Month: April 2023

by Travis Mateer

First, let me say I have a very low opinion of ANY religion that organizes itself beyond a personal relationship with the divine, so this post about SOME of the purveyors of eastern traditions shouldn’t be seen as a xenophobic attack on ALL adherents to eastern religious faiths, just the potentially sexually perverted and violently deranged ones, like Justin Sledge.

What, you thought this post was about the Dali Lama telling a young boy to suck his tongue? Sure, it’s what lots of people on social media are talking about right now, but the outrage against this MAN will eventually dissipate, while the supposed religious ideals he espouses lives on.

For context, here’s the type of Buddhism elevating this pervert, pictured above, to his semi-divine status:

Dalai Lama is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or “Yellow Hat” school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism.[3] The 14th and current Dalai Lama is Tenzin Gyatso, who lives in exile as a refugee in India. The Dalai Lama is also considered to be the successor in a line of tulkus who are believed[2] to be incarnations of Avalokiteśvara,[1] the Bodhisattva of Compassion.[4][5]

Another creep who uses an eastern philosophical approach to life is David Lynch, the Hollywood filmmaker who used his own daughter to write incest-porn. Lynch’s promotion of Transcendental Meditation includes his own organization, where TM is claimed to help everything from PTSD to nurses in hospitals dealing with Covid. Isn’t that cute?

Lest you think this is all just MALE exploration of perversion springing from the fantasies of the male mind, here’s two women discussing how much they LOVE the Secret Diary of Laura Palmer and all the fucked up stuff Lynch’s daughter, Jennifer, wrote.

If any of this bothers you, clearly you have too much attachment to the material world and could benefit from meditation. For those of you courageous enough to consider incest art, here’s an excerpt of these ladies discussing Lynch’s daughter’s book:

MEGAN: What was your favorite part? How many times do you think you’ve read it?

COURTNEY: I think I’ve read it five times. There’s that whole section of initials of all the people she fucked. Some of them you can guess—like the first, maybe 10? I could pick out from the list: obviously BOB. Bobby Briggs, the second one. Leo Johnson—

MEGAN: Ugh, which is so gross.

COURTNEY: So gross! That ponytail is disgusting!

MEGAN: And it’s low, and looks like he doesn’t wash it that often.

COURTNEY: And crusty. He’s probably doing sexy acts with it that aren’t sexy. That’s so disgusting.

MEGAN: And he’s a domestic abuser.

COURTNEY: Yeah, a real bad one. Jacques Renault’s gotta be on there somewhere.

MEGAN: Now he’s really gross.

COURTNEY: Super gross. At least I can see where he might be a little sexier. I don’t know why I think that. Something about how he talks is a little sexier—although it’s disgusting.

MEGAN: I guess at least he’s an entrepreneur? He has a business.

Was a high school relationship between a young man and his ex-girlfriend the impetus for a school shooting in Pearl, Mississippi? I ran across a fascinating Twitter thread from Bran (@leatherzaddy) going into some details about this old case. Here are the first three tweets:

This thread goes on to describe the group of friends Luke Woodham had before taking a rifle to school and opening fire, a group that included Justin Sledge. They even had a name for their group, “The Kroth”, and several members were arrested after the shooting.

I’ll get to why I find all this relevant in a moment, but first let’s take a look at what Justin Sledge is up to now, since ultimately his role in what happened on October 1st, 1997, in Pearl, Mississippi, didn’t result in any serious consequences.

What does this guy believe? Well, let’s consult his Theory of Pedagogy and glean what we can glean, shall we? From the link (emphasis mine):

Philosophy is a project of human liberation.  We stand as the solitary hitherto known  consciousness amongst a vast starry void and this rock is, for the time being, our only sanctuary in the mocking nuclear chaos.  Our foundational tool for beating back the cold vacuum is the quest for wisdom, begotten by awe.  Philosophy is a core tool for that ultimate liberation.  Yet, philosophers neither can nor should liberate others.  We must inculcate awe, forge relationships of investigation, and include others in this bewildering conversation started long before us.  The task of the philosopher is to grasp that my chains are only released by another with the questions we ask together.   

