Month: October 2020

by William Skink

If you follow the comments on this blog, you may have noticed some interesting comments being made on an old post about Glacier Hope Homes, an alleged recovery program of sorts for veterans that is no longer in operation…or is it? We’ll get to that part in a bit.

First, the story of my involvement with exposing Glacier Hope Homes goes back five years, all the way to my time writing for 4&20 Blackbirds. In June of 2015 I wrote a post, titled A New Shelter for Vets or an Expensive Scam?

This post was a reaction to a local news story at NBC Montana that made it sound like the homeless veterans would be responsible for paying their own rent. After my coverage, NBC Montana amended their reporting. The first iteration of the story clearly stated that Glacier Hope Homes “will cost residents 1,500 per month.” That was later changed to this:

Officials are paying for the project via private investors, a federal grant and funds from Medicaid, Medicare and Veterans Administration benefits to cover the $1,500 monthly cost of operation per resident.

Sensing something fishy was going on, I continued covering this story after starting RD. Here are the posts: Glacier Hope Homes Strikes Back?, Update On Glacier Hope Homes, More Stink Coming From Glacier Hope Homes, and this one: More Questions Than Answers In Missoula Indy’s Look At Glacier Hope Homes.

This represents three years of coverage by little old me, a blogger and citizen journalist who didn’t like the idea of Veterans with addiction and mental health issues being exploited by a scam artist.

If you read through those posts, you’ll find interesting little tidbits, like how our current Republican Senator, Steve Daines, made an appearance at Glacier Hope Homes in 2015. You’ll also discover that the Missoula Independent article is no longer available online, thanks to POS Matt Gibson and Lee Enterprises.

When the Indy was shuttered in September, 2018, its coverage of Glacier Hope Homes was one of the first things I thought about. In a post titled No New Indy Tomorrow…What Have We Lost? I had this to say:

After yesterday’s move by Lee and POS Matt Gibson, geared it seems to maximize the gut-punch factor, what we have lost as a community is just starting to be felt. For example, the Indy archive is no longer accessible. Apparently eliminating competition wasn’t enough for Lee. No, these corporate fuckers are erasing the Indy’s entire legacy.

When Tim Lloyd died of exposure last November, Brouwer (alerted by a tweet I put out) wrote a moving article about it. I wrote about it here, which you can still read, but the link to Brouwer’s piece now redirects to the Missoulian website.

Same obviously for the feature piece on Glacier Hope Homes put out in February of this year. I wrote multiple posts trying to bring attention to claims of abuse and mismanagement impacting homeless Veterans, and implored local media to take on what I couldn’t. 

Now that piece is gone as well, so when this scammer starts up his scam in another community (Susan Shepherd, the author of the feature piece, reported he was moving to Texas), there won’t be a record of what was reported by the Indy regarding what was going on at Glacier Hope Homes.

I am emphasizing my own writing because it now appears quite prescient in light of recent comments being made on the Glacier Hope Homes Strikes Back? post. Before getting to those comments, I will add that old issues of the Indy do appear a little more accessible now, so this link should give you an idea of the Indy’s coverage three years ago (for an easier to read version, former Indy journalist Susan Shepard provided this pdf version of her story)

The first comment was made by “Zack Lindsay” on the night of October 22nd:

The second comment gives us a clue about why the first comment was made:

So, the benevolent Jason Stevens, who just wants to help veterans in need, appears to be up to the same shit he was in Montana, but now in Texas. And, like in Montana, it appears Jason Stevens has found other shady people to “help” him “help” others.

