Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
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As Thanksgiving approaches, I usually take a little time to think about who and what I'm thankful for and express my. That seems to be the point, after all. This year, for various reasons, my thoughts and appreciation turn toward journalists, newspapers, and other news media. Sometimes the people and institutions we rely on to keep us informed get a bad rap, and sometimes they deserve it. When the Washington Post and New York Times act more as stenographers for the political class than reporters of the facts, we all lose. When trusted (by...
I’m running to be the next member of Congress from Montana’s eastern district because I’ve devoted my life to this state’s people, land and wildlife. It pains me to see our lone representative in the U.S. House of Representatives, Matt Rosendale, ignore the needs of the people he was elected to represent. He voted against badly needed pandemic relief across Montana and the rest of America, declines to challenge the price-gouging of corporate meatpackers who are driving family ranchers out of business and disregards the interests of workers...
This past Veteran’s Day weekend there was a Copeland Victory Rally held in Washington, D.C. to thank and honor Veterans and all who patriotically serve our country in many different ways. Their Victory TV channel, which is on Dish or Direct TV, brings the daily reports on current news from a Christian and constitutional reporting twice a day. Also, a program called Flashpoint twice a week has a panel consisting of spirit-filled men and women who address much truth from the different five fold ministries given in the book of Ephesians. They d...
It came at me like a ton of bricks. A week ago Sunday morning I was just fine. By early afternoon, the onslaught of fever had begun. I am old enough now to have gone through my fair share of flus and colds, so I decided on that Sunday to sweat it out. Off to bed I went clad in a wool beanie, t-shirt, jacket, pants, socks and two blankets. Even with all that on, I could barely get warm enough. It was a greatly pleasurable experience when I did finally get warm. I could feel the heat radiating throughout my nerves. The next morning, it was back... Full story
On November 9, DC District Court judge Tanya Chutkan refused former US president Donald Trump's request, based on "executive privilege," for a preliminary injunction forbidding the National Archives and Records Administration to release documents to the US House committee grandstanding on ... er, "investigating" ... the January 6 Capitol riot. If Trump's name goes down in history for anything of substance rather than mere flash, it should probably be for his bizarre claim that people who aren't executives anymore retain "executive privilege" ov... Full story
The month-long showdown over taxes is finally nearing its end as the majority of Congressional Democrats face off against a small group of their moderate colleagues in a fight over the future of the party and the country. While most Democrats are advocating for popular policies like prescription drug negotiation, paid leave, and taxing the rich, centrists have continually dug their heels into the ground, derailing negotiations and endangering the party’s success in the coming midterm elections. They’ve adopted the priorities of their wea... Full story
Valley County is blessed with ample news coverage. On the airwaves, KLTZ keeps all things local as residents go about their day to day lives. The B.S. Buzz also offers a hyper-local focus on area news, sometimes picking up stories which could not, for whatever reason, make it into The Courier that week. We do not have a local TV-affiliate, which means the news coverage we get on TV is based in Billings or wherever. I can't say us newspaper and radio journalists mind that too much. One less dog... Full story
Many people who are opposed to mandatory Covid vaccinations hold themselves out to be patriots and call those in favor of mandates traitors. Pretty powerful words and it raises an interesting point as far as American history is concerned, namely, would these patriots of today consider George Washington a patriot or a traitor? Here’s why. In 1777, Washington issued a mandate that his soldiers had to be vaccinated against smallpox, then known as variola. While British troops had built up an immunity to smallpox, the American troops had not. A... Full story
In 1954, Congress passed, and President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed, a bill transforming Armistice Day — November 11, a post-World-War One celebration of peace — into Veterans Day, a celebration of warriors. Personally, I stick to the original name and the original purpose in my observation of the holiday. Looking at the numbers involved, though, it's little wonder I find myself swimming against that particular tide. In 1860, the US armed forces comprised 27,958 soldiers, sailors and Marines. That figure jumped by six figures each year througho... Full story
In January 2022, federal legislation takes effect limiting surprise medical billing for out-of-network healthcare. Passed with bipartisan support in Congress and signed by President Donald Trump, the No Surprises Act (NSA) is the most sweeping healthcare legislation since the Affordable Care Act in 2010. Surprise billing occurs when a patient has no knowledge or opportunity to choose care from a provider inside of the patient's health plan network. What is the No Surprises Act? Most health plans require or prefer customers to use in-network... Full story
It seems every generation has its crises. For those Americans alive when Benjamin Franklin was living it up with the ladies in France, they faced open rebellion against their King and years of suffering as the revolution raged. Then, they were faced with the Herculean task of forming a sustainable democratic-republican government. (They failed the first time around). Their kids and grandkids would pioneer east towards the Mississippi River and fight off the English one more time in 1812. Their... Full story
When I looked at this week's Courier I thought, 'Oh, good, the autumn bazaar was a success.' However, there was nary a mask in sight! It's as though there is no covid pandemic and somehow we are immune to any threat in spite of the fact that Montana has been listed as a state with a low vaccination rate. The "anti-vaxxers" seem to reign and the words of trained scientists are ignored. No one should ever have to explain or apologize for wearing a mask! Then I turned to page A2. Uff da! I am tired... Full story
