In a less than three weeks, on Monday, June 16th, we will begin a Summer Session of University of Montana classes in Hamilton through the Higher Education Center. I am the Acting Director of the Hamilton HEC. Every day I am involved in recruiting students for these UM classes. This column in the Bitterroot Star is an opportunity to review our Year One, which was the academic year 07-08, and preview our plans for Years Two and Three.

From the beginning the Montana Board of Regents’ expectation was that the Hamilton HEC would develop gradually. In the Fall 07 semester we had five courses, with twenty-eight students, who earned a total of 99 academic credits. In the Spring 08 semester we presented eight classes, with fifty-five students, who earned 196 credits. So the HEC about doubled its academic “productivity,” if that would be the word, as measured by credits.

One particularly fortunate development was that in December and January we received, through the University of Montana Foundation, several donations for HHEC scholarships. The first donation came in December from the Hamilton company Human Interactive Products, Jim Olsen, owner. Among this company’s various projects, HIPinc helps develop organizational and financial plans for new businesses and non-profit organizations, including the Hamilton Performing Arts Series, as one example.

Then last January a philanthropist in education from Indiana, Mr. Edward L. Hutton, whose company ChemEd has its headquarters in Cincinnati, donated $15,000 for scholarships for students taking UM courses through the Hamilton HEC. Fifteen students, from towns throughout the Valley, received substantial scholarship awards – even some help with the cost of textbooks. Mr. Hutton’s major gift will continue to support HEC education in the 08-09 academic year.

If location is everything in real estate investment, location is also important in education.

Another significant development for the HHEC is our move to a new location for office and classrooms in the Hamilton Carriage House at 310 N. 4th St. The main conference room, which the HEC calls its “seminar room,” has wireless connectivity and is spacious, comfortable, and well-lighted with windows on three sides. It might be as pleasant a classroom space as any at the University. In the fall we will still have a number of our classes meeting at Hamilton High School, especially so we may have the advantage of the exceptionally fine science labs.

I sense that over time the Hamilton HEC is coming to be recognized as having its own identity in the public awareness. Many people in the Valley have seen the Higher Education Center as an extension of the University of Montana College of Technology, but that’s not actually the case. The College of Technology is thriving in all its programs, notably in the Department of Health Professions but really in all departments. Long-range plans have the COT greatly expanding its facilities in Missoula. However, the COT has no plans at all to expand as a physical presence in the Bitterroot Valley. There is no discussion of that at the University.

This is how I would want you to understand the Hamilton HEC in relation to the College of Technology. In the academic year 07-08, which ended in May, most, but not all, HEC classes were COT courses. The HEC also offered a few courses from the College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Education.

Now in the Hamilton HEC 5-week Summer Session, starting June 16, we offer one College of Technology intermediate-level computer class (CRT 111 “Fluency in Information Technology”), and two courses from the College of Arts and Sciences—BIOL 100N The Science of Life, and from the English department ENEX101 Composition, which is a course I will teach.

Later in June the HEC will announce 10 or so classes for the Fall 08 semester and about the same number for Spring 09. Counting our three summer classes, for the coming academic year the HEC will likely list 23 or 24 new classes. About half will be COT courses, and the other half will come from other University divisions, such as Arts and Sciences and the College of Forestry and Conservation.

Simply put, the Hamilton HEC is not the same as the COT. I am not a College of Technology administrator; I am, rather, an administrator responsible to the University Provost and the President and senior administrators in Main Hall at the University. However, although there is that administrative distinction between the Hamilton HEC and the UM COT, the two will maintain a close and vitally important connection -- for two reasons.

First, the College of Technology is the only University division whose courses lead to the Associate degrees (earned with approximately 60 credits) and certificates (earned with approximately 30 credits). So the COT is the most direct progression towards a UM degree and diploma (or certificate, for a few one-year programs). This fits with the Regents’ and University’s overall plan for the Hamilton HEC.

