News you can use
News you can use
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We are about to start a holiday weekend, with sunny weather in the forecast. It doesn’t seem like a time to have darts on our mind. So how about some laurels to celebrate the great things going on in our community. Laurel — To the veterans groups, the Elks Club and all the Havre residents who work to hold the annual Memorial Day ceremonies on the Hill County Courthouse lawn, we give our thanks. Take time out on Monday to attend the services at 11 a.m., which honor the very reason for which Memorial Day was founded. Honor the...
Laurel — Havre is once again coming to the aid of someone in need. Rick Neuwerth, the owner of Grateful Bread in the Atrium Mall, has been beset with health problems. He’s on the rebound, but he has lots of medical bills to pay. People have been donating to help him get a handle on the bills, so he can keep his store open. Best of luck, Rick. Dart — The American Petroleum Institute is challenging in court new federal regulations designed to reduce the chance of explosions in train cars carrying oil. There have been far too m...
Laurel — Agriculture is still the biggest industry in Hill County, and the Havre Area Chamber of Commerce celebrates the business annually with an Ag Appreciation Dinner. This year, it will be held in conjunction with the 100th anniversary of MSU’s Northern Ag Research Center. The Chamber is looking for nominations for the annual ag leader and ag advocate awards that are handed out. There should be no shortage of good candidates for both awards. So many people have played an important role in the development of farming and...
More than 40 people spoke at a public forum Thursday morning in favor of naming Greg Kegel permanent chancellor of Montana State University-Northern. Speaker after speaker cited Kegel’s temperament, judgment, ability to create a teamwork atmosphere and his ability to calm tense situations. Faculty, students, administrators and local governmental and business leaders joined in pushing for Kegel’s permanent appointment to the position he has held since the fall. The comments match what we’ve heard in the coffee shops and gather...
Laurel — Gov. Steve Bullock signed into law the bill that will expand Medicaid to thousands of people who have not been eligible. This ensures that many middle class people will be able to receive health care in the early stages of their illnesses instead of waiting until it’s too late. It will mean that health care facilities, especially rural hospitals and clinics, will get paid for services they provide. It is a win-win situation. Many people worked hard and gagged at the compromises they had to make. But the result is...
Laurel — The Montana Legislature has given final approval to a proposal to help preserve Montana’s Native languages. Gov, Steve Bullock is almost certain to sign it. Sponsored by Sen. Jonathan Windy Boy, D-Box Elder, the bill would help school districts create language immersion programs whereby students would spend at least half of their day in classes spoken in Native languages. Locally, that would almost certainly be in Cree. Native languages are dying out, and Windy Boy’s bill will hopefully stop that trend. Young peopl...
Laurel — The Montana Legislature has given final approval to expansion of Medicaid that will allow about 70,000 people to benefit from health insurance. Our waitresses, taxi drivers and hundreds of other pink and blue collar workers will soon be eligible for health insurance. This is good for the community and good for Northern Montana Hospital and other health care providers who have had to dig into their pockets to pay to give some of these people good care. Laurel — Havre 911 dispatchers are marking National Tel...
Laurel — Congrats to the city of Havre and the Hill County Clerk and Recorder’s office for continuing the tradition of having mail-in elections for municipal offices. Voter turnout has increased sharply since mail-in voting was adopted. It is easier for most people to vote in their living room. Mail-in voting should become a statewide law, but unfortunately, the Montana Legislature has rejected ideas from Secretary of State Linda McCulloch that the state do that. But people who want to vote by mail in state and national ele...
Laurel — A Montana Actors’ Theatre play opens, Easter Egg hunts are taking place all over town, special religious services are planned along with church social gatherings and many others events are being held this weekend to celebrate this special season. To all those who work to put on celebrations of the season, we thank you. That is what makes Havre special. Dart — The Montana House this week slammed the brakes on special funding for schools, correctional facilities and other groups that depend on state funding, in a sud...
Editor: The decision that our legislators make on the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribe Water Compact could shape the future of our state for decades to come. While many would have you believe that the compact only impacts the Flathead and areas west of the Continental Divide, this couldn’t be further from the truth. If the compact fails, there will be far-reaching consequences that will be felt by all Montanans, chief of which is the massive cost of litigation that not passing the compact would cost water users. The com...
Laurel — Helena lawmakers have it right on this one. There is a movement afoot to allocate $15 million to a fund that will be used to expand broadband service to rural Montana areas. Anyone who has tried to use a cellphone to communicate with others in parts of the Hi-Line would be supportive of that. The expansion of broadband is vital to attracting the kinds of jobs rural Montana needs. It also makes things better for all of us in the digital age. Dart — We wish Rep. Ryan Zinke were a little bit more supportive of Amt...
For decades, the Giveaway House on Havre’s north side has been a godsend for people who need clothing, household items and more. In the 1970s, two concerned women, Ruth Nystrom and Ann Friesen, started the program. It has been a model charity. Many people benefitted. There was minimal overhead. Community members generously offered their services as volunteers. As the program fades into history, the Giveaway House will be morphed into Havre’s Helping Haven and will share a building with the My Neighbor in Need program at the...
