Banter Box

Allow me to be the first to say that MHN has come up with an excellent solution and appreciate your patience with some of us.

I hope this is ok to post here. If not I'm sorry

http://www.ktvb.com/news/One-person-sent-to-hospital-after-Boise-home-shooting-2...

Happy Tuesday Mountain Home. I hope you are getting a chance to enjoy the beautiful weather. We are putting together a big paper for you today with all the voting ballots from the election office for your review prior to next weeks election day.

Enjoy the Sunshine and have a great day. I would also like to say Thank You to all those that comment making the transition a smooth move. Thanks, B

Sam, do you understand direction, or is it you just don't care?

"ALL comments of a political nature are to be placed in the Political Forum."

I understand directions. I meant to post this on the political page. I had two browsers opened and made a human error.

Are posts referring to City/County topics, or MHSD to be posted in the political forum?

Brenda, I hope you change your policy regarding blogs/news since not all of your readers search the blogs and your news articles are replaced all the time. The one constant is your banter box. The separation of political opinion banter and other banter was long overdue. I will leave that political area to the four or five commenters and there agendas.

I hope local city/county/MHAFB/MHSD/WECRD issues will be allowed in the non-political area.

I agree gmoney. The political folks never commented on anything local anyway. Our community is of the most importance to me. I just like to get under the politicians skin a bit when they gave me an opening. Which was almost daily :)

PLACING CLASSIFIED ADS ON-LINE!! We are aware of the current problem when placing ads on the web site and the error message you are receiving. Please call us here in the office and we will handle it over the phone for you until it is fixed!! 208-587-3331 Thank you. B

Love the Flower Planters Downtown!

Not sure who is responsible but they

look great! thanks

Where did my post go asking for info on the special School Board Meeting Tuesday?? Local Right??

Originally I was approached by Sergeant Tom Robison reference an incident that occurred during his shift. Sergeant Robison had advised me that during his shift an incident had occurred in the holding cell and that I should view the video. He had told me that the video looked bad but it was not as bad as it looked. I told him I would take a look at it.

The following day Deputy Jason Mittleider came to my office and advised me of an incident that had occurred in the holding cell and that I should look at the video. I assured Deputy Mittleider that I would look into it and take care of it.

While viewing the video, I was shocked. I viewed the video many times. After viewing the video, I began to slow down the video, and with information I already had, I was able to notice some things about the incident that others, without the same information, would not have queued on. The information I refer to is of a personnel and private nature, so at this point I am not able to divulge it. Also after viewing the video I had approached the only witness other than Sergeant Robison and the female inmate involved, and I inquired as to what the witness had seen. The Witness had advised me that the incident was an accident, that both parties lost balance as Sergeant Robison attempted to escort her to the bench behind her, and that there was not any use of force, and that if they had seen any inappropriate actions on the Sergeants part, they would have for sure intervened.

My investigation revealed the female inmate was seen approx. 3 hours later by medical and her only complaint at the time was the injury she had sustained by Deputy Mittleider prior to her being escorted to the holding cell in the first place. On several occasions the female inmate had denied that there was any injuries and that she did not at any time feel threatened by Sergeant Robison, that she was "******" at the way Deputy Mittleider had been so forceful with her just because she wouldn't make her bed so late in the evening.

I have been accused by many of "covering up" and violating policy by not reporting the use of force to the Chief Deputy and/or the Sheriff. I have never covered anything up, those that work for me know that I hold them as well as myself accountable for everything we do. I accept that this incident happened during my tenor as the Jail Captain. I did not report this to the Sheriff because it was determined through investigation and interviews that this incident was an accident.

Reporting to the Chief Deputy was not an option as there was not a Chief Deputy at the time. Again, I accept responsibility for what had happened, but after what I considered an adequate inquiry by questioning those involved and careful consideration of the video, I had deemed this an accident. And the female inmate had at the time agreed with the findings, suggesting that it was an accident on both their parts, her and Sergeant Robison's.

There will be many out there that disagree with my findings, that is a matter of opinion. I do respect other people's opinion. My training and experience led me to the conclusion that I reached.

I was not fired, as one person has stated, I did not have an affair and have to quit, as the same person has also stated, and I do not believe that there is any place for the "Good Ole Boy" culture in our local Law Enforcement, as yet again the same person stated. I was suspended for 10 working days without pay for failing to report a use of force per policy. This was not reported, because, again I had determined through an inquiry investigation based on my extensive training and experience, that this was an accident.

During the evening, Deputy Mittleider and another Deputy were engaged in a security walk. When they entered the female's cell, Deputy Mittleider noticed that the female's bunk was not made as per policy. He had instructed her to make her bunk, she refused. They had discussed it back and forth where the conversation became heated, Deputy Mittleider then decided to instruct her to prepare herself to go to the booking area. The female inmate became irritated and the deputies had to restrain her arms to escort her to the booking area for further conversations. Upon her being placed in the holding cell, Sergeant Robison entered the cell to try to question the female inmate and to try to calm her down. The entire time Sergeant Robison was speaking to her, he was instructing her to calm down and to sit on the bench behind her. The female inmate reached across the person of Sergeant Robison and attempted to press the call button, which would have had Control send the Sergeant there anyway. At that time Sergeant Robison reached out and started to escort her to the bench behind her. With the momentum, and the twisting of direction, loss of balance, and shuffling of feet, by both parties, both of them started to fall, Sergeant Robison let go of the female inmate and she continued against the wall. Then Deputy Mittleider entered the cell and placed the inmate in restraints while the Sergeant continued to talk with her. Deputy Mittleider was nowhere near the holding cell when this incident occurred except at the end.

I believe Mr. Mittleider did the right thing by reporting the incident to me, just as Sergeant Robison did before he did. I also believe Mr. Mittleider had all the rights to ask if there were anything being done. I have no problem what he did, except now he tries to make himself out as the fired whistleblower, and also making other comments that lack the whole story. Mr. Mittleider was NOT fired for bringing this incident to light, or for just profanity. I will leave that up to him for now. Mr. Mittleider did what he was supposed to do regarding reporting incidents that need to be looked into, but he is no martyr or a fired Whistleblower.

Again, I admit the video looks absolutely terrible, I have stated that myself many times to others I have spoken to about this matter. But I do feel that I did my due diligence by conducting the inquiry, no matter the findings. I do not take this incident lightly in the slightest way. I was unaware of the remarks that Sergeant Robison supposedly made when he showed others the video. I would definitely consider them very inappropriate and would have dealt with them immediately.

I do not defend Sergeant Robison, that is not my job, I am merely attempting to explain what I had learned and how I got to the conclusion I arrived at. I do realize that there will be those that would have done it differently, and that feel one way or the other, but the bottom line was that whatever happened, happened. Now is the time to deal with it, and take measures to try to prevent these types of incidents from happening again. Please remember that there is so much more to this than what is seen by the "terrible" video, and said by some of those not even there at the time.

My name is Roy "Lynn" McCallum, I was the Captain, Jail Commander at the Elmore County Sheriff's Office, Detention Center, during the incident in December of 2012 involving Sergeant Tom Robison and a female inmate, where Sergeant Robison was charged with allegedly using more force than was necessary to control an inmate. I had been working in the Jail 20 years, 6 as a Detention Deputy, and the last 14 as the Jail Commander. I have many hours of training, many different certifications from the Idaho POST academy, and may be considered by my peers, and with my extensive training and experience, as an expert in Jail/Detention areas. I took great care in making sure the inmates were treated with care and firm but fair. Please keep in mind that the inquiries that I conducted was to establish each individuals responsibilities and actions in regards to this incident and what actions to take in regard to each individual. The inquiry investigation I conducted was an informal inquiry to determine if there was in fact a criminal act or actions taken to require notification to the Sheriff and Detectives for a more formal investigation. The determination of an accident was the conclusion, therefore it was not reported to the Sheriff, because it was an accident.

I have on many occasions made it perfectly clear that I have nothing to hide, and no one to cover up for. I have told many that if they want to know what is going on, all they have to do is ask me. The bad thing is there are those out there that will "Arm-chair Quarterback" this whole incident, not knowing any of the facts. There are those that claim they know the facts, or at least some of the facts, and make judgments with those limited facts. I was not there, however, I did speak with each of those that were actually there and I feel I have sufficient enough facts to make a good decision.

Brenda, Why were the posts removed?

Now that the fanatical's are using a separate blog, maybe the general public will come back to the banter box and tackle important subjects like help in the garden or whats coming up during the week or even just talking about the weather. Thanks MHN for listening.

Mr McCallum may I just ask how a video recording of an incident as its taking place looks like something that it is not? I never got that when people state this. Or how a video makes someone look or seem a way that they are not. Its a recording of the actual events....it is what it is. I'm not involved in any way or agree or disagree. But I saw the video on the news and I know what it looks like IMO.

mhg4316, maybe a video such as this may change your mind. I have no dog in the fight but also do not know ALL of the circumstances on a first hand basis.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ViU6zU1OQAc

gmoney..... in response to your question.

Posted by gmoney at 2014-05-22 15:38:

I have other comments on the election results story and have checked my side and all it good. You can also post your political questions in the political section but aside from that I do not know, nor can find any reference to "Sector 4" to answer your question. Do you perhaps mean precinct 4 committeeman rather than sector 4 representative?

Many thanks to the members of American Legion Posts 26, 101, the Legion Riders, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Legion Baseball Team and any others that came out this past weekend. Without the tireless support of these volunteers, Prairie, Mt Home and Pine could not have paid the proper respect to our fallen military members.

Breeze,

I agree.

Great news folks, Bowe Bergdahl has been released, stop what you are doing and say a thankful prayer. Do the happy dance and celebrate, this Idaho native and soldier is on his way home.

That is good news!

Slight change to KSU times for the unescorted ride on Sunday:

We will be meeting (in Boise) at the outlet mall exit 57 on the Idaho Ice World side of the parking lot from 8:45am to 9:15am. KSU at 9:30am, ride to Mountain home and meet up with the group there at the T and V Marine off of exit 90.

We will have a brief rest in Mountain Home, coffee and donuts will be available. The Mayor and AF Wing Commander would like to see us off/wish us well before we leave there. KSU from Mountain Home will be around 10:30am so we have plenty of time to get to High Desert and get parked before the ceremony begins.

Many thanks from all the motorcycle riders to the MHPD for blocking traffic to allow 200+ motorcycles to park and leave today. They were doing a ride to raise funds for military charities and the ease of entry/exit provided by MHPD ensured the safety of all.

In reference to Bowe Bergdahl, I am happy for the family that he will soon be back Hailey. I hope that once the excitement has cleared that the issues surrounding the reason why he was off base will be cleared up. Living in a military town I have the utmost respect for those serving in the military; I come from a family with a long history of men and women serving, but if rumors are correct and the man did go AWOL or dessert and American soldiers were put at risk to retrieve him, even going as far as to trade prisoners for his release, I hope he is punished to the fullest.

Couldn't be happier that Bowe Berghdal is back home again, always good to see an American come home. But... it appears to me that he pretty clearly did go AWOL from his post. Even his parents said he had become resentful about his mission, he didn't agree with the United States stance, etc. I am not saying he didn't deserve to come home. But if he truly did go AWOL, and if we lost soldiers in the line of duty that were assigned to find him (I believe 6 died while working to find him and free him), while also releasing high ranking terrorists in exchange, I hope he will be held accountable. If that were the case, we lost 6 soldiers and gained 6 people fighting against us. I hope I am wrong about how he went missing, I would hate to think we bartered 6 lives, sons and fathers, to find someone that intentionally went into hiding.

I thought political comments were supposed to be on the Political page?

Sam 1776,

Maybe I am missing something, what political comments are you referring to?

In my opinion Berghdal is a deserter and should be treated as such. American lives were lost in searching for some one who left his post, voluntarily! Mixed feelings on the whole situation from the start. Knowing how our Govt works we as citizens will never know the truth or the whole story.

Joe,

All the rambling on this site, and you summed it up in one short paragraph. Well said, we will never know the truth or whole story on any topic.

Please move the banter on Bowe Bergdahl to the political forum as this will be a very debatable issue of a government/political nature.

thank you.

Also, the name calling wherever it may land needs to stop. Period, no negotiations.

How 'bout them Lady Gators?!!!

P.S.

Me thinks they're all one and the same.

It is that time of the year again. Negotiations are taking place now, however, a mediator has been called in to help the talks continue.

Teachers throughout Idaho are receiving a 1% cost of living increase on the base of the teacher's pay scale. This is a much needed cost of living increase granted from the legislators.

Will our local teachers benefit from the generosity of the Idaho State elected officials? Do you think teachers of our Public Schools need a fair and equal pay increase?

In response to Tiger Jet, I think our teachers need fair and equatable contracts! I'm not sure what the problem is, but it seems like the district is trying to hide something. Why aren't they willing to negotiate with the teachers? Why do they need to go to mediation? Sounds like children playing in a sandbox. Do you know when the mediation will be?

Fresh Air,

I agree. A union sand box. Served their purpose long long ago. Why not consider pay on individual merit? Not as a collective group hiding their weak. Pay based on an individuals performance the prior year. Some may go up, some may remain the same, and some may go down. That's how us non-union folk do it. Why punish an excellent teacher that has put forth and effort and reward one that did not. What you take from those that showed little effort, give to those that did. Not as a collective group.

So the community and a couple hundred motorcycle riders get together and do something that other community leaders said they could not do to show support for our local military. How does Mt Home News cover it, 4 pictures and one paragraph. Way to show support. Oh and the pictures displayed did not even have any one from the many local organizations that were present.

District News:

The school district has offered in negotiations with the teacher's union to add two days back into employees' schedule. This acts as a pay increase.

The school district has also offered to pay the astronomical increase in health care premiums. This serves as a pay increase, as well.

The union negotiators want changes made in wording and mandatory in service days.

If the district is hiding anything, it may be its disdain for the greed of the self serving negotiators.

The mediators are coming in to try to convince the negotiators that the district has made an incredibly generous offer! Period.

I had questions about why all discussions pertaining to the recently released prisoner was considered all political when some issues are clearly not political. I met with Brenda and was told that this is HER forum and she made the decision to have it that way,no explanation was necessary by her and I am just to accept it and read it or not. Once upon a time those reporting the news and participating in local issues, personal interest stories etc. were somewhat non-biased. This paper and its forum has become one of my way or do without. News and information being considered for print seems to be judged not by whether or not it's news worthy but whether or not it is acceptable to those running the paper.

I am curious to see how long this post will last. Not a personal attack on Brenda, just an honest account of the occurrences of my experience with her.

Did this district not just pass a supplemental levy as to not cut any teaching positions?? And now there are negotiations to improve pay/benefits across the board. Only union employees with their negotiators would ask a financially struggling employer and community for a raise after a percentage of their jobs were just saved by a supplemental levy. Only union employees with their negotiators would ask for a raise after funding for some of the programs for students was cut. Yeah, we're one big team when trying to pass the levy to save our jobs. Then less than one month later our true self serving colors rise to the top. I'm not defending the district in anyway. Happy to see them stepping up a bit. Cancel the mediator, I have a solution. In contract, offer the teachers a 5% raise to be paid when Federal money that has been included in the budget for years but never received is actually received.

I would have liked to sat in on these negotiations if the supplemental levy would have failed in May.

Good morning! Checking in to see if anyone knows when the mediation between the teachers and the district will take place. It looks as though there are a few strong opinions in opposition to our local teachers and the union, perhaps this is where the district board and leaders are getting their advice? Bahahahaha!

I guess I missed the Mountain Home News article about this school district/teacher union dispute.

Tiger,

I can understand how you feel. Teachers must also understand how a lot of tax payers feel. We just passed a supplemental levy so that many of the teachers would have a job next year. The district is apparently financially strapped. Programs for children have lost funding. Is it not enough that the tax payers insured that many teachers would have a job to return to next year?

Can you understand how asking for a raise now might seem rather selfish. Why not work the extra two days. Most jobs do require that you work to get paid. Most local employees are not represented by unions, and would appreciate two extra days work and the extra money received.

Remember it is these local employees children that attend our school district. Always remember respect needs to be earned, not expected.

Tiger,

You might check out Grandview/Bruneau's situation.

Schools are combined, teachers are let go, sports programs lose funding. Do the teachers in our district really have it that bad?

Dude,

The state has given districts funding for a 1% increase on salaries - the teachers aren't asking for an additional raise. They are asking the district for the minimum 1% that the state has already allocated. The district in-turn is wanting to add two days to their contracts. To what, make sure that they are "earning" it? That's like telling someone working at McDonald's Monday through Friday at minimum wage that they'll get cost of living increase in pay, but that they'll have to work two more days - Saturday and Sunday (but not get paid on Saturday and Sundays).

The point is - that teachers aren't asking for any favors or promotions or big breaks. They are asking for a little respect and fair and equatable negotiations and contracts. Apparently the board has hired some sort of guard-dog, quick-tempered individual who doesn't have any shame in throwing papers in teachers' faces, or yelling, threatening and bullying them. And for SOME reason the board members give him the authority to do so. They're probably being bullied, too, because I can NOT believe that certain individuals on that board are standing for such behavior from one of their leaders.

In regards to the Bruneau-Grandview School District - do you really want to go there? Do you really want to compare our district to the self-destructing time-bomb that's about to go off since they've hired that east coast moron to lead them in his mighty ways? Those poor students are definitely getting the short end of the stick. Is that what you want for our community?

I would guess on avg. teachers are the highest paid members of our community. Comparing them to an employee at a fast food place is silly. The point is, your employer is under funded. You have a job next year. You plead with the community to pass a levy so that all the teachers may keep their jobs, and as soon as it passes you want to negotiate pay and benefits. Still sounds petty. In the real world corporate boards run the company. They do not form alliances with their union employees. Financially distressed companies lay employees off. In my world 2 extra days for a calendar year is insignificant. Employees donate that much of their own time to help an employer occasionally. If their employer is financially stable, then so are they. Us non-union folk have a way of looking at the big picture. We are a team, family of sorts. There is no "I" in team. Set an example and let it go.

I think the city picked some of the wrong streets to fix up. N18th widening seems kind of silly. the thing turns in to a two lane narrow road about 100 feet past the point where the widening is happening. If you drive on S18th past the junior high, now thats a travesty. The edges are rotting away and usually have 8 inch pothole in them. This causes people to drive toward the middle of the road, not good. It would seem to me that that should have even a priority for repair. It's just an opinion, I'm just glad they came to their senses on the Elmcrest deal. But really, S18th is a very busy road and needs attention.

This Saturday the Sage Brush Archers are hosting their annual 3D archery shoot at Optomist Park. Halve of all proceeds from this will be donated to http://idahonheroesoutdoors.com/. Lots of great raffle/auction items. The American Legion will be serving food/drink. Also mud bog races the same night. Further info can be found at https://www.facebook.com/events/815534901809974/

brenda,after having to remove so many postings by McCallum S it is obvious the best response is no response.

I don't usually promote businesses but I must say, I was blown away by the level of customer service that Tom with Toms Small Engine Repair provided. Even though it was a Saturday, this gentleman opened his shop and helped me with my lawn tractor so I wouldn't be stuck push mowing about 3 acres. In today's world it was a wonderful delight to actually get this level of friendly and professional help. He makes you feel like it's a family member help out with the repair, not like your "just another customer" walking in. If you ever need ANY kind of small engine repair, and you don't want to be ripped off and you want excellent service; then you really need to call Tom's Small Engine Repair here in town 587-3547. Going forward I will always take my small engine repairs/maintenance to him. Awesome job Sir and thank you very very much.

Ok not sure where to post this so here it is. I spent the weekend taking a long motorcycle ride to another state. I traveled through many different counties and faced some heavy traffic. Where did I almost get into a wreck? Here in Mt Home about 1 mile from our house. What was the cause? Seems the county or city did some crack repairs and they are really slick. No fun going around a corner and a 900lbs slips out from under you. Luckily I was able to gain control and not drop the motorcycle. I have to ask, why is that Mt Home or Elmore county cannot seem to seal a crack in the road like all the other counties?

Proof positive,

What is wrong with you? What's with all the personal attacks. Makes no sense. It seems that Brenda is removing many posts or commenting they belong on another page. How about you find something better to occupy your time. Personally I have lost interest on posting anything in this forum but I felt the need to comment on yours.

LOST: Diamond necklace and engagement ring with three stones. If you find it, either from Thrift Shop or someone might have pawned it. SENTIMENTAL value but I'll give a reward if found. Please email me cplusb1999@hotmail.com or post on mountain home news. Thank you.

in reference to my missing jewelry, the necklace is a diamond heart pendant. The two pieces were noticed missing a few weeks ago, about mid May so if you find them please email me or post to Mountain Home News, reward. Thank you. cplusb1999@hotmail.com

Hi All:

I just called to confirm the bridge on NFS Road 128 near Fall Creek has been fixed and opened. Yes, the Mountain Home Highway District said it's open and so is another bridge up in that area that was down also.

Go out enjoy this weekend :-)

Tim Bondy

The secret word of the day is "codified".

It appears that Moral majority has managed to bring a political comment to the Banter Box through referencing two political letters.

And the beat goes on, Drums keep pounding a rhythm to the brain

La de da de de, la de da de da

The political hacks finally have their own realm to babble on but they still have to keep an eye on the rest of us, looking for an opportunity to chastise. Can't you just stay in politics? It's really nice not having to read your partisan babble here. Mentioning a letter to the editor doesn't seem political to me either. No one can say much without your scrutiny and back sass. You would do well to stay on page two. It was designed for you~

Hmm. The letters referenced by Moral majority seem to be extremely political. Just saying....

Okay Brenda. It just seems to me that you enter a grey area to allow either positive or negative comments about letters, which were very politically opined. However, I respect your decision on the topic.

However those that you said were in "tattle tale mode" didn't seem to me to express an opinion on the letters except to note that they were political. Possibly they were trying to follow your rule of keeping political topics off the front page and so didn't offer an opinion. That's why I only commented on the worthiness of the letters in the Political area.

Just in case no one else has noticed yet, the link for a map to Rail Road park (on the calendar for Farmer's Market) takes us to Alabama.

Might have missed them? Pleeeease

M.H. School District 193

The U.S. Flag at the junior high needs to be replaced.

I first noticed it back in April and assumed it would be taken care of, since it was so obviously tattered/torn.

I was wrong, Again.

To the Lucky Boaters at Strike Dam who acquired new toys on Monday:

On the off chance you thought the items you "found adrift" on the lake were left there for you, they weren't. Thanks for ruining something we have done for over 12 years. Usually, when you find water toys moored out of the way, with a buoy and anchor it means they were put there on purpose and "finders keepers" rules do not apply. Multiple families have been able to enjoy each others toys over the years--you use what you want for awhile, then tie it back up and move on to the next one. That is until somebody decides to keep them all for themselves. If you happen to know the lucky boaters who have a new, easily identifiable old wakeboard (white top, red bottom, with bondo patches on it) and black kneeboard, invite them to return them. Though boat Karma has a way of maintaining itself, we may or may not have seen your boat pick the items up, or your trailer, or the vehicle you towed the boat with. If you'd like to return them you can post an anonymous reply or contact me at belike-39509@mypacks.net If not, enjoy them! But look out for that Karma!

Outstanding fireworks display last night. Thanks to all involved.

And a belateled Happy Birthday to the Great State of Idaho (Founded: Jul 03, 1890)

Esto Perpetua

YELLOW LAB FOUND IN MH: Older, large, yellow/golden, male, lab found yesterday around 11 a.m. Very nice dog that knows commands and is very well behaved/quiet and sweet. Has hip problems and was found with a collar but no tags/chip. Dog was very overheated and thin but is doing well. If he is yours, and you want him back, please call the Mountain Home Animal Shelter. VERY, VERY nice dog that deserves to spend the time he has left in a good home with lots of love and being spoiled. Thank you!

LOST DOG CLAIMED! Love a happy ending. He is back home with his family and kids. Thanks.

Thanks random stranger. I too love a good end to a K-9 situation. Good news is very nice these days:-)

Hi All:

FYI...Reading about the wildfire up near Garden Valley, the experts say its burning in mid-August type conditions. I'm guessing our nearby mountains both north and south are probly just as tinder dry. Use caution out there but get out there abd have some fun too.

Thanks,

Tim

Can someone tell me what the fascination in this town is with PIT BULLS? They are everywhere. Do the owners think they can show the world that their Pit is gentle and they are great dog owners while risking the wellbeing of their children and their neighbors children.

They were bred for one purpose and that is to fight/kill.

I pray that your dogs never prove you wrong!

I own a pit bull. I don't try to show the world he's a gentle animal, and I don't try to show that I'm a great owner. But, the fact of the matter is, he has never so much as blinked at anyone and I'm a pretty damned good owner.

I do, however, like to show the world that there are uneducated tools in the world, such as yourself.

I also have a pit. She is the most kind and gentle dog that I have EVER owned. I have known more people attacked by cow dogs than any other dog breed. I love my bully dog. She is great with kids, cats, other dogs, green people, brown people, tall people, horses, cows, chickens, goats. I would fear the owner before the dog. When you own an animal---no matter the breed/type you should always be alert. ANY animal can turn.

Anyone can raise a bad dog. Just like anyone can raise a bad kid. Less Judgment perhaps. Not all living things are created equal. I would trust my pit over a cow dog any day of the week. Been badly bit by 3 dogs in my life---not one was of the bully breed. Gotta love the haters.

I am a dog lover and I know some dog breeds can be nice but some have been Bred to fight which the pit bull has. Because of how they've been bred I feel they are a dangerous breed and should not be bred in the future. Rotweilers are great animals but unfortunately they are also bred to bite or attack. They need to be fenced or on a leash just as much as pit-bull, however they do have a good history as a working dog.

You are welcome to your opinion. I personally wouldn't own one because of potential risks and how they are perceived by the general public. They are statistically a bite risk but they are also at risk to be shot if someone perceives them as a threat.

If we are out of water why has canyon creek been running water all summer and the ditch on canyon creek is full? It was the same last year.Some people get water all summer and others do not?

