Ever have one of those vendors that supplies something that is so amazing that you can’t cure yourself of them? I deal with one of those in the software side of my world. And of course, their customer service is nowhere near ideal. They rarely communicate with their clients. They do a few things that […]

The Beacon recently ran Christian Science Monitor writer Todd Wilkinson’s timely story on President Obama’s new National Park Service (NPS) director, Jonathan Jarvis. Jarvis has a tough row to hoe, leading an agency that can’t even agree on why it exists. The debate centers on a philosophical question: Are parks for people, or do parks […]

In January, I posed a question on flatheadbeacon.com asking when the U.S. Highway 93 Bypass would be finished. Of the 127 readers who responded to the unscientific poll, 53 percent of them said “never.” And who could blame them? The idea of building a highway to circumvent downtown Kalispell had been discussed for decades. Then, […]

Today you just wander down to the ski shop with a sliver of plastic and in a short time are able to take advantage of several million dollars worth of research and development that you can use to continue to make turns on a mountain no matter your age. Turn back the calendar to when […]

There is a move across the country to encourage renewable electrical power and several bills are moving through Congress mandating its usage. While many loudly shout about the positive use of alternative and renewable energy along with the need for America to be independent of foreign oil, they also do all they can to roadblock […]

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 […]