Philosophy is no amateur hobby nor should it be performed by academics alone.  The philosopher has the dual responsibility to acquire wisdom no matter how arcane and do the difficult work to make that vitally important wisdom accessible to all who seek it.  The philosopher cannot dwell in a remote forest, comfortable tenure, or moldering library forever.  I strive to take the works of titanic genius and share them in the classroom, in the study group, and at the pub.  I strive for that genius myself, no matter how short I may fall.

Philosophy must be inclusive, diverse, and violent.  It is a human project and that so many have been excluded from it is a scar of shame.  The philosopher must struggle against the petty, decadent, and temporal forces which render it the boring and irrelevant purview of the privileged elite.  Philosophy must not only change the world rather than interpret it, it must also change itself.  Philosophers who do not struggle against the oppressions of our epoch are complicit in them.  These diabolic vampires must be shown the light. 

On the surface, the points of emphasis don’t necessarily seem nefarious, but to my ears they are major red flags of an intelligence capable of dangerously dehumanizing other humans in the pursuit of knowledge, an intelligence that could justify any manner of depravity if it offers the possibility of leading to some greater understanding of the universe.

With this in mind, here are a few more tweets:

Let’s now move on from the rabbit hole where Sledge searches for arcane knowledge to the Garden of 1,000 Buddahs in Arlee, Montana, where a lot more is brewing than just a battle over a gravel pit.

For some context on the founder of this buddha garden, the Missoulian article pictured below is good place to start, if you like meaningless fluff.

From the link (emphasis mine):

A basic principle of Buddhist meditation holds that good things rise out of confusion, if you give yourself the freedom not to force them forward.

As Linda Pritzker pursued her interest in Buddhism, that idea propelled her much further than she expected. It transformed her from someone who couldn’t talk about the time of day with her Tibetan teachers to someone who’s authored a book on meditation with a forward written by the Dalai Lama.

This is a great philosophy for someone who derived money from the Pritzker family business ethic, or lack thereof. From the link (emphasis mine):

The Pritzkers have a long history of business malfeasance at the expense of people of modest means. In one notable case, Congress passed legislation in 2003 to address issues raised by widespread charges that the Pritzker’s credit rating agency, TransUnion, had made serious flaws in its credit reports on individuals — and then failed to correct them upon discovery.

But perhaps the most infamous and pernicious Pritzker abuse of power was the Superior Bank scandal, a predatory subprime mortgage securitization racket that led to the failure of Superior Bank in 2001 and prefigured the 2008 crash.

Penny Pritzker played a leading, decision-making role in the lead-up to the failure, which ultimately lost 1,400 depositors an estimated $10 million and cost the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation approximately half a billion dollars. After the Pritzkers and a family friend took over a failed suburban Chicago bank on very favorable terms in 1988, they began aggressively pursuing high-interest, high-risk subprime loans. They were able to repackage the loans in securities given an investment grade, Anderson says, because they promised to replace any failed mortgage with a good one. But as they pumped out profits for themselves, they eventually failed to live up to their promises, including a pledge to invest more capital.

Bert Ely, a prominent bank consultant, says that Superior Bank ​“was a really sleazy operation” and ​“pretty gross.” The bank essentially told others in the business to ​“bring us your crappiest loans you’ve got and we’ll securitize them.”

Again, if this bothers you, try non-attachment to the material world through mediation. Or, if that doesn’t work, try this:

https://vimeo.com/818201808

If you appreciate my work, Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF) continues seeking donations, and recently received a timely $500 donation. Thank you! There’s also the donation button at my about page.

Thank you for reading!

by Travis Mateer

This week’s review is a solo effort recorded in three segments on Saturday night, with a customary song at the end. I think my musical STATE OF THE COMMUNITY is vastly more entertaining than the ones peddled by our three leaders, Mayor Hess, President Bodnar and Commissioner Slotnick.

