Day: September 20, 2023

by Travis Mateer

Since I’m stuck in the Seattle airport wondering when I’ll get to my destination on the east coast, I decided to write a quick post about why my flight is now in limbo, and it’s the same reason I had to wait until 6:30pm yesterday to get the birthday meal I ordered at 5pm: staffing shortages.

My problems actually started in Spokane, where I waited and waited for a shuttle that wasn’t coming. If it wasn’t for a nice employee of the airport telling me that the shuttles didn’t start running until 3:30am, I would have continued waiting in the dark cold. Thanks Edgar!

As I followed Edgar to the terminal, we chatted about the staffing issues that kept functioning shuttles parked in the garage: there’s no one to drive them. Ever since Covid, Edgar said, it’s been difficult to keep employees around. The shuttle service used to be 24 hours, but no longer.

My Alaska Airlines problem started off as a “drain” issue. Planes have drains? Yes, I guess they do, and THIS plane had to have its drain cleared of debris, which caused a delay, which then caused the crew of the plane to NOT be able to continue because, I think, they had reached their maximum hours and therefore couldn’t keep working, by law, so another crew had to be found.

That’s what I’m currently waiting for, for another crew to show up to operate the plane so that myself and the rest of the pissed-off Alaska Airlines customers can continue with the travel plans we spent good money on. And if I don’t get to my destination tonight, I’ll be out the money I spent to book my hotel room.

Since my travel plans are out of my control, the best I can do is keep my cool and wait, then wait some more. It helps that I’m NOT in Missoula, where the entire town is basically one big trigger for me.

Speaking of triggers, our elected leaders decided to NOT pull the trigger on the fire levy because their favorite scapegoat, the state of Montana, won’t be mailing out tax bills until AFTER the November election, so THAT is the excuse being used for taking an action that will (they hope) diffuse some of that taxpayer rage at the games being played by ALL our jurisdictions. From the link:

At Monday night’s meeting, Hess said Missoula’s current and uncertain tax climate isn’t conducive to bringing a new major funding measure to voters.

“The state Legislature has created an absolutely untenable situation from a property tax standpoint and has created a massive tax shift to residences,” Hess said.

“The concern I have, and the concern the department leadership has, and the reason we’re bringing this before you today, is that tax bills won’t even be mailed out until after ballots are out,” the mayor continued. “So people will be voting on this measure without knowing what their own tax bills will be.”

This trepidation about property tax obligations for the perpetually squeezed taxpayer is rich coming from leaders of a ZOOM town that still shovels out Tax Increment Finance money like it’s candy while positioning the city to buy a fucking mountain.

So, how much will that mountain cost us?

Public acquisition of the 480 acres comprising much of the former ski hill has been inching forward over the past year, checking off the steps required to legally expend funding from the bond. The city and county will render a decision on spending $1 million each at a joint meeting slated for Oct. 4 at the Missoula Public Library.

“That hearing, the decision is solely related to funding to support acquisition,” said Kali Becher, the county’s open lands program manager. “The larger decision on whether the county will take on the long-term ownership, management and operations, with support from the city, will happen at a hearing in November.”

Becher said the land acquisition stands at roughly $2.2 million, along with $600,000 for immediate improvements to the property. The effort already has secured a number of grants, including a $600,000 community forest grant and a separate $40,000 grant from the Conservation Alliance.

The answer is NOT in this article because our leaders still don’t know what purchasing Marshall Mountain will cost, but that isn’t stopping them from moving forward.

If this mountain is acquired it will take STAFFING to maintain it, and right now I doubt Parks and Rec is a very desirable job opportunity, with homeless camp cleanups taking up so much time and financial resources.

On my birthday I put in an order for sushi at 5pm and was told it would be ready at 6:00pm, but at 6:30pm all I was being told is SO SORRY, SO SORRY…STAFFING! I finally got my food, sped to where my kids were waiting, and we had a nice meal, then I drove to Spokane so I could start this hellish day of traveling at 3am.

Ok, it sounds like I might finally be able to board my plane again for my destination, so I’m going to wrap this up now. Tomorrow’s post is already scheduled, and it will be posing another provocative questions in regards to the death of Sean Stevenson, so stay tuned.

And, as always, thanks for reading!

by Travis Mateer

A caesar salad with EXTRA anchovies sure does sound good, I thought to myself as I strolled into a nice downtown location to treat myself to lunch.

I had just come from talking with a University newspaper editor, then a University police officer, so I was basking in that post-info-sharing glow I get when talking well-deserved shit on cowardly jurisdictions forcing unpaid people like me to do their job for them.

My train of thinking suddenly derailed when I saw the puffy face of a conniving media player, pictured above, who allowed local reporters to show up to a locked workplace on September 11th, 2018, because that’s the classy way to inform a community you’ve sold out an information asset to corporate interests.

Instead of a caesar salad I quickly recognized that the universe had just given me the MOST AMAZING birthday gift, and all I had to do was open my mouth in proximity to this influencer in order to receive it.

“Are you Matt Gibson?” I asked. “Yes I am.” He replied. “I thought so, I just lost my appetite and you’re the reason why.”

I proceeded to ask Gibson if he was familiar with the name Sean Stevenson. No, he said, he was not. Well, now he is.

I told Matt Gibson that this Missoula community is less informed and, therefore, less safe because of him, and as I said this, I pointed my finger at him.

Can anyone tell me (maybe Gwen Jones, or perhaps Susan Hay Patrick) if pointing a finger at a person of influence is a criminal act? I kind of feel like it might be, but I’m not sure.

Knowing how dangerously skittish these influencers can be, I kept my chat with Matt short, but upon leaving I wasn’t sure if this poor rich man knew who he just had the pleasure of talking to, so I paused my exit and let him know VERY LOUDLY that my name was TRAVIS MATEER.

Then I left.

After enjoying this birthday gift I found out (from a former Indy reporter) that some other former Indy reporters have finally gone live with THE PULSE. Here’s something from just four days ago. What nice timing!

A few weeks ago, at a small fundraising event for The Pulp, a supporter lamented the loss of the Missoula Independent, the beloved weekly newspaper that unceremoniously closed in 2018.

“The Independent taught me how to be a Missoulian,” he said, recalling his first couple of years after moving here in the early 2000s.

What a great description of the Indy. Every week the paper revealed a Missoula a little more interesting and complicated, leaving you a little more attuned and connected. Its pages informed our thinking, our weekend plans, our votes. The Indy’s void still feels fresh, maybe because this fast-changing town has us craving an authenticity the paper reflected.

I’m as nostalgic as anyone. The Independent taught me how to be a reporter. Same for Erika Fredrickson, who spent more than a decade as the arts editor. Erika and I are launching The Pulp five years to the week after the paper’s abrupt closure to honor what was Montana’s only alt-weekly and to make clear where our roots lie.

After sending this new Missoula publication a warm, welcoming email, I turned on my recording equipment to capture the inspiration that Matt Gibson gave me at lunch. I’m telling you, that puffy-faced media man is a gift that just KEEPS ON GIVING!

And here’s the song to prove it:

If you would like to support my work, Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF) is one way, and making a donation at my about page is another.

Thanks for reading!