Mendocino County Today: Saturday, Sep 5, 2015

• Our Supervisor
• Good Journalism
• Thursday's Outage
• Redundant Fiber
• Homeless Discussion
• Toxic Algae
• Cipher Wood
• Tattoo Shawn
• Police Reports
• Difficult Questions
• Cross Penguin
• Catch of The Days
• MRC's Certification
• Weed Tips
• Devreaux Wins
• Library Cards
• Rural Broadband
• Fairer Season
• Turkey Vultures
• Groundwater Subsidence
• How Berkeley
• Critical Mass
• Fire Issues
• Federal Reserve
• Sinkyone Hike
• Tortured Subconscious
• Proposed Changes

ACCORDING TO A STORY in the September 4, 2015 edition of the Gualala-based Independent Coast Observer (ICO) by reporter Amie Windsor, Fifth District Supervisor Dan Hamburg “guessed an issue to recruiting and retaining deputies might be that ‘young deputies want to raise families in larger school districts’ than Mendocino County has to offer. ‘It’s hard to tell what’s a factor,’ Hamburg said.” … “Hamburg admitted he didn’t know how to help the Sheriff fill the resident deputy positions [on the South Coast, in Anderson Valley or Covelo]. ‘I don’t have a solution to it,’ Hamburg said. ‘I trust the Sheriff is doing everything he can’.”

THAT’S TYPICAL OF HAMBURG, just like it was typical of his Fifth District Supervisor predecessor, David Colfax: throw up your hands at every request or question, and say, “Nothing can be done.” They used to say things like “You need three votes and I can’t get three votes so nothing can be done.”

To which people used to reply, “Yes, we know it takes three votes, but it takes one Supervisor to bring it up and bring it up effectively.” Which of course applies to Hamburg as well as Colfax. (And which also assumes that the Supervisor has any real idea what his fellow Supervisors would even say, which he doesn’t — especially if he won’t bring it up.) Lately, although they won’t say it out loud, the excuse is, “I can’t do anything because CEO Carmel Angelo won’t do it.” And of course Hamburg won’t even ask. In fact, you name it, Hamburg won’t bring it up: Vineyard fans? Nothing can be done. Minor use permits for tasting rooms? Nothing can be done. Better pay and recruitment for deputies? Got me! I have no clue! Mental Health conflicts, mental health overpayments to Ortner? Huge staffing problems in Social Serivces and Children’s services? Chronic drunks and druggies rotating through the jail? Potholes? No decent jobs outside government and marijuana? You name it, Hamburg hasn’t got a clue — and obviously doesn’t care or he'd get a clue.

IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE of low pay for deputies and associated recruitment difficulties, Hamburg could start by simply putting an item on the Board agenda addressing the tight-fisted negotiating posture that CEO Angelo has taken with the Deputy Sheriff’s Association. Their last contract negotiation ended in May with the deputies reluctantly accepting a three year contract which doesn’t even restore their pay to 2010 levels. According to a County press release last May — proudly signed by CEO Angelo as if it were some kind of grand accomplishment — she wrote:

“Craig Walker, DSA President, stated, ‘a component of the contract involves a retirement swap agreed upon by the County and DSA. The association feels it is important to help get ahead of any future retirement shortfalls the County and DSA may encounter.’ DSA employees agreed to pay their full share of retirement costs. This amounts to around 9% of each member’s gross base pay. In return, the County has agreed to increase all base pay to the members by 6%.” (I.e., not even restoring the 10% cut.) “It’s a step in the right direction,” Walker said. “Our hope is the County will continue to make significant efforts to restore lost wages to the men and women who daily risk their lives for County residents.” Angelo continued, “Walker stated competitive wages would bring stability to the Sheriff’s Office, referring to higher wages paid by other agencies, some within Mendocino County.”

WALKER and other deputies have said they accepted this crappy deal because “We believed it’s the best we could get” — meaning, effectively, it’s the most Ms. Angelo would give the deputies and Ms. Angelo makes all these decisions. Never — not once — did Hamburg or any other Supervisor bring up the low pay of the deputies and the associated difficulties such low pay creates for recruitment. Never in the days leading up to the pathetic May contract agreement with the DSA did any of the Supes say that they thought at least restoring deputy pay to 2010 levels was a priority for the County, as they effectively ratified Angelo’s tight-fisted bargaining position.

YET NOW, here’s Hamburg pretending — “admitting” in the words of reporter Windsor — that he “doesn’t know how to help the Sheriff fill the resident deputy positions.”

HAMBURG COULD STILL CALL for re-opening negotiations with the DSA if he wanted to — obviously the deputies would agree if increasing their pay to at least 2010 levels was the idea — it’s not like their locked in for two or three years. But Hamburg does absolutely nothing.

AND THIS GUY GETS $68,000 a year for this level of service to his constituents?

