Mendocino County Today: Tuesday, May 12, 2015

• FB Residency
• Sex Ed
• Catch of the Day
• Pest Extension
• Wanted
• Ten Years
• Vanbezooyen Pleads
• Beyond Stupid
• Conspiracies
• No Compromise
• Techno Delusion
• EMF Concerns
• California Rivers
• JDSF Meeting
• Linard
• Nakba Day
• Exchange Students
• Library Events

A READER COMMENTS: I don't think people are flocking to Fort Bragg to sponge off Hospitality House. Fair question, though, about residency, which is too easily established. Basically, you are a resident if you say you are (the underlying principle was written into the Constitution). At most, you might have to wait 15 or 30 days. A number of questions have been raised about the Old Coast Hotel transaction, but the attacks on Hospitality House and Anna Shaw are often mean spirited and unfair.

SEX ED, A READER COMMENTS: Looking back at my high school years in the mid 90s in a small central California farm town I'm surprised by the depth of sex education that I received — std's, contraceptives, even the morning after pill (ru-486), which I believe was relatively new at the time. I can even remember a condom demonstration on a banana from a nurse who came into my medical ROP class. Of course, she also told us boys that our genitalia were loaded and dangerous weapons. I remember feeling a sense of caution but not fear which I think is what most sex education programs should be going for.

Of course we learned that abstinence was the safest method and that contraceptives were not 100% effective, but I don't recall being lambasted with the former as the only way and the latter as a crap shoot at best like some of these programs seem to do. A good education--regardless of subject--presents all the information in an unbiased fashion. One wouldn't conduct a driver's ed class by saying the only way to avoid accidents is to never drive and leave it at that.

CATCH OF THE DAY, May 11, 2015

CHARLES BLUNT, Ukiah. Probation revocation.

BRYAN FLINT, Little River. Possession of controlled substance, no license, fake ID.

JESSE GERMAINE, Elk. DUI.

ERICK GIUMELLI, Redwood Valley. Court order violation.

JOSHUA HUGHES, Fort Bragg. Domestic assault, probation revocation.

PABLO MORA, Ukiah. Annoy or molest children under 18, probation revocation. (Frequent flyer.)

JUSTIN SEVIER, Ukiah. Drunk in public.

GRAPE PEST VOTE EXTENDED!

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/business/3920600-181/california-grape-growers-given-extension

ON-LINE COMMENT OF THE DAY

“…What is the difference between now and 10 years ago?…”

That’s a very good and fair question. I would have thought we would have seen catastrophic economic collapse by now – maybe we are so far into “1984” mode by now that the ‘Government by Corporate Decree’ system really can control what we see and hear.

Still, there are areas, good and bad, where I think we can agree some change has occurred. For example, 10 years ago –

Had we seen oil at $147/barrel?

What were the rates the average bank depositor might have realized in 2005 compared to 2015?

How many people now think saving seeds and making compost is a good thing to do in 2015 versus 2005?

Had we heard the term “quantitative easing” in 2005?

Had we seen 99% versus 1% demonstrators pepper sprayed in 2005? Have we seen that since?

We might have wondered what all the big electronics construction going on out in Utah was, but while we may have wondered if the Government was spying on all citizens with each and every e-mail and phone call, had we heard of Edward Snowden yet in 2005?

In 2005, would we have thought that private sector losses endured in 2007-2008 would have been shunted off onto the public to the degree that they were?

In demonstrating that no real peak oil problem exists, would we have expected in 2005 that basically all liquid hydrocarbons now count as “oil”?

In 2005, would we have expected significant numbers of young adults to say that they don’t really care if they ever own or drive a car?

So collapse has not been total and catastrophic, but I think there have been some notable milestones along the way. The “system” uses all resources at its disposal, legal or otherwise, to perpetuate itself rather than try to improve the fate of average people. But there are signs that more average people are realizing that their best bet is to try to dissociate themselves from the “system”.

