Old mining laws

One of the most polluted rivers in the United States is our Clark Fork in Northwestern Montana. It is filled with layers of toxic mine waste from more than 100 years of indiscriminate dumping from the Butte and Anaconda mines.

A recent approval from our government for the Rock Creek Mine proves how outdated the 130-plus year old mining law is. Permission from anyone to further damage this horribly abused waterway is ridiculous.

Maintaining water quality should always be one of our most important goals. We must protect our life water.

The proposed Rock Creek Mine would dump three million to four million gallons of toxic mine waste daily in the river for 40 years between two dams. The underground digging will unleash toxic materials which only go down into the river.

The Cabinet Mountain Wilderness area's threatened grizzly population could not survive the nonstop commotion of hundreds of miners tearing into their last place of refuge. Our native animal population could not cross the highway with non-stop truck traffic.

The Clark Fork River cannot give any more to the mining industry. Too much already is enough.

Lon LaBelle

Noxon

Montana RINOs

I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude for the Flathead County Republican Assembly. The Assembly works hard to find Republican candidates that stand for bedrock Republican principles. One of the most famous candidates to receive the help of Republican Assemblies was Ronald Reagan.

Another important function of the Republican Assemblies is to identify candidates who may be "Republicans in Name Only," better known as RINOs. Although the Flathead Chapter did not exist when Gary Hall was elected Flathead County Commissioner, it has become apparent that Mr. Hall exhibits all the characteristics of a RINO.

Mr. Hall, along with a large group of city and county bureaucrats, is trying to implement new property taxes in the form of impact fees to fund bigger more expensive government. He has been instrumental in hiring expensive out-of-state county bureaucrats, such as an out-of-state county administrator for $90,000 per year, an out-of-state planning director for $70,000 per year, and an out-of state-planning consultant for $68,000.

Mr. Hall needs to raise your property taxes to pay for all of his new high-paid out-of-state bureaucrats. In contrast, Ronald Reagan stood for lower taxes and smaller government.

For county residents, Mr. Hall has sold out your property rights to an out of state planning director and an out-of-state planning consultant to the tune of $138,000 ($70,000 for planning director and $68,000 for planning consultant) for this year alone.

Mr. Hall throws your tax money around like it is water. In addition, Colorado newcomer Jerry Nix is now the chairman of Mr. Hall's bureaucratic Long Range Task Force. He first came on the scene on June 2, 2004, in a commissioner meeting with the purpose of helping Mr. Hall figure out how to implement his new impact-fee property tax scheme.

In contrast, Ronald Reagan stood for individual property rights and would not sell out your property rights at any price.

Remember, if we are going to have a Democrat in the county commissioner's office, we might as well have one that calls himself or herself a Democrat.

Dick Skees

Columbia Falls

Years in waiting

I recently noticed the signs annoucing the U.S. Highway 93 bypass around Kalispell. Now I see that plan is being modified. For years, Whitefish has been talking about a bypass.

It seems the perfect answer for everyone would be to use the Farm-to-Market road all the way to U.S. Highway 93 north of Whitefish up near Olney.

Jim King

Whitefish