There is stigma attached to being employed in the public sector. You are accused of inefficiency, ineptitude and, if you serve on a council or board that wields any sort of power, bias. But if working for the “man” was derided before the recession, it has only worsened since. And the Flathead is a prime […]

In a move that can be described by a number of adjectives (bizarre? vengeful? shrewd?) Gov. Brian Schweitzer asked western Montana officials to show support for the state Land Board’s decision to lease Otter Creek coal tracts before receiving state grants funded by stimulus money. The ultimatum infuriated liberals and came just weeks after the […]

The deadline for legislative candidates to file for office has now passed and the first campaign issue, at least for Republicans running for state office, has emerged: whether to repeal health care reform. A GOP lawmaker told me weeks ago that, if health care reform was made federal law, her party planned on introducing legislation […]

Planning Director Jeff Harris’ contract is up for review in front of the Flathead County Commission in June and Kalispell’s ever-churning rumor mill suggests that the governing body has no intention of renewing it. That decision is completely within their right. If commissioners have decided that Harris has performed poorly in his role, voters expect […]

It appears that the city of Kalispell may ban medical marijuana dispensaries because a state law legalizing the businesses conflicts with a federal law and over concerns that catering to potheads may ruin the city’s broad appeal to tourists. These arguments are equally insane. I agree with, and have previously stated, that the medical marijuana […]

In the Beacon office, we have a sales executive who is originally from Calgary, Alberta. Proud of it. And, like many of those who have citizenship in both countries, when it comes to hockey, he roots for Canada. While I would like to argue that he took the Canadians’ first loss in men’s hockey to […]

There is something to be said for the number of economic symposiums that have been held in Kalispell since the first of the year. It’s evidence that political and business leaders alike are fully aware that the Flathead economy is in dire straits and there is no easy answer as to how it should be […]

Roger Koopman, the former state representative from Bozeman, has returned this primary season with hopes of grooming Republicans in his image and fielding challengers to those who don’t make the conservative cut. He has sent out a questionnaire to GOP candidates under the banner of his newly formed group, Montana Conservative Alliance, so he can […]

Those tasked with estimating state budgets and federal deficits are coming under fire after many of their predictions have proved grossly inaccurate over the last several months. And while much of the blame is coming from politicians hoping to deflect criticism away from themselves, the numbers do provide a glimpse at how rarely forecasters predict […]

History may be the best indication of where things go from here. Property rights groups opposed Flathead County Commissioner Gary Hall in the 2008 Republican primary, and he lost to Jim Dupont by more than a 2-to-1 margin. Some of those same groups campaigned against Kalispell Mayor Pam Kennedy in 2009, and she lost to […]

Some have shrugged at the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision last week to overturn parts of the decades-old campaign finance law that now allows corporations and unions to spend as much money as they please on elections. And perhaps those with more modest means – individual voters – have little to worry about. Doug Pinkman, president […]

Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer has been at once panned and praised for his handling of the state’s dwindling budget reserves through creativity, cuts and the occasional lecture. In true Schweitzer form, the governor’s latest proposal is asking his constituents: Do you have any ideas? Last week, the governor unveiled the “Montana Accountability Partnership Contest,” complete […]

When U.S. Census forms begin landing in our mailboxes in March, many Montanans will refuse to fill them out. And most of those who defy federal law will be hurting their own cause. There are those on the far right (in the minority) – from Minnesota Rep. Michelle Bachmann to the bloggers at Infowars.com – […]

Montana made national headlines in the days leading to 2009’s exit. First, there was the controversy, or non-controversy (depending on your point of view), surrounding our senior Sen. Max Baucus’ floor speech defending the Democrats’ health care plan. Then there were the Bozeman tennis courts. These stories aren’t at all related, but they each show […]

Democrats in the U.S. Senate are accused of buying and bartering for votes in order to muster a filibuster-proof majority to pass health care legislation on Christmas Eve. The criticism is warranted in many cases, but not in Libby’s. If you have been following the health care debate, even in passing, you have probably seen […]