In one decision, John McCain has reshuffled the election deck — especially in the West. His pick of Idaho native Sarah Palin for vice president means McCain has a good chance to win Montana, Nevada, New Mexico and maybe even Colorado, which were all leaning toward Barack Obama. If she doesn’t screw up, builds on […]
A Western woman redefines the presidential race
Posted inRnc 08
To our friends at grist.org
Dear Gristies, You may have gotten the best clean-coal-related video snippet of the conventions. But did you get one of these awesome hats? Will trade for a beer, if by some chance you’re still in the Twin Cities. Rob
Posted inWotr
Longing for the way it never was
When I was a child and stayed with my grandparents in their house at the top of a cactus-studded hill, I cherry-picked their library, which ran floor to ceiling along the entrance hall. I figured Grandpa was the one who read Zane Grey — half a dozen of Grey’s exotic titles were lined up together […]
Posted inWotr
Size matters with “green” bragging rights
I was reading the Boulder County Business Report recently when an article about the “greenest home in North America” caught my eye. The house was being built to fulfill the dream of a businessman who specializes in renewable energy. At first glance, Ronald Abramson’s project, now breaking ground 10 miles north of Boulder, Colo., seemed […]
Posted inWotr
A town’s downtown is the new (old) way to live
The sun rises over the mountains and floods my room with light. I lie in bed and listen to the cooing of conspiring pigeons on the roof. I’ve lately moved from Cody, Wyo., to Salmon, Idaho. Cody, like other towns surrounding Yellowstone National Park, has become an expensive place to live, especially for a freelance […]
Posted inRnc 08
Getting enough outside time?
Sarah Palin loves the environment, at least according to the bio video they just played on the big screen here at the Xcel Center. But she doesn’t seem to be spending too much time outside in it, despite living amidst what’s arguably some of the most beautiful scenery in existence. The video features the requisite panoramas […]
Posted inRnc 08
Palin’s identity politics
Everyone expected Sarah Palin’s speech last night to be long on biography and short on concrete policy proposals. Focusing on herself and her story — with occasional jabs at Obama — was what she had to do to keep from being defined by that gosh-darn liberal commentariat, which doesn’t think she’s qualified to be VP. […]
Posted inGoat
Score one for whistleblowers
A federal whistleblower will finally get a settlement from the agency that fired him four years ago. Former BLM staffer Earle Dixon, who was in charge of cleanup at the abandoned Yerington copper mine in Nevada, says he was fired in October 2004 after one year of work for informing local residents and the media […]
Posted inRnc 08
Pickens pitches his plan
If you’ve watched TV recently, you’ve almost certainly heard from T. Boone Pickens. He’s the Republican oil billionaire who recently saw the light on the need for alternative energy and has sponsored a flood of windmill-porn TV ads to make sure the rest of America gets the message. Now he’s taking his pitch straight to […]
Posted inHeard Around the West
Don’t mention it
Muhammad Ali Hasan, the Republican candidate for the State House in pricey Summit County, Colo., told the Vail Daily that, as part of his campaign, he’s taken a vow of celibacy until January. His Democrat opponent, incumbent Christine Scanlan, commented, “Oh, my goodness. That probably falls in the ‘too much information’ category. Yeek.”
Posted inAugust 25, 2008: Hot Wheels
Not even the privileged can deter a porcupine
When folks build homes (or mansions) next to wilderness, they are often shocked to learn that the wilderness is, in fact, wild. Critters they once thought of as cute and charming are suddenly villainous and voracious, devouring flower beds, tunneling under irrigation systems, even munching on pricey trees dropped into the landscape by crane. And […]
Posted inRnc 08
The future of the Idaho GOP?
I have seen the future of the Idaho Republican party. His name is Brett Peterson, he’s a 24-year-old student at BYU-Idaho, and he’s in favor of more domestic oil and gas drilling. So much in favor of it that he showed up at the Democratic convention with a group of college Republicans who proceeded to […]
Posted inRnc 08
Ron Paul rallies in the Twin Cities
The West has always had a libertarian streak, and the 2008 election year has proved no exception. Ron Paul, the Republican U.S. house member from Texas who was the favored presidential candidate of his party’s libertarian wing, did an amazing job fundraising in the West. (This may be a better indicator of support than the […]
Posted inGoat
Read our tweets
The High Country News team is jumping headlong into the Web 2.0 world. Our most recent social networking adventure is happening on Twitter — an online application that allows our reporters and editors to provide short, quick updates, via cell phone or computer, about our work as it unfolds. In addition to writing blog posts, […]
Posted inGoat
New GOP tax policy?
Like most Americans, I can’t say I know much about the governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin. But I have read that during her relatively brief tenure, she’s been a reformer who fought to raise taxes on oil companies, and then used the money to distribute $1,200 checks to Alaska residents. This could be a winning […]
Posted inAugust 25, 2008: Hot Wheels
Two weeks in the West
Twenty years ago, wildfire blackened 1 million acres in and near Yellowstone National Park, caused more than $3 million in property damage, and killed two firefighters. Such humongous wildfires will become more and more common in Western states as the climate warms, according to dozens of researchers. The latest such report, from the National Wildlife […]
Posted inAugust 25, 2008: Hot Wheels
Fifty summers and 360 degrees
One woman’s lifetime spotting fires
Posted inAugust 25, 2008: Hot Wheels
All along the watchtower
A weekend shift with Washington’s Fire Gatekeeper
Posted inRnc 08
Lions and tigers and anarchists, oh my!
“Make sure you put these credentials in your pocket as soon as you step out of the convention center. The protesters are going through the streets looking for people who are here for the convention. Wearing your credentials around your neck will make you a target.” These were the stern words that the man handing […]