Does Jesse James Mullen REALLY Want Radical Transparency?

by Travis Mateer

The Pulp republished a conversation with the candidate for Secretary of State, Jesse James Mullen, and his desire for RADICAL TRANSPARENCY, a desire I will be mercilessly mocking in this post while simultaneously showing Jesse why NO politician actually wants this.

Who is this guy running for SOS? According to the article, he’s a newspaper guy who thinks the current SOS is terrible. While I don’t think he’s wrong about Christi Jacobsen, the alternative is to vote for that other worthless party, and the LAST thing Democrats want is someone snooping into their narrative control tactics, and I say that from personal experience.

Before we get to Jesse’s spiel, let’s take a look at MY local exposure of the Democrat cabal that runs Missoula, including this post about a damage control Zoom meeting where the same woman who took the picture of Jesse above, Sue Orr, made the first comment to help out her pal, Susan Hay Patrick. Here’s a screenshot from that post (go to the original post for working links):

Seeing Sue Orr’s name under Jesse’s image isn’t a good start, especially since her last name is part of the law firm that employs the lawyer who acted as the substitute judge in my order of protection case, but let’s continue anyway, since this owner of newspapers seems so earnest in his desire to help us citizens of Montana with his radical transparency. Here’s the answer where radical transparency gets explained:

It’s funny that Jesse is mentioning public requests for information because I was just discussing this process with someone recently, as it pertains to public transportation, and let me just say that it sounds like public requests for public information are NOT being processed in a manner that supports the public’s right to know about what’s being done with their tax dollars.

This image of a Mountain Line bus comes from the website of Cushing Terrell, which I find VERY interesting, since I wrote about this company receiving TIF money in 2021. Here’s what Cushing Terrell is up to with Mountain Line buses:

Cushing Terrell provided electrical construction documents, cost estimates, and construction administration services to upgrade the electrical service at the Mountain Line Bus Depot to accommodate new electric bus chargers. Mountain Line Bus is replacing its existing diesel bus fleet with new, emissions-free, electric buses. The project required the installation of a new electric service at the main bus barn building and a new electrical service in a detached bus storage canopy.

Cushing Terrell is currently conducting a feasibility study to install a battery energy storage system (BESS) at the Mountain Line Bus Depot to help offset the peak electrical demand created from the electric bus chargers. The proposed BESS batteries will be charged with grid power when buses are dispatched; the BESS stored energy will then be utilized to charge bus batteries at night. The system will reduce peak utility demand charges by 90% and can be utilized for charging bus batteries in the event of a grid power outage.

For more local perspective on public buses, check out theses posts:

Hostile Architecture In Missoula And The Deafening Silence Of Local Media (January 8th, 2019)

A Customer Complaint Against Mountain Line And Revisiting The Controversial “Leaning Benches” Installed In 2019 Because Homeless People (May 27th, 2021)

Removing Park Benches Isn’t Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design, It’s The Legacy Of Engen’s Leadership On Homelessness (December 9th, 2021)

Does One’s Life Expectancy Shorten The Closer One Gets To The Bus Transfer Station In Downtown Missoula? (March 2nd, 2022)

Supporting Multi-Modal Sexual Abuse With Missoula’s Free Bus Service (February 15th, 2023)

Are Sexual Deviants Helping Mountain Line Get A New Home For Public Buses? (June 27th, 2023)

You aren’t reading this kind of criticism of a public service in any local newspapers because they SUCK, and they suck by design. I call it NARRATIVE CONTROL, and if Jesse James Mullen owns newspapers, then I consider him a BIG part of the problem.

But don’t worry, Jesse has STEPPED DOWN as CEO from his newspaper biz so that he can be unsullied in his bid to get a new job as a politician.

Yes, Jesse, politics is a nasty business, but so is narrative control. For an example of the latter, here’s the pro-law enforcement effort of KGVO to soften a report that it sucks to be law enforcement in Montana:

From the link:

Before we get into the meat of this study, let me say we respect and love what our police officers do. Both the Missoula Police Department and the Montana Sheriff’s Department deserve their praise.

Thanks for all you do.

It’s pathetic to read this framing of a “news” article, but I’ve come to expect nothing less from the “media” outlet that pimps mugshots while covering for a Sheriff’s Office that couldn’t arrest a suspect in the ONE MURDER CASE they had in 2023.

