Sorted by date Results 722 - 746 of 1188
While not a complete authority on the Canyon Creek fire in 1988, I was there to cut snags and later me and Elden Rammell were sentenced to cut that burned timber. That fire camp there looked like a reunion of retired Forest Service people. I’m sure they donated their time. I’m thankful someone finally admitted that is a “let burn policy.” Apparently the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing because they’re still doing it with most fires. A certain person who “sat” and got paid to look at the Rice Ridge fire told me the state fire...
After reading last week’s Pathfinder, page 2, OPINION Editor’s Note Headline: What is news in Seeley Lake? Story Andi & Nathan Bourne – Pathfinder Staff…It sure makes me wonder if most people in Seeley Lake read only what they’re looking for each week. How much dirt did ??? Find on??? This week? Oh yeah, this week most by-passed the above OPINION and went right away to the throat article, believing there would be one, of our Seeley Lake Ranger. Allow me to ask this question. Before Andi and Nathan Bourne took over the Pathfinder does anyone rec...
As a retired ICU physician, I know the end-stage consequences of tobacco use: heart disease, stroke, vascular disease, dementia, COPD, emphysema and cancers – not just lung cancer, but also throat, stomach, pancreatic, colon, liver, kidney and bladder cancers, to name a few. It was difficult to repeatedly see these horrible diseases, and their devastating consequences on patients and their families. Initiative 185 will place higher taxes on tobacco and vaping products. Hopefully, this will discourage their use. In addition, the revenue generate...
Well if you’ve ever had anyone in your family conned by a payday lender, you should know. The Senate could confirm Ms. Kraninger soon to run the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and she seems ready to try to roll back protections for borrowers of payday loans. Like most Americans, I think these basic protections are important to keeping our state safe from scams. Thankfully, Senator Tester put consumers in Montana ahead of predatory lenders. During the Senate vote Tester said ‘my concern is that if we confirm Kraninger, she will do not...
I read in the Aug. 16 Pathfinder about the 20-year-old man who was lost on Nine Mile Prairie Road. According to the article, he drove his motorcycle around the gate meant to keep him out and preceded up the road until he ran out of gas. Then he started a fire--luckily for us it didn’t turn into a forest fire! Instead of staying with the cycle and the fire, as any smart person would, he wandered off again going the wrong way from home. (Don’t you think he could have followed the tracks of his motorcycle to get back to Point A?) Searchers wer...
To say that I am distressed to read the Pathfinder’s banner headline and article referring to the deceptive and inaccurate petition that is circulating in the community, would be an understatement. As a community resource the Pathfinder is beholden to write the truth and the news in an impartial way and to impart to its readers, the people, reasons and facts about local life. To be a platform for some shoddy local impulses to besmirch the behavior and character of an appointed Federal officer is certainly not in the interests or support of t...
When I arrived three and a half years ago to my dream job as the Seeley Lake District Ranger, I was privileged to step into a world of collaboration and partnership that has taken years to build. People interested in actively engaging in the work that not only the Forest Service does but also that of other Federal, State and private landowners continue to demonstrate how important it is to work together to achieve common goals. Where there are competing interests or legal frameworks surrounding decisions, it is critical to determine how to...
Your Missoula County property taxes just went up another 4.85 percent. The Commissioners quietly raised them last week with little debate or fanfare. That’s on the heels of a $138 million school bond issue two years ago and just before a new proposal to buy more “open space” for urban dwellers. Now, at the local level, commissioners and the Seeley Lake Sewer District Board have proposed a nearly $100-a-month raise for property owners unlucky enough to live in that district. Time for you local taxpayers to get off your duffs and be heard. The r...
SEELEY LAKE - Most of you know that a petition has been circulated at a number of businesses that aims to have the Forest Service remove our current Ranger Rachel Feigley. Without mentioning her by name and in no specific terms, Rachel is being accused of incompetence, negligence and acting in ways that are detrimental to the health and well-being of Seeley Lake. Some storeowners, when asked, were not sure who the Ranger was and what he/she did to warrant the petition, and it is obvious that many people signed the petition without a clear...
What draws more than 12 million guests to Montana each year? Why has Missoula County grown in population by almost 50 percent since 1990? Why has the outdoor recreation industry grown to be our state’s largest industry? Why is Missoula County so appealing to residents and guests? My guess it is not the traffic on Reserve Street that appeals to folks. All indications are it is our open and wild spaces that generate the Montana magic that draws people to Missoula County. Our open and wild spaces require attention and appreciation if they are t...
Kudos to Curtis Friede and his petition to remove the current Ranger of the Seeley Lake Ranger District and hopefully any others in the National Forest Service responsible for recent decisions made by the United State Forest Service. However, anyone who has had any recent dealings with this agency knows that this Ranger and at least her next two supervisors are mere puppets. They are indeed team players who cannot or will not think and/or act outside the box. An example is Seeley Ranger supervisor Ranger Garcia and his defense of the Seeley...
I feel it important to state that I support the US Forest Service (USFS) and specifically, the Seeley Lake Ranger District and its District Ranger. Briefly, my background: From 1975 to 1985 I was a wildland firefighter and conducted industrial fire inspections, all on the Lolo National Forest (USFS), on three different Ranger Districts. I was a Federal Wildlife Officer on several National Wildlife Refuges (US Fish and Wildlife Service). And I was a law enforcement ranger for the National Park Service in Yellowstone NP and bear management...
