Last month marked 40 years since the Watergate scandal. The anniversary has me remembering a discussion in 1987 with the Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill who, 15 years earlier, had seen the foreboding shadow of the distant Watergate tsunami a full year before it crashed over the nation’s political shoreline. No one who lived […]

Just when it seems federal forest policies hit rock bottom, they get worse. First, we have local eco-warrior Keith Hammer threatening to sue the U.S. Forest Service to stop an organized mountain-bike race (on trails that are mostly open to motorized users, no less) after his efforts to block the Swan Crest 100 foot race. […]

Do you have problems with too many sales turning into refunds? Or almost-sales turning into no-sales? Do your demonstration projects frequently fail to reach the buying stage? Does return-friendly Costco look like a tough return desk negotiator compared to you? Do people frequently add things to their shopping cart while on your website but decide […]

It’s unfortunate that such a beautiful area is also home to the region’s nastiest political skirmishes. So it goes in Lincoln County, where before one government dispute is resolved another one hits the front page. Earlier this year, in the tiny town of Troy, the council decided that the mayor didn’t play well with others, […]

Glacier National Park is a sanctuary to wildlife, backcountry enthusiasts, and international visitors. Teddy Roosevelt and his contemporaries guaranteed us access to and preservation of such lands in the spirit of both protecting the natural landscape and inviting individuals to enjoy it in a leisurely fashion. HR 1505, supported by our Congressman Denny Rehberg, is […]

Greg Gianforte of Right Now Technologies in Bozeman stated, “It is clear our states policies are not in line with the needs and desires of its citizens,” regarding school choice (June 20 Beacon: “Montana a Battleground for School Choice”). In canvassing hundreds of homes in the Columbia Falls area, as a Senate candidate, I ask […]

In a recent column by Helena lawyer Cory Swanson (May 23 Beacon: Security Bill Needed to Protect Northern Border), Swanson concurs with Rep. Denny Rehberg’s support of H.R. 1505 (the National Security and Federal Lands Protection Act), “a bill that strengthens America’s ability to protect itself by securing our borders against illegal aliens, drug and […]

When former President George W. Bush used tax rebates to stimulate the national economy, taxpayers received checks to spend at places like the downtown hardware store. One Bush rebate was $168 billion and termed economic stimulus to jumpstart a lagging 2008 economy. Nearly 130 million households took advantage of tax rebates that ranged from $300 […]

At the recent Angel Capital Association (ACA) Summit in Austin, Texas, the Angel Resource Institute reported on angel group activity in 2011 in the first annual Halo Report. I found some of the results quite interesting. For example: The median round of investment by group was about $700,000 but less than $300,000 was invested by […]

Have you ever noticed how careful we are as business owners to take good care for our expensive business equipment? Like…robots. Robots get their hydraulic fluid changed, hydraulic lines pressure checked, wear points examined, worn parts replaced, firmware updated, tolerances tested, configurations checked and their overall performance checked. When a robot doesn’t measure up, it […]

Going into the debate between incumbent Sen. Jon Tester and his challenger, Congressman Denny Rehberg, I expected a mostly sleepy discussion. This was, after all, their first debate of many in a room brimming with stuffy journalists in Big Sky for the annual Montana Newspaper Association conference. But I was mostly wrong. A half hour […]

I am guessing that everyone who reads this newspaper has inherited and needed to fix a difficulty that was generated by someone else. The tendency in that situation is to rail against/whine about the person responsible for the trouble. But most sensible people end up doing their best to fix the problem. Sadly for people […]

How do you like political ads now that corruption and lying are legal? In 2012, conservatives dismantled Montana’s ban on knowingly lying in political ads. Conservatives, led by American Tradition Partnership, Montana Right to Life, and Beaverhead and Lake Republican Central Committees, also attacked Montana’s Corrupt Practices Act, a law 75 percent of Montana voters […]

We could almost hear the shot of the starter’s pistol as the race for Montana governor began in earnest earlier this month. First out of the gate was Democrat Steve Bullock with an election year promise of a $400 payment for certain property owners. Republican Rick Hill responded that Montanans need permanent tax reductions, not […]

Think about the connections that you have with your clients. Are they simple, long-lasting and personal? Or are they laborious, fragile and distant? If your customers have to deal with a laborious or impersonal process for *anything*, just stop it. Now. People have enough complexity and hassles in their lives. They need more simple, hassle-free […]