I'm not totally sure, but the way I understand it, water rights are determined by seniority. So when the irrigation water gets low, the most recently acquired water rights are shut off first and the more senior rights last. And I think how much water is in the large reservoirs determine when that happens. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

And probably a lot of people who get water along Canyon Creek are already shut off, but some folks at the end of the line still have rights to it.

Water is still being delivered to one farm on the district. It's the old Bennett Place behind the old Sawmill. This farm did some trading with creek rights many years ago in exchange for full water delivery every year. Because of this trade, the farm will receive full water even in short water years. Seems to maybe have been a good trade. The district has tried to get out of the deal but has not been able to.

Casperghost,

Its people like you and comments such as yours regarding pit bulls that feed the misperception and why thousands of these beautiful, sweet, and loyal dogs are euthanized and feared in this country everyday. ANY dog can be aggressive and fight. ANY DOG!!!! This ignorance must stop.

caspertghost,

You may not want to get out of bed in the morning for the potential risk....smh

For gmoney and Casper.

Some useful info on these amazing animals and why the ignorance you're spouting is the reason these dogs are targeted. Why do SO many people own pits?!?! Because they are amazing animals!!! That's why. First it was German Shephards. Then it was the Donerman and the Rottie. Now it's the pits turn. Not all cow dogs herd. Not all labs hunt. Bulldogs don't take down freekin bulls. Which is wsht all those dogs were bred for. Not all pits fight. I will be another voice for these animals here and everywhere I go.

By Robin Rock

It is a fact that Pit Bulls are one of the most maligned and misunderstood dog breeds in the world. Here are some of the myths I've encountered while working with Pit Bulls:

Thinkstock

MYTH: Pit Bulls have locking jaws.

Reality: Pit Bulls do not have any special physical mechanism or enzyme that allows them to "lock" their jaws. If you compare a Pit Bull skull to a skull of any other dog breed, you can see with the naked eye that both skulls share the same characteristics and general bone structure. However, one personality trait of the Pit Bull breed is determination. Whatever Pit Bulls do, they do it with a great deal of enthusiasm, and it is this trait that can make it seem like they have a locking jaw when they bite down on something and are determined not to release it.

MYTH: Pit Bulls are all inherently vicious.

Reality: This is a stereotype that is biased toward generalizing and condemning an entire breed based on the actions of a few bad people. The truth is that each dog should be evaluated by his own merits and not by his breed. A corollary truth is that there truly are no bad dogs, only bad people. In his essay Troublemakers, Malcolm Gladwell discusses what Pit Bull stereotypes can teach us about the wrongness of racial profiling of both humans and dogs.

MYTH: A Pit Bull that is aggressive toward other dogs will also be aggressive toward humans.

Reality: Dog-aggression and people-aggression are two distinctive traits and should not be confused. Unless a Pit Bull has been poorly bred or purposefully trained to attack humans, they generally love people. They are, in fact, one of the most loving, loyal, friendly and dedicated companions you can have.

MYTH: It is dangerous to adopt a Pit Bull that has an unknown history and parentage from a rescue or shelter, rather than buying a Pit Bull from a breeder.

Reality: Remember: each dog is an individual and should be judged by his current personality and behavior. Certainly he may be influenced by his genetics and history, but after working with thousands of Pit Bulls, I can assert unequivocally that many (if not most) Pit Bulls of unknown parentage that have been horribly abused, neglected, and/or forced to fight still love people more than anything, and still will be loving family pets. Responsible rescues and shelters evaluate dog behavior prior to adoption, and then adopt out only those Pit Bulls that display the proper temperament toward humans.

MYTH: It is better to adopt a Pit Bull puppy instead of an adult.

Reality: It's a fact that puppies are adorable! But the thing about puppies is, well, they grow up. And as they mature, their personality develops and that's when you really find out whether your Pit Bull is dominant or submissive with people, or whether she is aggressive toward some, none or all dogs. Dog-intolerance and dog-aggression are traits that do not develop in some dogs until they are fully mature. It is possible that the cute little puppy you adopt who is friendly with all other dogs may not like other dogs at all later in life, even dogs she has grown up with and lived with for her entire life. Both nurture (environment) and nature (genetics) play a role in determining a dog's mature personality. This doesn't mean that Pit Bull puppies should not be adopted, but if you want to know how big your dog will ultimately be and how she will act around humans and other animals, you may want to consider adopting an adult.

Ultimately, the decision to adopt any dog requires much thought on what is the right fit for your family, and your ability to commit to the dog for his or her lifetime.

Robin Rock is the founder and director of Measle's Animal Haven Pit Bull Rescue, a 501(c)(3) non-profit rescue and sanctuary consisting of foster homes in Central Ohio. Robin has been rescuing, rehabilitating and advocating for Pit Bulls for over 10 years, and she has worked with thousands of Pit Bulls. She lives with her husband Joe, their five children, adopted dogs and cats and various foster dogs.

What sparked my interest was a news item about a woman who was asked to leave a McDonalds because her grandson was disfigured. And it turned out his face was bitten by a PIT BULL.

So when I was driving thru M.H. I saw about 8-10 Pits in yards, pickups etc..

I could not come up with a reason why anyone would take a chance on a proven unstable breed around children. So I ask the Question.

So in reviewing these answers I have come up with these conclusions:

If you equate raising dogs to raising children I hope you have no children.

To me owning a Pit is like putting a loaded pistol in a playground and hope no one grabs it.

MrMister you exemplify the typical Pit owner. Its all about you!!

And Sir my neighbors child was disfigured by a cocker spaniel. And a co workers husband got 12 stiches from a chow. None of which made news because the media only reports about attacks by pits bulls sadly. And I believe the story you are referring to was a young girl bitten in the face and asked to leave KFC...which was a complete lie by the Grandparent. Nobody asked the child to leave..although the little girl was definitely injured and by a pit as her family said, Perhaps the lying Grandmother. There is no doubt dog attacks happen daily...but the only ones you read about are pits, although today I read a story on MSN about a mastiff attacking a child. Or the story recently about a LAB attacking a boy riding his bike and his cat scared the dog away. Can you believe it was NOT a pit attacking children on a playground, but the #1 rated dog for 22 years..the Labrador retriever. I wont respond to your ignorance again. But I believe you know where I stand..I do not own a pit, but I have never met one I didn't like. In my opinion the ignorance of this breed is equivalent to racism fueled by the media. Move to Denver.

It's been a while since we read about the contract negotiations with the MHSD and the teachers. Anyone know the results? Do the teachers have contracts?

Last year two Pits came running down our street. The next door neighbor was in his yard with his little Jack Russell Terrier. One of the pits grabbed up the Terrier, shook him and dropped him before the owner could do anything. When he was dropped he was dead right there on the spot in front of his owner. I have seen a chow, lab, and other various big dogs, even a chihuahua come running down the street but never have I seen them snatch up a dog just like that and kill him. Only seen a pit do that. And the owner of the pit said his dog had never acted that way before.

One time a pit bull puppy got into our yard and attacked our dog. Luckily the owner of the pit bull, who lived across the street, ran over and got his dog.

I've never seen a puppy that aggressive and he was always getting out of his yard. The neighbors were really nice people though.

We never knew who the owners of the pits were and we had never seen them down our street again.

Lucky no children were out playing that day.

As far as the pit bull discussion, even though I love dogs I have always been leery of pit bulls. I am not saying they are all bad, I have heard some of them are very gentle. While some of them may be very gentle, it also seems like when people want to select a fighting dog... They seem to migrate to the pit bulls for a reason. I mean no disrespect to pit bull owners, but I tend to think of them in the same category of a python. Some of them can make great pets, but many seem to have a switch inside (natural instincts) that could go off unexpectedly at some point down the line. And I know that all breeds have some bad apples, but when you compare apples to apples I think it is obvious that you are rolling the dice more when you bring a pit bull into the house.

Thank you Brenda.

gmoney,

I didn't make it all about me . Your comment--

"Do the owners think they can show the world that their Pit is gentle and they are great dog owners while risking the wellbeing of their children and their neighbors children. They were bred for one purpose and that is to fight/kill. I pray that your dogs never prove you wrong!"

--was an open invitation for a pit owner to provide a synopsis of their experience as a pit owner. Get over yourself.

My heartfelt gratitude to our brave and dedicated firefighters, police officers and all emergency responders.

We easily forget how essential they are until we need them.

Please join me in honoring these heroes wherever we may see them.

THE RESULT IS A documented number of pit bull attacks that, upon superficial inspection, appears quite sizable. MABBR reports that, between 1965 and 2001, there have been 60 lethal dog-attacks in the United States involving a pit bull. Compared to most breeds, that figure is indeed quite high. There were only 14 lethal attacks involving Dobermans, for instance. But taking into account the overall populations of each breed measured, the rate of aggression among pit bulls is comparatively quite normal. Even low. During that 36-year period, only 0.0012 percent of the estimated pit bull population was involved in a fatal attack. Compare that to the purebred Chow Chow, which has a fatal-attack rate of 0.005 percent, and consistently ranks as the least child-friendly dog breed on the market. Why don't media reports of attacks involving Chows eclipse those involving pit bulls? Because there are only 240,000 registered Chow Chows currently residing in the United States. And frankly, the broad-skulled, wide-mouthed pit bull makes for a more convincing monster than the comically puffy Chow.

Also worth noting is the pit's comparatively large and potentially intimidating physiology. "I don't think pits bite more than other breeds," says Dr. Sandi Sawchuk, a small-animal veterinarian and clinical instructor at the University of Wisconsin Veterinary Medical Teaching Center in Madison. "It's just that when they do, they cause more damage. If someone did the same research on Chihuahuas, they would probably find that there are more bites, but they're less reported due to insignificant damage."

A study carried out by veterinary researchers at the University of Pennsylvania confirms as much. Dr. James Serpell and his colleagues found that smaller breeds, such as Chihuahuas, Dachshunds, and Jack Russell terriers, generally exhibit higher tendencies for indiscriminate aggression (toward humans and other dogs). They also found that breeds often vilified in the media as being "inherently aggressive," such as pit bulls and Akitas, are generally more aggressive toward other dogs, but don't necessarily exhibit abnormally high aggression toward humans.

This widespread mischaracterization of pit bulls, coupled with the understandably strong emotions of bite victims and their loved ones, has resulted in a number of local ordinances categorized as "breed-specific legislation." BSL is the banning or restricting of ownership of certain breeds deemed especially dangerous or unpredictable. And it almost always targets pits.

As a strategy for decreasing dog attacks, BSL has been largely debunked. The Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association released a special report in September of 2000, republished by the CDC, which read, "Breed-specific legislation does not address the fact that a dog of any breed can become dangerous when bred or trained to be aggressive. ... An alternative to breed-specific legislation is to regulate individual dogs and owners on the basis of their behavior." The National Canine Research Council claims, "There is no scientific evidence that one kind of dog is more likely than any other to injure a human being. In fact, there is evidence to the contrary." They point to a 2008 study by animal behaviorists at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Hanover, Germany. It compares the general temperament of golden retrievers (frequently cited as a behaviorally ideal breed) to that of breeds typically targeted by BSL (read: pit bulls). It concludes: "No significant difference was found."

I would like to thank everyone at Les Schwab for the awesome service we have always received over the years. It really is getting rare to find businesses whose employees go out of their way to take care of people, and they do so pleasantly. Of course there have been instances where mistakes have been made but again they have gone out of their way to rectify the situation. Thank you for making my business matter.

Update on U.S Flag at JR High

I spoke to assistant Superintendent for the district and they have no money to replace it.

I told him I think its disrespectful to fly a torn flag and just take it down. None of the other schools have a flag on their poles. He disagreed.

Lets have another $500K bond for a $500 dollar flag.

I guess this is why they didn't take it down in April when I called the school.

Just another reason the board and other members of the white house here in Mountain Home, need to go!!!!

Assistant superintendent says the school district cannot afford to replace the tattered flag at the JR High School. Perhaps the AS should consult with the district's bean counter and have him trim the FY 15 budget to come up with the money to replace this flag and, if there are district schools that do not have a flag, money to purchase those as well. Shame on the superintendent, the assistant and the school board for letting this happen.

Maybe the MHSD should have a dunk tank or pie throwing fundraiser. We could dunk McMurtrey and Gilbert or throw pies at them. Should also include the MHSD Board as well. Bet they could raise enough money in 7.5 minutes to have flags for the next 2 years. They really are all a joke. This community should be outraged.

The things this school district does and gets away with, leaves me absolutely speechless. I think a lot of people are outraged. Next year is our chance to get rid of a few board members. This needs to be done Mountain Home, we have to take a stand against these yay-hoos. To have a child getting an education here or involved in sports is completely embarrassing. They cant replace flags, they dont have a bathroom facility or even running water at the football field.....absolutely ridiculous!!!!

An American Flag. Really?? The school district can not find an American Flag. There are two Legion Posts in this town, a Military Affairs Committee, Silver Wings, a Chamber Office, an Air Force Appreciation Day committee, and Mountain Home Air Force Base 10 miles down the road, AND THIS SCHOOL DISTRICT CAN'T FIND A FLAG!!!!!!!

WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU???

The pool is closing for the year on August 10th? Really? Wasn't it like 96 degrees today? I understand that school starts this week (which once again is ridiculously early), but you can't modify your hours to be from 4 to 8 or something? And if the answer is that we can't afford to keep it open, that is a joke as well. Start charging more than $1 to swim, you could double or triple that and it surely isn't going to force anyone into bankruptcy. I find it hard to believe that we aren't losing money left and right on the pool with $1 to swim. But no, we have to charge $1 to make it "affordable" for everyone, and then the whole city pays the price when we can't afford to keep it open after August 10th. I guess we will have to burn through $20 of water a day as we lay in our yard with the sprinklers on all day long.

The pool......it's because "we always done it that way." Alwlays closes when school starts. Just watch, when budget restraints cause school to start on the 4th of July.....the pool will close on the 3rd. It all hinges on the school district.

All

I guess somebody convinced the school district to take down the torn flag at the Jr High. It was gone Sunday when I drove by. Or did they finally do their homework on U.S. Flag code?

It seems to me everytime I look here, there is nothing but negativity about the wonderful community we live in. I say the rest of the week we dedicate this forum to the good things about our community.

Let me start first ~ Wow, what an awesome parks and recreation we have. Stan and his crew do an amazing job of keeping our parks in great shape, getting the fields ready for football, softball, soccer, etc .....

I absolutely agree about the parks and Rec crews. Stan has built so many beautiful parks in Mtn. Home and the maintenance of them is beyond outstanding. The one blight....Carl Miller parks restroom situation. That lone port potty there is the most gross disgusting thing in Elmore county. Set up more or have it pumped way more often. Fix up the existing facilities and have someone lock them at dusk to prevent damage. This park is highly used for picnics.....the free lunch program and many other activities. For all the good and wonderful things they do, this one item sets a negative tone to the max. For all the rest, we the people thank Frank and Crew for the outstanding work.

Stan is in fact amazing!!! The negativity is frustrating, but the MH SD Circus is beyond frustrating. Here is a thought, maybe they (SD) could have a sit down with Stan, get some ideas on just how he runs his program, they need all the help they can get!!!

When is Air Force Appreciation Day this year?

Pale, http://www.mountainhomenews.com/story/2066240.html

I think there is a bunch that goes on in this town that this paper never reports on. Then, when people find out, they are ticked off.

On a "positive note" the night sky was lit up till the wee hours by the HS football field lights. I got up and the lights were on again or still on. Turns night into day.

On another note, Stan Franks does do a wonderful job. He makes lots of lemonade from lemons and always has a smile and a kind word. He is a very gifted and talented man. He and his crew are great and work very hard. THANKS!

Thanks joe_smoe

Remember, lets focus this week on the good things in our community vs, what might be wrong with it from a few in the community.

Thanks to our local paper, for still being able to put together a paper on a weekly basis. Can't imagine what it takes to put a paper together, get advertisers, come up with stories and everything else that goes into putting out a weekly paper.

While many small communities such as ours have decided not to continue putting out a paper, the Mountain Home News has figured out a way financially to continue this for the community. While it may take the staff a few more hours/days to get items online because they don't have a 24 hr staff like the big guys (Idaho Statesman) no worries because we can go to other sources if we must keep up-to-date by the minute as to what is going on around us.

Thanks again Mountain Home News for putting together a paper that most in the community enjoy reading, and thanks for keeping the website up-to-date as best as you can with the staff that you are able to hire with the limited budget

Yeah.....what Rusty said Brenda......thanks for the efforts of all the staff at Mtn. Home News.

I agree with randomstranger, now the same 4-6 people have their own little play ground. Thank You!

I am looking forward to the music festival this year and expect to be attending. I'm glad that Mountain Home is able to put these types of things on.

I would like to give a positive shout out to our City Police Officers, the County Deputies/Sheriff's, the Dispatchers, Fire Department, EMT's, etc.

They are pretty amazing, And if you ever doubt how difficult or chaotic their jobs can be, just get you a scanner. You will look at them with a whole different attitude.

Much respect and a huge thank you to each and everyone of you!!!

After all the comments, check this out......NWCN news channel.....Dog attacks 5 year old. Happened in Plummer Idaho. I just find it hard to defend a breed that just goes off. Alway the same story. He's friendly.....loves kids....never done that before. I have to agree.....dogs are what they're raised to be, and any one can bite but........why the on off switch with this breed?

Because AGAIN GoatBeard the only dog attacks reported by the news media are pit bull attacks. Dog bites/attacks happen daily in this country but they don't report them. You once again are just fueling the ignorance saying this breed just goes off. ANY DOG CAN SNAP OR ATTACK.....just like people. The media is racist against pit bulls. I wish you people would just stop.

http://blog.timesunion.com/dogs/pit-bulls-and-the-media/3597/

You keep thinking that.....

http://www.jrn.com/kivitv/news/Pit-bull-euthanized-after-mauling-5-year-old-boy-...

One last thing.....you think this was the dog that was euthanized? of course it wasn't. This is the same exact photo KTVB used when the dog fighting ring was discovered in North Idaho a few years back. This is again a prime example on how the media portrays ALL pit bulls. Its irresponsible and hurting the breed.

I do believe that we have determined that there are two very strong and passionate sides to the dog or to be specific the Pit Bull issue. I am sure, in fact positive that neither side is going to ever convince the other that they are right. Lets give it a rest before it gets any uglier. I thank you all for your input and food for thought for those that appreciate the thought process given from both sides. We are losing the "lets be respectful" dialogue.

Yea!! There is a new U.S. Flag flying at the Jr. High. Hopefully all the classrooms have flags so the kids have a visual reference when they say the Pledge.

Another question for your readers is how the taxpayers of Mountain Home benefit by the City Airport. I've driven past it for 25 years and have never entered its gates. I noticed that it cost the city $100,000 to operate it.

OPERATION FUNDS cost revenue

Airport $164,845 $52,574

I know they have some crop dusters out there but I don't think that occurs in city limits just in Elmore/Owyhee counties farm areas.

Is it just an expensive playground for a few city/county residents?

Glad to hear about the new flag. Sadly I don't think students say the Pledge everyday like we use to. I could be wrong but pretty sure its a thing of the past.

Or, funds just might not be there to afford a flag in each classroom, The "white house" is a pretty expensive operation here in Mountain Home. With a complete lack of concern or even the ability to run a school district.

Sad, very sad situation.....

gmoney,

Remember that Mountain Home is in Elmore County, and the entire county benefits. I would guess most of Elmore Counties tax revenues come from outside the city limits. Personally, I feel the amount of money is very small when you figure that the airport is used for fire protection as well.

And we have a new flag. WOW. It would have never happened if it were not for this banter. Nice job to those that brought it up.

This school district could save quite a bit of money if they didn't pay employee's and buy the gas to mow the grass at West Elem. 3 times in the last 8 days and water it twice a day all summer long.

Good point Mr. 427539, and that is only a very small part of the issue.

This district is a disaster and they don't even have a clue that it is, that is how bad it is.

Why is this happening? Time and again people try to make a stand against these clowns and they are so oblivious, the people get frustrated and give up.

The leader and his pack know this and all they are doing is sitting happy with their fat pockets waiting for retirement!!

Dude

That is my point. Why is the city funding the Airport and not the county? The city taxpayers receive no benefit from the Airport and it cost city taxpayers 100,000 dollars.

The airport is located within the city limits..that's why?

Not a good reason: The court house and hospital are in the city limits does the city fund them?

I just think the county tax payers should be supporting the Airport not just the city tax payers.

In my opinion Right now the county residents get all the benefit of the Airport but at no cost to them.

If I am reading one of my tax bills correctly, the county also pays for the hospital. I see no line item for the airport. What really concerns me is that from a $1155.00 annual tax bill $772.00 is going to the school district. 67% or 2/3. The WREC Dist. is receiving nearly the amount that is being funded for the hospital. Not sure is over 2/3 of my tax dollars are in good hands. That's what really concerns me.

Just an FYI

Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter has ordered flags to be flown at half-mast Monday in honor of Col. Bernard Fisher ~ Medal of Honor recipient, who passed away last Saturday Aug. 16th. Our condolences and peace to his family.

Hi All:

Stage 1 Fire Restrictions have been lifted in the Boise National Forest as of 15 Aug 2014. I missed this news in the last week so maybe others did also. Check it out at:

http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprd3814128.pdf

Get out and enjoy.

Thanks,

Tim

Anyone know what the lady protesting downtown today was protesting about? I didn't have a chance to ask her. But I was curious.

WECRD Board Meeting/2014-2015 Budget Approval

Wednesday, August 27, 2014 at 6:00 p.m.

I also (probably like many others) wondered what the lady was picketing about. Guess we can't find an answer on here, maybe we could in the political forum, they seem to have an answer for everything, haha

Our fiscal conservative school district just mowed the grass again at West Elem. This time was 6 days apart.

It really amazes me how people just do not care about their town..Use of water for one,Watering every day especially, and letting the water run down the street instead of turning it off...Schools the golf course,playing fields and cemetery are also part of this..........Wake up we dont have water to waste...... The next item is sending kinder gardeners to School for half days..They should go to school full time at Four years old as in Europe.....Four to six years are the time they soak up more imfo and learn to listen to rules and regs...........Plus the district would save alot of money on gas,diesel ect.....Finally it amazes me how many people working in stores can not do mental arithmetic.....Heaven help the next generation....

After reading the previous post, I doubt the author started full days of school at the age of 4 or 5. It's not too late though. Grammar, punctuation and spelling.

Hooray Boise State!

Well MrMister, that's too bad that you feel that I'm a troll.

I watched the Boise State game and I know that a lot of people from the area did and supported them. It's too bad that we lost but it is the first game of the year and we have a new coach so it will be interesting how the rest of the year goes.

We have had local people playing on the team, one that has done very well, that my aunt has known since he was a young boy.

Idaho has a lot to be proud of. I work with people across the United States and when I was introduced to a new client a week ago, and said where I lived I was asked "How are the Broncos going to do this year?" I said that I didn't know: we had a new coach and it was a new year but I was hopeful.

Maybe we can agree that we have some things that we can support. I have family members that are Vandals fans, and they have a hard time supporting Boise State but I'm hoping that will change.

I'm not a troll.

Sometimes how statements are read, are the responsibility of the reader. The game was going to be started. I'm a BSU fan although I also support the U of I. I was just showing support for BSU.

Sam_1776

Do you work for the Mountain Home News?

Wow, We're talking football with Sam. Who would have thunk? HOOOOOORAY!!!!!!!!

Sam,

With what aspects of the game to you feel BSU struggled the most, and what changes would you make?

Football, My favorite season. Now we have something to banter about!!!

Sam,

What do you think the Mountain Home Tigers chances are tonight? Any thoughts?

Sam,

My comment wasn't directed at you particularly, rather, it was a general comment regarding several "posters". However, if you feel the need to self-identify, who am I to stop you?

Brenda, why was the comment removed?: no rules were broken.

The WECRD Director Scott Sessions has resigned. That leaves the two "ladies" to do as they please till they choose to appoint someone to replace Scott. The timing of this is suspect as it is time to vote on the already over-budget 25,000 sq. ft. building design that is proposed. They also did away with the Let's Play grants and took the only thing that they were doing for the kids away. Nearly 500K in taxes and they can give $250.00 to the Arts Council...donate to Military Affairs...donate to Domestic Violence----but do NADA for the kids.

Hello???????? The WREC District was created to provide recreation to all in this community. So far all it does is provide an avenue for which to flush money down an endless black hole of egos and stupidity!

Since I couldn't initiate any banter on the waste of city taxpayer dollars on the Airport $100K. that does not benefit any city taxpayers and the city deciding not to fund ($20K) the local bus service that provides needed transportation for many city residents. I'll move on.

What can we do to eliminate and hold those accountable for the waste of tax dollars of the WECRD? I've signed petitions, voted against this piggy bank and it just keeps on feeding a few folks pockets. Do we need some AG action?

No, lifetimemthomey, I don't work for the Mountain Home News.

gmoney,

The mayor is a very nice man. Why don't you call him, or stop by. I am sure he would be very happy to answer any of your questions concerning the airport and its funding. Asking questions on this site will get you nowhere. I agree with you on the WERC Dist. I should go to the meetings, but I do not. I only have one question for them. How much money has been collected since its inception, and how much is in the bank. I think we would all be very very surprised with the amount of dollars that has spent on over head alone. From what little I hear, they will never achieve or meet the financials needed to begin construction.

The simple fact is that the community of MH just can't afford a recreation center.

Dude

I've talked to the Mayor a few times about other issues and agree he has listened, but that is not the point. The city is loosing taxpayer dollars at a clip of $100K per year to support an entity that does nothing for the majority of taxpayers. The only beneficiaries are those on the Airport Board and some county operated business. But then the city is not willing to fund an entity(BUS) that supports the disabled and lower economic citizens, then I think that's wrong. The bus brings people to downtown to support local businesses and it should have been funded. The Airport should be renamed the Elmore County Airport and managed to be self-sufficient economically by raising fees etc.. I don't have a problem with city tax dollars being spent on functions that operate at a loss that benefit our city residents ie.. Library, Cemetery or Recreation. If only 20 local taxpayers (COUNTY RESIDENTS) use the Airport, why is it a City liability?

gmoney,

I get it. The same way I feel about the WERC. I'm a little more undecided on the airport though.

