing people is common for all of us in one way or another. Certainly, we refrain from being critical of those around us, none of us deserves such criticism. Some individuals wish to be the center of attention while others like to simply blend into the crowd and remain unnoticed. Those who garner everyone’s attention are loud and possibly obnoxious, they are the individuals I sit back and watch. As I’ve been reading about...

  • Dear Editor: Get to the Whitehall Community Library!

    DORIE WESTHOVEN|Nov 8, 2023

    Dear Editor, Residents, Readers, and Educators, The Whitehall Community Library and Friends of the Whitehall Community Library (FOTWCL) have a fantastic deal for you! The library has recently finished its yearly purge of the circulating collection (the books available for loan) to make room on the shelves for new purchases to that collection. The purged books have been added to the FOTWCL book sale shelves and table in the library basement. These books sell for the ridiculously low price of 10 c...

  • Dear Editor: Correction to My Last Letter

    JIM BUTERBAUGH|Nov 8, 2023

    Dear Editor, Last week I wrote a letter to the editor stating that “politicians lie.” I need to correct that thought. While we are used to politicians saying one thing to get elected and then doing another in office, that reference was too broad. In Montana, we are fortunate enough to have representatives in office who say what they will do and then do as they say. Or at least try to. This last session we were fortunate enough to have many. Theresa Manzella, Becky Beard, and Marta Bertoglio to...

  • Op Ed: Clarifying the Facts As I see Them on the 95 Mill Property Tax Increase

    Nov 8, 2023

    Recently opinion pieces and information sent to legislators regarding the counties' decision to levy 77.9 mills instead of the state-directed 95 mills have been circulating in both statewide newspapers and internal legislative correspondence. It appears that the message being distributed is counties are giving large tax breaks to corporations and out-of-state homeowners while doing little for the average Montanan. While the numbers can be interpreted to support that message, and they (the numbers) are in fact accurate, they only tell part of...

  • Thought Provokers: 11/8/2023

    Nov 8, 2023

    It’s kind of ridiculous that there aren’t many playgrounds made for adults. Someone on Earth has the least amount of Neanderthal DNA and is therefore most human. Real-life bullies also watch movie scenes depicting bullying and root for the character getting bullied. 99.999% of what happened in the last 24 hours on Earch will be forgotten by tomorrow. The police can identify you from a grainy gas station camera but the DMV can’t without two bills, a birth certificate, a social security card, and your license that’s already in their system. Salt...

  • CONNETING POINT: Prophecy Tied to Praise

    BILL LANES|Nov 8, 2023

    How many parents remember the joys of pregnancy and birth? Currently one of the latest fads includes creative baby gender reveals; this may include blue or pink smoke, cake, and more, many of which go viral. Recently I looked online for some blunders associated with a gender reveal gone wrong, wow there are some doozies! American and Jewish customs are far different, especially dating back to first-century Jewish households when the New Testament was written. Traditionally Jewish couples do not have baby showers, purchase baby items, or talk...

  • Horoscope: Week of 11/8/2023

    Nov 8, 2023

    ARIES Mar 21/Apr 20 Play to your strengths to reach your goals, Aries. You do not have to change much about yourself to get ahead. In fact, people will appreciate you being honest about who you are. TAURUS Apr 21/May 21 Taurus, do not worry about being passionate about what you do. If you weren’t this passionate, you may not be able to persuade others to listen up and follow your suggestions. GEMINI May 22/Jun 21 Gemini, you may not have had the entire story, but you certainly will get it this week. It’s up to you to make up your mind how you...

  • Thought Provokers: 11/1/2023

    Nov 1, 2023

    The number of people born in the same year as you is always decreasing. Going bald wouldn’t be nearly as bad if people lost their hair from the sides more than the top. A perfect human is almost a robot while a perfect robot is almost human. In the fast food industry, chicken fingers are a lie. You can eat a bunch of bananas without eating a bunch of bananas, but you can’t eat a bunch of bananas without eating a bunch of bananas. You can tell a lot about a person based on what part of their pants wears out first. People only separate the art...

