Mendocino County Today: Thursday 4/10/2025

Warm | Oh No | April Patience | Felony Mayhem | Attempted Murder | Early Birds | Budget Bungling | Similar Look | Haschak Report | Breath Work | Abalone Shells | Library Week | Popow Memorial | April Gathering | Mamas Anniversary | Ed Notes | Noyo Plan | Spiritual Haircut | Plant Sale | COLA Math | Yesterday's Catch | Their Mom | Robin Hood | No Rush | Too Far | Honor Vietnam | Mr Snoid | Not Serious | Yaz Walk-Off | Sincerely Screwed | Delta Poll | Cartoonist's Life | Speaker Uproar | Little Bet | Gov Candidates | Sex Fantasies | Tariff Pause | Lead Stories | China Appeal | Belly Flop | Israel Backlash | Short History | War Sex | Picasso Painting

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WARM AND CALM weather will continue Thursday with very light rain or drizzle along the North Coast Thursday afternoon. Cool and breezy but dry conditions will build Friday through Saturday. Warm and dry conditions are expected again early next week. (NWS)

STEPHEN DUNLAP (Fort Bragg): A foggy (been a while, eh?) 47F on the coast this Thursday morning. We will have a mix of clouds, fog, wind & clearing thru the weekend. A little breezy at times they say.

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APRIL SMALL BITES from Word of Mouth Magazine: Spring is Doing its Thing

This time of year the weather is a nonstop white elephant party – you just never know what you are going to get. One day it’s sunny and warm, with the trees decked out in tiny blossoms like they just sneezed confetti. The next it’s dismal, with rain or impending rain or just-finished-raining imposing a damp, oppressive chill over the day. Such days require proactive strategies for conjuring warmth and light involving wood fires, wool, and bottomless mugs of hot tea.

All the while, as the weather swings from delightful to dreary, there’s the building drumbeat of all the things that can be done once the cold and wet are gone, like break out the barbeque, put plant starts in the ground, move sweaters into storage, and hang up the hammock. With the anticipation of warmer days ahead, it’s tempting to get started on the seasonal switch-over. But early action can come with a price — plant starts killed by frost, or a hammock drenched by yet another rainy day.

As such, April is a lesson in patience. We don’t know what’s coming. But then, that’s true of life in general. And the fact is, all of it is enjoyable, even the dreary days that send us indoors for hot drinks and fireside conversation. This is a month for rolling with whatever comes — savoring the highs, enduring the lows, and knowing the hammock will be hung … eventually.

See you out there ~

Torrey & the team

www.wordofmouthmendo.com

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MAYHEM ON KUNZLER RANCH ROAD

On Monday, April 7, 2025 at approximately 03:28 A.M., Deputies with the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to investigate an assault on Kunzler Ranch Road in Ukiah. Deputies responded and contacted a 62-year-old male in the 600 block of Kunzler Ranch Road.

The 62-year-old male stated Karl Gage, 54, of Ukiah, had entered his residence and an argument ensued. During the argument Gage used a knife to cut the male victim’s face and arm. The male victim suffered lacerations to his lip and arm consistent with a cut from a sharp instrument. The male subject sought medical treatment due to the injuries caused by Gage.

Gage left the scene prior to Deputies arriving. During the investigation, Gage was determined to be on State Parole. He was ultimately located and placed under arrest for Felony Mayhem, Felony First Degree Burglary, Parole Violation and Assault with a Deadly Weapon.

Gage was subsequently booked into the Mendocino County Jail where he was to be held on a no-bail status due to violating the terms of his Parole.

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UKIAH HORROR

On Monday, April 7, 2025 at approximately 6:52 PM, Deputies from the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to investigate an assault involving a knife on Brush Street in Ukiah. Deputies responded and located a 15-year-old male victim in the 300 block of Brush Street.

The 15-year-old male stated he had been stabbed multiple times by a male subject wearing a red shirt who had left the location just before Deputies arrived.

The 15-year-old male had multiple lacerations and puncture wounds all over his body, which were consistent with a knife or a sharp instrument. Medical personnel were requested to respond to Code-3 (lights and sirens) to render aid to the 15-year-old male.

While on the scene, Deputies learned that the suspect was a male, approximately 5 foot 8 inches tall, wearing a red shirt and black jeans. The suspect male was last seen running towards North Orchard Avenue.

Deputies quickly responded to the area of North Orchard Avenue and observed a male subject matching the suspect’s description running in the 500 block of Ford Street. This information was broadcast over the radio and Deputies from the Mendocino Sheriff’s Office and Officers from the Ukiah Police Department were able to safely apprehend the suspect without further incident.

The suspect was determined to be a 16-year-old male from Ukiah, CA. From the information learned during the investigation, the attempted murder is suspected to be a gang-related incident.

The 15-year-old victim suffered life-threatening injuries and was airlifted to a trauma center in a neighboring County for further medical treatment.

The 16-year-old suspect was placed under arrest for Felony Attempted Murder and subsequently booked into the Mendocino County Juvenile Hall.

Anyone with information regarding this ongoing investigation is requested to contact the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch Center at 707-463-4086 (option 1). Information can also be provided anonymously by calling the non-emergency tip-line at 707-234-2100.

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BUDGET BUNGLING 2.0

by Mark Scaramella

As expected given the dearth of information requested by the Board and/or provided by staff last week, Tuesday’s budget discussion was another disorganized, muddled mess. In the end we couldn’t even figure out what the final motion was. Even though Board Chair John Haschak asked that the motion be read back, that was bungled too. The motion they voted for was incomplete. It had something to do with asking staff to return at a future board meeting with more info, presumably budget related. If history is any guide, they still won’t have much to work with. Staff wants “direction” from the Board and the Board wants ill-defined info from the staff.

There was plenty of untethered free association and opinion about rudimentary sixth-grade budget philosophy, such as a vague preference for not using one-time funds, the county’s “structural deficit,” what are “mandated services,” what kinds of things should be exempt from the budget axe, how the budgets of various departments are linked, and on and on. None of which addressed the question of how to actually balance the budget.

Supervisor Haschak had a scattergun list of ideas, most of which wouldn’t make much of a dent in the alleged budget gap. Supervisor Bernie Norvell thought the County should institute a “hard” hiring freeze where only the Board could authorize new hires. Williams suggested withdrawing from the Teeter Plan. The other two board members, Ms. Mulheren and Ms. Cline, had no specific ideas or suggestions. There was no follow-up or motions related to any of the ideas mentioned, amorphous as they were.

The “Teeter Plan,” a state option which allows counties to pay a fixed allocation to schools and special districts while letting the County keep penalties and interest on delinquent taxes (if and when they are paid) is said to be losing money. Historically it has made money via those penalties and interest. Instead of asking why it’s losing money, the Board threw up its hands and said they should consider withdrawing from the Teeter Plan. Such an ill-advised move would destabilize school and special district funding and would reduce the County’s motivation to collect taxes due. It’s a bad idea, so the Board will probably move in that direction.

Sheriff Kendall told the Board he his budget was not a “sacred cow,” and that he’s willing to accept his fair share of cuts if and when it comes to that. Although he has millions of dollars of unbudgeted requirements that must be addressed somehow, chief among them the staffing of the new wing of the jail.

Former Willits City Councilwoman Madge Strong told the board that their disorganized budget discussion was too scattered to expect any useful input from the public.

