Rehbergs suing Billings: “Not about the money”- apparently they just don’t “understand”

Oct22 by D Gregory Smith

In the Billings Gazette yesterday, the Firegate shitstorm has apparently come up against an election cycle speed bump: bad idea to sue the city and state you represent.

Unfortunately, the lawsuit isn’t being dropped, it’s just being pursued “without monetary compensation”.

The Rehbergs, represented by Billings attorney Cliff Edwards, filed the lawsuit in July 2010, just before the two-year statute of limitations was to run out. At the time, Edwards said the lawsuit was filed to preserve the Rehbergs’ legal claims.

The lawsuit alleges that the Billings Fire Department breached its duty to protect the subdivision during a wildfire that started on July 2, 2008. The fire was quickly contained, but it flared again two days later and spread over a large area, forcing the evacuation of about 40 homes.

The lawsuit sat dormant for months, however, because it was never served on the city. Edwards said the lawsuit was not served because it was hoped that the two sides could resolve the matter outside court. A party filing a civil lawsuit has three years in which to serve the other side.

But negotiations stalled this year, and on Sept. 20 an attorney representing the city, Michele Braukmann, filed an official response in the court case, an unusual legal move she said was intended to “move the litigation forward.”

In the interview, Jan Rehberg said she was frustrated with the city’s refusal to provide information about the fire before the filing of the lawsuit, such as a final report about the suppression efforts.

“When you talk about transparency in government, it goes to all levels,” she said. “They have a lot of responsibility, and in exchange for that they need to be open.”

A day before the city’s response was filed, Edwards sent Braukmann a seven-page letter that included the Rehbergs’ offer to settle the case “without monetary compensation if the city agrees to adopt specific wildland firefighting standards within an agreed time frame, and subject to review and comment by my client and/or the public at large.”

If such policies are already in place, the letter states, the Rehbergs “would like to review those policies and have them amended, as necessary.”

But this is my favorite part (emphasis mine)

On Thursday, Braukmann said the city is “pleased” by the offer to settle the case without a demand for money damages, and the city is working to respond to the request for more information about the fire.

Braukmann said much of the information already has been provided, but the city would provide it again in a different format that might be easier to understand.

‘Nuff said. Read it all here.

So You Want To Live In Montana…

Oct21 by D Gregory Smith

I think this is actually what some people think…. Thanks, Jeannie!

Hope for MT? : Commonwealth Countries Asked To Decriminalize Gays

Oct19 by D Gregory Smith

Leaders of Commonwealth countries will be asked to decriminalise homosexuality to help to stop the spread of HIV, an Australian official has said.

Forty-one of the 53 Commonwealth countries – including Uganda, Zimbabwe and Ghana – still criminalise gay sex and HIV campaigners say such laws are seriously hampering safe sex initiatives.

The 2011 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) will be held in Perth, Australia from 28-30 October.

CHOGM 2011 will bring together more than 50 world leaders representing approximately one-quarter of the world’s countries and one-third of the world’s population. The meetings originated with the of the leaders of the self-governing colonies of the British Empire in 1887- and still has great influence in setting human rights policy throughout the world.

Sodomy laws in the US were invalidated by The U.S. Supreme Court in the ruling of Lawrence vs. Texas in 2003. However, several states- including Montana- still keep these shameful and impotent laws on the books- despite reasonable efforts to remove them– presumably as a slap in the face to the “Uppity Gays”. And yes, I will mention (Again!) that the Official Montana Republican Platform still calls for the criminalization of homosexual acts.

Will this meeting in Australia have an effect in Montana?

Probably not- at least not directly. I suspect this will not be seen as a discussion of human rights, but as a discussion of disease and epidemics- at least at first. And if the last legislative session is any indication, the zenophobes in charge of Montana’s legislative agenda will see it as unimportant (and non-applicable) world politics that don’t apply here.

But any progress is good progress- and this is progress- this discussion has never happened at this world level before- and it eventually filters through. Even to Montana.

I just hope I live to see it.

…and more hate

Oct5 by D Gregory Smith

I almost don’t want to give her the satisfaction, but I think it’s worth bringing to your attention.

My post on the Southern Poverty Law Center’s warning that

A former “staff leader” of the neo-Nazi Aryan Nations is threatening to indict members of the Montana Human Rights Network by convening a “citizen grand jury”

seemed to strike a nerve. I’ve never had a white supremacist comment on one of my posts before- and it seemed to violate the rules for commenters- but after consultation, I approved it.

As a warning.

This type of ignorant hatred is here. And they think they’re in the majority, somehow. They think we all want them here.

And they seem to need help with their grammar.

You can read the comment and my response here.

