Good Wednesday. On this day in 1962, President John F. Kennedy announced that American spy planes had discovered Soviet nuclear weapons in Cuba. It was Kennedy’s first public speech on the Cuban Missile Crisis.
On the Beacon this morning, a landmark agreement helps outline the future for the Kootenai River white sturgeon, which have been near extinction for decades. A proposed plan by the Bureau of Land Management calls for more than 250 miles of road to be shut off to motorized vehicle use. Unemployment is up in Montana. Plum creek activates a $9.5-million biofilter at its medium density fiberboard plant. The Kalispell City Council is set to vote on an interim city manager next Monday to temporarily replace Jim Patrick while the city searches for a permanent manager.
In other state news, Sen. Max Baucus held a hearing to discuss health care. Three University of Montana players have denied taking part in an assault. Victor Charlo, of the Flathead Indian Reservation, to release his debut book of poetry after 30 years in the making. Also, in Billings, officials ponder what to do about cars that drive off the Rimrocks section of their city.
In Butte, a deer apparently attacked a poodle and then dog’s owner, a 61-year-old woman, took exception, fighting off the deer until it ran away. The Helena Independent-Record reports that college endowments are down across the state. Gov. Brian Schweitzer is encouraging colleges to emphasize alternative-energy training. The Lewis and Clark Library Board of Directors has decided to retain a book entitled “The Joy of Gay Sex” in the library’s collection. And finally, an elderly woman has been arrested fort he 73rd time in her life.