Patrick Hickey, Mendo’s long-time union rep for the Services Employees International Union which represents the majority of county employees was the only speaker with substantive remarks.

Hickey: “As you work to prepare the budget for 2025-2026 you need to understand that the public and your employees have lost trust in you. You need to earn that trust back by being transparent and more forthcoming regarding county finances. Why don’t they trust you? Let me give you one example. In 2023, the board and the administration swore up and down that the county was deep in the red with a structural deficit of tens of millions of dollars. We called that a fiction at the time. So what did the 2023-2024 annual comprehensive financial report end up saying? A surplus of $13.6 million. A swing of more than $20 million. The county has always overestimated expenses and underestimated revenues. These chicken little announcements about the sky falling are once again being rolled out like clockwork as the board begins its discussion on the budget. If you do this every time you lose credibility and you lose public trust. You need to earn that trust back. What are some steps that the board could take to make a stronger budget? First, stop digging a deeper hole. Cut your losses on ill-advised legal actions that cost county residents and take your focus off running the county. The county has many allocated positions that are vacant and have been sitting vacant for some time. Those should be taken out of the budget. Do a vigorous review of the Teeter Plan. It has been a money loser for the county. Determine if the county has a reasonable manager-to-worker ratio. Streamlining and flattening the chain of command can boost efficiency and provide cost savings. Keep focused on collecting funds that are owed to the county. Delinquent property taxes under assessed properties, uncollected, transient occupancy taxes. None of these will generate huge revenues, but it adds up. It would confirm to county residence that the county holds everyone to the same standard. As the county works on its 2025 2026 budget are there reasons for concern? Yes absolutely. Based on the proposals coming from Congress to gut Medicaid And so forth are putting the county and our nation in a very dangerous position. Funding that supports healthcare, nursing homes, home healthcare workers, substance, abuse, treatment, public health programs, mental health programs, all are at serious risk. If they are cut, it will fundamentally change County services. We urge everyone to advocate strenuously against these disastrous ideas and for the county to prepare contingency plans for how best to respond to all possible scenarios.”

As usual, Hickey was ignored.

No one asked about past budget balancing measures. No dates were set for future decisions. No one asked for tiered recommendations. No commitments were made.

A READER ADDS: The Board appears to have sleep walked back to what led to the 2010 era budget wars. Probably 75-80% of the County budget is jobs, the county being a people intensive industry. Back then it was the “Slavin Study” that enhanced county pay to be more competitive. The Board entered 2010 with no reserves, having spent them down in the good years leading up to it. Then cut pay by 10 percent and all the other battles. Today, the County has entered into new competitive agreements and clearly have no plan on how to pay for the cost. They have reserves but no political will to protect them, instead always kicking the can down the road, which is what I suspect will happen again. The day they don’t or can’t kick the can down the road, a new era of budget wars will result. It’s now only a matter of time. This year or next year? This isn’t just history rhyming, it’s almost the exact same thing. But the thing about the 2008 recession is it hit property taxes hard, which is a county government’s bread and butter. A true gut punch to the county system. Today, so far, this isn’t a revenue issue, its completely a spending issue. Completely the Board’s fault.

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A READER WRITES: I hope the similarity between disgraced former Ukiah Police Chief Noble Waidelich and newly appointed chief Tom Corning does not go beyond their physical appearance.

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JOHN HASCHAK:

With beautiful Springtime weather in Mendocino County, we can be grateful for the wonderful natural beauty and people in this place we call home.

One of my main issues has been creating safer communities together. In the past 6 years, I have worked closely with firewise communities, fire departments, the Sheriff, CalFire and County staff to make this a reality. We have opened emergency access routes, secured local funding to maintain some of these routes along with funding for fire departments and the Mendocino County Fire Safe Council, and enhanced communication between the different entities. There are other projects ongoing.

One project that promised to enhance community safety significantly was the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant. Last year, the County received $3.6 million from the BRIC grant through FEMA and matching funds from a Prepare CA Match grant. This funding was for the first phase of a multi-phase, $50 million project to create defensible space, reduce hazardous fuels, and retrofit homes with ignition-resistant materials to address wildfire hazards in the Brooktrails/Sherwood Corridor. This initiative was crucial for improving the County’s wildfire preparedness and resilience, especially given that this area is considered one of the highest priorities in the state.

Unfortunately, staff informed me that FEMA released a memo announcing the termination of the BRIC program. As part of this decision, it states that all BRIC applications from Fiscal Years 2020-2023, which would include ours, are being canceled. The memo referred to the program as “yet another example of a wasteful and ineffective FEMA initiative.” This federal action seems to be taken without consideration for the well-being of our community, and it certainly undermines our efforts to enhance safety.

We had the April 8 Board of Supervisors meeting in Willits at the County Museum. As the Museum transitions into a non-profit entity, the work of the Friends of the Mendocino County Museum becomes increasingly important. Please join, volunteer, and/or offer support if you can. 

Issues discussed at the Board meeting included the budget and the cannabis cultivation size limits. Due to deadlines, I will have more information about these issues next update.

I will be holding Town Hall meetings in Willits on April 14, 3:00-4:30 at the Firehouse Training Room and then in Laytonville at Harwood Hall on April 15 from 6:00-7:30. It is critical that we are communicating because there are so many concerns out there. I hope to see you at one of these events. 

The Talk with the Supervisor will be on April 17, 10:00 at Brickhouse Coffee. Note that this is a change from the second Thursday of the month. As always, you can communicate with me at haschakj@mendocinocounty.gov or 707-972-4214. 

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KATY TAHJA: Looking for 45 small pieces of Abalone shell…Our Japanese Sister City student exchange happens in May and we’d like to put small pieces of Abalone shell (like thumb nail size) in their gift bags. Does anyone have 45 bits and pieces they might donate? Katy Tahja, 937-5854

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CELEBRATE NATIONAL LIBRARY WEEK at Mendocino County Library April 6–12, 2025

What draws people to the library? Everything! From books and digital resources to job assistance and creative programming, libraries are essential to thriving communities. National Library Week, April 6–12, 2025, is a time to celebrate the many ways libraries bring people together, spark imagination, and support lifelong learning.

For more information about National Library Week and the Student Success Card program please view www.mendolibrary.org or contact the Mendocino County Library at 234-2873

For info on other Ukiah library events including the LOBA Poetry Series Featuring MK Chavez, and the May/June Art Walk go to: www.mendolibrary.org

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MENDOCINO ART CENTER

Please join us this Saturday, April 12th for the opening reception of a memorial show for beloved community member, Sonya Popow. The show will feature a collection of Sonya’s ceramic works, from her “Shapeshifters” to her bell masks and her wonderfully biomorphic sculptures inspired by the Mendocino coast. Sonya has been an integral part of the art community of Mendocino since moving here in 1970. She was always present at kiln firings: taking shifts, telling stories and inspiring young artists. Sonya will be dearly missed and we are honored to showcase this body of work.

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AV VILLAGE: Change of Venue for the April Gathering!

The April gathering will take place Sunday, April 20 from 4-5pm at the Rose Room, at the Anderson Valley Museum, 12340 Hwy 128 in Boonville.