Radical transparency? Yeah, right. Maybe Jesse James Mullen should use his EXISTING business, which is media, to do a BETTER FUCKING JOB of informing the public about what’s happening instead of attempting to morph into a politician.

If you’d like to fund a journalist (me) who is actually bringing a level of unwanted transparency to the citizens of this town, then donate today to Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF) and I’ll show you how deep the rabbit hole REALLY goes.

Thanks for reading!

If You Have A Problem With Something Just Make It Disappear!

by Travis Mateer

What do you NOT see in this picture?

That’s right, after cleaning up the TRASH that was all over this part of the former Missoulian property, someone came along and removed the entire trashcan. I guess that solves THAT particular problem! They also mowed the grass. Amazing!

Since my Trash Truck was stuck at Main and Higgins due to a flat tire, I wasn’t able to defend my sovereign territory from the problem-removers, who also disappeared my metal stand with the ceramic owl and horns. Darn! Add this loss to the theft of my Trump mask last night, and I’m starting to get the feeling that not everyone is overjoyed at my presence in Zoom Town.

The Boomer I ran off yesterday DEFINITELY didn’t like my presence, since I berated him for taking pictures of my Lego art and leaving NOTHING in my donation hat. Why did I berate him? Because after taking his little picture he took an opportunity to criticize my approach to educating him about my presence and my intent, lecturing me about “knowing my audience”.

“I am aware of my audience right now, Boomer,” I replied, then asked if he was just a taker. When he surprisingly replied in the affirmative, I strongly suggested he become a walker and walk away so I could get back to making my art. After I disappeared the Boomer from my range of vision, I imprisoned him in this song about the return of the YELLOWSTONE production crew:

After writing and recording this topical tune I got to working on my Lego scene, which has been an effective attention-getter/conversation-starter for those who aren’t aware of my work in this town. For those who ARE aware, my unintended art residency at the corner of Main and Higgins has been an opportunity to stop by and provide support, like the guy who stopped by to give me a $20 dollar bill. Thank you!

Since housing is such a hot topic, and since I’m an action-oriented kinda guy, I decided there was an opportunity here to provide a new type of affordable housing. That’s right, if you can fit through the doorway, I’ll consider renting out the space BENEATH my truck for a fair price. So far I haven’t had any takers.

The housing offer resulted in mostly smiles as people walked by, since we all know the economic trajectory in this town is insane and unsustainable, but there were two VERY SPECIAL individuals who got this offer that I would like to highlight, the first being former WGM Group developer, Brent Campbell, who showed up in Helena during the 2023 legislative session in order to PROTECT Tax Increment Financing from us activists.

And the second person to receive my hilarious offer of housing was none other than the TIF Queen herself, Ellen Buchanan. Hallelujah!

Yep, when Missoula narrative controllers blame the state and the Feds for everything that’s going wrong in this town, the person and institution they are dutifully ignoring is Ellen and her stewardship of the shadow government known as the Missoula Redevelopment Agency. So it was with GREAT JOY that I spied Ellen strolling down the sidewalk and opened the tiny door to show her what one creative approach to her impact can look like.

If you’d like to meet the Trash Alchemist, like the two dudes who came calling last night to hear stories of autonomous zones and Thunderdomes, I’ll be downtown later this morning to do some open-air Lego work in the sunny aftermath of graduation weekend revelry.

While the University promoted the achievement of Lily Gladstone for UM students by having her give the commencement address on Saturday, I got the opportunity to give some advice to two separate high schoolers who saw my sign about supporting independent journalism and told me that they were thinking of going into journalism themselves. Here was my advice: DON’T DO IT!

Write, I said, but don’t waste your money and pollute your mind by formally studying journalism in college. Legacy media has been zombified and everyone knows it, which is why no one reads our local newspaper anymore. And, if you’re a persistent truth-teller in a small market like Zoom Town, like me, then be prepared to start living a Chris Farley bit.

Thankfully I have a few things that Farley’s character doesn’t, like a healthier physique, a bigger truck, and HAND PUPPETS! So, overall, I think I’m doing pretty good, all things considered.

If you would like to help out a struggling truth-teller, then consider donating to Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF). I anticipate at least one more day at my current location, so may have to pay the Parking Nazis another $18.50 on Monday for protection. We’ll see.