"Congress is gradually moving toward having only one bill per year," former congressman Justin Amash (L-MI) tweeted recently. And that bill will have "everything stuffed into it, negotiated by just a few congressional leaders, completely behind closed doors, with no floor amendments permitted." Amash presumably has the current "infrastructure" bill in mind. Weighing in at more than 2,700 pages and chock-full of stuff only tenuously (if at all) related to infrastructure, it's more of a leadership-negotiated door stop than an honestly debated... Full story
It’s no surprise that current and former members of the military make great entrepreneurs. The resilience, determination, and fortitude they acquired while in uniform was a great training ground for becoming a successful small business owner. Working in collaboration with our government and community partners, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) plays an important role in supporting service members as they exit the military and become entrepreneurs. During National Veterans Small Business Week, Nov. 1-5, the country celebrates those v... Full story
The Biden administration wants to improve America's international reputation. That's why it endorsed a proposal before the World Trade Organization to waive all intellectual property rights related to Covid-19. The president intends for this offer to be seen as a generous gesture that his "America First" predecessor would never have made. Yet this endorsement is toothless virtue-signaling at best -- and dangerous economic capitulation at worst. It caught our European allies by surprise. The EU nations, especially Germany, do not support the... Full story
"Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples. And looking at Jesus as he walked, [John] said, "Behold, the Lamb of God." John 1:35-36 Have you noticed how often we come across sheep and shepherds in the Bible? It is very often. Shepherding sheep must have been a common vocation and something people related to in their lives back then. Shepherds are in the Christmas narrative in Luke Two as they first hear the Gospel message from the angels of Christ's birth. Plus, they are the... Full story
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." A tale of two states. As I was perusing the website of a newspaper I used to work for in Western Washington, my eye was caught by a headline that made me grateful I no longer live there. It was, "Proof of vaccination required at these businesses and events." That means, for the unvaccinated, entrance is barred. Your money is no good. You are an outcast. I am pretty sure such policies are the definition of discriminatory practices. The... Full story
President Joe Biden wants the Occupational Safety & Health Administration to mandate COVID-19 vaccinations for all workers at companies with more than 100 employees. Local governments from sea to shining sea, including those of New York City and San Francisco, have conscripted business owners as "vaccination passport" inspectors, forbidding them to serve customers whose papers aren't in order. Florida governor Ron DeSantis and Texas governor Greg Abbott, on the other hand, are attempting to mandate that businesses may NOT condition employment... Full story
Recently my home county of Sanders twice made national news, first for having the highest increase in COVID cases in the United States and more recently for a group of citizens pressuring a member of the Sanders County Board of Health into resigning because he stood up for what he was trained in and with which the crowd disagreed, namely medical science. This is the kind of publicity that most communities would not want to have because it would serve as a deterrent to the economic growth of an area. Well, that would have been the case years... Full story
When it comes to insuring your home it is important to know there is a significant difference between “Replacement Cost” and “Actual Cash Value” coverage. We’ll get to that shortly. You can't watch TV without seeing an insurance commercial. Whether it's Progressive's Flo, Allstate's Mayhem, or Jake from State Farm, there is a heavy flow of advertisements for insurance companies. Insurance is one of the most competitive industries in the United States, with over one million agents writing 1.28 trillion dollars in premiums in 2020. In this hype... Full story
I am pleased to announce that more than a century of Valley County History is now available for public perusal at the Valley County Pioneer Museum. After the original Courier building was damaged beyond repair not too long ago, quick decisions had to be made about what to do with the many volumes of old newspapers which had meticulously documented Valley County since the early 20th Century. The collection also includes other publications in Valley County which no longer exist. It is quite the tr... Full story
IRS Seeks Approval to Snoop There is an ongoing battle regarding the $3.5 trillion reconciliation plan proposed by the Biden Administration, which includes a provision that would require financial institutions, such as our credit unions, to report to the IRS transactional data for any account with at least $600 of inflows or outflows annually. This unlimited access to consumers' financial data should raise alarms for anyone with a bank or credit union account. First and foremost, this plan... Full story
Democrats, led by President Biden, Chuck Schumer, Bernie Sanders and Nancy Pelosi, are rushing a reckless $3.5 trillion tax and spending spree bill through Congress that would reshape the very foundation of America and push the U.S. down the path of socialism. The Democrats' massive bill is the largest spending bill in our nation's history and will create all sorts of new entitlement programs. To pay for it, Democrats plan to hike taxes across the board, making this bill the largest tax... Full story
Montanans overwhelmingly reject Critical Race Theory in our classrooms. Since Brown v. Board of Education, we’ve worked to live up to our founding ideals and we hold true to the principle of equal treatment for every student. President Biden’s controversial nominee to head the Department of Education’s extremely powerful Office for Civil Rights (OCR), Catherine Lhamon, instead wants to make sure every school in America implements and adheres to Marxist ideologies disguised as so-called antiracism teachings. Ms. Lhamon’s nomination stalled... Full story
Speak your mind and be heard. But, do it politely - lest the feds label you as a "domestic terrorist." To whom am I speaking? Why any parent who attends a school board meeting in these United States and is against mandatory masking or COVID-19 vaccinations. To be clear, I am not referring to the local school boards in Valley County. I have attended several Glasgow School District board meetings, and they have welcomed public discourse about masking and other COVID-19 related concerns. Late in th... Full story