VANBEZOOYEN PLEADS

From the Mendocino County District Attorney's office:

"During a morning court appearance before Mendocino County Superior Court Judge Ann Moorman, defendant Jacqueline Caroline VanBezooyen, age 49, of Willits, plead no contest to having aided and abetted the continuous sexual abuse of a child under the age of 14.
 The jury trial scheduled for May 18th was vacated upon entry of the change of plea. VanBezooyen and a male co-defendant (Charles Griswould) were charged by the DA in March 2014 with being people, either residing with or having recurring access to a child, who engaged in three or more acts of lewd and lascivious conduct with an 8-year-old child between October 1, 2005 and January 30, 2006.
A conviction for continuous sexual abuse is a felony, pursuant to Penal Code section 288.5. As such, it carries a potential state prison sentence of 6, 12, or 16 years. Under certain conditions, the court has discretion to consider a grant of probation, with a term of that probation being up to one year in the county jail, in lieu of prison.
The defendant will be required to register as a sex offender for the remainder of her life. After admitting criminal responsibility, VanBezooyen's case was referred to the Adult Probation Department for a background study and sentencing recommendation. Formal sentencing has been calendared for July 28th at 9 o'clock in the morning in Department A. Anyone with an interest in this case is welcome to attend that court proceeding.
The attorney who handled the prosecution of this matter is Deputy District Attorney Shannon Cox.
The law enforcement agencies who cooperated in the investigation that lead to this prosecution were the Yuba City Police Department, the Willits Police Department, the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office, and the Mendocino County District Attorney's Bureau of Investigations."
Here's a link to the story when it appeared in the Lost Coast Outpost (it inlcudes the Mendocino County Sheriff press release): PHOTO--Courtesy of the Mendocino County Sheriff office.

DAILY KOS ON TEXAS: The supposed Jade Helm 15 conspiracy may be the single stupidest thing to come out of Texas in 20 years, and for a state that has reliably given us such treasures as Louie Gohmert, Steve Stockman, Ted Cruz, Rick Perry, and George W. Bush himself that is saying something. It may not even be possible to adequately convey how stupid this story is. There may not be words in the English language — there may in fact be no words in any language, simply because no civilization has yet existed that ever needed to convey a stupidity as deep or as empty-headed as would apply here. It is a stupidity so stupid that we may be able to use it as future measure of the viability of nation-states; if a majority of any definable population is stupid enough to believe this thing, it is evidence that that population has lost the intellectual ability to maintain a government.

CONSPIRACIES. We get a lot of conspiracy stuff, long, endlessly long, endlessly earnest tracts, all of them saying, basically, one thing — our government is trying to kill us. Of course it is. Who doesn't know that? But really, there's only one conspiracy. It's called life. From conception on it kills you and, after hacking away at you all your days, it shoves you into infinity. Contrails, Building 7, the UN, the Kennedy Assassination, vaccinations? All irrelevant. While you're fortifying your tin foil hat and biting your nails over matters you have zero control over, you're also eating Big Macs and wrestling your significant other for the remote, thereby assisting Life in killing you early. You might also be hit by a truck crossing 128 while you're checking your gizmo for the latest on the Kardashians. It's all random, but count on it, everything is against you, and you're dead.

“MARK MY WORD, if and when these preachers get control of the [Republican] party, and they're sure trying to do so, it's going to be a terrible damn problem. Frankly, these people frighten me. Politics and governing demand compromise. But these Christians believe they are acting in the name of God, so they can't and won't compromise. 
I know, I've tried to deal with them.” — Barry Goldwater, 1964

MUSKULAR MAGIC

by James Kunstler

Elon Musk, Silicon Valley’s poster-boy genius replacement for the late Steve Jobs, rolled out his PowerWall battery last week with Star Wars style fanfare, doing his bit to promote and support the delusional thinking that grips a nation unable to escape the toils of techno-grandiosity. The main delusion: that we can “solve” the problems of techno-industrial society with more and better technology.

The South African born-and-raised Musk is surely better known for founding Tesla Motors, maker of the snazzy all-electric car. The denizens of Silicon Valley are crazy about the Tesla. There is no greater status trinket in Northern California, where the fog of delusion cloaks the road to the future. They believe, as Musk himself often avers, that Tesla cars “don’t burn hydrocarbons.” That statement is absurd, of course, and Musk, who holds a degree in physics from Penn, must blush when he says that. After all, you have to plug it in and charge somewhere from the US electric grid.

Only 6% of US electric power comes from “clean” hydro generation. Another 20% is nuclear. The rest is coal (48%) and natural gas (21%) with the remaining sliver coming from “renewables” and oil. (The quote marks on “renewables” are there to remind you that they probably can’t be manufactured without the support of a fossil fuel economy). Anyway, my point is that the bulk of US electricity comes from burning hydrocarbons, and then there is the nuclear part which is glossed over because the techno-geniuses and politicians of America have no idea how they are going to de-commission our aging plants, and no idea how to safely dispose of the spent fuel rod inventory simply lying around in collection pools. This stuff is capable of poisoning the entire planet and we know it.

