Going Haywire in a Global Economy

Much of the hay cut in local fields this summer was bailed up not for neighbors with livestock and farm animals. Instead, those with farm animals had to eat it: no, they didn’t eat the hay, they ate the consequences of a global market that snatched up the bails and shipped them off to the orient. Fields that once fed local animals cashed in on global prices. The buyers- mainly Japanese and Korean- were interested in high quality hay grown without genetic modification. This year, Montana fit the bill.
Rumor has it that 100 semi-truck loads of hay left St. Ignatius in the middle of the night and convoyed their way to Pacific ports in the Seattle area in the beginning of October. Those with connections didn’t suffer. Like any successful business ploy, the growers/ ranch owners in the know simply kept their mouths shut and provided small quantities of hay to their cronies whilst keeping an adequate stash for themselves. Meanwhile, the many area residents with just enough farm land to house a few horses or other livestock were left scrambling for hay.
The price of hay doubled, jumping from an average of $85 a ton to $170 a ton. Hay from Canada and eastern Montana replaced the hay that was once so accessible: product that was once provided in the local marketplace was now being exported out of the area. Resource that was once manufactured (and in this case grown) was now being exported elsewhere. Hay buyers in the Flathead, Lake, Sanders and Lincoln counties were now competing with buyers from Japan and Korea in a global marketplace.

Japan and Korea are getting the better deal: the dollar’s value decreasing increases export potential. And more overseas buyers receive a better product- in this case a Montana one- at our expense. Not only does the cost of hay double while the dollar is weak (making other nations’ currency stronger), but the quality of the hay can be dubious. For the most part, Canadian hay growers still grow “clean” hay, as do farmers in Montana. Yet sometimes, the “clean” hay, grown without genetic modification gets replaced with a genetically engineered substitute, as was found at the Kalispell Cenex. Labeled as “weed free”, the hay was marketed as superior to the buyer. The telling sign, however, was how animals poked noses at the hay uninterested, looking around for the real hay to show up.
The real hay is being fed overseas (again- Japan and Korea) where governments continue to resist pressures from agribusiness and buyers are privy to the unproven safeness of genetically engineered product. They won’t accept any feed into their countries that is genetically modified; be it for animal or human consumption. And in Europe, labeling of food that is GM is strict: most of it has been phased out in the last ten years, despite the aggressive tactics for GM products. Meanwhile, back in the US of A, GM products are everywhere and on the rise, in food and drug and in this case hay, without any labeling for the consumer to make a realistic choice. I guess this is what happens when Monsanto employees become FDA members and visa versa. Go figure.
Small farmers have always been a threat to big business interest. Small farmers represent independence and community cohesion. When resource is extracted out of a rich geographical area and the residents of the geographical area are paying for the extraction in so many of the above ways, we are no longer operating as a state within the good ole US of A. We are operating much like a third world country indebted to a world bank. After all, U.S. citizens are collectively part of a debtor nation as well as carrying individual debt loads that would abhor many first world or even developing world countries' citizens.
I will never forget talking to a farmer friend of mine that lives near Hot Springs when the whole hay shortage event was being played out. I called her to tell her that if she hadn’t bought all her hay for the winter, she better buy it quick. No, she said she hadn’t bought all her hay for winter and she had already taken out a bank loan to by what she had put up. Hay is cut a bit earlier in Sanders County, so she had a bigger window of time to secure hay before the price shot up than those farmers living further north. She was completely oblivious to the global tactics that were being implemented out in the innocent looking hay field. Interestingly enough, she did get one clue that a stealth force was lurking when she went to her local feed store. The words of warning uttered to her were, “Beware, the wolf is at your door.”

Reflections on Flathead Media

I first noticed the Beacon back in December 2007. Being familiar with Missoula’s Independent, I found myself constantly comparing and contrasting the two. First impression told me the Beacon was smart, the image I was seeing was sporty and sleek, like a celebrity. It wasn’t until later that I discovered the paper was owned by celebrities Maury Pauvich and Connie Chung, who own a home in the Flathead. The Independent, on the other hand, has been criticized by many as advertising sleaze. However you classify dirt, it looks like it takes dirt to grow a grass roots style newspaper.

But I like that the Beacon is clean and doesn’t advertise sleaze- no cigarette ads no matter how “organic” the tobacco and no dating services. And the size of the Beacon is slightly smaller to flip from front to back. And what looks like the quality of paper they print on (recycled or non-recycled) has that subtle glossy feel to it. Part of staying in the newspaper print game these days does take a tactile edge in the market place. Even if your paper is free. Internet news doesn’t hold the memories I associate of print newspaper: waking up at 6:00a.m. at my mother’s house in Whitefish, stoking the fire and reading the Daily Interlake that has already been delivered to her front door. You get the picture. The Interlake holds fond memories, even if I don’t agree with the editor on the topic of global warming. I am a connoisseur of news, no matter what the medium. I appreciate all the media in our area, even if I don’t agree with the many viewpoints that are shared or exposed.

