Good morning; on this date in 1957 Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road” was published.
There’s a ton of news on the Beacon today, including the announcement that Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Joe Biden will be speaking in Kalispell Sunday. Check in here later as we get more information on the when and where of the rally/speech/town hall whatever its going to be. Kalispell announced it was cutting five jobs as a result of the budget crunch the city faces. Investigators of the crash near Columbia Falls that recently killed a state trooper and a Hungry Horse couple say a third vehicle caused the accident and they are searching for the car and driver. Local home sales, along with median home prices, dropped in the first half of 2008. At Bigfork High School and Flathead Valley Community College, more and more students are taking online classes for credit. In Warren Miller’s World, a fishing boat rescue turns into an epic adventure.
In state news, U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg, R-Mont., is confident Barack Obama will not win Montana’s presidential race, and has told John McCain’s campaign to focus efforts elsewhere. New U.S. Census date shows that in 2007, the middle class grew and incomes rose. A Spokane writer is about to publish a potentially controversial novel based on the life of one of the Prophet Muhammad’s wives. Brig. Gen. John Walsh, the new commander of the Montana National Guard, is profiled in the Helena Independent Record. Hunters injected nearly $270 million into the state’s economy last year. U.S. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., and Gov. Brian Schweitzer, both up for re-election, have opted not to fill out the Project Vote Smart survey this year. Butte’s Copper King, a massive hotel and convention center is shutting down.
And finally, I linked to a story earlier this week about an elephant who could do math. Today, I link to a tragic story about an elephant addicted to heroin. I think these two stories speak volumes about the need for our society to Leave No Elephant Behind. Have a great weekend.