Posted: April 18, 2012 at 6:22 am
Ken Miller Wins Straw Poll
Former state senator and Republican Party Chair Ken Miller on Monday overwhelmingly won the Lewistown TEA Party straw poll following the most recent candidate debate. It’s a sign that the tide may be turning against former Congressman Rick Hill among base voters where he had previously appeared to be on course for an easy win.
Miller took first place in the informal post debate survey with 49 percent. Stapleton placed a distant second with the votes of 15 percent of participants. Former Congressman Rick Hill took third with 12 percent.
The remaining votes came it at 11 percent for Livingstone, seven percent for Jim Lynch, and three percent each for Bob Fanning and Jim O’Hara.
The survey comes less than three weeks before mail ballots go out.
Great campaign picture. Good looking family, dog, and dead tree on ground probably killed by pine beetles due to bad federal management of forest land. I would gave tried to work a dead wolf into background but I am over the top on these things. I like ken and wish him well.
Um, Dave, I just GOTTA ask for your source on THAT one, dude! What? You NEED no source? God tol you?? Come on, Dave. Don’t be a horse’s ass, dude. Pine beetles THRIVE when the weather’s warm. It takes prolonged, sustained cold to kill them! Sheesh. Do you by chance have early onset?? Alzheimers?? Sure seems like it! Or just Halfheimers? Either way, you make a great Teatard!
Is the woman in the middle of the photo his mother?
Wouldn’t want to think you were being a jerk……when you look in the mirror do you see George Clooney?
more like a balding ralph nader: et tu?
being a jerk is my specialty: watch yer eyes.
A young vigorous forest could shake off a few pine beetles. Old decadent forests are vulnerable. My source, common sense.
Folks. Behold the intellect of a man charged with making state law.
Common sense???? Replacing science??? Yeah, OK. You’re a Teatard alright. And God tol’ you, right? You had a revelation. BTW, Dave, WHEN did we last have a winter like this past one? If you can call that a winter. Ask your common sense for some statistics.
Yow! Miller’s issues page reads like a declaration of war on the West:
http://www.miller4governor.com/issues
Kenny boy LOOKS like the last cowboy, but he’s ACTUALLY the Last Lege! He’s birthe bob, jumbo jimmy, and ALL of the weirdos rolled into one candidate! MAN is he a freakin’ weirdo! But you see, that’s what happens when you talk to God and never have your bizarre ideas tested in the market place of ideas like a university! Kenny live in Kenny’s World. He’s an uneducated idiot. We already TRIED uneducated moron with Judy Mars. How’d THAT work out for us? We don’t need that again!
Kenny boy, go get educated, dude. Then we’ll talk! Talkin’ to God just don’t do it, dude!
Shame on you Dave I have seen Young Lodge pole pines forests decimated with pine beetles in our area alone. the bug doesn’t just hit sick old forests. It is by its very nature, is destroying all ages of trees because it is a boring insect. It is not the only culprit. We now are contending with a white pine butterfly, which is being seen in greater numbers from the west coast. Able to migrate here because of Climate change!
Why would anyone have to use your educated Guess when we have people who have studied trees all their life, and have degrees in earth sciences.
“A single mature tree can absorb carbon dioxide at a rate of 48 lbs./year and release enough oxygen back into the atmosphere to support 2 human beings.” – McAliney, Mike. Arguments for Land Conservation: Documentation and Information Sources for Land Resources Protection, Trust for Public Land, Sacramento, CA, December, 1993
“On average, one tree produces nearly 260 pounds of oxygen each year. Two mature trees can provide enough oxygen for a family of four.” – Canada’s environmental agency, Environment Canada
Every year you ignore this fact and do nothing to control the pests, that are killing our trees. you do irreplaceable damage to our air quality, and soil quality. sick tree populations need to be harvested immediately, and replaced.
1. Trees Produce Oxygen
Let’s face it, we could not exist as we do if there were no trees. A mature leafy tree produces as much oxygen in a season as 10 people inhale in a year. What many people don’t realize is the forest also acts as a giant filter that cleans the air we breath.