The second important reason for a close and on-going relationship with the College of Technology has to do with lower tuition and fees. The regents expect the cost for course credits for students in Associate degree or certificate programs to be the lowest at the University. Because Hamilton HEC students are permitted to enter the University with an application for admission to the UM College of Technology, the cost for a course at the Hamilton HEC is the same low rate as for COT students, and lower than for students in other University divisions.

For example, the cost of a 3-credit course at the HHEC this summer – in Biology, or English (Composition), or Computer Information Technology – is $395, plus a $30 application fee and the cost of textbooks. The same 3-credit courses taught in Missoula through the College of Arts and Sciences cost $657. The classes taught in Hamilton cost $217 less.

These Hamilton HEC classes are always listed in the UM catalogue by the same course number and same course description; they are coded into the University database, “Banner,” and are recorded as credits on an official UM transcript. University of Montana courses usually transfer readily to other colleges and universities. One of my serious responsibilities is to advise students in planning their courses and determining, in advance, whether summer courses will transfer along the lines of their college plans, if they are already admitted to another college in the fall.

Congratulations and good wishes to you, the hundreds of Bitterroot Valley new graduates! We hope to have twelve to fifteen students in each of our three summer courses, so we are recruiting you! We won’t divert you from your college plans for the fall, but we will encourage you to think a college course here and now -- in Hamilton, this summer -- is a significant advantage. You can get one essential college class out of the way and in advance of enrollment this fall.

And even if you do not have college plans in your immediate future, the Hamilton HEC might be a way to try out your interest in college. Our summer Hamilton classes are listed in today’s paper. You may call me at my office at 363-5410, ext. 115, or send an email to HYPERLINK "mailto:frank.laurence@umontana.edu" frank.laurence@umontana.edu. By the end of this week, we expect to launch our new website, which is www.hamiltonhec.edu.

Letters to the Editor

Who is deceiving whom?

Dear Editor,

Apparently Dallas Erickson is an expert on deceit. Based on his slanderous remarks about Ron Paul, you might even say he is the master of it. It is hard to even know where to begin to debunk all the garbage that belches from his confused mind. I guess the beginning of his Ravalli Republic article of May 1 is a good place. He likens Ron Paul to the ACLU. Let me say that basically I hate the ACLU but I love Ron Paul. But in all fairness I must say that the ACLU is not always wrong. Even a broken clock is right twice a day.

Dallas accuses Ron Paul of being in favor of child pornography. Ron Paul despises pornography of all kinds, but true to his oath of office to uphold the Constitution, he says the passing of laws regarding such issues should be left to the individual states. He resists the Federal government usurping more and more power from the states, issuing a “one size fits all” policy.

Dallas quotes an Internet article called, “pimping for Ron Paul” as some sort of evidence Ron Paul supports prostitution. He fails to note that Ron Paul had more campaign contributions in Montana than all the other candidates combined. Does that mean that all Montanans are prostitutes for Ron Paul? Ron Paul has received more contributions from those in the military than all candidates combined. Are they all pimps too? Speaking of pimping, why don’t we talk about “pimping for Wal-Mart”? Are we to believe all those paid for signatures and glossy brochures mailed out were the sole humanitarian effort of Dallas? And speaking of pornography, what about Dallas’s hero, George Bush? I am referring to the 2005 NRCC’s multi-million dollar fundraiser dinner with the president, attended by personally invited hard core pornographer Mark Kulkis and his top porn star Mary Carey. Kulkis said it was an evening that would “make pop-culture history” - the intersection of the most powerful man in the world and the hard-core world of celebrity sex performer Carey.

Dallas makes the ridiculous statement that you can legislate morality. His solution is having government make more laws forcing people to be moral. If that worked, then how does he explain that the last 30 years of his efforts to enact such laws, together with both Bush administrations, have accomplished nothing but the steady increase in proliferation of porn? To be moral or immoral is a matter of choice, period. Laws can be a deterrent but bottom line: it is still a choice. The old joke goes: There are a lot of people alive, simply because it is against the law to kill them. Obviously we can’t avoid the consequences of our choices. What Ron Paul objects to is the feds overstepping their very limited authority in the Constitution and trampling on states’ rights.

