MCT: Saturday, June 13, 2020

• Mild Spotty
• Higher Risk
• MacKerricher Vista
• FB Updates
• Western Bluebird
• Reopening Counties
• Water Conservation
• Mendocino Lumber
• Brothelburg
• Second Bridge
• Traitortown
• Original Skunk
• Ed Notes
• Yesterday's Catch
• Kneeling Dems
• Kente Pelosi
• Chappelle on Floyd
• Death Panels
• Redemeyer Building
• Mirror Image
• Plantain Lily
• CHAZ Communes
• Remember
• PA Zoom
• Found Object

MILD TEMPERATURES and light, spotty rain can be expected through the day today. Dry conditions are expected Sunday, with another round of very light rain possible in Del Norte and Humboldt counties Monday. A warming trend is expected Sunday through the end of the week, with above normal temperatures expected Wednesday and beyond. (NWS)

FROM SUPERVISOR WILLIAMS:

Re: Tourism, “Permissible Higher Risk Businesses” plans

Responding to a plethora of threads about tourism, lodging in Mendocino County is now open under certain requirements of the health order, including an authored site specific plan detailing means of compliance with state and local requirements. These plans must be submitted within seven days and will be made public. I anticipate tourists will be here -- nobody will be checking the distance visitors have travelled. The risk of viral spread has increased. The order urges us to stay within fifty miles of our residence. If you are concerned, as I am, I recommend avoiding all unnecessary contact. We expect the results of this reopening to be reflected in data about three weeks from now. 

The idea of staying closed for the next 12-18 months is not feasible without state and federal funding which hasn't been offered. We're seeing the entire state open through various paths. 

If you are a potential customer, ask the business whether they have certified. Please favor those who are partners in safety. 

If you are a business, please work on your site specific plan. Industry specific templates are becoming available to prompt relevant topics. Public spending habits will favor those who take safety seriously. All high risk businesses must have a plan submitted within seven days in order to stay open. One size does not fit all. We are allowing you to meet the requirements in a manner appropriate for your business case, facility, personnel and other site specific obstacles. Your business will be expected to follow the plan you submit. 

“Permissible Higher Risk Businesses” requiring site specific plans through self-certification: 

I anticipate a change to orders allowing hotels to match the campground and vacation rental requirement of a “caretaker” being available within 1 hour and readily available by phone.

Places of Worship, i.e. churches, fall under “Permissible Higher Risk Businesses” and require a site specific plan through self-certification.

Submitted plans will be published.

Permissible Higher Risk Businesses:

• Hair salons and barber shops

• Places of Worship

• Funeral service providers

• Therapeutic services (massage therapy, chiropractic and acupuncture)

• Transient lodging (hotels, motels, vacation rentals, etc.)

• Tasting rooms (winers, breweries, distilleries)

• Bars

• Gyms and fitness facilities

• Movie theaters

• Family entertainment centers (bowling alleys, miniature golf, arcades)

• Museums, galleries, zoos and aquariums

• Campgrounds and RV parks

MACKERRICHER STATE PARK

FORT BRAGG UPDATES:

New Health Order Issued Last Night. The much anticipated update to the SIP Order was pushed out about 7:30pm last night. A good summary of changes is provided in the County’s press release.

Lodging, campgrounds and RV parks are allowed to open, however due to the risk associated with tourism, lodges and campgrounds have to meet additional requirements. Tasting rooms and bars (until 12pm) are allowed to open, as are gyms and fitness facilities, movie theaters (25% of occupancy or 100 people), museums, galleries, zoos, aquariums, charter boats and public pools, however all with additional restrictions. All businesses must self-certify at mendocinocountybusiness.org and understand the requirements provided in the revised SIP Order. 

Name Change for City of Fort Bragg. An agenda item to discuss whether the Fort Bragg City Council would like to place the question of changing the City’s name on the ballot in November is scheduled for the June 22nd Regular City Council meeting. 

