Last Best News (https://montana-mint.com/lastbestnews/page/70/)
I was planning to ride off into the sunset today, but if I may appropriate an observation by Benjamin Franklin, it looks as though I might be heading in the direction of the rising sun.
In the week since I announced that Last Best News would cease publication today, I have heard so many expressions of interest in reviving it in some shape or form, with or without my continued involvement, that it appears likely that this independent online newspaper will live on.
I think the idea for this series of photos was born more than a year ago, when I laid eyes on the sign that leads off the gallery.
I was walking my dog down by the sugar plant on State Avenue when I saw the old gray shed and the barely legible sign warning about the possible withholding of services. It was so odd that I went back later with my camera. Continue Reading →
Jonah is a bilingual desk clerk working an emotionally wearisome hotel job in Montana. Buster is a puzzling mountain man who breaks into people’s vacation homes for food and shelter and occasionally defecates in their kitchen pots.
How the two men are connected and the relationship between them is the crux of “Buster’s Mal Heart,” a well-crafted mystery-thriller in which the title character is haunted by visions of a past life while being pursued by the authorities. The movie was shot in and around Kalispell in October and November 2015. Continue Reading →
In 2002, Mike Taylor was an up-and-coming Republican politician challenging Max Baucus for a Senate seat in Congress. Taylor’s wire-rimmed glasses and mustache called attention to his resemblance to Teddy Roosevelt, the Bullmoose war hero, explorer, rancher, president and all-around he-man. Continue Reading →
When I was a kid growing up, my stepfather often warned that I not let my “canary mouth override my alligator ass.” In other words, sometimes it’s a good idea to keep your opinions quiet and avoid biting off more than you can chew.
I rarely listened, but it might have been good advice for the Missoulian, which is picking up the pieces today from its endorsement of congressional candidate Greg Gianforte on Sunday. The fallout over that endorsement caused a rapid backlash on social media and the cancellation of numerous subscriptions. Continue Reading →
Billings novelist Craig Lancaster is just out with his latest book, “Julep Street,” about Carson McCullough, a lifelong journalist whose world is shattered when the small daily newspaper he works for is suddenly and unceremoniously closed down.
In a hilariously unsuccessful attempt to deal with his new reality, Carson embarks on a road trip in a Mustang convertible, freshly purchased with his severance check. Accompanied by his best friend, Hector, an old yellow Lab with a diminished appetite for adventure, Carson goes off to chase job prospects, visiting old friends and one old flame. Continue Reading →
You can tell a lot about what a nation values by looking at how it taxes different groups of people; are the rich favored over the middle class, for instance, or vice versa?
You can also tell a lot about what group of people a candidate for office will represent by looking at his or her past stands on issues. Looking at U.S. House candidate Greg Gianforte’s past actions on Montana tax legislation, it appears he is most concerned with representing a small, select group of taxpayers, including himself. Continue Reading →
The trustees of the Beartooth Electric Cooperative recently informed members that they would see an average reduction of 5 percent in their electric bills starting July 1.
That’s notable in itself, but it follows three other rate reductions totaling 20 percent over the past two years. The idea that energy consumers anywhere would see a total rate reduction of 25 percent in a little more than two years seems incredible. Continue Reading →
Inspired by Orhan Pamuk, who wrote a four-page, one-paragraph tribute to his native city of Istanbul, I thought it might be interesting to write something similar about Billings, though not quite so long. Continue Reading →
Once the runners, walkers and strollers started moving, Saturday’s chilly breeze became an afterthought for participants in the 36th annual Montana Women’s Run.
