Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
Sorted by date Results 1879 - 1903 of 2351
Just before Easter the Senate passed my SB416, which is the only major infrastructure bill that might have a chance to pass. Senate Bill 416 passed the Senate on a 47 to 3 vote. SB416 will be heard in the House Appropriations Committee and to pass the House it must get a two-thirds vote as it has a bonding component. This bill is one that no one particularly stomachs, but is a compromise bill that has a chance to pass. Just before Easter, Sarah Swanson Partridge and Mr. and Mrs. Tom Flowers brought two busloads of seventh graders (about 60...
Dear Editor: I would like to respond to parts of the letter by Rev. Susan Watterson on March 25, “An Important Bible Discussion.” First, she claims St. Paul was really referring to the sexual exploitation of boys by older men and not to homosexuality in general. Not so. In Romans I, Paul says, “Their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural, and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in their own persons the due penal...
I'd like to ask you to please take time to contact the legislature. SB284, the bill that would involve county commissioners in plans to release bison in their counties, is still languishing in the House Ag Committee, where it has been sitting for almost an entire month. The "antis" have apparently found out about it. From what I've heard, calls have been coming in from California and New York opposed to it, and some groups are using robocalls. When Jason called in in support of it, the operator assumed that he was opposed to it, and one...
Dear Editor: I recently had the privilege of attending the junior prom at Glasgow High School. My son, Jacob, was asked to escort a young lady named Tavia to the prom. He had just had knee surgery and couldn't put any weight on his knee. He had to walk with a walker or roll in a wheelchair. The students at the prom were helpful, caring and compassionate. I cannot tell you how great a memory you have made in the lives of two young people. For them, this was a dream come true. It's wonderful to see young people that take the time and effort to...
Spring is here and with it comes planning vegetable gardens and which flowers to plant and where. And, of course, spring housecleaning. Going through closets, dressers, storage containers, and those hidden corners in the basement and attic. Washing windows and walls isn't what takes up the most time during spring cleaning. The most time is spent sorting through containers. There are pictures that demand being looked at and this time, a note written on the back to identify them. Old letters, notes, school work - all require they be read word...
Another Good Friday and Easter have passed without me getting any potatoes planted. Why some things stick in your mind is unknown to me, but planting potatoes on Good Friday and “If it rains Easter Sunday, it will rain for the following seven Sundays” always comes to mind. I will admit that the old saying concerning rain for seven Sundays is probably like rain in 90 days following a fog. I have marked all of that on a calendar occasionally; however, I must confess that I forget to follow up on it. Another Easter memory – ham has long been the m...
A Montana Senate panel put about $50 million into the state budget bill last week, after Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock said the budget crafted by House Republicans was unacceptable. The panel added about $25 million in amendments to House Bill 2, the $4 billion state general fund budget for the next two years. The amendments injected some of the money the governor asked for in his budget proposal. The committee also added another $25 million in what’s known as a supplemental appropriation, which covers some debts for the remainder of this f...
It distressed me greatly the other day when I heard on the news that Walmart intends to import a cheaper laundry detergent from Great Britain in an attempt to lessen the strong market share Tide has in the laundry detergent market in the U.S. and Canada. Their spokesperson said, “We intend to bring a less costly but comparable in cleaning power laundry detergent into our stores in the near future.” I was ready to rail at Walmart for being un-American. For doing something that would eliminate some American jobs. Then I studied the labeling on...
I have thought long and hard about some of the articles that have appeared in The Courier these past weeks, the ones written by Virgil Vaupel, Susan Watterson, Bonnie Davidson and Joann Beard. I feel there is more that should be said because there is a terrible sadness in my heart over many who are being mislead by those who do not know the word of God. They are telling sinners it is alright to do things that the Bible clearly says not to do. We are all sinners. The Bible states this very clearly in Romans 3:23, where it says, “All have s...
As a study continues on Glasgow’s downtown revitalization plan, the public has been able to give their input and observations. A survey that went out to residents in Glasgow and Valley County asked questions about how often downtown was used for entertainment, shopping and recreation. Land Solutions is working on the Downtown Master Plan and has been working with the city, Two Rivers Economic Growth, the Chamber of Commerce, TBID (Tourism Business Improvement District), CTAP and other organizations. Community Planner Matt Rohrbach of Land S...
Dear Editor: The strategic plan of the Glasgow School District identifies one of the principal strengths of the district as the collaborative relationships with community and organizations. Head Start is indeed one of those many and important collaborations; jointly working with our community's 3, 4 and 5 year olds to equip them to be school ready. School readiness goals are an imperative component of the purpose of Head Start as we work with R.L. Irle Elementary to prepare our graduates to transition into the public school system with the...
Dear Editor: I would like to respond to Joann Beard's article from the Feb. 25 Courier. This is an important discussion. As I said in my earlier “letter to the editor” it is always important to read the Bible within its historical context and to turn to the original language in which it was written. Mrs. Beard refers both to verses in Paul's letter to the church in Rome and Paul's first letter to the Corinthians. First let me speak of the word translation. In Romans and in Corinthians Paul uses the word malakia which translates as “lover of bo...
This week at the Legislature will be the hard discussions on Medicaid expansion. Here are some interesting facts to ponder. Montana has a little over 1 million folks. There are 128,000 people on Medicaid, 145,000 on food stamps, on either side of 200,000 on medicare and I cannot find out how many are on child or housing support. If we (Legislature) add 70,000 more on Medicaid (some say that could be as high as 110,000) that would amount to 20 percent of Montana citizens on the Medicaid program! And, if the federal share would go away, Montana...