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ED NOTES

THE FOLLOWING are two bits of timely dialogue from the excellent and eternally timely movie, ‘Margin Call.’ The first is from a vulpine CEO of a hedge fund, the second from one of his vulpine assistants: “If you really want to do this with your life you have to believe that you’re necessary. And you are. People want to live like this in their oversize cars and their big fucking houses that they can’t even pay for? Then you’re necessary. The only reason they all get to continue living like kings is because we’ve got our fingers on the scales in their favor. I take my hand off and the whole world gets really fucking fair really fucking quickly and nobody actually wants that. They say they do but they don’t. They want what we have to give them, but they also want to play innocent and pretend they have no idea where it came from. That’s more hypocrisy than I’m willing to swallow. Fuck them. Fuck normal people.”

VULTURE NUMBER TWO: “Yeah. I earned $2.5 million last year. Sure. I spent it quite quickly. You learn to spend what’s in your pocket. First the tax man takes half upfront. So you’re left with $1.25 million. My mortgage takes another $300k. I send $150k home for my parents, you know, keep them going. What’s that? $800k? $150k on a car. About $75k on restaurants. Probably $50k on clothes. And I put $400k away for a rainy day. That leaves $125k. Oh, I did spend $77k on hookers, booze and dancers. Mainly hookers. $77k was a little shocking initially. But then I realized I could claim most of that back as entertainment. It’s true!”

LITTLE KNOWN FACT DEPT: The Golden Gate Bridge almost collapsed in 1987 during the 50th birthday of the most marvelous span in the world. The bridge authority had closed the bridge for the day, inviting pedestrians to do a Frisco-to-Marin walk across as people did in 1937 when the Bridge opened. The diff between Americans of 1937 and Americans of 1987 is several million tons of Big Macs. The Americans of ‘37 were lithe and, ah, proportionate. The ‘87 Yanks are so fat they almost sank the whole show, crowding onto the Bridge in huge numbers, so many of them they couldn’t move, and so many of them they flattened the structure in its vulnerable middle, the suspended single span section. As the road surface flattened, the cable supports tilted inward, and the cables holding it all up got so tight they almost snapped. Only the installation of a lighter roadbed in ‘86 kept thousands of celebrants from plunging to their deaths. This terrifying near miss still doesn’t seem to be well known. Kevin Starr’s wonderful little book on the Bridge — ‘Golden Gate: The Life and Times of America’s Greatest Bridge’ — is the definitive work. Starr summed up the near catastrophe this way: “It is virtually beyond comprehension to contemplate what might have occurred — possibly the greatest man-made accident in human history.” (As a child temporarily without a parent, Starr was a resident of Ukiah’s Albertinum, until the middle 1960s an orphanage run by an order of nuns.)

ELK’S BEEN UNREAL for years, ever since the hippies cleaned up, went purple, dropped back in, and Charlie Acker took over. But Bobby Beacon has always been real if not surreal, and anyone who’s ever been up the hill for a drink at Bobby’s Beacon Light by the Sea gets at least a glimpse, and often a lot more, of old time Mendo. The joint was recently written up in the New York Times, which is sure to attract a lot of undesirables, but the Beacon Light is sure to survive them. Here’s a review from twitter: “This place is as cool as it gets. It’s a stand-alone bar/firehouse in Elk, CA. There is a flashing red light visible to most all of Elk whenever it is open. The guy who serves/owns the place there is a real cool old timer who is a local fireman, veterinarian, bar impresario! They generally have good top shelf booze and sell it at lower than average prices. The place is like a museum filled with great Mendocino artifacts, good times and good booze. This made my stay in Elk far better than it would’ve been because it’s incredibly unique. You’re sure to hear some amazing stories while being served.”

ACCORDING to a recent story in the SF Chronicle, the city’s coyote population has exploded. How the cunning little beasts got established in the city was a mystery until DNA testing, and then a photo, revealed that the SF coyotes are originally from Marin County. Golden Gate Bridge cameras have confirmed a lone pioneer coyote jogging purposefully across the Bridge late one night, leaving us to wonder what propelled him to leave sunny Marin for foggy Frisco. A Mrs. Coyote soon joined her Mr. and coyotes have now been in The City for roughly three decades now.

OPINION on the “appropriateness” of a growing coyote presence in The City is, to say the least, divided. Dog and cat people generally are opposed because coyotes can, if they get real hungry, prey on the smaller dogs. Even more often they chow down on cats, especially feral cats of which the city has a large population. But dogs are seldom, if ever, attacked by coyotes because in the city context dogs are constantly attended, and coyotes do not attack large dogs because of the size discrepancy, although the coyotes will roar out of their dens to defend their young.

THE MORE HYSTERICAL city opinion worries that coyotes might dash out of the Presidio or Golden Gate brush to snag a toddler, as the Aussie dingo is famously alleged to have done. The less hysterical opinion says that a roaming pack of smallish predators like coyotes don’t belong in a park, not that two-footed predators aren’t already installed in large numbers from Haight and Stanyan to Hippie Hill. And there are funny speculations about how coyotes will do up against the mammoth, well-fed raccoons in neighborhoods bordering urban coyote habitat. I’d bet on the raccoon up against a coyote, but it’s highly unlikely we’ll ever see a coyote deliberately take on a raccoon or vice versa.

A PIT BULL owner has claimed her dogs were menaced by a coyote in Golden Gate Park. (There’s a den of coyotes near the buffalo pens.) I don’t believe that. The coyote might have snarled at the dogs if they got near her young, but why would legendarily combative pit bulls be deterred by a mere snarl? The owner claimed her dogs are completely under her control, which means she’s fibbin’ us. After all, the best trained police dog will take off after a cat. Dogs of all kinds are under control until they aren’t.

A READER sends along this comment with some unkind assessments of the mental acuity of AVA staff: “Every time someone tells me how ‘logical’ and ‘rational’ males are relative to females, I merely point to the nearest tax-subsidized sports stadiums where middle class moron males are swilling beer that costs $8 a cup after paying $100 for a ticket… and working themselves into cardiac arrest over the outcome of some game between two corporate teams of overpaid retard prima donna players. Listen, these men take this crap SERIOUSLY. I mean, a guy’s fave corporate team losing is enough to make the guy moody and depressed for days afterwards. However, the reasons society does this is to emasculate and weaken and distract these otherwise dangerous males with all this sports clutter.”

AS IT HAPPENS, this moron attended that very Saturday’s 4 o’clock Giants-Cubs game where I bought a lemonade for, I think, $6.75. The ticket was worth $62 but it was a gift. On my own, I buy a $20 seat up in the View section at the top of the ballpark, but those $6.75 lemonades leave me amazed at my own profligacy. But then I remember when air for tires and water for radiators were free at the corner gas station! You may be pleased to learn that “the overpaid ‘tards” played well that day and, by the time Tony sang about losing his heart on the cable car halfway to the stars, I’d had a great time, and couldn’t help having noted that about half the 41,000 people present were women. Yes, ma’am, the Giants were 2-1 victorious, and there was indeedy a spring in my step as I footed it out onto the Embarcadero and west up and over the hills into the early summer fog howling in off the Pacific.

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “The whole world is hanging by its fingernails, refusing to be dragged into the future. That future is all about contraction. We could navigate our way into it but we don’t want to. We want to stay right where we are with all our stuff and no need to make new arrangements and we are trying every last trick to do that. Can you not sense a terrible tidal surge of implacable forces under the headlines’ placid surface?” (James Kunstler)

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DEAL!

