MCT: Thursday, September 19, 2019

• Warming
• Skull Heist
• Pyro Pirates
• AV Museum
• Huerta Visit
• Court Calendar
• Paella Noche
• Opaque County
• Streamlining
• Mo Ukiah
• Ed Notes
• Powder House
• PG&E Unprepared
• Suspend Profits
• Rising
• Motorcycle Fatality
• Killarney Blarney
• MRC Lawsuit
• Beatle Burning
• River Cleanup
• Kesey
• Paint Out
• Yesterday's Catch
• Mideast Tragedies
• Vaping
• Self Awareness
• Border Radio
• Taken
• Economic War
• Bear
• Oral History
• Husaruk Farewell
• Roses
• Disobedience Movie
• Old Radio
• Banned Books
• NSA Man
• Found Object

A WARMING AND DRYING TREND will begin today and continue into the weekend. The next chance for rain will be Sunday across Del Norte and northern Humboldt County. (National Weather Service)

STOLEN AT THE FAIR

With a very upset & sad heart I am sharing what happened to our Family this year at the Fair. Our Family has traditionally worked together & made a Scarecrow for the fair. The Wagner family has been participating for 25 years. Our family has grown over the years & now we have 3 generations participating together and everyone of us look forward in gathering together to decide design & then the creation of our Scarecrow.

This year we took Best of Show & we were so excited & happy to support the fair! We went to pick it up yesterday as we always do the Monday after fair and found that his head (that was screwed onto the frame) had been dismantled and stolen. Its head was a very old skull & a very good Justin straw hat, which both were worth $$ and important to us, yet we never imagined this would happen, but thought we had taken precautions with screws to prevent anything from happening. But this thief came with tools and knew what they wanted and when to do it! The Wagner Family is done, we will no longer be a part of the Fair. It’s a Sad, Sad day when your family’s project isn't safe at the Fair. This has been reported to the Fair manager, but it probably won’t be found. If anyone sees these items in someone's home or yard or the hat on someone's head please please let me know asap. This is SO WRONG!! And we are so angry!

— Brittany Wagner

BURNING MAN PYROTECHNICS

by Katy Tahja

Pyrotechnics: the art, craft and science of fireworks. Want to see it done incredibly? Go to Burning Man where people LOVE to blow up things.

So first, some background on fireworks. This is where your memory of high school chemistry comes in handy. Be it a sparkler or a fireworks display over a stadium the sound and light and color is a complex brew of oxidizers, propellants, fuel, binders and coloring agents all combined to make you go Wow! Thank the ancient Chinese civilizations that first introduced fireworks for special occasions about 600A.D.

At Burning Man you just don’t go out and decide to do your own thing with fireworks. It’s why there is a Fire Arts Safety Team and people licensed with fuel management certifications. “Wanna be” pyromaniacs can take fire effects classes to become licensed pyrotechnic operators off playa. Any fire performance in the Black Rock Desert is undertaken with absolute seriousness and members of the team trust each other with their lives.

I had the pleasure of interviewing In-Sin-Erator, the playa name of a very busy woman in charge of burning the Man instillation. Licensed since she was 21 and married to a fellow pyrotechnic professional she has 20+ years experience making viewers on the ground scream with appreciation.

In-Sin-Erator explained there are lots of kinds of fireworks shows. Some, in theaters and casinos, are done in close proximity to people and some are commercial, think Disneyland or a baseball stadium. Some pyrotechnicians work in Hollywood doing special effects and some love doing huge sky displays. I asked if there was a difference between the person who dreams up what an aerial display will look like and the mechanically inclined person who lights the fuses in sequence. She said with time and experience you start with simple tasks and work up to designing shows.

An aspect of fireworks I loved was the flower names of the individual units and their visual appearance. There were Chrysanthemum, Dahlias, Falling Leaves, Palm Trees, Dahlias and many more. In-Sin-Erator equates working with them to music. She can visualize a box of chemicals sitting on the ground as a note in a melody. Add enough notes like that together and you have a visual song exploding in the sky 200’ over your head.

Called Pyro Pirates a crew of 20 people are needed to do the Burn, are serious with their work, and save shenanigans for after the Man burns. There could be 70,000 Burners around the perimeter of the Burn but there is a designated cleared exit route for their vehicles as soon as the Man burns and they escape to go back to their camp and crash. This year the Man burned completely in what seemed like one minute but one year it took 45 minutes for the Man to fall.

For fireworks lovers In-Sin-Erator suggests Louisville Kentucky and their “Thunder Over Louisville” for a great show. In a moment of “playa magic” we discovered we’d both seen the year 2000 Fourth of July fireworks over New York Harbor, which was an exceptional show.

Weather is different every year at the Burn and some years winds spin off mini cyclones that are called fire tornados or fireclones which can be scary. Some years there are 100 art instillations that burn on the playa, as the designers wish, but only under the supervision of the Fire Arts Safety Team.

