For the town of Hardin, maybe there is no such thing as bad publicity.

An official with Hardin's economic development agency reports that at least four corrections corporations are seeking more information about the town's vacant jail in the wake of the failed and widely publicized effort by "American Police Force" to assume management of the facility.

American Police Force's point man, Michael Hilton, turned out to be an ex-convict with a long record of fraud. And the man who was supposed to run the jail was a former Secret Service agent who had been convicted of stealing from the agency.

A deal between American Police Force and the Two Rivers Authority, which owns the jail, went down in flames, but only after two top officials with the agency resigned and the situation had captured media attention across the country.

The $27 million, 464-bed jail has sat vacant since it was built two years ago, but now maybe the town can attract a bona fide and competent entity to run it. That would make for a good ending for a town that has had enough hard times.

FROM THE what-were-they-thinking department: Former Kalispell City Manager Chris Kukulski and several other Bozeman city employees have been disciplined for requiring new hires to cough up their passwords to personal e-mail and social networking sites.

For any employer, the policy would be a big violation of privacy rights, but for a city government it seems even worse. It was brought to an end in June, after drawing intense public criticism, and the City Council this week suspended Kukulski for a week.

It's a lesson that we hope all government employees can learn from: The rules apply to everyone, even politicians and bureaucrats.

A GOOD THING for man and beast! It's the Golden Oldies Adoption Program run by the Flathead County Animal Shelter, and it matches kind-hearted seniors with dogs and cats of a certain age.

These older pets have been around the block a few times, but they still have plenty of love to offer to the right people. If you are a senior citizen who wants to brighten your household, we encourage you to call 752-1310 or drop by the animal shelter to find out what animal might make a good match for you.