The Blackfoot Valley's News Source Since 1980
The Blackfoot Valley's News Source Since 1980
Sorted by date Results 261 - 285 of 393
Martha Williams MTFWP Rich Janssen CSKT Natural Resources Dept. Montanans from all walks of life have a deep connection to our state’s fish and wildlife. Those of us lucky enough to live here and visitors from all over the world enjoy unmatched hunting, fishing, and wildlife watching opportunities. Fish and wildlife don’t see government borders, and the state of Montana shares authority to manage wildlife with Montana’s tribal nations. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks works in partnership with tribal agencies like the Natur...
I am so sad that apparently decent, intelligent Americans like Larry Dillree can be so unwilling to accept facts. (BVD 11/13/19). Facts are not political, but often our opinions are shaped by facts so we have a responsibility as citizens to get the facts right. Before Mr. Dillree says, “ the Democrats have spent the last three and one half years doing nothing,” he should look at the record. Dozens of bills, many with bipartisan support, have been passed: criminal justice ref...
The Public Service Commission has always been a somewhat surly bunch. The PSC's devoted staff has often had to deal with varying degrees of political game-playing, deception, threats and intrigue. Sure. Politicians politic. The question is, at the end of the day, can elected officials bury their egos and ambitions long enough to put the people's business ahead of their own? Recent events would suggest that where the Montana PSC is concerned, the answer is "no." That might...
I wanted to send out a big Hey Howdy Hey of thanks to the many member of our local Lincoln Ambulance. These men and women must put in many hours of training before they are able to serve as a member. EMR’s need to put in 70 hours of training. EMT’s 150 to 200 hours, AEMT’s have even more. They are all required a certain amount of training hours every year to keep their license current. The licensing can cost around $200 but they are reimbursed when they commit to be apart...
Kudos to Jim Oly for showing his appreciation to the snow-plow drivers. Thank you! Ice and snow – take it slow and please give the plows room to work safely for everyone. Ron McDunn Pete Dempster...
The holiday season is upon us. Montana families across our state are giving thanks and enjoying quality time with their families and loved ones. As we gather around the dining table this year to express our gratitude, let us not forget the extraordinary privilege we have as free Americans. I want to give thanks to our Montana service members currently deployed, unable to be home for the holidays this year. Thank you for protecting our nation. I also want to express my...
Two and a half years ago, Attorney General Tim Fox and I stood on the steps of the state capitol with other lawmakers announcing a major long-term initiative to address the impacts of drugs (Aid Montana). Since then, our successes outnumber our defeats, and we are ready for the next phase to combat the addiction crisis in Big Sky Country. On the success front, we can point to several victories in the areas of prevention, treatment, and enforcement. We led the charge on passing...
If you are a customer of NorthWestern Energy (NorthWestern) then you should be interested in its latest Resource Procurement Plan. Publicly owned utilities like NorthWestern are required to periodically prepare these Plans that lay out how the utility will meet energy demands over the next twenty years. Given the rapid changes that are happening in energy markets, this is a challenging task and a moving target subject to revisions over time. The process includes the utility...
U.S. Senator Steve Daines (R) and Fred Wacker, president of the Montana Stockgrowers Assoc. As United States Senator from Montana, and as a rancher from Miles City serving as the president of the Montana Stockgrowers Association, we took a major step forward last week for Montana ag. Together, we worked to accomplish a historic trade deal between the U.S. and Japan - one that will benefit Montana's farmers and ranchers for generations to come. Farming and ranching is tough...
To the Editor, to Pepe! (Bob LeDeau) All of our prayers are with you. I am writing today about smoking and vaping! Been a smoker since I was 13 and I’m 65 now! Tried every method possible to quit with no success, longest I’ve ever made it was three months! Three years ago, a friend brought me an E-cigarette and charger and said try this! I tried it for about 36 hours and my LUNGS really reacted. My lungs got a heavy gurgling sounds, the sound you get when you have PNEUMONIA! So, I stopped immediately! Went back to my cig...
As a state senator from a small Montana border town, I understand the need for strong economies both north and south of the international border. Approval of the new trilateral trade agreement between the United States, Canada and Mexico will help stabilize our lives. Total value of trade across the border amounted to $673 Billion in 2017. Canada is the largest export market for the U.S. USMCA sets higher standards for Canada and Mexico, and it benefits US growers and consumer...
October 5 was an amazing success. We were all very happy with the show of support from Lincoln, Great Falls, Helena and Missoula. The ride was a little damp and chilly but the groups said it was a great day and they had a lot of fun! The Fun Run paid high hand of $501 was won by Bill Gowen and he very generously donated half of his winning back to the DAV. Special thanks to Bill Gowen. The Low hand of $334.00 was won by one of our very special residents, Bob Bushnell. Bob is one of our guys who was given an award in Helena...
