Happy Constitution Day!!

If it’s Friday, then it’s time for another edition of the highly popular “Caught My Eye.” The staff here at The Western Word has been busy looking for stories that appeared across the globe during the week that I did not have time to write about. So grab a cup of coffee and enjoy!

More Problems for the Democrats:

Several news organizations announced this week that the percentage of Americans in poverty has risen to 14.3% in 2009. This is the highest poverty rate since the 1960s. That is one in every seven Americans.

Then we find out that home foreclosures in the United States rose 3% in August and the demand for home loans fell. Terrible.

Great Falls International Airport:

I happened to be at the airport a couple of times this past week. KRTV reports they have record numbers for this summer. Nice. I happened to see a couple of members of the military coming back from deployments meeting their friends and family. It was nice to see.

The Airport should allow free parking for all military members and their dependents. All they would need to do is show their military ID when leaving. I know parking is free if you stay under 15 minutes (at least their website tells me this, but that was as of November 1, 2007).

Maybe they already allow this, but if not they should allow free parking for Montana’s military folks and their immediate families for at least an hour or two.

It’s all in the name:

I received a campaign e-mail from Congressman Denny Rehberg’s campaign manager, Evan Wilson. It was the typical campaign e-mail that I get from both Democrats and Republicans. At the end, Evan Wilson listed his full name, Evan Montana Wilson. Cool.

I wonder where he’s from.

Reminds me of the movie, Forrest Gump when Forrest said, “There was Dallas, from Phoenix; Cleveland – he was from Detroit; and Tex… well, I don’t remember where Tex come from.”

Speaking of Campaigns:

Congressional candidate Dennis McDonald used the Baucus Economic Development Summit, also known as a Baucus Campaign event, to get some material for his campaign website.

He also used images of 9/11 for a campaign commercial.

Project Vote Smart:

I have supported Project Vote Smart for years. You can access their web site by clicking on their name on the right side of this screen.

The Missoulian reported on Thursday that only two of the three congressional candidates filled out the survey: Denny Rehberg (R) and Mike Fellows (L).

Public Service Commission:

Public Service Commissioner Brad Molnar has been fined $5750 by the Commissioner of Political Practices for violating Montana ethics laws and he has to repay almost $15,000 to cover the cost of the investigation. Molnar will appeal.

Montana’s Political Practices office is a joke. A total joke. The whole process of selecting the commissioner and the length of time it takes that office to complete a review is ridiculous – and those who run for office in Montana know it, and they know they can get away with crap and not have to worry about it for months if not years.

Tough Time for a Cheerleader:

Those darn mascots. See the video HERE.

The New Arrowhead:

For those of us who could not make it to the opening of the new Arrowhead in Kansas City Monday night, they have a video! New body. Same soul. Watch it HERE.

Memo:

The NFL has issued a memo to all 32 teams about how to treat female reporters after the treatment Ines Sainz, a reporter for Mexico’s TV Azteca, received from the New York Jets.

Have no fear; Fox Sports Columnist Jason Whitlock puts it all in perspective HERE.

We Can’t Either:

Supposedly first Lady Michelle Obama told French first lady Carla Bruni that being first lady was hell and she can’t stand it. The White denies the first lady said that.

I think a lot of the citizens of this country feel the same way about the Obama Administration.

High School Football:

According to several newspapers, there are four undefeated teams left in Montana Class AA. In my opinion, the cream of the crop looks to be Helena Capital and Bozeman.

College Football:

The Montana Grizzlies travel to Eastern Washington this Saturday. Look for the Griz to have some problems with Eagles RB Taiwan Jones. This is a big test for the Griz as they played a cream puff the first week and then suffered for it against Cal Poly where they lost.

The Montana State Bobcats look better than the Griz so far this year, but they played the 96th ranked team last week in major college football and lost.

A Ninja:

Is Apple CEO Steve Jobs a Ninja? Apple says no, but the video at the end of this STORY says something different.

Twitter:

Unlike the Great Falls Tribune, I actually post comments and information on Twitter more than once a month. So follow me and help me get more followers than the Tribune!