Thank you to everyone who engaged with my spectacle this weekend, even the person who stole my Trump mask. Clearly you needed it more than I did, so I’ll just use something else to cover the scary clown face.

Thanks for reading!

Yesterday Swung From Homeless To Hollywood

by Travis Mateer

I got the tip a few weeks ago from a young woman that someone was waving a gun around somewhere down the Kim Williams trail, which is near campus. She was warned, she said, by someone who may have been another camper in the area, so she obviously turned around and left. Second-hand information is unreliable enough, and this was third-hand information, so I put an exploratory bike ride on my to-do list for when the weather improved to see for myself what was happening in this part of Missoula.

As I biked down the gravel trail in my best dystopian garb, two ladies wearing bright colors ahead of me provided an opportunity to take a break from pedaling and workout my jaw muscles instead. I told them about my mission and dedication to local journalism, and they asked me if I was homeless. Next month, I told them, my residence will be on wheels. They nodded as if expecting this response. 

I continued and ran across one of the nicer campsites I’ve seen in my time, both as paid staff for the HIC (Homeless Industrial Complex), and my other incarnations, which has now clearly placed me closer to the social strata of urban campers than some middle-aged women out for a mid-morning stroll, which I’m fine with.

In addition to living on the fringes of society, I learned that the campers I met liked cats and Cannabis, both things I like as well. In fact, it was those two things that made the Transitional Safe Outdoor Space a NON option for them.

I didn’t have trash bags on me, but let them know I had some STURDY ones. Not only did they have good trash bags of their own, they ALSO handed them out to their neighbors in the area and encouraged their use. Sure enough, on my way out I noticed some bagged up trash near a tent on the river trail. Cool!

I shared some of the useful information I had, then assured them I would have bags and a joint on my next visit. 

My next order of business was to see how fucked my tire was. Did I mention a critical deflation occurred after I did some puppet practice on Higgins? Well, it did, and I confirmed my tire was still fucked in the early morning hours before my 9am deadline for risk-of-ticket, so I grit my teeth and paid the $18.50 I discovered it costs for 8 hours of protection from the dreaded meter-mobiles. I’d like to say I don’t need to sweat an unexpected cost of $18.50, or whatever the tire is going to cost, but such is life and my low point at this current juncture.

Whatever, I’ve made my choices, and my next choice was to notice yellow caution tape strung down an entire block where one of Liquid Planet’s many food properties sits, Pangea. Huh? Did a crime occur? It wasn’t until closer to my paid work-time that I saw a fancy vehicle parked in blatant disregard of the tape, like they belonged there.

And guess what? They did, which I determined by strolling into Pangea and asking about that fancy vehicle and my sudden interest in parking spaces and parking costs. “Oh, don’t worry, we paid,” a woman in the party of 5 or 6 said. I replied that there must be important things happening, but I wouldn’t ask about WHO the important people doing those important things might be, and walked out.

As luck would have it, the driver was outside and was NOT shy about telling me what this vehicle portends for our community, and what it portends is the return of the YELLOWSTONE production to our streets and neighborhoods.

I emailed Scott Billadeau, one of Liquid Planet’s owners, about the likelihood of a Liquid Planet property joining the club of locations this Hollywood production has used to sell people the idea of Big Sky Country. Here’s Scott’s carefully measured response:

There is a RICH irony here, and the irony is how Scott Billadeau bitched and moaned about the Higgins road diet over a year ago, and one of the reasons he was upset was the LOSS of parking spaces. Isn’t that funny?

KGVO News spoke to Scott Billadeau, co-owner of Liquid Planet in downtown Missoula on Tuesday about his strong opposition to the City of Missoula’s ‘Road Diet’ proposal for Higgins Avenue.

After attending a recent city council meeting, Billadeau put together a ‘synopsis of opposition against the Missoula downtown road diet.

Opposing things can be so tiring, something I know from experience. So how about SUPPORTING something, like voting for FREMN!

I was hoping this SIGN ENHANCEMENT (which is what I’m calling it now after watching a movie about the Bush era phrase enhanced interrogation) would be more appealing, but someone has already torn it down. Could it be the attention-getter on Twitter claiming responsibility for the previous signs’ theft?