I can see some benefits such as emergency transportation, fire protection etc. The WERC on the other hand, a totally foolish pipe dream of a couple of people that somehow got this thing passed and going. 400k plus per year being dumped into this fantasy. Reminds me a lot of 2005-2007 when some folks were building their dream homes with the banks money. No extra amenities spared. Bigger and better than the neighbors. The only thing they failed to ask themselves was, DO I REALLY NEED IT? & HOW WILL I PAY FOR IT? Same fantasy. This organization desperately needs to be dissolved as soon as possible before there is another useless empty building in Mountain Home.

I have to give them one thing though. They have a lot and I mean a lot of nerve. (Would have preferred a different phrase, but would have been removed).

been out of town for a while,what is going on with some crazy lady carrying some sort of picket sign downtown?

If you have been out of town proof positive how did you learn about a lady downtown? And why would you jump to the conclusion she is "crazy"? Are you saying that everyone who voices their opinion or fights for what they believe in are crazy? I don't think I have ever seen you say anything on this forum that has not been judgmental or just plain wrong.

McCallumS

Sounds like you may know the person that was picketing. Why was she doing it? If someone is going to publicly make a statement, then they should publicly say why they are. Just my opinion.

She was picketing the Rec. Dist.

She was not picketing the Rec District, and it was not a crazy lady it was McCallumS and maybe she had a very good reason for it.

Well she should have been.

Concerning the picketing lady, she was picketing for a good cause, but for the wrong reason. If this is going to be brought up here, you can expect it will be brought out with truth, not just one sided. Leave it to the courts, not the public forums. JUST MY OPINION!

Now that the who has been revealed of the picketer, only 2 people know the truth. Someone is lying. You are right, let the courts decide. But also know that someone just doesn't sit in jail for no reason.

OK, you've peaked my curiosity. Who, What, Why and When was she picketing?

The "Good Cause but wrong reason" makes no sense to me.

Hmmmmm... A good cause but for the wrong reason? The only plausible explanation is that she was picketing to save the chinchillas.... But only so she could make a fur coat. Bam, problem solved.

lifetimemthomey,

There have been many many people that sit in jail for no reason, it's unfortunate but it does happen, why else is the innocent project still functioning with such a high success rate?

http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2014/04/28/how-many-people-are-wrongly-c...

Since 1989, there have been 891 exoneration's based on DNA evidence. But these represent only a small percentage of wrongful convictions, including violent felonies and non-violent charges. Other experts estimate that the rate is between 4 and 6 percent, with up to 136,000 innocent people behind bars.

(The Byrd Law Firm P.A., 2012, U.S. Wrongful Conviction Rate Is Alarming, http://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/us-wrongful-conviction-rate-is-alarmin-86137/)

With all the information I just listed which is just a drop in the bucket can you still say no one sits in jail for nothing?

And I agree, let the courts decide.

You are right and good point, I think what I meant to say or should have said is, they must have had some kind of evidence for an arrest and to keep him in jail. I do hope that justice is served and that no wrong doing occurred.

In SOME cases there are people who are innocent and still sitting in jail. Just a thought though, innocent people have nothing to hide. Anyone can look on the Idaho Repository and see what people are charged with.

Again I say, this should not be being discussed here, it should wait for court. But if the conversation is ongoing, I will not just sit back and let it happen in the direction it is headed.

You can love your kids to death. But wrong is WRONG. I know the story. It's sick. And WRONG.

Any parent would go to any length to protect and love their child. Seems like both parents in this situation are doing just that. But you are right WRONG is wrong and from what I heard this situation is sick and wrong. I just hope its not a case of someone lying to get back at the other. Cause that does happen also, unfortunately.

mhg4316 you are right it is sick and very wrong, however I am in agree that the court needs to decide what is fair and just.

This is NOT a case of someone lying to get back at someone else. What happened IS sick, it's wrong, it's disgusting on so many levels and evidence does not lie. People who are not afraid of the evidence SHOWING the truth, do not try to get rid of the evidence.

People can love their children and protect them, but part of loving and protecting them is to hold them accountable for their actions. This has to begin when they are very young so that they do not grow up feeling like they can do anything they want and they won't be held accountable. WRONG IS WRONG no matter WHO you are!

I guess I am being misunderstood, not only should the court decide, THIS is NOT the place to even be talking about it, though like I said, I will NOT let lies be told. I KNOW the truth.

As many of you have commented this is to be settled with the courts. This cannot nor will be settled here on the banter box by anyone. Facts will be presented accordingly. Not here.

Thank you Brenda!

Much respect Brenda.

Itsjustmeagain, I apologize. In giving my opinion, I wasn't purposely trying to discredit or disrespect anyone involved. I am sorry.

No problem, Lifetime, things can get heated and out of control quickly, I am glad it's under control and I thank you for keeping it light :)

Brenda,

Why did you once again remove my post? Nothing was derogatory or accusatory. Why is it you are so one sided? You are not supposed to be unbiased, I thought this forum was supposed to allow both sides without judgement. I am incorrect in thinking you would even give me a chance to defend against obvious insinuations by Itsmeagain. Am I wrong or have you allowed this particular persons posts to continue and remain on the forum?

CORRECTION

Better make this correction before the piranha come at me. I meant, are you not supposed to be unbiased.

WOW, I just realized that Brenda said AFAD is this weekend. Where has the time gone? Summer has come and gone so quickly, it's almost like we're in Oz!

If your looking for Oz you need to check out the political blog. They're out there........

I guess I'll never know what the picketing was about since there is no article about it and no one has stated the facts.

You never know about anything till the last minute in this town. The city, county and even this newspaper keep items that impact residents quiet until its to late to try to stop it. Latest example, increase in water/sewer rates 4% again.

gmoney, I agree the MHN staff does appear to pick and choose what and who they will write about and often times appear to gloss over or simply ignore incidents involving those who are considered MH's "elite". But in this case there was a report, it was in a recent edition of the MHN. I suggest that you and others who are mystified by the picketing incident read ALL the content of the MHN. You will be surprised by what you find.

Blue

I don't remember an article and if there was one then Brenda would not allow us to use this box.

I would like to applaud the Chamber for a great AFAD. The band was the best I've seen/heard there in years. I also heard the parade went off without a hitch, I was manning a booth and didn't see it.

Also I was looking for the Jail/booth that used to be at AFAD in the past. There might be a couple of WECRD folk that need to become familiar with that environment..

gmoney, I am puzzled by your comment. Why would Ms. Fincher not allow me to comment on something I read in the MHN? Can you explain please.

This banter area is for comments not associated with an article. Comments about that article are posted on the article comment section.

This is what I was advised back in May by Ms Fincher.

Gmoney---good one. Hit that nail on the head. They are exempt from being charged. The WECRD Board will never do any time for the fraud that spans the last 13 plus years. Great thought however. Great thought.

"This space is reserved for reader sharing and observations in a easy reading friendly chat space that is non-business."

Many times we have found that once something is posted via police reports, courts reports which is verified submitted information to us it becomes a topic of gossip, hear say and down right ugly here on the banter box. This "recent" topic of conversation was just that. If and when we receive any validated information to any arrest or court proceeding we will review and possibly do a story. Some of our avenues for research are simply the same that is available to the public. If all we receive is what is a matter of public record then that is it. We publish those records without additions or deletions. Just ask some people I know. No exceptions. Sometimes additional information is just not available to us. Stories have their own space for comments and thus a thread can be followed. However, unvalidated information which is gossip and hearsay will not be allowed. We do not allow individuals or families to be called out on our website. The Banter Box was identified above as a "friendly" reading sharing place. WE will do our best to keep it as that.

Air Force Appreciation day brings so many out of town people to the area who are not familiar with the roads. I noticed one person with Ada plates coming down E. Jackson St. towards N. Main St., they stopped at the stop sign and turned left to the underpass, this is where the road has the left turn lane on N. Main St.. The person pulled out into traffic thinking it was clear (no one was in the turn lane) but there was traffic in the lane that continues to the underpass. I wonder if there is something, perhaps a sign, that can be placed to show that is a turn only lane or something to let people who are not familiar with the roads understand that oncoming traffic has the right of way.

That can be a tricky intersection and certainly for people not familiar with the area. A sign might be helpful. A stop light would even be better. I know there are several bad intersections on American Legion. I had heard that American legion at 18th is getting a light, now that will be nice!!

Not sure if this is allowed but a local military member won national recognition from the American Legion. Here is a link to the article or you can find it on the Mountain Home webpage; http://www.mountainhome.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123424013

Air Force Appreciation day brings so many out of town people to the area who are not familiar with the roads. I noticed one person with Ada plates coming down E. Jackson St. towards N. Main St., they stopped at the stop sign and turned left to the underpass, this is where the road has the left turn lane on N. Main St.. The person pulled out into traffic thinking it was clear (no one was in the turn lane) but there was traffic in the lane that continues to the underpass. I wonder if there is something, perhaps a sign, that can be placed to show that is a turn only lane or something to let people who are not familiar with the roads understand that oncoming traffic has the right of way.

I'll be happy to bring this up at the City of Mountain Home's Traffic Safety Board this evening. Thank you for a great suggestion.

Best wishes,

Can we have a School District/WECRD corner? Kinda like the political corner?

What we need is not more traffic lights or signs. We need people to stay off their phone when driving and slow down, pay attention to the roadway and surrounding area. Pedestrians and bicyclists of all ages should concede right of way to vehicles until the vehicle have stopped.

Last Thursday my daughter and 3 grandchildren 15,10 and 2 were driving to Boise from the Martha ave area when she got between Oasis and home and broke down. She raised her hood and waited and after 4 cars going by decided to try to walk home. Her and the 3 kids started walking and at least 7 cars passed by and not one person would stop to see if she needed help. While passing a house a mile away a lady saw them from her yard and gave them a ride. My daughter can not afford a cell phone at this time. My question is if you saw a lady walking with a small child out in the desert area, wouldn't you stop to see if they needed help.

I would stop. And I would also make sure that I provided my daughter with 3 children a phone.

I would not stop. I have it ground into my head to never stop, for anyone, ever. Especially if my own dear children are in my car.

That being said, I would probably call law enforcement and advice them of what I saw.

Also... If I was stranded, and walking with my children, I would be unsure if I wanted someone to stop for me. Such an easy way to pick someone up and disappear.

Ktlm would not stop, because as a child I told her never to stop. As young mother I would have never endangered my children. It is an often used act to get people to stop, especially on Martha Ave, which is remote. But as she said calling officials is the right thing. Maybe seems harsh, but my children always come first.

I took the poll but was disappointed that I didn't like any of the choices. I think the penalty should be severe but not banned for a lifetime.

If a bsu fan flies the team's flag in front of their house, then removes it the second they lose or leaves it flying proud when they win, are they really a fan? Or are they on that bandwagon?...

On another note, if I were to get different folks to create profiles for the MHN website and use those profiles to create pseudo persons, would I be a troll? Judy Collins said it best.

Send in the clowns...there aught to be clowns. Thank you Judy Collins:-0

Mr.

True fans fly the colors regardless of wins or losses. Maybe at half mast:), but they fly.

BSU is having a tough time selling tickets right now. Everybody wears a winners colors. Boise has a lot of transplants that still support the school from where they're from. BSU seems to be in a different type market. They must win a lot to keep these type of fans supporting them. If they only produce average seasons, the wagon will lose supporters.

Mountain Home School District Professional Development Days. 9/15/14, 10/2/14, 10/3/14, 10/13/14, 2/13/15, 4/20/15. You have all summer long to get these done. Why keep the children out of school for your professional development? Chopped up school weeks can make it burdensome for some families. And one of the days during Home Coming Week?? Come on now.

Received a solicitation regarding fee/ reduced lunch fees. Apparently there are benefits for your children even if they do not eat lunch in the cafeteria. All you have to do is complete the form and return it. Could they have possibly forgot to mention that the district will also receive the money even if your child does not eat in the cafeteria?? How financially strapped can this district really be?? Dumpster Diving?? I guess that's one way to get a little more money from the Feds.

Dude, you need to qualify for the free and reduced lunches. It is not a given. Also the child has to be there and eat for the SD to claim that meal. If they have enough free and reduced in a school they can get an aide to help with reading and math. SD is not making money off this program. Maybe you need to do more research before you start saying things that you don't know about.

I have done enough research to understand that this district is not up-front with the tax payers and parents of this district. Maybe you can explain why a child that qualifies for reduced meals also requires additional money for reading and math. So you need to eat for the district to receive the additional money for lunches, but not to receive additional funds for reading and math?

They want the forms filled out if your child qualifies regardless if they eat at the cafeteria.

Up-front?? You tell me. Past experience says NO.

I didn't make it to the bonfire. From what I hear it was a huge success. To all the people who organized it or had a hand in making it happen, Way to go!! GO TIGERS

What a great night last night for homecoming, the Senior girls won Powder Puff for the second straight year, going undefeated in their short football careers. Also attended the bonfire at Optimist Park, was well organized and had a ton of kids show up. They seemed to have fun and were very well behaved, hope this is the beginning of a long tradition again. It was a great time.

Christmas Tree displays are up already. REALLY! This is still September. Could it not have waited until at least after Halloween?

Yeah, I won a six pack of choice for it. Bet a guy at work they'd be up by end of Sept. Took a pic at wallyworld this past weekend and sent it to him.

They'll probably just leave 'em up year round pretty soon.

Did I miss something when I read Wednesday's paper? The best of my knowledge; this community experienced break-ins at four different businesses last Saturday night. Now today, it looks like we've had another two or three reported from just this last night. I wonder if they'll be in next week's paper. The police can't be everywhere; citizens on patrol can involve all of us if we're aware that our community is being assaulted. Are we left in the dark on purpose? Time to take off the rose colored glasses and realize there's something going on in this community that needs to be addressed. Please watch out for your neighbors and report any suspicious activity.

Nice mural on the railroad underpass.

Good job Randall 14

Community Thank You Retirement Party for Dr. Michael Koelsch on Tuesday the 14th from 4-7 at the Hospital

Unbelievable losers. What is wrong with Mountain Home sports? 15-65 final football score from last Friday. Not that it's a unique beating for our Mountain Home Tigers. The only team that can win more than half it's games is the soccer team. If you ask the coaches of the various teams it's the kids. They're too slow or lazy or small. The only thing that's lazy or slow around here IS the coaches. It's just a way for these slackers to coast along and collect their thousands of dollars for three months work.

There's far too much nepotism/favoritism/religionism going on. The coaches don't play the best kids, they play the most connected kids or some other coaches kid or their church buddy's kid.The district HAD a chance to get new blood and new ideas into the sports programs when the last Athletic Director quit and what do they do? Hire a quitter that had his own losing loserdom in the baseball program to continue the losery tradition.

The school board needs to insure that the best kids are played. That there is consistency in the sports programs. Give no more money to the sports programs if they are going to be so poorly coached and run. If the teams are going to suck so bad let's just take the money and buy something crazy like books or put some classes back that were cut. What in the heck does the football team need a four wheel vehicle for when the field doesn't have running water or bathrooms? Yeah it was donated but maybe they could ask for something needed rather than something they can ride triumphantly into the stadium on. Except for the triumphant part.

Its all about the kids right? Not hardly. Who allows these coaches to spend money on the garbage they spend money on? We're getting waxed 15-65 and our coach has headsets? Maybe a little less talk and a little more studying coaching techniques or maybe a resignation letter would be time and money better spent. The coaches for all the sports always have really nice gear to wear.

I know I know, "Who will coach these teams if not for the selfless martyrs that give their time and hearts and souls and tears to our children'? How about someone who just cares about the kids? Someone who makes it fun to play the game. Kids are quitting and not participating because of the nepotism/favoritism/religionism and prideful attitudes of these coaches.

End the suckage and lets buy some books.

Wishinonehand, BOOM, you nailed it!! Not that the District really cares that our football program is in shambles. But Thanks for posting this.

Wish,

WOW!

Why do the polling questions on this site not have "stupid question" as one of the choices?

On the sports and athlete/coach topic, at one time I was surprised at how unathletic our high school kids are in a town that is home to an Air Force base. I guess in my mind I figured that the armed forces breeds fit people and healthy lifestyles, I figured that would naturally carry over to kids. It was just a theory and doesn't hold water one way or the other. But I was convinced that we simply don't have athletic people going to school here, or they simply don't have the inner drive to push themselves to the next level and take some pride in what they could accomplish. Lazy, no heart, no passion. But then that doesn't explain how in the world we can be so strong in high school wrestling. I saw enough and heard enough to know that we had a state champion and the team itself was ranked among the top in the State. Unless they were wrestling Kuna they were basically expected to win. I won't rail on a coach, because they know a lot more than I do about coaching. But I will readily admit that when a Manager/ Mentor/ Leader/ Coach/ whatever is respected and has everyone on the same page, the sky is the limit as far as what they can achieve. After all, the wrestling team had many athletes that participated in other sports without the same success.

"unbelievable losers" WOW, the things that get said by people who have no clue as to what they are talking about. The mountain home football program is leaps and bounds beyond where it was two years ago, passing yards, rushing yards, and points scored are all double or triple what they were when Aaron Rodney took over the program. This program is doing great things despite having to deal with kids who don't want to practice or go to the weight room, kids who feel they should play even though they don't put in the work during practice, and parents who argue with coaching decisions but wont make there kids commit to the program. The equipment is dated ( the headsets in question are so old, that the company doesn't even make parts to fix them anymore), local critics want instant results ( but don't want to support or help the program), if all you living room coaches are so good please come coach! Feel free to apply for the head coaching position, show everyone how easy it is to create a winning program, take a team with less kids and less size and go beat a school with kids who outweigh your line by 30lbs per player and have 15 more players to sub in than you do. Beat a team with enough kids that the coaches can cut players who don't commit to the team. This used to be a proud community, that supported coaches and players win or lose, store fronts were always painted up for sports, the stands were always full, and people didn't point fingers and cry about wins or loses! community support, parental support , and giving a new program time to develop, is just as crucial as coaching! The program is working, you just have to be patient and let it grow, do some research on numbers and stats before you start up a witch hunt, Aaron Rodney did good things and hopefully who ever replaces him can continue to grow the program in a positive way, without having to fight the local critics who think winning programs just happen over night.

dankissik,

Wow thanks for making my point; you said, "despite having to deal with kids who don't want to practice or go to the weight room, kids who feel they should play even though they don't put in the work during practice", and "take a team with less kids and less size and go beat a school with kids who outweigh your line by 30lbs".

We must only play schools from city's that are much larger than ours. Nope thats not it. Theres something in the water here that breeds our kids smaller and lazier than kids from elsewhere. Going to have to check with the city on that one. Obesity is a problem in the US so maybe the kids from other schools are just 30 lbs fatter than ours.

Or perhaps, just maybe, could it be, that the kids are repelled by losers. Maybe the kids aren't inspired, don't feel welcome, aren't taught teamwork, have no role models, see no leadership, watch their coach pout on the sidelines, are told they're lazy and weak, see no organization. Maybe? Think that might have a little to do with it? Think that maybe kids might not want to even try out for a team with "leaders" like that? Think that could lead to small team sizes?

If the program taught the kids anything about sportsmanship, overcoming adversity, teamwork, winning with grace, losing with grace, honor, pride, manhood, or hard work then no one would care about the win/loss category. But what do we get? Adults that blame the kids. Thats the message the kids get. Sweet. Leadership at its finest.

You act like he quit. Is that true? There'll be no shortage of people to fill that job if he did. People from this community too. People that might not get many wins but will attract rather than repel kids to the program. This might be a good time to evaluate even having a football team. I mean our kids are so worthless, weak, and lazy. It's pointless to think we can compete right? Mountain home has never won state in anything anyway.....oh wait. We HAVE to get something out of the sports programs other than just a bunch overgrown adolescents that think they're cool and strut around in UnderArmour and their four wheel cart. It doesn't have to be wins it can be values and life lessons. Otherwise just shut the whole thing down and buy books.

Its the system. Its most of the sports. Each coach does whatever they want. Theres no direction from the school board. The kids see the nepotism/favoritism/religionism and figure whats the point of being the best if coaches sisters/friends/church buddy's, kid is going to play instead of them. Barring grades or behavior, stats should dictate who plays. The coaches should be made to keep stats and anyone that wants to see the players stats side by side should be able to do so. Parents are protected from bias coaches and coaches are protected from whiny parents. If the score gets lopsided one way or another then other players play.

If the good ol' boys in the white house cared, we would have good coaches. If we had good coaches we would have good, dedicated athletes.

The problem is with the board and the administrators. Poo rolls down hill.

How many times do you see any of them at an athletic event? Why don't they take the time to recruit a good coach? Or maybe a good teacher that can coach? They simply aren't capable and they don't even know they are not capable.

You can't pout when your losing and leave the game at half-time. You can't get ejected from the game when you go off on the refs and be allowed to come back and coach. You can't tell the kids they are worthless and no good. The football program should throw in the towel and buy books, academics in this district aren't the greatest either.

If we want to get mad and make a statement we need to get rid of those in charge. Those in the white house of MHSD.

"If we want to get mad and make a statement we need to get rid of those in charge. Those in the white house of MHSD."

That's not the only White house that needs to be cleared out.

You are right Mr.

They both need a clean sweep!!!

Have you all noticed in the news that they keep talking about gas prices dropping, but they never do in Mtn Home. The prices in Boise are as low as $3.15 right at the Broadway exit. Mountain Home is almost $.40 a gallon more at our "cheap" stations, more at the more expensive stations. Can anyone explain this?

Brian,

There is no story about the coaching changes on the varsity football team or the school districts lack for leadership regarding high school sports in Mountain Home. Could the news possibly write one?

First, there has been a state championship won recently. There use to be great programs in the MHHS sport programs. Do your research. Football, basketball, baseball, wrestling and track. I remember district championships 3 years in a row when playing schools like Borah, Boise, Capital and so on. Floyd took a team 2 years in a row to state, they didn't win but they showed. I feel the rignt choices have been made concerning the varsity coach. There had been so much controversy since Rodney took over as coach. I know for a fact a coach from out 8f state applied for the position and was turned down. He went to a city in Utah and has won a state title. Therefore maybe it starts with the athletic director and his homework in hiring the rignt people for ojr kids. Kids loved to play sports for MHHS, but if you are ridiculed why would you want to play? WreWrestling, Baseball and looks like our Basketball program may do well. Please get your facts before you speak about what you "think" you might know.....my first and last post about the situation

On the topic of higher prices and price gouging...

I have mentioned it before, because it seems to hold true. It seems that many merchants have the mindset that Mountain Home is so far away from everyone else, that we are held captive and will accept whatever prices they offer. Whenever it is mentioned, merchants remind us to factor in the price of gas to buy in Boise (which just reinforces my point of assuming we are held captive). But the truth is, factoring in the price of gas isn't realistic. The truth is, the vast majority of us are already in Boise on a weekly basis anyway, it isn't like we made a special trip to go to Wal-Mart in Boise. So there isn't an incremental cost to factor in, we simply make another stop since we were in Boise already. I haven't looked at Cost of Living indexes, but everyone seems to be convinced that living in Mountain Home is much cheaper than larger cities. I don't see it, gas in cheaper in Boise, groceries are cheaper in Boise, property taxes are lower in Boise, wages are higher in Boise, movies are the same price in Boise but you get state of the art theaters, etc. Yeah, you may be able to buy slightly more home for the money here, but not a huge difference. Merchants charge more in Mountain Home, and consumers vote with their dollars by shopping elsewhere. And then merchants increase prices even more because they still have overhead to cover, so the small group of your regulars are now paying even more while the rest of us are still shopping elsewhere. Drop your prices by 10% (or whatever) and you just might increase your sales by 25% (or whatever).

Being directly affiliated with the Mountain Home football program, I feel the need to clear some misconceptions some of you seem to be having due to the nature of your comments.

The program's coaches have never, EVER put the players down or told them that they're "worthless", or that they suck. Not Rodney, not Tyrone, nobody. Almost every word they've spoken has been encouraging if anything. Also, I can assure you there is no malicious reason behind our coaches doing what they do. They love this program, they care about this program, and they definitely care about the players. If anybody is putting the kids down or trying to demean them, it would be you.

All in all, if you care about this program, if you really care to change how they do things, then I would suggest you take your opinions to the athletic director or actually try to make a difference with your actions. Otherwise, you would just be slandering hard working coaches and players.

Tiger Pride,

I recall a letter to the editor in last years news paper. Do you?

Wait, what was never said?

http://www.mountainhomenews.com/story/2014315.html?rand=2208

Thursday, October 17, 2013

"Tiger head football coach Aaron Rodney was disappointed in his team's effort -- or lack of effort.

"What can you say? They're bigger, they're faster, they're stronger. A lot of our guys think they're too good to get in the weight room in the summer, and that's what happens. I preached it to them all year long, that's what happens.

"We have a lot of kids that quit. We had one kid that was supposed to be a captain -- he undressed himself and he quit.

"We're not going to quit here. What we're going to do is find 11 guys here who'll give the effort, and I don't care if it's freshmen. We'll pull freshmen out of the stands. We'll play freshmen if we have to -- JV kids -- we'll play sophomores -- but we're going to get 11 guys who play hard, because the 11 guys that we have out there, don't.

"A very, very big disappointment. This football team the last two weeks has underachieved and I'm extremely disappointed with them -- there's no excuse for that -- no excuse for that lackluster effort. We have a lot of guys on this team who have quit, and that's the bottom line," he said."

Whoops

I believe I was referring to a letter to the editor, not an interview from a story in the news.

Nice try though.

Now that the sports article from last year was posted... It does refresh my memory. I remember reading that article and it hit me across the forehead. Granted, some of the starters may have been going through the motions, but I recall a handful of hard working and dedicated starters. When I saw ALL of the starters being called out and being told in the news that they had no heart and gave no effort, I just remember thinking wow. Saying that to the team in a locker room is one thing, calling 100% of them out in public is another. Hindsight is 20/20, but if emotions were that high at the time it would have been best to bite your lip and save your frustrations, or at least until you got to the locker room.

