The time is nigh for the people of Montana to demand a permanent property tax system that is simple to understand, equitable for all, and provides predictable revenue from residential, commercial and agriculture property owners. Our Legislature should put an end to the reappraisal panic every six years, the inequities of phase-in and our method […]

One of the things I’m always pushing clients to do is expand their education. This education expands well beyond your line of business, because there are valuable lessons from every industry. Likewise, there are processes in almost every industry that you can learn from, modify to fit your needs and thus use in a completely […]

Ever noticed how Montana makes the news only when stupid stuff happens? Our latest claim to national fame comes courtesy of Columbia Falls High School. CFHS junior Demari DeReu forgot her hunting rifle in her car trunk after the last weekend of hunting season. She remembered it when a school lockdown/sniffdown was announced, and immediately […]

Montana Republicans, who will enjoy large majorities in both chambers at the state Capitol this upcoming session, plan on bypassing Democratic Gov. Brian Schweitzer’s veto pen by referring some divisive measures directly to voters in 2012. Let’s hope by then the state requires the Voter Information Pamphlet, which is used to explain each referendum, to […]

Montanans have long cherished native bull trout and westslope cutthroat as important sport fish, cultural symbols, indicators of good water quality and drivers of our recreation economy. Many Montanans grew up learning how to fish by catching these two species. Future Montana kids deserve the same opportunities, but without determined actions now, these opportunities will […]

A recent editorial asked, “what were voters thinking” in reference to I-164, the initiative that will cap interest rates on payday and car title loans starting Jan. 1. Well, the voters were thinking that 300 to 650 percent interest rates charged to Montana families struggling to make ends meet are outrageous, wrong and constitute modern […]

Thirty plus years ago, Montanans had vision. We chose to vest nuclear power decisions with voters. I-80 passed by two-thirds vote and codifies in Montana law, “the people of Montana reserve to themselves the exclusive right to determine whether major nuclear facilities are built and operated in this state.” It’s not a moratorium, but simply […]

As I read the story about the success of logger James Stupack’s new business, I was quite pleased to hear of his creativity and stick-to-it attitude. It’s easy to give up. He didn’t. He added value. I’ve spent a lot of time talking to folks on that topic. Sometimes it comes in the form of […]

The Obama administration is contemplating major reductions in the Defense Department budget to help cut into the huge deficits incurred by the president and his Washington cronies. They plan on reducing our conventional military forces and increase special operations units to combat the terrorist threats around the world. An increase in special operations forces is […]

In a relatively sleepy vote, the Flathead County Commission approved updates to the Lakeside neighborhood plan last week. Yes, that plan; the three-year effort that provoked lawsuits, a third-party investigation and perhaps cost former Planning Director Jeff Harris his job. But when the decision came on Dec. 1, it was almost as if accusations of […]

I have followed the curious case of Damari DeReu, the Columbia Falls High School student who forgot her hunting rifle in the trunk of her car and was suspended the week following hunting season. I was amused by the whole issue when I remembered my own high school days. I remember parking my vehicle in […]

Why is it that economists don’t understand – at a deep and scientific level – how the economy works? Two centuries after Adam Smith’s “Wealth of Nations,” and more than seven decades after the Great Depression, they’re still fighting over what works and what doesn’t. The debate is far from theoretical. The fate of nations, […]

One of the reasons that smart phones (iPhone, Blackberry, Droid) are so popular is that they provide options for a much better means of getting notified about any number of events, appointments and so on. Your customers’ desire / need to be notified is a critical aspect of your customer service planning. In fact, these […]

Now that Democrat Kendall Van Dyk has bested Republican incumbent Roy Brown by four votes in Montana’s spendiest State Senate race ever ($234,000 for 6,208 ballots cast), the Republicans hold the state Senate 28-21 and the House by a whomping 68-32 majority. So what does this “mandate” call for? Many observers, including Flathead Democrats, have […]

I’m writing in response to Wilma Beck’s letter (Dec. 1 Beacon: “Marijuana, Nut No ‘Happy Meals’”). If our government can criminalize a natural herb that has never killed anybody in the 5,000-year history of its use, it can criminalize any food. What could be more pro nanny-state than marijuana prohibition? Beyond the fact that marijuana […]