2. Trees Clean the Soil
The term phytoremediation is a fancy word for the absorption of dangerous chemicals and other pollutants that have entered the soil. Trees can either store harmful pollutants or actually change the pollutant into less harmful forms. Trees filter sewage and farm chemicals, reduce the effects of animal wastes, clean roadside spills and clean water runoff into streams.
3. Trees Control Noise Pollution
Trees muffle urban noise almost as effectively as stone walls. Trees, planted at strategic points in a neighborhood or around your house, can abate major noises from freeways and airports.
4. Trees Slow Storm Water Runoff
Flash flooding can be dramatically reduced by a forest or by planting trees. One Colorado blue spruce, either planted or growing wild, can intercept more than 1000 gallons of water annually when fully grown. Underground water-holding aquifers are recharged with this slowing down of water runoff.
5. Trees Are Carbon Sinks
To produce its food, a tree absorbs and locks away carbon dioxide in the wood, roots and leaves. Carbon dioxide is a global warming suspect. A forest is a carbon storage area or a “sink” that can lock up as much carbon as it produces. This locking-up process “stores” carbon as wood and not as an available “greenhouse” gas.
6. Trees Clean the Air
Trees help cleanse the air by intercepting airborne particles, reducing heat, and absorbing such pollutants as carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide. Trees remove this air pollution by lowering air temperature, through respiration, and by retaining particulates.
7. Trees Shade and Cool
Shade resulting in cooling is what a tree is best known for. Shade from trees reduces the need for air conditioning in summer. In winter, trees break the force of winter winds, lowering heating costs. Studies have shown that parts of cities without cooling shade from trees can literally be “heat islands” with temperatures as much as 12 degrees Fahrenheit higher than surrounding areas.
8. Trees Act as Windbreaks
During windy and cold seasons, trees located on the windward side act as windbreaks. A windbreak can lower home heating bills up to 30% and have a significant effect on reducing snow drifts. A reduction in wind can also reduce the drying effect on soil and vegetation behind the windbreak and help keep precious topsoil in place.
What makes this state pristine is our wealth of trees, and we are losing that wealth yearly to insect infestation, the likes we have never seen.
Well, two white guys named Lewis and Clark surveyed all this after the United States bought it from France who stole it from the Indians.
Then about a hundred and twenty years ago white guys from Ireland, England, and Germany killed all the buffalo, put the Indians they didn’t kill into internment camps, then came in here and clear cut all the virgin timber for mine supports and buildings, and let cattle come in here to eat all the aspen shoots.
The Forest Service was created to manage all this as a big farm. They suppressed fire and sprayed DDT into the waterways until a book came out in 1962 describing a world where humanity is poisoning the planet.
War broke out in southeast Asia and people began wondering whether the world was going to Helena in a hand basket then realized something had to be done about preserving the finite resources.
Lawsuits got filed stopping logging operations, the housing bubble popped so all this maladapted forest grew like weeds killing the historic habitat.
Just giving the Montana GOP a heads up, so they cant cry ignorance, Just as you are doing Larry!
I am sick that they have allowed themselves to fail in knowing basic high school science, History, or the History of this state. Common sense, Horse sense, Moxie has never worked without Good basic knowledge for humans….. never. the ignorant always portray the meaning wrongly……. mixing up its meaning, with foundational beliefs, our self fulfilling axioms. That lack of education is becoming more dangerous to Americans everyday!
“If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be.”
-Thomas Jefferson 1816
Lest we forget, Montana went through about 10-15 years of drought prior to the pine beetle infestation. That weakened trees and allowed the infestation to take hold and become more widespread. Bugs are a part of any forest but a healthy tree can generally fight off a bug attack. While harvesting the bug killed trees could be a temporary solution it doesn’t do anything to make it rain/snow more often.
While that is somewhat true, Dallas, harvesting the beetle kill does slow down the infestation and that (coupled with a replanting effort) can go a long ways to reacting to the situation we have.
I have to disagree with you Dallas, Weather is indeed a pattern of checks and Balances, But pine tree are very durable in drought. Remeber the oldest living trees on earth are Pine, and they are located in the deserts of California!
Winters also need to be below zero here for at least 3 weeks solid to kill bugs also….. that just isn’t happening anymore!