Looking to trade my skills for a spiritual guidance session and haircut

I am hoping to receive two things:

1) One spiritual guidance session that could include somatics, mindfulness, astrology and/or tarot

2) One haircut

In exchange I can offer:

1) Animal care/dog walking

2) Child/adult/elder companion care

3) Lightly guided gentle movement/yoga/meditation instruction

4) Commissioned artwork

Please reply to me at caitlindoherty04@gmail.com if you’re interested in talking about an exchange.

Take care,

Caitlin Doherty

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JUDY VALADAO:

Out of boredom this morning and after all the talk of cutting Social Security/Medicare I decided to do a little math (which I hate). The results are:

After the COLA raise in Social Security and after the raise in cost of Medicare I ended up with enough extra for:

1 Dozen eggs per month

1/4 tank of gas for my car

So, if I cut the eggs down to half a dozen and skip the fuel for the car there is enough in that COLA raise to put $10.00 towards the raise in property taxes, $10.00 towards the raise in car insurance and $10.00 towards the raise in Homeowners insurance.

No wonder I hate math.

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CATCH OF THE DAY, Wednesday, April 9, 2025

WESLEY BOHANNON, 37, Lower Lake/Ukiah. Disorderly conduct-alcohol, paraphernalia, resisting.

RICKIE CURTIS, 51, Willits. Disorderly conduct-alcohol.

CODY MENDEZ, 21, Ukiah. Under influence, paraphernalia.

DAVID WRIGHT, 61, Ukiah. Registration tampering.

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ON-LINE COMMENT OF THE DAY

My oldest is a pilot, FedEx international, second runs a ski area in Aspen Colorado, #3 graduated with an EE degree, has worked several companies, paid off two houses, works at a startup, something to do with factory maintenance automatic monitoring, I don’t quite understand. Youngest graduated with a CS degree, runs a team for a major banking outfit, he recently was accepted at Georgia tech in the masters program. We raised them on an auto mechanic’s and steel sales salaries. I am very proud of all of them. Their mom deserves all the credit. If it was just me they would probably be all bums.

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MITCH CLOGG

At the rate I’m going it’ll be 20 yrs or so before I can do things I used to do when I was 40 years younger. (That would make me at 106, doing 66-year-old stuff. Better make it 60 years younger.)

If that makes no sense, I’m still on the mend after two years of being in and out of hospitals (mostly in), and still regaining weight, muscle and bone. (Illness and convalescence can reduce bone mass and strength along with everything else.)

When I was born I was the youngest member of my household. I stayed that way for six years. Six years is a long time when you’re six or younger. My older sisters (who was it, comedian or comic writer, who invented the term “sisty uglers”?)--my sisty uglers were tall enough to stand beside my crib, reach in and torment me—pinch, poke, tickle and twist me; turn me face up or face down, feet north or south of head. We were wartime children, and wartime children were to be seen and not heard. Grownups had grownup stuff to do. We kids were just unwished-for distractions from being young adults, breeding, competing and achieving. Family friends were in uniform in strange places where there was a lot of death, as I gradually came to realize. My father, father of three, was ineligible to serve, so he did the next best thing, he built a factory for making war-and-industry things, The Clogg Company—Sheet-Metal Fabricating, as it magically said on company stationery, and got kind of rich. He was an object of envy and possibly resentment (likely, I’d say) to his friends in the war. Mother spent part of her days working at some place where they cared for kids during work weeks so their mothers could rivet airplanes.

I cannot imagine this, to this distant day, still, Mommy working at childcare. My mother was not especially fond of kids, any kids. Especially she was not fond of boys, which I learned from my grandmother, my mother’s mother-in-law, “Ba,” we kids named her, like in bah humbug. Years after WW2 was over and Mother and Daddy were, by accident, dead, and Grandfaddy, my father’s father, “-faddy” rhyming with “body,” was, too — after all that, Ba told me my mother didn’t like boys.

So there was nobody to protect me from my sisty uglers except whoever was there to look after us while my mother was looking after the babies and children of the riveting women — Rosy and all the other riveters and telephone operators and teachers, bus drivers, cafeteria workers and “Comfort Women” (what Japanese women were called who were conscripted to serve the sexual needs of the Japanese warriors; they had a different designation on this side of the Pacific), nurses and crossing guards. You know what I’m talking about: women’s work in wartime—twentieth-century women, anyway. “They were adorable,” vets used to say, recalling their “R & R” - rest and relaxation – during wartime.

Carrie Daniels, our maid, was not especially fond of me, either. She wasn’t fond of any of us, but I didn’t care about that because she didn’t slap, yell at, or spank us. She was my surrogate mother. I was too young to pay much attention to Carrie’s feelings, and she was gone before my parents were.

Anyway, I’m not used to being old, and it gets worse every minute. I was youngest in school, for years and years, and it mattered: three months when you’re eight are more significant than three months when you’re sixteen.

Then, at sixteen, I was suddenly older, outside of the house, living alone, eating out, driving my own car, a yellow Willys Jeepster, and needing no “by your leave” from anybody. Don’t think, as I closed the front door of the rooming house behind me, patted myself down for the essentials — testicles (behind closed fly), wallet, car and door keys — that I didn’t feel like a man about town. Twenty-one at sixteen! (It was at sixteen, MY sixteen, that my parents died untimely, along with kid sister and bro, hence the boarding house.)

I’ve had seventy years to get used to not being young, but those things instilled in us when we’re little often remain. Soldiers dying on battlefields, then and now, call for their mothers.

Whatever it is, I’ll take it. I might drop dead as soon as I stand up from this swivel chair. I might die sitting in the chair (but I wouldn’t drop). I might die any ol’ time and surely will, but I don’t feel it coming. I can’t point to my carburetor or transmission and say, “that component is about to quit”. I prefer it that way. Would you want to know when you’re going to die, people say. I say no. There are things that would be convenienced by such knowledge, but some of them would be uncomfortable, and none of them, obviously, is indispensable. I’m in no rush.

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NOW IS THE TIME TO HONOR VIET NAM

by Nadya Williams

In 2 weeks I leave for Viet Nam (Thursday, April 24), to commemorate with them the 50th anniversary of the end of the American War, April 30, 1975. I just want to let friends know that, if you have the means - large or small — now would be a good time to honor their struggle and sacrifice with a Donation to any of the 3 organizations listed here below.

This comes at a time when the Trump regime has cut USAID, severely halting some major work to address some of the war damage: care for victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin, unexploded bomb removal, and others. On top of that, Trump has imposed a 47% tariff on imports from Viet Nam (as of April 4th)!

I list the 3 non-profit organizations here, then provide more details at the end.*

• Education for Girls in Viet Nam*, $100 annually is given to each girl as a scholarship — but no amount is too small. These are children who do well in school, but come from poor families.

The conduit for donations is the umbrella non-profit: Friendship with Cambodia. Donations are Tax Deductible, on-line or by check.

https://friendshipwithcambodia.org/humanitarian-programs/vietnam-education-sponsorship/

• Veterans For Peace (VFP)*. The San Francisco chapter is directly linked to VFP Chapter 160 in Viet Nam. Projects are: Agent Orange victims, Bikes for Kids to get to school, bomb removal, etc. Donations are Tax Deductible, on-line or by check.

https://vfp160.org/donate/

• Lastly, ME… For people who know and trust me! Five friends and one local org. have sent me checks now totaling $900, which I will donate at the Ha Noi headquarters of the Vietnam Cooperative Alliance, where a Viet Namese friend of 22 years works. This is a global poverty alleviation non-profit org. Donations to me personally are only by cash or check and are not tax deductible.