Public Meeting on June 22. The City Council meeting on Monday June 22nd will be open to the public. So that there is ample room for social distancing of Councilmembers at the Dias, most of staff will attend by Zoom. Zoom is also an option for Councilmembers who prefer to continue to shelter at home. Public seating in Town Hall will be limited to accommodate social distancing and facial masks will be required. Members of the public may continue to submit public comments through the online eComment agenda feature, by emailing City Clerk, June Lemos at JLemos@fortbragg.com or by voice mail (707) 961-1694. 

Bainbridge Park. The revised SIP Order still states that individuals cannot engage in sports or activities that use shared equipment (tennis, basketballs & playgrounds) at public recreation sites, so Bainbridge Park will not reopen at this time. 

North Headland Restrooms Open. As of today (June 12th), the restrooms at the North Headlands/Glass Beach are open. These facilities have running water, so they provide proper hand sanitizing stations. With the recent reductions in City staff, the City is struggling with the additional COVID-19 standards for cleaning restrooms and other facilities. The south and middle Trail restrooms, without running water, will remain closed. 

Fort Bragg Surveillance Testing Results – All Negative. Mendocino Coast Clinics confirmed that the results of the recent COVID-19 surveillance testing completed on June 4th were all negative. 

BLUEBIRD

LAKE AND MENDOCINO COUNTIES REOPEN MORE BUSINESSES

by Ethan Varian

Lake and Mendocino counties allowed for the reopening of many more kinds of businesses on Friday after receiving approval from state officials to ease coronavirus restrictions on higher-risk business sectors.

Lake and Mendocino are two of 51 California counties that had so far met state readiness criteria to move into the third stage of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s four-step reopening plan starting Friday, according to county officials. It’s now up to those counties’ individual health departments to decide how quickly to reopen additional industries while adhering to state guidelines.

The types of businesses that can reopen in Lake and Mendocino counties include: bars and wineries; hotels and vacation rentals, with restrictions in Mendocino County; campgrounds and RV parks, with restrictions in Mendocino County; gyms and fitness facilities; family entertainment centers; and museums, galleries and zoos.

In addition, day camps can restart in accordance with state guidelines, which include ensuring children remain in small and stable groups.

In Lake County, schools also can open as long as they follow the state’s interim guidance for schools released on June 5.

All businesses and services that reopen in both counties must follow state and local rules for hygiene, face coverings and social distancing.

Despite allowing for the broader reopening of the hospitality industry, the state has been “ambiguous” about whether residents are permitted to travel from one county to another for pleasure or on vacation under current shelter-in-place orders, according to Lake County Public Health Officer Dr. Gary Pace. 

“The way we’re framing this is that we are opening these (hospitality) businesses and that people should follow the orders that they can, but no one is checking to see if (visitors) are coming from out of the area,” he said.

Mendocino County Supervisor Ted Williams said his county also won’t actively try to stop tourists.

“We expect it to happen at this point and are sort of opening the floodgate,” Williams said, noting that local businesses are required to file plans outlining how they are following local public health orders, including restrictions on hotel occupancy. 

“I think that peer pressure is driving a lot of businesses to do the right thing,” he added.

Many nonmedical personal services, including nail salons, massage parlors and tattoo shops are not yet allowed to reopen under the counties’ revised health orders. But on Friday, state officials announced they will clear the way for most of those businesses to resume starting next Friday at the earliest. 

The rollback of restrictions in Mendocino and Lake counties come as new coronavirus cases in both areas have remained relatively stable compared to more heavily populated parts of the state.

As of Friday, Lake County reported 32 confirmed COVID-19 cases, four of which were still active. No residents have died from the disease since the pandemic began in mid-March.

Mendocino County reported 38 confirmed COVID-19 cases as of Friday, six of which were still active. The county has also reported no deaths.

(courtesy The Press Democrat)

WATER CONSERVATION TIPS FOR THE NAVARRO AND BEYOND!

Observe flows in any of the creeks in the Navarro watershed and it’s looking like it’s time to start conserving water in our domestic and agricultural uses for another record-breaking drought this year.

