Columns

Since the 2025 session convened, the Montana Freedom Caucus and other conservatives have been planning to expose HB231 and SB542, which are supposed to take effect in 2026. The Montana Chamber of Commerce knew it would impact property tax shifts to businesses, and that’s why they lobbied so hard against it. Legislators were adamant to pass something, despite the ramifications. Now we see some calculations of the estimated impacts. Phillips 66 Company had an increase for the tax year 2025 of $11,301,544, with an estimate for 2026 at $14,429,22, an increase of 21.6%. CHS Inc. had an increase for tax year 2025 of $10,024,563, with 2026 estimated at $12,107,432, an increase of 17.2%...

Last week focused on the myriad things we – as humans – can agree on. What started as a short list morphed into something more extensive, so much so that it encompassed two columns.  Turns out agreeing isn’t as hard as we tend to make it out to be. Who would’ve thunk it? But I...

Did you get your elk yet?  This rifle season has been mild, and elk and deer have been widely dispersed and hard to find.  Is changing climate influencing wildlife and hunting?  While our weather is variable from year to year, Montana has been warming and drying with increasing greenhouse g...

The holidays are meant to be a joyous and celebratory time for the masses.  We jingle and we jangle. We carol and we herald. We send cards and decorate yards. We prep and we wrap. We elf on the shelf. We deck the halls and trim the tree with ornate balls. Our nights are bright with festive lights. We...

I don’t claim to be a master of many things. I’m rather more of a Jill of all trades. I’m simply interested in everything, which stops me from being an expert in anything.  Except for maybe two things. I like to think I’m rather a master of words. I’ve always loved wo...

I do the Wordle each morning. For those of you living in a bubble, Wordle is a puzzle that gives you six guesses to find a five-letter word.  Before we go any further, I have to get two things off my chest. Wordle is a game about five-letter words, yet the name of the game - Wordle - has six letters....

The “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act recently signed into law by President Trump contains important reforms to Obamacare’s Medicaid Expansion program. It helps control taxpayer costs and incentivizes able-bodied adults to work, go to school, or otherwise meaningfully engage as productive commun...

Take charge and lower your utility bills by using energy and water more wisely and at the same time make Montana healthier. What’s the connection? Most of the energy used in Montana is from fossil fuels (natural gas, coal, and oil) resulting in the release of pollution and greenhouse gases when the ...

This column deals with a subject steeped in controversy, and we all know sometimes that can surround the most simplest of tasks, habits or preferences. Which way to hang the toilet paper – over or under? Ketchup as a dipping sauce for pickles and potato chips  - yes or no? Wearing pajamas to th...

Emotions are powerful forces within each of us. They can impact our day, our year - perhaps even our life. How we feel about something influences our reactions to it. How we feel dictates our response to the world, the environment. And by and large all of this is beyond our control, correct? Maybe so, may...