Interesting article to go along with the current conversation http://www.idahostatesman.com/2014/10/21/3439249/rodney-out-as-mountain-home-foo...

What makes it so interesting is that we have known since 10/14, the Statesman has an article on 10/21, and the News is the last to speak of it.

I know the school admin. reads this site. I have a question for them. What are your plans, current and future for the Mountain Home High School Football Program? Refusing to comment will provide no solutions. Please step up. Do not make this an Athletic Director's of 2 months problem. I would like to see you own up to your mistakes (assuming you realize you have made them) and provide a working plan for the future of Mountain Home Football. You may even respond right here on this site. Thank you. Look forward reading your response.

The football program? Please. It's ALL the sports programs barring a very few coaches. The volleyball program is so unfair right now that unless you go to the right church or are a coaches kid you can forget your kid playing. Statistics? What are those? Whats the mission statement for the sports programs? Aren't sports suppose to teach fair play and sportsmanship? Do they think the kids don't see whats going on? What kid is going to put in extra work when they are much better than a church starter as it is? A coach is going to preach values and hard work while they're playing scrubs over much better players? The coaches get exactly what they want. The kids that are better than their chosen players quit and never play that sport again. There's your answer for why the sports programs don't have kids turning out.

There is absolutely zero direction from the school board. Each coach rules their kingdom with an iron fist and an open checkbook. This duck and cover type of administration of our schools has got to end. When's the last time a school board member sat in a classroom, visited the Hacker roof, went to a game of any kind, or had a kid in the system? How can you run a district if all you do as a board is sit on high once a week and rule from your ivory tower? Lets do rock, paper, scissors, lizard, Spock, and get some new blood on that board. For those that have been out of touch since the last time we bought new text books, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=405Nh2H4Ucg

I heard it through the grapevine....

McMurtrey to resign???

Heard a rumor that might please those that have called for change in MHSD. The rumor is that Mr. McMurtrey is resigning effective 1 July 2015. Can anyone confirm or debunk this rumor?

Response by Brenda Fincher, Publisher, MHNews:

Yes, that has been confirmed.

Just curious, based on observation: What or who determines or decides which news stories go up on the website for the Mountain Home News?

HAPPY FALL TO YOU ALL!

It's funny how the complaints are directed at the team programs rather than the ones that only rely on individual performance. It's shamefully laughable that some parents have such a skewed vision of how well their child/relative is able to perform and it tends to run on the side of EXAGGERATED. Throw in an unwarranted sense of entitlement, add some seriously misplaced sense of self-importance and sprinkle that with some serious lack of accountability, and you will have created that mediocre human that so many people are quick to defend (it's also known as commiseration). Unfortunately, a coach only has a few hours a day to attempt to reverse a lifetime of behavior that has been learned, encouraged and condoned by the "adults" in the homes of some of the players. The purpose of a competition is to win. As a coach, you play the kid who shows up, works hard, values improvement and doesn't make excuses. As a player, you learn life skills that someone at home should have taught you and you do so without blame-shifting or playing the victim role. Last I heard, practices are open so ANYONE is free to go in and observe. However, my understanding is that the local anonymous sports experts are "too busy" to coach so I am assuming that also means that they are too busy to attend practices where they would be able to witness, firsthand, the performance of both the coaches and the athletes. At the very least, it should be considered, if only to provide a minimal sense of credibility to the rant.

The best part is that there are always options. Typically, when one does not appreciate or approve of something, you look for said options...but that takes thought, some time, introspect and an ability to look beyond a narrow, biased point of view. So you think the schools need fixing? Volunteer your time, resources and expertise or simply VOTE, that can change a lot of things in a hurry. You think the District needs more books? Go back to school, become an Administrator, or better yet, have a fundraiser and stop complaining about the proposed levies. You think the coaches are unfair? Spend YOUR time coaching, become a booster, volunteer when you can, or simply show up to a practice... or better yet, get up from your computer, call, and set up A CONVERSATION WITH A COACH. Still have excuses as to why you can only be limited to anonymously ranting and are left to ASSUME what's happening (or not happening) on the field or the court? Don't watch, listen to or allow your kid to play, sign them up for a program where everyone gets a trophy and a pat on the back just for paying a $20 registration fee. Better yet, move and take your dogmatic negativity with you. It benefits neither the coaches, the players nor the community...which, by the way was one of the weak defenses (it's bad for the kids) presented here. Although Mountain Home sports will have to somehow find the courage to move forward without you(sigh)... it would certainly be the TRUEST of travesties for the people, young and old, of Mountain Home to lose access to such experts in team management, religious profiling, budgeting, training & conditioning, and administration. (Insert the heaviest of sarcasm all throughout that last sentence )

Consider this, I need a dictionary?

The irony of an anonymous post complaining about anonymous posts. A post complaining about assumptions assuming that the people that post here do so while having no involvement. A post emphasizing winning when our teams don't win. A post claiming that the best players playing when the coaches won't let parents see the players stats.

Exhibit A: seriously misplaced sense of self importance.

I was making a general statement. If you personalized it, you might want to take a moment for some introspect. If not, at least try reading for perspective rather than misquoting tidbits to react to.

Or don't, and I'll be your huckleberry and offer up exhibit B.

Either way, my point is proven.

Thank you for your comments. Please make all future comments on the sports story where the comments will flow in a like thread rather than in the banter box. It was posted to the sports tab yesterday. Thanks Again.

Why even have this banter box? What a waste of time to tell people to banter somewhere else. I believe it has lost its purpose, just my opinion. Or please explain what is allowed here. You have a political page with complete nonsense on it over and over again, but we can't discuss local school district stuff?

This discussion is not just about sports, but also MHSD. I think that's where the problem begins. MHSD seems to be off limits. I do not see which sports story your talking about. I know this site is read by the district. If the news is not going to ask the hard questions of the district, then maybe we can on this site. Occasionally someone in education posts here defending them, and today a coach posted defending her position. It seems to work ok.

Thank you for answering. For those reasons I get it. Just another suggestion would be to require real name in order to post. Might weed out all of our nonsense lol. Yes that includes me!! Thanks again Brenda

You don't have a point, except to remain anonymous while chastising others for it. Self importance? Anyone that doesn't agree with you is wrong because you're just so cool? Surprise surprise a jock with a veiled threat of violence. You can keep your Wyatt Earp movie quotes and your arrogance. A lot of the rest of us realize there's a problem.

Thanks for your reply and explanation, Brenda :)

1. It was Doc Holliday

2. If I expected anyone to agree with me I wouldn't post in a "banter" box, I would post in a "sheep" box or "lemming box

3. If the capacity for independent thought makes me an arrogant jock than I will strive to be the most arrogant jockiest jock I can be

4. making up words is fun

#Lawyered

What a great town this is. When a recent fire displaced roughly 20 people, how did citizens respond? They collected clothing and other items the same day and donated them to the affected people. I have seen where something like this happens in other towns and there is no response. Actions like this make me proud to say I live in Mountain Home.

I was just at Legacy park and it looks like they'll need to change the name to Cement park if they keep making cement retaining walls, the city is keeping some cement business in the black.

Also the one water feature(the Wheel) that has no water going to it anymore has been turned into a play area for the kids. I wonder what the taxpayer liability will be when a child gets hurt?The water used to keep them off, now nothing is stopping them.

Must be another school holiday with all the kids out and about.

Hi All:

I have to agree Legacy Park isn't looking as lush and green as it was in previous years. But we live in a desert and should understand heavily watering grass in this type of environment to keep it looking like an oasis might not be the best policy.

In my opinion, Mountain Home has some of the finest looking parks I've ever visited. Combine our walking path with our park system and I have to say the City has done a great job planning and maintaining what we have already. Thanks to all that make our parks and rec system look so good.

Enjoy,

Tim

I thought that park looked pretty darn good this summer. And those retaining walls look so much better then the weedy edges where the grass meets the gravel parking areas. Stan and crew......darn good work. It was a hot summer and things stayed looking really good.

I made a couple of comments yesterday on posted articles, comments seem to have disappeared.

Can someone explain how teachers salary works? If a 5th grade teacher, rated highest in district with a BD for multiple years, earns a Masters, do they get a raise for the Masters degree even though he/she are still teaching 5th grade? Or are they required to teach a higher grade to get the raise?

Gmoney,

Teachers get paid based on their education and years of experience. It makes no difference what grade they teach. They can continue to work in the same position, just at increased pay because of the masters degree.

Thanks

Questionposer

Doesn't that seem counterproductive to the students and district. I understand COLA and longevity raises but raises without increased responsibility or grade level seems stupid. If the print setter at this paper got a masters would they give a pay raise to him/her? I doubt it. Now I understand a little better what the Governor debaters were discussing about teachers the other night.

A teacher with a Masters Degree has demonstrated more training in the art and science of teaching than a teacher with just a Bachelor's Degree. He or she is also a better example of getting a good education to students. All other things being equal this is an indicator that he or she would be better at teaching and deserving of higher pay.

Sam_1776: Just because a teacher has a Master's Degree does not signify that they are a better teacher. It just means that they have taken the time to learn more about their subject, curriculum, or leadership than someone with just their bachelors. I have been teaching for 15 years. I have seen a large number of awesome teachers and a small number of teachers, even with Master Degree's, that chose to teach for all the wrong reasons and would be better off in a different profession. The salary schedule encourages teachers, at their own expense, to continue expanding their education. It is the passion for their work and the relationships that they build with their students that make them a great teacher.

janetwaggoner I don't think that we are in disagreement. I said that a Master's Degree was an indicator of a teacher's capabilities not the final word on it. I'm glad that the salary schedule encourages teachers to get advanced degrees.

Janet

You have made my point, just because a teacher earns an higher degree it does not mean they are now a better teacher. Their pay raises should be based on teaching ability/subject. So in my example if a 5th grade teacher has been rated high for the last 3 years and then earns a masters do they automatically get a pay raise or are they required to teach 8th grade level or assume any higher responsibility? What is the reality for MHSD? Does the district have a lot of Masters degreed teachers teaching lower grades?

Gmoney,

With all due respect, why are you assuming teaching the lower grades is a 'lesser' job? Each grade is important, and in many studies, the early grades are deemed MORE important in some ways than the upper grades. Children learn more foundational knowledge in their first 8 years than they will learn the rest of their lives. Primary grade teachers set the stage for future learning. A high school teacher is no more or less important than a kindergarten teacher. What is important is that we have highly trained teachers in all of our classrooms.

And if we don't pay them enough, they may decide to work in another state.

I never stated that a teacher of lower grades is a "lesser job". I think the degree of difficulty of the classwork and student is different. Teaching 2X2 is not the same as precalculus. Teaching eager to learn 9 year olds is not the same as teens. I think a teacher should be paid according to how well they teach, what grade level they teach. The District should have career paths established and defined. Somebody should not get a pay raise just for self-improvement and no application of that education.

gmoney, are you a teacher? You can't compare the age and subject and decide a wage. Teaching a five year old to read and write, can be every bit as hard as teaching calculus to a teenager and some times no matter how good of a teacher you are, some children just don't pick up on things as fast as others.

I believe that salary should depend on how long a person has worked in their position. If they are good enough, they will last long enough to get raises, if they are not good enough, they won't last and salary won't matter.

All

Years ago my kids had a teacher at East Elementary who was excellent and did not have a degree, to my knowledge.

All I'm saying is that any level of academic degree or training does not equal or ensure teaching competency and pay raises should not be handed out for self-improvement, if there is no benefit to District or students. If a teacher has received all training and is still just rated adequate do they take a pay cut?

In conclusion I don't think you need a degree to teach any primary grade. Homeschooling has proven that.

Gmoney,

If the only reason you were asking about teacher pay was to bash them yet again, I am sorry I answered your question.

It is unfortunate that you "don't think you need a degree to teach any primary grade. Homeschooling has proven that." While it is true there are teachers who do not have a degree, they are well on their way to a degree before they step in front of a classroom full of students, and they must complete that degree during a set amount of time, or they will lose their position. People working in schools who don't have degrees are being directed by a certified teacher, who has their degree and teaching certificate.

Your argument that homeschooling has proven that anyone can teach the primary grades is absurd. A parent who chooses to keep their child home for their education has every right to do so, but how many kids do they usually teach? Maybe two to three kids, at most. That is a very different situation to a public school teacher who has anywhere from 20-35 students in their classroom every day. They have standards to meet, lessons to plan, along with working with parents, administration and their colleagues to make sure each child gets what they need. They also need to build and maintain relationships with their students, because studies have shown that students learn better if they like their teacher. They work with students who come to school without breakfast; are falling asleep in class because they were kept awake for one reason or another; or their parents aren't around at night because they have to work nights to keep food on the table. Comparing a parent homeschooling their child to a public school teacher is like comparing an after-school tutor to a Harvard professor. They are such different jobs that it is ridiculous to compare them.

Teachers work hard to educate students. They go to work early and stay late -- just to get their job done. What you are saying is that someone who puts up their own money to better educate themselves, and in-turn will be better prepared to handle teaching a classroom full of students, is not worthy of a pay increase? I will tell you that with increased education, the teacher has more to offer to the school in which they work. They share what they have learned with their colleagues. They use the latest teaching strategies to reach their students. They bring in new materials and technology to help their students be as prepared as possible for their future. They work on committees that require them to work well beyond regular work hours. They spend evenings and weekends preparing to teach the students that are entrusted to them. And all of this isn't worthy of a pay increase?

There are so many self-appointed education experts out there; I have to assume you are one of them. It is unfortunate. Teachers -- like me -- need more people on our side.

Homeschooling is proof that you don't need a degree to educate? What a joke. I can drive a nail into a 2x4, I guess that makes me an expert carpenter. How about hiring me to build your home? I can drive a car as well, look for me in the Indy 500 next year. Provided that you have hopes for your child to succeed in college and then a career, I would take an educator over a housewife with a template lesson plan any day. No offense to a housewife either, but I am baffled as to why they think their teaching hobby is going to benefit their kid in the long run.

Obviously, you need a masters degree to teach a hungry,tired six year old the ABC's, that is what your union and teachers like you preach. I disagree. I don't have an issue with "teachers' per se only the ones who think the world revolves around them or the "teachers" who equate academic diplomas with classroom competency.

Again, I think the primary grades(K-3)can be taught by competent adult with proper training and curriculum.

My original question was "Do teachers receive automatic pay raises because of advanced degrees without regard to increased responsibilities or grade level change"? The answer I received was "yes" and I disagree with that policy.

I would agree with that as far as the Master's Degree being tied to your wage. Bumping up the pay scale simply based on the fact that you got a Masters makes no sense. In the real world, a Masters Degree may be useful in some positions, but the fact that you obtain a Masters when the position doesn't need one isn't going to bump up your wage. What is next, Major League Baseball contracts are fatter for athletes that completed the P90x? Awesome job in completing the P90x, but it has nothing to do your ability to play ball. Just another accomplishment to be proud of.

Brenda, when you go to the "Blog Page" the list of local headlines on the right contains the title and link to an opinion letter about 2nd Amendment rights. Is that a mistake?

This is what I'm seeing. The "2nd Amendment not negotiable" link takes you to an opinion letter.

Local Headlines

Pilots killed in Guard attack helicopter crash identified

Dopps group aids non-profit groups

Veterans Day event scheduled

Preliminary hearings set for arson suspects

Home damaged in Halloween fire

Art at the Inn event set for Saturday

2nd Amendment not negotiable

Huge country music festival planned here in 2015

Works and looks normal to me Sam

Karma

That's interesting. Thanks for responding, Brenda.

I was a tad bit surprised to notice that the sprinklers are still watering the grass in our city parks. Most of us have already taken precautions to get the lines blown out before the pipes start freezing up and causing major damage and repair costs. But the more alarming thing on a morning that was 16 degrees is that the sprinklers are also hitting all of the side walks which left a nice layer of ice on all of the sidewalks. So are we forcing people to walk in the city streets now so they don't break a hip when they fall on the icy sidewalks? If nothing else, at least shut them off before you have a lawsuit on your hands.

Just a general comment...beware of a phone call featuring a recorded male voice saying you are named in an IRS lawsuit and to call a certain number. We didn't call the number, but emailed the IRS telling them about it. We could also file a police complaint.

senior lady, you were right to respond that way. This sounds like a scam.

my two cents

How do you think the city keeps justifying the fee increases?

So having driven on I-84 the past two days between Mt Home and Boise, it's obvious where the county line is. Ada county pre-treated the highway and kept it clean, whereas Elmore county seemed to be providing a practice ground for the next Olympic Curling team. The difference in road conditions was drastic. Am I the only one who noticed? Do Elmore County drivers not deserve a safe roadway to travel on? Bad enough the road system in Mt Home seems to be from the 60's...so where does our tax money go??

Where's,

All good points and questions. Just remember ITD maintains and clears the interstate and the county is not responsible. Sounds like something to ask your state leadership. Add into the mix, the section of I84 from Mt Home to Bliss is one of the most dangerous in the state but the county has to constantly call ITD to treat the roads and there you have where ITD's main concern is. Just listen to a scanner when the weather is bad.

Thanks for educating me Old Guy, I can't imagine ITD turning around at the county line so there must be a big difference in the pavement material. I will ask our state representation.

Thanks and everybody drive carefully!

I read of the indictments of the two leaders of AEHI...something for which I took a stand several years ago when I was younger and in better health. I thought getting them was a lost cause; hope it doesn't fall through the cracks.

I opposed AEHI because I was convinced they didn't have a real way to protect the world at large, and Elmore County in particular. I then learned of shady dealings in how the company was run. So I was gratified when I read of their arrests.

For sure. Don't head east on the fwy. when the weather is bad.

No school for Jr High tomorrow Wed, Nov. 19 due to frozen pipes.

The Chamber of Commerce had canceled the Christmas Parade, however we will have a parade. A group of people have come together to make it happen.

From Theresa Bowman

Meeting for Holiday Parade is Sat., Nov 22 at 4 at Mulberry Place to finish our plans! to greet and meet Santa! Sounds like a band music cookies and lots of stuff donated so far! need cups, napkins, hot chocolate mix, coffee tks all! Love our small town! Lets us know if u want to do a float or just walk all lite up with your family!

Anyone have more specific info on the content of what was posted to a website called Whisper, which has caused the SD to initiate extra police presence at the high school? All parents have been called...KUDOS for keeping us in the loop, but I think school should be cancelled if there are talks of a potential shooting (I am speculating). Anyone happen to know more information? I have a teen that is in class now so I am curious and worried. Thx.

Posted by a fellow parent on social media:

School Resource Detective Natalie Rogers is currently investigating a threat made on the social media site called, "whisper"... A picture was posted anonymously stating that someone heard that two students were going to shoot up the school.... It does not specify which school or when....Please know that there has been numerous similar threats made anonymously throughout different states on this site and many others which have been investigated resulting in these threats as being "hoaxes"...There is no need to be alarmed or concerned at this point as we do not believe this is a valid threat.. School officials and police are working together and taking necessary steps as a precaution to protect your children and create a safe learning environment for them..

Please know that Investigators are currently attempting to find the origin of this threat and will hold whomever is responsible accountable for their actions...If you have any information pertaining to this case please contact Detective Rogers at 208-599-4849 or visit our website at www.mhpd.net and leave a tip on our "silent witness" link located there...

Ms Marylin, is there an update regarding the Christmas parade?

UPDATE - Police and Fire Dept. are on board - A Community Parade to Bring Santa to Town - Fri. Dec 5 at 6:30 pm - Start in front of Fire Station by Pauls - up 2nd Street turn right at Sav Mor Drug - turn right 3rd to Odd Fellows - Party will start at Odd Fellows at the end of Parade - LIVE band - Cookies, Coffee and hot chocolate with Santa with Mrs Claus & Elves. if you want to walk (with lights), do a float or donate stuff call Theresa at 587-9116 ( Mulberry Place) or drop off items there! ** Please bring a can good or unwrapped toy to support our local's*** while you visit with Santa!

Information about the Christmas Parade should be in the paper tomorrow, also look for flyers in stores.

From Theresa

Decorating The Odd fellows Saturday Nov 29 at 1 pm If u have any extra reindeer that move or lights decorations that we can use please let us know and anyone is welcome to come decorate. Thanks

Is there going to be some discussion concerning the WECRD at the City Council meeting tonight?

Yes on the WECRD. Tonight at 6:00 per Brenda at the MH Building Department.

Hi All:

I didn't get to that WECRD meeting at the MH Building Department on Monday. Does anyone have any first hand knowledge of what was discussed and decided?

Thnaks,

TB

stopcorrupt87, you won't win this battle. It sounds like it might have been deleted because it might sway a potential jury.

Enjoy this fun fact from your local University of Idaho Extension Master Gardener program...Everyone loves a big Christmas tree. ...Did you know that the use of evergreen trees to celebrate the winter season occurred before the birth of Christ? And that the first decorated Christmas tree was in Riga, Latvia in 1510. Besides evergreens, other types of trees such as cherry and hawthorns were used as Christmas trees in the past. Did you know that Thomas Edison's assistant, Edward Johnson, came up with the idea of electric lights for Christmas trees in 1882? Finally, did you know that 98% of all Christmas trees are grown on farms, while only 2% are cut from the wild? These trees have become a sustainable crop for many farmers right alongside pumpkins. 46 million Christmas tree seedlings were planted by U.S. growers in 2012. Now you can hug a farmer for more than just your food. the Master Gardener classes will be in Feb-March. If you would like to learn more about please visit us at www.extension.uidaho.edu/elmore email us at elmore@uidaho.edu or call the Elmore Extension at 587-2136 Ext-509 for more information.

I've noticed lately that our local peace officers have doubled up in the patrol vehicles. I hope they continue to have two officers/sheriffs per vehicle, for their safety and ours and that's it not just a training period.

Our taxes are well spent on endeavors like these.

There is a trust that has been broken. People can comment on blogs as long as they stick to the subject of the blog. Or they can comment on the political forum.

We thought we had rules: no name calling, which is inadequately enforced by MHN and sticking to the topic which has also been inadequately enforced by MHN. This seems to go way overboard until people start responding in kind.

Recently all comments were deleted from Kelly's latest blogs and they have been disabled from commenting on. This seems to be because some people have not stuck to the subject of the blogs. Some people did stick to the subject of the blogs, but did respond when others digressed into other subjects. I think this may be because some people don't like being moved to the Political Forum but I'm okay with that. I was willing to talk to them anywhere.

I know that for my part, I researched every comment that I made and I tried to continually return to the subject of the blog. I tried to follow the rules in all cases.

But my work was wiped out as were others and the blogs were disabled. I didn't mind the occasional humiliating note from Brenda about my comment and took that as a learning experience.

I have to ask, what are the rules here? I try to follow them, but comments are treated as not the work that Kelly put into his original blog but as garbage that can be tossed.

I have enjoyed the MHN blogs, including the political blog but I don't believe that anybody deserves their work to be thrown out. If the rules, which I've never seen anywhere is that everything can be thrown out at anytime that is fine. That was not disclosed to us when we signed up to comment. I'd like to note that I comment on the blogs as an exercise to keep me current on political affairs.

I imagine this comment will be deleted. I will followup with this elsewhere.

Gee Sam, feel sorry for you.

Joe it looks to me like you are missing a point that isn't addressed to you.

Don't worry Geordey, feel for you too. Public/open forum, yes it does concern me. There was a political forum created for the few who continue to berate others, that includes all sides. Lets try and keep it there. Sam posted in an open/public forum expecting replies, this is mine

Aaannnd, this is why we can't have nice things.

uncommon sense, we can still have nice things. IMO, one of two things needs to happen if not both.

1. People have to use their real names. If others use their real name, I'll use mine.

2. Monitoring of the blog comments needs to be consistent.

I realize that MHN is doing everyone a favor to allow input on these blogs but they are also allowing unbridled name calling, lying, and other unpleasant things. There are also rulings from MHN on comments that are sometimes difficult to understand. It's a carrot and a stick.

Some people may very well feel that the carrot isn't worth the stick, especially when the stick becomes, out of the blue, a taser with no warning or explanation of what set it off.

There was a comment that a few people were going off topic on both blog sites. I later made a comment last night which was on topic. I didn't see any other comments. So I'm thinking, was my comment considered to be off topic? Did someone else go off topic? What happened? Maybe we will never know.

I vented last night. My suggestions for improvement today are sincere with no animosity to anyone.

Unfortunately this paper is extremely biased. In my opinion the media should report and allow opinion without bias. So many posts have been deleted that had replies following them which ended up making no sense unless those reading had a chance to see the deleted post prior to it being deleted.

This paper and those controlling the content it contains seem to continuously change what is and is not allowed, there are no set rules to follow and as Sam stated it is confusing, the poster might do their best to follow the unwritten rules but still end up getting their opinion deleted.

Maybe some new blood should be brought in to refresh the content and allow more open mindedness.

Can anyone give me any information about who owns this paper?

gmoney great post,could't agree more,although you will probably draw the wrath of mccallumS.

McCallumS, the MHN is owned by Rust Communications which does business under the www.semissourian.com newspaper website.

They seem to use the same web site software as MHN does so their site is very familiar but here are some differences that I noticed.

1. Staff do not seem to post political blogs. They instead post blogs about a neighborhood store or a story from the past. -- These blogs don't seem to attract much comment or they are monitored closely and cleaned up.

2. There are community bloggers that sometimes post town stuff, but sometimes political stuff. -- They have no comments on them. It looks like you can comment on them but others won't see your comments.

I saw only politeness from any of the commenters, so I suspect that it is closely monitored. The other thing that I noticed, that seemed different is that although this didn't seem to be a requirement people were tending to use their own names like: KimClark or JoeSmith as their screen names.

Thank you Sam.

Dude what "crazies" are you talking about?

MERRY CHRISTMAS Mountain Home!!!

On the scanner a couple minutes ago our fire department is going to use a fire vehicle to take people from a crash to Boise. The cost to the tax payer is one thing but why not take them to a local rental car agency or use a local taxi? Last time I checked the fire department was for fighting fires. Not for using tax payer dollars to provide a taxi service to anyone that needs a ride.

