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On March 19, 2020, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, spurred to action by the coronavirus pandemic, issued a memorandum that identified the nation’s 2.5 million farmworkers as “essential” workers.  Soon thereafter, agribusinesses began distributing formal letters to their farm laborers, also declaring that that they were “essential.”  Of course, it shouldn’t have required a government-business effort to establish this point. Without farmworkers, there is no food. And the American people need food to survive.  But, remarkably, over the course of U.S. history, farmworkers, although essential, have been terribly mistreated. Wheth...

First, we all measured this situation by days and then by weeks and now the days string together and I’m not always sure if it is Tuesday or Wednesday. By now, we are seasoned pandemic participants. We know how to kill a month by staying inside and following the rules. Cross that one off the bucket lis...

Coronavirus is not going to disappear anytime soon. There is no vaccine or cure. The primary goal of the current public health and safety measures have been to slow the spread of the virus so our healthcare system would not collapse. In Montana, we have succeeded. Since the beginning of this crisis, a mas...

In the wake of the global COVID-19 pandemic, I have been pleasantly surprised by humanity. As more and more of the world goes into lockdown to try and flatten the curve in local areas, I have noticed some really amazing and hopeful things in our world.  In the busyness of everyday life, people in our...

As of this writing, at least 251 million people in at least 30 states, 81 counties, 15 cities and one US territory are living the reality of a stay-at-home directive. A month ago, hardly any of us had contemplated the concept of a stay-at-home directive. I’d never even heard the term. Now, I’m li...

The entire world is now grappling with a pandemic the likes of which has not been seen in over a century. COVID-19 has now come home to Montana, as was expected. It cannot be stopped, but we have a chance to slow its transmission and reduce the number of severe illnesses and deaths in our communities. Thi...

Montanans are doing our part in this very difficult time to help each other out and curb the spread of the COVID 19 virus. We come together and look out for each other, as we always have in times of crisis, and in this case that means practicing social distancing to slow the spread of this disease.  ...

COVID-19 has upended lives across Montana, making many of us rethink the future of our world. One uncharted territory is education. Montana has closed schools to families physically while maintaining education and nutrition services. Many are tackling distance learning. Some Montana students do not have inte...

Before we were married, my husband had a roommate from Africa – Sierra Leone to be exact. And this roommate introduced him to a dish called peanut butter stew. It’s made with an unlikely, but sumptuous culinary trio: chicken, peanut butter and a mix of hot spices called African spice. Stick with ...

Mission and Jocko districts oppose Daines’ 3019 bill and have sent four letters to him in the last year with no response, with our concerns, asking for a meeting. Our opposition comes from the unconstitutional takings of property rights and the Unitary Management Board that take us out of Montana an...