Plum Creek’s VP of northern resources and manufacturing retires on a high note. Meanwhile, growth in liquor sales takes a hit.
HIGH
STEVE BULLOCK – The Montana attorney general announces a program in Lewis and Clark County to reduce drunken driving requiring daily breath tests for those accused of two DUIs.
HANK RICKLEFS – Plum Creek’s VP of northern resources and manufacturing will retire on a high note, with the timber giant’s business improving after a brutal 2009.
POLSON BASKETBALL – The boys made it to second place in the Class A state tournament; Columbia Falls came in third.
KATHRYN BIGELOW – The first woman to win an Oscar for best direction, her film “The Hurt Locker” ran away with many of the awards on Sunday.
BETWEEN
RAHM EMANUEL – The brusque, polarizing White House chief of staff has been the subject of endless Washington D.C. navel gazing of late, with political observers wondering whether the president should be paying more attention to his advice, or abandoning his strategies completely. Sounds like your typical Beltway circular firing squad.
LOW
BRIAN SCHWEITZER – The governor’s move to freeze certain state funded grants has left Flathead County and Columbia Falls on the hook for costly road projects that were mostly completed last fall.
LIQUOR – Growth in liquor sales tapered off last year, due largely to the recession and smoking ban implementation.
SNOWPACK – It’s well below average in Western Montana, meaning it looks like a dry summer with low stream flows.
MALMSTROM NUKES – Two Air Force units responsible for nuclear missiles failed inspection last month, though there is no threat to the public.