Good morning and happy birthday Steve Martin (Here’s a clip of him when he was funny). On the Beacon, Myers Reece talks to local farmers nervous that behind soaring land and grain prices, a potential crash lurks. The Deep Draw fire west of Elmo was slowed by cloudy skies yesterday, but hot, windy weather means […]

10:48 a.m. Neighbors on Parliament Drive can’t seem to get along. 12:02 p.m. A frisky feline bit an employee at an animal hospital. 12:16 p.m. Rotten teens pulled all the tomatoes out of an Evergreen garden and then smashed them all over the cars in the driveway. 2:17 p.m. A backpack, an Ipod and a […]

I’m retired, so I don’t have to fly as much as I used to. But when I finally get on to an airplane nowadays, it is as though I am on my way to work out in a gym. I stood behind a man with a long, braided beard, a ponytail, flip-flops, Laker basketball shorts, […]

One allure of fairs is that they provide patrons with an excuse to consume calorie-packed foods that they would otherwise never consider. From funnel cakes to candy apples, all are horribly fattening, but once a year that matters little. And concessionaires, understanding this, have become even more creative in luring fair-goers into trying the latest […]

CHEYENNE, Wyo. – Compared to last year, firefighters in Wyoming and Montana aren’t nearly as busy battling wildfires so far this summer. State fire marshals in both states report far fewer fires and less acreage burned this year. They cite a cool start to the summer and fewer dry lightning storms. Wyoming State forester Bill […]

Jason Meuter has never made a cold call to bring in business. In the decade SnowDog Web has been taking its client’s visions and weaving them into code for the Web, word-of-mouth has been enough to draw customers to his door. When Meuter talks about his company, he speaks humbly of building relationships rather than […]

Dalton Halden won’t have her driver’s license for at least four more years. In the meantime, she’ll stick to driving racecars. Halden, from Columbia Falls, is one of six female drivers who race at Raceway Park’s high bank super oval track. Driving in the Bandolero division, the 11-year-old speedster is third in the point standings […]

HELENA – Montana election officials say Ralph Nader is now qualified to appear on the ballot in November as a candidate for president. Secretary of State Brad Johnson says Nader supporters gathered enough signatures for him to qualify as an independent presidential candidate. Independent candidates qualify for the ballot by gathering at least 5,000 signatures. […]

Last week in Small Business CEO, I read a story about a small business that was calling it quits due to “high oil prices and the economy” (my paraphrase). Two comments in that blog disgusted me, mostly because the owner appeared to be stuck in a mental trap about the economic conditions that she felt […]

POLEBRIDGE – As the United States suffers from ongoing wars and a wheezing economy, the nation’s political establishment remains transfixed by such trivial presidential issues as proper tire inflation, John McCain’s $520 Italian loafers and whether Barack Obama is too skinny. It’s enough to make Peter Moore’s campaign for the presidency look downright serious. “I’m […]

A 48-year-old Columbia Falls daycare worker has been charged with sexually abusing two 5-year-old girls who were in his care. Pete Ampudia was charged Monday with two counts of sexual intercourse without consent and two counts of sexual assault, all felonies. He appeared in Flathead County Justice Court on Tuesday, where his bail was set […]

WEST GLACIER – After Sept. 14, parts of the Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park will be closed for the winter and visitors won’t be able to get to Logan Pass from the east. Park officials say the road closure will accommodate ongoing repair work along the scenic mountain highway. It includes paving two lanes […]

MISSOULA – The final dozen Stimson Lumber Co. employees in Montana were laid off indefinitely Tuesday from a plant in Libby. Jeff Webber, Stimson’s vice president for manufacturing, said the workers face at least a nine-month indefinite layoff. “The product the plant makes goes directly to the housing market,” he said. “If housing rebounds, then […]

Good morning and happy Left-Handers Day. It’s a beautiful morning in the Flathead and there is a ton of news, locally and statewide, so strap-in for a hearty Buffet. Whitefish Marine Cpl. Stewart S. Trejo, 25, died Thursday in Iraq from injuries suffered in a vehicle supporting combat operations. Polebridge artist and bartender Peter Moore […]

6:38 a.m. There was graffiti on Evergreen middle school. 7:55 a.m. A stereo was stolen from a car parked at an apartment on Reserve Drive. 8:01 a.m. A suspicious man turned out to be delivery driver. 8:38 a.m. Someone called in to report that a person put garbage in their dumpster. The caller then said […]