Methodical Cleansing of affected trees, must take over, were winter is not to restore those checks and balances Extensive Bait trapping with Pheromomes is another way not to pollute forests with insecticides, in their weakened condition, and far more cost effective as well.
Foresters that I’ve talked to over the years indicate that a healthy tree will repel a beetle infestation in most cases; not always but most of the time. Drought stressed trees cannot fight that battle as effectively and are much more suseptible to attack and death. And once the trees are “red and dead” there’s a relatively short window for harvesting the wood before it becomes too “punky” to be of much use.
In general, we get beetle outbreaks every 15 years or so as a part of the natural cycle of things. But this one was more severe as a result of the drought. Water, in the form of rain or snow, is what’s needed. It’s also why, after the record setting moisture we received in 2010 -2011, that the outbreak stopped spreading so rapidly.
Baggers always think their own uninformed and unsupported ‘common sense’ trumps science. You and Alan hale are two peas in a pod Dave.
From Millers website.”Reform Montana Constitution to pro-business document.” I thought a Constitution was created to best serve all “the people”.
Miller: Just another guy who wants to destroy the air we breath and the water we drink!
Best way to honor the Creator is to sh*t on His creation! God tol’ that to nutjob kenny boy! Hell, it’s the end times anywho! You see, when one is an uneducated moron, one will believe ANYthing! The days when a governor of Montana can have NO college education are long gone! Hell, this AIN’T Arizany ya know! Kenny is a pathetic figure. He’s birther bob, gen. skees, and all the rest rolled into one!
Dave Lewis’ “common sense” solution during the 2009 legislative session (SB 34) was simply to declare federal national forest lands in Montana as source of “community decay,” putting public forests in the same category as junk cars and trash piles. Dave’s “solution” was to allow counties to send their employees into federal national forest lands, cut down the trees and then send the federal government a bill for the work.
Yep, Dave even admitted that his “common sense” solution would have guaranteed a challenge in federal court with the US Government. Hmmmm….who would have paid for that?
Personally, I think Montana is lucky to have all these federal public forests lands and they are a great source of pride, clean water, wildlife habitat, biological diversity to the vast majority of Montanans. Most Montanans view national forest lands as beautiful places to hunt, fish, camp, hike, boat, etc with family and friends….not as sources of “community decay” like Mr. Lewis, apparently does.
But you know what? We beat you on that one back in 2009, right Mr. Lewis? I mean, the bill had already passed the Senate by a wide margin (with even people like Carol Williams voting for it) but a handful of us (with really no help from any of the state’s major enviro groups) stopped you cold in the GOP-dominated House Committee. Thanks for the memories Dave, and for showing us that you have little knowledge about forest ecology.
The Rockies are broken because We, the People have broken them. Beetle-killed pine is a major source of methane: there are 70 million acres of collapsed pine forest in the US alone.
Mathew Koehler is a major source of methane. SB 34 was a good idea. We should be getting rid of all the bug killed timber and Mathew will not let the forest service do it. Good to hear from you Mathew.
Then take the youngest pine, Mr. Lewis, and preserve the legacy trees with all your strength.
Dave, I am in somewhat agreement with you (about taking some of the beetle kill, not the methane remark), but your bill was an abortion. If harvesting of beetle kill were to be accomplished in a controlled and scientific manner, it could aid in the control of the beetle. Sadly your bill did none of that.
Jesus, Dave. Pretty damn hard to believe that you were the freakin’ BUDGET DIRECTOR for the state. NO offense, but you just don’t seem that smart, dude, judging from what you write. Is someone impersonating you?????
Here ya go, Dave. Here’s your chance to SHINE, dude! As I stated, from your writing you appear for all the world to be a not very smart hypocrite! So, let your little light shine, Dave. Answer me just one question in your most profound, articulate profundity, dude!
What is, in your humble opinion, the common good?
Yep. That’s it. Simple, isn’t it. For you see, Dave, YOU have spent the last forty odd years suckin’ off the government in one form or another. Seems that the gubmint has been bery, bery good to you. And yet you appear to find NO common good for anyone else! Forests, etc.!
So, once again, Dave, shine ON, dude! Let’s hear what an anti-gubmint gubmint sucker’s take is on the common good! I’ll wait. And, thanx in advance!