The Navarro River Resource Center and Mendocino County Resource Conservation District (MCRCD) recommend the following web-based tools for identifying water-saving strategies. These include: 1) Water Conservation Tips: https://mcrcd.org/resources/drought-water-conservation-resources; 2) Fire preparedness and water security resources at: https://mcrcd.org/resources/fire-preparedness-and-water-security; and 3) Streamflow enhancement strategies at: https://mcrcd.org/resources/flow-enhancement

Together with The Nature Conservancy and Trout Unlimited, MCRCD is coordinating flow enhancement strategies for Mill Creek, tributary to the mainstem Navarro. MCRCD’s Linda MacElwee encourages landowners to complete the water-use survey sent out in mid-May for developing a community water management model program in Mill Creek. Please let Linda know if you have not received a survey, and for those of you who are still looking it over—please return it to Linda by June 19^th. Thanks, and let us know if you have questions about streamflows or fish in the Navarro! Linda.macelwee@mcrcd.org or (707) 895-3230

(Linda MacElwee, Navarro River Resource Center)

MENDOCINO LUMBER MILL, circa 1868

CHARLIE ENGEL WRITES:

The History of Fort Bragg

If we are going to tout the history of Fort Bragg, it should be noted that our town was recognized for being home to the most bars and whore houses, per capita, of any town in the United States. Fort Bragg was at least a front runner for that dubious title. 

Is there reason for the descendents of the loggers to be proud of the work their ancestors did? What we have today is the end result. Where is the nearest old growth redwood and how many of us have contemplated the scope and irreplaceable natural beauty that was lost. What is there to be proud of when you can't see a single old growth redwood near the towns of Fort Bragg and Mendocino? A high percentage of that wood went to Asia and San Francisco. We know what happened to the majority of redwood that was used to build San Francisco. How many old growth redwoods were cut down within the city limits? Imagine the lack of vision that allowed this to happen! 

History clearly indicates that political qualifications and discernment have been lacking in Fort Bragg. There isn't a shortage of people that have lived here longer than others. One needn't look far to see what good that has done. When someone doesn't have anything else to offer they will regurgitate the line; "I've lived here longer than you so I know what is best for the community." It would be enlightening to hear more from such people. Perhaps we would hear a few stories about the "good old days" when there were more bars and brothels and fewer "out of towners". When the dust settles, there was nothing like cutting down one of those made for profit old growth redwood trees! What can we destroy next? 

Why isn't the fishing industry sustainable? Is it a surprise?

BRIDGE OVER THE RIVER NOYO

Tony Phillips hosts a fascinating website on Mendo Train History called "Hobo Laments." The following three photographs, showing the demise of the second bridge, are from his page titled "Pictorial History of the Six Bridges that have crossed the Noyo River, Fort Bragg, CA" [click photos to enlarge them].

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BRAXTON BRAGG, AN EXCHANGE:

MCN LISTSERVE COMMENT (anon):

Confederate monument(s) in FB?

I've been here for 40 years and have never heard of or seen any such thing. Fort Bragg was not named after any Confederates; Fort Bragg pre-dates the American Civil War. But there were 53 (or 58) civil war battles in California. Does anyone know where they were located? Any near us? Of course these were minor events, mere skirmishes, but it would make sense if there were monuments in the vicinity of any of these battles. Still the fact remains that if there is a confederate monument or battlefield around here it is a well kept secret. There is a confederate veteran buried in the veterans section of the FB cemetary. He went to church at the Baptist church that became Corners of the Mouth. Is his gravestone what people are talking about? It is the closest thing to a confederate monument I know of around here, but refering to an individual's memorial as a CSA monument is a wildly outrageous stretch. 

---

Nicholas Wilson:

Braxton Bragg became a (failed) Civil War general after Fort Bragg was named for him. The fact that he became a traitor against the U.S. after the town was named doesn't really change the fact that the town is named after a Confederate traitor. Bragg's dismal record of failures and lost battles as a Civil War general doesn't make much of an argument for keeping his name on the town. 