I just don’t think Bucky Walford should have his mall, for instance. This is more than just a stoplight issue, it is an environmental issue. And I don’t think that the Whitefish city council is petty. Any small victory gained by Whitefish civil servants for the good of many should be applauded. For the most part, I like what Whitefish has grown into in the last thirty eight years (which being my age is about how long I have watched Whitefish grow). And if bureaucracy slows things down, maybe this could be viewed in terms of a speed limit on growth. After all, haste makes waste. All this was stirred in me the second day of the year, with my new Beacon issue as I sat with my feet kicked back watching the snow fall and contemplating the editor’s advice for the various towns in Flathead County. I liked the roust for local government, but the words were like a jagged little pill for this little local girl.

All this rousting going on, all this **it being stirred- and for what reason? The Interlake had a headline a few weeks back- something about Muhlfield- the Whitefish city council fellow who was guilty of sleeping at his girlfriend’s house- that made him sound like a criminal. When mountains are made out of molehills, one wonders what the intent is. Last week’s Pilot quoted Tim Gratten, an area developer in on the mountain-making (and mountain making in more ways than one if you know the Gratten family) as, “just wanting to stir things up.” Jeesh. Is it really worth the effort? This sounds like the escapades of a little boy on the playground. And it has the whole valley in a tizzy.

The Beacon will have its place at the news stand. It has the money to do so. I no longer compare it to the Independent, which has returned to- in my mind- its rightful position as the only independent newspaper. Meanwhile, the media players are kicking up the dust on the playground. Let just hope that our emotions stirred won’t cloud the view.

-Kris Neckermann

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Forest Service in Contempt?

The headlines today about the Forest

Hold the Forest Service in Contempt?

Wow, this sounds Serious.

I wonder every summer, in a time where technology is so amazing, there still is no way to put out a forest fire. I mean no real techy invention that would suck the element form the air that fire needs or some high teck gadget to make fire simply be gone?

The Forest Service Does Not Care about putting out Forest Fires. They HAVE to care when homes are in danger so than the planes come in with the poison that is dropped on the forest, polluting the waters, killing the fish and poisoning the wildlife.

With today’s technology you would think that there could be something bio-degradable and more friendly to the plants, people, wildlife and water. If you live in an area that has been through this you know that it may be easier recovering from the fire than from the deep red redartdant that is dropped from planes to protect you from fire.

I, as an ex-Forest Service Employee am VERY excited at what Judge Donald Molloy of Missoula Montana has said. He speaks the truth. Few will go up against Forest Service Policy. I, for one, think that the Forest Service has a whole lot of “skeletons in the closet” and its time to clean it up.


The Forest Service has violated ," the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act, he wrote. " and seems to be above the law. I thought that the Forest Service, being a government agency was possibly somehow Above the Law. But it looks like One Jude cares about the air we breath, the water we drink


Judge Donald Molloy Even went as far as to suggest that Agriculture Undersecretary Mark Rey be put in jail. This is awesome, accountability is something that the Forest Service, surely is not use to.

Fire is Organic, the Polluntant they drop to fight it could kill all living life in its path.

Why Do I make the Comment that “the forest service does not care about putting out fires?.” Last Summer, comments were made that suggested that the FS felt they had the Star Meadow fire handled, another words, it did not go out till late fall and mostly do to the weather, the fire jumped every line that was put into place, yet when the fire pointed away from residential areas the FS felt it a success, however, the let the Forest Burn.

This of Course is MY OPINION. However, I was at a Ranger Station working several years back, it was mid afternoon, and a lighting strike had been spotted, they sent a gal up to check it out, she radioed the condition of the small fire back to the station, the head Fire Chief chose to NOT send anyone up to help, there was a FULL crew waiting for such an event, and yet He chose to NOT any of them up to Help.

After a few hours the fire was out of control, it was in a proposed wilderness where there was no logging, by the time a crew got there they had to take a bulldozer and build primitive roads to get to it. This fire did end up endangering homes but did not burn any.

But what did happen is the mountainside is forever scarred, and the fire opened the area up to “Salvage Logging”. In an area where trail crews had to use horses to haul materials for bridges and to fix lookouts so they could abide by the proposed wilderness guidelines, there was allowed every piece of equipment needed to fight the fire and than to log the area. Had it not been burned, it would not have been able to be logged. So it is my opinion that they let it burn on purpose, there really is no other reason that makes sense.


