BILLINGS – Members of the Yellowstone Club for the ultrarich are opposing another loan to the financially-troubled Montana resort and demanding to know what happened to $463 million in club dues and past loans. The revolt against the exclusive club’s management – by a group claiming to represent more than 100 of its 340 members […]

HELENA – The Montana Public Service Commission gave final approval Thursday for NorthWestern Energy ratepayers to buy a coal-fired power plant. It will be the first large-scale power generating plant owned by Montana’s main utility since energy deregulation of the 1990s when the old Montana Power Company was splintered. The PSC said the Colstrip 4 […]

When I covered the 2007 Legislature, I wrote a story for the UM Journalism School’s Community News Service where I approached different lawmakers asking them what they thought the under-reported stories of the session were. I received some interesting answers, but one that stuck with me was a comment from then-Senate Minority Leader Corey Stapleton, […]

POLSON – The Lake County sheriff says tribal police made an arrest in connection with a Nov. 4 fire at a trailer house in Ronan. Nineteen-year-old Raymond Adams of Ronan was arrested on suspicion of felony arson. Sheriff Lucky Larson said Adams was being held at the Lake County jail with bail set at $50,000. […]

Sometimes it’s the quiet moments at the end of the day, when the wind is calm, the light is approaching dark and the falling rain is hushed, I am most thankful for the peace and beauty in which we live.

Plenty has been written over the last week or so about the Obama campaign’s use of technology and social media (much less a zillion other things). There will be more as information about the design of the internals of the campaign are revealed or discovered. Regardless of your politics, I suggest you read all of […]

Cosmopolitan magazine has named Kalispell native and professional kayaker Brad Ludden as its readers’ choice Hottest Bachelor of 2008. The 27-year-old Ludden, who now lives in Colorado, competed with men from every state and appears in the magazine’s November issue. The world-renowned kayaker has donated his $10,000 prize to First Descents, the outdoor adventure camp […]

WASHINGTON – The chairman of the Senate Finance Committee is adding his voice to the list of leading Democratic lawmakers pushing for the new president and Congress to make health care a top priority for 2009. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., on Wednesday made public his own plan for addressing what ails the health care system. […]

Democrat Max Baucus, Montana’s senior U.S. senator and chair of the über-powerful Finance Committee, called on President-elect Barack Obama to make health care his No. 1 priority in 2009. Baucus unveiled a plan Wednesday that he says could cure what ails the health care system. Many of Baucus’ suggestions mirror Obama’s, with one giant exception. […]

Good morning and happy birthday to the sculptor of “The Thinker,” Auguste Rodin. On the Beacon this morning, Republicans are looking to break a 50-50 split in the state House by calling for a recount in the tight House District 8 results, where Democrat Cheryl Steenson eked out a victory over Craig Witte by 20 […]

The early word from our newly minted state lawmakers is that 2009 will be different than 2007. My colleague Dan Testa penned an analysis on what happened in 2007 and how legislators are hoping to avoid a sequel. Read the piece here. What struck me was an interview with Rep. Mike Jopek, D-Whitefish. He said […]

1:14 a.m. After he drank a lot of booze, a 31-year-old man chased his family members around with a knife. He was arrested. 1:21 a.m. A deer damaged a county employee’s vehicle. 8:15 a.m. Someone’s estranged wife took a small cache of weapons. 10:19 a.m. A woman complained that her neighbor’s dog injured her dog. […]

Flathead Valley Community College’s Multicultural Affairs program will host a presentation tomorrow night broadcast live from the University of Montana on how the Afghan War and Pakistan’s volatile conditions impact India. Free and open to the public, the presentation by Hercharan Dhody, former Indian ambassador to the United Statesis, is titled, “The Strategic Environment in […]

The aftermath of Election Day in Montana allowed both Democrats and Republicans to claim victories. Nationally, Democrats won a historic presidential election and strengthened majorities in Congress. With Gov. Brian Schweitzer sailing to a second term, Montana Democrats swept every statewide race, laying claim to all five seats on the powerful Land Board, which controls […]

With this historic election, I can’t help thinking back to Martin Luther King’s epic and wonderful “I Have A Dream” speech, where he declared his hope that his kids would “one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” […]