Hello Lincoln, About four months ago, the first PET Scan showed I had cancer in my left lung. I wouldn’t believe it until Autumn Howell, my pulmonary lady at Community in Missoula showed me a picture of it. She explained this upcoming operation to me way back then. Took the time to explain the details of the operation in terms I could understand. It’s called rib refraction. I really fell in love with her. As we were leaving, I told her congratulations. She said on what. I thought she was pregnant. She was just a little bit...
Hello, I am Jennifer Wiederhold and I am an emergency room nurse. I have lived in Lincoln nearly all my life and am pleased to be able to offer training sessions for suicide prevention in my hometown and neighboring areas. I have been a QPR Certified Gatekeeper Instructor for over three years, but with full time work, family and grad school I have had a difficult time promoting the program. So when Lewis and Clark Public Health and the County Suicide Prevention Coalition offer...
As parents send their children into the new school year and teachers welcome them into the classroom, safety is on everyone's mind. When it comes to student safety, the Office of Public Instruction and Montana schools take a comprehensive approach. Student safety is not just school security, it is also promoting mental health, multi-tiered systems of student support, and building infrastructure. Student safety is a top priority at the OPI. That is why we have taken the lead...
Price controls are a primary hallmark of a socialist economy. When the government takes over in any market, bad things happen. Whether it is bread lines in the former USSR or the dire lack of medicines in today's Venezuela, price controls lead quickly to shortages, rationing, and worse. These are not consequences we want for our health care. Can you imagine telling a breast cancer patient there are no oncology appointments available until next year? Or what about a young...
In Montana, community health centers such as PureView Health Center specialize in whole-person care. Beginning with well-child visits, CHCs provide healthcare across the lifespan for many Montanans. Our model of healthcare begins with access. In addition to an open-door policy, CHCs are innovators: 100 percent of Montana CHCs use an electronic health record and 57 percent use telehealth, allowing us to reach as many patients as possible – 110,241 Montanans in 2018. Access t...
As United States Senators representing the Big Sky state and Hawkeye country, older Montanans and Iowans keep a watchful eye on spending. Like millions of Americans across the country, they are mindful that they need to stretch their savings in order to pay the bills and uphold their quality of life in retirement. Whenever we hear from folks in Iowa or Montana, we hear widespread concern about the rising costs of prescription drugs. It’s particularly upsetting to find out some patients ration or skip doses of daily m...
Dear Editor: I have been trapping Coyotes off and on for more than 50 years. I can put out a nummy bait. A coyote wit think about it a long time and may pass on a free meal. However, that little critter with the stripes down his back will never pass up a free meal. Now, which one is Democrat? Mike Dey Missoula...
Meatless Mondays for your school lunch program? Meat grown in a petri dish from a foreign lab? These are questions we need to ask Governor Bullock. By his executive order, Montana is now obligated to advance the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement. In order to meet the Paris objectives everything having a carbon footprint is on the table, including our beef industry. At present, U.S. meat consumption is about 222 pounds per person per year. Nationally the goal is to reduce...
They told us if we got educated then we would see success in our lifetime. Yet, more than 44 million Americans have student debts that combine to total $1.5 TRILLION. Having to borrow money for school is stressful enough; abusive debt collection practices don't help. And now the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is seeking to increase harassment of graduates over their debts. The CFPB wants to allow debt collectors to email and text consumers without consent, while also...
"For the times they are a-changin'" sang Bob Dylan. And the digital age has changed the way information is eaten, swallowed, and digested. We can't stop progress, but we must maintain the saliency of our local newspapers. Why? Local newspapers serve significant roles in local societies. "When local newspapers shut their doors, communities lose out. People and their stories can't find coverage. Politicos take liberties when it's nobody's job to hold them accountable. What the...
We must keep working to lower prescription drugs prices in Montana. After conducting a nearly two-year investigation into drug costs, including taking several major players to court in order to access information, my team and I brought forward a bill that we projected would save Montanans about $8 million on medications in the first year alone. Our approach to reforming one part of the massive pharmaceutical system has now been copied by the U.S. Senate and states like Maine,...
Like many areas across rural America, whether it is a student struggling to gain access to online educational resources or a business struggling to make their products or services available online, Montana faces the very real problem of reliable broadband coverage. It's unacceptable. According to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), more than 19 million rural Americans lack a broadband connection, including 40 percent of rural Montanans. While there is sufficient evidence that number overstates broadband...
There are a lot of reasons why Congress finds itself hamstrung in Washington and discounted by the people it serves at home. These include long-term trends over which it has little control: the political polarization of the country; the oceans of money that get dumped into the political process; the push by successive presidents to amass as much executive power as possible. But in the end, the demons Congress has to fight are its own. If it is to return to relevance, effective...
