Reached last week, Whitefish Republican Sen. Ryan Zinke called Senate Bill 13 – which was proposed and supported by a number of his colleagues – a “terrible bill.” It was a blunt assessment one day before the legislation was scheduled to hit the Senate floor. Instead, SB 13 was referred back to the Senate Finance […]

Recently I attended a wonderful student concert at Glacier High School. While sitting in my seat enjoying the students’ intensity on never missing a note, I was thinking how our newly elected state Legislature is ready to put education, both K-12 and higher education, on the chopping block. It took only hours after our newly […]

I want to thank Kellyn Brown for welcoming me to the Flathead Valley with his editorial in the Jan. 28 Flathead Beacon (“Appealing to ‘Real’ Montanans”). I am honored that he would devote an entire editorial to my speech. I wish, however, that Kellyn had been a little more accurate in his assessment of what […]

A few weeks ago, I mentioned that there were some “numbers you might care about“. Examples included figuring out the costs to obtain both new leads and customers. In prior discussions, I’ve also suggested that you need to be thanking your customers, following up, tracking referrals, making sure purchase intervals aren’t abnormal and so on. […]

“Theatre of the Absurd” was coined by Martin Esslin to express senselessness and the inadequacy of any rational approach by the abandonment of sensible policies and discursive thought. Politics has long been viewed as a mix of comic and tragic theater, with public debate seldom moving a vote. If the first half of the 2011 […]

It took me many years of trial and error to create the perfect crab cake recipe. I probably have five different recipes for crab cakes, but this one consistently receives the most rave reviews from my clients. The key to perfect crab cakes is the quality of crab meat used. In this recipe, I have […]

Several Flathead-area senators deserve thanks for voting to protect energy independent Montanans. Thanks, in particular, to Sen. Ryan Zinke (R-Whitefish) for his leadership. Recently, the state Senate voted against a bill (SB 226) that would have crippled grid-interconnected home scale solar and wind energy projects in Montana. During the debate, Zinke stood up and said […]

It was telling when in 2009 Kalispell voters rejected a $4.1 million-high school building reserve levy for School District No. 5. It had been approved every time it was on the ballot since 1982. When times are good, it’s easier to support schools. But they’re not. The building levy was just one of many that […]

During the campaign season, majority party lawmakers in the Montana Legislature promised voters they would focus in January on balancing the state’s budget, reducing unnecessary government and creating jobs. Who could argue with these general goals? Apparently they were kidding. Instead of addressing the economy, many Republican legislators are spending – many would say wasting […]

Last week, a Beacon reader sent me a nice note, and while doing so, posed a question. He said “One thing I am dying to read from you, is how do you get rid of a pain in the butt client – or a pathological recreational shopper — or the perfectionist from hell — without […]

In January, U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy issued an “Order to Show Cause” to parties in a lawsuit (CV-08-14-M-DWM, filed January 2008) by Defenders of Wildlife. Defenders sued, claiming that wolf-management regulations the government issued under Endangered Species Act Section 10(j) authority allow too many wolves to be killed via management actions. Case 14 […]

One of my favorite things to grill is lamb and especially the leg. With all the great flavor of lamb chops or rack of lamb, but usually costing half the price, a leg of lamb can be the perfect choice for entertaining groups of 6 to 10. I like to season lamb in a variety […]

I’d like to express a few concerns over an issue brewing in the Eastside neighborhood and that is over the Boiler Room’s request for the right to serve beer and wine. The Eastside is an established neighborhood with families and children. Serving alcohol makes our neighborhood less safe for children and as the father of […]

Lawmakers in the Montana House of Representatives, many arguing that they are worried about the stress their county clerks and recorders are under on Election Day, have supported eliminating same-day voter registration. But if you’ve been paying attention at all this session, you quickly realize that the bill’s backers are not really worried about that […]

Dear Sen. Jim Shockley, I have been looking over some of the bills you are carrying or sponsoring in the Senate and must applaud you on a few of them – specifically Senate Bill 17 and Senate Bill 18. I am confused then why you would not support Senate Bill 114, which like one of […]