This letter is in support of our District Ranger, Rachel Feigley. I understand that a petition has been circulated negating the works of Ms. Feigley. I would like to confirm her positive attitude and ongoing interaction in the community to promote the role of the Forest Service in maintaining public lands for multiple use. After the Rice Ridge Fire in 2017, some residents needed to place blame for the loss of revenue. In addition, the road closures and campground closures were seen as the sole responsibility of the Ranger. While many of us know...
There is an open space bond issue for Missoula County voters on the November ballet. What does this mean? Voters have the opportunity to continue a fund that was established over a decade ago for the use of preserving open spaces for agricultural uses, wildlife habitat, clean sources of water and habitat for native fish and plants. Even in rural communities like Seeley Lake, Condon and Potomac, important wildlife areas, rural lifestyles and family ranches are threatened by sprawl and development, and this fund has preserved that vital habitat....
SEELEY LAKE - Recently a petition has been circulating in Seeley Lake calling for the Forest Service to “remove and replace the current Ranger of the Seeley Lake Ranger District”. The petition also suggests there is “sufficient belief” and “consensus” in the community calling into question the Ranger’s competence, self interest and contribution to the vitality and resilience of the community. In my view this petition is an absurdity and an unfortunate example of poorly informed discussion in our community. I do not believe it represents a...
SEELEY LAKE - Hello everyone, I’m Lee Bridges and I’m running to represent House District 92 in Helena. Thanks to those of you who voted for me in the June primary. Please join me Tuesday, Sept. 4 from 6 – 8 p.m., at the home of Addrien Marx and Jim McLean for a Meet Your Candidate open house and fund raiser: 380 Morrell Creek Drive, Seeley Lake. Between now and the November election I will be working to learn more from you about how we can all build a better Montana. I want to earn your vote. I’ve heard from many of you as I knock on doors a...
SEELEY LAKE - Being the local expert in all things related to water, in Don Larson’s mind there are two truths: A) The existing septic systems, at least on his properties, are functioning properly, and probably the cleanest on the planet. No need for sewer. B) The water bills in Seeley Lake are “exorbitant”. I am surprised that he hasn’t solved both these problems by connecting pipe “A” to pipe “B”....
Elected officials have a moral duty to protect the health and lives of citizens they represent and to be good stewards of resources. According to the EPA, wildfire smoke has microscopic particles that penetrate deep into your lungs and cause aggravated chronic heart and lung diseases and is linked to premature death. Tree and vegetation removal correlates to less wildfire and smoke. It seems reasonable for elected officials to pursue policies and legislation that protect citizen’s health and exercise good stewardship. Politicians on both sides...
Exciting Times My name is Marie Andersen. Missoula County voters elected me to be their Judge in 2014. I write to address my political opponent’s recently published attack on me, as well as the article concerning the report on the Missoula County Justice Court. It’s an exciting time in our court. For the first time, there will be one manager for both Justice Courts (my court and Judge Holloway’s court). It’s in the best interest of both courts, staff and public to have a single administrative manager working cooperatively and collabo...
SWAN VALLEY – We would like to thank all the Condon community for all the great food and nice cards and the QRU response to my accident. This is such a caring community and very much appreciated. Thanks again, Neil and Dixie Meyer...
It happens all too often, some elected or appointed official doing something corrupt or unethical. Some let lobbyists pay their rent, others outfit their public offices with luxury items costing tens of thousands of dollars. In every case it’s a waste of taxpayer funds, a breach of the public trust. I have known Jon Tester since his time as a Montana State Senator, and Jon has always led by example when it comes to ethics and honor in government. Jon is the guy who still works his family farm, he is rooted in Montana and brings a hard w...
Letter to the Community of Seeley Lake - I have worked with the Seeley Lake Sewer District Board for almost 18 years. The hard work of these dedicated volunteers has resulted in almost $16 M in grants and loans to fund this first phase of the project. The funders for the project are concerned that the project seems stalled. A majority of the property owners in the Seeley Lake Sewer District did not protest the proposed levy of special assessments for the district last November, giving the board the authority to go forward with the designed...
Dear Mr. Boltz and Sewer Board Members: The Missoula City-County Board of Health strongly and wholeheartedly supports the Seeley Lake public sewer project and urges the Seeley Lake Sewer District Board to take the actions needed to keep the project moving forward. The concentration of homes and businesses using septic systems in the Seeley Lake area, combined with the area’s geology and groundwater movement, have led to elevated nitrate levels in the groundwater. In some places in the Seeley Lake community, nitrate concentrations in g...
I wanted to take this opportunity to thank Senator Jon Tester for remaining accessible to his constituents. Only about a million people live in Montana, but we’re an enormous state. In fact, from the border of Idaho to the border of North Dakota, it’s a 12 hour drive across Montana. This hasn’t stopped Jon from doing everything he can to travel across the state to meet with the Montanans he represents. If you haven’t met Jon yourself, you almost certainly know someone who has, whether they asked Jon questions at a town hall, talked with hi...
SEELEY LAKE - It is so nice to live in a small community where people are honest. Ten days ago my son brought me grocery shopping in his pickup. I’m quite short legged and quite elderly so he always carries a step stool for me to step in and out of his pickup. Somehow we left the little stool behind and we forgot about it. This weekend he stopped in at Cory’s Valley Market and there on the ice machine was my little stool. Ten days later, my little stool is sitting there waiting for me. I appreciate that the people of Seeley Lake are so nic...