Dallas also misses the whole point where he addresses the abortion issue. This issue should never have been decided in any venue other than each individual state. It is a graphic example of a handful of people usurping the authority of all 50 states.

Dallas has had the Interstate Commerce Clause explained to him by experts, but you might as well try to teach trigonometry to a fence post. Dallas is a self-appointed one man “supreme court” and he is the final authority on what the founding fathers really meant.

He points out that the Republican Central Committee members are supposed to protect the party from RINOs. The question that begs to be answered then is why, as a member of that Committee, is Dallas attacking the only true Republican, and giving a free pass to Gary MacLaren whose 2007 voting record shows that 71% of the time he voted with the Democrats? Sadly, some of the others are nearly as bad.

Now let’s look at Ron Paul’s record. He has never voted to raise taxes, never voted for an unbalanced budget, never voted for a restriction on gun ownership, never voted for a congressional pay raise, never taken a government paid junket, never voted to increase power of the executive branch, never been involved with the CFR, never strayed from the Constitution, never waffled on issues. Ron Paul voted against the Patriot Act, against regulating the internet, against the Iraq war. He does not participate in the lucrative Congressional Pension Plan, he does return a portion of his annual Congressional office budget to the U.S. Treasury each year, he is known as Dr. No in Congress because the answer is always “no” to the lobbyists who come with their pet projects if it does not square with the Constitution.

Dr. Ron Paul has delivered over 4,000 babies and has never seen a justifiable reason for an abortion. He has been married to the same woman for 51 years, has five children, 18 grandchildren, and one great grandchild. And no skeletons in his closet.

Yes, I agree the Republican Party needs to wake up and realize there are wolves among the flock and one is named Dallas.

For anyone interested in the records of any presidential candidates, Republican or Democrat, I suggest the website http://knowbeforeyouvote.com.

Dewey Baker
Florence

Opposed to Ron Paul

Dear Editor,

It is interesting to see the support for Ron Paul in certain parts of Montana. The fact is, if you like the ACLU you will love Ron Paul. It seems that he has the Christians fooled about his libertarian positions but the sex workers just love him as do those who want no controls on child pornography, obscenity, prostitution and drugs. A search on the internet involving the words “pimping for Ron Paul” is a very revealing search.

Some of my friends who used to support laws concerning obscenity and to protect children from harmful pornography have denied it when I have pointed out that Ron Paul takes the classic Libertarian position that the American Civil Liberties Union takes, and ACLU does NOT stand for Anti Christian Lawyers Union. It has “Libertarian” in the name of the organization and reflects Paul’s exact positions on most of the moral issues including homosexual marriage.

“I think the government’s role should not be involved in personal habits. When you defend freedom, you defend freedom of choice, and you can’t be picking and choosing how people use those freedoms… whether it’s personal behavior or economic behavior, I want people to have freedom of choice” is a quote from an interview with John Stossell. It can be found at: http://www.thelibertypapers.org/2007/12/12/john-stossel-interviews-ron-paul-on-legalizing-drugs-and-prostitution/

He says that governments cannot "legislate virtue." This is the same claim of the liberals and the ACLU supporters that, “You cannot legislate morality.” This is a lie. Show me a law that does NOT legislate someone's morality or virtue or lack thereof. The courts legislated that abortion was fine and OK at a time when it was against the law in every state and a vast majority of Americans were opposed to it. In this case the courts legislated immoral behavior and now it is legal in all states and 50% of Americans feel it is fine to kill the unborn.

I encourage you to watch the video and listen closely. He first says he is in favor of the state handling drug issues and pornography issues and then he lets his core beliefs hang out and that is that drugs, prostitution, gay marriage, pornography, including child pornography, should be "free choice" issues. In other places he calls them "liberty" issues and says there should be no laws on any level concerning those issues.