A fire vehicle does not mean fire truck. Besides if it were you being transported would it matter? Also what is the rest of the story? Do you know the specifics?

Geordey,

Two posts below you asking the question.

So I have been reading this Banter Box for a while now and find some interesting things on here like remarks about the national government and state government but I rarely see anything griping about local topics. I see people bashing the football program at the school and not much more. I see most people on here want to complain about different topics and have the right to but I am not seeing one on here that most people should complain about and that is that the city of Mountain Home is leading the state in one thing...Highest gas prices! What is the deal? You can tell me its transport cost when we know it isn't since all of our gas comes from the same distributer. I spoke with a tanker driver last night in Twin Falls at a gas station that we have in Mountain Home and he tried to tell me that its transport cost but then he goes on to tell me that he is based out of Boise. So it costs more to deliver gas to Mountain Home than Twin Falls? The price per gallon in Twin was $1.90 last night. I guess I am confused or I just don't know how to read a map. Last I checked Twin was further from Boise than Mt Home. When the national average is $0.25 lower than what we pay something is not right. Just one of my many gripes about this place we call Mountain Home.

kelz5150

I don't know what the National average for gas price is, but I know for a fact that we are .50 higher than Boise today and .50 higher than Twin Falls on Christmas Day. Our local businesses want us to buy local, and if the prices were close I would. But when there is this big a difference I will buy my gas anytime I go to either of those cities. I hope everyone does the same

I enjoy people complaining about the gas prices in Mountain Home. If you spent less time driving to Boise or Twin, the price of gas might not be such an issue would it. My favorites are the ones that drive to Boise to shop for things they probably don't need anyway. That could be costing you a lot more in the long run than paying an additional $5 to $10 to fill your vehicle in town. If you work in Boise, fill up there and quit complaining. The rest of you, spend a little more time at home and save that money you would be spending shopping in Boise. Your might be surprised at how the balance in your check book might grow.

Dude

If you are content paying .50 more per gallon than you should be paying, good for you. I personally don't know anyone that enjoys being taken. As far as traveling to other cities to shop, I never said I was shopping. I have family in both Boise and Twin Falls.

Joe,

What's the rest of the story? They have enough money to rent a car in Boise but we're going to give them a ride on the tax payer dollar? These politicians need to start impressing on the employees that they are using OUR money. It's not theirs to use to give rides to people. If they are going to use our money that way then they need to use it on our people here that need a ride. But as I said I didn't think that was the fire departments baliwhack.

So to everyone speaking of these gas prices in this town. Think of the 2 oldest gas men in this town. They set the prices. How many times have you driven by and have seen county vehicles and city vehicles at these two establishments? What kind of deal do they have with our local government that they keep the prices high? Because our tax dollars are paying for the gas in these vehicles and they will lose money if they drop prices? How many times have you seen a police car running with no one around it for 15 minutes? What's the point of that??? I'm sure someone has an answer for that. Hmmm? I understand if it is a K9 unit. What kind of deal is the city receiving? Is it time to write to the Attorney General for an investigation of what really is going on???

HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE! P.S. Go Broncos!!

On the topic of Mountain Home gas prices, they can charge whatever they want for gas. It doesn't Impact me one way or the other because I buy in Boise where it is 50 cents less per gallon. Just another example of a myopic point of view, they assume they have us right where they want us, so they charge more and then limit their sales instead of charging reasonable prices and maximizing sales. And no... You don't have to factor in the price of gas to buy in Boise, because everyone is over there for one reason or another anyway so it is simply adding another stop along the way before heading home.

FYI proofpositive, I am not joker76. There are obviously others in this hole that have issues with the local law enforcement as well. :)

Dude? How do you know people drive to Boise to shop for things they don't need any way? I go to Boise for things I need all the time, if it be a Doctor or something I can't get here. People have every right to complain about something that isn't right and having higher gas prices simply because they can, doesn't make them right. If businesses want the business of those living here, they'll stop taking advantage of people, it's that simple.

Mcallum S? Exactly what is your beef with Law Enforcement? I realize that there are corrupt people in all walks of life, however, having lived in this town 99% of my life, I can say that I have never had so much as a parking ticket here. You know why that is? Because I don't park where I am not supposed to. Laws are put in place to protect all of us, if you don't break them, you have no trouble with the law. If you DO break them and the law catches up with you, take responsibility for your actions and learn from them, don't try to fight what you've done (that's a collective you, not you personally Mccallum S.) and then whine when you are not successful.

That's all. Have a safe and Happy New Year!

Itsjustmeagain

I have lived here for many years as well, my post was directed to proofpositive who assumes that when anyone posts a negative comment about law enforcement it is me. The issues I have with the corruptness in our city and county law enforcement are long and each and every complaint I have is valid and backed by proof in writing, I am not just blowing smoke outta my rear.

Those such as yourself that continue to state that if you do not break the law you will have no issued with law enforcement are blinded, it happens often. Many times people are arrested for something they have not done, someone might make an accusation that are not true, a person might mistake an identity, a COP might make a mistake and refuse to "take responsibility" for that mistake and cost a person an unjust ticket or even worse time in jail.

Do you know each and every law that exists? There are so many that it is unreasonable to expect anyone to know each and every one. Personally I have never had a ticket, I have never spent a single night in jail, I try never to park where I am not supposed to but that has nothing to do with my experiences with law enforcement.

I do not know you but I will say this, if you would like to see written or recorded proof of the reasons I "whine" I am more than happy to open my home to you for a few hours and show you. I have valid reasons for my complaints and will not stop complaining or demonstrating my issues until things are changed.

I will try to word this post so that it won't be pulled, let's see how I do HA HA!

McCallumS, I'll be honest with, I won't give you my name, however, I will say you wouldn't want me in your home, I will say that I can safely assume you will think you know who I am, but I am not that person.

I agreed that not all Law Enforcement is on the up and up and our town has seen our share of those in Law Enforcement who do not always do as they should.

If an accusation is made against someone that is not true, then they certainly can defend that accusation, if evidence shows they are guilty, they should just accept that they are guilty and not make a huge deal out of it. If mistaken identity is the case, that can also be taken care of when the person proves they are not who they were mistaken to be. If a COP makes a mistake and it can be proven that a mistake was made, then of course that mistake should be handled properly, if they do not admit their mistake, then shame on them.

In all fairness, I do know who you are and I know you've been very vocal about things that have happened in this town. You have every right to be vocal about injustices that you see or think you see. If you can validate them, they by all means, do so in the proper venue. If you feel you have valid complaints and can back them up, you're not doing yourself any favors by voicing them all over the place. It would better suit you to collect your information and then take whatever legal steps you have to take, to change things.

There shouldn't be anything wrong with voicing our opinions, however, this is real life and since we are not always able to stay anonymous, what happens is those who speak out over and over before they take any steps to change things, are labeled trouble makers and that's never good for those who want to make things better.

Just some food for thought!

Gas is $1:89 at the TA (shell) station off Broadway. With my discount card I got gas last night for $1:86. N0 it isn't .50 cents cheaper in Boise it is .51 cents cheaper.

Trouble: while out yesterday, I noticed that three different places here in town were all $245. odd since they prices are usually a few cents different in these places. It's okay though, as long as it stays low for a while.

Yes, gas is much cheaper in both Boise & Twin Falls

http://www.boisegasprices.com/

http://www.idahogasprices.com/Twin%20Falls/index.aspx

We are being gouged here in Mountain Home.

Itsjustme,

I do not need your name but as for me not wanting you in my home, in order to get people to open their eyes to things they are refusing to accept can be hard to do and we have to sometimes resort to doing things we would not normally do so there is a chance that no matter who you are I would allow you in my home for this reason.

As for when a person is being accused of something and their right to defend, I agree. Unfortunately if the person is in fact innocent proving this can cause great financial difficulty, this and the stress it causes on the person and their family can never be paid back. I do agree that if the person is guilty they should be held accountable for their actions.

Your statement about if a COP has made a mistake and it can be proven etc., would be a great thing for them to accept their mistake but as your said this is real life and having them accept a mistake does not occur often. This point has been proven time and time again.

Now as for you knowing me and believing that voicing my opinion all over the place might be more harm than help.... I try very hard to choose venues that I hope will get my opinion out the best that I can, but this particular subject, one that involves law enforcement, the judiciary system or probation and parole can be touchy. I have taken the necessary steps required, and shown the proof that I have collected over the last 2 years only to met with comments such as "I cannot help you, it's a personnel issue", or you need to take this to this department, then that department will refer me to another department and this run around continues for months. The next thing you know the statutes of limitation for complaints has come and gone.

Again for every accusation I have made, I have written and recorded proof, both voice and video. I am only trying to have those that have broken the law themselves to be held accountable. And I really am not concerned with people labeling me a troublemaker, I am committed to getting things changed, I will not stop trying to get my point across due to very few people thinking I am a crazy lady, :) these things just do not bother me. I fight for what I believe in.

MccallumS: We both want the same thing, those who break the law to be held accountable and pay whatever the price may be.

I want to know why the gas prices are so much higher in Mountain Home than Boise and other cities in Idaho. Is it a logistics issue or is there gouging going on? Here's the breakdown according to Idahogasprices.com and Gasbuddy.com:

Boise -- 1.84

Moscow -- 2.15

Twin Falls - 1.80

Jerome -- 1.85

Hagerman -- 1.99

Gooding -- 1.98

Nampa -- 1.95

Meridian -- 1.91

Garden City 1.91

Sun Vally -- 2.09

MOUNTAIN HOME- $$$$$ 2.49

Mountain Home has easy access from the freeway if you are heading East to Idaho Falls or Pocatello, so it's a good time to gas up before a long stretch of highway. I doubt if it is price gouging but the gas stations charging what the market (largely freeway traffic) is willing to pay.

What one is willing to pay when on the freeway with a quarter tank of gas left and what one is willing to pay when they live here are two different things. Something is not square with this pricing. One place in town lags on lowering the price for a week, then lowers it a penny less then the others. What does that tell you. I for one don't patronize them.

To add to the discussion that needs to be discussed at a much higher level, gas prices in this town are going down but it is kind of funny when a gas station manager is asked why the prices are much higher than the surrounding cities, his comment was I would love to lower the prices but why should I when the rest of the city won't. He also mentioned that he can lower the prices but he is his store is making money and again the rest of the gas station wont lower theirs. And we say there is not gouging, hmmm, sure sounds that way to me. I know this is a dead horse topic but maybe someone in the local city government needs to step up and act on this.

On a completely different topic I read that the city of Mountain Home gets several inquiries for new businesses every week. I really find that hard to believe. Can someone please let me know where I can find this info?

Just plain Price Gouging here in Mountain Home, these gas station owners should be ashamed.

http://www.idahogasprices.com/index.aspx?area=Mountain%20Home

http://www.idahogasprices.com/Twin%20Falls/index.aspx

http://www.boisegasprices.com/Boise/index.aspx

The price of gas in this town has nothing to do with the size of the town. When I drove to Jackpot a couple of weeks ago, Rogerson, ID was selling gas .20 cheaper then here. I have lived in Mountain Home for 28 years and what I have noticed is this: When gas goes down, we always trail behind the drop for the area. When gas prices go up we are usually in the lead. When gas prices are steady we are within .05 of everyone else.

During the past month or two we have been much farther behind the other cities in dropping prices.

I do believe this blog has helped though. Since the prices were first mentioned here we have dropped .30.

Collusion, Collusion and more collusion. Walmarts prices along I-84 range from $1.82- $2.46 last weekend with Mountain Home being the highest. All the gas stations in MH are greedy.

I guess the question of why gas prices are high here in Mountain Home has been answered. The station owners are indeed gouging consumers.

I wonder if those who have any kind of pull in this town get weary of hearing all the negative things about this town being reported on the news. I have 0 pull but I have talked to a number of different local elected officials or people in charge and have hit wall after wall. Lets get some changes happening here people.

http://www.ktvb.com/story/news/investigations/7-investigations/2015/01/06/gas-pr...

There is the link to the story about gas prices. I think the deputy attorney general needs to read Idaho law 48-603 again because there are laws against gouging.

We have been reading your comments and doing our research and making the calls on Mountain Home gas prices. Brian will have an article in tomorrows paper for you also. We have been asking your questions trying to get answers for you. Thank you for your comments.

I read a good one. Guy complaining about the price of gas in Mountain Home, but gets up early and drives around town checking the prices at all the stations burning up fuel he did not need to. That must be these station owners grand plan. If everyone drives around just to check pump prices burning extra fuel, just think of how much more fuel they will sell.

Dude

I don't know if you drive much, but I'd bet most people in this town know that Maverik, WalMart and Pilot are the lowest priced gas in this town. So all you have to do is drive down one street and you know all you need to know. By the way, Chevron is usually the highest price.

Ah, I get it. The large companies with multiple locations throughout the valley are the lowest. Thanks for clearing that up.

I was simply commenting on the fact that you don't have to drive all over town to check on prices. BUT, do you really believe Chevron, Shell and Texaco AREN'T all over the valley.

Maybe the guy was not driving all over town but on his way to work and took notice of the prices due to the news report last night. For example, I pass 4 stations on my way to work and you bet I looked at the prices both this morning and this afternoon. Noticed a change from very early this morning till this afternoon when I got off work. I did not waste any extra fuel checking on prices just paid attention to my surroundings.

The KTVB article sums it up rather nicely. The Attorney General says there isn't a valid reason for Mountain Home gas to be that much more expensive, but then says that price gouging isn't illegal. The argument that Mountain Home sets their gas prices based on how much they paid for gas (if they bought high, they have to sell high) doesn't hold water. If that were true, then the folks stocking up the stations with gas in Mountain Home must be the dumbest people alive. They seem to have an uncanny knack for buying a ton of gas at high prices right before decreases hit, and they have never been lucky enough to buy a ton of gas at low prices right before prices increase. So they buy lots high and sell high... And they buy very little low and sell high? They ought to be ashamed of themselves for being blatant enough with their gouging that it made the KTVB news.

It's called the free market. Charge as much as possible for as long as possible without getting strung up. Collusion is almost impossible to prove. Let's face it, unless you have a pressing need to go out of town, you will buy your gas locally. They know it! Why lower prices and put any kind of a dent in their profits, no matter how ill gotten.

Just my opinion.

Good point about the free market. And the best way to remedy that is to blatantly make our point by voting with our dollars. To the furthest extent possible, we should avoid buying gas in Mountain Home whenever remotely feasible.. On empty but headed to Boise? Fine, give them a quarter tank worth and then fill up in Boise before coming back.. In Boise with half a tank, go ahead and top it off before coming home. It takes all of two minutes to whip by a pump and top off the tank in Boise, and you will probably save $5 or $10 to compensate you for the 2 minute top off. A little bit of a hassle, sure. But if all of us play the sheep and follow along, what possible incentive do they have to charge reasonable prices? And keep voting with your dollars until you are satisfied with gas prices here. If you rarely go out of town, then you probably don't need to fill up that often in the first place. But at some point during that tank of gas that will last you weeks, you probably WILL be by a pump outside of town, take advantage and fill up then. The bottom line is that if we don't voluntarily choose to change our spending habits, they won't choose to voluntarily change their pricing habits.

And... It is understandable if topping off out of town simply won't work out every time you need gas. So if you HAVE to buy gas in Mountain Home, then make it a point to go to the lowest cost provider EVERY single time you need gas. At least that would give the providers that are missing out on the sale an incentive to try and be the lowest cost provider if they expect to get any business out of us.

always right,

I find it interesting when people attempt to find support and get things changed you refer to them as being bitter. How do you expect change to happen if people do not voice their opinions?

Mountain Home has a number of different issues that need change. I have lived here for 30 years and until the last 5 or so years I have loved it here. I believe I pay more attention to what is happening locally as I grow older and would like to see thing improve so my grand kids might enjoy living here as I once did.

Your suggestion is to just move??? This town supports and is supported by many military people, these people cannot just up and move. There are people that have invested all they have into their homes and even if they wanted to move may not be able to because their homes are under water. There are people who have invested their lives into their careers and taking a job elsewhere might not be financially applicable.

I also find it interesting that you label people who complain as being bitter and yet all you seem to do resort to name calling, how does your post make things better?

Hi All:

Was looking at an old map of Mountain Home. I susspect Legacy Park used to be a gravel pit before it became a Mountain Home park? What say you long time residents? Any photos of Legacy Park before it was developed? Just curious.

Thanks,

Tim

Buster,

You kind of miss my point. Shell oil does not own all the Shell stations etc. etc. The Shell station on Airbase Rd. (Jacksons) is owned by John Jackson. He owns probably somewhere around 50 of these stations. The Maverick is owned by private individuals that also own other Mavericks throughout the valley. Hawley's is owned by Herb Hawley. He owns this single station. Hiler Bros. is owned by the Hiler family. They own this single station. Can you maybe see the difference?

Tim

Join "I'm from Mountain Home Idaho" on face book there's a lot of long time Mountain Home Residents there and they post a lot of pictures.

Tim.....yup, Legacy used to be a gravel pit. all the subdivisions surrounding it were swamp and wetlands as well. Years ago kids used to ride horses in that area and bring home buckets of goldfish caught in the ponds that used to be there. Don't know how they dried it up but the only pond left is the one in the park. Heading North from 3rd street you can still find cattails growing in the left side of the path. I think maybe these days the laws pertaining to wetlands might have kept all those subs from ever being built there.

Hi goatbeard & MsMarylin:

Thanks for the info. I'm happy the gravle pit is gone and replaced by the most awesome Legacy Park. MsMarylin...I'll join that facebook community you mentioned.

Thanks,

Tim

I just heard on CNN that they are afraid to post any drawings of Mohamed because of threats. Yet they post drawings of pencils vs swords. How hypocritical can a news agency get. All news agencies cnn, fox, msnbc, cbs and Al Jaazera including MHN should be printing these drawings until the Muslim community agrees that its a human right. If not, then you give the terrorist a win.

So Kuna gets the meat packing plant? Wasn't that supposed to come to Mountain Home? Why can't this city get these types of business? What exactly went wrong? Are we not educated enough as stated in an editorial? Infrastructure can't support it? Did the city drop the ball? Are the people trying to bring business to Mountain Home educated enough? Or maybe they still are relying too much on the Air Force Base. Does anyone have an answer to any of these questions? (and going to a city hall meeting isn't the answer) If we want to keep this community and "SUPPORT LOCAL JOE" then come on City leaders. Put your big boy/girl pants on and get it done. I know its easier said than done, but how many businesses have passed this community over? I'm sure plenty. We've had one big business come in and that was what 5 years ago? I'm not sure when Marathon opened but that has been the biggest thing for jobs this town has seen in years. Who ever is in charge of getting jobs and business here really needs to get it done or maybe the city needs to find someone competent enough to get it done.

Hi joker76:

You brought up some very good points and questions to ponder about Mtn Home. I am curious as to why you would say talking to City and/or County decision makers isn't the right place to start your quest.

I'm am not lloking to get into a public fight or internet crazy argument on these boards...and I refuse to do so. Just a friendly question.

Thanks,

TB

Joker,

I find it kind of funny about how many businesses get passed on. There was an individual that told me there were something like 400 new business inquiries a month to the city, I asked for proof and I was told to call the city planning office, they will give the proof. If we are passing on that many a month,which I find very hard to believe, then what does this city want in it? The city needs to open the flood gates and let some new business in from outside!!

Regarding the packing plant, I was told (unoffically) that the lack of good water wells was the reason.

I'm not looking to get into any kind of internet arguments either Mr. Bondy. Just wanting to raise some questions for people. The community of Mtn. Home should be aware of what is going on. Nothing to do with politics here, just a concerned citizen. I love this town but when certain opportunities pass us by it is very frustrating.

kelz5150,

Great question, what type of business does the city really want. Has there ever been any type of poll that the city did to find out what we, as a community can support? Maybe they have and I wasn't living here at the time. And if we know what we can support why isn't the city going after that instead of shooting for the moon on a certain amount of employment. I mean a place with just 80 jobs would help out. Do we really need to start with a company that says they can supply 600 jobs? I don't think we as a community could support that but maybe something a little scaled down might be a great beginning. And I may be completely wrong and the city has tried, but how hard have they tried?

joker76:

Again I will say you have asked some great questions we need to ponder. I'll do the legwork to get some anwsers if you wish. All I ask is you write down your questions and concerns in a neat and organized 1.2.3. type format here. I'll go to the City and County to see what they say. I'll then put the answers right back here for all to see. Believe there is a City Council Meeting tonight and Monday is the usual day for the County Commissioners to meet.

Thanks,

TB

I see the city is paying to repair a residence sidewalk on 3rd street, about time. As someone who walks that route often there are a couple areas just east of that home that are more of a safety hazard than that patch of sidewalk was. Hopefully there on the list for replacement.

Welcome new editor, I recommend first action is to help drive public opinion against the WECRD, if not I forsee ten more years of taxpayer money wasted.

We should have just had a Bond with plans to build within 12 months like another local community is doing now.

gmoney - it's the homeowner that is replacing the sidewalk, NOT the city. We just happened to coincide the sidewalk job with fixing the road out front that catches storm water and floods. I have wanted to fix it since purchasing the home a year ago and finally could. The city is NOT paying for it and has told the homeowner (me) it is the responsibility of the property owner to maintain sidewalks. I'm glad at least my patch of your walk will be nice and smooth. I apologize it took me so long. :)

I stand corrected, however I think the city/urban renewal agency should be repairing the sidewalks along all of that stretch due to the constant flooding of that area. Inadequate drainage/sewer system is the city responsibility. That's why we pay our taxes/fees. That area floods every storm for decades and the city has done nothing to correct the issue. Urban renewal just doesn't mean commercial property upgrades.

They should write you a check.

gmoney - I agree! I also won't hold my breath waiting for that check.

Please do say hello next time you're walking, if we happen to be out. With the sunshine and warm temps coming, I'm itching to be out in the yard. Enjoy your walks, but do be careful!

To anyone out there with Directv... is it just my service, or has anyone else in town lost local channel 6? That is the only channel that has disappeared and they can't seem to figure out why. ..

It's been an hour since your post, but I also have DTV and channel 6 is working here. I don't know about earlier.

I had that issue and all I did was press the little red button on my receiver to reset/reboot it

In yesterday's paper, Councilman Schipani said drivers are already speeding through school speed zones. My question is; Why the heck don't our law enforcement people do something about it?

For whoever might have thought they were lucky enough to find a nice pair of Oakley sunglasses in WalMart today, you have probably discovered by now that they are actually prescription glasses and most likely not of use to you. My wife does need them for her work, so if you could please return them to customer service at the store it would be greatly appreciated.

I've heard that the softball coach at the high school won't allow girls to play softball if they are involved in another sport at the same time. If this is true will someone explain the logic behind this to me please? There are studies that show that extracurricular activities improve academic performance so I hope this is just rumor.

Wish,

There are also studies that show that students suffer academically when they are overburdened with sports. More times than not and especially in Mountain Home, students in sports have bad grades because they cannot balance their time properly. As a coach, I would not let an athlete play two sports at the same time either. This causes too much of a conflict since practices are most likely at the same time. If it is a winter sport going in to a spring sport they are not over lapping because basketball is over and softball has not started. The only thing for softball is open gym. As an fitness specialist, pushing an athlete to play two sports at the same time is not good for them. This does not give the body time to heal properly and the athlete will not get enough rest to perform properly at school.

Why would you want your child to play two sports at the same time? If practices overlap and your child misses practices from either team, do you still expect your child to get equal playing time with kids that have attended all practices. How do you expect your child to develope proper fundamentals and game skills while attending practices part time?

What if games overlap? It's not fair to your child, other children on the team, your coach, the program, or your school. It's one of life's lessons, pick ONE.

Wishinonehand, I hope that you were able to contact the school and find out what the situation is. You are obviously a concerned parent and have your child's best interests in mind. In high school multiple extra curricular activities look good when applying to college, but as I'm sure that you know they are hard to juggle.

There's a lot of our sports that can't even field a freshman JV and Varsity team. I find it had to believe there's no middle ground. A kid that misses some practices shouldn't be able to play every game but isn't it up to the kid and their parents how many sports or other activities they want to do? If a kid misses a practice for a science fair or an auto show or a speech debate are they not to play in the rest of the games? It sports only then? Or is it just other sports? The kids should be the focus I assume. If we can't get enough kids to even try out for a full compliment of teams then what's the point of trying to stand on some made up ethics? I don't have kids in these programs. I hear and read tons of opinions about how our kids are lazy and don't want to put in work. Maybe it's the programs sapping the kids enthusiasm and not that the kids are lazy. Why is it that in Babe Ruth baseball there are hundreds of kids and the high school is lucky to get 30 kids to come out for their whole program and can't field a freshman team. The softball program had low 20's kids show up last year for their whole program, no freshman team. The girls basketball program was switching players all year and had an extremely shallow bench. Our freshmen routinely go up against juniors from other schools and their JV program. That's probably not the best way to develop players and the kids sure do get tired of getting the snot knocked out of them every game. The end result is that we are pulling players up to fill in and our kids constantly have to play against other schools older players. There's a problem. Instead of fixing it let's just alienate more players. If a dual sport athlete could help us then I think there's some way to be inclusive.

Wish,

I am not aware of any MHHS coach that allows their players to participate on two MHHS teams during the same season. Dual sport athletes are very necessary in MHHS, but they must also be dual season. For girls: soccer OR volleyball in the fall, basketball in the winter, softball OR track in the spring. The problem arises with club sports. These are normally not affiliated with the school, but compete for players to play their sport when it is in "off season" at the high school. For example: you can play volleyball at the high school in the fall, and play for a club team the remainder of the year in Boise. I believe this is the situation the softball coach is trying to avoid, as would any coach. Think of a person that wants to have two jobs. The work hours sometimes overlap. The employee then chooses which job he/she will go to. Either way one employer is sometimes put in a bind. It won't be long and this employee will have to choose one of them, or risk loosing both. Two sports in the same season? Your first life lesson.

"coach that allows"? I see. The coaches don't work for the district, aren't paid for with tax dollars, and have too few players. Might be time to do a lil rethinkin'. Before the kids start playing club ball and skipping school ball altogether. But then we could put back some classes and buy some books.

