The Blackfoot Valley's News Source Since 1980
The Blackfoot Valley's News Source Since 1980
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As Montanans, we care for each other. Across the rural-urban divide, generational divide, and Brawl of the Wild divide. Of all our constituents across Montana, the most deserving are our elderly neighbors who are on Medicaid benefits. They have served Montana well, and at this final stage in their lives seek the promise of compassionate, medically appropriate care. Most of them are out of money, have used up their care options with family members and loved ones, and cannot...
Q: How troubling to hear talking points about social justice standards defined by identity, diversity, and social action. This is causing confusion in areas of education, public service, and even in churches, saying that all people are basically good and deserve to live as they like regardless if it hurts anyone else; and that preaching against sin is robbing people of their individual rights to live free from any imposed standard. Is there an answer? - T.S. A: Many people who...
In May 1869, John Wesley Powell, a former Union Army major who had lost most of his right arm in the Battle of Shiloh, led 10 explorers in launching four heavy wooden boats loaded to the gunwales with 10 months of supplies. Three of the boats were made of oak, more suitable for cruising lakes than busting through rapids. None of the men were experienced boatmen. The one-armed captain of the crew had maps with gaps in them. Still, it was the grandest expedition since Lewis and...
When a sitting elected official resigns ahead of the expiration of his or her term, a flurry of activities is set in motion, as we experienced in mid November and into this month. The Senator from Senate District 40, comprising areas of both Lewis and Clark and Powell Counties, resigned just ahead of Thanksgiving week. News of this filtered in while attending Legislative Caucusing and Orientation at the Capitol. It was then that I was approached to ask if my name could be put...
I'm not a pro-marijuana guy. I voted against Montana's adult-use cannabis initiative (I-190) in the 2020 election. However, since Montanans approved the initiative and recreational marijuana has taken effect in our state, I've been committed to following the will of the voters and making sure our new system works safely and effectively. One of the biggest barriers to that objective is outdated federal law that causes problems for states that have legalized cannabis. In...
It’s been almost a month since I’ve written a column. I’ve had a lot come at me in these last few weeks. Some good, some bad, a lot scary, some that’s tested me and I know there is more coming with the new year. Some of the things over the last couple of weeks have made me realize there are things we need to be strong and do on our own, and then there are the things that, if we’re lucky, we can rely on the strength of others to help us through. Sometimes that strength...
Q: I hear more news commentators proclaim that the world's in a real mess with no answers on the horizon, completely dismissing that Jesus is the answer. Yet much of the world still celebrates the birth of Jesus while denying who He really is. - C.C. A: The human race continues to rush from crisis to crisis as war clouds hover. One editorial asked, ""What shall we do to be saved?" -- almost the very question the jailer at Philippi asked the Apostle Paul. Sir James Orr, one of...
The Biden administration has proposed a massive expansion of the IRS. Let's be clear about what that means for taxpayers. Biden's IRS expansion will have more-onerous filing requirements. More Americans will endure invasive audits. More Americans will face lawsuits by their own government. And all of us will spend more time and more money just to ensure we get our taxes right. This is no minor upgrade at the IRS. The Biden plan would increase the IRS budget six-fold and add...
As a fifth-generation Montanan, I didn't choose Montana - Montana chose me. Over 100 years ago, my great-great-grandmother homesteaded 23 miles east of Conrad, and that's how my family made it to the Last Best Place. And I'll be forever thankful for that. There is a lot that makes America an exceptional place to live, and the Thanksgiving tradition is one of them. It's an integral part of our uniquely American story. For the last 400 years, we have gathered with our families,...
There are jokes about it everywhere. There are memes on social media, conversations at the bars, and everywhere in-between. Wonder what I'm talking about this time? Well, it's decorating for Christmas too early and the timelines we "should" be following when it comes to this sort of thing....thing. There seem to be very strong opinions one way or the other. There are those decorators who love this time of year and can't wait for the Christmas lights, trees, and hoopla. Then,...
The Lincoln Valley Chamber of Commerce meeting that is scheduled for 5:30 p.m., Thursday Nov. 10 at the Lincoln Library will center on how to keep the business organization viable for the future. The future of the LVCC remains in doubt as the two current remaining directors - President Laurie Welty and Vice President Victor Johnson are set to leave when their terms expire at the end of this year. Former treasurer Erin Dey stepped back into the role on an interim basis, but...
Election Day is around the corner, and one of the most fundamental rights we have as American citizens is the right to vote. With so much at stake this year, I encourage you to ask yourself the following: Who will push back against the Democrats' reckless tax and spend agenda that has left Montana families choosing between gas or groceries? Who will defend our Montana way of life and protect our Second Amendment rights? Who will work to secure the southern border? And lastly,...