Paul is a sly fox because he knows that the people will accept the premise, that he repeats often, that laws against obscenity and child pornography should be done away with on a federal level. He says such laws on a federal level are unconstitutional. (Actually those issues are addressed under the Interstate Commerce Clause of the First Amendment which was written to be very broad by our Founding Fathers). He very seldom tells what his true Libertarian positions are because he knows full well the people in America do not support the ACLU positions on these issues which his beliefs mirror.

The family leaders that support a presidential candidate that is opposed to laws against drugs and obscenity and homosexual marriage are not considering the devastating effect such positions would have on the family.

The fact that the Libertarian supporters of Ron Paul were successful in taking over the Republican Party in Missoula County and Lake County is a poor reflection on Republicans in general and the state of the Republican Party in Montana. Central Committee members are supposed to protect the Party from Republicans In Name Only (RINOs) whether they be from the socialistic Democrats or the extreme left Libertarians.

In Ravalli County we were able to keep the Central Committee closely representing the people in the Valley even though we picked up three good Central Committee members who support Paul.

The contrast between Paul’s lack of integrity by continuing to spend people’s money on a fight he admits is not winnable and Mitt Romney’s early pull out because he did not want to waste people’s money on a fight that he could not win is very revealing.

I hope our Republicans and our Republican Party wake up before we find our Party renamed the Everything Goes Party because everything should be our “choice.” I cannot think of anything that would cause us to increase our “slouch toward Gomorrah” into a full gallop than such a belief.

Dallas D. Erickson
Stevensville

Support for Weitzel

Dear Editor,

For the very first time, we have made the decision to openly endorse a candidate for County Commissioner. We are so impressed with Republican “Lady” Jake Weitzel that she is our choice in the primary election on June 3rd. Rarely have we ever seen a candidate with such strong moral integrity as Mrs. Weitzel. She is so personable and likable, and has such strong views about her service to the people, that we are asking for your support also, on her behalf.

For the last few months, we have been invited guests to the campaign strategy meetings held by Jake Weitzel and her campaign staff. The first thing we noticed is the passion she displays for striving to keep the high quality of life we all enjoy here in the Bitterroot. Jake has lived in the Bitterroot for 27 years and she understands the needs of the people here. She will fight for the rights of all citizens who see their valley slowly slipping away to big developers, special interest groups, higher taxes, poor air and water quality, and all the things that huge influxes of new people brings.

Jake is dismayed by the many actions her opponent has taken to ignore the law, and then misrepresent those actions to the people of Ravalli County. An example is how he flip-flops on the Zoning issue, depending on who he is talking to. Enough is enough. An incumbent has to provide proof that they are worthy of being retained in office. We do not feel Mr. Chilcott has earned re-election.

It is our opinion that each County Commissioner has been given a chance to either improve the valley according to the will of their constituents, or deny that will in favor of their own personal agendas. If they do nothing to further the quality of life of county residents, then they need to be voted out of office. Simple as that. They should not get a second chance. You, the voters, have reduced the Commissioner’s terms from six years down to four years. That is long enough to accurately evaluate their performance. If you are dissatisfied with the way things are going in Ravalli County, then vote out the incumbents.

We have looked at Mr. Chilcott’s voting record, and have found it to be heavily weighted in favor of developers and the valley elite. Jake Weitzel will not fall into that trap. She is a proven leader, with 5-1/2 years on the Stevensville Town Council, as well as numerous other community service positions. She will not tolerate corruption or incompetence of any kind. In 2003, she even led the movement to oust a former Stevensville mayor, who ultimately resigned rather than face the recall election. She is a no-nonsense, hard working and ethical individual, who will not be swayed by big money, or out-of-state influence.

Make a difference at the local level. Vote Republican in the June 3rd primary, and please consider Lady Jake Weitzel. Finally - a candidate you can depend on.

