05 Apr 2013
Posted by Shane Castle 
This story has been updated. People are always talking about the dying newspaper industry. That drives me nuts for one really important reason hardly anyone talks about because the myth version is more palatable than the truth: contraction took place because a few giant corporations bought...
Read more → 15 Mar 2013
Posted by Shane Castle 
Today, the House Judiciary Committee heard testimony about Senate Bill 107, which seeks to remove language from a law that has been deemed unconstitutional by the U.S. and Montana Supreme Courts — not by some lay interpreter of the law condescending to tell the rest of us which laws are constitutional...
Read more → 13 Mar 2013
Posted by Sam Lavin 
Today more than 11 members from AmeriCorps participated in a clean up at Spring Meadow Lake State Park. They picked up trash that had been trapped in the snow, but more specifically they picked up poop. Lots and lots of poop. Helenens bring their dogs to Spring Meadow for exercise, but have failed...
Read more → 12 Mar 2013
Posted by Shane Castle 
Senate Bill 138 would extend tax breaks intended specifically to incentivize green energy production to any new power-production facility -- that's right, any. There is no need to get into the weeds on this bill. It very obviously seeks to encourage companies with a lot of capital to build power-generation...
Read more → 06 Dec 2012
Posted by Shane Castle December will likely produce an answer as to whether the proposed non-discrimination ordinance will pass in Helena. We do not know exactly what the final language will be, of course, but this paper supports the basic precepts of the ordinance as drafted so far, and its spirit. The most substantive...
Read more → 04 Oct 2012
Posted by Shane Castle One recent Facebook post by a state representative is a perfect example of just how debased our political discourse has become. On Sept. 24, Rep. David Howard (R-Park City) posted what was essentially an appeal to his followers not to split the conservative bloc by voting third party. However, after...
Read more → 07 Jun 2012
Posted by Shane Castle 
During an interview one Saturday in May, an old drifting cowboy and missionary named Doc Mishler told me he planned to ride his horses out of Marysville on Monday or Tuesday. We said our goodbyes. But then, on Tuesday, I stumbled upon a strange piece of information that potentially called his integrity...
Read more → 04 Jan 2012
Posted by Shane Castle Good for the Montana Supreme Court on its recent decision to disallow direct corporate spending for or against political candidates. No matter what the U.S. Supreme Court might say if American Tradition Partnership appeals this decision, it just seems like a no-brainer. Owning a company and amassing...
Read more → 29 Jul 2011
Posted by Shane Castle 
As Gov. Schweitzer touts Montana's $340 million budgetary surplus, as Rep. Rehberg cites our state's balanced-budget amendment as the key driver while pushing for a similar amendment at the national level, it bears consideration that 49 states have some kind of balanced-budget amendment or statute...
Read more → 11 Apr 2011
Posted by Shane Castle 
Do the benefits of capital influx and job creation outweigh the environmental costs of industrial development? On the surface, it would appear that this was the central question spurring debate on legislation like SB 233 (see "Bill poised to neutralize MEPA", this issue). On the surface, it would...
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