CLARIFICATION: The first person to notice that a controversy was brewing involving Supervisor/Board Chair Carre Brown and Third District Supervisor Tom Woodhouse was Willits Weekly reporter Mike A’Dair who attends the Board meetings and noticed that something was afoot when Supervisor Woodhouse mentioned the letter he got from Brown as an aside at the Board’s August 18 meeting involving “constructive criticism.” A’Dair covered it in the Willits Weekly which we got the same day we saw the Board meeting video and noticed the exchange between Woodhouse and Brown. Credit also goes to Willits News editor Linda Williams who promptly fired off a request to the Board Clerk for a copy of the Brown Memo which the Board quickly realized had to be released because it was clearly not the “personnel matter” as Ms. Brown tried to characterize it. Once the correct decision was made to release it to Linda Williams, the document was public and we got a copy of it and immediately posted it. Good work all around, actually. Now we’ll see what kind of fall-out comes of it — if any. As an obvious fact, we know that Supervisors routinely talk informally and unofficially to County employees without going through CEO Angelo — and don’t get prissy notes about County Ordinance 4140 etc. We certainly hope that Supervisor Woodhouse continues to inquire about problems in Health and Human Services — and if it takes talking to a few nervous county employees to do it, so be it.

UPDATE FROM UDJ Friday afternoon regarding the internet outage:

Apparently there’s been a pattern of this happening in the Bay Area. 
(Someone posted on the listserv a few months old WSJ article reporting on this yesterday.)

For it to be an “act of terrorism”, I suppose these disruptions would have to be intended to disrupt our economic activity and create serious distress. Since mass casualties aren’t involved here, in terms of lives, not loss hours on cable and Facebook, AND no one is claiming responsibility with an accompanying manifesto explaining themselves, this might not be “terrorism.” Or, it could be trial runs for maybe domestic terrorists perhaps. So far, we don’t know why these individuals (or perhaps a very adept single person) have been doing this. Could be a whole bunch of reasons.

UPDATE: An AT&T repair worker near the break told the UDJ this morning that the line had been raised out of the ground earlier because of a slide in the area and was being held up off the ground by steel posts, unfortunately easily accessed. He said they believe the vandals thought it was copper wiring – which is valuable these days – and chopped it in half. When they realized it wasn’t copper they just dropped it and left.
The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office is investigating yesterday’s internet outage as a work of vandals seeking copper wire. Sheriff Tom Allman said a deputy inspected the site of the fiber-optic line cut south of Ukiah Thursday night and is requesting anyone with information call the MCSO at 707-463-4411, especially if they had contact with someone trying to sell copper wire Thursday morning.

* * *

ON THURSDAY, September 3, 2015 at approximately 10:30 AM the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office experienced a disruption of telephone (9-1-1, land-line and cellular) and internet services throughout Mendocino County. The Mendocino County Sheriff's Office began working with other allied public safety agencies (Police, Fire and Emergency Medical Services to include Coastal Valley EMS) and the Sheriff’s Office Emergency Operations Center was opened. During this time, a limited amount of communication methods were able to be put into place for the various public safety agencies to be able to receive and respond to public emergencies as needed. Calls into 9-1-1 were re-routed to the CALFIRE Howard Forest dispatch center for distribution to local public safety dispatch centers affected by the 9-1-1 service disruption. The CALFIRE Howard Forest dispatch center had been previously designated as a secondary dispatch center when one or more allied dispatch centers experience a disruption of 9-1-1 services or abilities. On 09-03-2015 at 6:30 PM a Deputy with the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office was dispatched to contact representatives with AT&T in the Burke Hill area of Ukiah, California. Upon arrival the Deputy learned AT&T had experienced a sudden disruption of fiber optic services on 09-03-2015 at approximately 10:30 AM. This service disruption affected telephone (9-1-1, land-line and cellular) and internet services for Mendocino County. Immediate efforts were made by AT&T to locate the cause and location of the disruption, which was ultimately determined to be in a rural area approximately 1.5 miles south of Burke Hill Road in Ukiah, California. Upon inspection of this area it was determined the fiber optic line that was located above ground had been cut apart. At this time it is suspected the damage was caused as an intentional act of vandalism. On 09-04-2015 at approximately 3:00 AM the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office noted a return of telephone services to their 9-1-1 emergency dispatch center. This incident is still under investigation and anyone with information that might assist in the identification of any suspect(s) is urged to contact the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office Tip-Line by calling 707-234-2100.

— Sheriff’s Press Relase

WHAT ABOUT THE REDUNDANT FIBER?

To the Editor:

I understand why the north-south fiber optic connection failed, yesterday, September 3 — the T1 line owned by AT&T. It was cut (sabotaged?) in Hopland, here in Mendocino County.

What I don't understand is why the east-west fiber optic connection didn't kick in — the “redundant fiber,” the cable that was completed in 2011, the $14.4 million, 131-mile project that state taxpayers spent $5.7 million to help finance out of the California Advanced Services Fund.

That redundancy promised to forever end days like yesterday, in which not only everyday residential customers are cut off from the outside world, but especially law enforcement, emergency services and other governmental agencies, and banks and all sorts of other ATM facilities, also lose their connection to the outside world.

That redundant line is not owned by AT&T. It's owned by PG&E. AT&T has to rent bandwidth on that line, if it wants to provide redundancy to its customers. Therefore, one can reasonably conclude that both AT&T and PG&E were both complicit in cutting northern California off from the outside world.

And so, I'm wondering: Does yesterday's outrage have some connection to Jade Helm, a domestic military exercise currently taking place throughout the country?

Remember that Jade Helm's playbook is intended to see how the U.S. military performs after the declaration of martial law. Troops engaging in the exercise assume the roles of either occupying or resistance forces. Most locations are in sparsely populated arid regions near small towns. Some participants in Jade Helm wear civilian attire and drive civilian vehicles.