Life lesson? You're kidding right? There are many many people that successfully work two jobs for years. That's your example? Thanks for making my point. Good employees , like good athletes, are worth working with.

That's right Wish. Coach is the boss. Let's have our kids bail-out on MHHS sports because we don't get our way? There we go!! Awesome solution. If you want special treatment and feel your child is entitled, then Boise Club Sports might be the way for you to go @ $1500.00 to $3000.00 per season per player not to include travel expenses to practices and games to Boise 4-5 times weekly. Don't forget the fund raisers. You'll probably be required to raise an additional $1000.00 or so.

Better put some extra cash away for motels and meals if there are out of town tournaments. Probably better keep those two jobs. But heck, why not, my kids entitled.

Then I suppose the coaches will continue to be right and have no players and wonderful losing seasons with no freshmen teams. At least they are the big bosses and get to prove their meaningless point. Meanwhile parents will take their kids to Boise schools, find alternative way to play sports, kids will choose to not participate, and the sports programs will continue to suck. With just a little more arrogance maybe they can drive participation down enough where we'll only be able to field just a Varsity team. But thankfully they will show um who's boss. All is well.

I can see your glass is never half full. Hope all goes well for you and your family. Go Tigers!!

Instead of constantly complaining about the coaches at Mountain Home why don't you come out and coach once and see what it is like. I know they are looking for a football coach!! Let's see how you do! Step up and volunteer to help out instead of complaining, make that difference in that athlete.

Kelz,

Football coach position was filled already. Despite several more than qualified local applicants, MHSD hired someone from out of state.

Check your facts Old Guy.

Old Guy

You're giving out last weeks info. The current head football coach has been a teacher at Mountain Home High School for several years. The guy they hired a couple of weeks ago has already resigned.

And by the way, all this talk about bad coaches here at Mountain Home makes me believe you are not going to the boys Varsity basketball games. This team is having fun, and in my view very well coached.

Old Guy,

As Buster said your info is outdated, the out of state coach resigned after visiting the school. The new coach was hired yesterday and a few well qualified coaches in the local area were passed over simply because they were part of the "loser/status quo" staff and the job was given to an optimist coach. I guess loyalty to a program was not part of the hiring process.

This "Optimist Coach" was an assistant football coach here a few years ago, the Head Football Coach at Rimrock, and has spent many years as one of the track coaches here. I for one am happy he got the job, and I really hope he gets the support he deserves (and needs)

All,

I only reported what I have seen plastered all over the news in recent weeks. I just found out this morning over coffee that the great savior from another state decided against coming here. I will not say I am sorry for not reporting facts that only some knew and the general public (folks like me) was not aware of. Guess I won't post on here again since so many have accused me of reporting outdated information that I was not aware of. No wonder so many have left this banter box and we only see the same few make posts. Have a nice day !!!

And as a follow up, buy the paper to read the story. The resignation was just made at LAST week's MHSD meeting and published in the paper TODAY !!!!! That is why I said they hired from outside of the local area.

First of all GREAT JOB boy's basketball! GO GET 'em tonight! I understand that basketball has not played in a district championship for 35 years....crazy the student support,the bball skills ,the positive coaches ,the community support .....amazing!

My second thought is that I do find it most humorous that more people care about the football coach position than ANY MATH, SCIENCE or even (sigh here) ANY educational leader such as principals, all the way to superintendants.

In conclusion BEST of luck coach Clark, BEST of luck to all the shifting management at the district level,

Most of all GO TIGERS!

No worries Old Guy. Parents get e-mails from the district quicker than the News can publish since they are only weekly. Parents got the e-mail of the resignation well over a week ago. Don't quit understand how you knew there were "several" qualified local candidates though. This info was never communicated to the parents. How did you come to find out about this?

Dude,

Well there in lies why I was behind the times. Not all of us that pay taxes have children in the school system. As for the qualified applicants, I know at least 2 that applied, one of them had more qualifications that the person that was selected and resigned. The person I know never even got an interview but someone that had less than them got an interview. Seems strange to an outsider. So who did MHSD decide to go with as not everyone knows?

They went with a teacher at the High School. Jim Clark. Couldn't tell you about all the qualifications each applicant had, but if carpentry was one of them, that would be an instant hire. That Hacker Blg. is in a terrible mess. I've heard good things about the guy, and that he's a hard worker. Let's wish him and the 2015 team the best.

Just noticed where Mountain Home had a couple State Champs in wrestling (Mederios and Sessions) and Coach Knudsen was named 4A coach of the year, pretty cool.

Very Cool.

Just drove by the new Animal Shelter/crematorium. I think the individual who left the 500k for the care of animals would not be happy. It looks like the facility will have half the capacity for holding animals compared to the old facilities and to me that means the smoke stack will be busy.

I can't believe that's all the square footage the city paid for, its like 300$ SQ ft.

Apparently you just drove by, haven't been inside. You will be surprised at the amount of space and space age kennels available there. Before knocking everything before it's available for tour, be excited, the donor would surly be happy. I had the pleasure of a sneak peek and it's wonderful. That coupled with the caring crew is going to make a big difference, good difference. We should disband the Mountain Home knockers club.

Goatbeard

I don't have an insider status to be able to view non-public areas.

What was untrue about my drive-by observations?

1.Three buildings down to one smaller building.

2.I read the donation was for care of animals not attendants.

3.What will happen when overcrowding becomes an issue? Euthanized/cremation under state laws.

4.Cost of SQ footage.

I just don't like Fraud or Waste at any Government level. I think the city overpaid for what it received and did not comply with the published wishes of donor.

But I have no insider information, just a city resident. My eyes are wide open as I drive around, not blinded by any personal agenda.

Lets not get political. Nothing insider here. Done some work there. All you have to do is ask, they'll let you look. But you would rather knock. City pays the attendants, not the grant. Like I said, all you have to do is ask. Those are the coolest people and they will let you see. Then you won't have to ride around having fits. You can go sit in the sun at one of the cities well maintained parks and enjoy the day.

Gmoney,

Kind of leaning with you on this one.

Don't leave $$ to a public entity. An executor with a well spelled out trust probably the way to go. Leaves no room for others opinion, only your own. As it should be. Human nature, go figure....

To anyone interested in the local hospital and what the Idaho Attorney General has to say on a taxing district giving away money and assets:

http://www.idahostatesman.com/2015/02/24/3661213/ag-st-lukes-deals-illegal.html

"The Idaho Attorney General's Office has three words to describe contracts Idaho's largest hospital system has with special taxing districts in Southwest Idaho: "unlawful and unconstitutional."

Not the only taxing district in Elmore County that is "unlawful and unconstitutional."

On to other news. The WECRD (Western Elmore County Recreation District), according to Keyra Elmo, will have a big announcement on March 11, 2015 (in this paper) regarding the status of the CC (remaining money needed to start construction). Do not bother to call and ask the status---they will not release the details. Seems that this project, after 15 (plus) years, may now be shovel ready. Oh joy!

Please correct me If I am wrong, but why would we be able to comment/discuss the Grand View

School Levy and not the Mountain Home? We can only comment on the above articles correct?

MH News, There is really nothing wrong with asking a few questions. Like, how did you folks come up with the number of $5 Million. Did you get estimates? If so from whom? Is $1 Million a year going to be enough? What's the plan if it is not? Can you give us a break down on the costs and projects being considered. An interview or two would be nice for your readers/voters to make some sort of informed decision.

The WECRD has a big announcement on the 11th? Isn't the cat already out of the bag? From what I hear, they are going to put in a YMCA (not just a rec center), but if it doesn't have a pool in it, then it doesn't really matter what they want to call it. It sounds as if it will be a long overdue building with a basketball court (can do that at Legacy Park), indoor jogging track (can do that anywhere that ground is involved), and meeting rooms (can do that at a church). 15 years in the making. Hopefully there will be a lot more to the announcement. Even if I don't have kids that would use the facility, I would gladly pay my tax dollars towards something worthwhile for teens.

So the school district/parents committee didn't give any specific cost or breakdown they just want tax dollars.

I wonder why? Do they plan on pumping more dollars into the B. M. high school building that I thought was condemned, 20 years ago?

I want the WECRD to be abolished.

The M.H. Parks and REC department does a great job for us. All tax dollars/land collected should be conveyed to them and other local recreation non-profits. Otherwise this endeavor will be an additional tax burden forever.

For those that couldn't make it to MHHS BBall game today, you can view it here:

http://www.idahosports.com/gamestreams/default.aspx

Kudos for John Clark the new Football Coach. I think somebody Local and who's been here a long time my have more insight on how to get The Team better organized and on to a winning season. John has a lot of experience in sports, he has been Asst. Football Coach here many years back. Still think he has a tough row to hoe. Good luck Mr. Clark

Grumpy:

John Clark is the new principal at Hacker. His brother, Jim, is the new football coach. Both are deserving of their new jobs. Good Luck to both

Grumpy old man, I am not sure whether "local" translates to what is best or what is needed for the football program. I believe Coach Rodney was about as local as they come, I think he was raised in Mountain Home, played for Mountain Home, graduated from Mountain Home, and came back home to Mountain Home to take over the program and that didn't end up so well. I am not knocking the hiring choice, I am just saying that in my opinion local or non local doesn't carry much weight either way as far as success or the perfect recipe for a turnaround.. A good coach is a good coach, they make sure everyone is on the same page, they make the most out of their talent, they build spirit, and they win... no matter where they came from.

Anyone know what and if the huge announcement from WECRD happened? If it did, what was it? I asked around and no one seems to know.

Old guy- my guess is that they will be announcing that they have just completed a feasibility study to determine if feasibility studies are feasible.

In a nut shell Old Guy, No one seems to know. I have a feeling that somehow, someone from Boise is going to end up with our tax dollars. That seem feasible.

I'll give big odds that McKenna's new school will be finished before WECRD even breaks ground.

Let's just give them $ to build a big gym with a walking track and call it done.

Amazes me how fast the local gas stations shot up their gas prices after taking so long to lower them.

Junkyarddog... Mark Cotton is the AD. No relation to Jim Clark

I believe he has a cousin who is married to a gal who's uncle has a third cousin through marriage, who's ex-wife's brother-in-law is the AD at an SEC school.

I assume the confusion must be between John Clark and Jim Clark (or whatever the names). John Clark was the AD (I believe) until Cotton took over last year. John Clark moved onto the elementary school (I believe)

So... Aren't we officially one week past the big announcement that was hyped by WECRD? Usually after hyping a big announcement, and even offering the date of that big announcement....isn't there usually an announcement of some sort? I can't find anything on this site, can't find anything on WECRD's site, and can't find anything on a YMCA site. That is sort of like Babe Ruth calling his shot to jack one over left field, and then striking out on 3 called strikes.

Does anyone know which Construction Co. will be building the Rec. Center? Local or Boise?

John Clark and Jim Clark are brothers. John used to be the AD but moved to Hacker this year as Vice. Jim Clark is the craft/art teacher at the High School. Jim Clark from the High School is the new Football coach. Mark Cotton is the AD/Vice Principle at the High School. He is no relation to Jim or John.

The big news we all waited for from WECRD.

They are still standing with their hands out wanting more.........

Who writes the poll questions on this site? Any questions concerning local matters that might be asked?? WECRD, School Facilities, School Board Elections, MHHS Graduation, Drought Conditions, just to name a few.

I wonder why WECRD hasn't farmed that huge hay field they own. I'm sure it could produce some income for the new facility they seek. May help get some of the monies they are begging for. Lots of farmers would like to have that for custom farming.

Goat,

I thought they were renting it out to a local person. Maybe I am wrong but I seem to remember reading that in a set of their minutes.

I see we have some new folks that are seeking School Board Positions. Nice to see.

Mind boggling... They want to pass a levy.... But they don't have a budget yet, but they are pretty sure they need $2.3 million because that is the figure that has been tossed around before. That, coupled with the fiasco that is named WECRD, makes a person wonder at what point can charges be brought against gross mismanagement of funds? It seems like charges could go both ways- the WECRD has taxed for 15 years and grossly mismanaged funds that will never be used to build a Y. They blew everything they were entrusted with and have to resort to a capital campaign to offset it. And the school board pushes levies for millions of dollars even though they don't have any clue whether they need that much or not, or what it would actually be used for. Taxation without representation? We are certainly being taxed, but I haven't seen reliable representation yet.

$.02

Sadly it appears that our community chooses to remain un-informed about current local issues. The turn out to elections for WECRD, School Board, and other important positions is too small.

Because of this, there seems to be a small group of rats able to control a large amount of tax money. If the community of Mountain Home refuses to take any sort of ownership in how our tax dollars are spent and by whom , then we can most likely expect more of the same.

Saw comments from a MHSD candidate recently where they would like to engage the base more to assist with issues. I have to ask how can the base help when their budgets have been cut drastically? They have buildings that are in bad shape. When MHSD vacated two buildings, they took ownership and went after funds and removed the unsafe buildings. The Federal government already gives MHSD monies based on the number of dependents that attend MHSD and now a proposal is to go ask for more? I believe MHSD needs to figure out, like we all do, to live within our budget and stop asking for more every year. How many of us can go to our employer and say "I need more money since I have no clue how to manage the money I earn from you?". Maybe the part of the problem lies with the finical people at MHSD along with the board.

What is the time and place of the school district forum, I don't see it listed on your calendar

Brenda.

I guess there is more than one calendar, all the online calendar has is bingo at the Elks every Wed.

But thanks for the info, now I can answer your survey ?.

I just read the Letter to Editor regarding landfill fees, I too was unaware of the charging, but more important is the lack of financial oversight. One would think that the county would have learned its lesson with the vehicle registration theft and lack of supervision/oversight. But since no managers were held accountable for allowing that theft to occur for years, why should current staff worry.

I see the Chairman of the School Board is running again. I saw his flyer posted. He's been on the board for a very long time. Take some time, drive around the schools, and see what we have to show for it. The condition of our schools along with sub-performance of our children did not just happen all the sudden. I repeat, he has been the Chairman of the School Board for a lot of years.

Time to change.

gdough

are you suggesting that current employees of the county are conspiring to commit theft of county funds? Or are you just complaining about something, yet again?

I always try to give the local businesses a chance and for the most part it's successful....not all businesses act with integrity and offer great customer service. I had a few items dropped off at my local Metal Recycling center with my teenaged boys. I was shocked to hear what they paid my boys ( who really had no clue), but after researching other recycling centers I realized that 1- they don't use the same industry standards or 2- they took advantage of two young boys. Either way SHAME on you. My family, friends & myself will NEVER use them again...

Junkyard- I am all for breaking the mold. I just don't get it.. You never meet a customer of XYZ BANK that has anything good to say about XYZ, yet they continue to roll quarter after quarter with record profits. I have yet to hear anybody with anything good to say about the school board, yet they continue to roll year after year. If you have nothing good to say about the school board.... And if nobody is happy with the school board.... Then strike while the iron is hot and do something about the school board. If you are not happy with the long term stagnant leadership of the board, then you have absolutely nothing to lose by rolling the dice on whatever options are available. Don't sit back and bury your head in the sand thinking it doesn't matter, you have nothing to lose. Worst case scenario- you are not happy with the next school board. But at least you wouldn't have to second guess yourself with what could have been. Although from what I have seen and heard, cast a blind vote and you will be better off. Actually research the candidates before you vote, and you will really be happy. I would be happy with someone that has skin in the game... Kids still in school. There is nothing more powerful then somebody that is ready for change, with first hand insight and influence on why that change is necessary. People that are xx years removed from school and no family still in school, they are operating way behind the curve and are too out of touch.

While I can not speak for all local businesses in town, I can speak as the owner of United Metals Recycling. The scrap metal recycling industry as a whole has seen a significant drop in pricing over the last 6 months. For those unaware of this, I could see how today's low prices could be an eye opener when considering just 1 year ago the prices were double what they are today. That being said, less than 7 years ago they were significantly lower than they are today. To state that our company took advantage of two young boys or does not operate to industry standards is a statement that lacks knowledge of the industry and pricing environment today. We welcome the community to visit your local recycling center and drop off your recyclable metals where we will pay you a fair market price and continue to be a strong supporter of the community as we have shown since 1995.

Little bit of rewind.

Thank you for your concern and a brief update on the recycling industry. I'm sure as a business owner you would hope and expect that the business runs to YOUR standards and your mission statement. However, on this particular day it didn't happen. I did familiarize myself with the industry As I stated. So unless you know the true facts of that day how can you say my boys received a fair industry price. I'm over it

If I were worried about a few $$, and I were going to send my kids, I would have called ahead.

Do you call every business you send your kids to prior to make sure they are treated fair... Didn't think so. It's all about integrity.

No. I don't send my children. And don't tell me they took soda cans. Recycle prices on metal are fairly low now. I just look at it as a convenience to get rid of junk and maybe by a bite of lunch.

You really should go back and read my article. 1, I did my research 2, it was a "few items" not cans. And one would hope they would be able to "buy" a bit of lunch. Well, that didn't happen either.

Actually, I agree with you. In a small town you should not have to worry that young folks or anyone for that matter should be treated differently. That goes for any local business.

I truly appreciate your response. Thank You

So sad to hear about the loss of Coleen. She was a wonderful person and loved dearly.

I recently lost my spouse of 14 years to cancer. In the past this wonderful town stepped up and helped raise roughly $6,ooo to help us defray some of the expenses we had incurred. I never took the step to publically thank those that helped plan, organize and participated in this fund raiser. Many of my family cannot understand why I decided to call Idaho my home and this is one of the reasons why.

Recently I became involved in a cancer support group that has assisted me tremendously. This informal group meets the 1st and 3rd Mondays of the month at Legion Post 26 at 6:30 PM. This is the post near the courthouse.

If you are a current cancer patient, a past cancer patient, a current or past caregiver, I highly encourage you to at least stop by and check out the gatherings.

My Heart goes out to Stacy during this difficult time. So sorry to read of her Mom Coleen's Passing.

Who is in charge of the paper now days? New staffing? Just curious as I never purchase the paper anymore and I don't see much listed here.

I have to agree with McCallumS about the state of paper. Although it might just be apathy on the part of the population. Who knows. All I know is I submitted a story to "My Stories" leaving my email and phone number. Haven't seen the story, haven't gotten an email, no one has called.

Makes one wonder.

School Board zone #5. The future of MHSD relies on your vote Tuesday. It is critical that there be a change of direction. Trusting relationships need to be formed with teachers and the community as a whole. This is THE most important local election that I can remember in 27 years. Please cast a vote to support our community and children.

I couldn't agree more about the school board elections. There is a point where the experience of an incumbent becomes a liability as odd as that may sound. That point in the case of Trustee Zone 5 was reached long ago. When "our" elected representatives begin to assume or presume they know better what we the voters, parents, and teachers want and make decisions based on their own distorted impression of their importance it is time to move on. Again, that time has come with more than Zone 5, but Zone 5 is a starting point.

99.9999% of the School Board problem lies in Zone 5. Put an end to the smoke and mirrors.

Please take the upcoming election discussion to the political corner set aside strictly for threads of this nature. Thank you.

Just a short note to everyone. Come the next general election, do your homework and see who drew per diem, travel and lodging money from YOU because of the special session fiasco now going on in Boise! They already got paid to do their job for this year!

R2C,

Reading and comprehension is not your strongest value is it?

We will not be holding the Mountain Home News up in print production today for elections results tonight. We have made arrangements to get them via fax tonight and will post on the web site in the morning.

Thank You. B

School Board election results? Where do you find them??

joe, you will find my response on the political forum.

Bless and Thank You to all the brave men and women that live in our memories and hearts as we honor our military this Memorial Day. Have a safe weekend everyone. It is a busy one. Crazy Daze downtown and graduation as well. Good Luck Seniors 2015.

To all the master gardeners/arborist, did we have something come thru and kill some of our cherry trees? I lost one and I was over at the Mountain Home Community garden and it looked like they lost 7-8 trees.

Hey gmoney..I have same problem 2 bing cherry looking really bad this year, sour cherry better but not great and neighbors bing looks like they may have lost it. Wonder what it is. We live just out of town

Any idea when some of the pictures from the Memorial Day Service will be posted? The Legion, Ladies Auxiliary, Legion Riders and town pulled together to have another wonderful service.

When I was younger I hardly ever asked "Why". Maybe it was because I spent most of my life in the service.

Now I ask why all the time: In a city of 11,000

Why does the City of Mountain Home need a Deputy Treasurer or full time Fire Chief making $80K?

Why does the WECRD still exist?

Why should the City tell anyone how many trees they can put in their yard? Or what type of tree?

Why did the City accept a building/kennel with cement filled drains?

Why does the city seems to keep reducing our freedoms little by little. Goats,trees, animals etc..

My whys' just keep getting longer

gmoney you can give me a call at 590 3824 or come to council meetings 2nd and 4th Monday at 6 pm and find out the facts.

Russ

Are the facts different than the minutes posted on the city web site?

Thanks for the great pictures of the Memorial Day Service that the Legion Posts handle every year.

Cherry Tree questions: The Extension office has had several people bring samples of trees that over-budded and never grew leaves. In many cases this is an environmental issue. These trees, especially fruit trees, require a period of dormancy brought about by colder temperatures in order to thrive. If the tree has buds, check to see if those are dead inside or showing green. Check under the bark of a branch to see if there is green and the inner layers are a normal light creamy color. If there is brown, bring that branch to our office for Dr. Mir to check for blight or fungus. If it has healthy tissue under the outer bark, chances are good that this tree is just suffering from confusion due to warm weather, followed by a sudden cold snap that confuses the hormones into thinking it was fall again. Some trees produced more buds when it got warm and therefore there is too many buds and no leaves. In this case, we recommend a deep root feed. Our email is elmore@uidaho.edu. Email us for instructions. In many cases getting the tree healthy will re-start the hormones and enzymes needed to produce new growth. I hope that helps. Oh by the way, Aphids are exploding all over town, so call or email us for a fact sheet about that.

Sorry for the double post. It was taking forever to accept my comment that I closed out and re-posted before finding out that it actually posted. I also wanted to let people know that we are not located in the courthouse. We are across from Hacker Middle School, 535 E. Jackson. We offer a lot of great information on horticulture. You can also check out our website at: www.extension.uidaho.edu/elmore for great publications.

why,why,why,,,oh why does someone always ask why without first trying to answer their own questions?

why

Mr.

You really want a chuckle, check out face book Mountain Home Classifieds and read some of the questions the people on there ask. It seems the younger group does not know what the yellow pages are. It's actually funny until it starts getting irritating. "HELPLESS" might best describe it.

All

I do know the answer to most of my why's and its cronyism,nepotism or I don't careism.

I think wages should be inline with responsibilities. Kuna rural fire chief (110 SQ miles, EMT and Ambulance and Volunteer management) $75,000. MTN Home (5 SQ miles, Volunteer management only) $85,000.

In my opinion the city has a number of employees that are paid more than a city of this size should dictate. Maybe they caught that disease from the past school district administration.

I'm not attacking any individual. I'm just tired of seeing my fees/taxes raised to pay for ISM's.

WECRD is in the news---and on the news. KBOI 2 News. Check it out!!

OM,

I searched and found nothing. Have a link by chance?

Joe, it is on front page for the news. Brenda, the group did call. Nobody called them back. They did try. Thank you for political forum notice. Will do.

Joe, I posted on the political forum for you!

With several million dollars being spent on the Old Highway 30/Ditto Creek Rd improvements, why is Sunset Road still NOT getting repaired? Last year when I spoke with IDOT and the city, I was told that the road needs to be completely redone since it's literally crumbling apart from beneath. The horrible attempt to chip seal the road only made the condition of the road worse. 18th street by the ball fields is just as bad. I understand one road is IDOT and the other is city. But still, when can we see these much needed repairs or will they just continue to ignore the problem??? Any information would be appreciated.

If you want to take your kids to Boise to play sports that's your choice. When you abandon your home town, depleting our player pool, and do nothing to help us have good programs here; don't complain when our teams don't win any games. It's ironic that the people that think they are the most involved and walk around the ball fields like they are some big shot are the same ones that abandon the local programs and take their kids to Boise to play sports. So sports traitors, don't let the door hit you in the hiney, but don't think because you're on the school board or a coach that everyone doesn't think you're a jerk and a traitor for deserting us here.

I find this to be rather strange. The Base has an Honor Guard and yet I see the American Legion Honor Guard doing many community events. Today I learned that base leadership decided AGAINST have the base honor guard post the colors at the Daniel Dopps Memorial Rodeo this weekend. The American Legion Honor Guard will post the colors on both days. What I find difficult to understand is that base leadership has no issues with allowing the Base Honor Guard to go to Hailey/Sun Valley for Memorial Day but not be a part of a local event in the town that supports them the most. Guess the old saying everyone has a price is just about right.

What did Dopps have to do with the military? Should the honor guard be here for all local events. To compare U.S. Servicemans Memorial day activities to a rodeo is ludicrous.

Gmoney,

One would think the Base Honor Guard would present colors on Military Appreciation Night. My point was that seems ironic that the Base Honor Guard does not appear at more local events and yet will travel 100 or so miles. Did you know that there was almost no military formation on Memorial Day in the cemetery? What I find ludicrous is that Veterans are doing more show support for all military then the current military are. And yes, I realize they have a mission that might take them away. Being around the military for 30+ years, I think I have a grasp on what they do.

I guess the school district has TOO MUCH MONEY, as they are watering West Elem. TWICE A DAY, and they are now mowing for the second time this week.

Or do they have TOO MANY employees that they are finding work for them to do?

Old guy

I too was surprised at the lack of active service members in formation this year. Possibly because last year they were dropping like flies after 10 minutes in formation while the old vets were in line for the whole service.

What happens to the funds generated by the rodeo, as a non-profit all I could find is they never have any income?

The Commander of American Legion Post 26 informed me that the Base Honor Guard is going to do their thing Sat. at the rodeo. Please keep in mind that the Base Honor Guard is comprised of volunteers and they all still have full time military duties.

Mr. 427

I too was informed of the same thing by an officer of Post 26. Seems someone at the base finally figured out that they can support a local event as opposed to going to Sun Valley.

