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Independently owned since 1905
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When does an Executive Order usurp the constitutional powers of Congress? Certainly when it directs distribution of funds for a purpose that has not been approved by Congress. Recently the House passed a measure that would revoke President Trump's Executive Order appropriating money to build a wall on the Mexican border. The United States Constitution gives Congress, and only Congress, the power to appropriate and spend American dollars; not the Judiciary, not the Executive. What President...
If you’ve watched the news recently, you’ve probably heard of the ridiculous petition circulating online that has a creative solution to the U.S. national debt. The petition at Change.org suggests the U.S. sell Montana to Canada for $1 trillion. As of Tuesday, the petition, created by Ian Hammond, had nearly 17,000 signatures. The goal is 25,000. “We have too much debt and Montana is useless. Just tell them it has beavers or something,” Hammond wrote. Many Montanans commenting at Change.org supported the petition. The state Legislature is gett...
When did we as a nation lose our sense of humor? It seems that we hear every day that someone has been offended by words, actions or images and this information somehow makes the news. Years ago we had movies like Blazing Saddles and television shows like All In The Family that allowed (and even encouraged) us all to laugh at ourselves and at/with one another. I think the loss of that sort of humor is tragic. An example; I’ve been working a job out of town with some friends. The other day one o...
Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to attend the MHSA all-class state wrestling tournament in Billings. I had not been there since high school, when I was a wrestling manager for Thompson Falls. Decades later, I have more of an appreciation for the dedication and focus we see in wrestlers. The competition was tough. Some kids lost out in two matches. With numbers down in many sports, including wrestling, athletes don't have the same competition at tournaments and in practice as they did decades ago, when schools had multiple wrestlers in...
I’ve mentioned in prior columns my strongly held belief that we should all do the work of finding the truth of a matter before forming an opinion. It’s an unfortunate fact that there is a great deal of false and/or misleading information printed and broadcast by major media outlets. There are examples of this every day, but I’ll use a recent high-profile event to illustrate my point followed by one from my own experience. On January 19, 2019, students from Covington Catholic High School in Pa...
Not quite as smart as I might look, I, John Hamilton, The Ledger’s sports guy, have decided to take a shot at editorial writing and offer my opinion on the national holiday vacation day idea, referred to as Democracy Day. Usually limited to the play pages, I would like to offer a few other ideas about this proposed election day holiday that I hope will contribute to a discussion, here on the opinion page. Let’s start with the rationale for enacting such a proposal. If it came to pass, what other holiday would be more important? We could hav...
The Republican controlled Montana Legislature is changing its rules in order to forbid the posting of “legal reviews” on the legislature’s website. This is good news for Representative Greg DeVries, (R-Jefferson City) who has introduced a bill to abolish Montana’s compulsory education requirement. (Where was this guy when I was in grammar school?) Legal reviews were notes attached to bills that pointed out that there might be a good chance that a bill might, say, violate the Montana Constit...
Medicaid Expansion in Montana has not only helped reduce the number of people who are uninsured, but a recent study also touted the economic impacts the program has on our state. Since the 2015 Legislature passed the HELP Act, the Bureau of Business and Economic Research at the University of Montana found that expansion has generated more than $500 million a year in health care spending in Montana. The study found other impacts of expansion, including reducing property and violet crime, and improving financial health by reducing outstanding...
I first started writing this column after a discussion with The Ledger’s owner/editor. She felt that my opinions, based on my personal experiences, might make for some interesting reading. I want to make it clear to the readers that this is an opinion column reflecting my spin on different issues. I’m not trying to change anyone’s mind here. Just offering a perspective based on my background and, hopefully, encouraging people to think critically rather than falling into lock step with the media. This has been a new experience for me and I’m def...
The Local Advisory Council, Western Montana Mental Health Center, Flathead Valley Chemical Dependency Clinic, the Tobacco Prevention Specialist for the county and the local schools all have expressed concern about vaping. There have been public meetings and presentations at schools about the dangers of vaping and e-cigarettes. It happens as school, at sporting events and in homes. Sometimes it’s easy to look the other way and not pay attention or think “my kid would never do that.” We’ve encountered many community members who don’t know what...
When you were little, did you ever use a cuss word in front of your mother and get called on it, maybe even smacked? Maybe you defended yourself by saying, “But Dad says it.” Maybe your mother told you that just because Dad uses it doesn’t mean you can. But that’s exactly what it does mean; if a person you respect cusses or talks about people in a derogatory way, that means it’s alright for you to talk that way, too. Unfortunately, we’re seeing a lot more use of derogatory language in America because those in the most respected government...
"Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the things you can think up if you only try." If only Dr. Seuss were a member of Congress. We are in the third week of a government shutdown, with threats that it could go on even longer. It seems that neither side is going to budge, and we're beginning to wonder if a solution will be found. Growing up, you are constantly reminded to play nice, be kind and treat everyone with respect. You learn to share your toys, say please and thank you, and most importantly, that you don't always...
