It’s been hotter than ____!  (You can fill in the blank)  Welcome, once again, to another edition of Caught My Eye – the weekly column where I take a look at some of the stories that I did not have time to write about during the week – and sometimes I add just a little sarcasm.

Caught My Eye is brought to you by a grant from Exxon Mobile Corporation (just kidding)…I actually use an allowance from my wonderful wife to produce this column…

This week I take a look at unemployment, Glacier Park, cheaters, ABC News, Exploring, Casey Anthony, Exxon Mobile, the Governor and AG races, my political inbox, and much more!

So grab a cup of your favorite beverage and enjoy the read…

Unemployment:

Dear Fellow Unemployed Citizens:  The job market is not getting any better.  The June 2011 unemployment rate is 9.2%.  It went up from 9.1%.  The stimulus spending did not keep the rate under 8% as the Democrats promised. Each week (for the past several weeks) over 400,000 new claims are filed for unemployment.

To put that in perspective, in the past three weeks more people have filed first-time claims for unemployment than the whole population of Montana…

Glacier Park:

If you have not visited Glacier National Park, you should. The Going-to-the-Sun road is slated to finally open on Wednesday (snow has been cleared from the road).  According to the Missoulian, “Glacier National Park officials announced Thursday that all 50 miles of the Going-to-the-Sun Road will open to the public Wednesday, July 13, marking the second-latest opening date in the scenic drive’s 78-year history, and the latest it’s ever opened due to weather.”

The road opening is so important, that officials in Florida changed the date Casey Anthony would be released from prison (it is now July 17) so she would not take any of the media attention…

Watch Out, Cheaters:

It’s OK in New Jersey to track your cheating spouse by GPS a court says.  Read the whole story HERE.

Next up we may see personal missiles that spouses can launch using GPS coordinates to terminate cheaters…

More Intelligent?

Face it faithful readers the people in the news media are just a little more intelligent than you and me.  Not really, but over at ABC they even put the definition of words in the graphics…for those having problems understanding the conversation.  See the story HERE.

Bad Timing or…

Will Deschamps, who happens to be the Chairman of the Montana GOP, wrote this July 6 letter about Exxon “megaloads” going through Missoula recommending “that Exxon not spend one red cent in Missoula County.” The Exxon/Mobile oil spill in Yellowstone County happened the evening of July 1 or early in the morning of July 2.  Now Deschamps has the Montana Democrats going after him for “supporting” Exxon.

It’s all politics…

Already Gone:

There’s no need to “fear the beard” here in Montana as the Missoulian reports that “State Sen. Dave Wanzenried, D-Missoula, said Thursday he is ending his campaign for governor in 2012 because his fundraising efforts fell far short of his goal.”

That is too bad…more and more it looks like Steve Bullock is the “anointed one” for the Montana Democrats in the Governor’s race…

Just Starting:

The Helena Independent Record reports that “Pam Bucy of Helena on Thursday became the second Democrat to jump into the 2012 attorney general’s race, although Democratic incumbent Steve Bullock won’t reveal his political plans until after Labor Day.”

Former Sen. Jesse Laslovich announced last week he was running as a Democrat for attorney general.

Since it’s all one big Democratic family in Helena, maybe Bullock, Bucy, and Laslovich can decide what they are going to do over Sunday dinner?

Just a Spin around Montana:

The Great Falls Tribune reported “Col. Pete Hronek, commander of Montana Air National Guard’s 120th Fighter Wing, had issued a longstanding invitation to Col. Tony Cotton, commander of Malmstrom Air Force Base’s 341st Missile Wing, to take a flight in an F-15 fighter jet, and the two friends finally were able to pull it off before Cotton’s departure for a new assignment in Florida.”

People were upset that Vice President Joe Biden used Air Force Two to attend Senator Max Baucus’ wedding in Helena last weekend…I did not hear if Col. Hronek will be allowed to ride a missile as a gift from the 341st Missile Wing like actor Slim Pickens did in the movie Dr. Strangelove…

Last Shuttle Launch:

Although it may be delayed because of rain in the forecast, the next space shuttle launch (scheduled for today) will be the last.  As Americans we need to explore – to look over the next hill – around the next corner – or see what is over the horizon.  We need to explore space, too.  Exploring makes us better.  Let’s hope we continue to explore space and we get to see, once again, the look in our children’s eyes when the shuttle takes off…

VA Secretary in Montana:

The U.S. Secretary for Veterans Affairs, Eric Shinseki, is in Montana.  It’s always good to see the VA Secretary visit Montana (they do often).  It’s also a good tool for Sen. Jon Tester to use to get re-elected.  Veterans vote and whichever candidate can sway the veterans vote has a greater chance of winning.

Casey Anthony:

I did not write a column about her trial.  Our justice system worked.  It was nice to see so many people (many of them lawyers) be so wrong.   Let’s pray for the safety of the jurors, the attorneys involved in the trial, and for Ms. Anthony and her family and hope that nobody does anything stupid.

By the way, our Creator has final judgment…

The Political Inbox:

Almost every week I take a look at some the political e-mails I received.  This week was a little slow with the holiday, but here are three that were worth mentioning:

– Reince Priebus, Republican National Committee Chairman sent me an e-mail with the subject, “Watch this ad” saying “Only with your help can Republicans put an end to the Obama Democrats’ reckless fiscal chase, before they drive American freedom and prosperity off a cliff.”

You can watch the ad HERE.

I still think Priebus looks like Don Knotts…

-The Montana Democrats sent me an e-mail with the subject “Deschamps Comments Reveal a Deeper Problem in the Montana Republican Party” in which they talk about his letter in the Missoulian about Exxon and somehow tie in Denny Rehberg, the legislature, and old dogs and children to the problems of this country.

Just kidding about the old dogs and children part…

-The Rick Hill for Governor campaign was all excited this week and they sent me an e-mail with the subject, “It just keeps getting better” where they talk about raising “nearly $300,000 from over 1,000 contributors, we’ve come out on top of not just one, but two polls released this month gauging Montana’s Governor candidates.”

Momma said there would be days like these…

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Important Message:

Be careful out there having fun in the sun!  Don’t forget to stretch!