It seems U.S. Senator Max Baucus and Health and Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius did not get the wonderful reception they were hoping for in Libby, Montana, at their healthcare meeting.
From what I read and heard from sources, there were no parades, no keys to the city presented, or chants of “four more years.” Continue reading
I never really cared too much about school. It was just a place to play sports, meet friends, and find out the latest gossip or where the next party was being held. I never thought that school was that important. My parents did not push me to excel in school as long as I passed my classes. I worked hard during the fall when I played football to keep my grades up to be able to play – because that was the most important part of school to me. The rest of the year, I goofed off.
Not until years after I graduated did I learn the importance of an education. So I went to college at a later age, graduated, and have been able to make a very decent living in all the jobs that I have held since graduating from college. I was the first person in my family to graduate from college.
I completely respect teachers for the sometimes thankless job they do in educating our children and jumping through all the federal, state and local hoops to get the job done. It’s never a part-time job for them or an 8-5 job either, nor one that pays very well.
So education is important to me – but I think there are better ways to educate our children. Today, we’ll look at the school year. Continue reading
Early this morning, I posted a commentary about the visits to Montana by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, and Secretary of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
In that commentary, I wrote: “I don’t see a time listed for any town hall meetings with Napolitano.”
Well, what do you know; they scheduled one and released details this afternoon. Senator Tester proudly sent an e-mail telling readers about it.
I guess The Western Word does have some clout. Continue reading
Local governments are always looking for ways to “stick it to the little guy or gal” it seems.
If you look at your utility or tax bills, you’ll see all sorts of taxes and fees just to live where you live. By the way, politicians like to use the term “fees” as this keeps them from saying the “tax” word and angering voters.
It was not really a surprise when I recently read that the City of Philadelphia is charging bloggers $300 per year for a “business privilege license” because they believe blogging is a business.
They consider blogging a business because some bloggers receive a little money for advertisements that run on their blogs. The bloggers reported this as income on their taxes and “BAM” here comes the local government bloodsuckers to get their share. Continue reading
Former Vermont Governor and Democratic National Committee head, Howard Dean, recently said that President Obama’s people are out of touch with average Americans and they need to “spend some time outside Washington.”
Voila! This week Montana gets a couple of Cabinet Secretaries visiting: Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano have stops planned in Big Sky County (to get in touch with average Americans, I guess).
Tagging along with the two secretaries will be Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester.
Sebelius travels to Missoula on Monday, August 24, for a meeting around 12:45 and then on to Libby for a meeting at 4:00.
Napolitano travels to Montana Tuesday, August 24, and gives a speech in Chicago on August 26. A press release from DHS told us she is going to Great Falls, Havre, and Sunburst.
There was no word if the Secretaries are taking time out of their busy schedules to attend any fundraisers – for Senator Max Baucus or, since he is already campaigning, Senator Jon Tester. We’ll keep an eye out for an invitation. Continue reading
Today is Friday, so it is time to take a quick look at some of the things that “Caught My Eye” during the week that I did not have time to comment about.
Today I offer my commentary about News Corp., Dr. Laura, silly stimulus comments, a new BFF, suckered reporting, and Roger Clemens. Enjoy! Continue reading
I was saddened to read that my favorite sports columnist, Jason Whitlock, was leaving the Kansas City Star to pursue other interests.
It was a great 16 year run for Whitlock at the Star. You can now catch his columns on Fox Sports and he’s on Twitter.
Called a jerk by some and admired by others I found Whitlock to be a refreshing voice for the sports fans. For the KC Star, people read his columns and commented, and called him names – but they read his columns! Living here in the wilds of Montana and being a Kansas City Chiefs and Big 12 fan, it was always worthwhile to get Whitlock’s take on what was happening with my favorite teams, not to mention his insight about everyone from the front office on down to the third-string quarterback. Continue reading
I’ve said in the past that there are some in Washington, D.C., who want to place a fence around the whole state of Montana, put a padlock on the gate, and control entry in the name of wilderness or to make the whole state a National Monument.
The newest attempt, this time from the Obama Administration, is called “Treasured Landscapes” and Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester are caught in the middle of this debacle where documents have been withheld from the public and the Administration is poised to use the Antiquities Act to get their land.
I wrote about this back in July. You can read that commentary HERE.
Thankfully Congressman Denny Rehberg has been on top of this fly-by-night attempt by the Obama Administration. He will host a panel discussion at the Lewistown Civic Center on Friday (August 20) at 3:00 p.m.
I doubt Senators Baucus and Tester will show up in Lewistown to take notes. Continue reading
Today I finish off my look at and predictions for the upcoming NFL season with a look at the NFC South. The NFC South is home to the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. You can check out all my predictions for the upcoming NFL season by going to “Categories” on the right side of the screen and selecting “Football.”
New Orleans Saints:
The Saints won it all last year and took this division with a 13-3 record – and almost everyone is back this year. Will the party from the 2009 season leave them with a hangover? We’ll see right from the start as they host the Vikings in week one. The Saints will win the NFC South again, but the ride to the second consecutive Super Bowl will be derailed in the playoffs because they have a weak defense (11-5). Continue reading
Let me see, my military medals include the Congressional Medal of Honor, the Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts.
I’m lying about earning those military medals to make a point, but a Federal Appeals Court in California says that is just fine. They ruled 2-1 today that it is OK to lie about one’s military medals because it does not harm anyone and it’s a violation of free speech not to be able to lie about the medals.
That’s a load of crap. Continue reading