The Jade Helm exercise is about about what the military now calls "asymmetrical" or unconventional warfare. Jade Helm involves United States Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) and Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) with other U.S Armed Forces units in multiple states, including California.

In the playbook, California is divided into north and south — "hostile" and "friendly" to the federal government.

I'm not making this stuff up.

Jade Helm started on July 15, 2015, and will end on September 15, 2015. The announcements of these training exercises have raised concerns that have been characterized by The New York Times as "travers[ing] the outer edges of political paranoia."

Paranoia or not, the fact remains that the military is conducting training exercises outside of their bases during Jade Helm. The military is training in cities, towns, and rural areas all across the country. This is unprecedented in our history.

See: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/16/us/in-texas-a-military-exercise-is-met-by-some-with-suspicion.html?_r=0

Here at KMEC Radio, we've touched on Jade Helm in several of our shows. During these shows, we experienced some interference with the phone calls of our call-in guests, and/or we experienced problems with the webstream. This is not a regular occurrence for us. We take great pride in our station's digital platform. So why the interference? I don't know. But I have a few theories.

Please support KMEC Radio. We do fearless, important radio. And we are all-volunteer.

No paid staff. Just content.

KMEC Radio. Radio without censorship. Radio without borders.

John Sakowicz
KMEC Radio at the Mendocino Environmental Center, Ukiah

EUREKA RESIDENTS talk on-line about homelessness...

"I am tired of the homeless. I am compassionate, but I am tired of them. 
Having said that, you can't just throw them away. There are some classifications: 1) mentally ill, 2) wanna be homeless/lazy bums, 3) down on their luck who want to help themselves .
1) Put the mentally ill in a mental hospital, not a jail. Meds aplenty.
 2) Some wannabe/lazy bums will commit crimes. Put THEM in jail, then find them a job anywhere out of the county. Send them to Biloxi for that janitorial gig. The wannabe/lazy bums who do not commit crimes are the ones we will be stuck with on the streets. They don't want housing. This is the old level of bums and is much smaller than the total homeless numbers.
 3) Down on their luck. Have temporary housing and support tied to job search. This group will find a job. If not, they are actually wannabe's/lazy bums. Throw them in jail or send them to Biloxi.
Yes, this will cost a lot. Some of the costs will be offset by not having them in jail.
 But this is a cost we should bear because our society, our civility towards other humans is what is at stake here. We could always cancel one aircraft carrier and fund this nation-wide."

"The city council members should walk out to the marsh and talk to houseless people directly. They could then get a feeling for what solutions might work by meeting the real people rather than trying to deal with this in abstraction. "Homeless" is an impractical term that confounds discussion because there are two separate problems: in a simplistic sense I will, for the sake of discussion, define this in a very un-PC way —  it's the "good" homeless and the "bad" homeless. There needs to be two solutions. There is a heavy overlap between these two populations, due to substance abuse and issues of mental instability. The "good" group that is non violent and mostly not troublesome generally includes the mentally handicapped/physically handicapped/ptsd/or "homeless by choice" people, and these folks often want to work but can't handle a full time job. Many, when talking about the solution, have said they would PAY to have a safe place to camp or would WORK at a place like that to keep it secure, because these people are often preyed upon by the people in the "bad" homeless category: the violent/deranged/criminal contingent that are homeless because their criminal record makes them unsavory hiring material.
So the city had to shell out $400,000 because somebody slipped; how far would that money have gone to establish a simple campground with plumbing? These people get monthly checks, not enough to pay for a motel room all month, but enough to cover a camp site or parking fee. They are already ok with camping, why not make it into a legitimate camping situation somewhere? Violent behavior or thieving gets you kicked out of the campground and arrested, just like a normal campground. No more camping in the marsh. (Maybe the official campground should be in Samoa, lots of space there, RV parking at the old pulp mill site?)"

SONOMA COUNTY public health officials are considering urging the public to avoid the Russian River during the busy Labor Day weekend after a dog died of a toxic algae during a swim. Officials confirmed that a dog had died over the weekend after apparent exposure to blue-green algae. The Press Democrat reported Thursday that the dog, a 3-year-old golden retriever, was found to have been infected by a toxin produced by the algae after swimming near Wohler Bridge, and that officials were weighing whether to tell visitors to stay away.

In a statement Thursday, county health officials said they had detected “small amounts” of the algae and that periodic sampling had been performed along “the most frequented public beaches.”

Officials were expected to announce Friday whether they would consider telling the public to avoid certain parts of the river this weekend.

On Aug. 21, officials had urged visitors to “take precautions and practice healthy water habits” after the algae was detected.

Toxic algae has prompted officials to bar swimming at other popular spots, including Temescal Regional Recreation Area in Oakland.

* * *

AS PAUL McCARTHY of the essential MendocinoSportsPlus observes, the Navarro River may also contain toxic algae:

Maybe The Navarro River Should Be Breached After All — Dog Dies From Toxic Algae In Russian River:

Earlier this year a State biologist warned of a possible "fish die-off" if the sandbar at the mouth of the Navarro were breached. Without a breach, the movement of water the mouth of the Navarro looks like an algae blossom made up of "God-Knows-What."