Fort Bragg was a concentration camp for the local Pomo and Coast Miwok indigenous people, a gulag where they were rounded up and held in captivity for up to 10 years before the survivors were forced to walk all the way to the larger concentration camp in Covelo so the Army could close Fort Bragg. If it's a monument to anything, it's racism, theft and genocide against the original people of the area. 

If people want to have the name of a concentration camp for their town name, maybe they should consider changing it to Auschwitz. 

ORIGINAL SKUNK TRAIN

ED NOTES:

WITHOUT ARGUMENT, the supervisors have handed Doc Doohan a hundred grand bonus. Why? Doohan did nothing but relay a tailored version of the governor's state covid strategies and did it from her home in San Diego. Any local person with a medical degree could have done what Doohan has done, Dr. Drew Colfax, for example, a local guy born and bred whose daily reports on KZYX Radio are probably the only medical advisories much of anyone around here pays any attention to.

SUPERVISOR JOHN MCCOWEN on Wednesday explaining why he voted against Dr. Doohan’s $100k contract extension.

“We have now been through Version 9 of the health officer’s order. We have had the previous eight versions and some of them, many of them, involved extensive wordsmithing, so there has been a constant revision of the order and if you want cost savings -- a tremendous amount of time both by the health officer and by a County Counsel and two of his deputies revising these health orders and preparing the frequently asked questions which are then invalidated as soon as the next order comes out, so it has been a constant writing and rewriting of the order. I believe we could have had the same substance brought forward for the most part if we simply said our order is in line with the state’s, what the governor allows to open we allow to open. Then, here are these few additional considerations that we want to incorporate and that would be at the direction of the health officer. But mourn the countless hours that have gone to rewriting these health orders. I don't expect my position to carry the day today but we are probably going to continue to see future revisions of the health order and I hope there would be serious consideration given to, without changing the substance of it in any way, could we change the structure of it so that it's both less time intensive to revise but also more comprehensible to the public?”

Nobody responded. The rest of the Board then voted to extend Dr. Doohan's contract to the end of the year at part time for 20 hours a week for a total of $325k total compensation starting back in August of 2019 (part-time) and continuing through December 31, 2020. (Mark Scaramella)

MY FAVE DOOHAN-ISM was her advice to re-open bars but only allow them to stay open until 8pm. The doc's reasoning? After 8pm bar patrons can't be trusted to keep their masks on and socially distance.

SODDEN THOUGHT: Say you're a free enterprise buccaneer looking to hire. You throw a help wanted ad out there. "Wanted. Experienced public bureaucrats with Mendocino County work history only. Pay ranges from $80,000 to $300,000 annually with full fringe benefit package." How many people from local admin, including the supervisors, could make the money out in the capitalist jungle that they're making now? 

THE WAY WE LIVE NOW: "My 82 year old friend is desperately in need of a place to live. He can afford up to $1200 a month (he has VA assistance). He is easy to please and would be absolutely grateful for any type of housing (he is quite handy and enjoys fixing things up), preferably in Fort Bragg because he does not drive and volunteers 3 days a week in town. He is a great conversationalist and would make good company for someone who needs it. He is an active fellow who loves to read and garden. He does have a tiny well behaved 11 year old dog." (364-9828) 

DISBANDING THE POLICE: One night I was trucking down Clement Street in San Francisco. It was about 9 and I was at the east end of the street where there were a couple of Irish bars, so-called, with shamrocks in the windows and posters for soccer matches. The door of one of those joints flies open and here come a couple of Nautilus Youth, big gym-muscle boys flailing away at each other. And here come a half-dozen more brawlers, all large, all strong, all drunk, all trying hard to maim each other. The little brawl is now partly in the street. A squad car pulls up. Two cops, one a short, pudgy, obviously unfit woman, the other a short, slight Asian cop. The warriors simply shrugged off these feeble attempts of the short and shorter to separate them. The fight, now bloody but no one dominant, continues until three cars of large cops arrive who instantly grab the fighters, shove them up against the wall and pin several to the sidewalk. Fight over. 