I tried to stay mentally engaged during the speeches, but instead played around with the letters of the names of our leaders. I am happy to report the formation of a NEW name after spending too much time arranging letters, and here it is: Ronald K. Sossenbitch.

So, what else will you learn from the week’s review? You’ll learn about the reading preferences of tweakers at the abandoned homeless camps:

One of the things you WON’T learn, at least not yet, is what exactly my comment to the legislature will be. I have a draft, I think it kicks-ass, and there’s still time to do the kind of tweaking I prefer, and that’s of the editing variety.

Before getting to the bonus video about my BRICK AND BOOK MEDIA NOOK, I’ll remind readers my work can be supported at Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF) and the donation button at my about page.

Thanks for reading/listening/watching!

https://vimeo.com/815943585

by Travis Mateer

Date: April 13th, 2023
Time: 9:00am-11am; 12:30pm-2:30pm
Location: Yoke's to Southside Road
          and more
Business contacts: 2
Government/Community contact: 2
Houseless contact: 3

I wasn’t planning on doing a report on April 13th, but two news stories in the media left me wanting more information, so I went out to see what I could see. Then, later in the day, I biked along the river trail and took some pictures of tents blooming like spring foliage along the riverbank. Here is one picture showing several tents that have popped up since the Johnson Street shelter closed:

Going back to the Yoke’s situation of a “robbery gone wrong”, here is what NBC Montana reported (emphasis mine):

One man is in custody after a “robbery gone wrong” at a grocery store in Missoula.

Missoula police say the man went into Yoke’s Fresh Market on West Broadway and allegedly took several items and attempted to leave without paying.

A bystander reportedly intervened and rendered the man unconscious.

What is going on here? I’d say some vigilantism is going on, since I’m assuming the “bystander” wasn’t having his own personal items stolen, but maybe in an increasingly lawless dystopia I shouldn’t quibble about what Montana Code Annotated defines as “robbery”:

The next question to ask, which the news article leaves out, is WHO tried committing this “robbery”? Here’s the booking photo of the suspect I’m 99% sure is the guy arrested on Tuesday:

When a fun looking fellow like this pops up on the jail roster, I like to put the name in the search engine to see what other fun acts of violence he’s been involved in, and this is what came up:

From the link (emphasis mine):

At approximately 1:40 p.m. on Sunday, Missoula Police Officers responded to the Johnson Street Warming Shelter, located at 1919 North Ave West. The 911 complainants were dealing with a male who was trying to fight with them. They said he was armed with a knife, and had tried to stab a paramedic with it. Police Public Information Officer Travis Welsh explains.

“When the officers arrived, they made contact with the suspect outside of the residence and he was taken into custody,” Welsh said. “They spoke with the complainants who informed them that they had administered Narcan to the individual because he was believed to have overdosed on an opioid. When he regained consciousness, he became very aggressive and angry and began threatening the EMS workers.”

When I found the manager of Yoke’s–someone I’ve spoken with in the past–he was NOT in a very talkative mood. While it was mostly “no comment”, he did give me a little perspective about where he thought the gap in the criminal justice system was, and he was very specific: MUNICIPAL judges were the problem, he said.

The other story involves a missing 18 year old who went missing in the same area Johnny Lee Perry was shot and killed by the Sheriff’s Office. Here is a picture of the teen and the article below:

The Missoula County Sheriff’s Office is looking for a missing teen.

Joseph Thompson is 18-years-old, 6-foot and weighs 140 pounds with blond hair and blue eyes.

Thompson was last seen 4-5 miles up Southside Road around 4 a.m. on Tuesday.