A Note on the FS meeting and the Bitterroot and all THESE issues that coming up about Your Forest:

Folks, Please be Careful out there. With the news in Darby over a public meeting and rumors of death threats, your “opinion” or you speaking the “truth” could just put you in serious danger. I have seen documentaries on environmental issues in Montana, and personally know folks that ended up in accidents because they wanted to “protect the water the drank and the air they breath”.

Northwest Montana Real Estate

Northwest Montana Real Estate Marketing


Sellers – the Realtors are asleep at the wheel. The Northwest Montana Realtors DO NOT get Internet Marketing and this HURTS you.

Realtors ~ Wake UP.

Your competition is giving you a thrashing. Big Companies online that do get Internet Marketing are taking the Internet Traffic that should be yours and Selling it back to You for a Premium, they call themselves Lead Generation Companies.

Some Realtors still believe the only website they need is their company website. Though more and more real estate agents have individual websites and even build specialized websites for each listing ( which their franchise owns the website), they STILL do not really understand targeted internet marketing and this makes it so that YOU sell for less and take more time doing it.

Who DOES Get Internet Marketing in Flathead Valley Real Estate?

For 3 years now ONLY a handful of Northwest Montana Realtors have marketed YOUR real estate in the Major Search Engines.

These Realtors GET your Listings found First because they bid on search Terms in Yahoo and Google to be at the top of the List when Buyers are Searching for Your Real Estate For Sale.

When you Search, for example, Whitefish Real Estate, You will note at the top and on the sides are what is called “Sponsored Results” Those People Pay to Be There. The only Real Estate Offices Marketing in the Search Engines for “Whitefish Real Estate” are:

NationalParksRealty.com
They set out on a massive online marketing campaign around 3 years ago bidding on search terms like “northwest montana” “kalispell real estate” “whitefish real estate” “flathead lake real estate” and lots more Northwest Montana Real Estate Terms. This ALONE, put this Bran New Real Estate office located in Whitefish Montana

WhitefishLandOffice.com


WhitefishRealEstateGuide.com


Whitefish Remax office


If you Search “Kalispell Real Estate”, The Only Realtors marketing in the search engines where the buyers are looking are:

Century21.com
Which is the National C21 Franchise, This gets traffic to the main franchise website and not necessarily to your Kalispell Real Estate for Sale.

NationalParksRealty.com

ERA.com
Again a Franchise and not a Local Site.

DaveObe.com

MontanaDream.com

JustinBurt.TopSeller.net

At Different times of the day and weekends these search results are different depending on when YOUR Realtor decides is best to market THEIR company and their website to get potential buyers to look at their website before the other thousand agents in the Flathead Valley. Funny, so much competition, yet only approximately 5 real estate offices over the last 3 years are marketing in the search engines where buyers are looking.

The Northwest Montana Realtors are still ALL caught up in spending HUGE amounts of money to Market Your Real Estate for Sale in the local Newspaper. This makes NO Sense. The Buyers are looking on the Internet and the Newspaper ADS are a Waste of Your Money.

The Realtors, of course, expense these ads, still print advertising makes no sense in 2008. If your Buyers are looking online for your real estate as an option to buy and your Realtor is so busy stuck in “Old Media” than that is No Good for You.

Especially in the unique Real Estate Climate the Nation is in Right Now.

There are So Many homes going in, in the Flathead Valley. This directly affects Supply and Demand, and NOW more than ever YOU need your Real Estate to Stand Out as a Better Option. Print Ads CANNOT do This.

With so much competition in Northwest Montana Real Estate and Almost all real estate buyers looking on the Internet for real estate to buy you need to get those eyes looking at your real estate FIRST.

If your Realtor Does Not Get This. YOUR in Big Trouble.

The Flathead Valley Realtors have a Website to market you with all their other listings but that’s as far as they go to “getting internet markeing”.

BUYERS are finding the For Sale By Owner that “gets internet marketing” or Your Competition BEFORE they Find You.

With All of This in Mind, You ARE Better off Building a Website for your Northwest Montana or Flathead Valley Real Estate and marketing in the Search Engines where YOUR Buyers are looking for you and Your Realtors are Not Marketing You.

If your Not Where the Buyers are, what sense does this make.