And guess what? They recycle. Everything that can be reused is saved. The electronic control cables that set off the charges have connections that pop loose and can be retrieved. The site where the Man burns is protected so there will be no burn scar or debris left on the playa. It’s a “Leave No Trace” event.

Thanking In-Sin-Erator for sharing information on a busy day I went to meet another fireworks lover, Kevin LeVizu, who has a unique Burner job. He’s a documentarian, the photographer of the Fire Conclave fire performance groups. There are 1,200 fire dancers performing around the Man before the Burn and he is allowed special viewing access to visually record the Burn. He does this with love and enthusiasm since he can’t make one cent selling Burning Man photographs. There is no commercialization of Burning Man images. That does not stop him from taking 12,000 during the Burn week and keeping perhaps 200 breathtaking photos when it’s all over and done with.

Kevin explained how he could photograph someone holding a ball of fire in the palm of his or her hand, or a person breathing fire. He can make a fire ball on a string being spun leave a halo image with a strobe light. He uses his professional skills to snap photos and give them free to fire dance groups for their web pages to inspire others. He works hard at his profession all year long to have a week to come out to the playa and photograph the magic of flame at Burning Man.

When not out interviewing pyromaniacs I was busy at Mobility Camp. We’re the folks who get people out to see the art on the playa when they can’t do it walking or biking. With a tractor & trailer holding 20 we get campers out to see art and the burns. Doing this, at the perimeter fence at dawn, our camp was serving hot coffee and croissants to folks who had been up all night when who rides up but the one other person from Comptche who was at the Burn. That’s magic in the midst of 70,000 people.

As with every year there are activities going on day and night. I discovered Rootpile, a Bluegrass camp from Appalachia that served moonshine and Southern food between music sets. The pizza camp gifted Mobility Camp vegan pizza one afternoon and the Lovin’ Oven camp brought us fresh bread.

As with any Burn weird things abounded, and I avoided them. The Erotic Kinky Partner Dance at the Orgy Dome progressed without me. I passed on the Naughty Naked Portrait Camp and the Slut Celebration and instead stopped at Camp Mom & Dad where they were passing out cookies and milk. The Disney Trivia and Sing-Along attracted folks, as did Camp Blintzkreig where mushroom stuffed blintz was being shared. I saw Roller Derby in the Dust and a knitting circle. The Playa Choir sang for a non-denominational Sunday “Come to Meeting” gathering and the Black Rock Philharmonic and PlayaPops played “real” music. There was even a “Hulananny” for folks who loved Hawaiian music.

Educational talks included “Kraken is Real!” about the world’s largest squid, geology of the Black Rock Playa and one on fire blankets-how the playa is protected under art that burns. The one event I didn’t get to and would have loved to attend was the Mother’s High Tea. It was an afternoon tea party for all moms whose kids had brought them to Burning Man. My daughter Fern brought me in 2012 and I’ve been going ever since. Dusty tumultuous noisy Burning Man may not be everyone’s “cup of tea” but it’s claimed a spot in my heart and mind and I’ll be there again next year.

DOLORES HUERTA VISITS UKIAH

Students, staff and families from Grace Hudson Elementary in Ukiah had the opportunity to meet and listen to a talk by Dolores Huerta, an American labor leader, and civil rights activist on Friday, Sept. 13. Huerta is the originator of the phrase, “Sí, se puede.” She has received the Eleanor Roosevelt Human Rights Award as well as the Presidential Medal of Freedom and numerous other awards and honors for her community service and advocacy for workers’, immigrants’ and women’s rights.

In 1955 Huerta became an activist when she co-founded the Community Service Organization (CSO) in Stockton. This organization worked for economic improvements for Hispanics and led voter registration campaigns for farmworkers. Huerta met fellow activist César Chávez while involved with the Stockton CSO and together they formed the National Farmworkers Association which later became the United Farm Workers (UFW). Today, she is the secretary-treasurer emeritus of the UFW.

“This was an amazing opportunity for our students,” commented Kara Blanco, Grace Hudson Elementary principal. “Students have been learning about Dolores and the work she has done fighting for the rights of farmworkers. It’s great for them to learn about someone like Dolores and then get to meet her, hear her speak, and be inspired by her example. There’s a good chance that the next Dolores Huerta was in the audience and heard her speak at Grace Hudson.”

Throughout her long career as an activist, Dolores fought for safe working conditions, better pay, healthcare and unemployment benefits for farmworkers. She helped organize the successful 1965 Delano strike of 5,000 grape workers and negotiated the resulting union contract. Her consumer boycotts of table grapes in the 1960s resulted in a union contract for workers and eventually led to the California Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975.

While visiting Grace Hudson, Huerta dedicated a new mural by local artist, Lonnie Lopez, spoke with teachers and students, toured the school, and spoke to a gymnasium full of students, staff and families. Children at Grace Hudson gave her an awe-inspiring and emotional welcome by yelling her signature “Sí, se puede” phrase in unison for several minutes. Local restaurants including Eddie’s Cocina, El Azteca, El Molcajete, Jalo’s (Willits), Lalo’s, Las Palmas, Michoacan, and Villa del Mar all prepared signature dishes for a luncheon with Dolores.

(Presser from Grace Hudson Museum)

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ukiahdailyjournal.com/2019/09/17/american-labor-leader-dolores-huerta-speaks-at-grace-hudson-elementary-in-ukiah/

GHOSTS ON THE COURT CALENDAR

Kadijah Britton, missing and feared dead since early February, has been calendared for an appearance in Department G, Judge Ann Moorman's court, for a restraining order brought by Melissa Britton, on September 30th at 5pm. Is Melissa a relative of Kadijah's? Is Melissa being haunted? Does the court hear cases after 5pm? I will be out of town on September 30th but maybe someone should go to this hearing and see what's going on (perhaps the Sheriff should be alerted), because if this is some kind of joke, it's not very funny.

(Bruce McEwen)

BETSY CAWN FOR LAKE COUNTY CEO:

County “management”: Coming from a different place on budget reporting, responsible for a few million bucks allocated to (1) department overhead costs, (2) project-specific costs that were the key indicators using GANTT planning and tracking tools, and (3) general services provided to a variety of other internal departments [within a tightly managed division of a global corporation], I have observed the Lake County board of supervisors, departments, and administration of “fund units” closely since 2007. The system used for generation of annual budgets and fund allocations — winning General Accounting Standards Board awards for their “optional” reports called “Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports” — is as opaque as their non-existent public information process.

I would like to see, for example, tracking of all “obligated” revenues (such as State Transportation Improvement Program” funds for a long-delayed “road widening” project for which the supervisors voted to approve about $11M several years ago that theoretically should be accounted for by all implementation costs, and reported annually with key milestone completion, etc.).

Department costs, expenditures, and revenue allocations should be crystal clear, as well as multi-department/agency expenditures for “programs” that are coordinated by a responsible program manager.

Workforce costs, including salary/wage/benefits/administration should be reported with linkage to funding sources, that themselves are reviewed for expenditure monthly, to enable program management to oversee major milestone/timeline completion, adjustment of timelines reflecting new deadlines and cost/expenditures — which is a simple way to monitor appropriate use of allocated workforce hours.

In addition to the lack of specifics that would satisfy these accounting features, we have the total lack of accountability of the top elected officials themselves. They do not, apparently, have to turn in any kind of a report showing what time was spent on which assignment (to a vast number of “committees, boards, and commissions” that some never show up for and others use for forwarding their avowed intentions to benefit “their districts”), nor do they have any record management obligations.

Particularly galling is the fact that the supervisors amass mountains of records during their tenures, that are sent to the landfill upon their departure — no archiving, no review to cull important documents related to said “committee, board, commission” RESULTS, just “seeya.”

Our new administration (third CAO since 1980s) began in 2016 and since that time the public’s access to public records has become worse and worse. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the “Assistant Clerk to the Board of Supervisors” was intimate with all management records such as the “committees/boards/commissions” — formed by local necessity or to accommodate state mandates — and most willing to provide with no fuss/no muss.

Too willing, and too knowledgeable, I guess, because her successor was immediately groomed to be “more professional” (friendly but unhelpful) and graduated quickly to greater responsibilities, followed by a succession of tight-lipped pleasant but “powerless” greeters who must refer to the now-invisible “Assistant Clerk to the Board” — ensconced in a warren of closet-like offices — who demands a written request for any such public document and requires that review of those documents be “supervised” by front office staff.

And that’s at the “front desk” of the administration; stonewalls protecting the Auditor/Controller and Treasurer are beyond penetrable, even using their “public information” request forms, because you can only request a specific document and you may not know the proper nomenclature or argot deployed to identify the type of record you are looking for, and even then will only receive the most general report. Example, the “Prop. 13” “1%” distribution of property taxes to special districts.

That amount for, say the Flood Control District, appears on the A/C report you can get, but does not appear in a department budget report of distribution of such funds into “budget units” and descriptions of internal allocation to staff, project, or program costs.

Admittedly, coming from a completely different fiscal management background, I have a very hard time believing that the bafflegab you all attempt to debunk is allowed, or that the elected top officials do not have the balls or the brains to order their staff to pony up. Instead, we get the “Days of our Lives” drama, year after year. Beats the heck outta me, Mike.

MO MEMO 9.16.19

by Maureen Mulheren, Ukiah City Councilperson

Fall has officially arrived! We had our first touch of rain over night but fire season is not over.

The attached map illustrates the preventative fire measures that have been implemented to date on the western hills bordering our community. This project has been a joint collaboration between the Ukiah Valley Fire Authority, CalFire and the County of Mendocino, with our team members (especially Division Chief Jennings) integrally involved. Map legend acronym definitions: FB= Fuel Break, 100-200 foot wide clearing of ground vegetation and fuels, DZ= Dozer line on ridgetops, SRA= Shared Responsibility Area (outside City limits).

The Ukiah Hometown Heroes Program is a living tribute created for the community to recognize and honor Ukiah residents and their family members who are serving, or are veterans who have served, our country in the United States Armed Forces. Each banner will be in honor of a specific Ukiah service person and will include their name, branch of service and a photo. Banners will be displayed utilizing the City of Ukiah banner program on street lamps in Downtown Ukiah from September 11th - November 11th to both celebrate and remind the community of their dedication to our country. On September 11th we honored the two new heroes Gregg Smith and Robert Radnich. The program accepts nominees all year and adds new service members during the September 11th celebration. There is a Facebook page and a website with more information. http://ukiahhometownheroes.org/

”America was not built on fear. America was built on courage, on imagination and an unbeatable determination to do the job at hand.” — former President Harry S. Truman

ED NOTES

DAN GJERDE VS. LINDY PETERS in the 4th District, a reader writes: "I think Gjerde is in over his head. He has zero life experience to refer to when making decisions that affect entire communities. It seems to me he believes his District consists only of Fort Bragg and even at that what has he done to improve anything? I believe since Ted Williams has been on the BOS the 4th District has been better served by Mr. Williams speaking out about issues while Gjerde sits idly by. Why are grants handed over to non profits without first taking a look at their budgets? Shouldn't Gjerde be asking to see the budgets before smiling broadly and voting to approve grants that do little if anything? Why is Fort Bragg becoming the homeless hub of the coast? Lindy Peters asks questions and demands answers. He has been out in the working community and has earned his living by holding down a job as well as serving on the Fort Bragg City Council as a council member and Mayor. Peters is an experienced politician who I believe can get things done for the entire 4th District without placing a burden on any one place. Lindy Peters brought transparency to City Government. He pledged to get Channel PEG up again to air the Council meetings on TV. They had been on internet only by Mendocino TV. He is responsible for ALL committee meetings being televised, despite some resistance from staff. He had Monday Morning Meetings with the Mayor. No other City Council person or elected official had ever done anything like it before or since. I believe he will do it again as a Supervisor if elected to keep the entire District involved. County government is operating under a cloak of mystery. That is what I hope will change. Lindy Peters has worked with six different City Managers and I believe all of them will speak highly of him even though there were times of differences of opinion. He is beholden to no groups or individuals. I believe his decisions are based on community input and personal judgement. I believe he will hold true to his commitments and not say one thing to one group and something else to another. He is not afraid to make tough decisions. He is not afraid of confrontation. When voting he always takes time to explain his reasons for voting a certain way. I believe Lindy Peters is a bridge builder — sorely needed in this era of divisive politics."

KNOWN BOTH DUDES for many years, Gjerde all the way back to when he was at Fort Bragg High School. He's been a disappointment as a Supervisor but Gjerde has had the misfortune, until the election of Williams and maybe Haschak, to be surrounded by weak unto certifiably insane colleagues. But even with the recent new energy on the board Gjerde has been quiescent. No one yet has any idea where Lindy stands on County affairs, but we'll be quizzing all the candidates before March's election with a possible run-off election in June.

AT THE PRESENT, CEO Angelo is at the helm of a rudderless SS Mendo, the result being an accumulating, unaddressed raft of problems likely to become even more costly (and painful for the public) without intelligent, decisive attention. We agree with the Grand Jury's assessment of the CEO's functioning and think it's past time that Angelo begins enjoying her lush retirement her captive Supervisors have gifted her.

IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER, County department heads live in fear of Angelo with several having been disappeared for no explained reason. The Supervisors, wuss-tending in the most benign circumstances, tread lightly around the CEO, four of them so lightly they seem reluctant to even ask her a public question. Fear may work for dictators, but it's not an effective way to govern mellow Mendo. The County's ambulance services are unfairly under-funded and the recent attempt to improve their finances fell flat, largely due to the CEO’s inattention; staff vacancies are being used to balance the budget without regard to the impact those vacancies have on workload, backlog, or services; mental health services are an unaccountable mess, especially the privatized section of them under Mr. and Mrs. Schraeder, owners of most of those services; mental health services need clarification and, hopefully, accountability; low cost housing is stalled, although Mr. Schultz of Planning and Building says three sets of pre-approved small house plans are free for the asking while the Lovers Lane project, whatever its alleged merits, has been stalled for a couple of years now; the juvenile hall is running at a huge deficit because the Supes caved to interest group pressure to keep a dozen or so delinquents in local lock-up — but the CEO let it go unmanaged for years until Lake County withdrew its delinquent funding units, making the Mendo juvenile hall an ongoing sink hole of cost overruns. Perpetual staff turnover among all County employees, including the cops, cripples services offered; insider hiring and the elevation of their own pay and perks has resulted in diminished public confidence in all of them; a weak, ineffective County Counsel who habitually farms out work that should be done here to even more expensive outside attorneys. And as the Major points out all the time, CEO Angelo steadfastly refuses to provide the Supervisors with the most basic monthly budget and staffing reports.

THE GOOD NEWS: The poplars are turning! It's beginning to look and feel like fall around here, and soon these annual golden harbingers of winter's gray gloom will be in their fully burnished glory, as Mendocino County rounds the calendar's corner in a final burst of natural color.

MY FRIEND and neighbor Ricardo Suarez, owner-operator of the thriving Redwood Drive-In, home of the world famous Boonville Donut, offers a grill-roasted chicken that beats any chicken dinner this gourmand has ever downed. More than enough for a family of four at $35 bucks, Ricardo's Sunday Special lasted me most of the work week.

PLEASED to see the County's (and the country's) high school students planning to walk out Friday afternoon to draw attention to climate change. Doubly pertinent to them as these young 'uns step out into an eco-social chaos they are certain to confront.

PREPARING FOR APOCALYPSE: You can sign up to receive PG&E Power shutoff (PSPS) ZIP Code Alerts for an area where the resident does not have a PG&E account. Call (877) 900-0743 to enroll. One phone number can be enrolled per call, but residents may choose to receive alerts for one or more ZIP Codes within PG&E’s service territory

A BOONVILLE RESIDENT COMMENTS: "Here in Anderson Valley (as elsewhere) we need more affordable housing. I might be in a position to accommodate two or three "tiny homes" on my small in-town property, but current zoning does not allow for such. Most of my neighbours have three generations occupying their dwellings and seem to really like RVs. Can we fix this for the people who want to be legitimate about their impact?

PG&E POURS ON THE INSULTS with a postcard to all the monopoly's Mendo customers that reads, in caps, "Prepare Now For Public Safety Shutoffs." And goes on to list allegedly helpful websites. If PG&E put its dependent customers ahead of its private shareholders PG&E would long ago have put safety ahead of profits and, natch, egregiously large salaries for its executives. I can just see thousands of people fumbling in the dark for their stored gasoline to fuel their generators as walls of hellish flame rise over Mendocino County's tinder-dry ridges.

"POWDER HOUSE above RR Tracks, Wind River Canyon, Wyoming"

FIRE PREP, PG&E STYLE

Editor,

PG&E’s website says it plans to clear vegetation, inspect power lines and install sensors and cameras to reduce fire danger in at-risk areas. They should consider how fully they have carried out these plans when deciding whether to follow through on other announced plans to cut power to huge swaths of Northern California for days at a time. PG&E’s own level of preparation should be added to the factors of high temperature, high winds and low humidity in its decision-making algorithm.

If PG&E lines in an area have been properly inspected and cleared, it seems that the power should be maintained on red flag days in order to monitor conditions away from power lines, facilitate any needed emergency communications and maintain safe traffic conditions for any evacuations.

It is possible that PG&E will not have been able to reach the desired level of preparation and prevention in a given area, and the draconian shut-off plan will need to be implemented in acknowledgment of that. But such a major disruption should be put into action only after careful consideration of all relevant factors, including PG&E’s fulfillment of its responsibilities to the public.

Ellen Silge

Healdsburg

SUSPEND PROFITS

Editor,

The bankruptcy judge should order PG&E to forgo any profits until it has updated its technology, hardened all power lines in fire-prone areas and caught up with all the maintenance it has neglected over the past 30 years. We would not be in this fix if PG&E had been honest and fair with its ratepayers.

Ron Parker

Ukiah

FROM THE DEPTHS (1906) by William Balfour-Ker

ON SEPTEMBER 17, 2019, at approximately 1937 hours, Steven Blake, with a passenger in the front passenger seat, was driving a 1998 Toyota 4Runner westbound on Foothill Boulevard, east of Crawford Road. Carlos Lopez Cruz was riding a 2000 Harley-Davidson Sportster eastbound on Foothill Boulevard, west of Crawford Road. As Blake was approaching the intersection with Crawford Road, he attempted to pass a stopped vehicle that was preparing to make a right turn. Blake drove the Toyota into the opposing lane directly in front of the Harley-Davidson causing a head-on collision. Cruz was pronounced dead on scene from injuries sustained in the collision. Blake sustained minor injuries and his passenger was uninjured. Foothill Blvd. was closed for several hours for the investigation and vehicle storage. This collision remains under investigation by the California Highway Patrol. Neither alcohol nor drugs appear to be a factor in this collision. The California Highway Patrol responded and assumed incident command. Personnel from Cal-Fire, Covelo Fire, and Round Valley Tribal Police assisted with the scene. Mendocino County Coroner’s Office responded to the scene.

(CHP Presser)

SPELLING IN KILLARNEY, IRELAND

Either some don't know how to spell, or Mr. STRICKLY ain't parkin' 'ere.

(photo by Randy Burke)

THP LAWSUIT FILED AGAINST MRC & CDF

Hello Friends,

To protect Enchanted Meadow Wetlands Sanctuary from further degradation by Mendocino Redwood Company a lawsuit was filed in Pro per against them and the the CA Dept. of Forestry.

MRC plans to log an extensive span of forest bordering EMWS, curving from the inside of Railroad Gulch and up river to Duck Pond Gulch. Forest and wetland habitat will be irreparably harmed, the beautiful viewshed will be destroyed.

We need recruits ASAP- We're seeking assistance in the following areas, but not limited to:

• A go to Atty for procedural advice until we retain an Atty.
• An Atty or Atty to stand in as Special Counsel.
• Coordinators for fundraising, local talent volunteers.
• Paralegal support, THP analysis, PR & media support.
• Website consultation, updating.
• Gofers of all rank, grandiose or generic and gonfalons.

Please contact us off list if you can help.

Thank you,

Friends of Enchanted Meadow

— Zia Catalni

info@friendsofenchantedmeadow.org

CHRISTIAN FUNDAMENTALISTS burning Beatles records Alabama, 1966

MCCOWEN GETS CLEAN-UP HELP

The River Starts Here: 2019 Ukiah Valley Russian River Cleanup To Be Held Saturday, September 21

Volunteers Needed for Annual Pollution Prevention and Stewardship Event

Ukiah-Ever wonder what can you do to prevent plastic and other trash from polluting our waterways? The answer is simple: join the Ukiah Valley Russian River Cleanup! The Mendocino County Resource Conservation District (MCRCD) is teaming up with the Mendocino County Water Agency, MendoRecycle, Russian Riverkeeper, and South Ukiah Rotary to clean the Russian River and its creeks and protect the health of our watershed.

“This year’s theme is The River Starts Here,” says Sarah Dukett of the Mendocino County Water Agency. “We want to highlight our connection to the Russian River, no matter where we are in the Ukiah Valley. When water flows, litter and other contaminants flow with it, polluting first the river and later the ocean.”

The event is scheduled for Saturday September 21 from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. and is a part of International Coastal Cleanup Day and Rotary’s Cleaning the Rivers of the World project. “Our local cleanup is part of a global effort,” says event organizer Deborah Edelman of the MCRCD. “Last year, local volunteers picked up 1,740 pounds of trash and recycling. We can do it again! Join us at Low Gap Park in Ukiah. Come with a team or solo and we'll match you with a group. All ages are welcome.”

Come at 8 am for snacks and coffee donated by Schat’s and to sign in. Volunteers should be prepared to walk on uneven cobble and may get wet. Those who don’t want to walk can help with base camp operations. Bring a water bottle, study shoes, and work gloves. No flip flops! A hat, sunscreen, and a walking stick are also recommended.

To volunteer or for more information, contact Deborah Edelman at 462-3664 x 106, deborah.edelman@mcrcd.org or visit www.mcrcd.org. Participants under 15 must be accompanied by an adult and those under 18 will need a signed permission form, available on the MCRCD website.

MENDOCINO OPEN PAINT OUT - A Plein Air Festival

Wednesday, September 18 Continuing through September 22 — Mendocino Art Center

Admission to all events is free and open to the public

Watch featured artists paint and attend daily demonstrations and wet paint sales, with new paintings each day.

See our full schedule of events

http://www.mendocinoartcenter.org/schedule.html

CATCH OF THE DAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2019

ALANI AKHTAB, Fort Bragg. Controlled substance without prescription, probation revocation.

SHELBEY BAKER, Ukiah. Probation revocation.

RACHELLE CURRO, Willits. Disorderly conduct-alcohol.

MICHAEL DONAHE SR., Ukiah. Disorderly conduct-alcohol, probation revocation. (Frequent flyer.)

TERRY ELLISON II, Covelo. Burglary, controlled substance, paraphernalia, conspiracy, probation revocation.

SCOTT FORBESS, Ukiah. Probation revocation.

CHRISTOPHER GEURTS, Willits. Burglarly, conspiracy.

BRANDON HIGHTOWER, Livermore/Ukiah. Speed contest, probation revocation.

AMANDA MARSH, Willits. Burglary, conspiracy.

KARI NOWLIN, Ukiah. Domestic abuse.

PATTY PIERCE, Willits. Honey oil extraction, harboring a wanted felon.

KIRK RICHARDSON, Ukiah. Community supervision violation.

JANICE ZEHER, Ukiah. Controlled substance while armed with loaded firearm, felon-addict with firearm, ammo possession by prohibited person, transportation/import, manufacture of assault weapon, sell/lease/transfer firearms without license.

ON LINE COMMENT OF THE DAY

Vaping. Listen to the press and it sounds like the world is coming to an end. My main complaint is why is it that a report does not emerge saying what the best guesses of what is causing the aggravated pneumonias. Theories abound about what is causing it. I think it is interesting that all the liberal states are nailing the flavored smoking liquids and trying to ban them. In spite of one of the main theories is the inclusion of THC based liquids with the other liquids into the device. Something about some form of fat in the THC liquid.