I’ll let @StateOfBoise in on a little secret: ANY engagement with my antics makes me chuckle, so I’m appreciative of the response regardless of whether or not the effort was made to unscrew my shit.

I’m hoping to get some engagement tonight when I do my soft opening of the BOWIE AND BOOTY SHOW. Are you ready for what I’m about to bring, Missoula?

If you appreciate my perspective, Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF) could really use some support right now as I try grit my teeth for another $18.50 expenditure to keep the parking Nazis at bay.

Thanks for reading!

The Law And Order Man Of Mineral County

by Travis Mateer

I mentioned Mineral County two days ago in this post about a woman doing a classic rant in downtown Missoula. Well, shenanigans continue in this part of Montana, but DO NOT WORRY because the trusty Sheriff, Ryan Funke, is making sure the public knows about the threats his office is responding to.

I was interested in seeing who got arrested for this incident, but Mineral County’s jail doesn’t display inmate information the way Missoula County does, so I didn’t find anything pertinent. Instead I perused the minutes of past meetings where I found an example of what a low-population County in Montana deals with when it comes to things like 911 dispatch.

The Sheriff spoke about how currently dispatch is set up in a horseshoe shape where they can observe around them the windows and separate jail holding areas. The dispatchers are often watching, opening doors for the detention officers, and getting up to answer the public at the walk-up window. The Sheriff feels that this system is becoming a safety issue for people since their time is not solely focused on 911 calls and radio dispatching. There is a national movement to separate dispatch away from jails and be managed under the DES coordinator, not the Sheriff. And he feels Mineral County should also remove dispatch from under the law enforcement building and into its own work environment. Scott Dodd said at this time the only real request being made is for a lateral transition of managing dispatch personnel from the Sheriff to DES, currently no funding for a full transition with a new building is available. Jerry Doktor spoke how DES doesn’t really have that much money and the prospect of even a future building or new employee positions. Sheriff Funke replied that dispatchers would still be paid, but under the DES oversight manager, and that the only new employees needed would be for a Detention officer who only opened the doors and disseminated the daily medications for inmates. This employee would be needed to replace dispatch who currently runs the entry doors for detention officers to move throughout the jail at meal time and medication dispensary times. Commissioner Zylawy clarified that the request today was only for new management and oversight of dispatch employees: not increased pay, not new positions, and not a new building.

Yes, that’s right, Sheriff Funke wants to offload 911 dispatch duties to Disaster and Emergency Services while he hires a Sheriff Deputy to open a door and hand out meds. Really? Does that mean the County Attorney’s Office has finally got that investigator they so sorely needed? Because I would hope THAT would be a priority before hiring a door-opener and med-distributor for the Sheriff’s Office.

For more entertainment, remember when Don Junior said EVERY elected office is important, even DOG CATCHER? Well, here’s a Sheriff Funke idea about dog catching I found intriguing:

Great idea, Ryan! Especially considering you have a man in your County by the name of David Barsotti who tends to SHOOT dogs that give him trouble.

If you find this County in Montana to be as fascinating as I do, then check out some of my other posts, you won’t be disappointed:

If Mineral County Sheriff, Mike Toth, Went Missing, Would Anyone Notice? (March 6th, 2022)

The Race For Mineral County Sheriff (June 7th, 2022)

How Many Sheriffs Does It Take To Release An Autopsy? (August 2nd, 2022)

Was The Writ Of Mandamus A Ploy To Destroy The Candidacy Of A Political Outsider In Mineral County? (October 27th, 2022)

The First Reports Of A Prisoner Suicide Inside The Mineral County Jail (November 27th, 2022)

What The Funke Is That Disparaging Smell, Ryan? (January 10th, 2023)

Serious Question For An Unserious County Government: Does David Barsotti Have Rabies? (January 27th, 2023)

Who Dares Challenge Their Hero Narrative? (March 22nd, 2023)

Introducing Zoom Chron Readers To Mineral County Commissioner, Roman Zylawy (March 24th, 2023)

Mineral County Is At War With Itself, Assisted By A Law Firm Specializing In Money Shakedown Schemes For Badges Across Western Montana (April 21st, 2023)

Why Are Two Sheriff Offices Now Failing To Call Me Back Or Acknowledge Any Investigation In The Death Of Joey Thompson? (May 28th, 2023)

Mineral County: The Fucked Up Western Gateway To The Failed State Of Montana (April 10th, 2024)

If you find this context about our little fucked up gateway to western Montana valuable, then please consider supporting Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF). My current need is to fix my flat tire, which has stranded my Trash Truck on Higgins, so help a journalist out!