Details:

• Education for Girls in Viet Nam* was started in 1994 by a dear friend who worked at a SF human rights non-profit where I later worked for 9 years (Global Exchange). Based in Eugene, OR the org. grew into Friendship with Cambodia, which sponsors university students in that country. In Viet Nam, rural, underserved areas are prioritized, and the Vietnam Women’s Union identifies girls who are good students, but who need financial help — middle school through high school. Only girls are chosen, as they are usually at a disadvantage over boys. Since the COVID pandemic, girls who have lost one or both parents are prioritized.
• Veterans For Peace* *Chapter 160 in Viet Nam. *If you want your donation to go to a specific program, please add a note in the ‘additional comments’ section after the ‘payment information’ step. I will be visiting with the American vets who live there full time and administer the projects, which you can see on-line. I am on the 160 board as well.
• Unsolicited (!) *friends have given me checks totaling $900 — it would be COOL if I could bring $1K (or more:). The money is in my checking account and I’ll be using my Credit Card to donate all at the Ha Noi HQ of the VCA — Vietnam Cooperative Alliance, where my VNese friend recently transitioned from 25 years at the Women’s Union to Vice President of VCA.

You can meet with me — Text or call Cell (415) 845-9492, or Snail Mail (Fri. Ap. 18 at the latest) to:

Nadya Williams, 1436 Grant Ave. #10, SF 94133.

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JEFF BLANKFORT:

Senator Bernie Sanders IS NOT SERIOUS ABOUT STOPPING US ARMS TO ISRAEL and that this fact was made clear SEVEN years ago when Sen. Rand Paul put a “hold” on $38 BILLION of arms for Israel which was his privilege as a US senator, an action to which at the time, the “Palestine solidarity movement” inexcusably paid no attention, just as in 1991, led astray by Israeli asset (sic), Noam Chomsky, minimized the importance of Pres. George HW Bush’s nationally televised speech to the American people explaining why he would veto a resolution passed by the Senate and the House approving $10 billion in loan guarantees for Israel, telling the American public how much each Israeli man, woman and child, was receiving in US aid, at a time when Bush Sr. and Sec of State James Baker were trying to put together a peace conference in Madrid that would resolve the issue of Israeli occupation to which the Israelis and their agents in the Jewish Political Establishment were unalterably opposed and his threat, repeated again in Feb., 1992, would cost him re-election in 1992.

I would argue, that Chomsky has been both the Pied Piper AND the Wizard of Oz for Israel while “the movement” hasn’t yet reached the level of the Scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz, to sing, “If I only had a brain.” That should be the wish of those praising Sen Sanders who previously had opposed a “ceasefire” in Gaza while calling for the complete destruction of Hamas.

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MIKE YASTRZEMSKI’S WALK-OFF SPLASH HIT IN 10th caps Giants’ rally past Reds

by Susan Slusser

Pitching, defense and attention to detail are the watchwords for the San Francisco Giants this season, a nod to the fact the team doesn’t boast enormous firepower.

Wednesday, trying to salvage the final game of a series against Cincinnati, the Giants had sticky moments on the mound, in the field and had two men thrown out at the plate, a disastrous combination. And yet, somehow, there they were, tied on the strength of Wilmer Flores’ leadoff homer in the eighth.

Then, in the 10th, Mike Yastrzemski belted a two-run homer into McCovey Cove off Emilio Pagan to give San Francisco an 8-6 victory in a game that was all Cincy much of the way. It was the sixth walk-off hit of Yastrzemski’s career and his fifth walk-off homer, third of the Splash variety, and yes, he had promised daughter Quinley a Splash Hit. “It’s getting ridiculous at this point,” he said of the 3-year-old’s demands, but it could easily refer to how well he’s fulfilling them.

The Giants have nine wins, and three have come in their final at-bat.

“We’re never out of the game,” Yastrzemski said. “We’re never going to quit. I mean, we’re down five runs at one point, and nobody had any panic, no fear, no worries. It just gives us confidence to keep playing our game at all points no matter what, believe in ourselves and good things will happen.”

Said Justin Verlander, who started for San Francisco: “It’s a hell of a win, that’s what good teams do. We had a tough couple days, I put us behind the 8-ball, and these guys responded, impressive.”

Verlander struck out four of the first six hitters, but his troubles began with a walk to Jake Fraley in the third, which kicked off a string of Cincinnati hits and a five-run inning. Austin Wynns singled off third baseman Matt Chapman’s glove, and Chapman needed the heel of his hand bandaged after tearing it up with a diving effort. T.J. Friedl doubled in Fraley, Santiago Espinal reached on an infield hit and Elly De La Cruz doubled on a first-pitch slider to send in two.

With the infield in, Verlander threw his hardest pitch of the day, 97.9 mph, to Gavin Lux, who poked it just out of Tyler Fitzgerald’s range at second. Pitching coach J.P. Martinez trotted to the mound to provide Verlander a chance to get his breath, and he then wrapped it up quickly with a foul pop-up and a strikeout.

“To be able to finish the inning was huge, and then go out there and give us 5⅔ innings allowed the rest of the game to be covered by the key guys in the back of the bullpen,” manager Bob Melvin said. “So it looks like he had a tough game, but … this is as good as stuff as he’s had all year. He punched out nine. He was incredibly unlucky in that inning and deserved a better fate, and I’m glad we were able to pick him up.”

Verlander said he felt great and his stuff was the best it has been in three years. “If I keep doing that, I’ll be fine,” he said.

Fitzgerald, still becoming accustomed to second base after playing mostly shortstop and in the outfield, has had difficult moments on this homestand. Wednesday, with two outs and a man at first in the sixth, he took a feed from shortstop Willy Adames but couldn’t find the bag, stabbing with his toe and missing, then throwing to first too late to get Spencer Steer. Verlander walked Fraley, ending Verlander’s day. Lou Trivino took over and walked Wynns to push across Cincinnati’s sixth run, an unearned one.

Before the game, Fitzgerald acknowledged he might be trying too hard in all areas. He has been tinkering with his swing, and, he said, “I’m working my butt off, I’m trying to find something, but maybe it’s causing a negative effect. Maybe I’m thinking too much, and I’m up there kind of thinking mechanically. My goal today is whatever happens, just kind of free my mind out there.”

And at the plate, that worked: He doubled in the third inning and he provided an opposite-field single to drive in a run in the sixth. Jung Hoo Lee singled to open it and after Yastrzemski’s double, Lee scored on a wild pitch and Flores singled Yastrzemski in, ending Nick Martinez’s day. Former Giants reliever Taylor Rogers entered to face catcher Patrick Bailey, who hit his third career triple, driving in Flores, then Fitzgerald provided his single to score Bailey and make it 6-5 Reds.

There were earlier missed opportunities, such as the Giants getting men thrown out at the plate in back-to-back innings. In the fourth, Lee tripled in Adames and then tried to come in on Heliot Ramos’ one-out chopper to the first-base side of the mound. Martinez picked up the ball quickly and, his momentum going the other way, fired home to get Lee, with Wynns making a strong, one-handed tag. A defensive gem, and not the expected play.