The PowerWall roll out highlighted the “affordability” of the sleek lithium battery at $3,500 per unit. The average cluck watching Musk’s TED-like performance on the web was supposed to think he could power his home with it. Musk left out a few things. Such as: you need the rooftop solar array to feed the battery. Figure another $25,000 to $40,000 for that, depending on whether they are made in China (poor quality) or Germany, or in the USA (and installation is both laborious and expensive). Also consider that you need a charge controller and inverter to manage the electric flow and convert direct current (DC) from the sun into usable alternating current (AC) for your house — another $3,500. So, the cost of hanging a solar electric system on your house with all its parts is more like fifty grand.

What happens when the solar panels, battery, etc., reach the end of their useful lives, say 25 years or so, when there is no more fossil fuel (or an industry capable of providing it economically). How will you fabricate the replacement parts? By then the techno-wizards will have supposedly “come up with” a magic energy rescue remedy. Stand by on that, and consider the possibility that you will be disappointed with how it works out.

What gets me about Tesla’s various products and activities is that, when all is said and done, they are meant to extend the fatal rackets of contemporary life, especially car dependency and the suburban development pattern. Car dependency can and probably will fail on the financial basis, not on the question of how you run the car. The main economic problem we face is the end of growth of the kind we’re used to, the kind that generates real capital and enables bank lending. It is already happening and has led to fewer loans for fewer qualified borrowers. It will also lead to the end of government’s ability to pay for fixing the elaborate hierarchy of paved highways, roads, and streets that the cars have to run on. Imagine the psychic pain of the Silicon Valley billionaire driving his $87,000 Tesla P85D down a freeway that the State of California hasn’t been able to repair in five years.

(Kunstler’s new World Made By Hand novel is now available! Kunstler skewers everything from kitsch to greed, prejudice, bloodshed, and brainwashing in this wily, funny, rip-roaring, and profoundly provocative page- turner, leaving no doubt that the prescriptive yet devilishly satiric A World Made by Hand series will continue.” — Booklist)

FROM MOTHER JONES: Are government officials doing enough to protect us from the potential long-term health effects of wearable devices and cellphones? Maybe not. A letter released today, signed by more than 190 scientists from 38 countries, calls on the United Nations, the World Health Organization (WHO), and national governments to develop stricter controls on these and other products that create electromagnetic fields (EMF). "Based on peer-reviewed, published research, we have serious concerns regarding the ubiquitous and increasing exposure to EMF generated by electric and wireless devices," reads the letter, whose signatories have collectively published more than 2,000 peer-reviewed papers on the subject. "The various agencies setting safety standards have failed to impose sufficient guidelines to protect the general public, particularly children who are more vulnerable to the effects of EMF…"

MAY 11 IS CALIFORNIA RIVER DAYS AT THE CAPITOL

by Dan Bacher

California Rivers Day 2015 is bringing together 25 river groups from across the state to speak up for rivers and call on state leaders to support sustainable drought solutions at noon on Monday, May 11th at the West Steps of the State Capitol in Sacramento.

The program will be preceded by a "Paddle to the Capitol" that arrives at the Tower Bridge public boat dock at 10:30 am.

"The drought is taking a major toll on our rivers—California’s lifeblood," according to Eric Wesselman, Executive Director of Friends of the River. "In addition to the noon program event at the Capitol, this day will include a morning paddle down the Sacramento River to the Capitol, informational booths on the West Steps of the building, and meetings with legislators to promote sustainable drought solutions that protect our rivers."

Confirmed speakers at the noon program include: Eric Wesselman, Executive Director, Friends of the River, Gary Mulcahy, Winnemem Wintu Tribe; Katherine Evatt, Foothill Conservancy for the Mokelumne River; and river advocates representing 25 river groups from across the state.

Confirmed organizations participating include:

• Friends of the River
• Foothill Conservancy
• California Hydropower Reform Coalition
• South Yuba River Citizens League
• Sacramento River Preservation Trust
• All Outdoors
• California Sport Fishing Protection Alliance
• Restore the Delta
• Tuleyome
• Adventure Connection
• American Whitewater
• American Rivers
• New Voices Are Rising
• Winnemem Wintu Tribe
• American River Conservancy
• Delta Kayaking Adventures
• Tuolumne River Trust
• Mother Lode Adventures
• Paddle with Purpose
• Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk Indians
• Protect American River Canyons
• Effie Yeah Nature Center
• American River Natural History Association
• San Joaquin River Parkway & Conservation Trust
• Save the American River Association

Contact: Eric Wesselman: 510-775-3797 or eric@friendsoftheriver.org

Learn more about California Rivers Day:

http://www.friendsoftheriver.org/site/PageServer?pagename=riversday

JACKSON DEMONSTRATION STATE FOREST ADVISORY GROUP

Willits – The Jackson Demonstration State Forest (JDSF) Advisory Group meeting will be held on Monday, May 18, 2015.  Participants will meet at 8:30 a.m. at the JDSF office located at 802 N Main Street in Fort Bragg and carpool to the field sites. This meeting is open to the public and public attendance is encouraged. Be prepared for weather and wear comfortable walking shoes. Attendees are responsible for their own transportation, lunch and water. The meeting agenda is posted on the CAL FIRE website: (CAL FIRE – Jackson Demonstration State Forest)

http://calfire.ca.gov/resource_mgt/resource_mgt_stateforests_jackson.php

If anyone has any questions about Jackson Demonstration State Forest, please call (707) 964-5674.

Multiple uses of JDSF for a wide variety of activities that benefit the public, the economy and natural resources are what our demonstration forests are all about.

WE REMEMBER NAKBA, MAY 15, 2015

South Coast People For Peace & Justice will join the global observance of Nakba Day this Friday, May 15th at noon in front of the Gualala Post Office. We remember the 67th anniversary of the ethnic cleansing of Palestine, known as "The Day of the Catastrophe". Please join us; everyone is welcome. On 15 May, please join us globally to show support for independent and free Palestine on the Nakba Day. 67 years of occupation and exile is 67 years too much and we can end it together! (Sister Yasmin)

NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION IS SEEKING LOCAL HOST FAMILIES FOR HIGH SCHOOL EXCHANGE STUDENTS ASSE International Student Exchange Programs (ASSE), in cooperation with your community high school, is looking for local families to host boys and girls between the ages of 15 to 18 from a variety of countries: Norway, Denmark, Spain, Italy, Japan, to name a few. ASSE students are enthusiastic and excited to experience American culture while they practice their English. They also love to share their own culture and language with their host families. Host families welcome these students into their family, not as a guest, but as a family member, giving everyone involved a rich cultural experience. The exchange students have pocket money for personal expenses and full health, accident and liability insurance. ASSE students are selected based on academics and personality, and host families can choose their student from a wide variety of backgrounds, countries and personal interests. To become an ASSE Host Family or to find out how to become involved with ASSE in your community, please call Cindy at 1-800-733-2773 or go to www.host.asse.com to begin your host family application. Students are eager to learn about their American host family, so begin the process of welcoming your new son or daughter today!

LIBRARY EVENTS

The Wave of Hope, an Exhibit of Photo Portraits, opening during the First Friday Art Walk, June 5^th, from 5:00 - 7:30 pm

Ukiah Library is proud to present this exhibit of portraits and stories of people who have lived with and through depression.

The Library is also offering a Maker Space: “Tangled and Untangled:” Zen tangle art and string tangle bowls.

The Friends of the Ukiah Library Book Sale will be open from 4:30 – 7:45 pm.

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Altered Books Makerspace for All Ages

May 30^th 2-4 PM

Make art from old books at the Ukiah Library. Visual journals, erasure poems, and book sculptures are a few examples of altered books.

Repurposing old books to make art takes reading engagement to a great eco-friendly level. Converse with books – make art. Supplies will be provided.

Sponsored by Ukiah Valley Friends of the Library. 105 N Main St. Ukiah CA

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PBS POV documentary, “Web Junkie” on Wednesday, June 3^rd at 7 pm.

On Wednesday, June 3rd , at 7:00 pm, the Mendocino County Library, Ukiah Branch, is proudly presenting a preview of the PBS POV documentary, “Web Junkie,” by Shosh Shlam and Hilla Medalia.

“Web Junkie follows the treatment of three Chinese teenagers, obsessive gamers whose preference for the virtual world over the real one is summed up in one jarring statement: ‘Reality is too fake.’”

The screening is a brown-paper-bag-dinner event. A discussion will follow the screening. This event is a collaboration with POV, PBS’ award-winning nonfiction film series.

For more information on the film series, please see http://www.pbs.pov/