Title X is the federal grant program that provides comprehensive family planning and other health-related services to people. Two-thirds of the patients live in poverty and have no health insurance. In 1969, President Richard Nixon said, “It is my view that no American woman should be denied access to family planning assistance because of her […]

There is a lot of misinformation being bantered about concerning H.R. 1581, the Wilderness and Roadless Area Release Act of 2011. Contrary to what opponents may have you believe, the bill – which is now being considered in Congress – wouldn’t open 43 million acres of public land to interests that would decimate it. The […]

I am the President of the Network of Environmentally Consicous Organizations and I am writing on behalf of our organization. We were a key sponsor of the 2012 Rocky Mountain Powershift Conference. At Montana State University, we work to promote sustainable living on campus including responsible use of natural resources, community development and fiscal responsibility. […]

Does money really buy elections? We’re told that it does. I have previously written about the consequences of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision and how third-party and corporate money could have an outsized influence on our elections. Sen. Jon Tester and the man challenging for his seat, Congressman Denny Rehberg, have traded accusations […]

What’s the first thing you do when deciding which lamp to buy? YOU TURN ON THE LAMPS. Recently I visited a office supply box store because, among other reasons, no locally-owned store carries the oddball item I needed. While there, I took a quick glance at the desk lamps on display. None of the lamps […]

Hordes of political-correctniks are swarming all over radio bloviator Rush Limbaugh. He used some rather harsh language to pigeonhole Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke Rush apologized, Ms. Fluke rejected his apology, advertisers are leaving, and Rush-haters are milking every political drop – so much ado over the wrong thing … On the surface, the […]

There was a time during the golden age of the conservation movement when being “anti-conservation” or “anti-environmentalist” was akin to speaking up for reinstatement of the Jim Crow laws. This conservation enlightenment reached levels of acceptance almost unimaginable today. An illustrative apex occurred in 1972, when 100 delegates from the largely rural and conservative state […]

A major portion of the budget surplus of the state of Montana should be used to repair roads. The sorry state of many roads cause damage that in total possibly exceeds the amount of the surplus. Cooperation between municipalities and the state could develop a workable plan where cost sharing would benefit everyone. The readers […]

Lobbyists have a really bad name. And associating political opponents with them is increasingly popular as a way to imply “corruption,” “insider status” and “backroom deals.” So goes the race between Sen. Jon Tester and Congressman Denny Rehberg for Tester’s Senate seat. What began last year as general criticism of campaign cash from and ties […]

Despite tough economic times of late, Montanans should take heart in an emerging success story: our track record of producing successful wind energy projects. The wind farm in Judith Gap has provided a much-needed economic boost to this rural area in our state, as well as five other large and small wind-harvesting projects active around […]

President Franklin Roosevelt created the Civilian Conservation Corps for millions of youth to serve and restore America’s parks and stabilize the economy. The Going-to-the Sun Road could not have been built without the CCC. CCC served in Glacier National Park and Yellowstone National Park. From reforestation to campground development to trail building to fire hazard […]

Business culture is often viewed as “woo-woo”. People will roll their eyes when you say the words. Some are so turned off that they stop listening to you when you say the phrase, thinking the conversation will be about things that aren’t the least bit business-oriented. To me, that’s reason enough to avoid using the […]

Free speech or taxpayer-funded propaganda? Recently both Montana universities sponsored a conference for Power Shift. Power Shift seemingly stands for the promotion of clean energy. Look deeper: The organization is a subsidiary of the Energy Action Coalition and is linked to the Occupy and Greenpeace movements. Power Shift’s motto is “we demand 100% clean energy.” […]

We wanted to write to clarify the current discussion about the proposal currently before the voters for the Whitefish High School, and specifically discuss the $7 million approach that has become part of the discourse. We did not present the $7 million alternative to the community’s planning group. It arose in response to a question […]

It’s been about 30 years since Montana has had any new federally designated wilderness. In my view that is not necessarily bad. Wilderness has its place, but so do forest management activities and the production of wood products. From my experience, though, if there is any place in our state that seems appropriate for wilderness […]