$30 WILL GET YOU AN IMPORTED SALMON DINNER at Healdsburg's Villa Chanticleer on Sunday, the 13th of September. The downside? It's a fundraiser for State Assemblyman Jim Wood. After two invisible terms in office, Wood is already a confirmed non-entity in the tradition of Dan Hauser, Wes Chesbro and ol' whats-her-face from Eureka. This thing also promises appearances by Congressman Huff, Mike Thompson and various other non-verbal career officeholders. One local listed as an "early sponsor" is Jim Mastin of Ukiah, a lifelong middle-of-the-road extremist.

JUST IN from the streets of Fort Bragg: "Jan Owings was one of three people who died from a batch of Pehnol (sp?) sold by an individual known locally as Tattoo Shawn. Mr Shawn is an accomplished police informant and full-time heroin addict. Another victim of this drug is a former official at Hospitality House. He died in a van parked in the driveway of the recently fired pastors of a local church. The death was not reported for 6 hours as they debated their recourse. These people have moved to Idaho (for other reasons) and had the courtesy to take Tattoo Shawn with them along with his bride of recent weeks, the former director of the church."

ON THURSDAY, September 03, 2015, the Humboldt County Drug Task Force served a Humboldt County Superior Court Search Warrant at 4100 block of Lower Thomas Road, Miranda, California. Agents contacted the owner of the property, Graham Borst (Age 38). During a search of the property, agents located approximately 30 pounds of processed marijuana bud packaged for sales, approximately one pound of concentrated cannabis, approximately 164 growing marijuana plants, and a butane extraction lab.

Borst was arrested for possession of marijuana for sales and for possession of controlled substance laboratory equipment. Borst was booked into the Humboldt County Correctional Facility and his bail was set at $500,000.00.

Agents served a second search warrant in the 4500 block of Lower Thomas Road, in Miranda. Agents contacted four immigrant workers at the location, who were detained and subsequently released. Agents located approximately 4,969 growing marijuana plants growing inside of 13 greenhouses on the property, 850 cloned marijuana plants and paperwork indicating the identities of the owners of the property. This case is ongoing and arrests are anticipated in the future.

Anyone with information for the Humboldt County Drug Task Force Office regarding this case or related criminal activity is encouraged to call the Humboldt County Drug Task Force Office at 707-444-8095.

— Humboldt County Drug Task Force

* * *

ON TUESDAY, September 1, 2015 Deputies from the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office were in Covelo, California following up on investigative leads regarding numerous commercial and residential thefts that had recently occurred in the area. During that investigation Deputies responded to a residence located in the 78000 block of Ledger Lane where they contacted Josepha "Littlewolf" Basurto, 20, of Covelo. Basurto was a person of interest in a motor vehicle theft and burglary case. While at the location Deputies developed probable cause that Basurto was responsible for the vehicle theft and another recently stolen vehicle that had not yet been reported to Law Enforcement. Basurto was arrested for the theft of two motor vehicles, burglary and violation of probation. Basurto was booked into the Mendocino County Jail where she was to be held in lieu of $50,000 bail.

JAMES MARMON WRITES:

“Has Woodhouse crossed a line in the way he interacts with County employees? Or is Brown trying to cut off his access to employees to prevent him from learning too much about sensitive topics like the mental health give away to Ortner or the numerous problems in Family and Children’s Services (formerly CPS)?”

You can bet that it is the later, he is asking the wrong questions. He was getting to close to uncovering a big scandal within HHSA and how Federal, State, and County dollars are being distributed and/or squandered.

Anyone who has ever watched Stacy Cryer at the Board of Supervisors meetings have witnessed that Ms. Cryer becomes easily flustered when she is asked too many questions. Woodhouse probably asked her a question that she didn’t want to answer and she ran to Carmel Angelo and Doug Losak to come to her rescue.

I think its time to get out the pitchforks and torches’. We have at least four supervisors who have decided to follow instead of lead, and are content with putting their heads in the sand hoping the danger will pass them by. Unfortunately for them, these issues are not going away soon, and their actions or inactions have only fueled the flames.

The two people who have complete control of our county’s future, are not even elected officials. The people of Mendocino County need to get their heads out of their “you know what” and demand leadership from those who are elected officials. I don’t think any of them would have been elected to office if folks knew that they were going to defer their leadership duties to these two people, Angelo and Losak.

Remember folks, “groupthink” exists here. Do yourselves a favor, ask questions, think for yourself, and evolve.

A CAR FULL OF IRISH NUNS sat at a traffic light in downtown Dublin, when a bunch of rowdy drunks pulled up alongside of them. “Hey, show us yer teets, ya bloody penguins!" shouted one of the drunks. Quite shocked, Mother Superior turned to Sister Mary Immaculata and said, "I don't think they know who we are; show them your cross." Sister Mary Immaculata rolled down her window and shouted, "Piss off, ya fookin' little wankers, before I come over there and rip yer balls off!" Sister Mary Immaculata then rolled up her window, looked back at Mother Superior, quite innocently, and asked, "Did that sound cross enough?”

CATCH OF THE DAY, September 3 & 4, 2015

BLUE ABREU, Ukiah. Possession of ammo by prohibited person.

DELBERT ALFORD, Ukiah. Parole violation.

