Opinions

We can act now to fight wildfires

The writing is on the wall for the 2021 fire season. The West, despite a few days of intense winter, is far drier than it was leading up to last year’s record-breaking fires.

First Amendment tablet finds new home in Philadelphia

The First Amendment tablet that overlooked America’s Main Street in Washington, D.C., for the past 13 years is headed to a new home in Philadelphia, the birthplace of our democracy.

How we can stop APR from abusing Montana’s tax code

In central Montana, the American Prairie Reserve has amassed 420,000 acres of prime ranch land. This is a fraction of their ultimate objective: to control 3.2 million acres.

Rule 22 meets catch-22

Recently, U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wisconsin, used his power to forego the traditional abbreviated process of introducing a bill in the Senate and substitute the long version; in this case to introduce President Joe Biden’s COVID relief bill.

An Idaho congressman aims to dump dams

Rep. Mike Simpson is a conservative Republican from Idaho whose concept of wildness in the 1990s was going into the rough at a golf course.

Montana’s elk management needs an overhaul

Elk management in Montana is broken. FWP’s estimated elk numbers exceed sustainable population objectives in three-quarters of hunting districts and have for years. It’s not uncommon for hunting districts to have five times the number of elk that they should.

Like it or not, we learned a few things

I have to admit, I almost feel sorry for old 2020. It's been catching a lot of hate these days, and not without cause. Of course, the year we call 2020 — with the obligatory eye-roll — isn't an actual force unto itself, just a measure of time, one of the handy concepts we use to create a sense of order in the universe.

Senators playing a dangerous game with Democracy

Whatever grudging respect I had for U.S. Senator Steve Daines has been obliterated by his stunt of joining 11 other Republican Senators to question the validity of the 2020 Presidential election.

Government by a few, elite, wealthy individuals is nothing but an oligarchy

A change was ushered into Montana on January 4, 2021. For the next four years, we Montanans will be ruled by an oligarchy of leaders, much like in Russia. These multi-millionaires include three carpetbaggers, one native Californian who was raised here and a homegrown one that will determine our future until 2025.

My heroes have always been rodeo clowns

When historians see that their nation is in big trouble, facing the proliferation of protests that raise bedrock questions about American race relations, and locked in disputes over the proper pacing of “re-opening” after the regime of social distancing, it is time for people in my line of work to follow the example set by rodeo clowns and head straight into the epicenter of trouble.