Someone by the name of “Lendell Braud” responded to the comment left by Zack Lindsay. This person claims to be a doctor and, from the comment, appears to have worked with Zach in a “professional” capacity. I put “professional” in quotes because I don’t know of any doctor willing to risk a HIPAA violation by exposing they are working with a patient in a professional capacity on a public forum. Here is the comment from “Dr. Lendell”:

Now that I’m curious again about these shady operators, I decided to see what I could find online. Here in Montana, Glacier Hope Homes is STILL LISTED (pdf) as a resource for housing in the Flathead:

I tried the link above, but it goes to a “coming soon” wordpress placeholder page. This “business site” for Glacier Hope Homes says they are a non-profit as of August, 2019 and apparently operating in Columbia Falls:

Even more concerning, Montana’s DPHHS (Department of Health and Human Services) STILL LISTS Glacier Hope Homes as a treatment provider:

I am kind of astounded that Glacier Hope Homes continues to have a presence in Montana on official government websites, and that unprofessional idiots associated with this organization continue making ill-advised comments on my blog posts.

This is a great and timely example of what happens when our corporate media cuts and slashes newsrooms like an 80’s horror flick, shady operators like Jason Stevens get to keep chasing money in potentially fraudulant “help” schemes.

by William Skink

By now local readers have awoken to the white stuff. You might be tempted to call it “snow”, but it is not. It is a cold and condensing type of early season glue-sand I’ve never experienced. And there’s over a foot of it.

As the Halloween decorations blew mockingly in the wind, I went out to the garage before morning light to dust off the snowblower.

Shhh…do you hear that sound? Do you hear the conspicuous ABSENCE of snow-blowing?

I got about 4 feet before admitting defeat.

Shoveling this stuff is insane. Since it’s glue-sand, it doesn’t just come off the scoop-end of the shovel like one would expect of normal snow. It sticks. So to get it off, I slam the shovel on exposed walkway, covering it back up with snow. I am measuring progress in inches, not feet.

Did I mention it condenses? As I am writing this, the glue-sand is condensing, getting heavier. Our poor dog is covered in sticky snow globes of it. The cats are like FUCK THIS SHIT! I agree, wise felines.

This can be a metaphor if you let it. Are you sitting inside, waiting for government snowplows to open the streets for you, or are you putting your gear on and getting to work yourself? Will you help your neighbor, especially the elderly and infirm, so they don’t get fined by the city?

As for those obnoxious bloggers who feel the need to opine about everything, break time is over. Those kitty pathways aren’t going to shovel themselves!

by William Skink

I listened to a portion of the debate last night and what I heard was a coded threat issued by Joe Biden.

“We’re about to enter a DARK WINTER, a DARK WINTER…” Biden said, repeating the term seemingly for emphasis.

For those who have been paying attention to the phenomenal work of people like Whitney Webb, Derick Broze and Ryan Christian, then your ears perked up like mine did when Biden made his statement.

Operation Dark Winter went down nearly two decades ago. I’ll use wikipedia for the baseline description:

Dark Winter’s simulated scenario involved an initial localized smallpox attack on Oklahoma City, Oklahoma with additional smallpox attack cases in Georgia and Pennsylvania. The simulation was then designed to spiral out of control. This would create a contingency in which the National Security Council struggles to determine both the origin of the attack as well as deal with containing the spreading virus. By not being able to keep pace with the disease’s rate of spread, a new catastrophic contingency emerges in which massive civilian casualties would overwhelm America’s emergency response capabilities.

The disastrous contingencies that would result in the massive loss of civilian life were used to exploit the weaknesses of the U.S. health care infrastructure and its inability to handle such a threat. The contingencies were also meant to address the widespread panic that would emerge and which would result in mass social breakdown and mob violence. Exploits would also include the many difficulties that the media would face when providing American citizens with the necessary information regarding safety procedures.

Kind of weird how they study our vulnerabilities and weaknesses, yet do nothing to fix them, isn’t it.