The next inning was more of a gut punch: with men at second and third, Fitzgerald hit a hard shot to shortstop and Flores tried to score from third. De La Cruz, who has one of the strongest arms at the position, had the ball in Wynns’ glove before Flores was two-thirds of the way down the line.

“Those are kind of reads,” Melvin said of the runners going on contact. “Maybe we should have a little better lead with the third baseman back, but Nick made a great play on that one.”

Flores, fully healthy, is back to being a quiet force in the Giants’ lineup. His five homers were tied for the NL lead through Wednesday. Lee is coming on strong after missing almost all of last year: He had a three-hit day and he’s batting .333.

The Giants got their offense revved up late in the series, just in time to head back out on the road for a three-city trip that starts with two biggies, the Yankees and Phillies, before finishing up in Anaheim.

“It’s a long road trip, so it’s going to feel like we’re there a month, especially with the off-day to start it,” Melvin said. “And a four-game series in Philly. We play three good teams, we’re going to be gone for a long period of time, and that’s why it’s even nicer to win this game and and get on the road with a 9-3 record.”

(sfchronicle.com)

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NEW POLL REVEALS CA VOTERS PREFER LOCAL, SUSTAINABLE WATER SOLUTIONS OVER DELTA TUNNEL

by Dan Bacher

On April 4, Restore the Delta released new polling data on California voters’ attitudes on the Delta Conveyance Project finding that California voters overwhelmingly favor investing in affordable and sustainable local water solutions over the Delta Tunnel.

“As a result of devastating climate change-fueled events over the past decade, Californians are particularly concerned about the risk of fires and droughts, and they see local water supplies as the best way to prepare for future disasters,” the group wrote in a press statement.

The Delta Conveyance Project features a 45-mile long tunnel that would take water from the Sacramento River at Hood and Courtland, bypassing the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and taking water to Bethany Reservoir, then to the California Aqueduct. The project would cost over $20 billion to build.

“With fish populations declining and ceremonial practices being impacted by polluted waters, Tribes are already struggling to maintain their livelihoods and cultural identity,” said Malissa Tayaba, Vice Chair of the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians. “The Delta Tunnel Project would further devastate the environment and Tribal communities that have depended on the Delta since time immemorial.”

“These polling results are a clear mandate from voters across the state,” stated Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, Executive Director of Restore the Delta. “Californians want water solutions that protect the environment, are economically feasible, and prepare us for the challenges of climate change. The Delta Tunnel simply does not meet those needs and would devastate local Delta communities and ecosystems.”…

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/4/6/2314603/-New-Poll-Reveals-CA-Voters-Prefer-Local-Sustainable-Water-Solutions-Over-Delta-Tunnel

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UPROAR OVER UPCOMING SSU LECTURE BY PALESTINIAN AMERICAN SCHOLAR FUELS ACADEMIC FREEDOM, ANTISEMITISM AND GAZA WAR DEBATES

A talk by Palestinian American scholar Ussama Makdisi has drawn a coordinated email campaign, community criticism and renewed tensions over academic freedom and antisemitism.

by Tarini Mehta

Who is Ussama Makdisi?

Ussama Makdisi is a professor of history at UC Berkeley, and a leading scholar of modern Arab history and U.S.-Middle East relations. His work focuses on colonialism, sectarianism and the politics of historical memory in the Arab world.

• Academic background: Formerly a longtime professor at Rice University, where he held the Arab-American Educational Foundation Chair of Arab Studies before joining UC Berkeley in 2021.
• Books include:

– “Faith Misplaced: The Broken Promise of U.S.–Arab Relations”

– “Age of Coexistence: The Ecumenical Frame and the Making of the Modern Arab World”

• Public voice: Makdisi frequently speaks and writes about the erasure of Palestinian history and critiques what he views as Western and Israeli narratives that marginalize Arab identity and experience.
• Family ties: He is the nephew of Edward Said, the influential Palestinian American scholar and author of “Orientalism,” and the brother of UCLA professor Saree Makdisi.

Makdisi has drawn praise for challenging dominant narratives — and criticism from pro-Israel groups for his views on Gaza, genocide and the historical framing of Zionism.

A UC Berkeley professor’s upcoming lecture on Gaza and genocide has sparked a coordinated email campaign targeting Sonoma State University.

The university is moving forward with the event, defending academic freedom despite pressure to cancel or modify it.

The controversy lands as SSU faces staff layoffs, budget cuts and strained trust with students and the community.

A campaign targeting a Palestinian American scholar’s upcoming lecture at Sonoma State University has drawn thousands of emails in recent weeks — fueling debate over academic freedom, antisemitism and free speech amid the war in Gaza.

The controversy centers on Ussama Makdisi, a UC Berkeley history professor and expert on modern Arab history, who is scheduled to speak April 15 as part of SSU’s Holocaust and Genocide Lecture Series. His talk, titled “Atonement at the Expense of Others: Palestinians and the Question of Genocide,” is one of 15 events in the spring series.

Makdisi has been a vocal critic of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. The conflict followed the Hamas-led attack of Oct. 7, 2023, which killed 1,200 people. Since then, more than 50,000 Palestinians have died, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. Makdisi’s scholarship often explores how Palestinian history has been erased from mainstream narratives, and the long-term impact of Israel’s founding on Palestinian identity and self-determination.

The Holocaust and Genocide Lecture Series has run for more than 40 years, bringing “Holocaust and genocide survivors, liberators and rescuers, and leading scholars in the field to SSU,” according to its website. “Perhaps the most powerful aspect of the series is the personal eyewitness accounts of Holocaust survivors, as well as survivors of the Rwandan, Cambodian, and Bosnian genocides.”

featuring a rabbi, a reverend and a Palestinian American activist in conversation about being Jewish and Palestinian in the U.S. — drew an audience larger than the auditorium could hold. SSU history professor Stephen Bittner, who organizes the series, called it “the single most valuable teaching experience” of his career.

The email campaign criticizing the Makdisi lecture has arrived at a fragile moment for SSU. The Rohnert Park university is navigating a $24 million budget shortfall, proposed layoffs affecting more than 100 employees, and strained ties with parts of the campus and local community.

At the same time, the controversy is playing out against a broader national backdrop. The Trump administration has escalated pressure on universities and public institutions it accuses of tolerating antisemitism or promoting anti-Israel rhetoric, particularly in the wake of pro-Palestinian demonstrations. In recent months, federal agencies have launched investigations, revoked student visas and threatened university funding — fueling concerns that free expression on campus is being systematically curtailed.

If you go

What: “Atonement at the Expense of Others: Palestinians and the Question of Genocide,” part of Sonoma State University’s Holocaust and Genocide Lecture Series

Who: Presented by Ussama Makdisi, professor of history at UC Berkeley

When: 4-5:15 p.m. Tuesday, April 15, 2025

Where: In person at Stevenson Hall, Room 1301, Sonoma State University, 1801 E. Cotati Ave., Rohnert Park, or via Zoom (registration below)

How much: Free and open to the public

Register: sonomastate.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_TyUGRE6MSwuoGy7Bt29gRg#/registration

At SSU, the backlash began in late January, when messages began pouring in to Bittner, as well as to Interim President Emily Cutrer, CSU Chancellor Mildred Garcia, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, and other public officials. At one point, Bittner said he was receiving 20 emails per minute.

Many of the emails used identical language, suggesting a coordinated campaign. The organizer remains unknown.