  • Dear Editor: Your Vote Does Count

    JIM BUTERBAUGH|Nov 1, 2023

    Dear Editor, Our country was built on the Constitution and Bill of Rights. It cannot survive the days when the government places itself above the people it governs. Our representatives that we elect are meant to be just that, OUR representatives. Not Washington's. The Governor we elect is OUR Governor, not Washington's representative. If you have any doubts about the wonders of our life under the laws that our forefathers created, look at other countries. Look at the life they have today. Look a...

  • Dear Editor: Not Deterred

    DON LEPINSKY|Nov 1, 2023

    Dear Editor, I recently traveled out of state visiting family returning to find a sign I posted on my property destroyed. The sign, posted along the eastbound lane of I-90, stated "Embrace Democracy - Reject Trumpism." I salvaged a portion of the sign and re-erected it. I am disappointed that there are those who would commit an act of violence in order to suppress First Amendment rights of free speech because they do not agree with opposing views. However, suppressing different opinions is one...

  • Op Ed: A Productive Legislative Session for Hunters and Landowners

    Senators Hinebauch. Bob Brown. and Mike Lang|Nov 1, 2023

    Hunting season has arrived! As hunters flock to the hills in pursuit of Montana's treasured big game species, we want to take a moment to acknowledge the good work that was done in this spring's legislative session for hunters, landowners, and conservationists alike. Wildlife issues have frequently been overcome with intense division in previous legislative sessions. 2023 was different. Various stakeholders that are often in sharp disagreement on wildlife and land management policies managed to...

  • Connecting Point: Names Have Significance

    BILL LANES|Nov 1, 2023

    For some, naming a child is a thoughtful task; for others, tradition plays a much larger role. As my wife and I were expecting the birth of our four children, we took time in the months leading up to that significant event to explore name options for each of them. We explored meanings behind names, and examples seen in the Bible and considered past family members as kind of a balanced approach. I cherish the memories of those moments, with my hand resting on the womb of their mother, filled with joy and laughter. In Zachariah’s and E...

  • Horoscopes: Week of 11/1/2023

    Nov 1, 2023

    ARIES Mar 21/Apr 20 Aries, beware of misinformation and make an effort to form your own educated opinion. Take everything with a grain of salt and verify the facts. TAURUS Apr 21/May 21 If someone is struggling right now, show some support or offer helpful words, Taurus. A small gesture can go a long way, even if you do not think it will have a major impact. GEMINI May 22/Jun 21 Gemini, if you are feeling out of sorts in a situation or do not know how to proceed, ask someone who has been in this situation before. It never hurts to ask for help....

  • Op Ed: Talking Actual Property Tax Numbers

    LLEW JONES, Representative, Appropriations Chair|Oct 25, 2023

    Montana collects $2.1 billion in property tax, with allocations as follows: 56% to schools, 28% to counties, 11% to cities/towns, and 5% to special districts. The 6 statewide university mills stay at the state, while the 95 statewide school mills are redistributed to local community schools, accounting for 35-40% of the $1.1 billion annual state school funding distribution. According to the latest Department of Revenue (DOR) appraisal, Montana properties have a total market value of $259 billion, spread across 18 tax and rate classes....

  • Dear Editor: Stand Up and Make the Council Do the Right Thing

    LARRY FEIGHT|Oct 25, 2023

    Dear Editor, People and especially businesses in Whitehall - you are about to lose a very important piece of infrastructure that brings many dollars into our town, the rodeo grounds. For whatever reason the Whitehall Town Council decided to not renew a lease with the Saddle Club to continue to use the property that contains the arena, pens, chutes, and other items needed to operate. Without doing their due diligence the council opted out without considering what it would cost to replace all... Full story

  • Dear Editor: The Town Council Wishes It Was All That Simple

    BILL LANES, Whitehall Town Council|Oct 25, 2023

    Dear Editor, The Rec Complex and Saddle Club dispute continues to bring confusion. We [the Whitehall Town Council] wish the matter was as simple as Doug Salsbury claims in last week's Ledger editorial, "We (SC) tried working with the town by suggesting to rent them the portable panels for $100 per year." The WSC drafted a Memorandum of Understanding and it's been narrowed to a second draft but it includes other provisions beyond a simple contract for panel rental which as town council and staff...