The Bakken Oil boom is the largest oil boom that Western North Dakota and Eastern Montana has ever experienced. The Bakken spreads across nearly 200,000 square miles (Shaw, Sawicki, 2012). The oil boom’s high wages attract people from all over the United States to North Dakota from poor economies hoping to get a piece of the Bakken. Williston, N.D., has gone from 12,000 residents in 2009 to over 25,000 in 2012 and it expected to climb to nearly 60,000 people in a few years (per Shaw, Sawicki report, 2012). Not only has the population i...
This column from executive director Edwin Bender of the National Institute on Money in State Politics was released as part of Sunshine Week, a national initiative to promote dialogue about the importance of open government and freedom of information. Participants include news media, civic groups, libraries, nonprofits, schools and others interested in the public’s right to know. The Glasgow Courier supports Sunshine Week, March 15 to 21. Transparency in our elections, our government, and our democracy doesn’t just happen. It’s hard work. It ta...
Shoe repair shops? Not many of us remember when it was common to have a shoe repair shop located on one of the main streets of your community. I have been told there were a total of four located in Glasgow. I am going out on the limb to say I am pretty sure that was four at the same time. Pretty hard to believe, when no one other than the occasional cowboy gets repairs done anymore. I can vaguely remember getting shoe repairs done. Maybe an occasional buckle sewed back on or a new heel. There was a shoe repair shop located under the present...
Transmittal (halftime) has come and gone, and now today (March 16) is the 54th day of the session. The House bills are coming over in droves to the Senate. The BIG discussions will be the Medicaid expansion or various plans, and the budget. The House is taking up the budget (HB2) this week. The budget will be the last act of the Legislature before we sine die (adjourn). I am drafting a major infrastructure bill, and we will be hearing this in the next upcoming days. It still is in rough draft and we are meeting with Democrats and Republicans...
Old tires and landfills are a poor combination. Tires that are mixed into the landfill site act just like balloons coming up through the debris, so, the landfill attempts to keep them separate. Because of the space issues in the landfill, grinding tires or baling them is preferred to burying them. Currently the Valley County Landfill is charging dealers to dispose of their old tires. The landfill board attempts to recover these costs without being so expensive that people take their tires home and then throw them in the borrow pit (causing...
Once again I am searching for information. I have had several readers ask me about a talc mine located in the North Country, which I assume could be anywhere from Baylor to the Canadian Border, maybe from Richland to Thoeny. This is an unknown to me. I know of coal mines that were used by many for winter heat, but I have never heard of anyone mining talc. I am not even sure just what form it would take or type of country/soil where it might be found. If any readers of this column have any knowledge of this I would be delighted to have you give...
The oil and gas industry is a boom and bust venture. Companies get in as quickly as possible, extract as much of the resource as possible, make millions of dollars, and then get out just as quickly, leaving behind a mess of abandoned wells, frack water storage areas, torn up farmland, depleted and unusable water, crumpled roads and a local economy in tatters. Unlike neighboring North Dakota, Montana gives oil and gas companies a holiday on paying taxes on the first 12 to 18 months of production from a new well, regardless of how high oil...
Many times I've heard someone say "All I want is to be happy." When a person is asked about what would make them happy, you'll hear, "Winning the lottery," "Being able to buy a new car," "Getting a bigger house." And the list goes on and on. Well, there is a very simple way to experience joy and happiness every day. And the more you do, the happier you are. Do simple, happy things. When you buy groceries, drop a nonperishable item in the local food bank collection box. It doesn't have to be necessarily food. It can be a box of facial tissues...
It is halftime at the Legislature, and they call it transmittal. The Legislature has a few days off until the 5th of March. This is when all the general bills have to be passed from one house to the other in order to be heard in their respective chamber. This first half went much better than in the 2013 session. There were some disappointments in my mind. The CSKT (Salish/Kootenai Tribal Water Compact) passed the Senate and I did not support the Compact as I thought it was too much money and a taking of private property rights. I also did not...
It's called “Outlaw Country.” It's filmed in and around Independence, Missouri, in an area that includes a town called Buckner. The main characters are the “Outlaws,” the Monk brothers who each have long records and have been in the slammer many times. One brother owns a tattoo parlor. They have a few “associates.” I call them partners in crime. They have been accused of strong-arming local businesses, drug trafficking and selling illegal firearms among other things. The cops are the Cook brothers, who are being portrayed as harassing t...
People of Valley County, When I was charged with felony drug distribution, I believed I was the victim. After all, I was a mother trying to support my family and hold my family together the best I could at the time. Through it all, my addiction got the best of me. I rationalized selling drugs by telling myself I wasn't hurting anybody, that they were adults who could make their own choices. I knew I was in the wrong, yet I blamed everyone else but the person responsible ... me. It's taken me three years and ending up in prison to wrap my mind...
Dear Editor: Dark money is a huge issue in politics today. It causes corruption throughout our government. It needs to be stopped, now. When shadowy outside groups use this route to influence Montana elections, they are taking away the public’s right to pick their representatives in a fair and transparent way. During the current legislative session, Gov. Bullock and Sen. Duane Ankney are teaming up on a bill called Montana Disclosure Act to fight “dark money.” Dark money is spending on campaigns by groups that don’t publicly report donors...
