Mendocino County Today: Saturday 8/10/2024

By AVA News Service on August 10, 2024

YESTERDAY'S HIGHS: Ukiah 100°, Covelo 100°, Laytonville 97°, Yorkville 96°, Boonville 89°, Fort Bragg 61°, Mendocino 61°, Point Arena 60°

HOT AND DRY weather expected to continue in the interior today, followed by cooler weather next week. Persistent stratus with patches of night and morning fog and drizzle will continue for coastal areas through this weekend. (NWS)

STEPHEN DUNLAP (Fort Bragg): I have clear skies & 52F on the coast this Saturday morning but the fog is nearby so... Partly cloudy this weekend then mostly clear next week. At least that's what they say.

Boat Approaching Noyo Harbor (Jeff Goll)

‘ARMED AND DANGEROUS’ MAN AT-LARGE AFTER MENDOCINO COUNTY SHOOTING

by Alana Minkler

A man at-large considered “armed and dangerous” is suspected of a Mendocino County shooting that hospitalized a man earlier this month, authorities said Friday.

Miguel Rosas Camacho, believed to be in his 30s and from Madera County, is aware that he is wanted by authorities, according to a news release from the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office.

Just after 11 p.m. Aug. 7, several people called 911 to report a man had been shot near the 26000 block of Redwood Creek Road, west of Willits.

Sheriff’s deputies had trouble accessing the remote area, but within 30 minutes they found a man who had multiple gunshot wounds.

He was eventually transported via helicopter to an out-of-county trauma center, but had given a deputy information about the suspect — a description of the man’s vehicle and which direction he went.

A California Highway Patrol officer saw a vehicle matching the description driving with its headlights off near Main Street and Sherwood Road in Willits and tried to pull the driver over, but they fled and a pursuit ensued.

The driver eventually stopped and fled on foot in the 24800 block of Highway 101. He was last seen running into the wooded area west of the highway, leaving behind an Acura, registered to Camacho.

Deputies found an assault weapon without a serial number in the Acura, as well as “evidence that tied the driver of the vehicle to the shooting scene,” the release says.

The shooting on Redwood Creek Road happened at a large, illegal cannabis operation, investigators said. It was made up of multiple large hoop houses and more than 1,000 cannabis plants.

Once the shooting victim was in stable condition at the hospital, he told officials he had been staying with the suspect at the remote property.

During the investigation, Mendocino County Sheriff's Detectives discovered that Camacho also drives a white Ford Mustang and is known to be involved in drug trafficking in and around Round Valley and other parts of Mendocino County, the release says.

Miguel Rosas Camacho's white Ford Mustang

Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office officials encouraged anyone with knowledge of Camacho or his whereabouts to contact 707-463-4086 or call the tip line at 707-234-7463.

(Santa Rosa Press Democrat)

HELP CREMATE RANDY BLOYD

We need help to cremate Randy Bloyd due to his motorcycle accident and the condition he was found in. We are on a time schedule. I know Randy Bloyd has touched all our lives in some way, and we all loved him so much. Anything will help and is appreciated. The cremation is $2500 at Empire Mortuary and we want to get a nice urn.

We will be planning a service and celebration of life for everyone to pay their respects. This is a terrible tragedy. All your prayers are needed for Ricky and Ronny right now. Thank you all.

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-cremate-randy-bloyd-after-tragic-accident

JIM LARSON

Jim Larson In 1969 Jim and his wife, Nadjah, came to Ukiah and taught at Ukiah High School. Over the years, thousands of students passed through his math classes. Jim had an exceptional knack of making math understandable. For 18 years, Jim was the head varsity football coach. Together with Ed Schweitzer, Jerry Aikman, and Pat Wilson, they brought UHS four North Bay League championships. Having three athletic daughters, he also coached basketball, volleyball, softball, and track in his spare time at St. Mary’s School. Jim eventually became a counselor at UHS, later the principal at South Valley, and ended his career as the principal of Eagle Peak Middle School. During his 23 years of retirement, he enjoyed camping, abalone feasts, fishing, taking cruises, watching his grandsons play baseball, bowling and bocce ball. Jim is survived by his wife of 55 years, Nadjah, who he loved and adored more than anything in the world. He is also survived by his daughters Leah (Tony) Routon, and Andrea Larson, (son-in-law) Bud O’Donnell, and (grandsons) RJ and Brady Routon. He is preceded by his daughter, Tanya Larson O’Donnell, his sister, Sylvia, and his parents. Jim’s greatest loves were his family, friends, and the Ukiah community. Donations can be made to Adventist Hospice or any Ukiah community service organization. Arrangements are under the direction of the Eversole Mortuary.

A READER WRITES: I was visiting a friend’s house in Philo the other day for an anniversary party. As we were having lunch with some guests, we looked outside through their bay window and saw a middle-aged woman open the hatchback of a car parked across the street and start tossing miscellaneous items out onto the roadside. The woman seemed angry. We assumed she was unloading her own car. Turns out the car belonged to one of the guests who was just sitting down to her lunch. “Hey, that’s my car,” the guest yelled as she realized what the tossing woman was doing. The car owner and the host and a few guests went out to see what was wrong. The woman was yelling the f-word over and over as she continued tossing things out of the guest’s car. The car owner and the host asked the tosser what was wrong. The tosser muttered something about the car being on her property — this apparently made the tosser very angry for some reason. But the car was just on the side of the road. Attempts to calm the tosser down were futile, but the host and some guests managed to get the tosser to stop tossing as the rest of us gathered up the tossed items and returned them to the back of the car. The tosser reluctantly moved down the street in the direction of her house, but she continued to yell and scream the f-word at anyone in earshot. Some guests considered calling 911, but that was dismissed. The host told her lunch guests that there was no point in arguing with the tosser because she was probably drunk and was not going to listen to reason. As I drove off a few minutes later, the tosser, although a little farther down the road, was still yelling random f-bombs in the direction of anyone she could see.

FROM THE UKIAH POST:

In recent months, residents of Ukiah have noticed new cameras appearing at intersections and along major roadways. These devices are part of a nationwide trend as cities adopt Flock Safety cameras to enhance public safety measures. While these cameras have quietly been introduced in Ukiah, understanding their purpose and impact can provide insight into this growing technological trend.

Flock Safety is a company that specializes in providing Automatic License Plate Readers (ALPR) to neighborhoods, law enforcement agencies, and businesses. Unlike traditional security cameras, Flock Safety’s ALPR systems are designed specifically to capture vehicle license plates, make, model, and color. The goal is to assist in identifying vehicles involved in criminal activities.

ADAM GASKA of Redwood Valley reports that the Great Redwood Trail is paying for private security to remove homeless people from their small Ukiah segment. Kinds of undermines the GRT party line that the GRT is not just a Great Hobo Trail — and a sign of things to come.

SHERIFF MATT KENDALL:

Re: “How To Scare A Bear”

I need to do something like this. Had a bear destroy an electric fence then he helped himself to the destruction of three booming beehives. So I am keeping my hives with jail hives from this point forward. Sadly I won’t get the star thistle honey over there but at least no bears can get them.

A couple of my residents and I sampled some honey from one of the jail hives this week. Lots of blackberry and it was incredible. Could’ve used some star thistle to finish it off. But at least they’re safe!

ED NOTES

WITH NATURAL GAS prices ever upward I’m reminded that lots of people along Mountain View Road here in Boonville sit on land whose mineral rights are owned by one of the major extractive industries, I can't remember which. Something valuable up there buried beneath the splendid views to the east. I don’t recall the buried treasure as a potential natural gas field, but if a bunch of guys suddenly arrive on Ornbaun Road and begin drilling laterally to the west residents of Mountain View Road could get their timbers rather severely shivered. Maybe some royalty checks, too. (If anyone knows more and better, please inform.)

EXTREMELY NUTSO statements prior to the internet were confined to the neighborhood crank, the guy everyone avoided, the guy you said good morning to and he said, “And another thing…” as you made frantic excuses to get away. “Sorry, Bob. Gotta go. I think my arse is falling off.”

SO HERE'S a comment I read on-line this morning: "The really scary part about all of this is that the Obama/Hillary Hag/Soros Democrat scum cabal actually allowed or sanctioned two avowed Communist sympathizers to sit at the top of Democrat ticket—a pair of candidates that would get thoroughly pummeled in the general election in a sane Republic.”

DOCTOR! Quick, the straight jacket!

BUT THE MAGATS routinely talk the paranoid talk like this. It truly reflects their wacko world view. “Avowed Communist sympathizers”? Dude, please. There isn't a communist party for conservative liberals like Kamala and the Coach to avow to. If there are a hundred thousand self-identifying communists out there I'd be surprised. And if there's a Lenin out there to lead us, er, them, he/she seems to be distracted getting his/her pronouns in order.

HEADLINE from the Daily Mail: "Trump says Harris-Walz ticket will turn America ‘communist immediately’.”

WHICH is paranoia's mainstem. No wonder the millions of lesser Magas think like they do.

TRUMP, as we know, is also on record as saying there will be a “bloodbath” if he loses again in a rigged election.

THAT STATEMENT, which is about a year old now but often repeated since, reminded me to check on my arsenal of two pistols, a shotgun, and a rifle. I've often wondered if I should scope the rifle to pick off the Magas before they get close enough for the shotgun and handguns, or should I assume the local police will remain loyal to the Constitution and distract the Magas with promises of double cheeseburgers before they get to Anderson Valley Market? (The cops and the military won't go for the Fathead Revolution. They're paid too well. The libs are forever invoking Hitler, but Trump isn't Hitler and America isn't ethnically chromatic Germany of 1930.)

SERIOUSLY, THOUGH, won't happen, although IMO there's as much scumbaggery among the Democrats as there is among the blowhards. If Trump loses, and that's a big if — Kamala does not wear well — there may be a few Jan 6-type skirmishes in Redding, rural Missouri and Idaho, but there's zero evidence that the Trumpers have the leadership to pull off Big Trouble.

QUICK STORY about Sheriff Kendall. I hope he won't mind. One quiet day I'm sitting in my trailer office considering my non-existent options when the Sheriff pops in, whether out of genuine neighborliness or simply to keep one more jerk off his back, I'll never know. Anyway, we're chatting when the Sheriff says, “You keep that little .38 handy, huh?” I thought I had my gat pretty well concealed among a pile of papers… “Uh, well, Sheriff, in this business we do get a lot of hostility, and would you like a cup of coffee?” He laughed, and we went on to other matters, but this guy misses nothing, nothing I tell you!

THE ONLY TIME I thought I might need my office defense unit was one afternoon when a big, fit-looking kid hurdled the fence separating us from the Redwood Drive-In and ran straight for my office door. “Goddam! I don't want to shoot this beast!” Turned out he just wanted to renew his subscription, the most dramatic piece of business I can remember transacting.

