It’s Friday and that means it is time for “Caught My Eye!” Here are today’s topics: 

• TWW Anniversary
• Drunkest County
• City Snow Plowing
• The Helena Circus
• Trump Sentencing
• One More Thing

TWW ANNIVERSARY:

The Western Word (TWW) is 20 years old today. It all started back on January 10, 2005. This is the 5,158th column (or post). That means I averaged about 257 posts per year over those 20 years. 

I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon. With Donald Trump entering the White House and the MAGAs running Montana, I suspect I will have plenty of things to write about for the next few years.  

Thank you for reading. Thank you for subscribing (it’s free) and if you left comments, I appreciate them even if I don’t always agree. By the way, around 11,500 comments have been posted in these 20 years. 

Onward and upward! 

DRUNKEST COUNTY:

According to a report from MTN News, Gallatin County (MT) is the drunkest county in the nation, according to a recent study by the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

Congratulations! Go Cats Go!  

According to a recent CDC study, 26.8% of people who live in Gallatin County drink excessively, making it the drunkest county in the U.S. Missoula County was not far behind, coming at 25.4%. 

Check out the report HERE. 

It’s great to party and have fun, but please don’t drink and drive.

CITY SNOW PLOWING: 

Just about every year the City of Great Falls posts “City Snow Plowing” information, which basically says. “We’re not plowing your street because we have limited resources.” 

The city does expect businesses and homeowners to have their sidewalks cleared within 24 hours for homeowners and by 11:00 a.m. for businesses. Ironic, isn’t it? 

I live on a street that is never plowed and yesterday it was like an ice rink. Stopping was not easy and I don’t think the streets were sanded, either.  I think streets that are not plowed and/or sanded cause more accidents and this causes more work for our first responders.

THE HELENA CIRCUS:

I knew it was going to happen, I just did not think the MAGA Republicans in control of the Montana Legislature were going to implode this soon. 

The Daily Montanan put it this way:

Senate President Matt Regier has been unable to keep his majority party in line the first week of the 69th Montana Legislature as nine Republicans have sided with Democrats on the chamber’s first vote.

I hope the nine Republicans stand their ground during this session to keep this from becoming a shit-show.    

That means there’s a potential for the Democrats to control the state senate 27-23, according to the Helena Independent Record. (Source)

When you have clowns from the far right wing trying to lead, this is what you get. 

Plus, there are problems with the new computer system for the Montana Legislature. There’s supposed to be transparency, but it seems there’s not. Maybe the MAGAs don’t want us to see the crazy bills they are introducing.

It seems like it might be a long 90 days.

TRUMP SENTENCING:

Since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that President-elect Donald Trump’s sentencing could continue, it looks like today will be the day. 

Politico reported that the high court’s snubbing of Trump, by a 5-4 vote, clears the way for a hearing Friday to finalize his conviction on 34 felony charges of falsifying business records to cover up a payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.

So if all goes as planned, Trump will be the first President to be a felon. I think we’re scraping the bottom of the barrel in this country if we can’t find someone better to run the country than an over-the-hill felon.

ONE MORE THING:

Greenland just announced that it’s going to build a wall and make Trump pay for it! 

## HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND ##