MCT: Wednesday, June 5, 2019

• Vaughn Drafted
• New Firetruck
• Ukiah Airbase
• Budget Wonderfulness
• Barges
• 101 Closed
• Goldilocks Nabbed
• 1890
• Measles Alert
• Book Launch
• Fiorentino Substation
• Goat
• Ukiah Rumor
• Natalie Missing
• Yesterday's Catch
• Pesky Journalists
• Treefrogs
• My Room
• Dylan/Ali
• Two Speeches
• 1956
• Museum Events
• Monterey Pop
• Public Parks
• Earthquake
• Great Race
• Staff Picks
• Dog Loses
• Bridge
• City Heaven
• Gloria
• Summer Reading
• Money Questions
• Solar Presentation
• Queen E
• Social Democrats
• Navarro Cleanup
• Oligarch 2

ANDREW VAUGHN, the Cal Bears standout first basement with Boonville roots, has been picked by the ChiSox in the First Round of the MLB draft!

Maria Carrillo High School graduate Andrew Vaughn made Sonoma County history Monday when the Chicago White Sox selected him as their first-round pick in the 2019 Major League Baseball draft.

Vaughn, 21, a junior at the University of California and last year’s winner of the Golden Spikes award as the nation’s best amateur player, was chosen as the third player overall in the annual sweepstakes for future baseball stars.

Vaughn’s selection is the highest for an area baseball player – and likely makes him a very rich young man. Vaughn, a 6-foot, 214-pound first baseman, is eligible for a signing bonus of as much as $7.2 million.

“It’s an unbelievable feeling, honestly,” he told MLB Network moments after the pick was announced. “I’m just blown away by it.”

The 2016 Press Democrat All-Empire Baseball Player of the Year, Vaughn was in Santa Rosa with family and friends Monday, without media present like other draftees.

Although North Bay has a rich history of baseball talent, Vaughn is only the second area player to be selected in the first round, joining Rancho Cotate grad Brandon Morrow, a pitcher who was selected fifth overall in 2006 by the Seattle Mariners, also out of Cal.

Vaughn, whose Cal Bears were eliminated from the NCAA tournament over the weekend, batted .381 with an on-base plus slugging percentage of 1.260 while hitting 14 homers with 50 RBIs in his junior year for Cal.

The 2018 Pac-12 Player of the Year batted .402 with 23 home runs, 14 doubles and 63 RBIs during his junior sophomore year at Cal, when he won the Golden Spikes Award.

Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman was selected by the Baltimore Orioles as the No. 1 overall pick, followed by Texas prep shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. at No. 2 to the Kansas City Royals.

(Lori Carter, Santa Rosa Press Democrat)

AV FIRE DEPARTMENT’S NEW ENGINE

Anderson Valley Fire Department is proud to announce that we received our new wildland engine this week. It is specifically designed for fighting wildland fires, carries two pumps, hundreds of feet of hose, an assortment of specialized equipment, up to five firefighters, 500 gallons of water, and is four wheel drive.

This new addition to the fleet will assist AVFD in any wildfires that might come our way this year as well as out-of-district fire assignments. Our troops will be moving the equipment off the old wildland engine this week and our new engine should be responding to any fires by the second week of June!

A special thanks to the Anderson Valley Fire Fighter's Association, and all of you who have generously donated to the AVVFFA, for the very sizable contribution of $65,000. Without this community support, we would not have had the finances to get this wildland engine by summer time!

Normally, an engine of this caliber would be very hard for AVFD to purchase new but three major factors helped us succeed with this goal. First, AVFD was able to tag on to CalFire's engine contract with the manufacturer and save approximately $100,000. The second was through revenues earned by our previous years of strike team assignments around the state, and third was the generous contribution by AVVFFA.

AV Fire Chief Andres Avila

CAL FIRE OPENS AIR ATTACK BASE at Ukiah Airport for wildfire season

ukiahdailyjournal.com/2019/06/03/cal-fire-opens-air-attack-base-at-ukiah-airport-for-wildfire-season/

NO PROBLEMO! Negativity has been vanquished! That’s overall the takeaway from Tuesday’s first-day of the well-choreographed budget presentation for the July 2019-June 2020 budget year. Lots of generalizaitons and good intentions supplemented by some carefully selected departmental info highlighted the show. Several departmental presenters made a point of noting that CEO Angelo had required them to keep their presentations short by excluding certain of their info charts, supposedly for the sake of brevity. The Supes seemed pleased and impressed — they either had no questions at all or, if they did, they offered up wiffle balls cooly smashed out of the chamber by this or that chirpy staffer. A few department heads — especially Public Defender Jeffrey Aaron — asked for more money or staff, but they did so in such sedate terms that they seemed resigned to the likelihood that they wouldn’t get anything. Even the usually hard-to-deny District Attorney David Eyster felt compelled at one point to ask CEO Carmel Angelo if it was ok for him to go off script. (It was, of course.) Everybody patted everybody else on the back for their wonderful work. Revenues are on target. Efficiencies are being pursued. Some departments said they had magically reduced costs since the last report. Sheriff Allman said overtime was under control and new hires were either in place or on the way. More carefully packaged good budget news is expected on Wednesday when the bottom line will be obfuscated as usual.

BARGES IN THE FOG

NORTH COUNTY CRASH

On 06/03/2019 at approximately 1920 hours, a 1994 Nissan Pathfinder driven by Robert Neubert was traveling north on US-101 northbound, just south of MPM 101 MEN 66.46. Lila Chafin was seated in the front passenger seat of the Nissan. For reasons still under investigation, the Nissan traveled off the roadway and down the embankment where it collided with a utility pole. As a result, a telephone line that was attached to the utility pole fell into the roadway. At approximately 1940 hours a 2008 Ford F450 truck driven by Rashad Brackeen was traveling northbound on US 101 and collided with the down telephone line.

Neubert sustained minor injuries and was transported to Howard Memorial Hospital by Laytonville ambulance. Chafin sustained major injuries and was transported to Santa Rosa Medical Center by Reach Air. Brackeen was not injured and drove his vehicle from the scene.

Laytonville Volunteer Fire Department, City Ambulance and Reach Air assisted with medical aid. US 101 was closed at this location for approximately 2 hours during the removal of the telephone line and recovery of the Nissan. Cal-Trans assisted in the road closure.

This incident remains under investigation by the Garberville CHP Office. Neither Alcohol nor drugs appeared to be a factor in this collision.

FORT BRAGG BURGLARY

On June 3, 2019, at approximately 5:15 PM, Officers of the Fort Bragg Police Department were dispatched to the 600 block of Espey Way, for the report of a residential burglary at the location. Upon arrival, Officers contacted the victim, who stated that she had just chased the suspect out of the backyard of the location. On scene Officers requested additional units for a search of the area. Officers conducted an initial search of the surrounding neighborhood; however, the suspect was not located at that time. Officers processed the scene for evidence and located several items left at the scene with the name of the suspect on them. Those items were collected as evidence along with other items left by the suspect.

It appears that the suspect may have spent a significant amount of time inside the residence, while the victim was away at work. The suspect ransacked the residence and several items were unaccounted for at the time of the initial report. After processing the scene, Officers again conducted a search of the area, but were still unable to locate the suspect. It was later learned that some of the items believed to have been taken, were still at the location.

At approximately 6:45 PM, Fort Bragg Police Dispatch, received a 911 call from the victim, stating the suspect had returned and was inside the residence. Officers responded back to the location and located the suspect attempting to hide in a bedroom at the location. Officers were able to quickly apprehend the suspect, Miranda Ellingwood, 36, of Fort Bragg, and take her into custody without issue.

The suspect was transported to the Fort Bragg Police Department, where she was processed for booking. During this process, Officers discovered that the suspect was recently released from the Mendocino County Jail on terms of Own Recognizance (OR), for a burglary in the County. Additional charges for violation of the OR terms were added and the suspect was then transported to the Mendocino County Jail.

Questions regarding this press release or information related to the case may be forwarded to Fort Bragg Police Officer Shaw at (707) 961-2800 ext. 181 or e-mailed to jshaw@fortbragg.com. Anonymous tips may be left on the Crime Tip Hotline at (707) 961- 3049.

COW WALKING ON DIRT STREET next to Mission San Gabriel. San Gabriel; ca. 1890.

MENDO MEASLES ALERT

Mendocino County HHSA, Public Health confirms one case of measles in a traveler visiting the county. Individuals who are not immune to measles AND who visited the sites below at the dates and times indicated may be at risk of developing measles due to exposure.

Most people have received two doses of the measles vaccine (“MMR vaccine”) as children, and are protected. However, parents of unvaccinated children, unvaccinated adults, and those with weakened immune systems are advised to review the list of sites and times individuals may have been exposed below:

Dates, Times, and Places where individuals may have been exposed:

• Beachcomber Motel, 1111 N. Main St. Fort Bragg CA 95437, all day Friday May 24th through Sunday May 26th at 11 a.m.
• Django’s Rough Bar, 32096 N Harbor Dr. Fort Bragg CA 95437, on Friday May 24th from 12 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Sea Pal Cove Restaurant, 32390 N. Harbor Dr. Fort Bragg CA 95437, on Saturday May 25th from 12 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Skunk Train, 100 W. Laurel St. Fort Bragg CA 95437, on Saturday May 25th from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
• North Coast Brewing Co. 444 N. Main St. Fort Bragg CA 95437, on Saturday May 25th from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
• David’s Deli, 163 Boatyard Dr. Fort Bragg CA 95437, on Sunday May 26th from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

People at high risk for severe illness and complications from measles include: Infants and children aged less than 5 years, adults aged greater than 20 years, pregnant women, and people with compromised immune systems such as leukemia and HIV infection.

People presented at these sites who are not immune to measles may be at risk of developing measles and should watch for symptoms of the illness. Common symptoms of measles include fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes, and a rash, which can appear 7 to 21 days after the exposure. There is no risk to anyone going to those businesses except for up to one hour after the contagious person was in the business.

If you develop these symptoms, call your doctor right away. It is very important to call ahead to any medical facility before going there and to tell them that you may have been exposed to measles so that the facility can take measures to protect other patients and visitors.

Fort Bragg Clinic contacts are:

• Mendocino Coast Clinics at 707-964-1251
• North Coast Family Health Center at 707-961-4631
• Fort Bragg Rural Health Center at 707-964-0259

HHSA, Public Health requests the assistance of the news media in publicizing this list of sites at which we have been unable to identify all of the people present who may have been exposed.

The person with measles is an adult who was exposed to measles in Butte County. The person’s measles vaccination status is unverified. The individual was hospitalized because of their illness. Further information about the individual will not be released for reasons of medical privacy.

(Mendocino County Department of Health and Human Services Agency)

ON MONDAY the Mendocino Historical Review Board awarded our new Sub-Station a Historical Preservation Award. The Sub-Station is located about 50’ East of The Ford House, a State Park Museum.

Station 260 (which was Ricky’s radio number) will allow deputies to conduct more business in Mendocino and certainly has a view from the back door which is second to none. Ricky loved our Mendocino Bay and the ocean view is a simple reminder of our friend, our deputy and our hero. He was a diver, a fisherman and a person who appreciated the recreational value of our Coast.

The Ricky Del Fiorentino Sub-Station will now be part of our proud history in a town which Ricky loved, and loved Ricky.

(Sheriff Tom Allman)

SOME RUMORS are fervently circulated as fact of the wishful thinking genre. A lady called the other day to say that she'd heard from a Ukiah street guy named Ethan Hawke that body parts — a female head and arm — were found near the dumpster at the Ukiah Safeway. She said the grisly discovery was about a month old but there'd been nothing in the paper about it. She thought the body parts might belong to a woman "missing from Cow Mountain." Here it is. In the paper. The startling find is unknown to local law enforcement. There are two missing women whose disappearances are actively being investigated — a woman named Natalie Ruth Thomas is missing from the Arcata area, and Khadijah Britton of Covelo remains missing after being forced into a vehicle by her boyfriend, Neggie Fallis.

WHERE’S NATALIE?

The Arcata Police Department is investigating a missing person. Natalie Ruth Thomas’ family contacted APD on May 8th, 2019, stating that Natalie was missing. Natalie’s family is concerned for her welfare as she typically contacts them regularly and they have not heard from her since May 12th, 2019.

Natalie is described as a white female adult, age 31, 5’5”, 104 pounds with brown eyes and long brown hair. Natalie was last seen at Fairwinds Motel in Arcata on May 11th, 2019. Natalie is transient in the Arcata area and typically stays in hotels and travels on foot or by bus.

Anyone with information regarding Natalie’s whereabouts is urged to contact the Arcata Police Department 24 hr Line (707) 822-2424 or Detective Marr (707) 825-2528.

CATCH OF THE DAY, JUNE 4, 2019

DAVID BOLLINGER, Redwood Valley controlled substance.

ERIC CROUCH, Ukiah. Parole violation.

MIRANDA ELLINGWOOD, Fort Bragg. Burglary, offenses while on bail.

ELIAS ENGLISH, Ukiah. Vandalism.

KELLY FONSEN, Willits. Domestic battery.

EDUARDO GONZALEZ, Covelo. Failure to appear.

JOHN HILL, Mendocino. Under influence, probation revocation.

NATHEN MARTIN, Ukiah. Controlled substance, paraphernalia, probation revocation.

JUAN MONTALVO-LOPEZ, Covelo. Unspecified offense.

JOSEPH NORMAN, Ukiah. Disorderly conduct-alcohol.

CHRISTOPHER WILEY, Willits. Petty theft with priors.

WHY THE US IS PERSECUTING ASSANGE

by Patrick Cockburn

I was in Kabul a decade ago when WikiLeaks released a massive tranche of US government documents about the conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq and Yemen. On the day of the release, I was arranging by phone to meet an American official for an unattributable briefing. I told him in the course of our conversation what I had just learned from the news wires.

He was intensely interested and asked me what was known about the degree of classification of the files. When I told him, he said in a relieved tone: “No real secrets, then.”

When we met later in my hotel I asked him why he was so dismissive of the revelations that were causing such uproar in the world.

He explained that the US government was not so naive that it did not realise that making these documents available to such a wide range of civilian and military officials meant that they were likely to leak. Any information really damaging to US security had been weeded out.

In any case, he said: “We are not going to learn the biggest secrets from WikiLeaks because these have already been leaked by the White House, Pentagon or State Department.”

I found his argument persuasive and later wrote a piece saying that the WikiLeaks secrets were not all that secret.

However, it was the friendly US official and I who were being naive, forgetting that the real purpose of state secrecy is to enable governments to establish their own self-interested and often mendacious version of the truth by the careful selection of “facts” to be passed on to the public. They feel enraged by any revelation of what they really know, or by any alternative source of information. Such threats to their control of the news agenda must be suppressed where possible and, where not, those responsible must be pursued and punished.

We have had two good examples of the lengths to which a government – in this case that of the US – will go to protect its own tainted version of events. The first is the charging of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange under the Espionage Act for leaking 750,000 confidential military and diplomatic documents in 2010.

The second example has happened in the last few days. The international media may not have always covered itself in glory in the war in Yemen, but there are brave journalists and news organisations who have done just that. One of them is Yemeni reporter Maad al-Zikry who, along with Maggie Michael and Nariman El-Mofty, is part of an Associated Press (AP) team that won the international reporting Pulitzer prize this year for superb on-the-ground coverage of the war in Yemen. Their stories included revelations about the US drone strikes in Yemen and about the prisons maintained there by the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The US government clearly did not like this type of critical journalism. When the Pulitzer was awarded last Tuesday in New York, Zikry was not there because he had been denied a visa to enter the US. There is no longer a US embassy in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, but two months ago he made his way to the US embassy in Cairo where his visa application, though fully supported by AP and many other prestigious institutions, was rejected.

After AP had exerted further pressure, Zikry made a second application for a visa and this time he was seen by a counsellor at the embassy. He reports himself as asking: “Does the US embassy think that a Yemeni investigative journalist doing reporting for AP is a terrorist? Are you saying I am a terrorist?”

The counsellor said that they would “work” on his visa or, in other words, ask the powers-that-be in Washington what to do. “So, I waited and waited – and waited,” he says. “And, until now I heard nothing from them.”

Of course, Washington is fully capable of waiving any prohibition on the granting of a visa to a Yemeni in a case like this, but it chose not to.

Can what Assange and WikiLeaks did in 2010 be compared with what Zikry and AP did in 2019? Some commentators, to their shame, claim that the pursuit of Assange, and his current imprisonment pending possible extradition to the US or Sweden, has nothing to with freedom of expression.

In fact, he was doing what every journalist ought to do and doing it very successfully.

Take Yemen as an example of this. It is a story of great current significance because in recent days senior US officials have denounced Iran for allegedly directing and arming the Houthi rebels who are fighting Saudi and UAE-backed forces. Action by these supposed Iranian proxies could be a casus belli in the confrontation between the US and Iran.

Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, says that Iran has provided the Houthis “with the missile system, the hardware, the military capability” that they have acquired.

John Bolton, the national security adviser, said on Wednesday that Iran risked a “very strong response” from the US for, among other things, drone attacks by the Houthis on Saudi Arabia for which he holds the Iranians responsible.

These accusations by the US, Saudi Arabia and whoever is their Yemeni ally of the day that the Houthis are stooges of Iran armed with Iranian-supplied weapons have a long history. But what do we know about what Washington really thinks of these allegations which have not changed much over the years?

This is where Wikileaks comes to the rescue.

The US embassy in Sanaa may be closed today, but it was open on 9 December 2009 when Stephen Seche, the US ambassador, sent a detailed report to the State Department titled: “Who are the Houthis? How are they fighting?” Citing numerous sources, it says that the Houthis “obtain their weapons from the Yemeni black market” and by corrupt deals with government military commanders. A senior Yemeni intelligence officer is quoted as saying: “The Iranians are not arming the Houthis. The weapons they use are Yemeni.” Another senior official says that the anti-Houthi military “covers up its failures by saying that the weapons [of the Houthis] come from Iran.”

Yemeni experts on the conflict say that Houthi arms acquisition today has likewise little to do with Iran. Yemen has always had a flourishing arms black market in which weapons, large and small, can be obtained in almost any quantity if the money is right. Anti-Houthi forces, copiously supplied by Saudi Arabia and UAE, are happy to profit by selling on weapons to the Houthis or anybody else.

In an earlier period, the embassy study cites “sensitive reporting” – presumably the CIA or another intelligence organisation – as saying that extremists from Somalia, who wanted Katyusha rockets, had simply crossed the Red Sea and bought them in the Yemeni black market.

Revealing important information about the Yemen war – in which at least 70,000 people have been killed – is the reason why the US government is persecuting both Assange and Zikry.

The defiant Yemeni journalist says that “one of the key reasons why this land is so impoverished in that tragic condition it has reached today is the US administration’s mass punishment of Yemen”. This is demonstrably true, but doubtless somebody in Washington considers it a secret.

(Patrick Cockburn is the author of The Rise of Islamic State: ISIS and the New Sunni Revolution.)

FIND THE FROGS

PEERS

Day by day, it looks more like a home. The maintenance guy installed a small window air conditioner today. He put up a shower, too. So there's that. Tomorrow morning will bring the first shower since I moved.

My friend Carol has been absolutely irreplaceable through all of this. She picked up some snack things at Albertsons. She has found numerous things that we both thought had been somehow lost. She is a darling. Nuff said. The floor space tend to increase noticeably every day as the piles of boxes shrinks. Everyone here has undergone the same things.

This place has opened my surgically rebuilt eyes to the bigger knowledge that comes with aging, with the slow advance of the last chapter. Stay, as they say, tuned…

(Bruce Brady)

TWO CONTRASTING COMMENCEMENT ADDRESSES A HALF CENTURY APART

by Paul Craig Roberts

On June 1, 2019, American vice president Mike Pence gave the commencement address at West Point. He told the graduates that it was a certainty that they will “be on a battlefield for America” and “will move to the sound of guns.”...

On June 10, 1963, 56 years ago, a much greater man than Pence, President John F. Kennedy, gave the commencement address at American University in Washington, D.C. His speech stunned the military/security complex. It revealed a president who was committed to establishing a peaceful relationship with the Soviet Union. This would be a peace that would threaten their budget, power, and importance. Kennedy’s brave speech was a nail in his coffin. Five months later President Kennedy was murdered by the CIA and Joint Chiefs of Staff in Dallas Texas. Their deed was blamed on Oswald, who was promptly shot dead inside the Dallas jail by a private citizen given admittance for that purpose. Thus, the set-up fall man was murdered before he could deny his involvement.

paulcraigroberts.org/2019/06/02/two-contrasting-commencement-addresses-a-half-century-apart/

JUNE 3, 1956: CITY OF SANTA CRUZ, CA authorities announced a total ban on rock and roll at public gatherings, calling the music "Detrimental to both the health and morals of our youth and community."

FIRST FRIDAY AT GRACE HUDSON--Wild Gardens and wild women

The Grace Hudson Museum will be open as part of the First Friday Art Walk from 5 to 8 p.m. This will be the public's first chance to view "Tattooed and Tenacious: Inked Women in California's History," opening on June 8. Organized by Exhibit Envoy, and supplemented with items from the Museum's collections and local women tattooists, this traveling show explores the largely unknown history of California women in the tattoo arts. There will be brief remarks about the show at 6 p.m. (Note: viewer discretion is advised for this exhibit.)

The Ukeholics will be offering their crowd-pleasing music throughout the evening. In addition, two 45-minute foraging walks will be offered at 4:30 and 5:30. The walks lead guests into the Wild Gardens where they can learn about plants that are thriving and their many uses. And Little Bear will have a table demonstrating Native toys and tools. All activities on this First Friday are free. The Grace Hudson Museum is at 431 S. Main St. in Ukiah. The Museum is open Wed. through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Sunday from noon to 4:30 p.m. For more information please visit http://www.gracehudsonmuseum.org or call (707) 467-2836.

"TATTOOED AND TENACIOUS"--Curator tour June 8 at Grace Hudson On Saturday, June 8, from 2 to 3 p.m., the Grace Hudson Museum will offer a guided tour of a new exhibit, "Tattooed and Tenacious: Inked Women in California's History." Organized by Exhibit Envoy, "Tattooed and Tenacious" features historical photographs and tattoo-related objects, personal histories, memorabilia, and contemporary California Native art with tattoo themes. Exhibition curator Amy Cohen discusses how she researched and developed the exhibit, and the stories she uncovered of the tattooed women who made it possible. Museum staff will be on hand to discuss items they organized to further support the exhibition.

The tour is free with Museum admission: $4 general; $10 per family; $3 for students and seniors; and free to members. Reservations are required by calling 467-2836.

MONTEREY POP FESTIVAL, 1967

TAKE CARE OF ALL PARKS

Editor,

I am a retired park ranger with firsthand knowledge of the deteriorating condition of public facilities used by the recreating public.

The multiple federal agencies managing public lands and waters don’t have the blanket support from Congress that the National Park Service enjoys.

Infrastructure is crumbling everywhere. For example, while the Restore Our Parks Act addresses the needs of our national parks, that funding and authority doesn’t apply to lands and waters managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, including parks in our own backyard — Lake Sonoma and Lake Mendocino. Nationwide, the Corps is the largest provider of water-based recreation in the country, with more than 250 million visits annually.

Differing congressional budget subcommittees create a patchwork of legislation that often excludes the Corps of Engineers. To support infrastructure funding at Lake Sonoma and Lake Mendocino, members on the House Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Subcommittee need to hear from the recreating public.

Legislation like the Restore Our Parks and Public Lands Act is a strategy we need throughout our public lands agencies, regardless of who manages them.

Nancy Rogers

Board member, The Corps Foundation

Petaluma

MENDOCINO COUNTY MUSEUM SPECIAL TUESDAY HOURS on June 25

Mendocino County Museum Special Hours for Tuesday June 25, 2019 for the Great Race Lunch Event

In conjunction with the Great Race Lunch that will be held at Recreation Grove in Willits, Mendocino County Museum will be open and offer FREE Admission from 12:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 25, 2019.

The Hemming Motor News: Great Race is a vintage car competitive road rally which test the driver/navigator team’s ability to follow precise course instructions and the car’s ability to endure a cross country trip. On day 4 of the Great Race, one of the designated stopping points is a Lunch being held at Recreation Grove Park in Willits, located across the street from the Museum, from 12 p.m. - 3 p.m. The public will have the opportunity to view the cars and teams in the Great Race.

We invite the public to visit the Museum and learn more about Mendocino County history, before or after enjoying the Great Race Lunch. To learn more about the Great Race Lunch please visit Willits Chamber of Commerce Website. Mendocino County Museum is located: 400 E. Commercial Street in Willits, California. For more information about programs, hours, and admission visit us on our website, www.mendocinocounty.org/museum, or call 972-6458.

Mendocino County Cultural Services Agency

ON LINE COMMENT OF THE DAY

Dog,

True story.

I once rented some commercial property to a guy who’s business was machining contact lenses to prescription. Had dozens of little jewelry lathes that did the trick.

His wife…began giving nude massages to neighbors, etc. and he, of course, protested. They fought. She grabbed a lamp and began swinging…he had a hammer and defended himself. He apparently didn’t hit her hard or often enough, however. She had him arrested. She then absconded with all his wealth, and before she left, she took his beloved dog, a black lab, to the pound and had it immediately put down.

He was later convicted and served a bit over a year in the pen. If he would have killed her, at least the dog would have lived…maybe a happier ending?

His side of the story, of course….

AFTER LIVING on the island for nine years, I finally took a little trip down through the woods and to the shore to capture this one. — Bobby Lee, San Francisco

“WHEN I’M HOME, nobody will talk to me. It’s like I am dead. I don’t like quiet because then I have nothing. So I ride the train into the city. Compared to home, the city is like heaven. There are a million people you can ask for help. There are people to help you up the stairs. And there are so many smells. I love the smell of food. Right now I’m trying to memorize my way to Carnegie Hall.

I like to go to theaters and museums where my mind can be nourished. Sometimes I can hear tourists talking about the exhibits. Sometimes I hear college students talking to each other and it makes me feel younger. It makes me feel like I’m still alive in this world.”

GLORIA STUART in the 1932 pre-Code horror film ‘The Old Dark House.’

SUMMER READING PROGRAM: Universe of Stories

Mendocino County Library is pleased to announce the beginning of our Summer Reading Program. This year’s theme is Universe of Stories in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.

The Summer Reading Program is open to all ages: children, teens and adults. The purpose of the Summer Reading Program is to encourage literacy and prevent learning loss during the summer. Through programs and reading challenges, Mendocino County Library wants to encourage reading and promote literacy for all ages. Please stop by your local branch and pick up your reading log today.

Summer Reading sign-ups will start with kickoff celebrations in Ukiah, Willits and Fort Bragg on Saturday June 8th. All branches will host county-wide performers, along with various events and programs to celebrate Summer Reading. Please visit your local branch for a list of events and programs, or check out our website for further information.

www.mendolibrary.org

CONSIDERING SOLAR? Mendocino Solar Service:

Free Presentation Sat. June 8th 6-7pm at Inglenook Community Center, right after the potluck social!

A short presentation on Solar. How it works, what installing solar on your property entails, and all your questions answered.

Attend this FREE presentation, by co-owner and solar professional Bruce Erickson of the Mendocino Solar Service installation and members of our installation and customer service team. Your local friends and neighbors right here on the coast!

The Inglenook Community Center (Formerly known as the Fort Bragg Grange) in Inglenook, after the potluck dinner social.

When: Saturday June 8th, 6-7pm

Solar Presentation is FREE and begins at 6pm.

Potluck Social is 5-6pm: Attend the potluck dinner with your friendly local neighbors: bring a dish and arrive to enjoy the potluck social from 5-6pm.

mendocinosolar.com/2019/05/free-presentation-june-8th/

BERNIE & ELIZABETH, THE DIFF

Over the phone, Sunkara spoke with Truthdig about the major differences between Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, the future of Medicare-for-all and socialism’s tenuous alliance with the Democratic Party. What follows is a transcript of the conversation, lightly edited and compressed for clarity.

Jacob Sugarman: The cover of the National Review’s latest issue simply reads, “Against Socialism.” Judging from the magazine’s recent history, I can only assume that a socialist America is at hand.

Bhaskar Sunkara: [Chuckles] Yeah, it’s very exciting that democratic socialist groups are once again on the map in the United States. The way that I would think of it is that we are a political movement that was in a deep coma. While we’ve finally woken up from that coma, we’re still lying on our hospital beds, so we have a long way to go before democratic socialism is a mass part of American life. Right now, we have to be wary of conflating our success with the media event around it. Having a few popular politicians and lots of young enthusiastic people on social media is not the same as having deep roots in the working class, but it’s a start. When we [launched] Jacobin in late 2010, it was kind of a crazy thing to call yourself a socialist.

JS: The U.S. political establishment is obviously no stranger to redbaiting, even since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Republicans certainly did it to Obama while he was in office. But during my adult life, I can’t remember this level of panic from the right, even as it controls the White House, Senate and Supreme Court. So what do you think has changed?

BS: I think it can partly be explained by the collapse of liberal centrism, or at least the collapse of Clintonism in 2016. We’ve seen all this anti-establishment energy be monopolized by the right, and I think socialists, particularly Bernie Sanders, are viewed as a threat because they’re clearly not part of the Democratic Party establishment. They’re speaking to the same anger, but they’re doing so from the left. Why would Trump take aim at largely discredited figures like [Nancy] Pelosi and [Chuck] Schumer when he can attack this new insurgent force?

What we’re seeing, I think, is the growth of an opposition movement that’s clearly defined to the left of liberalism, that actually stands for something. The anger isn’t just posturing—it’s connected now with real policies like the Green New Deal and Medicare-for-all. And I think our message is frightening because we’re telling people that they deserve more and better, and that by joining with their neighbors in solidarity, they can lift themselves up. It’s a much more compelling narrative than that of fear-mongering about immigrants taking our jobs.

JS: In your book, you note that the Sanders/Warren wing of the Democratic Party, as it has been dubbed by the political press, is something of a misnomer. Can you explain why you believe Bernie to be a superior vehicle, not just for democratic socialism but social democracy as well?

BS: Right, so I should add the caveat that I really do appreciate Sen. Warren and her contributions to the Democratic primary. She’s pushing forward a lot of ideas in these policy papers, and I think she’s going to be a very positive force during the debates. Also, she and Sanders have a rapport; they’re not attacking each other. But when choosing between the two, I can’t help but look at their backgrounds and, ultimately, their worldviews. Bernie Sanders was a part of the Young People’s Socialist League in the early 1950s and has identified as a socialist in the years since. He participated in civil rights and trade union organizations in the ’60s and ’70s.

In the ’70s and ’80s, he engaged in independent electoral runs, including as the mayor of Burlington. During that period, he also took part in some really incredible anti-imperialist and solidarity efforts in Central America and South Africa. He was a part of the American left, and what I think this has imparted to him is the importance of taking on entrenched interests, which we can only do if we organize together against our common enemy. You can hear it in his rhetoric and the way that he directs the public’s anger at millionaires and billionaires.

When it comes to Warren, I’m not one of those people who really harps on the fact that she was a Republican up until the mid- to late ’90s. But when she talks about the political revolution, she’s less inclined to question the political system itself. She’s more interested in unrigging the game so that working people can participate in it as equals. So that suggests to me [that] her approach is that of a regulator rather than a class warrior. She can summon populist rhetoric, and does so quite effectively on occasion, but I think Sanders has already proven himself as someone who can galvanize a base of millions of people. He can build a network of volunteers who have the fundraising capabilities to compete with some of these really big establishment candidates. I believe his coalition could change the next 10 to 15 years of American policy.

JS: You make the case that Sanders and Jeremy Corbyn in the U.K. pose a radical break with the Third Way-ism of Bill Clinton and Tony Blair but also social democrats like Olof Palme in Sweden. What separates their political projects from those of their predecessors?

BS: If you’re on the left, I think the criticism of social democrats since the 1960s has been that they channel popular anger, activism and organization into [electoralism]. This can ultimately be depoliticizing, because you’re taking all this energy to get people elected. But once these people are elected, in order to legislate, you need social peace. So you’re sitting down labor and capital at the table with the state to figure out what ultimately works for capital.

The other criticism that applies to many of the center-left parties like the U.K. Labour Party is that they’re extremely wedded to the U.S.-backed imperial project. Look at the Harold Wilson government [in Britain] when it came to things like Vietnam. Today, if you look at Sanders, if you look at Corbyn, these are people that aren’t funneling existing working class struggles into elections but using electoral campaigns to regalvanize long-dormant working class [organization]. They’re trying to figure out how we can build trade-union and other social movements from below.

When it comes to imperial projects, Sanders has stood against U.S. policies within the Middle East and elsewhere. He might not go far enough for [some] of us on the left, but it’s still a radical departure from what other Democratic candidates are putting forward. Corbyn’s politics are even more resolutely anti-imperialist. He’s so hated by the British military that paratroopers were caught on video using his photograph for target practice. So to me, the difference is obvious. We’ve been in a period of deep defeat, and these campaigns are sparks attracting people to the ideas of the left, but also encouraging us to go out there and take the movement into our own hands. It’s very hard to overstate, the level of deep depoliticization and the weakness of [unions] over the past 20 to 30 years. It’s unprecedented in the history of capitalism.

(Truthdig.com)

ROLL UP YOUR SLEEVES WITH ASSEMBLYMEMBER WOOD

Join me and the Mendocino Land Trust for a Coastal Clean Up event at the Navarro Point Preserve & Coastal Trail. Spend the day working on the trail, discussing local and state issues, and taking in the beautiful scenery!

Saturday, June 15

10:00 a.m.* - 1:00 p.m.

*Parking is limited. Shuttle leaves @ 9:30 a.m. from the Navarro Beach Parking Lot.

What to bring: water, a snack, closed-toed shoes, a light jacket, and gloves (if you have them).

Open to all ages. Includes a picnic lunch and free t-shirts!

To RSVP call, (707) 463-5770.

KNOW YOUR OLIGARCHS (#2)