When I drove out to this area yesterday morning, I ran into some members of this search effort. I asked a man from the Sheriff’s Office if the homeless camps down the road were a concern and he said they were. I was also told helicopter support would arrive soon. Could that be Two Bear Air? Yes, it could, and was:

I wonder if all the trash, which you will see in the video accompanying this post, is a visual problem for the GENEROUS air support providing the eyes in the sky looking for Joseph Thompson. Here’s the video:

https://vimeo.com/817480153

The houseless contacts I interacted with included the sex offender in his tent, who I warned about spring river runoff, and Harley. I bought Harley and his Native pal some cigarettes after hearing some stories (one I got on video), then had a nice chat with Otis at Bell’s Tobacco about Tax Increment Financing.

Such a busy day! And you can help by supporting Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF), or using the donation button at my about page.

Thanks for reading!

by Travis Mateer

After the Dean Stone lecture, featuring Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, David Fahrenthold, I was ready for the Q&A. The audience was primed to be the engaged consumers of media content Fahrenthold was urging them to be, so I raised my hand and Lee Banville, the new director of the Journalism School, came over with the microphone.

After identifying myself as a blogger operating within our degraded local media landscape, I gave David Fahrenthold a scenario, asking if he could tell me if it was newsworthy or not. The scenario: a black man is assaulted in a homeless shelter, then taken to the hospital where the Coroner removes him from life support WITHOUT first contacting the man’s family.

Is this newsworthy, I asked David Fahrenthold? His answer: I would certainly want to know more, he replied.

I then shifted to addressing the audience gathered in the auditorium, asking them to show, by a raise of hands, if anyone had heard the name Sean Stevenson. Not ONE PERSON raised their hand. This is a problem, I said, because that scenario is what happened to him.

It’s no surprise local media is shit and getting worse. Just this week Lee Enterprises made further cuts to Montana newsrooms, as reported by MPR. From the link:

Employees at Montana’s largest newspaper chain say they’re seeing layoffs at papers across the state.

The union for newsroom employees of the Billings Gazette announced on April 7 that six of their members had been laid off by Lee Enterprises. In a statement, the Montana News Guild said they were “devastated” by the cuts.

The union criticized the layoffs and pointed at the earnings of Lee’s top executive officers, who are compensated over a million dollars a year and received a raise in 2022.

Lee Enterprises owns four other papers in Montana. On Monday morning, Missoulian sports reporter Lucas Semb announced on Twitter he’d been laid off.

Who cares about the death of the newspaper industry? Judging by the silvery hue of hair on about 75% of the attendees last night, I’d say old people, like the son of Lee Enterprises “former” CIA hire, John Talbot (John, not Pete, is pictured below).

If you aren’t aware of Operation Mockingbird, you probably should be. And if you want to see proof of Talbot’s pedigree, check out Talbot’s 1975 interview. Here’s a screenshot:

I took some time to scan the interview and it’s pretty damn interesting. For example, the power of a newspaper to be the instigator of community change was discussed in 1975 as it related to air pollution in the valley. Here is how Talbot describes the role of the Missoulian in leading the “crusade” to address the smog:

I don’t think anyone will argue that LESS pollution was a bad thing for Missoula, so the power and influence of the local newspaper to enact change back then was, I assume, mostly appreciated by Missoulians. But what about the stories NOT covered by local newspapers? Or, in the case of Sean Stevenson, covered like this?

One thing Fahrenthold said that resonated with me was the encouragement he gave to the students in attendance to actually GO to the places they are writing about. I felt much less resonance with how Fahrenthold described using Twitter to research Trump’s claim about donating money to a Veteran’s organization. Maybe that’s because the failure of NATIONAL media platforms has been so much more consequential to the erosion of an informed public, with technology giving us the false impression of a beneficially networked world, when the reality is closer to a control grid tightening like a noose around our collective neck.

While I appreciate the opportunity to pass along my contact information (and additional perspective on local corruption) to an esteemed member of the national press, the news industry Fahrenthold represents is on its death bed, and rightfully so. What comes next is being stitched together by people like me, people putting public truth ahead of personal profit.

If you would like to help sustain my financially unwise choice to pursue local truths, Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF) is awaiting your contribution, as is the donation button at my about page.