But, I forgot, marijuana is hands off, especially in the liberal states. We have had cigarettes killing folks for decades, now absolutely no studies on vaping and scarce studies on marijuana on whether they are as dangerous or even more dangerous than tobacco.

Why? Vaping corporations want their profits and states want their taxes on marijuana. Maybe when the Roundup and asbestos lawsuits go full blast, this crap will stop.

"HEROES AND PATRIOTS" at KMUD Show Idea: Beyond the Wall "Debate": The "Bipartisan Border Industrial Complex"

Beyond the Wall "Debate": The "Bipartisan Border Industrial Complex"

Todd Miller, toddmemomiller@gmail.com, @memomiller

Miller is the author of the just-released report "More Than A Wall: Corporate Profiteering and the Militarization of U.S. Borders" from the Transnational Institute. Miller has written on border and immigration issues for more than 15 years and resides in Tucson, Arizona. His most recent book is Empire of Borders: The Expansion of the U.S. Border Around the World.

Miller said today: “Joe Biden was not telling the truth when at the debate on Thursday he said that the Obama administration did not 'lock people in cages' or 'separate families.' The statement is an impossible one given the nearly 3 million deportations during the eight years of Obama, the most ever by a sitting president, among other things. With his denial what Biden tried to do was extract himself from a vicious border and immigration enforcement system that the Obama administration both bolstered and helped normalize.

"When Donald Trump took office in 2017, at his disposal was the most massive border and immigration apparatus in United States history, built on turbocharge for 25 years, particularly over the three previous administrations. There were already 650 miles of walls and barriers, nearly 21,000 Border Patrol agents, more than 250 immigration detention prisons, and billions of dollars of deployed surveillance technology. The border and immigration enforcement annual budget in 2017 was $20 billion dollars (combined CBP and ICE), a historic number compared to the annual budgets of the early 1990s that hovered around $1.5 billion. It is true that Trump has ratcheted up and consolidated this apparatus -- he’s taken it to its limits in every way imaginable, including its limits of cruelty -- at the same time all his tools were already in place.

"It is a system that is much bigger than any president: a complex of complicit administrations, politicians and policy makers of all stripes, and a surge of influential corporations ready to cash in with contracts There are companies at the ready to design and manufacture those very technologies and tools to surveil, arrest, and encage people. Between 2006 and 2018, CBP has given more than $26 billion (ICE $18 billion) in contracts to such corporations that include large military monoliths such as Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman. From 2005 to 2018, many of those same companies were top campaign contributors to Congress Appropriation Committee and House Homeland Security Committee members. They were also the top lobbyists. It is this bipartisan border industrial complex which poses the biggest obstacle to a humane and compassionate response to migration.”

Miller is also author of the books “Border Patrol Nation” and “Storming the Wall: Climate Change, Migration, and Homeland Security.”

TRUMP HAS BEEN WAGING A BRUTAL WAR ON IRAN for over a year, in Alliance with Saudi Arabia & Israel

Iran’s sale of its petroleum is perfectly legal in international law, and the rest of the members of the UN Security Council all voted to remove all such sanctions in 2015 (Obama joined in for the US at that time). Congress has not even voted on this economic war, despite that sort of thing being given to it by the US constitution, not the president. So it is just Trump and his cronies who declared and prosecuted this economic war and coerced everybody else into it. Trump’s rationale for the economic war on Iran is that it is disruptive in the region. But Iran played a major role in defeating ISIL, which Washington is unable to bring itself to acknowledge. Iran has been a status quo power, propping up Iraq and Syria and keeping their governments in place. The disruptive powers in the region are Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and Israel (which is colonizing the West Bank) and the United States itself. Israel and Saudi Arabia have exerted enormous pressure on Washington to pursue this economic war on Iran.

— Juan Cole

FINAL EVENT FOR PROMISE OF PARADISE, back to the land oral histories of Mendocino County

Promise of Paradise, back to the land oral histories of Mendocino County, is wrapping up its weekly radio series on KZYX with two free public forums on the coast and inland, October 1 & 2. Described as good old-fashioned “Happenings” with a modern twist, Promise of Paradise: Dream it Forward, will offer the opportunity to reflect on the themes and values that resonated through the 55 interviews that will have been aired by the end of the project, and to imagine where we’re headed now.

Promise of Paradise hosts, Kate Magruder, Sarah Reith and Laura Hamburg, will be joined by PoP’s scholar/advisor, Cal Winslow, who will provide a cultural snapshot of the era and the movement. Kirsten Ellen Johnsen, a second-generation back to the lander, will facilitate a panel discussion with people who were interviewed for the project, and invite fresh perspectives from the audience and special guests.

Promise of Paradise: Dream it Forward will be held on the coast on Tuesday, October 1 at the Caspar Community Center from 6 - 8:30pm. The panel members will be Anica Williams, Norman de Vall, Zo Abell and Diana Wiedemann.