“We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal….” My very being swells with pride when I read those words by Jefferson in our Declaration of Independence, and I think that I am no different in that regard from any other American. The marvelous thing to me is that Americans have taken the concept of equality far beyond what it meant in 1776, and that our country and the world are the better for our actions. In 1776 the “all men” who were created equal did not apply to...
This week we have several examples of making connections in the newspaper. On the front page, you read about siblings who found each other through AncestryDNA after 50 years. One in Plains and one in Australia. Finding each other wouldn't have been possible even 10 years ago. We can't imagine what those two individuals must have felt when they found out about each other. And without vital phone and Internet services, that connection wouldn't have been possible. On page 6, we tell of a different kind of connection. The physical connection you...
Before this past weekend, I had a totally different topic in mind for this bi-weekly column. In my last column I wrote about what I believed to be a generation of whimps. After last weekend, I find myself in a position where I have to walk that back a little bit. Last weekend I went to a birthday celebration for a friend of mine who had just turned 21. Although it doesn’t matter for purposes of this discussion, this young man became a friend as an extension of my friendship with his parents. I...
It seems the older we get, the faster the years fly by. And 2018 was no exception. Over the weekend, we were thinking about the past year. Each year, we comment on how time seems to fly. And each year, we get to the end of December and think "where did the time go"? There are some projects around the house we didn't quite get to, and we didn't get to escape on a vacation to somewhere warm. We wish we had spent a little more time on the Clark Fork River over the summer, and we wish summer would last a few months longer. It's easy to think about...
Sunday evening as the hustle of the weekend was winding down, we took a drive through Thompson Falls to see everyone's holiday lights. Houses had everything from a sprinkling of lights to inflatable santas and snowmen. The former Masonic Lodge is now a private residence. We love the large angels and icicle lights that shine on these winter nights. Traveling west of Thompson Falls, it's always delightful to see the incredible light displays of the Cox and Shear families and their children. We look forward to seeing what they will add each year....
I read a few different things this last couple weeks that have really got me bewildered. First, I read that the cartoon movie about Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer had been banned in certain areas because it depicted bullying. Then I read that the song “Baby It’s Cold Outside” was banned because the Me Too movement said it portrayed an improper sexual situation. And finally, the classic book To Kill A Mockingbird was being banned because of the language used in the story. This is an opini...
Let's face it, the holidays are full of stress. It's fun to get together with family and buy presents and see the excitement of Santa and holiday cheer. But the stress that comes along with it sometimes makes escaping somewhere warm a really attractive option. One way to help ease a little of the stress for you and for others, and to make a difference for your community, is to donate to one of our dozens of deserving organizations who lend a helping hand every day. This week, we have a list of organizations, agencies and volunteer groups who...
If you are involved at all in running a government, the first thing you need to learn is the Law of Unintended Consequences. That means that whatever changes are made in one area will suddenly be found to wreak havoc in an area you thought was only remotely connected to the thing that you changed. No matter what you jiggle, no matter how little you jiggle it, it will mess something up somewhere else. If money is involved — especially if money is involved — the process generates what I like to...
Strolling through the aisles at the local holiday bazaars the last couple of weekends, we've been amazed at the local talent. You recognize people from the grocery store or the post office, but it's awesome to see them in another venue, showing off their creative talents. From knitted and crocheted items to baked goods and woodworking, the unique creations were abundant. It sure helped as we were doing some Christmas shopping, and it made us feel great to be able to support local businesses and vendors. Often, while visiting the bazaars, it's...
A recent column generated a conversation with a few friends that I thought might be a good topic for discussion. In that column, I mentioned the fact that as a police officer, I patrolled the streets of South Central and Central Los Angeles “by choice.” A couple friends specifically asked why I would work those areas if I could have chosen otherwise. First, I have to explain something that people either forget, never realized, or have had their opinions tainted by the media. That is this: Most individuals who are drawn to a career in pub...
Living in Montana, you learn early on how to navigate winter weather. We might complain about the snow, the cold, and the frequent icy roads. But you buckle up, drive slower, get out and shovel, and do what you can to make it so you can go about your normal activities. Schools in Northwest Montana may have a few days each year with a delayed start or buses running slower to make sure everyone arrives safe. It's very rare, though, that local kids get a snow day. We remember a few of those precious days growing up, having the opportunity to stay...
If you want to get the attention of the powers that be, you have to do something radical to call attention to yourself. A couple of years ago working-class Americans did that by electing Donald Trump as president. It’s no surprise, anybody with eyes could have seen it coming, and maybe they did, but they didn’t do anything about it. From 2010 to 2013 the Association of Democratic State Chairs was regularly called to task by the Chair of the Wyoming Democrats for paying attention to every min...
This week, Barry McWilliams celebrates 40 years of creating cartoons for newspapers. In 1978, Barry was working at The Madisonian newspaper in southwest Montana. He sold advertising, wrote articles, took photos and ended up drawing cartoons. Eventually, other newspapers contacted the newspaper and asked if he could draw for them, too. Barry told The Ledger recently that "at that point ... I realized that my lifelong dream of becoming a cartoonist might just happen then." So he quit his job and...