This week is Sunshine Week, an annual time designed to encourage openness in governments around the United States. The Society of Professional Journalists and dozens of others groups take part in activities marking the week. Newspapers seem to be especially involved, but many other groups — blogs, libraries, civic groups and educators — highlight the advantages of open government at this time of the year. Montana’s laws concerning open government and public access to records are pretty good. For the most part, the publi...
Editor: The events of the past years have aided the Rocky Boy Business Committee in giving a black mark against the tribe, its members and Ken Blatt St. Marks. What has the current business committee done to prove anything against Mr. Blatt St Marks? Why are they so against this man? Is it true they are trying to impeach him for standing up and trying to right the wrongs others have done? The ones who gained illegally are the ones who should not be able to serve ever again. Let's put that to a vote. This is an embarrassment t...
Laurel The Havre Police Department is handing out free gun locks. The locks were paid for through a grant. Police Chief Gabe Matosich said most new guns have locks with them, but people tend to own lots of older guns, many without locks. The locks are meant to be kid-proof, because younger people tend to play with guns when they shouldn't. Now that you mention it, many adults do the same without having an excuse. The locks will save lives. Laurel Sunnyside Intermediate School looks pretty snazzy this week. The classroom...
Havre Trails, a volunteer group of people who like to walk, and the city of Havre have come to an agreement that can lead to vast improvements to one local park and adjacent walking trails. It can be a model for the way to handle the problem the city has of diminishing resources — working with volunteers to get some necessary services provided. Havre Trials will be working to get a grant to improve the trails and buy picnic tables and benches placed in US Bank Park. They also want signs that can tell people of the birds t...
Here is a modest proposal: The Montana Legislature ought to give itself a raise. Legislators earn an average of about $10 an hour. Even though they enjoy some good health benefits with the pay, it‘s almost to the point that if Sen. Jonathan Windy Boy’s proposal to hike the minimum wage to $10 had been approved, it would have affected the lawmakers who voted on it. We’re not proposing that our lawmakers should be paid the obscene amounts that other state dole out to their lawmakers. We are proud that we have a citizen legis...
Laurel — Jack Johnsrud won the 49th annual Hill County Spelling Bee this week. Havre Middle School should be proud. They say that spelling is out of date with all the spell-check equipment we have these days. That’s not true, and Jack has proven that to be the case. Dart — Montana House Democrats always say they are the party of transparency, and they have a record to prove it. But they didn’t live up to their reputation this week. Unanimously they voted against legislation offered by Rep. G. Bruce Meyers, R-Box Elder, to hav...
Laurel — Thousands of people are in Havre this week for the District 9-C basketball tournament. Small towns in Montana — and especially the Hi-Line — go crazy over basketball. The tourney is a social event as well as an athletic event. It is the time when even teams with the worst records can get a shot at the championship. Some of these small towns, we’re sure, have more people in Havre than at home. Welcome to Havre everyone. It’s great to have you here. Dart — No pig wrestling at the Great Northern Fair? We think that...
In coming weeks, Havre city officials will be looking at the possibility of a major infrastructure renovation project. It calls for improvements for streets and perhaps sidewalks and stormwater systems. Over the next 20 years, city officials said, they could spend as much as $100 million to improve all the streets and sidewalks that now need or will need repairs. Anyone who drives on Havre streets or walks on sidewalks realizes that there is a need for some major fixes. It’s not quite as obvious, but there is also need for r...
Laurel Business woman Renelle Braaten and Montana State University-Northern Interim Chancellor Greg Kegel are among the winners of the Montana Ambassadors award. The two have served the community in different ways, though they share in common that they are fans of the Lights and Skylights. Braaten started a small business that has turned into a worldwide operation. She has not forgotten her roots and has done a great deal for the community she calls home. Kegel won the award for all the work he has done to make the biodiesel...
Editor: To the people of Havre and the staff and students at Montana State University-Northern, I just want to express my concern to learn by way of the Monday article in the Havre Daily about the psychic-paranormal investigator and tarot card reader that Northern's Student Union has chosen to bring on campus for supposed entertainment. This is not suitable for a college campus. It's certainly not acceptable that he is paid $4,000 for this. Students might see this as just a fun amusing thing, but it has a very dark spiritual...
For the decade-plus I have served, I have consistently refused to be intimidated into taking votes or signing pledges demanded by out-of-area special interest groups, insisting instead to always review legislation while listening to those I represent. Sadly, Montana, with its low population, is considered a "cheap date," thus is a favorite place for out-of-state "policy tanks" to lobby outcomes and do legislative experiments. Consider for example this past summer when...
People who receive farm supports of any kind. County employees who plow our roads. City workers who keep our water and sewer systems working even on holidays. Contractors who build our state-owned buildings and highways in good shape. People who are down on their luck and need Temporary Assistance for Needy Families to feed their children. Private attorneys who do contract work for the state. Police officers who keep our streets safe. Lawmakers who we send to Helena to make laws to protect us. These are just some people who r...
Dart — The Montana House’s State Administration Committee tabled a bill that would have allowed people to register to vote online. That would have made it easier for people, especially those in rural areas and those who are disabled, to register. It’s too bad making it easier to vote has become such a partisan issue. Republicans would be way better off if they spent their time, money and energy trying to convince the electorate to vote for them instead of trying to make it harder for them to vote. Laurel — Montana State U...