Nuthin’ like shared sacrifice, right Dave?? You see, Dave, what you and Max Butts DON’T understand is that the gubmint does NOT exist to enrich morons! Sorry bout that! But that’s just the way it is.
The Tea Party favorite won a Tea Party straw poll, beating the establishment candidate…and it’s supposed to be news? Yeah, what ‘an uncanny knack for sharp insider information.’ Hahahahahahahaha!
Um, no. You apparently MISSED the “news”, dipshit! And that was that the Teatards are SO F’ed up that a full SEVEN PERCENT voted for jim lynch!!!! Now, you’re a Teatard. What is HIS appeal to wackos???? Did God speak to him too??? bhwhahahahahahaha!
“The remaining votes came it at 11 percent for Livingstone, seven percent for Jim Lynch, and three percent each for Bob Fanning and Jim O’Hara.”
Jim Lynch??? WTF, Teatards? You dudes really ARE messed up! You’d have three percent voting for DOG CRAP if it was warm!
Does anyone know what Ken Miller’s stance on stream access has been in the past?
The great thing about havin’ kenny boy miller as guv is that we would FINALLY get that creation musuem that I’ve always wanted! Kind of a dumbass’s Museum of the Rockies! Kenny boy could be the Jack Horner of the Fundi crowd! YEEEEhaw! Jesus ponies all around! (dinosaurs that is) I sure hope that JAYsus finds a way to get kenny IN there! HEY, what fun, no?! I could be a national tourist destination!
BWHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!
The Big Sky CREATION Museum!……..right next to our reproduction of Noah’s Ark!!!
This is absolutely hysterical that he would even acknowledge this as a victory. First of all, there were a total of maybe 70 people there. Secondly, 1/3 of the votes were from 12 year old children of parents from Miller supporters! Ken Miller supporters are anything but supportive!! He has lost campaign managers, regional directors, and many many others!
Below is a rhetoric from Poly Montana:
Ken has been campaigning for almost two years. Yet, he has not produced poll numbers more than half of Rick Hill’s numbers. With only five weeks left in the primary campaign, there is no evidence that Ken can attract enough voters to beat Hill.
Ken’s campaign is coming unglued. Most of Ken’s key campaign management group have left. Ed Jonas, Ken’s former NW Regional Campaign Director, left and is now backing Livingstone. Glenn Swope, Ken’s former Bozeman Campaign Director, left and is now backing Livingstone. Ken’s former campaign manager Bill Mutch has quit the Miller campaign. If Ken Miller, like Bob Fanning, cannot keep his campaign organized then he cannot manage the State of Montana much less beat Bullock.
Many Miller supporters who realize Ken cannot win and are reconsidering their choice and diverting to other campaigns. This view will trickle down to Miller’s green-shirt followers before the election.
Ken Miller does not have the money or support to beat either Hill or Bullock, who is sitting on $1 million waiting to destroy the Republican nominee. PUTTING MILLER AGAINST BULLOCK WOULD BE LIKE PUTTING YOUR BOY SCOUT TAG-TEAM FOOTBALL TEAM AGAINST THE SF GIANTS. MILLER IS NOT IN THE SAME LEAGUE AS BULLOCK, OR EVEN HILL. WE MUST LOOK FOR ANOTHER CANDIDATE IF WE TRULY WISH TO ELECT A CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR.
It doesn’t come as a surprise to me that Ken has overwhelmingly won this poll and unlike “TREEHUGGER” has mentioned has a poll record which closely rivals Hill’s and leaves the other candidates in the dust. As a college student, I am fed up with “business as usual” in the political field. I’m tired of empty promises, of unfair accusations and of those who only tear the other candidates apart. That people like Treehugger and the Environmental Rangers would provide such harsh criticsm and false data only proves to me that they feel threatened by Miller’s campaign. They know how strong he has become in this race and are frantically grasping at straws. In addition, I deeply respect Ken’s dedication to moral and ethical decisions in everything from his time as a small businessman, to his work in the legislature and even his personal life. Many candidates claim their moral principles, but their private lives beg to differ. Ken has always shown integrity in everything he does. This is reflected in his family life where his entire family works as a team to reach out to the citizens of Montana. In addition, as a representative of the younger generation, I have seen firsthand how Ken is dedicated to our generation. He has visited campuses across Montana multiple times and taken us seriously. No other candidate has reached out to our generation as he has. He readily admits the faults of his generation and is working hard to ensure that the next generation is not burdened with the mistakes made by his. His two children, one current and one former have attended college in Montana. As a college student I appreciate that Ken knows the issues of higher education. We are the future of the United States and we need a governor who will partner with us to move this state forward. The last point I would like to make is directed toward the harsh attacks that are pervading so many of these races, be them local, state, or national. I believe discussion is good and that we all have a right to our own personal opinion. However, let’s take a step back and remember that we are all ultimately on the same team. We all share a common vision of success for the United States. We all have friends and family fighting in the military to preserve the freedom of this nation. While it’s certainly your right to disagree, let’s keep it civil and honest this election season.