Despite multiple requests for comment, Makdisi did not respond to The Press Democrat.

The emails called on the university to include speakers addressing “modern antisemitism, the atrocities of Oct. 7 and Palestinian terrorism.” While the messages did not explicitly demand cancellation of Makdisi’s talk, Bittner said he interpreted the campaign as an effort to pressure the university into deplatforming the scholar.

“If I ever feel like I am pressured to schedule the lecture series in a certain way because of outside pressures that are being brought to bear on the university — whether it’s the federal government or email campaigns — I will resign from this post,” he said.

Healdsburg resident Irene Hodes said the university should rescind its invitation to Makdisi, calling his “extreme views” a “shocking and inappropriate choice” for the lecture series.

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On Line Comment:

I’m the daughter of a Holocaust survivor. I am part of the Alliance for the Study of the Holocaust and Genocide’s speakers bureau that does Holocaust education in schools. My mother’s family were all involved in the Zionist movement, starting before the war in Europe and then in Palestine. I was never told what happened to the Arab settlement that was on the land they settled on to establish their kibbutz. It is 4 miles from Gaza and while they were not attacked, their friends and neighbors were. I grew up with the standard narrative about Israel and the Holocaust. Now I am exploring more about what happened during what Palestinians call the Nakba. It looks like my relatives were actively involved in expelling Arabs. I did not have a family home growing up and the kibbutz was the closest I had. I grew up with a great love of the kibbutz and my aunt and uncle. Now I am learning to hold two realities. That Zionism saved my family members and the Hamas attack was horrific. Israel’s retaliation on Gaza was very disproportionate. I stand up for the victims of Hamas AND the victims of Israel in Gaza. I abhor both governments. Supporting the rights of Palestinians has unfortunately opened door for antisemites. I have been attending the outstanding lectures through the lecture series for many years. I look forward to this talk in my journey to come to terms with my family’s legacy. I applaud the university’s commitment to not canceling the lecture and I especially applaud Professor Bittner for standing up to the pressure. I urge critics who ask for balance to look at the rest of the lecture series, which is about the Holocaust and other genocides.

(Santa Rosa Press Democrat)

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AS DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES FOR GOVERNOR INCREASE, THEY WAIT FOR HARRIS TO DECIDE

by Dan Walters

Irish playwright Samuel Beckett’s tragicomedy “Waiting for Godot” centers on two men, Vladimir and Estragon, who hope, in vain, that the arrival of a mysterious man named Godot will bring meaning to their otherwise miserable lives.

It’s considered to be a perfect example of Europe’s post-World War fascination with what was termed the “theater of the absurd.” That’s why it leaps to mind when one considers the dynamics of the ever-growing cadre of Democratic candidates for governor in 2026.

As their numbers expand, they are waiting for former Vice President Kamala Harris to tell the world whether she will try to keep her political career alive by seeking the governorship.

Harris is apparently willing, ala Godot, to keep them waiting. Politico has reported that a month ago, at a pre-Oscars party, she told supporters that she won’t declare her intentions until late summer.

The uncertainty about her intentions affects what other hopefuls can do in the interim, such as raising campaign money. The big Democratic spenders, such as unions, the entertainment industry and Silicon Valley, are also waiting, leery about making commitments to other candidates until Harris decides.

It’s also evident that the lesser candidates, those little known and lacking deep-pocket support, such as former state Senate leader Toni Atkins, state schools Superintendent Tony Thurmond and former state Controller Betty Yee, would probably drop out if Harris runs.

But how about those who, in the absence of Harris, would be credible aspirants, such as Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Congressmember Katie Porter and, most recently, former Attorney General Xavier Becerra?

Kounalakis and Porter have dropped hints that they would defer to Harris, but Villaraigosa has indicated he would still run and Becerra, in announcing his candidacy this week, declared he’s in it to stay.

The state’s top-two primary system plays a significant role in how the field eventually forms. Although polls indicate that Harris would be the frontrunner in the June primary, another Democrat could hope to finish second and thereby qualify for a runoff in November in which Republican and independent voters could be decisive.

However, a crowded Democratic field that would fragment Democratic primary voters would also increase the likelihood that a Republican, such as Riverside Sheriff Chad Bianco, would finish second.

That situation, as past elections have shown, gives the Democratic nominee a huge advantage to win the governorship, given the state’s lopsided Democratic voter registration.

We saw that scenario last year when Congressman Adam Schiff indirectly helped Republican Steve Garvey finish second in the primary duel for a U.S. Senate seat, freezing out Katie Porter. It could happen to her again next year, were she to remain in the gubernatorial race and the Harris campaign emulates Schiff’s tactic to help Bianco or some other Republican finish second.

A runoff between Harris and another Democrat could be a test of her campaign ability in the wake of stumbling badly in her 2019 bid for the presidency and again last year after being tapped by Democratic leaders to take on Donald Trump after they forced Joe Biden out of a re-election bid.

California’s voters have been in a restive mood of late, concerned about ever-rising living costs, especially for housing, the state’s seemingly intractable homelessness crisis and crime. Last year’s passage of Proposition 36, a measure to crack down on criminals, despite opposition from Gov. Gavin Newsom and other Democratic leaders, is one indication of voters’ sour mood.

A Democratic candidate who exploits that angst and appeals to Republican and independent voters could mount a serious campaign against Harris — should she decide to run.

(CalMatters.org)

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TRUMP BACKS DOWN ON RECIPROCAL TARIFFS FOR 90 DAYS

President Trump cited new talks with foreign nations on trade in explaining his reversal. But he said China would not be included, raising tariffs on its exports to 125 percent after Beijing announced a new round of retaliation.

by Alan Rappeport, Ana Swanson & Matthew Mpoke Bigg

President Trump on Wednesday said he would pause his reciprocal tariffs for most countries for the next 90 days, backing down on his policy that had sent markets into a tailspin and threatened to upend global trade. But Mr. Trump said his break did not include China, announcing he would instead raise tariffs on its exports to 125 percent after Beijing announced a new round of retaliation.

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said the tariff level would be brought down to a universal 10 percent — a significant reduction for many countries.

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LEAD STORIES, THURSDAY'S NYT

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Pop Songs, ‘Hamilton’ and Windows 95 Chime Join National Registry

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IN A STORM OF TARIFFS, MANY COMPANIES SEE CHINA AS THE SAFEST HARBOR

The heavy U.S. tariffs on other Asian countries have made China a more appealing option for companies scared to make a hasty decision amid upheaval in global trade.

by Daisuke Wakabayashi

Even as President Trump heaped additional tariffs on China, his barrage of trade levies on countries across Asia and unpredictability about what he might do next have encouraged some companies to hunker down in China, exactly the opposite of what he had hoped.

Mr. Trump has steadily ratcheted up the pressure on China. As of Wednesday, his new tariffs on China exceed 100 percent, including a last-minute escalation serving as punishment for Beijing’s retaliation on earlier levies.

However, in contrast to what happened during his first term, Mr. Trump has accompanied the tariff campaign on China with steep import duties on dozens of other countries, including a handful of Asian countries that became popular alternatives in the earlier trade war between Beijing and Washington as a way to circumvent levies and limit supply chain disruptions.

But for some companies, the so-called reciprocal tariffs have had the unexpected effect of making China an even more appealing place to produce in and buy from. It has eliminated some of the motivation to diversify production or sourcing to places like Vietnam, India or other Asian countries.