  • Dear Editor: Why Can't We All Just Get Along?

    CHARLES HADDON SHANK|Oct 25, 2023

    Dear Editor, A wise man once asked the eternal question, "Why can't we all just get along?" Well, as you know, we're all different, so that might be one way to explain it. How many people do we know, however intimately, who are as different as night and day, yet somehow, they manage to get along, seemingly even, against all odds? If only we could all learn to tap into the source of that happiness, that joy! Life is all about choice! The reason some people just can't seem to play well with the...

  • Thought Provokers: 10/25/2023

    Oct 25, 2023

    Telling people that fruit is filled with sugars is the biggest scare tactic ever. All the billionaires obsessed with longevity are exactly the kind of people you wouldn’t want to live forever. Changing your hair color is normalized but wearing colored contacts for your eyes is seen as fake. The most famous German was Austrian. Given how much we like to snack late at night, it’s unacceptable most microwaves don’t have a MUTE option. Smart people and stupid people are equally difficult to win an argument against. Almost all videos we see of re...

  • Connecting Point: Culture and the Cross

    BILL LANES|Oct 25, 2023

    Throughout the rise and fall of history, cultures most definitely change. As you look back through your lifetime what changes have you seen occur? We have hope because of Jesus Christ even though there is some uncertainty due to current events and cultural upheaval surrounding us. Moral decline in modern society is concerning, but that’s only fitting in a culture that turns its back on God’s principles. I want to take you back to the first century, specifically the Jewish custom of circumcision. I’ve done more in-depth reading and study of Lu...

  • Horoscopes: Week of 10/25/2023

    Oct 25, 2023

    ARIES Mar 21/Apr 20 Pull together your dream team, Aries, because you are going to need all the help you can get at this point. The week is jam-packed with many different events. TAURUS Apr 21/May 21 Taurus, now is not the time to employ tough love if a friend or family member comes to you looking for help. You have to keep an open mind and a willingness to assist. GEMINI May 22/Jun 21 Your clever brain has a lot of creative ideas running through it, Gemini. It’s just a matter of zeroing in on one and then putting a plan into effect. Recruit s...

  • Dear Editor: Thank You Whitehall in Our Emergency

    JERRY AND JUDY GILES|Oct 18, 2023

    Dear Editor, On September 21 of this year, my husband and I were traveling through Whitehall on our way to be with family. Suddenly a medical emergency required immediate attention. We are grateful for all those who helped us at this time. We are mindful of a gentleman named, Jim. He could see our need for help and called 911. I am sorry because I did not write the names of those who helped. A Montana Highway Patrol Officer was on the scene immediately and was very kind and concerned. Also, we...

  • Dear Editor: This is Progress?

    ARCYLLE SHAW|Oct 18, 2023

    Dear Editor, Recently, driving into Whitehall from the Interstate, I felt like I was in a scene from It's a Wonderful Life when Jimmy Stewart's character sees his town as if he had never been born. I was born and am living, but, the town that I was raised in does not exist anymore. The area North of Yellowstone Trail and West of Main Street was once called Pyferville, after my Mother's family. There were families and homes. Today, a truck stop has swallowed up everything but four original...

  • Dear Editor: Deeply Disappointed in Town Council

    DOUG SALSBURY|Oct 18, 2023

    Dear Editor, I attended last night's Whitehall Town Council meeting and was deeply disappointed at the unanimous vote to confiscate the Whitehall Saddle Club's portable panels. The Whitehall Saddle Club is one of many non-profit organizations in Whitehall. Over the years, all of our improvements were made by private donations, grants, and volunteer help. Our lease on the ground was canceled at the beginning of the year, mainly to get rid of the WSC clubhouse. We have tried working with the Town... Full story

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