And, as always, thanks for reading!

Invest In A Resilient _________, Missoula!

by Travis Mateer

As an English Major with a double-emphasis in literature and creative writing, I know that the word RESILIENT is an adjective, not a noun, which makes the Missoula Current headline I took a screenshot of a little confusing.

The Missoula Current isn’t the only local media outlet publishing incoherent headlines, here’s another one from KGVO that I saw recently:

Shoplifting numbers are…are WHAT, Peter Christian? I had to click on the article to see what those numbers were doing, which is exploding. Is this some new form of click bait? Or just sloppy, shitty local media?

I went to check the new kid on the block, The Pulp, to see what this “non-profit” is up to, and while I didn’t see any glaring grammatical errors upon first glance, I did see the VERY important article on girls riding skateboards, which features a cool, relatively new word that signals how very woke The Pulp is trying to be (emphasis mine):

Skateparks have historically been dominated by cisgender men and boys for all kinds of reasons. In some worst-case scenarios, women and girls have faced actively hostile boys-club attitudes rooted in obvious sexism. But a lot of times, the issue has been more nuanced. Women and girls who broke into the scene often did find acceptance and camaraderie with the boys—it’s just that they were still an anomaly. Girls on Shred is working to change the culture, and they’ve found support over the years with the Montana Skatepark Association and Missoula’s iconic Hip Strip snowboarding/skateboarding shop Board of Missoula. Volunteers—of all genders—that come out to help at Girls on Shred events are often at the skatepark a few times a week, which means they become a friendly face to the newbies.

“That helps build confidence,” says Veysey Gibbons. “I think Missoula is pretty lucky. A lot of the guys at the skatepark are really quite nice. But, you know, it’s still good to have a few buds in your corner, just in case.”

What does it mean to have “a few buds in your corner, just in case?” In case of WHAT? In case violence breaks out, like it did last July, when GIRLS, plural, allegedly ganged up on another girl, who had to use a knife to defend herself, and is now being charged for a crime?

One of the commenters in the post made some interesting points about what was NOT included in the news story from local media:

From sloppy headlines that make no sense, to woke messaging, local media doesn’t offer the public much of a reason to read and watch, so guess what? They DON’T, and because they don’t, they don’t know what’s actually happening in their own damn community.

Readers of THIS blog are different, because the content here is different. If you’re a regular, then you probably know more about local headlines than non-Zoom Chron readers do, like the recent headline about the mentally ill woman who knocked on some random door, then grabbed the 11 year old girl who answered.

From the link:

On April 29, 2024, Missoula Police Department Officers were dispatched to a purported disturbance at Jane Doe’s residence. The complainant, Doe’s mother, reported to officers that she and her family were at their residence. Doe is 11 years old.

Doe heard someone banging on the front door. Believing it to be her friends, Doe opened the door. The door to their apartment is an inward-opening door. To Doe’s surprise, an unknown adult female was standing at the door. The female reached forward inside the door into the apartment, grabbed Doe by the hair, and began pulling her.

Doe’s mother and father intervened, and the female left their home. Doe’s mother then observed the female enter a blue Subaru vehicle. The woman then left the Subaru and proceeded to walk away. Doe’s parents lost sight of the female at that time. They began searching the area for the female and located her at the Pattee Creek Market.

When I saw the name of the woman who tried grabbing the girl I immediately thought of the short video clip I recorded in October of 2022 for this post. Here’s the video:

Do you WANT uncompromising journalism, Missoula? Because if you do, you’re not going to get it with conventional platforms that struggle just to put out accurate headlines DESPITE having stuff that I don’t, like a budget and support staff.

I got a nice comment recently on a post from March that asks the following question about a local non-profit: Is The Political Timing Finally Right For Legacy Media To Ask The LifeGuard Group Tough Questions? Here’s the comment:

If you appreciate my FEARLESS journalism, please consider donating to Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF) because I’ve got some interesting stuff up my figurative dress that I’ll be sharing soon.

Thanks for reading!