Oh, Give Me a Phone, Where the Analog Roams

By Dana Green, 4-17-06

In the headlines today, the Trib's Karen Ogden warns that, while the feds are requiring counties to get on the digital bandwagon and offer enhanced 911 service, which can locate callers using fancy GPS technology, that's leaving a whole lot of folks in isolated Montana areas out in the cold. Digital apparently just doesn't compare to analog when it comes to those hard-to-reach places.

In other news, Montana's home-schoolers are on the rise, following the national trend. This year, there were 3,987 home-schoolers in Montana, up 275 percent from the 1,446 registered in 1990. But public schools take a hit when the kids stay home to learn their ABCs. [End of article]