Health, education, welfare … the federal government spends more than $630 billion annually on hundreds of social programs. How many of them work? No one knows. And that’s a problem. Most federal programs have never been evaluated for true effectiveness. And most evaluations that are conducted – and there are many – aren’t worth the […]

In a distant past, my business was rather dependent on a product from a particular outside-the-valley company. As good as it was, this product had a rough life, as it was passed from one company to another. Unfortunately, none of the owners anywhere along this trail seemed to have an inkling of customer relationship skills. […]

What with our long runoff, the Feds re-writing the floodplain, Whitefish agreeing to re-start its vest-pocket hydro plant, Columbia Falls Aluminum Company talks with Bonneville Power, Judge James Redden in Portland slapping down (yet again) agency salmon plans to the glee of Greens, Fort Peck running full bore over the spillway – there’s lots of […]

The federal government has a public relations problem. And while much of this is unavoidable, equal parts can be blamed on its failure to explain complex policy and its knack for responding to legitimate questions with an air of indifference. Let’s look at the proposed floodplain update in Evergreen. Recently, the Federal Emergency Management Agency […]

The 2011 archery elk permit drawing results are in, and for some it was a day of reward and excitement. For others there was disappointment in not drawing a permit for this year. For Montana it was an economic bloodletting. Over $16 million in economic activity has been lost due to residents and non-residents who […]

Lately, there has been a lot of talk in the news and around the valley about the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) offering a four year power supply deal to Columbia Falls Aluminum Company (CFAC). As you’ve read here in the Beacon, the deal is subject to environmental review and other what-ifs, so it isn’t a […]

The debt reduction compromise puts a balanced budget Constitutional amendment to a full Congressional vote this year. Montana would ratify the leftover idea from the “Contract with America.” A balanced budget has plenty of populist appeal. “That is not fair to the American people to hold out and say we won’t agree to raising the […]

In February of 2007, when I was beginning to round up a small staff to launch this newspaper, I met Dan Testa at a coffee shop in Missoula. The interview was short. The job was his. And we headed next door to Charlie B’s to toast our new venture, which would later be called the […]

The First Battle of Bull Run, the first major battle of the Civil War, was fought 150 years ago on July 21. The sesquicentennial of America’s bloodiest conflict has now begun. Until Vietnam more Americans were killed or maimed in the Civil War than all our other wars combined. Contrary to the “lost cause” interpretation, […]

This past week, I had the pleasure of visiting the still somewhat chilly seaside of Oregon thanks to a handful of out of town appointments. In between the productive parts of the week, we managed to visit a couple of western Oregon wineries. While a good time was had by all, I found it interesting […]

Have you tuned out the mindless screaming about raising the debt ceiling? Pat yourself on the back for being rationally ignorant, as there’s little we riffraff peons can do to prevent America from joining Greece as a deadbeat nation. Vote? Sure, after 18 more months of porcine pandery? Well, I was about to mute the […]

State unemployment numbers were released last week and – guess what? – Flathead County’s is exactly the same as it was one year ago. The non-seasonally adjusted jobless rate in June was once again 11.4 percent. Meanwhile, as places like Northwest Montana tread water, Washington is doing its best to make things worse. Before now, […]

In his July 6 Beacon commentary, Dave Skinner accused a number of attorneys and their clients of “criminal frivolity” regarding a petition filed in the Montana Supreme Court. The author doesn’t appear to be well-informed on the petition, science or basic tenets of our constitutional system of government. It is an odd “crime.” Six busy […]

Recently, Borders book stores reported that they were closing their remaining 399 stores, including our local store here in Kalispell. The store has about three months, enough time to liquidate their existing stock. Survival of the fittest demands that some prosper, some get by and some die. Borders was not one of the fittest booksellers around, […]

In politics the Senate acts more civil than the House. Both chambers are needed since compromise moves the nation forward. Lawmaking is an ugly and painful process to watch, but it works. Though distasteful to party bases, compromise does advance the people’s interest. The lack of progress in 2011 Congress is stifling to the small […]