THE POINT? Force is often necessary in the context of the most violent country in the world, and the peace keepers, aka law enforcement, must, when literal push comes to literal shove, have the physical ability to restrain the berserkers. 

FOR YEARS, SF had a late night squad, described to me by another cop as "a bunch of fat guys who drive around the city at night beating people up." The cops I saw that night on Clement breaking up the fight were all large, large enough to throw other large people around like rag dolls. I concluded that SF still has an on-call roving squad of head breakers. Every city does. 

SURE, a lot of the wackos the police spend most of their shifts sorting out could be handled by a Nice Person of the social worker type, but a cop would still have to be present if the situation required physical restraint, as many situations do.

AS OUR COUNTRY implodes, the only way to un-implode it is via a massive social welfare program that takes the sting out of injustice, a real deal New Deal. But anarchy is more likely.

BUT SERIOUSLY, as our country continues to implode, but if by some political miracle smart people of the political left — none of them from the candy ass brigades of the Democratic Party — emerge as the national leadership, they would restore order in a just manner via massive social programs which, by themselves, would restore public confidence in government and reduce, wholesale, the plague of poverty from which the worse plague of racism arises.

GOOGLING FACT CHECK, a useful on-line website that deftly unwinds rightwing lies, as in, the one presently circulating of a defaced Lincoln Memorial: "A meme is spreading a doctored image of the Lincoln Memorial covered in graffiti to falsely claim that protesters defaced the Lincoln statue. The image was taken from a thumbnail for a video on the conservative website the Daily Wire and shared as if real."

CATCH OF THE DAY, June 12, 2020

ANDERSON ALFORD, Ukiah. Assault with deadly weapon not a gun, under influence, failure to appear.

SHANNON ARNOLD, Fort Bragg. Disorderly conduct-alcohol, probation revocation. (Frequent flyer.)

LUIS LOPEZ, Willits. Assault with firearm.

HARVEY MCCARTY, Ukiah. Disorderly conduct-alcohol.

JESSE MCGARY, Fort Bragg. Domestic battery.

ROCKY STARK, Ukiah. Domestic abuse.

ROMONDS THOMPSON JR., Clearlake/Ukiah. Stolen vehicle.

THE PARTY OF CHAOS & FALSEHOOD

by James Kunstler

The USA has gone so batshit crazy in these months of the corona virus freak-out that an orgy of looting, arson, and murder, on top of epic job loss and business failure, propelled the stock markets up-up-and-away back to near-record highs — until it finally puked yesterday in a rare moment of self-revulsion, like a sot who has been drinking after-shave. The news media barely mentioned it, though, so fraught are they by the toils of systemic racism, a morbid condition not unlike “the vapors” of Sigmund Freud’s early days, curiously lacking specificity.

Which raises the question: how much of the response to the public killing of one George Floyd has been an engineered operation by the Democratic Party and its allies in the propaganda industry? I’d say, an awful lot, considering the presentation of events in The New York Times and other organs of the perpetual Resistance that have been luxuriating in existential woe surrounding the indecencies of whiteness, culminating in the fake abject ritual of contrition put on by Ms. Pelosi and Chuck Schumer taking-a-knee in their Kente cloth prayer shawls. Within a few more days, at least four cops around the country were ambushed and shot in the head, but there were no public displays of mourning for them.

Meanwhile, the country has watched countless scenes captured on smartphone video of young people in flash mobs looting, trashing, and burning one city business district after another — but don’t believe your lying eyes, these were “mostly peaceful protest demonstrations” (Ali Velshi, MSNBC). The police mostly stood by and watched, under instructions to avoid producing a batch of fresh martyrs to feed the flames of rage stoked by the talking heads of cable news. By some miracle, the cops’ restraint prevailed, but many of the trashed and looted businesses will not come back, and the cities themselves will be permanently diminished by the losses suffered.

The Democratic Party Resistance apparently believes that all this mayhem, and the false sanctimony excusing it, works to their advantage in the coming national election. They may be disappointed about how that works out, as they’ve been disappointed in three years of previous gambits to overthrow the government and seize power by any means necessary. The picture of them is resolving into the party of bad faith, foul play, coercion, and tyranny. Even the corona virus scare carries a taint of Resistance manipulation. One moment the populace is hustled into an economically devastating lockdown; and then suddenly, on a fine spring day, they’re incited to mix in moiling mobs of street protests with the predictable result of a fresh spike in virus contagion and the possibility of a second lockdown. Like many activities in our national life lately, it’s another hostage racket, and, guess what, you’re the hostage.

Their most transparent artifice is the utterly false elevation of Joe Biden as their candidate for president. Everybody knows he’s incapable of performing the job, and probably even of functioning through a campaign. His inchoate utterances on events and policy make Donald Trump sound like Ralph Waldo Emerson. He’s left behind himself an evidence trail of financial crimes running to at least nine digits of grift. And, of course, if you believe all women, he’s a sexual molester. Everything about his public presentation is false, including his hair, teeth, and soul.

This past week, his handlers posed him as Grief Counselor-in-Chief (via video from his basement) at the state funeral for George Floyd, accompanied by an inspirational music soundtrack to shore up the sham sentimentality. (Click here for video.) Never have so many hollow platitudes been woven into such a garment of alternative reality for public consumption. Most pathetically of all, the audience of mourners, mere props, as black America has long been employed by the cynical party, went along with the charade that George Floyd was a model citizen and father, now soaring on golden wings to the place on high where you don’t need methedrine and fentanyl to feel happy. A couple of days later, Democratic Party bigwig and Clinton henchperson Terry McAuliffe told a meeting of the faithful that Joe Biden should remain confined to his basement. In a matter of weeks, you may be sure, we’ll learn that the party is compelled to draft Hillary Clinton as poor Joe’s replacement. It can’t be helped. Her turn will not be denied, even if she has to destroy the country to take it.

(Support Kunstler’s writing by visiting his Patreon Page.)

ON LINE COMMENT OF THE DAY

Nancy’s stylist did a fabulous job coordinating her suit and shoes with her Kente cloth neckwear!

CHAPPELLE ON FLOYD

THE COVID-19 “DEATH PANELS”—

The elderly pay the price for the systematic destruction of the people’s Public Health System

by Dr. Nayvin Gordon

US politicians have for decades privatized medical care while they defunded, cut and starved the Public Health System, the major institution for protecting the people’s health from infectious disease and capable of containing and eradicating the COVID-19 pandemic. When the world was notified about the pandemic, the US government refused to prepare a national strategy. This homicidal policy of refusal to massively increase production of test kits, PPE (personal protective equipment), ventilators and hospital beds has already resulted in over 112, 000 deaths as we head towards a quarter of a million dead by summer’s end.

When the economy crashed, what did the politicians do? Did they demand that the Federal Government manufacture 100 million COVID-19 test kits? Did they spend a trillion dollars on PPE and ventilators? Did they spend a trillion dollars to hire 250,000 people to test and track COVID-19? NO –instead they poured $9 TRILLION into Wall Street, buying up the debts of the largest corporations, and hedge funds while they left 50 million workers who lost their jobs without any relief from their debts. https://wallstreetonparade.com/2020/03/the-fed-has-pumped-9-trillion-into-wall-street-over-the-past-six-months-but-mnuchin-says-this-isnt-like-the-financial-crisis/

The murderous failure to plan and prepare for this crisis created predictable massive shortages for hospitals. The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) is calling for “A Framework for Rationing Ventilator and Critical Care Beds During the COVID-19 Pandemic”. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2763953

JAMA is accommodating itself to this brutal betrayal of the people’s health. They are NOT calling for demonstrations in front of the White House and Congress. They are NOT funding TV or newspaper ads demanding resources, they are NOT calling for marches, demonstrations and strikes. No, they are advocating a policy to ration and deny care that will fall most heavily on those over 60 years of age. The JAMA article of March 27, 2020 recommends who should be DENIED care:

Those least likely to survive treatment. Statistics show that death rate increases over the age of 60. (the elderly, with higher risk for minorities)

Those with other medical conditions. More common over age 60. (the elderly, with higher risk for minorities)

Those who are working and “intrinsically more worthy” will be given priority and those who are retired will be denied. (the elderly)

Those who are younger will be given priority and the elderly will be denied.

In the opinion of the racist mass murderer Adolf Hitler, the elderly and disabled were considered less worthy “useless eaters” with no right to live.

This profit driven economic system is killing our parents and grandparents. Who next will be sacrificed to support the profits of the top 1%??

When do we reject, rebel and revolt against this brutal competitive profit driven system of the 1% and build an economy based on the needs and cooperation of the 99%? 

The time is now. 

(Dr. Gordon writes on politics and health and can be reached at gordonnayvin@yahoo.com.)

REDEMEYER BUILDING At The Corner Of State And Perkins In Ukiah

MIRROR, MIRROR ON THE CAR…

by Williams Grimes

At the foot of Phoenix Lake there is a small parking lot where people park theirs cars and walk the last quarter mile to the top of the hill where a great view of the Lake awaits.

As I approached the first parked car I heard a rat-tat, rat-a-tat pecking sound, different from the sound woodpeckers make when tapping on trees for food. I see a small bird, a sage sparrow, perched on the rim of the exterior mirror of the parked automobile. He is angrily, aggressively attacking with his male beak the image of himself. He obviously is angry and confused that the bird he’s assaulting does not retreat, fly away. It responds with equal aggression. A standoff. 

After a few seconds the sparrow would stop, not move or leave the mirror, staring at the bird that has so angered him. Like I’ve been beating the hell out of you. How much more can you take? He resumes his attack but the damn bird in the mirror takes all these blows without a flinch or screech.

The sparrow finally gives up and flies away. Probably hoping his opponent will not follow.

Back home I google and learn many birds, particularly in mating season, feel territorial and will attack a competitor who might jeopardize his relationship with his mate, or the bird he wants for his mate, or that a rival might possibly invade his nest. Seems the intelligence of these small sage sparrows, while not as well developed as some species, such as crows, nonetheless recognize their relatives by sight. Which is some sign of intelligence which I suppose comes from being with their parents and offspring because no one approaches the bird with a mirror in hand and says, “Look at this, Sparrow, this is what you look like, who you are.”

It got me thinking of how we humans utilize mirrors. 

To impress others. To make sure we look as much like someone should in his occupation. In the old days of corporate office attire before I left for work I’d look in the mirror to check the knot in my necktie, be sure the collar stays were unnoticeable, and how the jacket fits around the shoulders, something once done but always checked. When I was in military school I’d take a look at the similar features, knowing inspection of my dress by my seniors was the way each day began. 

To the vain I believe they look in mirrors to remind themselves how handsome or pretty they believe they are.

They may of course compare themselves only to how they look when they stagger out of bed in the morning before the work required for the mirror to give positive feedback. If there is a rival who the vain person feels is maybe more attractive, better dressed, it’s the mirror that’s lying. I knew a woman who was ballet-dance thin and asked how she in middle age maintained her svelte figure. “I look in the mirror every day and see signs of fat. The mirror obeys my wish to be deceived. Then I don’t eat much.” 

For most men who shave the mirror is a necessity. I say most because I have mastered shaving by seeing only my eyes in the mirror. This total focus provides scant visibility of the rest of my face, virtually eliminating any sight of the corrugated lines in my forehead, the bloated bags beneath my eyes, and the flab flesh of my cheeks, all of which are revealed as the shaving cream is removed. But bot if you keep your eyes locked in to your eyes on the mirror.

Is this vanity? I don’t think so since since I’m mostly a recluse. I have no reason to look better to acquire a new friend or a woman. I just find looking at my face distressing since it looks like someone I’ve never known. That younger go-getter who looked presentable in the morning after a night of howling at the moon.

Fleshy, grizzled, and appalling now. So why suffer by looking at something this unappealing. If I were the bird and saw myself in the mirror thinking it was a another bird, friend or foe, I’d be off in full flight in an instant.

A final thought putting appearance and vanity aside. Would a different bird of the same sparrow species try to make nice, make love to the bird it sees in the window? Pecking with a woo and open wings? Thinking let’s try friendship or a little sex.

Now that’s something to think about.

ON LINE COMMENT OF THE DAY #2

I think Seattle is showing the country a model of dismantling the dysfunctional civic edifice. Every anarchist and university-trained neo-marxist in the country is biting her nails watching what happens next. If nothing happens in a week (and that’s pretty much guaranteed, if you heard Jay Islee yesterday) watch tens and hundreds CHAZ communes spring all over the country taking over derelict inner city zones declaring themselves free of the U.S. and its racist laws. The response of the cities will be the same as in Seattle, the City Hall chicken-shit will try to negotiate with the gangstas, and the gangstas will take over new territory. Former police officers will join local right-wing self-defense militias and the Dem powers-that-have-been will try to disarm them by calling the National Guard. Expect at least half to join the rebels, and co-ordinate the movement across the land. If Trump is still in the White House, expect the high command to defy him and try to use the Army to defeat the citizen militias. Much of the lower ranks will defect and become militias as well. It’s coming, friends, most assuredly it’s coming, as assuredly as the second lockdown blamed on Covid19. 

FROM OUT OF THE FOG......

The Point Arena City Council will conduct a public hearing at via Zoom teleconference

(https://cityofpointarena.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=c164a8c82a2a5af8db4de85b1&id=f6a3f2194c&e=d0e3cdc057)

Tuesday, June 23, 2020 at 6:00 p.m., or as soon thereafter as possible, on the following:

Coastal Development Permit for a residential accessory barn/shop. The proposed project is within the coastal zone and is appealable to the Coastal Commission.

Public Hearing will be held Approving/Denying the Following Project:

CASE:  CDP # 2-2020

DATE FILED: February 18, 2020

OWNER/APPLICANT: Richard Wasserman

ZONING: Residential Agriculture (RA-2)

REQUEST: The applicant is requesting a Coastal Development Permit to allow for construction of a two-story structure residential accessory barn/shop with a 400 square foot footprint (800 square feet total floor area), with a maximum height of 18 feet above natural grade. A roof will extend from the barn structure over an adjacent 444 sq. foot concrete slab to be used for equipment storage. 

APN: 027-081-12 

LOCATION: 44600 Port Road 

PUBLIC HEARING DATE: June 23, 2020 The Point Arena City Council is soliciting your input. All interested parties are invited to attend and be heard at this time. Applicants or their agents must appear for their hearings. If you challenge the above matter(s) in court, you may be limited to raising only those issues you or someone else raised at the public hearing described in this notice, or in written correspondence delivered to the City Clerk at, or prior to, the public hearing. All documents are available for review in the City Clerk’s Office 

(https://cityofpointarena.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=c164a8c82a2a5af8db4de85b1&id=07c02a684c&e=d0e3cdc057) . 

The City Council’s action regarding the item shall constitute final action by the City unless appealed to the Coastal Commission. Appeals to the Coastal Commission must be made in writing within 10 working days following Coastal Commission receipt of a Notice of Final Action on this project. Should you desire to request notification of the City Council’s decision you may do so in writing by providing a self-addressed stamped envelope to the City Clerk. 

For further information contact the City of Point Arena:

Mailing Address: PO Box 67, Point Arena, California 95468

City Hall Location: 451 School Street, Point Arena, California 95468

Telephone: 707 882-2122

Website: pointarena.ca.gov

FOUND OBJECT