Lorraine Crotty & Bob Frost
Hamilton

Support for Stranahan

Dear Editor,

The recent debates have shown us a clear winner in Chuck Stranahan. He brought fresh ideas and new thoughts to the table. As an experienced administrator and proven leader he was able to pinpoint problems and articulate solutions.

Chuck has a vision of this County which is different from the same, tired and weary examination of past arguments. His background in business development can assist this county in bringing clean industry and keeping young people here to build a career. Older workers will find good jobs in clean industry. In building a tax base, present citizens can be freed from the dread of continuing to pay for new development and failing infrastructure through ever rising property taxes.

A background and training in administration gives Chuck Stranahan the ability to bring individuals of varied background to sound decisions. Many of the problems we have are based on old strife and fears. Fresh thoughts and innovative thinking can clear the air.

Stranahan respects the agricultural base of Ravalli County and understands the needs of farmers and ranchers. He knows that the builders need predictability and the old threats of lawsuits are not the way to solve each conflict. The large number of retirees here want stable taxes, not continued tax raises to subsidize out- of- county developers.

He is a man of faith and character who did not say one thing in Lone Rock and another in Hamilton. He can be counted on to keep his word, and his word for one group will not be different from what he says to another group. He doesn’t repeat the ideas of others as his own. Please attend the remaining debates and see for yourself. We need a person of his character in our Commission. It is time to begin anew.

It is time for vision. Chuck Stranahan is not looking for a political career. He is looking for a better Ravalli County based not on causing division between various groups but solving problems and getting on with planning a better life for all citizens.

Kathie Roubik
Hamilton

Chilcott hasn’t kept promises

Dear Editor,

Citizens and voters, don’t make the same mistake twice. In 2002, Greg Chilcott stated that if he was elected “he would practice the three L’s: listen to the county residents and employees, learn their issues and lead the way to resolution.” (Ravalli Republic, April 14, 2002). He should not get your vote because he has failed to keep his campaign promises.

He learned the issues regarding growth in our county and he deliberately gutted the Growth Policy shortly after taking office. He did so after volunteers spent thousands of hours of their time on a workable document to help curb development into the proper areas of the county. So, instead of learning and listening to the people, he lied to them. Through his actions he has tried to lead the county down a path of development disaster.

Then he said that he would lead people to resolution. The only people that he led to resolution were the developers of this county that filed suit against the county last year. Chilcott did not listen to the citizens of this county or listen to the requests for information regarding the Lords et al lawsuit. Instead, he turned a deaf ear to the citizens and behind closed doors struck an illegal deal with the plaintiffs allowing their subdivisions to be reviewed under the old rules previous to the 1 per 2 zoning initiative. Yes, the same initiative that the majority of voters voted for. He violated constitutional rights and the rights to view public documents. He also violated the public trust.

Let us not make the same mistake twice.

Shaen McElravy
Stevensville

Can our property rights and valley be preserved?

Dear Editor,

This comment will not focus on the details of the plan for the comprehensive zoning of Ravalli County. To discuss such matters as land use, allowable businesses, population density, and other subjects as has been done without first looking at the fundamental question of preservation of individual property rights seems to be an absolutely critical error.

Nothing that has been accomplished up to this time by those individuals engaged in zoning of Ravalli County can be accepted unless it preserves the personal property rights of our citizens.

It has been said that we must accept some abridgement of those rights for the "good of the entire community." I totally reject that philosophy! I believe, as did those whose sacrifices gave us our liberties, that the preservation of our property rights is the bedrock upon which our nation is founded, and which makes us unique among the nations of the earth.

I also believe that we are capable of accomplishing the worthy goal of preserving what God has given us here in the Bitterroot and can do it without breaking faith with those whose words and deeds have given us American freedom. We must stop the zoning mechanism as it is now constituted and rethink the entire question. Let us turn our talent to developing a way which preserves our valley and our God-given rights!

