Sometimes I really wonder about where people get their competitive spirit. Or for that matter, why they’re in business at all. They don’t seem to have any sort of competitive edge about them when it comes to business, but these same folks would put a hotel on Boardwalk if given the chance. “It’s just a […]

John Stokes is on the air. Despite the shutdown of radio station KGEZ by authorities last month after a federal bankruptcy judge ordered the liquidation of Stokes’ assets, anyone pining for the reassuring sound of his broadcasting baritone can simply go to Youtube.com. There, entering Stokes’ name reveals he’s been a guest on numerous radio […]

President Obama isn’t the first American president to win the Nobel Peace Prize. The first president, as well as the first American, to receive that coveted honor was a one-time member of the Montana Stock Grower’s Association. Theodore Roosevelt was also the first and only future president to win the Congressional Medal of Honor. Roosevelt […]

Ahh, Kermit the Frog. You were wise beyond your years when you said, “It’s not easy being green.” It isn’t even easy talking about green, but we’re going to do it anyhow. Everywhere you turn, people talk about being green and going green. Quite often, it results in a number of people seeing red. Some […]

How would you feel if you knew that there was just one 911 operator in charge of answering and directing all the calls in your county? And that it had been this way for multiple decades, despite the fact that the population there has been steadily increasing over the years? No matter how capable the […]

In October 2008, Congress directed Amtrak to study adding more routes to Amtrak’s system. Among those routes were two for the Northwest, the Denver-Boise-Portland Pioneer, and a second Seattle-Chicago line, the North Coast Hiawatha (NCH) through Bismarck, Helena and Missoula on the old Northern Pacific. Amtrak’s 53-page NCH report makes interesting reading. Amtrak’s current long-distance […]

The U.S. Senate has an opportunity to revive Montana’s – and the nation’s – economy with thousands of new jobs, create clean and affordable sources of power for our homes and businesses, and end billions of dollars going to foreign countries for oil.
 
Our Senators returned to Washington to take up comprehensive climate and energy […]

At a candidate forum last week, the moderator asked the six contenders for city council their opinion of downtown Kalispell. It was an area in which all of them agreed – they support its prosperity. Yet as someone who has worked in the center of the city, albeit for just over two years, it’s hard […]

Ever sat at a stoplight facing uphill behind a big 18 wheeler? Notice how long it takes for that big ol’ thing to get moving? Sometimes it seems like forever until it gets up to cruising speed. That’s the burden of inertia. What about that 747 headed to Australia or Beijing or Rio? It takes […]

Helen Kranitz’s complaints about hunters being “real men” in the Oct. 7 Beacon shows one can live around here and yet know little about the area. As it happens, our ancestors also used camouflaging scents, luring scents and game calls, and it is amazing she could live around here and not know this. She wants […]

In response to Democratic Sen. Max Baucus’ health care votes against the public option (or government-run insurance plan), liberal blogger Markos Moulitsas has aimed his sights squarely on Montana’s senior senator, vowing to strongly oppose him if he seeks reelection. In 2014, Moulitsas hopes to lure Democratic Gov. Brian Schweitzer as a primary opponent for […]

What does it take for us to inspire those in power, those who actually make the laws and set policy, to not only wake up to America’s needs but take proper and decisive action? Look at climate control. Look at carbon emissions. Look at health care for all as a “right” and not a “privilege.” […]

The years 2002 to 2008 were great times in the real estate market. Construction was up; homes sold and were worth record highs. Not true today as the worldwide market collapse hit the real estate industry hard. This is bad news for homeowners and local businesses when it comes to property taxes, as the slump […]

There’s a guy who sells a boring product here in the Flathead. If he’s your client, you don’t think of him or his product as boring. Despite selling a boring product that all businesses need but don’t really want, he makes it a point to keep his eye on the niches his clients do business […]

The week before Columbus Day, the White Creativity bunch, all five of them, held a demonstration at Kalispell’s Depot Park. Aw, geez… William and Helen Deutsch, my paternal grandparents, lived in Washington Heights on Manhattan, with a stunning view of the George Washington Bridge. There’s a little park across the street, where I was subjected […]