Good morning and happy 70th birthday to Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds.
On the Beacon this morning, the wheatgrass business in the valley is growing faster than, well, wheatgrass. The body of a missing hiker was found in Glacier Park, in the North Fork Wednesday. A $462,000-federal grant will help workers recently laid off by the Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. The trial of Ronald Petersen, accused of shooting and killing Ferndale man Clyde Wilson last New Year’s Eve, is set to begin Feb.2. And Beacon columnist Dave Skinner advises voters, if you’re clueless about an issue or office, to just leave that part of the ballot blank.
In state news, a pair of unconfirmed lion sightings in downtown Polson have officials reminding the public about what to do in an encounter with the big cat. Also in the Missoulian, Michael Jamison descends into the limestone caves near Polebridge. Medical marijuana advocates are celebrating a victory after the state Supreme Court ruled a district court judge overstepped her bounds sentencing a medical marijuana grower and user. Republican gubernatorial candidate Roy Brown pledged to reduce property tax mills from from 101 to 26 if elected.
And sorry, I just have to pass this along when these stories make news. A campus police officer in upstate New York has been charged with stealing $300 worth of donuts. Have a great day.