If you agree with this, your choice for Ravalli County Commissioners is of critical importance. I respectfully request you vote for Greg Chilcott and J.R. Iman.

Bill Hester
Florence

Cost of a latte a day?

Dear Editor,

The folks attempting to get the Corvallis school bond of $23.5 million passed are advising people that it will cost a “latte” a day in increased taxes. Well, me being a farmer/rancher, I have never had a “latte,” so I had to do a little investigating.

For those of you who don’t know, the cost of a “latte” varies in price whether you get a tall, grande, dirty or skinny, etc. But the average cost came to about $4.00 per day. I did a little addition and came up with about $120 per month at 12 months a year and my taxes increased by about $1440 for a year.

I applied that figure to some of my costs of ranching/farming and this is what I can relate it to:

• 18 tons of hay

• ? mile of fencing

• 720 dozen eggs

• 480 pounds of hamburger

• 360 gallons of gas

• 6 tons of grain

Citizens need to keep in mind that this figure of $1440 is in addition to the taxes that they currently pay, so on average I can more than double the above figures!

In today’s economy I think that the Corvallis school board should get back to thinking along the lines of a plain old cup of black coffee.

Wally Weber
Corvallis

Beware of zoning

Dear Editor,

Zoning and planning are the current hot issues in Ravalli County. There are plenty of horror stories, from local folks, about their personal experiences with zoning in other states.

A recent opinion piece in the Bitterroot Star, by Corvallis resident David Merrick, seemed to sum things up in a non-emotional and logical manner. He wrote, in reference to the last 150 years of settlement of the valley, … “the planning was done by those who lived and invested their time or fortune in the Bitterroot. Now, a majority of the electorate have been convinced an emergency exists and control must be given to a few elected authorities and their appointed planners in order to save this valley.” He further quotes the often heard, “The county’s growth and unchecked development is out of control.” and asks the question, “Out of whose control?”

Another question, now routinely being asked by concerned property owners, is why out of state firms like Clarion, and out of state money from The Brainard Foundation, are being used to influence, plan and dictate the lives and liberty of this little Western Montana county? Is there an unseen motive?

Further, why are a couple of local Commissioner candidates running as Republicans, when there is no indication of their affiliation with the GOP? I see no evidence of Republicans running as Democrats. If a candidate cannot be honest about his party affiliation (and run under a false banner) how can he be expected to be honest in office?

David S. Hurtt
Florence

Open letter to commissioners

Dear Editor,

I've been wondering something.

Would you three liberally minded commissioners please stop playing the role of dictators and just do the job we hired you to do? And stop speaking for us? Specifically you, Carlotta.

We can and do speak for ourselves and it is obvious that you are not hearing us.

It is quite clear that your goal is to promptly zone our private property rights away, right from under our noses.

You need to know that we will do everything we need to do to keep you from doing this to us. It certainly is not for us. You should be embarrassed and ashamed.

Carlotta, you say you don't see any point for a meeting that would pit community members against each other, and that there is no support for a measure allowing us to vote on zoning.

Do you ever see any of our points?

You need to acknowledge our numbers and the support there really is for a measure allowing us to vote on zoning.

Carlotta, your comments makes no sense. Haven't you noticed that yourself? You don't, you know, lie, do you?

We Ravalli citizens do not agree with you and what you are trying to do to us.

We are already together, and in agreement, on the fact that we want no zoning, and that we want all Ravalli County citizens to vote regarding zoning. Nobody is ever heard saying they want you to make decisions for them. On zoning or anything else. They want to vote, of course.

Your goofy decisions lead to more government control and higher taxes, and need to be overturned. You should have jumped at the chance to let the builders pave 8-Mile. Ouch, there go my taxes rising up again.

My family and I want to know how many citizens called you and told you that they are FOR voting on zoning.

Commissioner Chilcott IS correct.

Voting on zoning IS the right thing to do.

Cathy Kulonis
Stevensville

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