Good morning and happy birthday Steve Martin (Here’s a clip of him when he was funny).
On the Beacon, Myers Reece talks to local farmers nervous that behind soaring land and grain prices, a potential crash lurks. The Deep Draw fire west of Elmo was slowed by cloudy skies yesterday, but hot, windy weather means it could grow beyond its current 1,726 acres. It doesn’t look as though Bigfork will be instituting a resort tax any time soon. After a two-year closure, the Flathead County Board of Adjustments voted to allow Bruce Tutvedt to reopen his West Valley gravel pit. In Bigfork, a small house has been repeatedly auctioned off to raise money for the high school science program. And Beacon columnist Wild Bill Schneider has a hearty laugh over a plan to vaccinate Yellowstone Park’s elk to prevent brucellosis.
In state news, Gov. Brian Schweitzer has landed a coveted speaking role at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, and plans to talk about energy. Schweitzer’s comments on Barack Obama’s gun record has prompted the National Rifle Association to blast the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee for his gun rights voting record. Acoompanied by several foreign ambassadors, U.S. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., criticized U.S. foreign trade policy at a conference in Kalispell yesterday. U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg, R-Mont., was in Missoula yesterday lambasting Congressional leadership for not holding a vote on expanded oil drilling. The body of an Army private killed in Iraq was brought home to Dillon yesterday. West Nile virus has been found in Cascade County mosquitoes.
And finally, I’ve been trying to avoid putting this story in the Buffet, but today I could resist no longer. Check out his stomach-churning video of an Ohio Burger King employee taking a bath in one of the restaurant sinks. I’m not sure who the situation is more disgusting for, the patrons, or him. Have a great day; Friday’s almost here.