STEPHEN ANAPOLSKY, Fort Bragg. Hit & Run with injury or fatality, DUI-drugs, DUI-drugs causing great bodily injury, under influence of controlled substance, addict driving a vehicle, probation revocation.

CRAIG BARNETT, Fort Bragg. Community supervision violation.

CURTIS BETTEGA, Covelo. Community supervision violation.

ALBERT BOONE, Fortuna. Failure to appear.

ERIC CAMPBELL, Santa Rosa. Possession of meth for sale, possession of stun gun by addict, shuriken.

FILEMON CARDONA, Fort Bragg/Ukiah. Hit & Run with injury or fatality, probation revocation.

MICHAEL DELMASTRO, Mena, Arkansas. Fugitive from justice.

PATRICK FOX, Albion. Domestic battery, remove/destroy communication equipment to prevent call for help, possession of paraphernalia, petty theft, failure to appear, probation revocation.

SALVADOR GOMEZ, Elk. Drunk in public.

BRENT HAAS, Ukiah. Battery, criminal threats of death or great bodily injury, under influence of controlled substance, concealed weapon, petty theft. (Frequent flyer.)

THOMAS HANOVER JR., Ukiah. Probation revocation.

KENNETH LELOUP, Ukiah. Petty theft.

RAFAEL MATA JR., Ukiah. Under influence of controlled subnstance.

CARLOS MORALES-CARRILLO, Ukiah. Battery against peace officer, drunk in public.

TYLER ONEIL, Santa Cruz/Ukiah. Failure to appear, probation revocation.

MARIO PALACIO, Covelo. Probation revocation.

MARK PATEREAU, Laytonville. Probation revocation.

ALEJANDRO ROJAS, Concord/Ukiah. Burglary, armed with firearm, failure to appear.

ELVIS SCARIONI, Manchester. Community supervision violation.

WILLIAM VANTREESE, Fort Bragg. Drunk in public. (Frequent flyer.)

MRC’S FOREST REASSESSMENT/RECERTIFICATION

Editor,

Comment - Mendocino Redwood Company FSC FM Reassessment 2015

My name is Frank Hartzell. I wrote about this process for the local paper.

[Hartzell is a reporter for the Fort Bragg Advocate News, his report is at: http://www.advocate-news.com/general-news/20150904/rainforest-alliance ]

I want to start by saying my opinions do not reflect my employer and will not color my work as a journalist. I confine my comments to the public process. As a reporter I don't normally provide comment. I do so today in the spirit of what we do: revealing information to the public. This is clearly something MRC has articulated a desire for — being as open as possible. And the Forest Stewardship Council and Rainforest Alliance both have committed to this principle. So let's do a better job of having a meaningful public dialogue.

It was clear from the meeting I attended that the process is not intelligible to most of the public. Nor is the role of FSC or RFA. The RFA for whatever reason, has not sought the spotlight and thus could be very helpful to start the meeting with some background on the organization that explains the RFA, the FSC and the history of MRC and what certification does for them. The audit team seemed totally unprepared to answer questions. When asked where the money came from for RFA, what the financial relationship between RFA and MRC and FSC was, they had no answers. Mr. Grado [RFA rep] made it clear that the team was there to gather input, not answer questions. But gather input about what?

Watch the video to see how confusing this became for someone trying to understand what was going on. My number one criticism is lack of an agenda or agenda items. This is why government agencies distribute agendas ahead of time. This meeting would have been illegal if conducted by any government agency in California. Why not reach at least that standard of openness? If not, people show up having no idea what they are supposed to do, or in this case who they are talking to. (Especially without an explanation, any printed materials etc.) A chaotic, suspicious atmosphere can result and did result. Another surprise was that none of the suggestions made in past audits were mentioned. The auditors appeared not to have much information about that either.

Having had a chance to peruse the audits, there is some interesting stuff in those. Some from 2005-2010 timeframe had some very interesting suggestions. What happened to those suggestions? I couldn't figure that out. Why not have a printed agenda that shows all the suggestions from the 2010 and 2014 audits? Why not put all the audit reports together in one document at local libraries? Provide some narrative also about suggestions that have been acted upon. People could see what is expected of MRC and why at least. Better also would be to have a report from MRC at the start of the meeting on each of these agenda items. The MRC person could then leave and let everyone discuss what was said. Mr. Grado made the point repeatedly that the contract audit team was not there to defend or attack MRC. That makes sense. But why can't the audit team explain what RFA has asked MRC to do to comply with the standards and how they check compliance?

For example this is from the 2014 audit. While it’s interesting, I think it needs explanation.... What does it mean? What happens if they don't provide this?

”Indicator 7.1.p The management plan describes and justifies the types and sizes of harvesting machinery and techniques employed on the FMU to minimize or limit impacts to the resource.

”Findings: While the Forest Management Plan does describe and justify the types of harvesting systems and techniques; the sizes of the harvesting equipment is not described or justified.”

Why does size matter? What size are we talking about? Big Muskie?

More importantly, an explanation is needed for what all involved have identified as the biggest issue: the hack and squirt. The premise is that a wood as hard as tanoak, which I have in my yard, will break down quickly. I need some science that RFA/MRC relied on to say this about tan oak going away quickly. Tanoak burns very very hot in my fireplace, about 3x as hot and long as redwood. Mine doesn't go away quickly. I have burned wood that has been cut for 10 years. Down from the house my parents purchased in 1986 are pine trees that were standing dead when they bought the house.