“Republican gubernatorial hopeful Ken Miller’s former chief fundraiser on Wednesday accused Miller’s campaign of misreporting funds, accepting campaign donations over the statutory contribution limits, accepting anonymous donations, and failing to disclose certain campaign expenditures.”
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/article/20120423/NEWS01/120423011/1002
WHAT???? BORN AGAIN BOY?? Shame on him! God is gonna be bery, bery MAD at kenny boy! What a douche! What a slimeball! What a PERFECT Pubbie candidate!
Holy Crap looks like he was pocketing money and Miller’s Fundraiser saw herself getting closer and closer to being Toss in Jail. OMG!
Dear College Student,
As far as business as usual…well here ya go: http://www.nola.com/newsflash/index.ssf/story/miller-staffer-alleges-financial-wrongdoings/a71d1814ee64453e931bca5bd26fd891
As far as unfair and false accusations…well here ya go: http://www.greatfallstribune.com/article/20120423/NEWS01/120423011/GOP-gubernatorial-hopeful-Ken-Miller-s-former-chief-fundraiser-alleges-misdoings?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|Frontpage
As far a being threatened…well NOT SO MUCH…here ya go: http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/montana/former-finance-director-says-miller-broke-campaign-laws/article_6193aef6-9cc4-575e-a8ef-1ebcec11a5c3.html
As far a Ken’s dedication to morals and ethics…laugh laugh laugh…well here ya go: http://intelligentdiscontent.com/category/montana-politics/2012-statewide/ken-miller/
To say he knows the issues of higher education is seriously a joke…he never attended college and ONLY has a high school education. Which is 110% reflective of his management skills! I think tree-hugger has it right when he/she says that Ken Miller supporters are anything but supportive…here ya go: “Bishop’s sudden departure isn’t the only shake up within the Miller camp, his former campaign manager William Mutch’s tenure with the sinking ship was similarly brief. One can only imagine why Mr. Mutch abruptly left the campaign, especially after stating on the campaign website that his entire career had culminated on that moment. I tend to be especially critical of religious hypocrites, remember Harris Himes? I can only imagine how disheartened Miller’s supporters are right now. I think it is time Ken Miller finds a new costume for parades, Honest Abe doesn’t seem fitting. Might I suggest Pinocchio?”– http://montanafesto.wordpress.com/
The Miller campaign has fundamentally fallen apart and Miller’s true management competencies have been made very apparent. He couldn’t manage the State GOP budget, any of his businesses, or his very own campaign. The man of morals, values, honesty, and integrity has gone by way of the dodo! Ken Miller has no hope of ever holding another office again! Best of luck to his family and grandmother shown in the picture!
The Post below with Miller’s sign that is “For Sale” or “Lease” is completely symbolic of his leftover campaign! Peace out Ken!
What I want to know is this- is this a fight between the Miller and Stapleton crowd or the Miller and Hill?
The ‘Miller Plan’: Count each vote twice but only half the contributions. Hell, it ought to work out alright. Surely nothing a little prayer can’t fix?
I hope to god Rick Hill is the nominee and not Ken Miller. Hill is much more vulnerable in the general because of his, um, proclivities.
He maybe should’a thought about keeping his proclivities in his pants! Too late now though. But hey, if chuck colson can be borned again, why no lil ricky?! He needs to find JAYsus, just like Dopey Reeburp found CEEment JAYsus!