In a time where the economy is like it is, gas prices are Very High, travel expenses are high, and real estate is unpredictable, It Makes No Sense for A Buyer to Fly or Drive to Northwest Montana and research homes the old fashioned way. Buyers used to go to each office and come into town and look in local newspapers. Now Real Estate buyers look on the Internet and they SEARCH in the Search Engines.

Will THEY Find Your Northwest Montana Real Estate for Sale ?

Revett Mining Company

Revett Silver Company Will Not Give Up.

They will fight for this. Why? How many years has this been going on? It has turned into another battle ground like logging where fingers are pointed at that Wrong Bad Guys.

Pollution Hurts us all, Sandpoint will LOSE their recreational value with poison going into Lake Pend Oreille. The Economic of Pristine Water and Clean Air will ALWAYS outlast the short term economic gain of mines. As a Real Estate Broker Owner I can tell you that the discussion of the mine going in has already hurt real estate.

Folks email me quite often and ask how it is going. Who wants to live in a polluted area that they thought to be pristine. Recreational Real Estate, People moving inland from polluted shores, and people leaving cities do not want to move to a place that is worse than where they came from.

Sandpoint Real Estate, North Idaho Real Estate, Libby Real Estate, Lake Koocanusa Real Estate and Northwest Montana Real Estate WILL be effected by the mining under the Cabinet Wilderness. If this happens you can be assured that it opens up all wilderness in the area for exploitation, I am all for jobs but I WILL NOT hike in a wilderness where there is drilling below the surface that is killing the animals, poisoning the water.

Real Estate is the Biggest Economic Factor that Will be Hit. Who wants to move to Northwest Montana, the land where the Forest Service always big industry to drill under their wilderness and with a process that WILL pollute the waters forever.

The mining company will take the BIG money and run and maybe even change their name like they did before, and North Idaho and Northwest Montana will be left with the mess. Just like the Vermiculite Mine in Libby Montana.

There is NO DOUBT that the mine will drive away, kill and poison local wildlife.

The Forest Service lost timber dollars, the county lost timber jobs so they are READY to let another W.R. Grace type company come in and rape our land, kill our animals and in the long run we will find out that some form of the process has hurt the peoples health just like the W.R. Grace incident.

The Forest Service is taking it from all sides I am sure, how do you create an economy with out taking it from the FOREST?

That is their Mentality, that is Old News, Old Media and Old Ways. There are a lot more ways to create jobs than to open Northwest Montana up to who ever wants to create heavy labor jobs, ruin our wild lands and become Billionaires on the Backs of our people.

Look around, those who owned the mills that are shut down, are STILL RICH, still Real Estate Moguls and those that made them that way are simply out of a job.

For More Information on This Topic Check out our Northwest Montana Environment Blog at http://www.northwestmt.net/search?q=revett

Don't Let This Happen Again



Northwest Montana Mining Information
http://www.rockcreekalliance.org/TheMine

And Lets NEVER Forget This

"There shouldn't be anything sacred about this spot.
Plenty of mines are built in prettier places,
a wilderness is just a line on a map."
Doug Ward Revett Minerals
V.P. Corporate Development


I Guarantee Your Northwest Montana
Real Estate Values will PLUMMET …..

Crystal L. Cox

Broker Owner
Ten Lakes Realty

Mineral Rights on Your Land ?

We applaud the “reclusive billionaire” opposing the energy industry’s
development plans in southeastern Montana. Big Industry is taking away what makes Montana great. The Wind farms, for example are a good idea expect for the Landowner is not being paid enough and the company that owns the energy company said to be out of SPAIN, has threatened landowners in the Shelby with condemning their land if they to not get their way, which they claim is in the best good of all.

Forrest E. Mars Jr. who owns a large Montana Ranch is apparently going against the company that wants to go after the coal and natural gas reserves in the area

Little Money, and the rights of Montana Ranchers and Farmers get stomped on quite often and most of the time it really is blamed on big money stepping on little money. It will be very interesting to see how this places out. Energy Companies usually WIN.

This kind of operation is VERY bad for the quality of water in Montana.

Montana claims to care about watershed but yet lets large companies such as Revett Minerals do what ever they want in the name of economic development and progress.

Montana ALWAYS favors Oil and Gas Drilling, it’s a way of life.

As a Real Estate broker owner I must say that if you buy land that has a previous Oil and Gas lease than you are subject to that lease. A whole lot of Montana Land has previous Gas and Oil leases. This could be a sticky situation.

The article said “Mineral rights trump surface rights.” This is scary and should have never been allowed in the first place.

I for One hope that This Time, the Billionaire WINS this will mean that Montana Wins, the watershed wins, and the land wins.

Crystal L. Cox

NorthwestMontana.Com

Ten Lakes Realty