Columns
Explore Daily Inter Lake Columns featuring local sports commentary, outdoor adventure stories, lifestyle tips, and community perspectives from Northwest Montana.
Giving Together: Turning Tax Season into Opportunities for Students
On a spring morning in Kalispell, a group of elementary students huddle around a table, testing a small robot they…
Baby on board: Protect our precious U.S. Constitution
You know those signs on the back of cars that say “Baby on Board”? The idea is to reinforce the idea of precious cargo, so anyone tempted to act recklessly will think twice before putting an innocent in danger.
'Minneapolis Miracle': A quintessential sports moment
I felt a firm hand land on my slumped shoulder, and I prepared myself to be on the receiving end of a bit of trash talk. Instead, I was pleasantly surprised.
Meet the new grammar 'Superpower' - North Dakota
Oh, North Dakota, I have long defended your good name from those who would besmirch it. I always take your side, North Dakota, even though I’m from that much better and prettier state to the east (i.e. Minnesota).
A luncheon truce: Keeping the lines of communication open between left and right
In a week when the political left and right in this country were pulling apart like the two halves of the San Andreas Fault, I found myself breaking bread with a liberal from California.
Rounding up 2017's last best
Good News comes in waves to the Inter Lake. I’m kicking off 2018 by catching up with the last best of 2017.
Trump's year of living dangerously
The Associated Press delivered its traditional Top 10 list last month and while the choices actually made more sense than usual, they were particularly antiseptic — as if the AP were afraid to give context to the s…
A reminder to live each day with purpose
So here we are at the threshold of a new year once again — out with the old and in with the new. With 2018 just hours away it’s customary to pause and remember, whether with joy or sadness, what has happened over t…
A finger in the dike holding back the fake news
I took a rare shift as news editor last Saturday, which gave me an unexpected chance to put my finger in the dike holding back the flood of fake news caused by those afflicted with Trump Derangement Syndrome.
Gratitude for good tidings
One might think it’s a stretch to come up with 26 “Good News” columns in 2017 — a year run rife with national and international humanitarian and environmental crises, terrorism, war, poverty, divisive rhetoric, po…
Christmas memories are forever
Probably my earliest memories revolve around Christmas Day on Kennedy Drive in Waldwick, New Jersey, where my older brother Angelo got all the cool presents and I just got to break them! That was in the late 1950s,…
New trend is raising eyebrows
Beauty trends are a fickle thing. They come and go, from the beehive hairdo of the 1960s to the body piercing fettish of the ’90s and beyond.
Swamp critters target Ryan Zinke, but I'm betting on the SEAL
If anything speaks authoritatively on the partisan mess that is Washington, D.C., it is the vilification of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, seemingly the left’s favorite target after President Trump himself.
What would G. Washington make of D.C. Washington? (Some dare call it a swamp!)
Once again it has become apparent that the partisan divisions within our nation have strained our patriotic foundation to the point of crumbling.
Oddfellows preserve lodge in Libby
If you’ve never heard of the Independent Order of Oddfellows, you’re probably not alone. Although they keep a quiet presence, the charitable, faith-based, fraternal organization dates clear back to 18th century Eng…
A mother-in-law who was always 'fine'
My mother-in-law spent her last hours on earth much like she spent her life, surrounded by the love and lively banter of her children and their families.