Because of her research, Whitney Webb recently spoke about her concerns that a bioterrorism attack is in the works, and will be blamed on some white supremacist group. A few days after she said this, the Michigan plot to kidnap the Governor was allegedly foiled by the FBI. I say “allegedly” because the pattern to these high-profile busts goes something like this:

During the Obama era, the FBI built up something of a reputation: the Bureau would publicize its foiling of ambitious, frightening terror plots hatched by young, often poor Muslim men thanks to its use of paid informants and undercover agents. It would receive kudos for stopping the conspiracies, while reminding the public about the ever-present threat of terrorism in their lives. And, inevitably, details would emerge that the plot could never have come to fruition, or in some cases even be hatched in the first place, without FBI personnel guiding, cajoling, and supplying the alleged terrorists every step of the way.

This quote comes from Jacobin, a leftist publication that exhibits something America needs more of: a historical memory. Here is more from the piece:

According to the FBI’s affidavit, the bureau made heavy use of informants and undercover agents in the case. At least four took part — specifically, two informants and two undercover agents, on whose evidence gathering the criminal complaint was based on — though it’s implied that some unspecific number of additional personnel were involved.

And, as with earlier, Muslim-targeting cases, the FBI appears to have been integral to the plotters’ ability to carry out the scheme. The affidavit notes that an undercover agent told the ringleader it would cost $4,000 to procure explosives. Four of the accused planned to meet with another undercover agent posing as an explosives expert to pay for them and, they were told, to get some excess tactical gear the agent had the day they were arrested. In court, Richard Trask, the agent who authored the affidavit, said he didn’t know how much money the defendants had on them when they were put in handcuffs, aside from the $275 held by Adam Fox, pegged by Trask as the ringleader.

Even the profile of Fox is not unlike those of earlier targets like Shareef and Hester. Fox was reportedly struggling with money and had been on the brink of homelessness after his girlfriend kicked him out of her house, before being taken in by his friend and employer, who let him stay temporarily in the basement of his vacuum store. It was there in that cramped storage space, cluttered with boxes and spare vacuum parts, where Fox was living with his two dogs and meager possessions, that he at one point held a meeting to allegedly plan out the kidnapping. (We shouldn’t be too quick to assume this applies to all of the accused, however — one has been described by his lawyer as from a decent family and with a good job making $28 an hour).

How many people reacting to this story are aware of any of this context? Not nearly enough, I’d say, and that’s by design.

We are in a very dangerous period of time right now. Things we take for granted–like the availability of food and energy–could be compromised and weaponized against us. Do what you can to prepare. These psychopaths are capable of anything.

by William Skink

Back when I was gainfully employed at Missoula Aging Services, taking calls and assessing needs, my colleagues and I would often lament there wasn’t some program that dealt with multiple needs in a mutually beneficial way.

Specifically I am referring to older adults aging in place with extra rooms in houses they can no longer maintain, and young people perpetually screwed from birth by the failures of late-stage crony capitalism.

We didn’t just lament, we also brainstormed. Rooms could be rented, but at reduced rates with conditions the young tenant cook at least three meals a week. The young person could also provide transportation, take the older adult to medical appointments, etc.

The potential problems and barriers, though, are significant. How do you screen people to reside in a home with a person who, through age, has become vulnerable, not just physically, but cognitively? What kind of on-going support would be needed with the program? How would getting rent money impact programs, like Medicaid for in-home care?

If those barriers could be addressed, imagine the BENEFITS. And not just monetary benefits, but social benefits, for the older adult AND the younger person.

Instead our atomized modern society is further fragmenting under the auspices of a pandemic. Our elders? Put ’em in “homes” with poorly paid staff and forget about them. Or, if they don’t conform, torture them with ER waiting rooms and homeless shelters until they acquiesce.

And the family unit those social conservatives are always claiming is under attack? Yes, the family unit IS actually under a sustained, decades long assault with multiple vectors picking families apart so desirable atomized units (also known as “children”) can be harvested by sociopaths.

I know that sounds extreme, but one of the BIGGEST barriers people still have is the psychological barrier that downplays this harsh reality to avoid cognitive dissonance.

