Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
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You’re not “phobic” if your fear is rational. The modern world needs a secular way for people to withdraw from society, like monks and nuns of tradition. The disarray of global affairs reveals that the smartest people in the world have not figured out how to outsmart the dumbest people in the world. Your skin can feel hair that fell on your body, but not hair growing on your body. Much of the skill in fixing things involves knowing how much force you can use. It’s a strange miracle that email survived after instant messaging became a thing....
Dear Editor, This is a letter to Mrs. Gina Ossello. I read in the paper that you are retiring from sitting on the school board, keeping control of the meetings, and monitoring the process. I want to take this opportunity to say "Thank You" for taking the time to be at the meetings and making sure they ran in a professionally organized manner. I personally have experienced your officiating and was always greeted well. Through COVID-19, parent, and student behaviors, and all the challenges you faced throughout your time as a school board trustee...
Dear Editor, A Letter to the Editor promoting a candidate for the Superintendent of Public Instruction position in the State of Montana was published in the Whitehall Ledger on April 10, 2024. In the letter, the candidate states, "We've essentially abandoned our schools in the last eight years under the current state leadership." When I look at my property tax bill and see that 75.2% of my taxes go to the schools, this statement seems absolutely preposterous! If this is abandonment, I would ask, where has all the money gone? The candidate's...
Everyone has their perspective on any given issue and is subject to modification or even complete reversal as information, conditions, and circumstances change. It can be argued that there is no time like an election year and social media to see the broad spectrum and panorama of those differences. This is not meant to be political commentary. Still, I’ll touch on some classic examples, as well as some from another touchstone of controversy: religion, since it is another place where widely d...
Georgia, I have a question, Did I do the right thing? The other night, my girlfriend was reaching for something on a stool when she slipped and fell and injured her ankle. She was in quite a lot of pain, and we both agreed she needed to go to the ER. She asked me to drive her. Normally, of course, I would be happy to drive her. However, I had already consumed several drinks that evening and was definitely over the legal limit to drive. I told her as much and said if she could give me two or three hours to metabolize the alcohol, I should be...
Certain verses of the Bible are well-known, yet many of those same verses are taken out of context and improperly applied. Doing so breaks several rules of Bible interpretation, notably understanding the original author’s intention and cultural context. Next, identify the text principle and consider if the application applies today. Many principles do, and others do not; as a pastor, I will beat this drum of “context” until my last breath because without proper context, the truth can be muddied. You’ve probably heard statements like, “Jesus...
ARIES Mar 21/Apr 20 Aries, this is a great week for transformation. Be careful where you direct your attention, as your actions will have lasting effects. Choose your plans wisely. TAURUS Apr 21/May 21 Use this week’s powerful energy to strip away all the unnecessary static in your life right now. It is doing more harm than good. Open yourself up to new opportunities, Taurus. GEMINI May 22/Jun 21 Gemini, there is a lot of stuff going on around you, and you need to sort through the noise to determine your priorities. Things will start to become...
Late-stage capitalism gets a bad rep, but the early stage had child miners and radium factories. It’s physically impossible to watch all the movies ever made. There is no doubt that considerable resources are invested in researching how thin a hamburger patty can be made without causing a consumer backlash. A free boat is incredibly expensive. More people die in a single day around the world than all the people who wait for an organ donor. Golf is the only sport where the worse you are, the more you get to play. Some people speak multiple l...
Jesus Christ exemplified the greatest degree of love through his sacrificial death on the cross and subsequent resurrection of the dead, something many of us recently celebrated. We must refrain from letting the typical holiday celebration lose significance, particularly Good Friday and Easter. What Jesus did for any of us who call on His name to be saved through repentance and faith is for every day, not just the last day in April. In Luke Chapter 6, we find Jesus challenging any of His followers to love their enemy. If we are honest, doing...
Georgia, I have a question, My boyfriend and I enjoy playing harmless pranks on each other. Last week, I had an important job interview, and he thought it would be funny to put a laxative in my drink, which I drank before I left for the meeting. He knew the interview's significance to me - it was my dream job. I had to turn back home while on my way there due to how unwell I felt, and I had to inform the workplace that I couldn’t make it. When he got home from work, I ripped him a new one. He just laughed and said it was retaliation for i...
ARIES Mar 21/Apr 20 There is more to any situation than the money factor, Aries. When a new opportunity comes your way, look beyond the payoff to see what the heart of the offer entails. TAURUS Apr 21/May 21 Look to your family members if you need inspiration on a new project, Taurus. Use loved ones as a sounding board for all of the ideas that are bouncing around. GEMINI May 22/Jun 21 The willpower you have relied on lately is still going strong, Gemini. That is excellent, and it’s having a profound effect on other areas of your life. CANCER J...
Dear Editor, The Fundraising Garage/Bake Sale was a huge success. Thank you to all for your generous contributions! God used many people to accomplish so much. Kipp and Dawn Huckaba's pavilion was the perfect place, considering the weather. They also added lunch for the workers and their organizational skills. Every person who donated items or purchased them was God's blessing. The Country Store graciously took items that didn't sell-another blessing! The Guatemalan people will certainly be encouraged and blessed, as well. Praise God for His...
Dear Editor and Montanans, This is a hopeful time for so many of our students. The future is bright as graduation nears and families beam with pride, anticipating their child walking across that stage. As a legislator, a former classroom teacher, and the mom of a high school student, though, I must admit I worry. Are we doing enough to make sure all our students have the opportunities they deserve? That is why I'm running to be your next State Superintendent of Schools. We've essentially abandoned our schools in the last eight years under the...