The inland event will be held on Wednesday, October 2 at the Grace Hudson Museum from 6 - 8:30pm. The panel members will be J Holden, Sheilah Rogers, Wendy Jackson and Tom Liden.

Both forums are free to the public.

Promise of Paradise has been made possible by support from California Humanities, a non-profit partner of National Endowment for the Humanities (visit calhum.org), along with the Arts Council of Mendocino County, the Judy Pruden Historical Preservation Fund of the Community Foundation of Mendocino County, KZYX, the Mendocino Institute, StoryCenter and the Grace Hudson Museum.

FAREWELL PARTY FOR GEORGE

George Husaruk farewell concert Sun Sept. 22, 11:30, Ukiah United Methodist Church

Jazz flutist George Husaruk is moving, so we are having a short concert and refreshments to send him on his way with love and appreciation for all he has done for music in our community. This Sunday September 22nd at 11:30 AM at the Ukiah United Methodist Church at Smith and North Pine St., George will play with Paul McCandless, Bill Taylor, Yanahay Hooper, Jaye Alison Moscariello, and other friends who may want to join us (please call us if you want to). The affair will end with plenty of time to get to the Ukiah Community Concert performance in the afternoon if you were planning to go to that too. If you come early (10 AM), the church "Soul Purpose Band" directed by George will be playing music including Redemption Song and What A Wonderful World and a few hymns/church music during the regular 10-11 AM service. Since many of you on this list signed up to know about Eating on the Wild Side/Salad University classes, you may want to mark your calendar for Sunday November 3rd 12:45-4:30. I will send out more about this in a few weeks. Meanwhile, if you knew George or want to hear some great music and flute playing (and Paul McCandless too), we hope you can make it this Sunday.

Bill Taylor, 707-272-1688

OVER 20 LOCAL ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS WITH EDUCATIONAL TABLES. Speakers include Richard Charter, ocean hero and senior fellow at Ocean Foundation, Rietta Hohman of Greater Farallones Association, Ted Williams, and more. Friday, September 20th, 12 to 4pm. Climate March from 12 to 1 pm. Location: Gualala Community Center on the corner of Highway 1 and Center St.

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“We can’t save the world by playing by the rules because the rules have to be changed. Everything needs to change. And it has to start today.”— Greta Thunberg in a TEDx talk about global warming, 16 year old teenager from Sweden

Point Arena Theater - Monday, September 23, 7p.m. Disobedience (USA, 2017)

Monday, September 23, 7 p.m.

Disobedience (USA, 2017)*

Director: Sebastian Lelio

Rated: R (for some strong sexuality)

Runtime: 114 minutes

Cast: Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams, Alessandro Nivola, Cara Horgan, Mark Stobbart

A formerly exiled woman returns to her orthodox Jewish family after the death of her father. Her family is shocked by her visit, but her sister-in-law is inspired by her presence to break free from the rigid rules and guidelines of their faith.

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From Sebastian Lelio, the director of the Academy Award-winning "A Fantastic Woman," the film follows a woman as she returns to the community that shunned her decades earlier for an attraction to a childhood friend. Once back, their passions reignite as they explore the boundaries of faith and sexuality. Written by Lelio and Rebecca Lenkiewicz and based on Naomi Alderman's book

LOTTSA THINGS BANNED IN MENDO, BUT…

Name That Banned Book Challenge! at the Library Sept 22-27 The Mendocino County Library invites everyone to a FREE, important and fascinating, hour-long program in celebration of National Banned Books Week.

Challenged and Censored Linda Pack reads selections from Banned Books

Linda Pack, actress, historian, and radio host of Mendocino County Remembered, says, "Come and hear what many people over many years have not wanted you to hear!"

Name That Banned Book Challenge! Linda will read selections from eight banned or challenged books. The audience will be given a list of forty banned titles and try to guess the book.

Sunday, 9/22 at 2pm, Coast Community Library, Point Arena

Tuesday, 9/24 at 5:30pm, Willits Library

Wednesday, 9/25 at 5:30pm, Ukiah Library

Friday, 9/27 at 5:00pm, Fort Bragg Library

Banned Books Week (September 22-28, 2019) is an annual event celebrating the First Amendment and the Freedom to Read. It spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools and highlights the value of free and open access to information.

TRUMP'S NEW NATIONAL SECURITY GUY

(Funny, he doesn’t look very nutty.)

Trump on Wednesday named Robert O'Brien, a 1984 graduate of Cardinal Newman High School in Santa Rosa, as his new national security adviser. O'Brien is the fourth person in two years to hold the job, and becomes the administration's point person on national security amid rising tensions with Iran following the weekend attack on Saudi oil installations and fresh uncertainty in Afghanistan after the halt in peace talks with the Taliban. The announcement of O'Brien's selection comes a week after Trump ousted John Bolton from the post, citing policy disagreements. O'Brien, who made headlines in July when he was dispatched to Sweden to monitor the assault trial of American rapper A$AP Rocky, was among five candidates Trump said Tuesday were under consideration.

FOUND OBJECT