IT TOOK the great basketball player, Kevin Durant, to succinctly state the American reality: “A lot of bullshit happens in our country. But a lot of great things happen, too.”

REMEMBERING BILL BAILEY

Hello Observer Fans,

Here’s this week’s edition of the Observer, as always chock-a-block jammed with all the required reading necessary for the comprehension/retention test I’ll give you in a few days. Be sure and read B. Anderson’s column where he recounts “My Most Memorable Birthday.”

Speaking about what appears in this newspaper, before we had the opportunity to get to know each other, the late/great/inimitable Bill Bailey, of Laytonville and Bailey’s Logging Supplies, told me, “You don’t even read your own newspaper because if you did you wouldn’t print half the crap that’s in there.”

I responded, “You don’t know me but I’ll tell you this, you’re going to come around and see things differently. I actually know what I’m talking about, at least most of the time.”

About a year later, Bill called asking if I had time for a drink at Boomer’s. We met and he started off saying, “I think I may have jumped the gun on you. You’re a little bit like me. Sometimes we’re telling people what they don’t want to hear or believe because it makes them mad as a son-of-a-bitch. And then they think about it and realize, ‘Godammit, that son of a bitch is on to something, maybe he’s right.” This was delivered with a healthy dose of humor.

After that Boomer’s session, we never had another problem or a cross word. Bill would call me up and ask, “Hey, you got time to bullshit?” And he’d come by my office, or I’d go to the his building and we’d sit on the bench at the entrance and talk politics, town rumors and gossip, U.S. and world history, American literature, and a grab bag of random topics.

His nickname for me was “The Mayor.” I believe he came up with that moniker because in the mid-1990s I founded the first municipal advisory council in the county. He was a bit suspicious that my goal was to incorporate Laytonville into a city.

I assured him that I had studied that issue and it was not in the cards. Incorporation was not feasible for numerous reasons, the most important being the huge expense of maintaining an ongoing municipal government. Laytonville did not have a large enough stable revenue base to fund a city government. He agreed.

On one occasion after his new home north of town was built, he gave me a tour of it and the surrounding grounds. Inside the house, he showed me a room that he identified as the place where, once he retired, he would write his poetry. He was definitely a guy who valued literature, poetry and history. He was a good writer.

I miss Bill, he was a real character, exceptionally bright, helped a lot of people, was politically savvy, wrote poetry, local history and political pieces, and once he accepted and trusted you, he’d never bail on you.

In other words, Bill Bailey was a good man.

In my book, that’s about the highest compliment you can bestow on a person.

Hasta Luego,

Jim Shields, Editor

Mendocino County Observer, Laytonville

CONSTRUCTION UPDATES FOR THE WEEK OF AUGUST 12:

The trees have arrived!

New trees in the median on the north side.) Additional landscaping is also on the way.

Fun fact: The trees in Phase 1 (between Henry and Mill) were planted just three years ago, also during peak summer heat. They’re thriving! Next time you walk downtown, notice the difference in trunk and canopy size between the ones that are in the regular tree wells/planters versus those that are in the bioswales. Bioswales are the larger triangular-shaped planters on some of the corners (note the inlets in the curbs near the gutters). They help protect our local waterways by filtering storm water runoff while also helping to prevent flooding on State Street. AND, since the trees in the bioswales get even MORE water, those trees have gotten huge already!

AT&T is still onsite removing their lines; we hope to see the poles coming down soon!

Urban Core Rehabilitation and Transportation (UCRT) Project (Main, Gobbi and Perkins):

Work is primarily occurring on Gobbi Street at this time. Once the utilities and some other work is done on Gobbi, crews will return to Main Street, which still needs to have the water lines replaces, the concrete work done, and the surface reconstructed.

We are still getting the details, but we anticipate that the work on East Gobbi (between Orchard and State) will be fairly impactful at times. For those of you that have alternative routes you can take, please consider doing so. More info will follow.

Please let me know if you have any additional questions or concerns. Otherwise, have a great weekend!

Shannon Riley, Deputy City Manager

BOONTFLING DISC GOLF TOURNAMENT is taking place at the brewery.

Thanks to them we have bands both Friday and Saturday night.

Friday: The Loglifters and Mol'asses

We also will have BoonMex today (Friday) serving up great food.

Saturday: Bigfoot County and Boonfire

Music is FREE both nights

UKIAH’S LOCAL 9 EVENING BUS SERVICE RETURNS WITH SUPPORT FROM MENDOCINO COLLEGE

Mendocino Transit Authority is delighted to announce the restoration of the Local 9 Evening Bus Service, in Ukiah, beginning August 19th. The restoration of the service was achieved in partnership with Mendocino College to benefit residents and students who need hourly bus service from 5 PM to 11 PM.

“It’s been a long time coming, and we are excited to bring back the Evening Bus Service. MTA is grateful for the support from our Board of Directors, Mendocino Council of Governments and Mendocino College,” said Jacob King, Executive Director. “This service not only enhances transportation for our community but also helps college students by providing free and convenient transportation.”

This essential service provides a vital transportation option for the Ukiah community, offering a safe, reliable and comfortable way to travel during the evening hours. MTA’s Local 9 service ensures that students, faculty, and residents have easy access to key locations around town.

A special benefit of this service is that all Mendocino College students can ride for free, making it easier than ever to commute to campus, run errands, or simply enjoy the evening without worrying about transportation costs. To ride for free, students must be currently enrolled, have a student ID card and a sticker for the current semester. For more information students can inquire at the Mendocino College Library.

“Transportation is a basic need for Mendocino College students. Being able to access free bus lines in the evenings is essential for many of our students,” said Ulises Velasco, Vice President of Student Services at Mendocino College. “We’ve been partnering with MTA for multiple years now to bring free bus rides to our students. We’re thrilled to enhance our partnership that will benefit students and our community”.

The Local 9 Evening Bus Service is an excellent way to beat the heat and travel safely in comfort. Whether you are heading to class, shopping, or visiting friends, the Local 9 bus is here to make your evening commute hassle-free.

Service Details:

Start Date: August 19, 2024

Operating Hours: 5 PM to 11 PM (Hourly Service)

For more information about the Local 9 Evening Bus Service, including routes and schedules, please visit www.mendocinotransit.org or call 1-800-696-4MTA.

Join us in celebrating the return of this valuable service and take advantage of the free rides for college students. We look forward to seeing you on the Local 9 bus!

Contact: Mendocino Transit Authority 707-462-1422, for more information.

Danish Flag Poppy (photo by Fred Gardner)

MENDOCINO COUNTY INITIATES DEVELOPMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE DROUGHT RESILIENCE PLAN

In response to the historic 2020-2022 drought, which underscored the need for effective water management, Mendocino County is taking proactive steps to enhance its drought preparedness. Following the signing of Senate Bill (SB) 552 by Governor Gavin Newsom in September 2021, which mandates state and local governments to share responsibility in planning and responding to water shortages, the County has been diligently working to comply with these requirements.

Background on SB 552

SB 552, authored by Senator Hertzberg, identifies counties as the primary government entity to lead efforts in improving water shortage preparedness for state small water systems and rural communities supplied by domestic wells. Under this legislation, all counties in California are required to prepare a County Drought Resilience Plan (DRP) and establish a long-standing County Drought and Water Shortage Task Force Group (Drought Task Force).

Mendocino County’s Progress and Plans

Since 2021, the Mendocino County Water Agency (MCWA) has been actively holding Drought Task Force meetings to address water scarcity during the drought. In February 2024, the County received a grant from the Department of Water Resources to facilitate the development of its County DRP, which commenced in June 2024. MCWA hired a consultant that specializes in water resources planning, EKI Environment and Water, Inc. (EKI), to lead the technical development of the County DRP.

Public Engagement and Development Workflow

The development workflow of the DRP includes four main steps: data collection, vulnerability/risk assessment, development of short-term response actions and long-term mitigation strategies, and plan implementation. These steps will be carried out with active public education and engagement, in collaboration with water suppliers and managers throughout the County.

To ensure comprehensive community involvement, the University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) will support and facilitate public engagement. Two public workshops will be held to provide an opportunity to discuss the DRP development process and its results, allowing for transparent communication and feedback.

Furthermore, DRP agenda items will be presented at the Drought Task Force meetings under the General Government Standing Committee (GGSC) meetings in September 2024, as well as in January, March, and May 2025. These meetings will serve as additional platforms for public engagement and updates on the DRP progress.

Upcoming Mendocino County Drought Resilience Plan Meeting

To kick off the initial development of the DRP, the University of California Cooperative Extension is hosting a Mendocino County Drought Resilience Plan meeting on September 5th, 2024. This meeting will showcase the initial development of the DRP by EKI Environment and Water and is an opportunity for community stakeholders to get involved.

Date: September 5th, 2024

Time: 3:00 PM – 4:30 PM

Location: UCCE / Farm Advisor Building (limited capacity, please RSVP) and Online via Zoom

Registration Link: https://surveys.ucanr.edu/survey.cfm?surveynumber=43418

Event Details: Free event with refreshments provided

Why Attend?

Public participation is vital to the success of the DRP. By contributing your insights, experiences, and feedback, you will help shape both immediate and long-term strategies for addressing drought and water shortages. We seek participation from key community stakeholders, including domestic well owners, residents relying on local small water systems, tribes, and public water suppliers.

For updates and further information about the DRP process, please sign up for updates and fill out the public engagement form if you are a domestic well owner or connected to a state small water system.

Mendocino County Drought Resilience Plan webpage: https://www.mendocinocounty.gov/departments/water-agency/drought-water-

CITY OF UKIAH CRITICIZES FERC AND PG&E RESTRICTIONS THAT CREATE AN UNNECESSARY, ADMINISTRATIVELY-MANUFACTURED DROUGHT, DESPITE NORMAL WATER YEAR CONDITIONS

The City of Ukiah is taking action over impacts to the Upper Russian River, including environmental and economic harm to the region, caused by PG&E dramatically reducing flows to the Russian River from the Potter Valley Project. In a formal "Request for Rehearing" filed July 29th, the City again underscored how the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) approval for PG&E's reduction in water flows was made without fairly or adequately considering the harmful impacts to the Upper Russian River.

For 120 years, abandoned flows diverted from the Eel through the Potter Valley Project have been the foundation for progress in the Upper Russian River. But in the past few years PG&E has made yearly requests for a "variance" to reduce these flows. This year PG&E requested to reduce flows to the East Branch Russian River to match the dry water year minimum flow requirement of 25 cfs, with the "flexibility" to drop all the way down to 5 cfs. FERC granted the request.

FERC approved the request, despite the fact that this 2024 water-year is on track for a normal water-year. Eight days after FERC's approval, PG&E immediately dropped flows all the way down to the extremely restricted 5 cfs level - as if we were in a dry or critical water year. "Water is being diverted into the Russian River as if we were in a serious drought year, despite the fact that both water basins are clearly in at least normal conditions," said Mari Rodin, City Council Member for the City of Ukiah. "This dramatic reduction risks creating a manufactured drought for our entire region reminiscent of the real drought in 2021, all without analyzing the impacts to our ecology, economy, and community. They dismissed our interests and took away our region's water. It's untenable."

The National Environmental Policy Act requires federal agencies to carefully review the impacts of a proposed federal action on the human environment. But FERC's Order did not include such an analysis, instead referencing a 24 year-old environmental impact statement (EIS) that is outdated and incomplete. FERC did not meaningfully discuss or consider how its approval would impact water users dependent on the Russian River and abandoned PVP flows, Ukiah's ability to generate clean electricity through its hydropower facility, or endangered salmonids in the Russian River.

The City's Request for Rehearing asked FERC to comply with NEPA and conduct a new or supplemental analysis of the impacts to the Upper Russian River from reduced imports of PVP water. While this analysis is conducted, and acknowledging the interests of the Eel River, the City has only asked that in the meantime PG&E be allowed to reduce flows to no lower than 25 cfs, rather than down to 5 cfs.

Following the Order, Sonoma Water notified the State Water Resources Control Board that FERC's Order means that Lake Mendocino storage would be about 12,000 acre-feet lower by the end of this water year than it would be without the Order. This may have major impacts to the entire Upper Russian River - despite the second consecutive year of healthy rainfall.

"We recognize and acknowledge the needs our neighbors on the Eel have, but our needs must be recognized as well," said Glenn McGourty, Mendocino County Supervisor. "There is so much at stake for our community in the greater Ukiah Valley, and yet a thoughtful consideration of our interests is entirely lacking in PG&E's request and in FERC's decision. It's as if we don't matter to them."

"The fish and habitat in the Russian River deserve protection too," said Sean White, a fisheries biologist who filed a successful lawsuit against the Army Corps of Engineers and National Marine Fisheries Service for failure to protect endangered salmon below Coyote Valley Dam. "There is a pattern - a systemic, institutionalized pattern by federal agencies - of disregarding the interests of the Upper Russian River. It is time for our community to say, 'Enough - we are done being ignored.' "

"Our farms and businesses will suffer from the acceptance of this dramatic and unnecessary reduction," said Jazzmynn Randall, Executive Director of the Mendocino Farm Bureau. "We have worked hard to survive during dry years while waiting for the rains to return, but now in a good water year we are facing a manufactured drought that creates a standard that will harm agricultural output and cause long term economic damage."

The City of Ukiah's Request to FERC observes "The entire focus [of FERC's analysis] is on the Eel at the expense of the Russian…. To be clear, we ask for nothing more than that our interests be given equal weight to others' and that the impacts to our community: our families, our schools, our businesses, our orchards and vineyards, our listed species, and our environment, simply be identified and analyzed in accordance with the mandates of the National Environmental Policy Act."

For more information, contact Deputy City Manager, Shannon Riley, at sriley@cityofukiah.com

ANNUAL WINESONG FUNDRAISER BREAKS WITH TRADITION IN MENDOCINO COUNTY

by Karen Misuraca

The annual Winesong fundraising event, which has been held at the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens for nearly four decades, will break with tradition.

Marking a new chapter, this year’s event will be held at the historic Little River Inn on the Mendocino Coast in September.

The weekend will be filled with food, wine, music and art in the garden setting with spectacular sea views in Little River.

Eighty percent of the money generated from the two day event will go to Mendocino Coast Healthcare Foundation while the remaining 20% will go to Mendocino Coast Clinics and the Fort Bragg Food Bank. Since 1984, the foundation has provided grants, scholarships and funding for hospital beds, medical equipment, clinics and ambulances.

Winesong is the main fundraiser for Mendocino Coast Healthcare Foundation.

“Winesong is a kind of reunion, a get-together of our coast and valley wine producers with lovers of the grape and friends who return year after year for the amazing wines, the legendary food, entertainment, art, and fun,” said Terry Ramos, president of the board of directors of Mendocino Coast Healthcare Foundation. “Over the years, the foundation has raised more than $10 million for health and wellness on the coast, with Winesong comprising the largest source of funding.”

The event runs from Friday, Sept. 6 to Saturday, Sept. 7 and this year, organizers hope to raise $250,000 for the foundation.

The Mendocino Coast Hospital Foundation’s first Winesong event was held in 1985 as a one-day fundraiser for the hospital. Barbara Besler came up with the idea of bringing the wine industry, artists and local restaurants together for an event that would excite locals and tourists alike.

Day 1: Zinfandel and Pinot Noir

Organizers expect 300 attendees for the first Winesong event at Little River Inn. Day 1 kicks off with a wine leaders panel from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 6. Monty Preiser, vintner at Preiser Key and Shadowbox Cellars, will moderate the panel where renowned experts will discuss wine and industry trends.

The panelists are Sally Johnson Blum, formerly of Pride Mountain Vineyards and consultant for small production wineries; Kristy Charles, co-owner at Foursight Wines; Brian Maloney, vice president of winemaking at Boisset Collection and he oversees operations for DeLoach Vineyards and Buena Vista Winery; Jeff Morgan, owner of Covenant Winery; and Christopher Sawyer, an internationally-renowned sommelier and wine judge.

Regarding the panel discussion, the Winesong website states, “The younger generation is understandably excited about California’s new wave of wines. While it’s easy to overlook amidst the buzz, one stalwart of the West Coast, Zinfandel, still stands. Zinfandel has a complex history, often debated and controversial, and a bad reputation for being either over-extracted or too sweet, akin to a blue blush.”

The three-hour talk will wrap up with a Zinfandel tasting, for the panelists and audience, and in-depth discussion on Zinfandel from six different wine regions.

“I chose it (center the panel discussion around Zinfandel) because its the state grape, and also because different regions show differently,” said Preiser. “There may be an unofficial winner, but we’ll decide that on the day.”

A few hours later, from 2 to 4 p.m., more than 30 pinot noir producers will present their light and elegant varietals grown primarily in the cool climate of the Anderson Valley AVA, which is heralded as the premier California destination for Pinot Noir aficionados.

Paired with the smooth, intense, fruity wine will be canapés created by Little River Inn’s chefs Joe Perez and Marc Dym. The event will include live music and sea views to enchant the sippers and nibblers.

Day 2: Grand tasting, auction and luncheon

In a white tent on the deck of the Abalone Room at Little River Inn, the Winesong’s grand tasting will take place from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 6. On Day 2, guests will have spectacular views overlooking Seal Rock, Van Damme State Beach and the Pacific Ocean. Accompanied by local musicians providing the “song” in Winesong, chefs from eight local restaurants, including Café Beaujolais, Noyo Harbor Inn and KW Saltwater Grill, will offer delectable bites to go with generous pourings from more than 30 wineries.

The wine served will be from local producers like Goldeneye, Husch Vineyards, Navarro Vineyards and Winery and Fathers and Daughters Cellars. The wines are from Mendocino, Napa, Sonoma and Lake counties.

At 2 p.m., attendees assemble for a luscious luncheon, and prepare for a lively auction that includes lots of rare and collectible wines, artwork and travel packages.

COUNTY OF MENDOCINO SECURES MAJOR GRANT FOR WILDFIRE COMMUNITY RESILIENCE PROJECT

The County of Mendocino is pleased to announce that it received a $2.4 million BRIC grant from FEMA, along with matching funds from a Prepare CA Match grant. This grant is one of 120 nationwide awards and will address wildfire hazards in the Sherwood Corridor, enhancing the County's wildfire preparedness and resilience.

Awarded on August 5, 2024, this grant marks the first phase of a multi-phase, $50 million project to create defensible space, reduce hazardous fuels, and retrofit homes with ignition-resistant materials. Initial efforts will focus on planning, including LiDar mapping, fuel treatment plans, community outreach, and securing necessary environmental approvals, with this phase expected to continue until 2026.

Supervisor John Haschak expressed gratitude, stating, "This grant is a crucial step forward in our ongoing efforts to protect Mendocino County from the devastating effects of wildfires. We deeply thank our partners and the funding organizations for their support and trust in our vision. Together, we will build a safer, more resilient community."

The Mendocino County Prevention, Recovery, Resilience, and Mitigation (PRRM) Division of the Executive Office is dedicated to keeping the community informed about the progress of the Wildfire Community Resilience Project. Transparency and community engagement are crucial to the project's success, and residents are encouraged to take part in upcoming community meetings and forums.

Queen Anne's Lace *Daucuscarota varsativas* (Jeff Goll)

KZYX NEWS FOR AUGUST 2024

New Programming On KZYX And Local Band Search For The 2nd Season Of Jamin’ The Box.

KZYX is proud to bring brand new programming to the local airwaves beginning this month. The list of new public affairs and music programs debuting this month reflect KZYX move towards gaining new listeners and new perspectives reflected in our community.

New Shows & A New Sounds On KZYX!

The Gower Hour - local politics from a local youth perspective

It's A New Day - interesting and fun interviews on current social topics

Burn The Wagon - indigenous viewpoints from local pomo voices

Futuretro - edm and house from dj guada

Turning Pages - 30 minutes on best books

Rhyme & Reason - Dj Mcrey3 hip hop and local musicians

Jamin' The Box Season 2 - Live Local Band Showcase

In addition, KZYX hosts a live local music show “Jamin’ the Box”, which begins its 2nd season on September 28th, 2024. This is a 2-hour live streamed interview and performance by local bands airing from 8pm to 10pm on the 4th Saturdays of each month during the Season.

Those familiar with NPR’s “Tiny Desk Series” know how presenting local musicians in an intimate setting, live on the air, not only supports our local music scene but informs our listeners how our local artists are striving to create art and reach not only our listeners but the world and more importantly, gives our Mendocino County musicians a voice and a presence not often accessible to local artists.

KZYX is reaching out to find new artists to feature this season. Previous guests have included all genres from The Real Sarahs, Boonfire, Hella Mendocino, Devi Genuone, to Surfsquatch.

To submit for Season 2, local bands should contact Music Director Katharine Cole at music@kzyx.org.

KZYX Is The NPR Affiliate Community Radio Station For Mendocino County Streaming Online At Kzyx.Org and on The KZYX APP. 90.7/91.5/88.1FM

GREAT DAY IN ELK: SATURDAY, AUGUST 24

48th Annual Great Day in Elk. Noon to dusk.

Parade, games and contests, food and drink, live music with Mama Grows Funk, silent auction and raffle. Benefit for Greenwood Community Center in Elk (located 5 miles south of Hwy. 128 on Hwy. 1).

For more information: meabloyd@gmail.com or www.elkweb.org

THE ‘GATORADE OF BEER’

The Perfect Trailhead Beer? We Think So

The Wall Street Journal, in an effort to build the perfect beach cooler, landed on something AVBC drinkers have known for some time.

Namely, that lower alcohol beers that pack big flavor are where it’s at. They went so far as to call Gose the “Gatorade of Beer.” While not endorsed by Michael Jordan (our spokesperson is an antlered bear who doesn’t actually speak but we’re confident he’s enthusiastically all for it) and not proven (yet) to boost athletic performance, we kinda see it: Gose is tart, salty, full of fruit, and exactly what you want after a day adventuring.

The review are in, and by “reviews” we mean “the feedback from our regulars,” our new Kernza Lager is a hit. Brewed with sustainable Kernza grains, this limited collaboration brew with Patagonia Provisions is going quickly. Stop by the taproom before it’s gone!

Anderson Valley Brewing Company

www.avbc.com

17700 Boonville Rd, Boonville, CA 95415

R.D. BEACON

The problem we have in most of the outlying areas, what we call the countryside, pretty much north of Cloverdale, and to the west through the mountains of the Anderson Valley area, where the winery people have moved-in, all the way to the coast, the problem we’re having is the city folks, buy a land, some of them sit on it thinking it's good to make the money, in the future county government is partially responsible for the influx, the people moving into our area, and bringing their bad manners with them, as the county raises taxes on land, the traditional landowners were here from the 1800s many of them spend a long time families, involved in ranching, and the timber industry, are forced to sell off their property, because their land is not yield enough money to pay all the bills, many of these Dynasty families, up and move out of the county, even out of the state, to be able to survive, as this happens, the new people move in with their bad attitude, extremely bad manners, not willing to learn about what the country life is about, the first thing they want is a charging station for their bad electric car, then they want high-speed Internet, a better phone system, and it never satisfied with the roads, they get upset, if the neighbors dog walks on their property, even if they see a dog running loose on the highway, for some reason they seem to think, it's their job to do something about it, they have the same attitude of the sea at Cal out on the highway, with the city people don't understand this is the countryside, this is the norm for all of us a few stray animals on the roads, and most of the property have no trespassing signs, and it means everybody, even though every year when the mushrooms hop out of the pasture, city people hop across the pad sticky what's the harm, but the simple fact is it's not their property, it's not their place to go help themselves, either to the mushrooms, or the flowers in the pasture, basically most city people have no manners, and no respect for the landowners out here in the countryside, they want it all their way, the other day the resulting stalled, it escaped, from his enclosure at a local business, some lady took it upon herself to not only bring the dog back to where it belonged, but went into arranging terror about the responsibility, that the person should have, that owned a dog, screaming and yelling at the top of her voice, all caught on camera from a security system, extremely ill mannered woman who seem to think she was in charge of the neighborhood, people like this we do not need in our neighborhood, ill mannered folks from cities, should go back to where they came from, it's always been my attitude, being a business owner, we like to see your money that's the city people but go home when you get through here, don't move in, don't stay here too long, leave your tourist money behind have a good time, but bring your manners, for us from many people out of my business, with a bad attitude, if they come here and act bad, they don't get combat, the strange thing about all of it, is if they act that bad in a restaurant, or in a business in the city, more than likely they would never be allowed back, also I have heard that rock 'n roll bands and celebrities of Torah property and businesses in cities, and only get it does get checkbook out and all is forgiven, but it doesn't work that way here the countryside, once we throw you out your gone forever, I've even over the years, had a few locals that are barred from my business because of bad manners, as to the ill mannered woman, that gave my friends down in a local business, a bad time about their dog, maybe she needs to go back to the Bay Area, that's the ill mannered woman and take her bad manners with her we don't need people like that in our community, and we don't need city people, to come here and try and change our neighborhood we like it, the way we have it, we don't want it improved to the city way.

CATCH OF THE DAY, Friday, August 9, 2024

MARCO FASTOSO, Philo. DUI.

HANNA FIERRO-MCGARRY, Grants Pass, Oregon/Ukiah. Disorderly conduct-alcohol.

WILLIAM HILL, Fort Bragg. Assault with intent to rape.

MICHAEL LANGLEY, Ukiah. Disorderly conduct-alcohol&drugs. (Frequent flyer.)

MONTE SHARP, Ukiah. Camping in Ukiah, controlled substance, paraphernalia, probation revocation.

JALAHN TRAVIS, Ukiah. Probation violation. (Frequent flyer.)

DEATH VALLEY DAYS

Editor:

What if the normal temperatures of Phoenix became the normal temperatures here in Sonoma County? Phoenix has been over 105 degrees for weeks now. Is that our destiny? Most local people can handle a hot day or two now and then. But what we are experiencing is unparalleled. People who love the heat live in Palm Springs and Phoenix. Do we want to become the next “heat city”?

We see in the news every day people protesting a wide variety of issues. Why are there no large crowds protesting climate change? The other issues may be significant, but they are meaningless if our planet ceases to be habitable. Has civilization become so complex that it is impossible to pay attention to even the most existential issues?

Polls show that over 70% of Americans believe human activity is a source of climate change. We are told to shop local, plant trees, eat plant-based meals, install solar panels. If people are doing these things, they are obviously insufficient. This is a national and global issue. How do we apply more political pressure? Where is the outrage?

Gene A. Hottel

Santa Rosa

CORPORATIONS, MEGA RICH NEED TO PAY MORE IN TAXES

Editor,

I was astounded to read that the national debt reached $35 trillion. It should make every American pause. While this number is huge, the taxes the very rich paid was on average less than 3% of income, while hardworking Americans making $70,000 a year paid an average of 14% per year in taxes.

One study shows that 55 companies, all part of the S&P 500 or Fortune 500, would have paid a combined total of $8.5 billion last year if they had paid at a 21% rate (the statutory federal corporate tax rate) on their profits. Instead, not only did they avoid paying any taxes on their profits, but they received $3.5 billion in tax rebates. This is wrong and can’t be sustained.

It seems to me that if these corporations paid their fair share along with the mega rich in our country, we could bring down this number quickly without hurting anyone’s lifestyle or corporate investments. I know that President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris want to do this and I agree. It’s time we all pay our fair share in taxes so that the debt doesn’t cripple future generations.

Project 2025 guidelines include more tax cuts for the very rich and corporations. I think doing so would destroy our economy and our middle class. It would increase the wealth disparity between all Americans. That’s just another reason I’m voting for Harris and Democrats up and down the ballot.

Paul Bartolini

Santa Rosa

MEIN TRUMPF: The re-subtitled “Hitler reacts” videos using a scene from the WWIl film “Downfall” were common years ago, on many topics, serious or not, and now Vance and Trump have sparked more. This new one is genius, packing way too much truth into a few minutes of horror humor:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JuWs_xfW4K8

(via Steve Heilig)

APPRECIATING VONNEGUT

Dear Editor,

I recently read Morris Dickstein’s exceptionally perceptive, erudite and insightful “Gates of Eden: American Culture in the Sixties.” In a chapter devoted to literary “black humor” of the early 1960s, he discusses the novels of Joseph Heller, Thomas Pynchon and Kurt Vonnegut. He mentions three Vonnegut novels of that period, none of which I had read: ”Mother Night,” “Cat’s Cradle” and “God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater.”

Having now finished “Mother Night” and begun “God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater,” I am struck by the power and resonance of Vonnegut’s comic sensibility. ”Mother Night” features a white supremacist organization called the Iron Guard of the White Sons of the American Constitution. The organization is led by a dentist in his 70s whose chauffeur was known in the 1930s as “the Black Fuehrer of Harlem.”

Kurt Vonnegut, Gore Vidal, Alexander Cockburn — where are the great wits equal to our own era of genocidal absurdity?

Doug Loranger

Walnut Creek

AS THE DAOISTS SAY....

Am sitting at a small portable table with a computer, enjoying a bowl of yogurt ahd a banana, plus a health food bar. No idea whatsoever what lies beyond the next three weeks in Ukiah, California. Am identifying with Parabrahman and not the body nor the mind. Do not know what is going to happen, although there is some sense of why. I wouldn't trade a pitcher of warm spit for postmodernism. As the Daoists say: HOLD FAST TO THE CONSTANT!

Craig Louis Stehr

MEMO OF THE AIR: Good Night Radio show all night tonight on KNYO!

Soft deadline to email your writing for tonight's (Friday night's) MOTA show is 6pm or so. If you can't make that, that's okay, send it whenever it's done and I'll read it on the radio next week. I might even check email later and read it tonight anyway.

Memo of the Air: Good Night Radio is every Friday, 9pm to 5am* PST on 107.7fm KNYO-LP Fort Bragg and KNYO.org. The first hour of the show is simulcast on KAKX 89.3fm Mendocino.

Plus you can always go to https://MemoOfTheAir.wordpress.com and hear last week's MOTA show. By Saturday night I'll put up the recording of tonight's show. Also there you'll find an assortment of cultural-educational amusements to occupy you until showtime, or any time, such as:

The story of Venice. It has a long ad about halfway through, but you can slide past it. All those stone plazas and buildings and walls and everything, and the deep rainwater catchment system that provides all the fresh water-- it's all built on wooden pilings that have lasted a thousand years and are good for another thousand. (via NagOnTheLake) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77omYd0JOeA

"Dreadfully sorry, Your Grace." (via Tacky Raccoons) https://theviewfromladylake.blogspot.com/2024/08/a-sunday-go-to-meetin-cartoon-from.html

And a black-eyed tree frog being awoken from his slumber. Those lips, those eyes. https://boingboing.net/2024/08/05/see-the-freaky-and-cool-way-that-a-black-eyed-tree-frogs-eyes-wake-up-from-a-nap.html

Marco McClean, memo@mcn.org, https://MemoOfTheAir.wordpress.com

1990s - Street scene – Sam Wo Restaurant - Chinatown – Grant Av. - SF

NO ONE KNOWS HOW NFL’S WEIRD NEW KICKOFF RULES WILL PLAY OUT, BUT COULD 49ERS BENEFIT?

by Michael Silver

When the San Francisco 49ers’ preseason kicks off Saturday night, a football will fly through the Nashville sky past a cluster of players in opposing uniform colors — and then the intrigue will begin.

To borrow an adjective that’s getting quite a bit of run lately in national political circles, it’s going to be weird.

Brace yourselves. The NFL’s new, radically revamped kickoff is upon us, and many of you will be dumbfounded — and perhaps appalled — by what goes down in Music City when the 49ers face the Tennessee Titans.

When we last saw our local professional gridiron gang in February, coach Kyle Shanahan was making the controversial decision to receive a kick from the Kansas City Chiefs’ Harrison Butker at the start of overtime.

We know what happened next: The Chiefs scored a walkoff victory in Super Bowl LVIII. Three months later, Butker walked on stage at Benedictine College and gave a bizarre commencement speech which, among other things, called out women graduates for falling for the “diabolical lies” that put them on career paths.

That was weird — and so is the kickoff rule the NFL quietly passed at its March meetings.

The idea was noble: Make football safer while attempting to restore the excitement to a largely dormant staple of the sport.

The execution was bizarre. The rule was railroaded through, with a late tweak that made it even more dubious. The jury is still out, and many Niners fans will get their first glimpse at Exhibit A come Saturday.

“It is something that is a mystery right now,” 49ers linebacker Fred Warner said Wednesday. “It’d be cool to see somebody go and return a kick for a touchdown — on our side, not on the other team’s side. … So, we’ll see. I don’t know what will happen.”

The rule, designed to mitigate high-speed collisions while incentivizing returns, has restrictions and nuances that may be jarring to the audience. For those who haven’t been paying close attention — consider yourselves the lucky ones — here’s how it works:

The kickoff still occurs from a team’s 35-yard line, but only the kicker is stationed there. The other 10 coverage players line up on the opposing 40, five on each side. Nine receiving team players line up opposite them in the “setup zone” (between the 30 and 35), with at least seven of them at the 35. None of those players can move until the ball hits either the ground or a player in the “landing zone” or “end zone.”

The “landing zone”? Glad you asked. It’s between the goal line and the 20, and no more than two returners are stationed there. Kicks in the landing zone must be returned. Kicks that hit the field in the landing zone and roll into the end zone can be downed for a touchback (bringing the ball to the 20) or returned. Kicks that land in the end zone can be returned or downed for a touchback that brings the ball to the 30; the original proposal put the ball at the 35, but it was revised two days before the owners voted. And if a kick falls short of the landing zone, or goes out of bounds, the opposing team takes over at the 40.

That’s confusing, but it’s not the most maddening part of the rule change. It essentially ruins the onside kick, something that became a shell of its former self in 2018, when the league prevented coverage players from taking a 5-yard running start before the ball is struck — making it exceptionally hard for the kicking team to recover.

Now, the surprise onside kick — a symbol of the Saints’ Super Bowl XLIV upset of the Colts, and many other indelible moments — is dead. Under the new rules, onside kicks must be announced. They can be attempted only by a team that is trailing in the fourth quarter, and no more than twice in a game.

If the NFL’s powers that be wanted to figure out a way to reduce injuries while preserving the fun of kickoff returns, that’s understandable. Destroying the onside kick, however, is an unacceptable form of collateral damage.

The onside kick was great because it created excitement. It allowed teams to steal a possession (when used as a surprise) and, most important, to keep hope alive when attempting to mount comebacks in daunting situations. Having a semi-plausible chance of success in those instances — as was the case before 2018 — is a gift to the trailing team and the viewer.

The NFL had other alternatives at its disposal, one of which was clearly preferable. The “4th-and-15” rule, variations of which have been proposed at NFL meetings and used in other leagues, is a far better idea.

The purest version of the 4th-and-15 rule works like this: Instead of a traditional kickoff, the kicking team has the ball on its own 25-yard-line facing that down and distance. In most instances, that team will put its punting unit on the field and boot the ball away — the equivalent of kickoff, but safer.

Potentially, the team can fake a punt and try to pick up the 15 yards — the equivalent of the surprise onside kick.

And when a team desperately needs to retain possession while attempting a comeback, it can put its offense on the field and attempt to pick up the 15 yards — a much more plausible proposition than the onside kick in its current form.

Maybe we’ll eventually get something like this. For now, we have weirdness. The new kickoff rule made its debut in last Thursday’s weather-shortened Hall of Fame game between the Bears and Colts, and the results were … meh. Of the eight kickoffs attempted, one went for a touchback. Two others were returned from the end zone; the other five from the “landing zone.” The offense’s average starting position was the 25.6-yard line, and the longest return was 31 yards. There were two illegal formation penalties, both of which were declined.

In talking to NFL players, coaches and talent evaluators, I’ve gotten the sense that many of their strategies won’t be revealed during the preseason, to retain the element of surprise. There’s a sense that there may be more breakaway returns, because any returner who breaks a tackle or hits a crease might only have to beat the kicker to the end zone. Shanahan’s Niners, who have an outside-zone-based rushing attack, seem particularly confident that the one-cut-and-go approach might pay off big for them.

“I’m definitely curious,” said wide receiver Deebo Samuel, who has been lobbying coaches to consider him as a returner. “Watching the (Hall of Fame) game, it was kind of not what I thought. But, I mean, that’s the first time of seeing it live, and it takes practice to get where you want to be in any aspect of the game.

“But just watching it, there’s a lot of opportunities. … Anybody on this team, all the guys that touch the ball, you see a crease and you can see how fast we hit it.”

My prediction? Very early in the regular season, perhaps in Week 1, a game will be decided by a return for touchdown that sets off alarm bells across the league. A majority of head coaches will react by instructing their kickers to boot the ball as deep as possible, conceding a touchback that puts the ball at the 30. (The original rule proposal, which put the ball at the 35, would have disincentivized this approach a bit more).

And then we’ll have another season in which the kickoff recedes into irrelevance, without even the promise of a surprise onside kick — until the rule gets tweaked again next March.

(SF Chronicle)

THE NEO-MARXISM OF MALCOLM HARRIS IS ALIVE AND WELL IN “PALO ALTO”

by Jonah Raskin

Someone, I forget who, said “we’re all Marxists now,” and, while that might have been truer during the antifascist 1930s than at any other time in history, it is not true now. Marxism probably has as many if not more fierce foes today around the world, and from Hungary to Brazil, as it had during the height of McCarthyism and the apex of the Cold War. In his speeches, Donald Trump has sworn to prevent Marxists and communists from infiltrating American society and taking over the government and brainwashing citizens. But he probably doesn’t know what it means to be a Marxist or a communist and he surely doesn’t know that all Marxists are not communists, though some are both and proudly so.

Marx himself apparently said, “I’m not a Marxist.” It was enough to be Marx, the founder with Frederick Engels, of a philosophy and a political school of thought and action, which morphed into Leninism and Maoism and Fidel Castro’s version of the ideology that inspired anti-imperialist revolutionaries in Latin America. A recent post by Bruce Anderson, the editor of the Anderson Valley Advertiser, prompted me to jump start some of my thinking and review some of my own ideas about Marx and Marxism. Anderson recommended a dozen or so books about war and revolution, Stalin, and the Spanish Civil War, plus William J. Blake’s An American Looks at Karl Marx published in 1939 and long since out of print.

The contemporary book that has prompted me to rethink Marxism and its relevance now is Malcolm Harris 700+ page, Palo Alto, subtitled “A History of California, Capitalism, and the World,” which has been widely read ever since it first appeared in print in 2023. An American born in 1988 and who took part in the Occupy Wall Street Movement, Harris doesn’t look at Marxism per se, but he uses Marxist as a lens to look at the world. I heard him speak in a San Francisco bookstore where he called himself a communist. No one in the audience blinked. He didn’t call himself a Marxist, though he might have. He features a quotation from Marx at the very front of his encyclopedic volume.

In 1880, three years before he died at the age of 64, Marx wrote to Frederick Adolph Sorge, a German communist who emigrated to the US and helped to found the Socialist Labor Party of America, which emphasized organizing workers into unions. “California is very important for me now,” Marx noted, “because nowhere else has the upheaval more shamelessly caused by capitalist centralization taken place with such speed.” Marx asked Sorge to recommend “something good (meaty) on economic conditions in California,” and he offered to pay for any material that Sorge sent to him.

In Palo Alto, Harris adopts a neo-Marxist approach to his study of Silicon Valley, Stanford University, the computer and aerospace industries as well as American opposition to capitalism, exploitation and class privilege. No book is more sanguine about the organizing efforts of communists than Harris’. In a chapter titled “Hooverville,” he writes, “Communists had inordinate success organizing California agricultural workers in the 1930, more success than other labor groups and more success than the Party had elsewhere.” He adds, “The Soviet affiliated American subversives found themselves the right people in the right place and at the right time, a rare confluence in United States history.”

There’s not a drop of anti-communism in Palo Alto, and no snide comments about Reds, the Soviet Union and Communist Party organizers like Sam Darcy and Caroline Decker, both of them Ukrainian-born Jews who joined organizations such as the Young Communist League and reanimated the work of the Industrial Workers of the World. Darcy and Decker were joined by Frank Samora, Francisco Medina, Fred Martinez and others, who came to California from Mexico where they had garnered “revolutionary military experience.” Harris adds that “the global Marxist current was at least as strong in Mexico as it was in California.” That’s good to know since radicals with white skins often receive more accolades than radicals with brown skins.

In the introduction to Palo Alto, Harris acknowledges the work of sociologist, C. Wright Mills, who coined the term the “sociological imagination” and described it as a tool to understand “the intersections of biography and history within society.” Some Marxist purists might fault Harris for leaning heavily on Mills, but Harris tells his story very effectively by divagating back and forth between biography and history, and weaving together into an epic narrative the riveting stories of men like Herbert Hoover, Ronald Reagan and H. Bruce Franklin, as well as lesser known figures such as David Packard and Frederick Terman. The biographical approach serves Harris well.

He also has a keen sense of humor, a passionate engagement with people and places like Palo Alto, and a willingness to step back and ask questions like, “How do you kill a place, a system?,” and “How does the Palo Alto System end without taking the rest of the transformed world down with it?” Harris doesn’t pretend to have all the answers and he doesn’t aim to browbeat readers into accepting his C. Wright Mills/ Karl Marx’s approach. He shows that Marxism is flexible and resilient, and that by telling stories he can allow others to make up their own minds. I’m sure that Marx himself would cheer for Harris. He’d likely say that Palo Alto is the book about California he had been looking for because it shows the rapid and violent upheavals caused by capitalist centralization. Workers of the world might read Harris’ work and figure out how to translate some of his insights into a revolutionary practice.

(Jonah Raskin is the author of Beat Blues, San Francisco, 1955.)

REBECCA SOLNIT

We talk a lot about what's wrong with the US media. Everyone here has access to a better option, the UK-based Guardian, which has neither the timidities nor the right-leaning pretenses of neutrality that manifest as bothsidesism--softening coverage of the right while slamming the Democrats and the left in order to create an illusion of balance in an unbalanced reality. It stands proudly on its 203-year progressive history, and I'm proud to write for it. Best climate newspaper around, solid coverage of global news, and by the way no paywall though if you read it regularly you should donate.

Tom Nichols last month on US press problems: "The real double-standard problem is not about coverage, but about interpretation. This is not “bias” in the political sense. It is, as Atlantic editor in chief Jeffrey Goldberg put it, a bias toward coherence, the inability to accept—and say—that one of the presidential campaigns is completely bonkers. “Trump overwhelms us with nonsense,” Jeff notes, and so, when confronted with Trump’s obvious mental instability, we work backwards: “Trump sounds nuts, but he can’t be nuts, because he’s the presumptive nominee for president of a major party, and no major party would nominate someone who is nuts.” the result of this bias is that the press too often continues to present what should be appalling, even horrifying information as if it is just part of the normal give-and-take of a political campaign: Trump goes to Las Vegas and rants about sharks, and the press, likely trying to appear unbiased, instead pulls out a dull nugget about Trump’s mention of not taxing tips. Trump vows to destroy the American civil service, and the headlines talk about his “plans to increase presidential power.” Why? Because it is not in the American journalistic tradition to say: Today in Las Vegas, one of the two major candidates said things so rabidly toxic and incoherent that they raised doubts about his sanity."

I give you a newspaper that can keep you fully informed without the biases of the American journalistic tradition.

US edition: https://www.theguardian.com/us

International edition: https://www.theguardian.com/international?INTCMP=CE_INT

There are also UK and Australia editions.

TRUMP SAYS HE ‘WENT DOWN IN A HELICOPTER’ WITH WILLIE BROWN. FORMER S.F. MAYOR SAYS IT NEVER HAPPENED

by Joe Garofoli

Donald Trump said Thursday that he once had to make an emergency landing while riding in a helicopter with former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown.

In a rambling news conference at Mar-a-Lago, Trump also said without elaborating that Brown told him “terrible things” about the former president’s opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris.

“I went down in a helicopter with him. We thought maybe this was the end,” Trump said in response to a question about Brown. “We were in a helicopter going to a certain location together, and there was an emergency landing. This was not a pleasant landing.”

Brown — who did have a close call on a helicopter that Trump wasn’t on 20 years ago — told me Thursday he had no idea what the former president was talking about. On either count.

“You would have known if I had gone down on a helicopter with Trump,” Brown said Thursday. “I’ve never been on a helicopter with Trump.”

The New York Times reported Thursday night that Trump was on a helicopter flight not with Willie Brown but with former California Gov. Jerry Brown and Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The 2018 flight with Trump was confirmed by both men, who said their was no emergency landing. A spokesperson for Jerry Brown said they did not discuss Kamala Harris on the flight. The Times reported that the flight was to survey damage from the Camp Fire in Paradise.

Willie Brown told the Chroicle he did not say anything disparaging to Trump about Harris, whom he dated for about a year in the mid-1990s and appointed to two state commissions years before Harris was elected San Francisco district attorney in 2003.

“It’s just as accurate as all of the other components of what you’re asking me about,” Brown said. “No, not accurate at all.”

So Brown has never said anything bad about Harris to Trump?

“Nooooooo,” Brown said Thursday. “Hell, no.”

“I wouldn’t say anything bad about any woman to him,” Brown said. “I would know better. It might encourage him to take a (verbal) shot.”

Brown told me that he and Harris haven’t spoken “in about three or four years.”

Brown, the powerful longtime former Assembly speaker, said he “can’t understand what Trump has been doing” since President Joe Biden withdrew from the race and “outmaneuvered everybody and put Kamala Harris in a position to make history.”

Brown said it is “absolutely fabulous that somebody we mutually know is about to make history at the highest level that you can in America.”

As for Trump: “He’s wasting his time,” Brown said.

It isn’t the first time that Trump and conservatives have attacked one of Brown’s allies in recent days. Last month, Trump told the National Association of Black Journalists that Harris only recently “turned Black.” Harris has always identified as half-Black and half-Indian American. The attack was racist and inaccurate.

Conservative media, led by Fox News host Sean Hannity, have tried to link Harris to controversial comments made years ago by the Rev. Amos Brown, who Brown appointed to the Board of Supervisors in 1996, in a series of racialized attacks.

“I would hate to conclude that it is purely motivated by race,” Brown said. “I think that he just thinks that he needs to win, and he will do anything he can, including, by the way, trying his best to abolish the (vote) count.”

Former President Donald Trump said Willie Brown told him “terrible things” about Kamala Harris, a claim Brown denies.

As for Trump’s random helicopter reference Thursday, it is not totally out of the blue. Brown has been on Trump’s plane before, “but Trump wasn’t on it,” Brown said Thursday.

Brown, a former Chronicle columnist, wrote in 2013 that Trump, “who’s a friend of mine,” once sent a plane to Boston, where he had a speaking engagement, to fly him down to have lunch with him. Brown wrote that the plane was filled with the kind of art you’d see in a museum.

“How in the hell can you keep your great art in an airplane?” Brown asked Trump.

“Why not?” Trump replied. “How often do you hear of somebody stealing a plane?”

Nor was Trump on the helicopter that Brown was on in 2004 flying from Malibu to Los Angeles International Airport that had to make an emergency landing. No one was injured.

Helicopters, Brown wrote in 2017, “are not my favorite mode of transportation, and I have to admit I was a bit nervous,” he wrote before recounting how he had just flown in one to a fundraiser in the Central Valley. He wrote that the pilot told him, “Don’t worry, Mayor Brown. I fly the most important person in the world in my helicopter.”

“Who’s that?” Brown asked, looking around.

“Me. The pilot.”

Wrote Brown: “Now that’s my kind of flight guy.”

(SF Chronicle)

‘WHO ELECTED YOU BOSS OF THIS OUTFIT?’

“There’s some perversion that’s happened in our country in the last several years.” — Candidate Kamala Harris

by James Kunstler

You might well wonder: how does the Democratic Party rank and file sustain such fervor for the wrecking crew of Harris & Walz conjured up with zero input from the Party’s demos? Just plopped onstage as by the old MGM studio heads casting a pair of iffy contract players in a “B” movie musical called Our Pronouns Are Cash and Carry.

So far, Harris and Walz levitate in fake polls on gusts of idiot wind from the Party’s unofficial public relations team of the The New York Times / MSNBC / CNN / NPR media matrix. But it’s already obvious that Veep Kamala Harris’ brain is just a laugh generator triggered by anything that sounds like an idea from the material world: the economy? Hee-haw…Ukraine? Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha…The border? Tee-hee… Transitioning minor children? Yuk-yuk-yukity-yuk…The Middle East? Cackle cackle…

You are well aware, I’m sure, that the veep has yet to be exposed to a single unscripted interchange with anyone outside her promotional circle. It’s been kind of a neat trick to behold, like watching a barking terrier walk around the stage on its hind legs — but after a while the audience might be thinking, What else can you show me?

You must not suppose this liminal moment in history between the defenestration of “Joe Biden” and the apparent selection of Harris & Walz is anything but a transient psychotic episode in American politics. The tell is that nobody in the Dem fold is inquiring as to how it happened, and especially who is behind it. Has the Dem Party become just Speaker emeritus Nancy Pelosi’s personal mafia? It appears that she was the one who delivered the black spot to “JB.” Do Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries even matter in that supposed hierarchy, or is Mrs. Pelosi sole proprietor of the org now?

There must be a few unfettered souls among the Dem delegates who detect that, without the smoke and mirrors of the media matrix, Harris & Walz can’t possibly make the case for getting elected honestly. And the odds of successfully rigging another national election seem to be on-the-fade, too, with such obvious pranks as registering 371 illegal aliens (non-citizens) to vote using an address that turns out to be a Walmart parking lot. Yesterday, Governor Glenn Youngkin of Virginia signed an excutive order requiring paper ballots and voter ID along with other new regs. Is a trend underway among the states to clean up their acts?

The so far railroaded national Dem delegates have ten more days to watch the Harris / Walz tag-team get vivisected on “X”, which, like it or not, has become the sole open conduit for news and commentary in a nation ruled by a psychopathocracy. You can say that because the policies they promote are obviously inimical to our country’s well being — open borders, har assment, arrest and censorship of political opponents, the pointless Ukraine war, sexual mutilation of children, mass digital surveillance, medical quackery, and a policy of lying about absolutely all of it. Many still recognize insanity when they see it in action. These matters are not defensible and, deep down, they must know it, and maybe enough of the delegates will decide to do something about it — like revolt against the candidates foisted on them.

One possible result, of course, is that such a revolt will rip the party to shreds. You can easily imagine chaos in the streets of Chicago among the disaffected delegates and the Antifa shock troops called forth to punish them. Chaos for its own sake is highly valued by so-called “progressives” looking to progressively destroy the entire armature of civilized life in order to create out of the ashes a nirvana of sadomasochistic persecution and punishment — their Hieronymus Bosch Wokester utopia.

I’m guessing that there will be untoward discoveries about, and mortifying blunders galore by, Harris & Walz these ten days ahead, and they will go into the Chicago convention like two pitiful creatures marked for sacrifice. Gawd knows what will emerge from the turbulence that ensues — but I’m still dogged by the feeling that the only plausible outcome is a giant flying reptile with a face like Hillary’s swooping into the arena on her great, flapping, leathery wings crying, Caw caw caw, I own you all now, you miserable cat ladies, incels, nose-rings, and sundry victims of hateful offense! Follow me once more into the glorious rapture of defeat! And it shall be done!

(kunstler.com)

COMMENT FROM THE TSA ON TULSI GABBARD AND THE ‘QUIET SKIES’ PROGRAM

by Matt Taibbi

Before publishing Wednesday’s interview with former Hawaii congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, I sent a query to the Transportation Security Administration. Was it true Gabbard was placed under surveillance via its “Quiet Skies” program? If so, why? If not, why did she receive “Quad-S” security designations? Was the firm Empower Oversight wrong to claim the TSA commenced a retaliatory investigation into identities of whistleblowers?

A reply, attributable to a TSA Spokesperson, has come in: “TSA uses multi-layered security processes to protect the nation’s transportation systems to ensure freedom of movement for people and commerce. TSA’s Quiet Skies program uses a risk-based approach to identify passengers and apply enhanced security measures on some domestic and outbound international flights. To safeguard sensitive national security measures, TSA does not confirm or deny whether any individual has matched to a risk-based rule. These rules are applied to a limited number of travelers for a limited period of time. Simply matching to a risk-based rule does not constitute derogatory information about an individual.”

More to come.

(racket.news)

A GREAT WOMAN ERASED FROM HISTORY BY IDIOTS.

The branding of the syrup was a tribute to this woman’s gifts and talents. Now future generations will not even know this beautiful woman existed. What a shame. The world knew her as “Aunt Jemima”, but her given name was Nancy Green and she was a true American success story.

She was born a slave in 1834 Montgomery County, KY. and became a wealthy superstar in the advertising world, as its first living trademark. Green was 56-yrs old when she was selected as spokesperson for a new ready-mixed, self-rising pancake flour and made her debut in 1893 at a fair and exposition in Chicago.

She demonstrated the pancake mix and served thousands of pancakes, and became an immediate star. She was a good storyteller, her personality was warm and appealing, and her showmanship was exceptional.

Her exhibition booth drew so many people that special security personnel were assigned to keep the crowds moving. Nancy Green was signed to a lifetime contract, traveled on promotional tours all over the country, and was extremely well paid.

Her financial freedom and stature as a national spokesperson enabled her to become a leading advocate against poverty and in favor of equal rights for all Americans. She maintained her job until her death in 1923, at age 89.

This was a remarkable woman, and sadly she has been ERASED by politics. I wanted you to know and remind you in this cancel culture time period.

Bring her back.

CONSCIENCE OF THE BLUES: HOW HOWLIN’ WOLF GOT CAGED IN OREGON

by Jeffrey St. Clair

From his locked room, Chester Burnett could hear the trains rattling up the tracks, one every half hour. They reminded him of home, back on Dockery Plantation, when he played on the porches of old shacks with Charley Patton, blowing his harmonica to the rhythm of those big wheels rolling along the rails. Those northbound trains were the sound of freedom then.

Now he was in the madhouse, where grown men, their minds broken by the carnage of war, wailed and screamed all night long. Most of them were white. Some were strapped to their beds. Others ambled with vacant eyes, lost in the big room. Chester just stood in the corner and watched. He didn’t say much. He didn’t know what to say. Sometimes he looked out the barred window across the misty fields toward the river and the big mountains far beyond, white pyramids rising above the green forests.

The doctors came every day, men in white jackets with clipboards. They showed him drawings. They asked about his family and his dreams. They asked if he’d ever killed anyone—he had but he didn’t want to talk about that. They asked him to read a big block of words to them. But Chester couldn’t read. He’d never been allowed to go to school.

The doctors asked all the white men the same questions. Poked and prodded them the same way. Let them sleep and eat together. Left them to comfort each other in the long nights in the Oregon fog.

Chester would play checkers with the orderlies and sing blues songs, keeping the beat by slapping his huge feet on the cold and gleaming white floor. Men would gather around him, even the boys who seemed really far gone would calm down for a few minutes, listening to the Wolf growl out “How Long, How Long Blues” or “High Water Everywhere.” It was odd, but here in the madhouse Chester felt like an equal for the first time.

The mental hospital at Camp Adair was located just off of the Pacific Highway on a small rise above the Willamette River in western Oregon, only a few miles south of the infamous Oregon State Hospital, whose brutal methods of mental therapy were exposed by Ken Kesey in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Camp Adair had been built in 1942 as a training ground for the US Infantry and as a base for the 9th Signal Corps. The big hospital was built in 1943. Its rooms were soon overflowing with wounded soldiers from the Pacific theater.

Chester Burnett, by then known throughout the Mississippi Delta as Howlin’ Wolf, had been inducted into the Army in April 1941. Wolf didn’t go willingly. He was tracked down by the agents of the Army and forced into service. Years later, Wolf said that the plantation owners in the Delta had turned him in to the military authorities because he refused to work in the fields. Wolf was sent to Pine Bluff, Arkansas for training. He was thirty years old and the transition to the intensely regulated life of the army was jarring.

Soon Wolf was transferred to Camp Blanding in Jacksonville, Florida, where he was assigned to the kitchen patrol. He spent the day peeling potatoes, and slopping food onto plates as the enlisted men walked down the lunch line. At night, Wolf would play the blues in the assembly room as the men waited for mail call. Later Wolf was sent to Fort Gordon, a sprawling military base in Georgia named after a Confederate general. Wolf would play his guitar on the steps of the mess hall, where the young James Brown, who came to the Fort nearly every day to earn money shining shoes and performing buck dances for the troops, first heard Wolf play. Still, it was a boring and tedious existence.

For some reason, the Army detailed the illiterate Howlin’ Wolf to the Signal Corps, responsible for sending and decoding combat communications. When his superiors discovered that Wolf couldn’t read he was sent for tutoring at a facility in Camp Murray near Tacoma, Washington. It was Wolf’s first experience inside a school and it proved a brutal one. A vicious drill instructor would beat Wolf with a riding crop when he misread or misspelled a word. The humiliating experience was repeated each day, week after week. The harsher the officer treated Wolf, the more stubborn Wolf became. Finally, the stress became too much for the great man and he collapsed one day on base before heading to class. Wolf suffered episodes of uncontrollable shaking. He was frequently dizzy and disoriented. He fainted several times while on duty, once while walking down the hallway.

“The Army is hell!” Wolf said in an interview in the 1970s. “I stayed in the Army for three years. I done all my training, you know? I liked the Army all right, but they put so much on a man, you know what I mean? My nerves couldn’t take it, you know? They drilled me so hard it just naturally give me a nervous breakdown.”

Finally, in August 1943, Howlin’ Wolf was transferred to Camp Adair and committed to the Army mental hospital for evaluation. The first notes the shrink scribbled in Wolf’s file expressed awe at the size-16 feet. The other assessments were less impressive, revealing the rank racism that pervaded both the US Army and the psychiatric profession in the 1940s. One doctor speculated that Wolf suffered from schizophrenia induced by syphilis, even though there was no evidence Wolf had ever contracted a venereal disease. Another notation suggested that Wolf was a “hysteric,” a nebulous Freudian term that was usually reserved for women. The diagnosis was commonly applied to blacks by military doctors who viewed them as mentally incapable of handling the regimens of Army life. Another doctor simply wrote Wolf down with casual cruelty as a “mental defective.”

None of the shrinks seemed to take the slightest interest in Chester Burnett’s life, the incredible journey that had taken him from living beneath a rickety house in the Mississippi Delta to the wild juke joints of West Memphis and an Army base in the Pacific Northwest. None of them seemed to be aware that by 1943, Howlin’ Wolf had already proved himself to be one of the authentic geniuses of American music, a gifted and sensitive songwriter and a performer of unparalleled power, who was the propulsive force behind the creation of the electric blues.

Howlin’ Wolf was locked up for two months in the Army psych ward. He was lashed to his bed, his body parts examined and measured: his head, his hands, his feet, his teeth, his penis. The shrinks wanted to know if he liked to have sex with men, if he tortured animals, and if he hated his father. He was beaten, shocked and drugged when he resisted the barbarous treatment by the military doctors. Finally, he was cut loose from the Army, and discharged as being unfit for duty. He was probably lucky he wasn’t lobotomized or sterilized, as was the cruel fate of so many other encounters with the dehumanizing machinations of governmental psychiatry.

“The Army ain’t no place for a black man,” Wolf recalled years later. “Jus’ couldn’t take all that bossin’ around, I guess. The Wolf’s his own boss.”

39 Comments

Harvey Reading August 10, 2024

https://consortiumnews.com/2024/08/10/caitlin-johnstone-us-escalates-war-on-dissent/

As freedomlandia quickly becomes fascistlandia, to the delight of MAGAts and the robber baron class.

Reply
- BRICK IN THE WALL August 10, 2024
  
  Oh, BULLSHIT
  
  Reply
  - Harvey Reading August 10, 2024
    
    Dream on.
    
    Reply
- Jac Box August 10, 2024
  
  Coach Walz, vp says: “weird”, and I say that’s good.
  
  Coach Walz vp says: “mind your own damn business”, and I say great, even better.
  
  Today, at the hardware store…
  
  Me: Walk in, stop at the counter, immediately notice lady at the counter next to me rolling her eyes, at me. “Okay, I say to self…you are imagining things”.
  
  Lady: (we’re outside, and she wishes me well): “Hope you feel better.”
  
  Me: “Do I know you?”
  
  Lady: “Masks contain chemicals from China that get into your lungs”.
  
  Me: I rip my mask off. (we both leave). I return to the store, and put my mask back on.
  
  Reply
Cotdbigun August 10, 2024

To quote the esteemed editor, ” TRUMP, as we know, is also on record as saying there will be a “bloodbath” if he loses again in a rigged election”. No wonder the nutso magas think like they do.
Notso, says this nutso maga. Last March, Orangemanbad, was addressing the loss of U.S. auto manufacturing jobs to foreign countries, thanks to Bidens disastrous policies. He then used Merriam Websters definition of a major economic disaster, a bloodbath. However, he failed to explain what the term means so that simpler minds can grasp it’s meaning as well , especially in the context of economics that he was talking about.
It’s kind of like using the word niggardly without explaining it’s meaning. I hope this clears up any confusion.

Reply
- Harvey Reading August 10, 2024
  
  Hell, the robber barons here slit their own throats in the eighties by packing up their factories and moving them to China to take advantage of low-priced labor. Then the Chinese figured out that they’d do better on their own. You wanna blame someone? Then look in the mirror place your blame correctly, and where it belongs: on the backs of the putrid ruling class here! MAGAts are a pox on the country, too stupid to see reality.
  
  Reply
  - Cotdbigun August 10, 2024
    
    The Biden policies are encouraging the Chinese to build car factories in Mexico, that is exactly what Trump (the actual spokesperson) was talking about. Though I agree that Orangemanbad shouldn’t have shipped those logs to China! You got him there.
    
    Reply
- Call It As I See It August 10, 2024
  
  The esteemed editor likes to twist Trump’s words like 75% of all media. He has TDS, and refuses to get help.
  
  Reply
Casey Hartlip August 10, 2024

The Trump ‘bloodbath’ lie. This one stinks. The statement came about when Trump was speaking about the US auto industry. He suggested that if he loses the election there will be a bloodbath in the US auto business as its the left and their push for electric cars. Biden and Harris are with using this with seemingly every stump speech.
Lets not forget the Trump is a Russian Agent lie. Adam Schiff and Rachel Marrow beat the Russia Russia Russia drum forever. Schiff bragged about he had concrete proof of Trump’s Russian but that just faded away. Freaks on both sides take things out of context for their gain, but I’m disappointed in the Editor for perpetuating this falsehood.

Reply
- MAGA Marmon August 10, 2024
  
  I don’t think he’s getting enough Oxygen to his brain.
  
  MAGA Marmon
  
  Reply
  - Harvey Reading August 10, 2024
    
    Trump has no brain, like all MAGAts.
    
    Reply
- Bruce Anderson August 10, 2024
  
  Nope. Trump warned of a “bloodbath” if he failed to unseat Biden, but LATER
  said he was referring to the auto industry when he used the term.
  
  Reply
  - Lazarus August 10, 2024
    
    FactCheck.org
    “If you actually watch and listen to the section, he was talking about the auto industry and tariffs,” Steven Cheung, a spokesman for Trump’s campaign, told the Washington Post, adding that “Biden’s policies will create an economic bloodbath for the auto industry and autoworkers.”
    
    “That explanation seems the most plausible, given the context of Trump’s comments.”
    https://www.factcheck.org/2024/03/trumps-bloodbath-comment/
    
    Have a nice day,
    Laz
    
    Reply
    - Bruce Anderson August 10, 2024
      
      A spokesman explained….. Got it
      
      Reply
      - Lazarus August 10, 2024
        
        “That explanation seems the most plausible, given the context of Trump’s comments.”
        FactCheck.org
        Get it?
        Laz
        
        Reply
      - Cotdbigun August 10, 2024
        
        Trump was the spokesperson, he is the one that said it, you quoted him correctly. But you failed to recognize that talking about the auto industry puts it in the context of economics. Probably hard to swallow.
        
        Reply
        
        Bruce Anderson August 10, 2024
        
        Yeah, you’re right. Trump would never talk up violence.
        
        Reply
  - Norm Thurston August 10, 2024
    
    https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-bloodbath-loses-election-2024-rcna143746
    
    Reply
Eric Sunswheat August 10, 2024

RE: WITH NATURAL GAS prices ever upward I’m reminded that lots of people along Mountain View Road here in Boonville sit on land whose mineral rights are owned by one of the major extractive industries, I can’t remember which. Something valuable up there buried beneath the splendid views to the east. — ED NOTES

—> I believe I recall former County of Mendocino Supervisor Norman DeVall mention a major phosphate deposit in relation to the Fish Rock Road area, which has bearings on this essential world resources agricultural mineral shortage, and portends significant future economic activity in the County.

Reply
Eric Sunswheat August 10, 2024

Oh really?
RE: CITY OF UKIAH CRITICIZES FERC AND PG&E RESTRICTIONS THAT CREATE AN UNNECESSARY, ADMINISTRATIVELY-MANUFACTURED DROUGHT, DESPITE NORMAL WATER YEAR CONDITIONS
—>. Lake Pillsbury no longer impounds water as the gates are open, because of discovered earthquake risk, along with improperly constructed dam keyway that is not grounded in bedrock, with overall scenario representing change in water year conditions, which City of Ukiah has not offered to insure against catastrophic dam failure.

Reply
Jim Armstrong August 10, 2024

MENDOCINO COUNTY INITIATES DEVELOPMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE DROUGHT RESILIENCE PLAN

Step One: Retain Lake Pillsbury and the Eel River diversion.

Reply
Steve Heilig August 10, 2024

“We are in the process of the second American Revolution, which will remain bloodless if the left allows it to be,”
– the head of the Heritage Foundation, Trump’s real bosses, speaking more clearly than their demented puppet.
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4753439-heritage-leader-second-american-revolution/

Reply
Matt Kendall August 10, 2024

“Sheriff pops in, whether out of genuine neighborliness or simply to keep one more jerk off his back”

I swing by for the coffee and conversation. We all know men don’t “Gossip” so we tend to call it something else. Lord knows we have scolded so many for “gossiping” we would never do that! And I enjoy visiting with folks who remember many of the happenings of our county.

When I was a young detective I would visit with Bruce Mcewen at the court house while awaiting my cases to be heard. I knew exactly what had happened and normally Bruce did as well. But, while visiting with him I always got a completely different perspective on the exact same subject. He looked through the lense of what the public thinks and sees, no fabrications or dishonesty just looking from a different angle. This fascinated me and it still does.

And I wish I could write as well as he does but my round valley education was cut a little short by my youthful wandering.

Thats an entirely different story.

Reply
Craig Stehr August 10, 2024

Just sitting in the air conditioned Royal Motel room in Ukiah, CA reading through the Anderson Valley Advertiser online edition. I have no idea whatsoever where I am going to go nor what I am going to do beyond my motel exit date of September 1st at 11 a.m. The steady stream of networking emails sent out over the past two years has resulted in no solid offers to show up anywhere and do anything. No housing offer has been received from anybody anywhere. There have been many responses saying that I am loved and welcome to show up and help. I have sufficient money to show up and help. And I also love everybody else. Craig Louis Stehr (Email: craiglouisstehr@gmail.com)

Reply
BRICK IN THE WALL August 10, 2024

Photo of Sam Wo’s: Edsel Fong’s iconic 3 story dumb waiter served food was on Washington Street just up from Grant Street. It now has been occupied by a jeweler. Wo’s has moved down to Clay Street and has a website if you Google it. One day back in 1971, a friend and self made the Decision to eat lunch at Sam Wo’s instead of the Golden Dragon situated across the street from Sam Wo’s. While we dined surrounded by Mr. FONG’S incantations, we heard a commotion and what sounded like gunshots exploding through the open street windows of Wo’s only to find by making our restaurant choice we missed the “Golden Dragon Massacre “. So, you might say I’ve always had respect for that funky old school Chinese establishment of Sam Wo’s.

Reply
George Hollister August 10, 2024

REMEMBERING BILL BAILEY

I met Bill Bailey sometime in the late 1970s. He was operating his business out of his garage back then. I spoke with him at least once a year. Great guy. Bill was a timber faller, who had had a serious work injury with health consequences that plagued him the rest of his life. He thought fallers were getting ripped off by what they paid for saw chain, and bars. So he started a business selling discount Oregon chain, and bars. The business took off, and expanded to a multimillion dollar business operating throughout the US. Bill had a degree in English, and could write. He told things the way he saw them, often to others displeasure.

Bill changed the professional timber falling supply business all over the USA, something few recognize or gave him credit for. His son’s are still operating the business in Woodland, and not Laytonville due a mindless screwup on the part of Mendocino County. Lots of sales tax, and property tax dollars went elsewhere when Bailey’s left.

Reply
David Severn August 10, 2024

I’m not religious in the traditional sense but find some brilliant wisdom ascribed to philosophers searching for God in human nature.
In “The seven deadly sins” are found seven greed based human proclivities that are all complicit in dragging us to the brink – the major of which is avarice which can be specifically defined as the love of money.
And it is interesting that the huge log on the back of the truck is not a Redwood: A Doug Fir?

Reply
- Chuck Dunbar August 10, 2024
  
  Virtues and Vices
  
  I’m taking a radical detour with David’s sentence above, and hoping not to be too offensive in doing so–“In ‘The seven deadly sins’ are found seven greed based human proclivities that are all complicit in dragging us to the brink – the major of which is avarice which can be specifically defined as the love of money. “
  I somehow began thinking of Trump, who has wormed his way into our lives and our minds over the years. Many of us feel we know the guy pretty well, both the good and the bad parts. I did a quick evaluation of these 7 sins, and also of the 7 heavenly virtues (both from Roman Catholic theology), as they relate to the Trump we know so publicly.
  
  The 7 deadly sins:
  
  Vainglory or pride
  Greed or avarice
  Lust
  Envy
  Gluttony
  Wrath
  Sloth
  
  Without going on in detail, as most of this is an easy call, my best sense is that Trump clearly exhibits all these vices, except perhaps gluttony (no solid evidence) and sloth (he surely works hard at making money, nurturing his celebrity, and breeding chaos—no sloth there for sure).
  
  The 7 heavenly virtues:
  
  Humility
  Charity
  Chastity
  Gratitude
  Temperance
  Patience
  Diligence
  
  Again, all easy calls here—6 of the 7 are not present in the Trump we know. Diligence is the exception, related to not being slothful and pursuing his own selfish interests with energy and persistence.
  
  The question keeps coming up. Is this a soul we want as our leader?
  
  Reply
  - Jac Box August 10, 2024
    
    Chuck
    
    My mother wrote ONE word on a piece of paper, and taped it on the counter in the kitchen…
    
    MANNERS
    
    “…ways of behaving toward people that show respect for their comfort, feelings, wellbeing.
    
    Manners Matter More than Money
    
    Reply
    - Chuck Dunbar August 10, 2024
      
      Agree that manners are important, your mother was correct. But here we’re talking about who leads our nation in hard times, and character, in my mind, is far more important than mere manners. Trump should have been raised by your mother, as his own manners are lacking– another vice, but not a deadly one….
      
      Reply
MAGA Marmon August 10, 2024

I can’t stand Steph Curry, can’t wait until he’s out of the league.

MAGA Marmon

Reply
- Bruce Anderson August 10, 2024
  
  Which is par for the Marmon. Dislike the most inoffensive guy in pro basketball.
  
  Reply
  - Steve Heilig August 11, 2024
    
    It’s like hating Willie Mays. Envy is ugly.
    
    Reply
    - Chuck Dunbar August 11, 2024
      
      Yes, one of the deadly sins. James, take heed.
      
      Reply
Craig Stehr August 10, 2024

Just returned from Catholic Mass at St. Mary of the Angels church, located directly behind the Royal Motel in Ukiah, CA. Now showered and drinking Japanese green tea, tap tap tapping away on the pc. Not identified with the body. Not identified with the mind. Identified with the Immortal Self, or Radiant Atman, or Eternal Witness, or Divine Absolute.
I am ready to do anything spiritually directed on the planet earth. Meanwhile, just listening to the whir of the air conditioner. And the hum of the refrigerator. Does anybody want to journey to Washington, D.C. to intervene in history? I’ll be at (707) 462-7536, Room 206 or craiglouisstehr@gmail.com all night. I’m ready. You ready? Let’s do it!!

Reply
Call It As I See It August 10, 2024

Just a little background for Adam Gaska, a group of citizens led by John McGowan contacted the railroad who has jurisdiction. They sent officers from the railroad and have been clearing the trail.

Yes, citizens made this happen. Not our County or City leaders, or law enforcement.

Reply
- Craig Stehr August 10, 2024
  
  So what happens now? Where do all of the campers on The Great Redwood Trail go? It’s the only realistic place in the Ukiah area to go if one is homeless. There isn’t anywhere else.
  
  Reply
  - Call It As I See It August 11, 2024
    
    The Railroad Trail is not a campground. Because of liberal laws you now believe public and private property is free game. I don’t know, go to a campground, and pop up a tent. And why is everyone responsible for people who choose this way of life? When do they take responsibility? It’s disgusting to think someone thinks it’s okay to shit and piss in public. Commit crime and walk around in a self induced drug state. And then say, you need to find a solution for me. I think you have tried to take advantage of help that’s available and avoid this lifestyle. But ultimately you are responsible for you. Good luck, but camping on public and private property is not viable.
    
    Reply
  - Adam Gaska August 13, 2024
    
    That is a good question that I don’t have the answer to. I have been suggesting to designate an area that is ok for people to be then devote the resources-bathrooms, showers, security-to insure it’s not a public health and safety hazard.
    
    What I do know is where they shouldn’t be. I am going to work to get people out of those areas, clean up the mess and maintain it that way.
    
    Reply

Mendocino County Today: Saturday 8/10/2024

39 Comments

Leave a Reply Cancel reply