(NY Times)

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THE BACKLASH AGAINST ISRAEL’S WESTERN-BACKED CRIMES Will Fuel The Far Right

by Caitlin Johnstone

A new Pew survey has found that a majority of Americans now have a negative view of Israel, with 53 percent of respondents now holding an unfavorable view of the Zionist state — up from 42 percent just three years ago.

This comes as Benjamin Netanyahu announces after his latest meeting with Donald Trump that negotiations with Iran will necessarily have to include a “Libyan-style” dismantling of the nation’s civilian nuclear infrastructure in order to avoid the war that the US is openly preparing to wage. This, naturally, is a complete non-starter condition for Iran.

It also comes as Trump’s US Citizenship and Immigration Services announces that it’s going to be screening the social media posts of immigrants for “antisemitic” speech, which of course in practice means criticism of Israel and its atrocities. This is just the latest in the Trump administration’s relentless efforts to prevent Americans from seeing or hearing any political speech which goes against Washington’s official position on Israel.

Developments like these can be expected to assist the rise of the far right in the west. US public opinion is turning hard against Israel as both parties bend over backward to send it expensive weapons and silence its critics — and US public opinion is seldom good at making subtle distinctions.

“Antisemitism” is fast becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. As westerners tire of having their speech rights taken away by their government to protect the interests of a state that’s committing genocide under a Star of David banner, a lot of them are going to blame Jews for this. As western governments bend over backwards to help murder Israel’s enemies in the middle east, a lot of westerners are going to blame Jews. As the drums for war with Iran beat louder and louder and parents fear their children will be sent off to die for Israel, many will blame this on the Jews.

I am not saying this is a good thing. It’s a very bad thing. But it’s also reality.

As more and more westerners grow disgusted with Israel and their government’s support for its depravity, the far left is going to talk to the public about the difference between Zionism and Judaism, about the western empire and its interests in the middle east — and meanwhile the far right is going to blame it all on Jews.

Which of these sounds like the easier argument to make? Which is simpler? Which is more digestible? Which is less challenging to the cognitive biases of a population that’s already been propagandized to view their nation as inherently virtuous: a perspective which highlights the west’s culpability for the atrocities we’re backing in the middle east, or a cartoonish perspective which blames it all on the subversive manipulations of a sinister religious minority?

Those of us who oppose the criminality of Israel and its western allies from the left will do all we can to keep the far right’s arguments from gaining traction, but it won’t be our fault when we fail. It will be the fault of the western governments who’ve spent all this time stomping out the civil liberties of their citizenry in the name of fighting “antisemitism” while raining military explosives on the middle east and backing the slaughter of tens of thousands of children under a Star of David flag.

We can expect to see some nasty hate crimes against Jews in the future, which the Zionists will be all too happy about because then they can point to those incidents and say “This is why we need Israel! This is why we need a Jewish state to protect us!”

But of course this won’t just affect Jews. Immigrants, racial minorities, LGBTQ people and other marginalized communities will all be harmed by the rise of white nationalist factions whose popularity benefits from an increase of anti-Jewish sentiment in our society. The mainstream “MAGA” movement, as ugly as that’s been, is still far less dangerous to these groups than the overtly Hitlerite factions will be if they come into significant power in the future.

This does seem to be where things could be headed, especially if the economic situation gets as dire as it looks like it might get, and even more so if there’s a war with Iran. It can all be easily avoided by simply ceasing to stomp out free speech to protect Israel, ceasing western warmongering in places like Iran and Yemen, and ceasing to back Israel’s genocidal atrocities against Palestinians.

But it looks like our rulers are bound and determined to drag us into a very dark direction instead.

(caitlinjohnstone.com.au)

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D-DAY

by Daniel Lee

To leave out sex and sexual violence from an account of D-Day is to ignore a great deal. US troops stationed in Britain had a huge number of sexual encounters with local women, and sometimes men. On D-Day, as 10,000 sailors of the Royal Canadian Navy took part in the attack on Juno beach, 19-year-old Raymond Paul Lindstrom, a Canadian sailor, was convicted in Derry in Northern Ireland of “gross indecency,” after an encounter with a US army officer in the city’s Melville Hotel. More than 6.5 million men and women served in the British armed forces and, as Emma Vickers suggests in ‘Queen and Country: Same-Sex Desire in the British Armed Forces, 1939-45,’ it’s possible that as many as 1.1 million experienced some form of same-sex intimacy.

The authors portray the victors as beyond reproach. Many soldiers, airmen and sailors conducted themselves well. But the Allied invasion was not a “gentlemanly war.” Research into soldier-civilian relations has redrawn the image of the gallant GI, self-disciplined, chivalrous and sexually well-behaved. Sexual interactions were usually consensual: women were attracted to the well-mannered, well-dressed GIs, who brought with them new dance steps and novel ways of being courteous. But many women became victims of sexual assault: as the well-known grumble went, GIs were “overfed, overpaid, oversexed, over here.”

American servicemen’s searches for sexual encounters often involved propositioning women in the street or in air-raid shelters. As one woman wrote in October 1943, “It’s not safe for us to be out unless we go together. I’d hate to be out in Derry alone after dusk, believe me. These Yanks are positive fiends for women and should all be in homes (mental ones).”

For decades after the Second World War, very little public or historical attention was paid to cases of rape and murder committed by the Western Allies. Stories focused chiefly on the sexual assaults carried out by Soviet troops during the liberation of Berlin. But recent work has shown that British and Canadian troops also raped and assaulted women as their armies advanced through France, the Low Countries and into Nazi Germany. The US Army, as Mary Louise Roberts argued in ‘What Soldiers Do: Sex and the American GI in World War Two France,’ “appeared to be out of control.” More than 400 sexual offenses by GIs in the UK, including 126 rapes, were documented, though the sociologist J. Robert Lilly has argued that only 5% of rapes were reported: he estimates that between 1942 and 1945 US military personnel raped almost 2500 women in Britain, more than 3600 in France and more than 11,000 in Germany. Anti-Black racism meant that African American soldiers were convicted and executed in disproportionate numbers.

Many GIs arrived in France expecting to have lots of sex: American war coverage portrayed French women as hypersexual. The army newspaper ‘Stars and Stripes’ suggested that they would offer sexual favors out of gratitude. The paper printed helpful French phrases: “I am not married,” and “Are your parents at home?” GIs were also in a position to buy sex. Countless women and girls, some as young as twelve, traded sex for soap, cigarettes and Hershey’s chocolate bars. With the market for paid sex also growing quickly, brothels became overwhelmed. In Le Havre, American soldiers had sex in public places — parks, alleyways and graveyards. Three US soldiers terrorized a town on the Cotentin Peninsula early in August 1944, raping local women. In Saint-Lô, a Normandy prefect reported that “the liberators have turned into looters, rapists and killers.”

As many as 19,890 French civilians were killed by Allied bombing during the invasion. The images of Allied soldiers being welcomed as liberators and given flowers, wine and Calvados told only part of the story. For many, the costs borne on D-Day and the weeks that followed were worse than those of four years of Nazi occupation. French civilians reported disruptive and criminal behavior by Allied soldiers: excessive drinking, theft, black-market profiteering, reckless driving… In early 1945, Life Magazine reported that 2500 GIs had deserted and turned to crime in Paris.

(London Review of Books)

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