Thank you for supporting local, independent journalism!

by Travis Mateer

On Monday, at the frustratingly early hour of 8am, legislators in Helena will be debating Senate Bill 523, and I’ll be there to provide testimony. But what should I say? Should I focus my testimony on the negative impacts of TIF on first responder capacity, including law enforcement, or should I focus on the political application of the TIF tool?

To highlight the latter, a Missoulian article from October, 2019, offers a perfect glimpse of one of my claims about TIF in Missoula, and that’s the political function of this tool. But in order for this tool to be used for a political attack, the media has to do their part, and that’s exactly what the Missoulian did four years ago with this “article”, titled TIF-taking donors support anti-TIF candidates. From the link (emphasis mine):

Some funders of a divisive political mailer supporting Missoula City Council candidates opposed to the use of tax increment financing have received hundreds of thousands of dollars in TIF funds for their business projects.

The group, a political action committee, or PAC, called Missoulians for Missoula, sent campaign mailers Monday supporting conservative candidates who have all voiced opposition to tax increment financing.

You can probably surmise from the image at the top that Bretz RV was one of the offending businesses that took a TIF handout, then tried to politically bite the hand that fed it. Another business mentioned in the article is a construction company based in Frenchtown. Here’s more from the “news” hit piece:

As previously reported by the Missoulian, Bretz RV received nearly $123,000 in TIF funding to aid an expansion project in 2015. The business’ controller, Brandon Bretz, donated $200 to the PAC, according to public campaign finance records. He did not respond to multiple calls requesting comment.

Tollefson Construction Inc. donated $2,000 to the PAC. The Frenchtown-based construction company, which formed an incidental committee in order to legally donate as a business rather than an individual, received more than a total of $150,000 in TIF money to aid construction of two apartment buildings behind what is now the South Crossing shopping center on Brooks Street in 2010 and 2012.

The company’s owner, Nate Tollefson, did not respond to a request to comment on the donation.

As you can see from the link, this media-facilitated attack was actually a counter-attack in response to a few local businesses trying to influence an election by contributing to a political PAC. Did it work? Nope, the Engen machine steamrolled those political contenders, allowing the TIF payola schemes to continue subsidizing development in Zoom Town (Missoula).

Part of my commentary next Monday should probably feature a BIG apology to the rest of the state for having to appeal to legislators for municipal handcuffs because our municipal bureaucrats can’t control themselves. If I have the time, I’ll include a strategic mea culpa, since I do recognize there is A LOT of Montana geography outside Missoula.

Going further, geographically speaking, my Deep Dive appearance with Monica Perez is now available, so check it out. I think anyone who finds themselves trapped in the TIF incubator known as California should get savvy on this scheme, so to help I took a quick peek online to see what I could find.

What did I find? I found an Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District that the County of Los Angeles is using for, well, all kinds of stuff, potentially.

Here’s a screenshot of the types of things that COULD get financed within these EIFDs (emphasis mine):

Yes, that’s right, there is a distinct possibility that the Hollywood Walk of Fame will be the beneficiary of a TIF handout, California style. Maybe Hollywood should consider a PUBLIC/PRIVATE partnership with the celebrities themselves to ensure this obnoxious veneration of popular culture is subsidized by those who might actually give a shit instead of tax payers.

Do any of the people involved with handing out public money understand that infrastructure must be maintained? And do they understand that lawless dystopias are NOT ideal environments for maintaining this infrastructure?

North of Hollywood, in San Francisco, an act of vandalism caused the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to cancel their meeting. This same board has attempted to down play the violence against people and property in the Bay area. Then this happens:

I think the public safety argument against TIF is more compelling, but in terms of convincing legislators in Helena, the political-weapon-angle may get more usable attention so these lawmakers can see that we are WAY beyond blight when we’re talking Tax Increment Financing.

If countering their TIF with a leaner, meaner TIF exposing the PUBLIC SAFETY gaps their TIF is exacerbating sounds like something worthy of support, then financial generosity can be directed at Travis’ Impact Fund, or the donation button at my about page.

Thanks for reading!