U.S. Senator Mike Crapo will be holding a Town Hall meeting at Mountain Home City Hall chambers on Tuesday, June 30, at 1:30 PM to hear from citizens. The public is invited.

http://www.crapo.senate.gov/media/newsreleases/release_full.cfm?id=360764

MEETING OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF MOUNTAIN HOME, ELMORE COUNTY, IDAHO, HELD ON JUNE 8TH, 2015

H. APPROVE REQUEST TO PURCHASE 2016 Ford F-250 4WD from Mountain Home Auto Ranch in the amount of $22,448.14 for the Water Department

I. APPROVE REQUEST TO PURCHASE 2016 Ford F-250 4WD from Mountain Home Auto Ranch in the amount of $26,147.81 for the Wastewater Department

So we have a water dept and a wastewater dept!

Does one of these trucks have extra cup holders?

maid,

Not sure if either truck has extra cup holders. Why don't you ask the entity which is buying the vehicles. Also, why don't you ask them the reasoning behind the purchases, instead of just coming on here and spitting your obvious animosity towards the city.

Mr 427539,

In my experience at work, I've seen firsthand members of our flight that have volunteered for Honor Guard. When they are "called to duty", they are released from their primary duties for a specified period of time to perform their Honor Guard duties. I don't know if it is that way in general, but that is how our flight's members have done it.

Mr Mister

Why do you attack people when they ask a simple question? Why a 4k difference in price?

You must be associated with the city in some capacity if you think every move the city makes should never be questioned. Unless its a pay or benefit cut then we'll hear your voice.

Thank you Geoff. Unfortunately, I am unable to attend, but look forward to hearing positive feedback concerning the Town Hall meeting with Senator Crapo.

Best wishes,

barkingmad,

The price difference is because the truck for the Water Department is actually a 2WD extended cab as opposed to the Wastewater truck which is a 4WD crew cab.

And no, cupholders are not included.

Simple answer, the city council minutes had wrong description.

Hope to see y'all at the high school

Gdough,

There's a big difference between a "simple question" and a question asked in a snarky manner. Like I said, ask the people involved instead of trying to be a smart "you know what" if you think the city is not spending money wisely. And no, I have nothing to do with the city. But it doesn't surprise me that you would make that assumption, pretty narrow-minded.

All

If you gave your child a gift of $1000 dollars and he/she spent $400 while thinking about what to buy, would you give them another $400 to replace it?

Have to wonder if the WECRD board is paying attention to the local poll this week. The number of responses is fast approaching the number of 400 that they used to justify decisions and the poll is not in line with that study.

Hey young fella,

How did that poll turn out?

Dude,

If you mean the rec center poll on here:

What are your thoughts on building a community recreation center in Mountain Home

*We need a facility offering YMCA programs: 24.5% (114 votes)

*We need a recreation center but not one run by the YMCA: 31.1% (145 votes)

*We need something other than a community recreation center: 13.7% (64 votes)

*We don't need anything since we already have enough recreation outlets: 30.7% (143 votes)

466 votes cast

So the end result is the taxpayers have spoken and now it would be nice to see some action by the WECRD board.

Not to worry Young Fella, the WECRD Board knows what's best for us better than we do. Three average citizens of Mountain Home have turned into self serving politicians right before our very eyes. To bad they're not qualified to hold the positions they do.

I saw the Rec Center poll, but didn't like the 4 options to choose from.

#1) We need a facility offering YMCA programs. (I think we need a facility, not necessarily one with YMCA programs)

#2) We need a recreation center but not one run by the YMCA. (If the Y doesn't run it then who does... The WECRD? I would take the Y over that option any day)

#3) We need something other than a community recreation center. (No... We do need a rec center)

#4) We don't need anything since we already have enough recreation outlets. (I didn't like #4 either, but it fit the best out of the 4. I DON'T think we already have enough recreation outlets, but I also know what the proposed rec center offers. It offers basketball courts, meeting rooms, a track etc. I voted this one because we do already have access to the whittled down options offered by this rec center)

The poll should have listed a 5th choice- "We do need a rec center, with an indoor swimming pool, and without the WECRD having any involvement"

Probably going to get asked to move this conversation, but you need to understand the WECRD is a taxing district. Without this district there would be no money. The massive blunder is with the board that runs this taxing district. Hopefully the people will get to speak again in November. The board is trying their best to see that this does not happen. It's the communities fault for letting this debacle continue for 13 years, so it's the communities responsibility to get this mess straightened out in November.

Brenda, that would be "you're" :)

Response by Brenda Fincher:

Why thank you. That's what I get for being in a hurry, not thinking and mobile. I will try to be better. B

Some kind of methheads have been traveling around rural Elmore county smashing mailboxes with a bat or some such object. Being Elmore county is too large for the Sheriff to keep watch over everything that goes on, I'll now be a little more observant of strange noises and such that set my dogs off during the night. If I should run into you, I hope you enjoy recuperating from your wounds. You will get you just reward.

My concern is the gas prices here in Mountain Home remaining around $3.00. This town always seems to be last in getting the benefit of lower gasoline prices to its customers.

Live free,

You're more than welcome to go to Boise. Search the 83647 zip code and tell us what you come up with.

http://www.idahogasprices.com/GasPriceSearch.aspx

Joe_smoe,

I go to Boise quite often. To save on the money i spend. With gas price difference of a penny between here and Boise. I will continue to get gas in Boise. No need to tell me to go there.

If you had did research as I suggested you would have noticed the prices in Boise higher than our local pricing. Enjoy........

Here is the link to Senator Crapo's Veteran's Sruvery referenced in the article above:

http://www.crapo.senate.gov/contact/vetsurvey/survey2015.cfm

Kind of silly to put a poll in the corner of the paper that asks about crime in the city and crime in the county when a recent news article said city crime was going up and county crime was going down. Poll me about one or the other so I can answer intelligently. Don't lump two categories trending in opposite directions into one poll, okay!

Both of our winners, Miss Mona and Miss Amber have come in and picked up their Mountain Home Country Music Festival ticket package for themselves and two of their BFF's!! We are so excited for them and hope they have a great time. Staff will be covering the event on Friday and Saturday for sure and we will have follow-up stories and photos. Everyone please be safe and have a fabulous weekend. We are excited to hear your comments next week on our concert stories or on our Facebook Page. Take care of yourself and your neighbors in the hills for a fun filled weekend experience. Congratulations to our winners.

I cannot believe the number of items the school system is requiring from its returning students, it seems to grow larger each year. People are struggling to make ends meet and parents are being required to purchase name brand items, some very costly items, in order for their kids to attend school. Getting an education is a very important part of life but the costs are ridiculous, beginning with preschool.

I looked at one of the flyers for school supplies and was appalled at what some of the grades are asking. One grade actually went as far as listing the color of the item. Who puts these lists together? Do they go out and price these items? Do they not realize that some parents earn less than others? What happened to free education?

I remember growing up how my mom used to complain about the costs of our supplies way back then and parents today have a much longer list, then there are registration fees, uniform fees, sports fees, etcetera. Sending a child to school should not be such a stressful time for a parent but it can be extremely so. I figure it is going to cost my son over 100.00 to get his 3 little girls just through the door at their school, and I am certain that is just the beginning of what will be required through out the year for more supplies and other required items.

School or food, sad that it comes down to that for many this time of year.

Looking at the top stories today I see pie, dogs at the pool, the NRA, and country music. It makes me glad to live in a relatively small town where the little things are still important to the local residents. Thank you for being my friendly neighbors.

School District 193 is begging for money again, which is nothing new. They are now mowing the West Elementary grass, and they just mowed it on Monday.I guess it needs lots of mowing, as they water it twice a day, all summer long.But what the heck, it's just OUR TAX MONEY.

Gosh. It has been four days since they mowed West, but no problem, as they are now doing it again. Think about YOUR TAX DOLLARS when the SD193 vote comes up real soon.

I look forward to voting "YES" in tomorrow's school levy vote and I must say that I really enjoy the nice green grass that the children get to enjoy at our local schools. Nice Job!!

My NO cancels your yes :) I also like the green grass as I believe they are under contract and get paid the same whether they cut it once a week or 3.

From now on I DON'T GIVE A DANG WHAT THIS SCHOOL DISTRICT WASTES, AS I GUESS MOST TAX PAYER'S DON'T EITHER. I will vote NO for each and every time they beg for money.

Mr.427539 Crawl back in your teabag hole, you sure do whine alot.

District has my YES vote, who else will pay for school upkeep? Typical teabaggers, want total Somalia anarchy, no government. Who then is going to take care of the country's infrastructure? Surely not big business.

Thank you for commenting and please take your discussion on the school district and voting to the political column rather than the banter box. Thank you again. B

I haven't seen any complaining about the football program yet. This time last year the public wanted the coach fired after one lose. Why not this year something change, nope they lost even with the "savior" coaching staff. It has to be because the coach is "local". Not only did they lose but they lost by more than last year. 2015: 51-8, 2014: 33-49. Well I will just say I am BACK to complain about the program and the staff since no one wants to because they are afraid of being banished from the program. I could care less about being banished simply because I was smart and got my kid outta there! He is now playing for a program that cares. So let's take a look at the game, we know the score 51-8 and the staff will tell you how good the team looked, yes the boys did play their hearts out but the staff just did not know what to do. Turnovers, sacks, and more penalty yards than offensive yards, that's not players that coaching issues. Hey coach, when you run two of the same play in a row and lose 10 yards, don't run it again, it's not working but you still did and lost 9 yards and the football. Um any coach knows that, its football 101. Well until next week I will leave you with this, the two coaches that were passed over because they were part of the "status quo/loser" staff are doing well one is 2-0 with his team and the other is 1-0 with his team. Looks like someone made the right choice. Until next week!

kelz5150,

Happy for you. How is your sons team doing? Did you move him to the Boise Valley?

Dude,

No I did not move him to Boise, and as for his team as Charlie Sheen says WINNING!

I guess, if you consider Charlie a winner.

So I find it very interesting but not surprised that there is no article about the football game last week. Last year the newspaper had the article all but published before the first game was over. Why am I not surprised well a few months ago the paper decided to put a gentleman on blast over a preliminary trail. The reporter told me that he was "just reporting the facts" After the actual trail where this gentleman was found innocent of all charges and the courts proved that the "facts" that were reported in the news paper were false, I asked the reporter to write a retraction. Well the retraction never happened. Is it because you don't want to admit you were trying to make the man look bad or is it because you don't want to admit you were wrong. As I stated I am not surprised.

Why is the city digging up existing handicap sidewalk access points when there are numerous sidewalks that don't have one?

Hmmmm,I'm not sure why the city is digging up handicap access points. But, I'll bet if YOU. ASK. THEM., they'd probably tell you.

Hope everyone had a great labor day weekend. It's back for the short week and then all the Air Force Appreciation Day weekend events. Hope to see you in town. Have a wonderful week. B

Week number 2 has come and gone, the Tigers lost another game and the newspaper has not posted an article online about the game. I say online because majority of the news reading people of the world get their news online. Last season there were already three articles online about the team and many of the comments were to have the coaching staff removed. Even though the Tigers of last year beat the Twin Falls team 60-35. This year the Tigers lost 42-7. What was the issues this week? Well what were they last week, all the same this week. In the pregame interview the coach talked about how the team worked on these issues during practice, interesting. It's not the athletes! The players are a good group of talented boys that play their hearts out. The problem is coaching and to specifically point out one issue it's Lack of Discipline by the coaching staff!!! Now I don't mean wearing a certain type of socks that "prevent" ankle injuries, that one coach actually two coaches on the staff will tell you, is discipline. Discipline is teaching the athlete the proper fundamentals and proper sportsmanship on and off the field. The lack shows in the number of penalty yards and simple mistakes made that can be fixed in a "teaching" moment at practice, its coaching 101 again. It is not yelling and screaming at a player, like I have seen out of the coaching staff. I will end this one just like last, the coaches that left or were never given the opportunity because they were part of the "status quo/loser" staff seem to be doing well one coach is now 2-1, his team took a last second lose (kind of like the BYU game) but he did not blame the athletes for the loss, and the other coach is 2-0 and seems to be enjoying the new adventure. As for my son's team, which I know someone will ask, they are 2-0 also.

Kelz5150

What exactly is your point? You moved away, why the obsession? Bitter you weren't the chosen one?

My thoughts exactly

Sounds like ole Kelz is a little (or a lot) bitter. Frankly, I don't have strong feelings one way or the other as far as who the best coach is for the football team. And whether the coach ended up being last years interim coach from the end of the season, or whether it was the out of state guy who never showed, or whether it was the guy who did get the job, chances are very strong that any of them would be 0-2 at this point. It isn't realistic to expect a team at has won 4 (?) games in 4 (?) seasons to jump out of the gate at 2-0 already. That is great for the other coaches who moved on to start out 2-0, but what sort of talent did they inherit? Again, I don't necessarily care who got the job. Tom Osborne (Nebraska) and Bobby Bowden (Florida State) were two of the best coaches in the modern college era. But if run happy Osborne went to FSU and pass happy/trick play Bowden went to Nebraska, it would take each of them years to morph the team into their style of winning. This isn't a knock against our boys or the coaches, but expecting a winning season of 5-4 is probably way too optimistic for season 1.

Let me take another second to beat you to the punch. Yes, I did in fact just compare Mountain Home football to the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Florida State Seminoles. But it works.

Very Very happy for the coach that is 2-0. He was, and I still consider him a long time Mountain Homey. I wish him all the success. Now for coach that is 2-1. He is most likely coaching at the JV level as he did here. He is most likely not the head coach at the JV level. He won 1 game last year in Mountain Home coaching the JV team. Congrats to the coaching staff of the previous 2 years. You left Mountain Home with no fundamentally developed quarter backs, receivers, or linemen at any level of the program. My own little college comparison would be coach Pete and UW. He was left little to nothing and their record will reflect this, not his coaching ability. So good luck with your inherited team, and thanks for your part in helping to destroying Mountain Home Football. It will take time and a lot of hard work, but the future of Mountain Home Football looks bright.

FACE BOOK, What a phony piece of somke and mirrors crap that is. Just my opinion.

We have started the upload of our photos from AFAD this past weekend that Brian and Tim took. For those of you that did not get a chance to attend or just want to look at the photos and scenes again from home please enjoy. Please keep in mind that this is an absolute download from their cameras that are raw images and contain duplication. This is due to the fact that they may take multiple shots of the same view in order to get viable images for history or reproduction. Tomorrow we will also have an uploaded copy of the AFAD special addition magazine that we produced for our community and visitors. Please visit our supporting advertisers that made this possible. Thanks again. Have a great week and thanks, B

Thanks for posting the pictures. As a parade participant, I don't get to see much of the parade and enjoy seeing what went on.

Hard to believe someone dropped the ball on advertising the really neat dog show, playday, going on at Carl Miller Park this Saturday. The city Parks and Rec put it on each year and it's fun. I you want to enter a dog, register from 8 to 9 am. Cost is 3 dollars per dog. Fun starts at 9 and lasts till, well, till it's over. Raffle and demos. Check it out.......you'll like it!

goatbeard

They advertised the dog show on different groups on Facebook

I was extremely impressed with the community turn out and support of the Mayoral and City Council Forum last evening held at the Elks Lodge. Thank you to those who participated in the planning, organizing and hosting of the event. A special thank you to the candidates who participated in the forum. Best wishes to all of the candidates.

When you have a minute view on the website where we have uploaded a video that Tim Bondy did at the forum.

We are experimenting with ways of presenting information to our readers. I so appreciate their efforts. Great Job Tim and Joy!!

You are welcome Geoff.

Brenda

I can't wait to see the video of the WECRD forum!!!

When will it be posted?

I had planned on going and then I heard that the contract had been let and the city was laying pipe to the ymca lot and planning 18th street improvements like parking, curbing etc... and MNF seemed like a better option to spend my time. In other words" the fix was in".

gmoney, the city council addressed your concerns about the "fix was in" at the Oct. 26, 2015 meeting. There were many people at the meeting and any one of them can fill you in on the details.

Thanks,

Tim Bondy

Tim, I wasn't concerned that a fix was in, I was just stating a fact. The project was going ahead with county/city official support even though most of us who voted for the tax district wanted an indoor pool not a meeting hall. I also think past directors including one current director should be held accountable for wasting over $2 million dollars.

To bad the average citizen is unaware of these council meeting agendas, the latest entry on the city website is 09/28. To bad the city won't invest in steaming/recording the meetings and posting on the website like you did for the forums.

To many local entities like to act in secret.

See you at the voting booth next week.

Any local restaurants giving Veterans day specials or do I have to drive to Boise to get appreciated?

Some of us served for the simple act of serving. Anyone "looking for", or expecting appreciation, in my opinion, doesn't deserve it.

Since it is not listed in the events calendar, there is a Veteran's Day Ceremony TODAY at 11AM in Mt View Cemetery, Mt Home ID. As a Veteran, I will be there and shame on Mt Home News for not putting this yearly event on the calendar. I mean it is not like you are not aware as I have seen reporters there every year for the last 4 years I have stood tall representing.

Brenda, no need to apologize: Like you said, there was an article regarding this event in a previous edition. Nevermind the fact that it is a "yearly event" commonly known to most (including the O.P.) Some, it would seem, feel the need to lash out because they feel slighted about something that isn't really about them at all--rather, it's about a whole lot more.

Anyhoos, Happy Veteran's Day to all.

I disagree MrMister. Some of us do not purchase the printed edition. Also being it is a yearly event what about the new residents that have recently arrived in our village? Would have been nice to see it on the electronic version as well.

Mr Mister

My family and I had a nice free Veterans day meal at the OG in Boise yesterday. Just think, that $72.00 plus tip could have gone to a local restaurant. I happen to notice 8 other "E" plates on my way out to my car.

(1) Like many, I don't buy the paper on a regular basis and look at the headlines and upcoming events on-line

(2)I did not feel slighted in any way despite what some seem to think. Since you do not know me, do not assume to know how I think.

(3( My intent was not to lash out but inform those that are new to the area of a local event. I did not want anyone to miss out on this event and despise the thought process of "no need to get the word out as everyone knows we do this every year". That mentality amazes me when the same people complain that no one comes to the event. Wonder why that is? Hard for people to show when there is no advance notice.

@joe--point taken, didn't consider that

@oldguy--if I misjudged, I apologize. However, in my opinion, the "tone" of your original post implied that the MHN purposely omitted the event from their online edition. Again, apologies if that was not your intent.

@gdough--if you ate for free, then how did you spend $72.00? And, did you really count Elmore plates??? That's funny.

I wouldn't care if you got a free house--the fact that you feel "entitled" is what offends me. I have no problem with businesses or people appreciating one's service. But, when someone is willing to go out of their way to "demand" appreciation for their service? Well, that's just pathetic.

MrMister

you seem to have gmoney well pegged. (likely asks for military discount at the dollar store) lol

Thought I would share a local event that happened last night at a public meeting of the WECRD. Seems that despite a vow not to make any major decisions until the two new board members could be seated, the two long time board members decided to continue with construction of a building that we do not have enough money for and that is nothing but a shell. It does not even have window coverings. Thanks again for a reckless decision to the two long time board members.

Old guy: what meeting was held last night?

Reg. Bd. Mtg. November 18, 2015 at 5:30 PM CANCELLED

http://wecrd.org/

Special board meeting that was posted on several FB pages and on the window at the office. They rarely update their web page to reflect changes. Hopefully when the 2 newly elected members are seated this practice stops.

Mr Mister

Someone keeps deleting my responses to your comments.

Hope everyone is getting in the Merry Christmas spirit and you, your families and friends are enjoying some holiday peace. We will be uploading the photos from the parade hopefully today for those that did not get to attend this past week. Have a great week, Brenda.

FYI, the WECRD may have cancelled the scheduled 16 Dec meeting but they are having a "special" board meeting on 15 Dec at 4PM. Only place it is listed is on their web page. Again why at 4PM when most are working and cannot make a meeting? Maybe Mt Home News can go and get the word out to the public as to what happened. Seems the WECRD board does not want public inputs.

Mt Home News,

Thanks for finding that the meeting has been changed back to the original date/time. WECRD wonders why citizens are a bit upset but it is antics like constantly changing meetings and not letting the public know that cause that. Thanks again.

Things tend to be a bit crazy around here when it is a holiday week and dealing with changed & early deadlines. We do this change up in order to get all the publications produced and still where they need to be for distribution and the appreciated day off for staff to be with their families and loved ones. I wanted to take this opportunity today to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and hope you all have a sprinkle of good well, peace and love for you and your families. I am thankful for my family, friends, community and business that makes us all a part of what makes Mountain Home and our surrounding communities so special. May you all be blessed this holiday season. Merry Christmas. Brenda

HAPPY NEW YEAR to all our readers. We wish you a very safe weekend and a positive jump into 2016.

Stay Warm.

All

For me the key to the WECRD is whether or not the building will be self-supporting. I don't want to be paying a tax forever. Especially when 40-50 % of income is spent on cronyism.(look at past budgets on their web site)

Those of us in the city already have to many areas that our taxes pay for that are not beneficial to all residents and not self supporting ie.. Airport and Golf course and economic development office.

I've seen a lot of activity out at the old D.I. does anyone know if someone is planning to reopen it?

When asked on social media, the new owners predicted a soft opening in late Feb with a hard opening sometime in March. Seems they have many of the recipes from the previous owner.

My compliments to the new WECRD Board of Directors. I just finished reading their post on the main WECRD website. I appreciate the honest feedback. For the first time, I feel like we received honest feedback without the smoke and mirrors and trying to get to the bottom of motives or thought process. The previous Board repeatedly contradicted themselves, they would tell us one thing and do the opposite. For those of you upset at cancellation fees to get out of construction, don't blame the new Board. It wasn't the new Board's decision to put the cart WAY in front of the horse to break ground. That was just another example of the previous Board misleading everyone and mismanaging the funds they were entrusted with. They said repeatedly that work would not be started until the cash would cover the project, and then rushed to break ground (before the new Board would be settled in, and long before the cash would be anywhere close to covering it). I have been saying it for years- those books need to be audited by an independent auditor to get to the bottom of how we fell so far short.

Please address your comments on the WECRD to the appropriate thread. That would be:

http://www.mountainhomenews.com/story/2280398.html#1428161

or the political forum where it too is being discussed. Thank you.

Just can't figure out why 18st between American Legion and 12th is so badly neglected. The edges on both sides are just rotting away and nothing but large potholes. People are driving in the middle of the road to stay away from them. So many projects have been undertaken on the towns streets but this one is always bypassed. High time something was done about it.

Brenda, thanks for the answer.......Tim......thanks for taking the time. The average Joe doesn't get answers or action, but let the media step in. The talk about grants and easements are not what that was about. Didn't need a rebuild. Just fix the edges that are worn and losing about three feet of roadway. It's fixed up and passable......took maybe two men and half a day. There is a high probability that this work will prevent a sideswipe or worse yet, head on collision, in the middle of town no less. Thanks again!!

I just have to thank everyone who got involved in the repair of S18th between American Legion and 12th st. The edges have been repaired and my experience is people are no longer driving down the middle of the road. A really good job too.......those patches should last for a really long time. The holes were dug out, compacted, patched and rolled. I'm sure dome kind of bad experience for someone has been prevented..........Thanks again!!!

Kudos to the Elmore County Sheriffs Department. Great job guys!!!

Again I have to ask, WHO comes up with the brilliant poll questions? We are in Mountain Home, the capital of single moms. What in the world do you think?

Dudewheresmycar,

You could submit a poll question that is meaningful. There is a link on the right side of the page to do that.

Anyone know if it is true that a petition has been started to recall the current WECRD board? Maybe MHN can do a report on what is going on and who is leading the effort to undo the will of the people.

WECRD RECALL OF BOARD: The initial 20 signatures needed to start the recall have been turned in to Barb Steele, Clerk of Court. They have been sent to the PA for review. They will then be returned to the Clerk of Court. The elections office states they may be available tomorrow (4/26 Tuesday) through a request for public information.

So, why are the WECRD Directors being recalled???

So, why are the WECRD Directors being recalled???

-- Posted by Albert Clement on Tue, Apr 26, 2016, at 2:17 PM

Because some uninformed people DON'T CARE WHAT HAPPENS TO THEIR TAX DOLLARS!!!!

I think it's pretty sad I have to get local news from an outside source...........

http://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/crime/article77193782.html

You know why we have such a bad economy? Because Mountain Home is a safe haven for deadbeats who don't want to work or take responsibility for their actions. Want to pass a bunch of bad checks, get by without a job and mooch some free food by playing the "poor me" card at area churches? Or maybe you want to rack up a couple of felonies you can plea bargain your way out of without any repercussions. Would you like to drive without insurance or a license? Let your animals run wild? Or better yet, get a place, live like a slob, not pay rent and flash your cash all over town. If you would like to engage in this kind of behavior in a community where the cops, the prosecutor and the judges look the other way, come to Mountain Home. You'll be glad you did.

Homedog1,

You seem to think you know a lot about this community. Seems to me you fit the category you think you know so well. If it is that bad the interstate is not that far away. I would suggest stop looking at the cover of a book, open it up and read the pages. There are many people in this community that DO NOT fit the description you feel you know so well. Humble yourself and leave if you feel it is so bad here!

I can not express how excited I am that there is a new Sheriff in town. Aside from the fact that I have always wanted to say that. This town has needed some fresh blood for a long time. Maybe he can clean house and get rid of some of the crooks that "Enforce" the laws of this town and state. CONGRATS MOUNTAIN HOME!!

Yesterday I went into the Idaho Youth Ranch and could not believe the prices! It is very upsetting that these items are All donated, yet there priced so high. This is a thrift store!! I understand they need to make a profit, but it's really sad that people who are struggling to get by can't even shop at the thrift store!!

Rumor the Fire Chief resigned. Any truth?

Hats off once again the Legion for hosting not one, not two but three Memorial Day Services. These giving people spend countless hours preparing and executing these dignified services. Also hats off to all the citizens that came out Friday to assist in placing over 900 flags to mark Veterans graves and then those that came back today to retrieve them. This community has always and continues to show support for the military, past and present.