Pride Foundation: Volunteers Make An Impact In Big Sky Country

Oct4 by D Gregory Smith

It’s my privilege to work with some amazing people on The Pride Foundation’s team in Montana. If any of you know me personally, you know that I really believe in this organization, am a monthly donor, and I offer what I can to make this work here.

I believe it’s our last best chance for equality in Montana.

Caitlin Copple, Montana’s Regional Organizer for The Pride Foundation, has written an article about the Leadership Action Team for the State of Montana- and we’re a pretty amazing group of people if I do say so myself.

Excerpt:

The Montana Leadership Action Team serves as Pride Foundation’s “boots on the ground” when it comes to raising money, visibility and developing local leaders across the state. Because Pride Foundation believes strongly that local people know best what is needed in their communities, all our funding decisions – from grants to scholarships to sponsorships – are made by volunteers across the state.

I am so grateful for the support, hard work, and thoughtful dedication of this team. In just nine months, they’ve helped host eight house parties, attended countless community events on Pride Foundation’s behalf, and will determine how we distribute $5,000 in sponsorship money this year. Their work is directly shaping a safer, more equal Montana and strengthening our community’s philanthropic prowess.

Read about everyone on the Action Team here. And while you’re at it- check out the rest of their website. And if you give to HRC or GLAAD or Lambda Legal or any national LGBT rights organization, I challenge you to match that donation to an organization that will keep that money right here in Montana- the Pride Foundation.

I do.

MT Anti-Gay Preachers On The Run

Sep28 by D Gregory Smith

Read all about it here.

Celebrate the Freedom to Read during Banned Books Week – Sept. 24-Oct. 1

Sep22 by D Gregory Smith

From The ACLU:

HELENA, MT —Almost since Montana’s beginnings people have been trying to control what we read. Books have been targeted for being too violent, too insulting, too sexy or just plain too dangerous.

In 1902 Butte banned “The Story of Mary MacLane by Herself” as morally corrupt and insulting to Butte and its citizens.

During WWI Montana banned, and some towns even burned, German books as part of the Sedition Act.

Just last year, a parent challenged the use of Newberry Award-winning book “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” in Helena Public Schools’ curriculum. The ACLU of Montana was there, as were more than 100 supporters of intellectual freedom who successfully fought for the novel’s retention.

The ACLU takes a strong stance for the First Amendment and everyone’s right to read what they choose.

Celebrate Banned Books Week, Sept. 24-Oct. 1 by learning more about book banning, finding out what you can do to protect intellectual freedom, reading a banned book or attending a Banned Books Week event near you hosted by the ACLU or Montana or the Montana Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Committee.

*Great Falls — Monday, Sept. 26
12:00 Noon
Montana State University – Great Falls, Heritage Hall

*Helena — Monday, Sept. 26
6:30 p.m.
Lewis and Clark County Library

*Plentywood — Monday, Sept. 26
7 p.m.
Sheridan County Library

*Butte — Tuesday, Sept. 27
12:00 Noon
Montana Tech Library

*Bozeman — Tuesday, Sept. 27
12:00 Noon
Montana State University Library, basement classroom

More information at www.aclumontana.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=199&Itemid=71

TAKE ACTION!

Sep19 by D Gregory Smith

I spent the weekend with 30 HIV+ Gay men in the mountains outside of Helena, Montana. They ranged in age from their early twenties to their mid sixties. It was like every other gathering of gay men in many respects- with one exception: we talked a lot about our health- and our medications.

Mostly about the reliability of receiving these life-saving meds.

It creates a lot of stress for us. The meds are expensive, they have side-effects, they are sometimes mailed from pharmacies with in a day or two of our running out. It often requires us to hound our caseworkers to get what we need- every month, in some cases.

As in most cases with issues of efficiency, increased funding will help. But Congress always needs to be hounded in order to give the HIV+ the kind of funding we actually need. The kind of funding that other medically disabled get almost automatically.

We don’t even have enough money to take care of those waiting to be admitted to government programs that people already qualify for.

Thus The Waiting List for the AIDS Drug Assistance Program. It needs to end- and you can help. Click the link below the map.

SIGN THE PETITION TO END ADAP WAITING LISTS HERE

~

“Right Wing Lunacy” To Enter State Race

Sep15 by D Gregory Smith

Cowgirl:

Confirming a story that was first reported here at the Cowgirl blog, TEA Party Republican Derek Skees, confederate sympathizer who has tried to set up his own Little South amid the ultra-right-wing colony in the Flathead, has announced his candidacy for State Auditor.

Skees will run against incumbent Monica Lindeen – D, and his candidacy will likely be based on a single issue: Say No To Federal Healthcare Reform.

...So Lindeen will have a fight on her hands. But fortunately she, too, is now positioned against something unpopular: right-wing lunacy. Skees is a national leader of a fringe of the GOP so far right that it barely considers itself Republican.

Know your ballots, people. Full story here.