Of course, this is anecdotal information. But without any science to challenge what I see with my own two eyes, I frankly don't believe what has been said about tanoak not sticking around long enough to be a long term fire hazard. I begin to wonder about the rest. Give us more science. More specifics of all kinds.

Lastly, it would seem the process would have more meaning if RFA could suggest ways for the community and MRC to work together better. RFA is after all, the expert. Could RFA help find grants to set up a biomass plant? Could they relate how companies in other areas have allowed locals to use standing dead timber for firewood? Shouldn't local and state government help with this? The forest is private property today but also belongs to the whole earth.

Thanks for listening

Frank Hartzell, Fort Bragg

PS. I provided my comments here so that I could get some comments sent to me if anybody is interested in the process of certification. I can send you a book that Tomas D. provided me that both praises and dams the current methods of forest certification. By the time the audit comes out, I’d like to have a fair but critical look at what certification accomplishes and could do better here. Write me a frankhartzell@gmail.com if interested in that story. I’m going to interview the author of the book on certification.

MENDOCINO STUDY CLUB'S 38TH ANNUAL COUNTRY CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY BAZAAR

700 to 800 Attend Healing Harvest Farms Market and First Anniversary Celebration; Speakers offer tips on herbal medicine, cannabis drying and storing

by Jane Futcher

A one-year party and farmer’s market at Healing Harvest Farms in Laytonville drew a crowd to Area 101 on Saturday, Aug. 29.

With live music under the redwoods and 24 vendors selling locally grown food, vegetables and medical cannabis products, the event had celebratory atmosphere.

“This is a very, very wonderful success,” said Healing Harvest Farms collective member Tim Blake, founder of the Emerald Cup and Area 101. “We had rain last night, and we got up this morning and wondered about the weather, and it was beautiful.”

Blake said the collective enrolled 400 new patients and drew 700 to 800 people Saturday. Cars crammed Area 101’s parking lot and spilled over to the soft shoulders next to Highway 101.

Master herbalist Mitcho Thompson, a founding board member of Peace in Medicine dispensary in Sebastopol, and Kevin Jodrey, legendary grower and owner of Wonderland Nursery in Garberville, were featured speakers.

Thompson, a clinical medical herbalist, said there are three ways to get medicine into the body — through the lungs, with smoking; through the gastrointestinal system, with edibles and tinctures, and through the skin, with salves and liniments.

Although smoking cannabis is the fastest way to get medicine into the body and feel its effects — within 30 seconds to a minute — Thompson said the analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects with smoking are short-lived, from 90 minutes to two hours. An edible, on the other hand, he said may take 20 minutes to an hour to kick in but offers medical benefits for up to 10 hours.

Tinctures are extractions of any plant or herb commonly made by soaking the material in alcohol and ingested sublingually. He said cannabis and other very resinous plants should be soaked in high proof alcohol, which can later be weakened with water after the medicine is made.

Tinctures are not psychoactive, he said, because they are not usually heated. Heat decarboxylates or activates THC.

Most of Thompson’s focus was on topical liniments or salves, in which fat-soluble herbs like cannabis are combined with olive, coconut or other oils.

“Your skin eats about 92 percent of what you put on your skin, so you want to use organic ingredients,” Thompson said. He often adds other herbs to his cannabis liniments. Peppermint, he said, combined with cannabis, is excellent for muscle and joint pain.

Thompson said cancer is best treated with cannabis that contains both CBD and THC. “You want the entourage effect, which is why the whole plant may be more effective.”

Kevin Jodrey offered market-goers tips on harvesting, drying and storing cannabis. He said if growers want to produce top-quality, competitive, organic “craft” product that dispensaries and patients will be eager to buy, they should:

—Always grow varietals that match the farmer’s climate, elevation, hours of sunlight and other growing conditions.

—Always harvest plants in the morning, when terpenes and sugars are most present in the bud,

—Always keep drying areas free from contamination. He said labs that test cannabis samples have found everything from dog hari, laundry detergent and flea powder in samples.

—Always remove strong or toxic chemical products, including gasoline and strong cleansers, from the drying area.

—Always cover shelves and non-drying related items in the drying area with Tyvek house wrap not plastic because plastic holds in moisture.

—Always hand trim buds in a sanitary environment to protect the resinous trichomes.

—Always hire “highly skilled” trimmers because they are your “quality control” and will tell you if your product has any problems.

—Always be gentle with buds. Don’t squish them into storage containers or sealers

—Always store cannabis when it is slightly more moist than it would be for smoking.

—If possible, use nitrogen-pack sealing, which allows the storage of cannabis for a “couple of years” with no loss in quality or potency.

One Mendocino County vendor at the market, Jackson, of Third Gen farm, said with big corporations coming in to California as legalization looms, small, craft growers need to stick together.

“We are here to showcase our product and meet the people that it’s helping,” Brandon said. “We come to help the people. I like to see the smile on the face and the grin from ear to ear when people come by.”

Jane Futcher is host of “The Cannabis Hour,” on KZYX FM, every other Thursday at 9 a.m.