The heartless economic forces that turn the screws on grandma until she gives up the few remaining assets she’s stubbornly holding on to are in place for a reason. Those same economic forces are turning us against each other as we measure our personal victimhood against our friends and family like men with small dicks measuring the size of their engine bloc.

Even though it’s literally etched in stone on a mound in Georgia, we don’t want to believe some anti-human power structure is moving to cull a few billion useless eaters from the crust of this planet.

I suspect the more financially comfortable one is, the more difficult it is to accept this reality. You can afford nutritional food, haven’t seen the inside of a prison, enjoy some passive income untethered to place, have letters next to your name indicating a higher education, etc.

If the past six months has taught us anything, it’s how quickly fear transforms people into compliant receptacles of authoritarian rule. That won’t change, regardless of who claims victory next month.

by William Skink

So there I was, at the kitchen table, ready to do the deed. My wife had already signed her envelope, sealing the deal. This was existential stuff, I was told. Four years ago I used lighter fluid and torched my ballot. This year I had pledged to take a few bubbles seriously.

It was a beautiful, brisk October morning. I was fully coffee’d. Damn my cartel options for top CEO, I thought. And that’s when inspiration struck. I knew what I had to do, but first I had to compose rhymes to consecrate my table top.

cartel mob in finest threads
hunt the cracks for hooker beds
sad the pee tapes never came
after rumors of golden rain

the body politic is sick
dementia brains and missile dicks
with softer curves and shiny teeth
devouring whole our tiny feet

SAVE US, dark star, Mr. West
you have my bubble, so do your best
against the squiggles of the pit
who lust for carnage once zombie-bit

show us proof of inner fire
by dashing Kundalini spires
only then shall bubble marks
fill with light and feed the spark

Rhymes complete, I wrote his name on the ballot. Only weeks away now.

I did take a few bubbles seriously, like Cooney for that veto check on the crazy inclinations of next year’s legislature. And I voted for the person NOT named Jennifer Fielder.

Speaking of Fielder, ripples of the Missoulian’s quickly-retracted endorsement are still spreading, like this sit down Florio did with Sally Mauk. There is an interesting exchange about how some subscribers of the Missoulian cancelled their subscription in protest. This hurts the reporters during these perilous times, we are told, but then Florio does acknowledge why she thinks it’s important for those in the industry to explain the role of the journalist:

Sally Mauk Well, I think a huge part of the erosion of trust in journalism that is so pervasive now is this phrase ‘fake news.’ I don’t think there’s some phrase I hate more anymore than that phrase. How do we combat that, Gwen, and gain that trust back?

Gwen Florio I think ‘traditional journalism,’ I’m putting, like, air quotes around ‘traditional’ when I speak. But the journalism we most … often think of: the newspaper, public radio, the local TV stations, really have to do a better job of informing people why we do what we do, how we do what we do. What is very unnerving to me, there is a New York Times story that came out yesterday building on reporting by Columbia Journalism School about the proliferation of these ‘fake news’ sites, these sites that look like local news sites but are actually kind of canned journalism that is frequently funded primarily by right wing groups. And they they push a very specific agenda. And if you are not an informed consumer of news, you could look at that — the sites look very much like a traditional news site — you might think that that person has actually sat in the Missoula City Council meeting, when actually they’ve not. They could be hundreds of miles away, and again, almost writing off a script. It was really, really disturbing to read that story.

It’s a bit surreal to read this exchange while legacy media is standing by watching big tech essentially disappear Hunter Biden’s scandalous shenanigans.

It’s also unfortunate to see Florio perpetuate the OLD NORMAL idea of people sitting in physical proximity to their elected officials. That’s all done remotely now, and isn’t that convenient.

I’m trying to embrace my NEW NORMAL with some stuff I’ll be talking about soon.

Until then, I’ll be counting down the days with everyone else for a sign that others will do what I have done and write in Mr. West to save us.