I have been delightfully ill the last few days. Runny nose, coughing and an aching body, but no fever, diarrhea or upset stomach. Some misery, to be sure, but nothing too intense. (more…) Continue Reading →
Politics turns scatological
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Recent Posts
Doubts rise about value of college
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Spring classes cranked up this week at Rocky Mountain College, and I wonder why. (more…) Continue Reading →
Filed under: Opinion, MSU Billings, Rocky Mountain College, University of Montana
Legislators’ arithmetic doesn’t compute
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When state Rep. Peggy Webb, R-Billings, claimed that state spending is increasing more than twice as fast as revenues, I thought she might be making up numbers. She wasn’t, but even though the numbers are accurate, they don’t quite add up. (more…) Continue Reading →
Filed under: Opinion, Montana Legislative Fiscal Division, Montana Legislature, Peggy Webb
Book Review: Old Butte finds new life
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Copper Sky, by Milana Marsenich, Open Books, 2017. 336 pages, $16.95. Milana Marsenich gets a lot of things right in “Copper Sky,” her debut novel about Butte in the days of the Copper Kings. (more…) Continue Reading →
Filed under: Culture, Montana, Dashiell Hammett, Mary MacLane, Milana Marsenich, Myron Brinig, Speculator Mine
Gazette prices take another big hike
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When legendary Chicago newspaperman Mike Royko encountered a reader who didn’t like his latest column, he would reach into his pocket for a quarter. “Here’s your money back,” Royko would say. (more…) Continue Reading →
Filed under: Opinion, Atlantic, Billings Gazette
Tester, Zinke and the end of history
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Facts no longer matter in politics. If facts are history, then history no longer matters either, judging from recent incidents involving one current and one former Montana member of Congress. (more…) Continue Reading →
Filed under: Opinion, Donald Trump, Jon Tester, Ryan Zinke
‘Certain Women’ worth a look
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For an unusual Montana film-viewing experience, you might take in “Certain Women,” a 2016 film written and directed by Kelly Reichardt. We watched it Saturday night on cable and found it both oddly inert and strangely mesmerizing. Not only was the movie filmed in Montana, it is filled with Montana connections. Reichardt based it on three short stories by Maile Meloy, who grew up in Helena. Its stars include Michelle Williams, who grew up in Kalispell, and Lily Gladstone, who was born on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation and has a degree from the University of Montana. Continue Reading →
Filed under: Last Best Blog, Certain Women, Lily Gladstone, Maile Meloy, Michelle Williams
Rosendale muffs easy radio play
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“Sharia Steve,” the caller said, and I hoped for an epiphany. Matt Rosendale, who hopes to abandon his job as state auditor to become a U.S. senator next year, was being interviewed last week on the “Voices of Montana” radio show. The caller was slandering Gov. Steve Bullock, and I was hoping Rosendale might have a John McCain moment and set the caller straight. (more…) Continue Reading →
Filed under: Opinion, 'Voices of Montana', Donald Trump, Matt Rosendale, Sharia law, Steve Bullock
Nothing neutral about internet fight
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My daughter and son-in-law got into an argument over Thanksgiving weekend about a proposal to drop net neutrality requirements. (more…) Continue Reading →
Filed under: Opinion, Jon Tester, net neutrality, Steve Daines
Tax reform implications expand
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An alert reader pointed out that last week’s column on the tax reform bills now before Congress omitted a key detail. (more…) Continue Reading →