Do you like scary movies? You don’t have to rent a horror movie this Halloween to feel spooked—just take a look at what President Biden and the Democrats have done since they took control of the White House and Congress. Inflation is clocking in at forty-year highs. It can cost Montana families over $100 just to fill up their tank. Fentanyl from the open southern border is wreaking havoc across Montana. Good-paying energy jobs have been nixed. Our small-town communities are...
It's October, almost November, and what that means for most of the country is fall, autumn. Pretty leaves changing colors and a briskness in the air. For those of us in Lincoln, Montana, and surrounding areas, what it really means is that Old Man Winter is knocking at our door. We were all reminded of it last week when we had our first "official" snowfall of the season. I happened to be traveling for my annual North Carolina trip and teaching at the Southeastern Animal Fiber...
Americans, and Montanans in particular, are blessed to stand on the shoulders of giants. Fortunately for us, wise and brave leaders have shown us the way forward to fulfill the idea and ideals of America. While our country has fallen short of those lofty goals from time to time, those aims are true and worthy of pursuit. And America soldiers on. As a young girl I thrilled to the courage and wisdom of American leaders, long dead, whose thoughts and actions provided a road map t...
‘A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.’ The Constitutional right to keep and bear arms that is enumerated in the Second Amendment is not something that was written with the intent to be subject to exceptions. It wasn’t written to change with the times, but to stand the test of time. Our Founding Fathers knew how important this right was in their time, and how important it was to include it in the Constitution for the st...
Q: I believe that if all of our politicians could get on the same page we could reach world peace. With the scientific advances and expanded knowledge that have been made in the last 100 years, why is this so hard? It's frightening to stand by and watch our nation die. - W.A. A: Our hope is not in a political party. It's not in social improvement, for we have some of the greatest social institutions in the world, yet the world becomes more lawless. Education is not the answer...
It's election season, also known as the season of misleading information. A prime example is what appears to be Montana Democrats' main talking point on legislative races: "If the Republicans can flip just two more legislative seats, they're coming after the constitution." What the Democrats fail to mention is that the Legislature cannot change Montana's Constitution. It says right there in the constitution that any proposed amendments have to be voted on by Montana voters....
As a pediatric hospice and palliative medicine physician for many years, I can speak directly to the unfathomable harm that a ballot initiative called LR-131 would cause. Titled the Born Alive Infant Protection Act, the initiative is an extreme, unnecessary, and cruel limitation of family decision-making that you'll see on the ballot this November. Although LR-131 purports to be about protecting infants, it requires health care providers to perform invasive and painful...
As I’ve been talking and reconnecting with people these past two weeks, there seems to be a common theme among the conversations. Things are changing. Well, of course things are changing. It’s the way life works, and everything is always changing. But what I find interesting about this change that’s been coming up in conversation is that we’re bouncing back. We’re coming back to things we knew. We’re choosing differently and many are starting to come together, rather than...
This November Montanans will vote on an important referendum called "An Act Adopting The Born-Alive Infant Protection Act." This act will do just what the title states, protect babies that are born alive, even those born after a failed attempt to abort a child. A few that are opposed to this protection are trying to spin this referendum to be about terminal babies or women's health. However, the ballot language is clear; "A health care provider shall take medically appropriate...
In 2019, WWII veteran Forrest Allen passed away, bequeathing 5,677 acres in Golden Valley County to the Shodair Children's Hospital. Today, as a member of the Board of Land Commissioners, I was proud to vote in favor of purchasing this land for public use. The purchase, known as the Snowy Mountain Acquisition, is a win for all Montanans and embodies our state's spirit and generosity. Public lands near this property have been nearly inaccessible to most Montanans for years....
Q: Will a person who dies ever live again? - L.D. A: When we've been to a funeral, for a few moments we're solemn and thoughtful. Perhaps we ask, "Is this the end?" Someday we'll be taken out to the cemetery, and someone will say a few words over us. No matter how final it seems, we're prone to ask, "If a man dies, shall he live again?" The answer from the Bible is a resounding yes. The cross and the resurrection of Christ offers everyone eternal life with Him. This brings us...
Thank you HD80 voters and neighbors around the state. Your engagement with elected officials is heartening, especially when referencing our US and Montana Constitutions. We are also expanding the conversations about education, our economy, our rule of law, our tax policies, and yes, most importantly, our Montana way of life. A lot of input has come from you and from elected officials as to what to do with the excess revenues received by the State of Montana from your income...
We all have this notion that things are black and white, right or wrong, or ‘my way is better and your way can’t possibly be right.’ But, what if I told you just because your way works, doesn’t make it, or you, right or wrong? Simply put, it’s what has and does work for you. People have ways of cooking, parenting, cleaning house and even stacking wood. Everyone believes their way is right, the be-all-end-all. And it might be - for them. But not everyone’s way is the right w...