DEVREAUX WINS OAXACA

Congratulations To Devreaux Baker, recipient of the 2016 Oaxaca Fellowship Award.

And do explore her wonderful website.

(— Gordon Black)

SEPTEMBER IS LIBRARY CARD SIGN-UP MONTH; A LIBRARY CARD IS THE COOLEST CARD –

Studies show that children who are read to in the home and who use the library perform better in school. September is Library Card Sign-up Month, a time when the Ukiah Library joins with the American Library Association and public libraries nationwide to make sure that every student has the most important school supply of all – a free library card.

Resources at the Ukiah Library are available to anyone who has a library card. Students can turn to the library for materials, programs and knowledgeable library staff that support academic achievement. We also feature several programs of interest to foster various literacies & lifetime learning: book clubs, story-times, makerspaces, & peer-led leadership groups are examples of ways the public library functions as a learning environment & supports educators in the community.

Today’s libraries aren’t only a place of quiet study, but also creative and engaging community centers where students can collaborate using new technologies, learn how to make stuff, or just relax with peers. Our library also offers access to a variety of print and digital resources, including EBSCO’s Student Reference Center, & the Learning Express Library, to name a few. Our online research databases provide students with reference resources to complete school assignments, apply to college, and prepare for exams in various career fields.

“Our library provides access and programs for all ages,” says Anne Shirako. “For preschool age children we offer early literacy and lap sit story-times to encourage school readiness, for older children and teens we supplement education with hands-on science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM ) programs and innovative makerspaces, and for teens & adults we have information and tools to help prepare for college and future careers. There’s really something for everyone and it’s all free with a library card.”

For more information on how to sign up for a library card, visit the Ukiah Library in person or visit the library online at www.mendolibrary.org.

* * *

The Tween Book Club

On Friday, September 25, 2015, at 4:30 pm, the Mendocino County Library, Fort Bragg Branch is hosting the Tween Book Club.

Love books and reading? Looking for other tweens to talk about books with? Then join us at the Tween Book Club every last Friday of the month from 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm. Tweens can join us for discussion and snacks at the library. September’s book is Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George. You can pick up a copy at the library. For further information, contact Elizabeth.

PRESS RELEASE from the office of California Assemblymember Jim Wood:

Today Governor Brown signed AB 1262 into law. The bill provides $5 million to support groups and initiatives working to increase access to broadband in rural communities. Assemblyman Wood said, “This is a big win for our district. We have unique and serious problems around broadband access and we have great organizations working to solve those problems. This money will provide a resource to allow key stakeholders to continue working with telecommunication providers to find real, long-term solutions.” AB 1262 immediately brings $5 million into the Rural and Urban Regional Broadband Consortia Account. These funds will be used to support community-based groups who are working to increase broadband access, adoption and, deployment in rural areas.

SATURDAY NIGHT IN THE VILLAGE—XXV

Giacomo Leopardi The Canti

The girl comes from the fields,

at sunset,

carrying her sheaf of grass: in her fingers

a bunch of violets and roses:

she’s ready, as before,

to wreathe her hair and bodice,

for tomorrow’s holiday.

The old woman sits spinning,

facing the dying sunlight,

on the stairway, with her neighbours,

telling the tale of her own young days,

when she dressed for the festival,

and still slim and lovely,

danced all evening, with those young

boys, companions of her fairer season.

WHERE DO TURKEY VULTURES NEST?

Dear All,

I'm excited to let you know about some of our upcoming fall events at the UC Hopland Research and Extension Center:

September 12, 10am-2pm, Hopland Hikes<http://hrec.ucanr.edu/?calitem=296162&g=61984>:

Where do turkey vultures nest? Why might you find a bear in our bathtub? HREC Director, Kim Rodrigues will reveal the mysteries of the Hopland Research and Extension Center during this 2 hour guided hike around part of their 5,300 acre oak woodland and chaparral site.

October 10, 10am-2pm, Archaeology for All<http://hrec.ucanr.edu/?calitem=293947&g=61984>: Celebrate California Archaeology Month at HREC. Discover cultural markings (petroglyphs) found on the site and what we can learn from them while kids get the chance to make their own petroglyphs! Dr. Donna Gillette, Shawn Padi, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer (THPO) for the Hopland Band of Pomo Indians and Hillary Renick, THPO for the Sherwood Rancheria will explain the history of these markings and their significance.

November 14-15th, 11am-2pm, Hopland Sheepdog Trials<http://hrec.ucanr.edu/?calitem=292081&g=61984>: The Hopland hills will be ringing with whistles and calls and the sharp eyed, quick senses of around 50 sheepdogs on the weekend of November 14th and 15th. Hopland Research and Extension Center (HREC) will host the 4th annual Hopland Sheepdog Trials- two one-day United States Border Collie Handlers Association (USBCHA) sanctioned Open Trials.

I attach press releases and posters for all these events, I'd love to hear from you if you'd like to hear more! Please spread the word and support the education and outreach work of the Hopland REC.

Hannah Bird
Community Educator
Hopland Research & Extension Center
4070 University Road
Hopland, CA 95449
hbird@ucanr.edu<mailto:hbird@ucanr.edu>
707.744.1424 x 105

To stay informed about "Happenings At Hopland":
Please visit our website: http://hrec.ucanr.edu/
Sign up for our Blog: http://ucanr.edu/blogs/Hopland/
Sign up for our email newsletter: http://eepurl.com/bisJHj
Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HoplandREC

THE REAL SKINNY ON CENTRAL VALLEY GROUNDWATER SUBSIDENCE.

