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Dump the roundabouts first — THEN fix Main Street

Open letter to Kalispell’s city councilors and candidates:

PLEASE do not change the traffic flow on Main UNTIL you take out the roundabouts on the U.S. 93 Bypass! Truck drivers hate them and do not use them as intended. SO where are the trucks? On Main Street, of course, as they always have been in my 45 years living here. Fix it before you move on your grandiose two-lane Main Street.

And by the way your new Third and Fourth Avenue two-ways suck — parking on one side only would help! —Jerry Olson, Somers

Disrespecting flag leads to new viewing habits

I noticed that Fox will not show the national anthem prior to NFL games, and now CBS did not show it on Thursday’s game (Eagles vs. Panthers). The next morning, on the news, I saw that several players were standing with their fists in the air during the playing of the anthem. Reminded me of the protesters in the 1960s raising their fists at the Olympics. Therefore, if the networks choose to not show the national anthem, they are hiding what is still going on — DISRESPECT. I will be watching reruns of taped “Gunsmoke” episodes or Western movies or college football or pro baseball in place of the NFL. —Jack Sollars, Kalispell

Background gives Curtis the edge in her race for judge

If name recognition were to be the sole standard by which elections are won, Mr. Hileman’s long presence in Whitefish, his name displayed on a law office building in downtown Whitefish and on seemingly countless front yards, would make him a shoo-in. The standard in this election, however, and as Mr. Hileman no doubt would agree, properly should concern intellect and experience in the job at hand.

In that regard, both candidates appear as accomplished lawyers and, although I have no I.Q. test results, smart enough for the job. But, missing from Mr. Hileman’s pedigree is courtroom experience comparable to that of Kristi Curtis. In the course of 40 years largely spent defending and prosecuting all manner of misdemeanor and felony cases, it became clear to me that the experience level of the judges before whom I appeared was important, if not critical, to fair, well-run pre-trial, court trial, and jury trial proceedings.

As Ms. Curtis has explained, she worked for many years in a civil litigation firm in California before coming to Whitefish with her husband and their two children 17 years ago. After arriving here, she began work in the city attorney offices of Kalispell and Whitefish, where it was her job to prepare for and to try many hundreds of court trials and jury trials. That experience is, I believe, a prerequisite for efficient and fair administration of the volume of legal cases to be arriving in our city court in the future. That experience also provides the tie-breaker in Ms. Curtis’s favor, a powerful indicator of who is the best candidate for the job. —Parker Kelly, Whitefish