Dear Editor, This letter regards the Town of Whitehall's proposed Babies in the Workplace policy. At the March Council meeting, I gave my thoughts on "Babies in the Workplace." The next day, I was asked if I would read the Town of Whitehall "Infant-At-Work Program" Draft Policy. I said I would and, after receiving it, thought to myself, "How can they already have "program guidelines" this detailed on this subject already typed? It is quite thorough. I understand Council members have been working on this policy for a couple of months already; a...
Dear Editor, Hello, my name is Todd Devlin, 4th generation farmer/rancher in eastern Montana, a Prairie County Commissioner since 1995, and a past President of the Montana Association of Counties (MACo) from 2016 - 2017. For over 30 years, I have been involved with public land and natural resource issues at the state and national level. Currently, the Chair of the National Association of Counties Public Lands Steering Committee and the executive director of the Montana Natural Resource Coalition of Counties. After reading the editorial opinion...
Part of getting older is watching all your favorite restaurants become crappier versions of themselves until they eventually go out of business. Some people are so poor all they have is money. In less than 26 years, referring to decades as the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, or 90s will become ambiguous. By modern standards, medieval jousting was unfathomably dangerous. Word count is, by definition, the most accurate measurement for book-length, but everyone only cares about the number of pages. We won’t know when AI is successfully used to hide a c...
As of the writing of this guest editorial, there has been a 30 percent decrease in FAFSA submissions by students and their parents across the United States compared to last year. In Montana, the decline is also substantial at 25 percent. What is FAFSA, and why is it important? FAFSA stands for Free Application for Federal Student Aid, and students must complete it before applying for federal grants, work-study, and loans. Colleges and universities use student FAFSA data to determine their federal aid eligibility. It is administered by the U.S....
Georgia, I have a question, Every year, some family and friends throw a big Easter bash: lots of friends attend, a bounce house, a massive Easter egg hunt, and tons of food - the works. We’ve known these friends for decades; they are part of our core group of best friends. In other words, we’re like family. Our friends correct our kids and vice versa, within reason, of course. Anyway, during the party, my teenage stepdaughter came to me and said that my friend's pre-teen (7th grade) son was "roasting" my toddler daughter (16 months old...
“Love” has always been an interesting word, and it is used within various contexts, so it’s vitally important to understand one’s intention. We can use “love” in flippant ways, such as “I love movie theater popcorn,” which has little bearing on relationships. Or we can use or misuse “love” in the context of relationships that leave emotional scars or bring emotional healing. Love that is genuine and not egocentric is healthy and vibrant, and most of us long for this type of love to be extended our way. To be frank, most of us love those who h...
ARIES Mar 21/Apr 20 Grit and guts will get you what you deserve this week, Aries. You may have an opportunity to make a good deal of money, so give this plan careful consideration. Ask for advice if the need arises. TAURUS Apr 21/May 21 Taurus, your life has changed, and you may want to blame the stars. Things will move out of your comfort zone, and you will have to sharpen your ability to adapt. GEMINI May 22/Jun 21 Gemini, you may be questioning the relationships in your life now, but don’t worry too much. If you hit a rough patch, things wil...
Putting on community events, like last weekend’s Easter Egg and Scavenger Hunt, requires SO many people. There are things you just wouldn’t think of—from ordering the little trinkets inside the eggs to borrowing barricades from the town to getting candy donations to peeling off the old icky tape from the Easter eggs to clean up. Thankfully, many hands make light work. When a scheduling conflict arose with the group planning to stuff the 8,000 Easter eggs, the Whitehall Chamber and Gold Junction Presents put out for the annual hunt, an urgen...
Dear Editor, Although one might note that this letter is somewhat in response to the FWP article in the most recent Whitehall Ledger (3/20/24), it is a long time coming and overdue! The most accepted definition of "license" is "a permit from an authority to own or use something, do a particular thing, or carry on a trade (especially in alcoholic beverages)." However, the legal definition is a bit starker and more honest: "permission granted by a qualified authority permitting a licensee to do something that would otherwise be prohibited." The d...
There are people who will play the lottery when the jackpot is 1 billion but then turn their nose up when the jackpot is only 100 million. Tons of puns are exclusive to people who speak more than one language. Sometimes, people come back into your life to see if you are still stupid. You’ll never get back those 5 minutes you spent as a kid watching and waiting for a digital clock to change to the next minute. Flying carpets aren’t carpets; they are flying rugs! The only relationships you obsess over involve someone never fully available to you...
In college, waaaay back in the 60s, I wrote a column for the school paper, edited by a classmate. He texted me last week and said he heard I was writing this one, so I sent it to him. We ran into each other yesterday, and he said I’d become philosophical in my old age. Well, that struck me as being pretty serious and got me thinking about how limited my knowledge and experience were then. My view of the world has changed, becoming more introspective and textured, although not as vivid. When y...
ARIES Mar 21/Apr 20 Aries, communication with a spouse or a loved one is vital this week; otherwise, you risk arguments for no reason. Sit down and have some frank conversations about your needs. TAURUS Apr 21/May 21 Taurus, when you face adversity, you should rest assured that you can handle anything thrown at you. Although, you may need a little help from some close friends or family. GEMINI May 22/Jun 21 Gemini, others may not understand who you are and could make inaccurate assumptions. They may need some more information to get a clearer...