That's ok Bostonfan. One of these days you will be taken advantage of by one of Mountain Home's most famous and finest deadbeats. When that day comes, you can watch the Elmore County District 4 court system in action - lowering bail, extending sentencing several times and generally letting people get away with things like killing your pets and taking advantage of your hard working neighbors. Maybe then you'll get it.

Why hasn't there been any news story covering the Firefighters that supposably "salvaged" items, from the FedEx truck accident, illegally and may potentially face criminal charges since that is a federal offense?

Also, why does the city keep attempting to use the chip seal method on the roads and only end up ruining an already bad road because they don't know how to properly perform the procedure? Then they leave the road a mess and causes additional driving issues because of the unevenness and new ruts? Are they ever going to fix sunset road and now 18th near the overpass?

We need to remember that Sunset is a State of Idaho Highway. It does not belong to the City nor is it the responsibility of the City of Mountain Home to maintain.

News reports surrounding the high speed chase near Pine and stolen items identify the truck driver, but not the female passenger who was not taken into custody. Can anyone explain why the female passenger wasn't named or taken into custody?

Werborg, I didn't make that meeting at the high school. So are you saying that the Mayor and City Council members were NOT there? Unbelievable if so.

Just like one of the school board members will be sending his child to a Boise school this upcoming year, at least that is the word on the street!! Sad, sad day when it comes to that, don't ya think?

Not to take away from the "skate park" but what would it take to get Mtn Home to build a second pool? The current one is way too over crowded and too small to accommodate everyone. When the pool is open, you can't enjoy swimming because of how crowded it is. Too many times my kids and I have been kicked and grabbed because of this. It would be nice to see the WERC spend some of that money to install another pool across town. It would be even better if it were an indoor pool because then there could be year round access and they could even offer water aerobics, etc. Either way, there needs to be a second pool. There isn't really much of anything else for our kids to do in town during the summer (that doesn't cost too much) so why not invest in the kids?

I apologize, I meant WECRD not WERC. Thank you.

Around here we paint ugly more ugly and buy new uniforms for losing teams. The root of the problem is never addressed. Get rid of the ugly and spend some money on coaches.

@dudewheresmycar GASP!!!! Did you just call this beautification of the downtown area UGLY?!?!

Spoke with a gentleman the other day that just moved to Mountain Home. I asked him if he had family that lived here. He replied NO. I asked, what brought you to Mountain Home? He said that he just retired from the Military from another state and was looking to retire. The cost of housing etc. where he retired was very costly. He checked another state and found the same. He googled Idaho and found that they had a Military Base in Mountain Home. He checked into the housing and found it to be VERY affordable, and a Military Hospital just down the road. They came for a visit, found a great deal on a home, and here they are. WOW what a concept. Asked him if he owned a skate board. His reply was NO.

I think maybe most of the people in the WECRD voting district were voting for some sort of rec center. The fiasco caused by people with no idea about property, flood plains, building permits developer contracts etc. has been a major disappointment to most of us. Now our tax money is being spent by the thousands on things that have no affect on the majority of those voters. and the idea that WECRD is a city establishment is out of line. I don't live in the city as many of us do not but we are taxed. I really don't think, as nice as it is, that rec tax money should be spent on cheerleading, baseball, football and other school district programs. Something is not right there. As for the skate park, that's also nice and a good thing for the kids but, once again, it's not what the voters had in mind when they authorized a Rec District. I think a lot more thought needs to go into how those monies are being used.

thank you for your thoughts. please take your comments to the story thread where it may be followed by reference or the political corner.

http://www.mountainhomenews.com/story/2315521.html#1448259

thank you, Brenda

Was the missing hiker found or did they call off the search? I have looked on multiple news sites, haven't found anything.

If you have some great 4th of July photos you would like to share with our readers you can post them on our Mountain Home News Facebook page. Have a great, fun and safe weekend.

Great fireworks display last night.

Did I miss the article on fire dept volunteers helping themselves to a delivery trucks packages, which forced the Chief to resign???

gmoney, I asked the same thing a while back. I remember seeing the article regarding the Fire Chief stepping down but never any coverage on the Firefighters that where "helping clean up" the FedEx crash. They were pretty vague even when they announced the Chief stepping down as to why.

Thought the city leaders might find this of interest. Mountain Home already has a fine library, but this article does a nice job of exploring other options for using large, vacant buildings. http://99percentinvisible.org/article/ghost-boxes-reusing-abandoned-big-box-supe...

Dear gmoney and Mom2theBest,

Fire + Ammo = Really Dangerous

Who's responsible for scheduling/deconflicting the work projects around town? They did new chipsealing on N18E 3-4 weeks ago, then a week later started a utility project that has torn up much of the new chipseal. Nice waste of effort and money!

Something for Kids of all Ages!!

Parade & Family Day !

Saturday July 9th - Tomorrow

10:00 a.m.

Parade starts in Pauls parking lot.

followed by

11:00

Vendors, Games, & BBQ in Carl Miller Park

&

1:00

Elmore County's Got Talent Competition!

See the full flyer on our Facebook Page with more details.

Have a great weekend.

I just overheard an amazing conversations between two prominent local females who were talking quite loudly about people they didn't like. (They don't deserve to be called ladies.) Either way, it just reinforced my impression of how cruel, vicious and mean the women of Mountain Home can be.

Prominent? or wanna be's ? Not to worry they'll be talking about each other when they're not together.

The Forest Service has reached out today to ask us to share with our readers the importance of safety and awareness when rafting the South Fork. Rather than wait until next weeks papers we will continue to followup on anything additional for the papers but in the mean time I want to share this video on their Facebook page they have prepared. Be safe, have fun in your summer adventures.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/US-Forest-Service-Boise-National-Forest/144989058...

You know, mean people are everywhere, not just Mtn Home. And not just women. Many people are a disappointment. But the good ones are worth it. So instead of focusing on the negatives, maybe you should look to the positives. We have many great people in this town. I know this, I was born and raised here. I've seen a lot of bad, but also a lot of great.

Also, I've seen your comments in the past. If you don't like it here, then leave.

Jonathan

Your note is pretty cryptic, should I assume they were saving the ammo from the fire and ???. That was why the old firechief was asked to leave. Did they not tell FED X about their good deed? A medal or commendation may be in order if they risked life and limb.

Further details please.

You know what happens to people who assume, don't you gmoney? Just an observation. No assumption to be made.

Dear ktlm,

I too was born and raised in Mtn. Home. An old proverb relates the story of someone who repeated gossip--some rumor about a neighbor or a customer by name that was based in neither evidence nor fact. Soon, the whole community heard the rumor. Later, the person who spread the gossip learned the rumor was untrue. The person was very sorry and went to a community elder with a reputation for great wisdom. "Go home and take a feather pillow outside," the elder said. "Rip it open, scatter the feathers, return to me tomorrow." The person did as instructed. The next day, the person visited the elder. "Go and collect the feathers you scattered yesterday. Bring them back to me," the elder said. The person went home, searched for the feathers, but the wind carried them all away. "I could find none of the feathers I scattered yesterday," said the person. "You see," said the elder, "it's easy to scatter feathers and impossible to get them back." So it is with gossip; it doesn't take much to spread hurtful words or untruths about someone you know or not, but once you do, you can never completely undo the damage.

The dictionary defines gossip as a rumor or report of intimate nature that is not grounded in fact or evidence. When applied to describe a person, the word means one who habitually reveals personal or sensational facts about others. Gossip is one of those areas of life that is so important to restrain--not only because of the potential damage it causes--but so difficult for many of us to get under control. It is easy to gossip about others by name, often within our own community, because we do so under the banner of "sharing". It feels good to know something about someone else and to share that something with another. Yet, even under the best of motives, "sharing" easily turns into"speculation" and "gossip" and we do damage that we can't completely undo.

There are always two sides to every story ktlm. Always.

So very sad to hear that two kittens were euthanized at the Mountain Home Animal Shelter just hours after they were dropped off. Had someone known that this would happen, other arrangements could have been made to either find temporary shelter or transport them to the Humane Society in Boise. Either way, they would have stood a better chance. I have always supported the shelter financially and in other ways, but no longer will. I have always heard that they care more for the dogs than they do the cats, and now I believe it.

We should probably promote more spay and neuter instead of belittling the Shelter. There are a lot of reasons animals must be put down. Instead of talking "Boise" who also does this when space is a problem or illness prevails, why not give your financial to a spay and neuter clinic. I know, easier to belittle the shelter. Actually those people do a really bang up job. You could help physically instead of threatening witholding a few funds. That counts for a lot too. The city can only afford so many employees.

Not belittling at all. If they have no plans of keeping the animals when they are dropped off, then they could at least be up front about it and say so.

You should stop and talk to those people, get to know them.......they're awesome. I can assure you they don't plan on not keeping animals.....

They may very well be awesome. I run a business and keep a listing of my daily inventory. If I have no room for additional inventory, I would not take in said inventory. But these are living creatures. If there is no room to keep them, apologize and state it as so, and perhaps provide numbers/information of nearby agencies or rescues. Give the opportunity to make other accommodations.

Homedog,

I am pretty sure I never defended the "gossip" you heard. I do however get tired of the negative comments.

I remember back when the shelter was run by a woman who really cared about the animals. I won't mention her name of course, but I am sure many know who she is. She did everything within her power to make sure any animal that was not sick or vicious, found a home. One dog had been there a year and she never gave up on him.

I am told the shelter doesn't take surrendered animals any more, though I hope that isn't true. Animals that are not able to be surrendered, end up on the street or tied up in the back yard and forgotten. It's called an"Animal Shelter" for a reason.

I also happen to know the woman who donated the money for the new shelter to be built and had she known what was to become of it, I have a feeling she wouldn't have donated a single dime to them. She was an animal lover and cared about them very much.

Putting cats to sleep before even trying to adopt them out is disgusting, putting ANY animal that is not sick or vicious down before giving them a chance at life is disgusting.

Number of employees has nothing to do with putting animals down for no good reason.

Shame on the shelter if that is their new practice.

RE: The attack on the Mountain Home Animal Shelter:

First, the whole story is not being told here. There was a litter of kittens living behind Albertsons and the shelter was contacted for help. It was made very clear that the shelter has no resources for feral cats (kittens that are very young can usually acclimate to human touch, but the kittens in question were almost 3 months old and VERY feral) but would assist in trapping within the week. The woman who took it upon herself to trap the kittens without the shelter's assistance brought them to the shelter in boxes taped shut with air holes and with her arms scratched to shreds and even made a declaration about how "wild" they were. The woman signed the paperwork which clearly states that animals surrendered are immediately the property of the shelter and may be euthanized if necessary. The kittens were too old and too feral to be adoptable and rather than stressing them out and causing any more human- and captivity-induced terror for the kittens, they were each humanely and painlessly euthanized, which, my friends, is FAR better than being hit by a car, dying of disease or starvation, or being killed by other animals.

I can personally attest to the sincere compassion that every staff member at the Mountain Home Animal Shelter has for every pet that comes through their door. The blame for this sad situation lies squarely with the irresponsible pet owners in this town who fail to spay and neuter, let their animals roam, and abandon them when they move or grow tired of them.

Rather than focusing on an embellished and partially untrue story about a litter of unsaveable kittens that one person is upset about, I would encourage readers to instead focus on the HUNDREDS of kittens (and adult cats and dogs and puppies and chickens and goats and pet rats and rabbits) the shelter has saved this year alone and show some appreciation to the shelter staff who work so hard for our local homeless pets.

KUDOS to the animal shelter and staff. The amount of calls they get called out on for issues with pets is astounding in this town. Be a responsible pet owner, Can't afford shots or getting them fixed? DON'T GET ONE. Can't keep them with you and care for them NO MATTER WHAT? DON'T GET ONE.

Amber H

Isn't it amazing how silent it gets once someone puts the whole story out there for everyone to hear? No more armchair quarterbacks or gossip mongers spreading hate.

I love the sound of crickets after - although I'm sure this comment will draw them out again....

Amber,

Not embellished and not untrue. When the shelter was contacted regarding the kittens, it was simply stated that they could not keep them as they had no room for them, thus they were put down. It appeared that a home had apparently already been found for both kittens. So yes, there was more than "one upset person" and deservedly so with the information provided them. Whatever was discussed between shelter personnel and the woman who brought them in is a different story and between those involved.

This shelter apparently has their own guidlines to follow, so be it. As far as ferrel kittens, yes it is hard with cats once they go past 4-5 months old, but it is not impossible. I was told this when I contacted local cat rescue groups that have had positive outcomes in situations like this. Perhaps this local shelter is not suited to reach out to rescue operations in cases like this and ask for help. It is just a sad situation no matter how you look at it and I completely agree with you on the spaying/neutering and abandonment of animals. There is simply no reason to be irresponsible in this manner.

Anyone pay attention to the numbers of cats roaming this city? They are everywhere and unattended much of the time. I have neighborhood cats coming into my grand kids play area using it as a litter box, I spray the area with essential oils that do keep them off the area but then they crap in my yard and scratch up the grass to cover it. There are laws governing cats in this city but apparently they are not being followed. I am the one that has to clean these areas up not the animals owners, I have utilized the shelters cages to catch the animals but got caught by a neighbor when loading it into the truck to take it in, not a fun situation. I am not a cat lover but I do not like to see animals harmed in any way, I agree that it is the responsibility of the animals owners to care for their pets and see to it they are not an inconvenience to those who do not have pets. I have met the people at the shelter and I must say they were always very polite and helpful, something I have not been accustomed to here.

Dear ktlm,

Something must have really hit a nerve with you. Aside from an opinion posted this spring, which like you, I have a right to express, my posts are few and far between. Plus, if you look back with a more objective eye, you'll see a lot more negative comments from some of our fellow Mtn. Home residents on other issues. (I'd mention the elephant in the living room, but then Brenda would have to log on and move me to the political forum).

And speaking of Brenda, let's get off her back, ok, old Guy? Hers is a thankless job.

Have a good week everyone and thank you in advance for your kind words.

Point taken, some days my nerves are a little edgier than others. I do tire of ALL negative comments. I used to enjoy coming to this website, reading peoples blogs. Now, most blogs and comments aren't worth reading. However, I jumped at yours. Must have struck a nerve that day I admit.

However, I'm proud of this town. I work out of town, and I lived out of town on and off for a few years. And every day that I come home, it's a good thing. And when I moved home last year, it was a wonderful thing. This town has family and friends in it that I respect and love greatly. So yes, I get a little edgy when people want to dirty it up. With their gossiping, and then when others complain of it.

homedog,

I agree that Brenda has a thankless task and it is one she does well. I am not sure why you feel the need to call me out on this blog when I asked for clarification for events on the political blog. To me that should have been asked on there rather than on a different thread. Just my 2 cents.

To Brenda,

You have my respect for taking on the task of dealing with all the folks that post on here, especially passionate, questioning folks like me.

Crying shame when we have to rely upon a news source in Boise for local information. The Idaho Statesman had an article concerning the Mayor, MHPD and ID checks at local bars. I have to wonder why the MHN staff has not provided the same information? That is unless it is in the hard copy paper which I do not buy.

Really Old Guy? Do you have ANYTHING nice, or positive to say. I cringe every time I see your posts on here and FB!! Find something else to do with your time!!

I just finished reading that article. I find it very odd that the Mayor would ask the city police to not monitor local bars. In a town this small, I would find it more comforting than not that law enforcement is monitoring potential problems that can be associated with alcohol. If the police are not parked on the bar owner's property, how can they threaten to sue them for intimidation?

I, like my daughter, (who might be KTLM) rarely come here any more. It used to be a daily ritual that I did during my lunch break, to check and see upcoming events and in general to see how everyone was. It has, at least in part, become enough of a negative aspect, that I rarely choose to check in. I believe in positivity, and working toward a solution, rather than sharing complaints with no offer to help.

I'm proud of her saying what she thought, and then being 'Woman enough' to admit that possibly a nerve had been struck.

And Homedog, thank you, as well, for not simply attacking her but rather making your point using your story. I appreciate you both

If only everyone could see both sides as you both did.

I'm stepping out again, carry on.

Just like to let the street guys who done the striping on N18thE and elsewhere around town, you done a really great job! You got the lines centered and they're so straight and good to look at. I hope Mr. Shepherd appreciates the effort you guys expended to do a really neat and good job. Thanks for you attention to detail!!

Since I have been accused of never posting anything positive about our wonderful community here goes. I hope that the entire community comes out and shows support for all current and past military members at this year's Air Force Appreciation Day parade. I have been all over this great nation and this is the first place I have ever seen anything like this. When you do see someone in uniform or a retired person, take a second to thank them for their service. I will be in the parade and do that every year for the last 17 years.

Where did all the comments go regarding the Dr. Goodrich story?

Brenda, why was my reply not posted?

What kind of forum representing a newspaper does so much censoring? What is the point of this column if the people are kept on such a short leash? You divided the forum into two different sections and still remove posts that are posted in the correct forum. Brenda I believe you monitor this forum and delete or disallow anything YOU do not agree with. It just keeps on dwindling down, eventually it will be only you!

Good decision Brenda! Friends and enemies alike had this blog boiling by 6:00 yesterday. I for one agree with you on keeping those judgements where they belong.........in the judicial system. Sorry you have to take flack from others for doing your job in an excellent manner.

Silencing the victim ought to be considered bad for business.

That is a very wise, brave and insightful statement. Victims should never be silenced.

True, victoms should never be silenced. But they should voice their accusations in a proper venue. Social media isn't the place to spout such personal matters. And if you had seen the trash that followed you would understand why. The whole story needs to be known before making comments. Brenda made the right decision!

Goat beard,

So only 'non-victims' are allowed to use social media? It is a complete contradiction to say in the first line of your post, "victims should never be silenced" but then continue on to say that in certain circumstances (deemed approproiate or not by you or Brenda) social media is not the place for these "personal matters." Sexual assault being a personal matter is up to the victim. If a victim of an egregious crime chooses to identify themselves in a public forum as a means to give a personal connection to the accusations, or to inspire other victims to come forward, and as a means to cope with his/her victimization who are we to tell that person, "sorry, this is too difficult of a topic to discuss openly." According to RAINN a sexual assault happens every two minutes. 800.656.HOPE

My issue is that this paper is not fluent with its decisions. If a post is deemed inappropriate, all similar posts should be deemed inappropriate. Its my opinion that Brenda allows certain posts and deletes others as she deems appropriate even if they are the same in nature. Shame on this paper for being discriminate in whose posts are allowed and whose are not.

No news report on a house fire that 2 MHPD officers reportedly saved a handicapped female.

Why do I find it on social media but no mention here?

joe_smoe, thank you for mentioning that I wanted to do the same.

I also would like to know the best way to help this family. I am finding at least 3 different "go fund me" pages on social media. I am sure people are just trying to be helpful but hopefully the mtn home news can/will report on it and give accurate info on the situation.

Thanks :)

I knew you were on it Brenda, Thank you :)

Applaud MHNWS for checking facts of things reported in social media.

I went to the homecoming game this last week. It has been a few years. How embarrassing!! From the band, to the can't even score a touchdown football team, to the announcer who couldn't even pronounce names correctly (after having done it many times already) to school officials not even being able to type up a correct team roster, to having to use the restroom in the dark with no running water to wash your hands. We are the laughing stock of all these other schools that come here. I challenge the leaders of this district to DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT!!!! I am ashamed and embarrassed and can't believe I paid $6 to go to such a turd show!!!

Homy,

Agreed. I feel so terrible for the kids. I think the Sky View side felt bad for them as well. It was rather quiet over there on their side despite the score. MHHS admin., this is a reflection on you, not the students. Do you consider this acceptable? So very sad.

I feel bad for the kids too. This school district has some improving to do, and if they can't whether it's finances or lack of knowledge or whatever, then they need to bag it. Losing game in and game out or unable to hold a note with your band members is unacceptable and the fault lies with those in the white house of Mountain Home!

Sad you feel you need to put down the kids involved. They are giving it their all. Yes,I feel sorry for the kids because of comments and support like this.Tiger Pride no matter the numbers on the score board or the sound from our kids playing our Anthem. The anthem is an anthem if played from the heart. Sad.

Well proud Mom, you completely missed the point. That's ok though. Lets hold no one in leadership accountable, it might not be fair.

proudmom

I guess you missed where I said "I feel bad for the kids"

We are the butt of all jokes from all these other schools. Period. and it has nothing to do with the score on the board or the students.

The leaders of this district need to do something about it.

You probably should have left out the part of missed notes from the band and scoring in the game then.

proudmom,

You're right. What a terrible, sad , sad, place these kids find themselves in. It is in no way any fault of theirs. They do their best. They have been completely let down by the leadership. Home Coming is an opportunity for the admin. of MHHS to display to the community that they really care and have pride in the image MHHS. They failed.

How do you suggest they fix it? Where do they get the funding?

I think for starters the Leaders of this district need to realize we have problems, serious problems that need addressed asap. If they don't think there is a problem then they wouldn't know where or how to begin to fix it.

The WECRD gave the football program $15,000 for uniforms. Looking good does not win games. The band has asked for money for uniforms also. That is not going to help the band members play better. Times have changed and if we have lack of participation in the band dept. (like we obviously do) Then don't have that small inexperienced group out on the field trying to perform. They can be a pep band in the stands.

Don't force something that isn't there. If they can't have successful programs then it is time to do away with them.

I don't know of a solution, I just see things that are very broken within our schools. I would like to see change and progress.

How many other schools in our division that we compete with do you find no (decent) restrooms with no running water? How many that you have to park in a lot so rutted sometimes you can't get a car through it, or one so over grown with weeds you can't shut your car door.

It is sad and it is embarrassing for these kids and our community!!

Where do we get the funding?

Not sure where they get the funding if you are asking me that question. What I do know is that if I was doing so poorly at my job, my boss would fire me!

My point is if they don't have they money how do they get it? Can't fix it if you don't have it.

Proudmom3,

IMO, MHSD has the funds after the numerous levies that have been placed upon the taxpayers. How they use the monies is a huge issue, again IMO. There is one board member that is more concerned with how another taxing district handles their monies than how the MHSD does. Fact they have admitted to me that they laugh at how the other taxing district donates money since it allows MHSD to use the monies for other things than supporting sports. If there is a donation made, MHSD reduces that departments budget by the same amount is what was explained to me by this board member, and explained rather gleefully.

Old Guy

If there was a like button, I would like your comment multiple times.

Good old School District 193 is sending out little kids to collect money for new playground equipment at Hacker.

Hmmm...my daughter was at Hacker 11-12 years ago. They did fundraising for new playground equipment then but I don't remember any new equipment ever being purchased.

I hope that everyone will make time to vote today. There is more on the ballot than just the presidential race. Best wishes all.

Albert Clement

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. May you have many blessings this weekend with family and friends. Asking for special angels wings to surround our military here and abroad, our law enforcement, fire department and response personnel that protect ours as their own each and every day. Thank You, B

Schools sending students door to door to collect money for playground equipment? Really.. Not only is it irresponsible and dangerous, but surely from the sounds of this thread, there are greater needs.

On another note fellow Homers, there's a kerfuffle brewing about 45 miles away that we should be all over. Appears to be a smattering of unrest over some noise in Boise over the possibility of some F-35s being located out at Gowen. Evidently some local residents don't feel like the local mayor or city council members are listening to their concerns for the noise impact on their ears, sleep and property values. Several are suggesting that the whole idea be relocated to Mtn.Home.

Sounds like a marvelous opportunity to me, don't you? Perhaps our fine mayor might act on it.

Karen Martin,

I think the paper has been losing readers for the last few years, maybe they are just waiting for it to vanish into the sunset.

Merry Christmas to all our family, friends, neighbors and our hometown community of Mountain Home. The Mountain Home News will be closed Monday as part of our Christmas weekend. Be safe and have a beautiful holiday. Thank you, B

Hat's off the wonderful owner of Bee Dashing Consignment Boutique. This morning, on her own, she started a fundraiser for a grandmother who has stepped up to care for the most beautiful 18 month old child caught up in a bad situation. This community came together with cash, clothing donations, gift cards and lots of love and respect for someone they don't even know. Happy Holidays Mountain Home you can make a difference every day.

I hope that everyone had a Merry Christmas. I am also aware that we have some very difficult loss and injuries over the last several days affecting our community this morning. Please know that I send our condolences, love and prayers in this difficult time. I wish we could say or do more but know you are all in our thoughts. Brenda

With over nine inches of snow so far in Elmore county, and still more storm warnings, most everyone is snowed in. Hope everyone will stay warm and safe.

To those that came out and helped me BOTH times I got stuck on Partridge and Laurel, thank you so much for caring!!! You are awesome!

Please, before you decide to travel, check the road conditions by visiting the link below. As we all know, we've received a huge amount of snow followed by some high winds and low temperatures. This has created for some unfavorable traveling conditions. If you do not have to travel, we urge you to stay put. Road crews will be out trying to make the roads safe again. Thanks you. Think safety first. http://hb.511.idaho.gov/#roadReports?timeFrame=TODAY&layers=roadReports%2Cwinter...

POST COMING FROM ELMORE CO SHERIFF DEPT.

I JUST WANTED TO SHARE THE INFO. BE SAFE.

I would also say to all the men & women gathering and sharing information and those out in these dreadful elements have my upmost respect and thanks for helping and assisting in all that you do. THANK YOU & BE SAFE.

***Attention***

The Street Department would like to ask residents if they see the city dump trucks and loader coming down your street if you could please move your cars from the side of the road so they can remove the snow. The Street crew is trying to make it to all areas of town as fast as possible and this would ensure they are able to do a more thorough job on your street.

Does anyone know why the the air show is being held in Boise this year and not at the MHAFB?

Who is "They". Seems impractical with all the commercial air traffic in Boise. Not to mention congestion of traffic.

Please take a moment in the next few days to think of those brave men and women who defend our nation. MHAFB recently lost a Gunfighter in a tragic accident. This Veteran will pause everyday to remember all of them.

http://www.mountainhome.af.mil/News/ArticleDisplay/tabid/6330/Article/1128789/fa...