Progress Report: Subsidence in the Central Valley, California http://water.ca.gov/groundwater/docs/NASA_REPORT.pdf This document (14.6 MB, 34 pages, with 17 full-color map/illustrations) describes the use of “interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of California Institute of Technology, including analysis of Japanese PALSAR data for 2006 — 2010 and Canadian Radarsat-2 data for the period May 2014 — January 2015, documenting “two already known main subsidence bowls in the San Joaquin Valley.” “For the period 2006-2010, maximum total subsidence was found to be about 37” near Corcoran.” Yes, that’s thirty-seven inches (additional subsidence in this bowl and the area centered on El Nido, approximately 25 miles in diameter, subsided “about 24” from 2006-2010.

From the introduction: “The ability to map surface deformation of a fraction of an inch over large areas at spatial resolutions of 100 feet or so has opened up new possibilities for remote monitoring of groundwater resources. Most applications have used satellite radar systems, although airborne systems are also available.” The importance of this information is described as follows:

“Measuring and understanding subsidence as a function of groundwater dynamics will greatly improve management of that important resource, and in addition the effect of subsidence on infrastructure can also be monitored using InSAR. Roads can be broken by fissures, pipelines have been exhumed, and the slope of the land can be altered, changing drainage patterns. This last effect has proven to be a significant problem on the California Aqueduct, where the canal lining has been raised in multiple locations over the years in order to preserve flow. Areas of low relief that have subsided are also subject to flooding."

While the Central Valley’s water woes seem to have little relation to ours, the AVA’s Will Parrish documented in some detail the long-term water development and resource management schemes in a series beginning in October, 2014 (“California’s North Coast Water Relics”). Water Worriers may enjoy tapping this Facebook entree: https://www.facebook.com/pages/California-Department-of-Water-Resources/95205192448?fref=nf <https://www.facebook.com/pages/California-Department-of-Water-Resources/95205192448?fref=nf>. The link to the above referenced “Progress Report” accompanies the August 21 photos documenting the “Effects of Subsidence — Chowchilla Bypass.”

Betsy Cawn The Essential Public Information Center

Upper Lake, CA

REPORT FROM THE FRONT, I.E. BERKELEY, CA

by Judy Juanita

My skateboarding grandson - at 13 ½ - journeyed through time this summer, to visit the International Civil Rights Center & Museum in Greensboro, N.C. He and his parents were in town for a basketball tournament. His mother walked him through the permanent exhibition on the 1960s lunch counter sit-ins, The Battlegrounds. Meanwhile, I got free tickets to the new Anna Deavere Smith play, "Notes From the Field: Doing Time in Education, the California Chapter," at the Berkeley Rep. Oh yes, he was born in Berkeley; I was born in Berkeley. Just another week in the life of two natives of that synonym for all things radical and cutting edge - Berkeley.

My friend, who happens to be white, got free tickets to the preview of "Notes From The Field" and made sure, as her source requested, to invite outspoken, passionate, assertive people for the mid show discussion. Perfect. How Berkeley can you be?

I put on my best "outspoken, passionate, assertive" gear. Anna Deavere Smith! I flipped at The Berkeley Rep in 1994 over "Fires in the Mirror." Oh, that Watts. Never happen here. This is the Bay Area. Gay Pride. Chez Panisse. The Black Panthers. My grandson's 4th grade class marched for Cesar Chavez Day. He loves hummus.

Usher Brutality, Not Police Brutality

My friend waits in the lobby for another friend but points three of us (black) upstairs to center front row. The best seats! A white usher, young of course, peers at our tix and blocks us from our seats. No, no, she says. We’re so happy to be there we keep talking. We can see the reserved seats and two friends (black) sitting in them. As soon as we sit down, the usher comes over to get all five of us out of those seats. We point out my friend’s name on the reserved signs. The usher’s not being very Berkeley. We beg to differ, but stay low key. The theatre has given away 1,000 free tickets and 1,000 half-price tickets to raise awareness about the play’s theme, the “school-to-prison pipeline.”

As Anna Deavere Smith waits in the wings, I see Fania Davis, executive director of Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth, with another black woman, frantically trying to locate seats before curtain time. Our usher points the two upwards to the nosebleed section. Oh my, this usher was born long after Fania and her sibling Angela’s faces and crowning Afros were instantly recognizable around The Front.

A Bastion Of Racism

Never mind that Uncle Ish calls our town a "bastion of racism." Never mind that Ishmael Reed, esteemed writer/playwright/essayist/poet/professor/satirist/songwriter/editor and publisher “had a similar experience at the Berkeley Rep. June of 1997,” he writes. “At the invitation of Vinnie Burrows, who performed in my play, ’Hubba City’ at the Nuyorican Cafe, I'd gone to the Berkeley Rep. to see her and Delores Mitchell star in ‘Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters’ First 100 years.’ A young black man, an employee of the Rep, asked me hostile questions, followed me around and even snooped on me as I talked with the two actresses. It was an uncomfortable experience. However,” he says that when he “produced Wajahat Ali's play, ‘The Domestic Crusaders’ at the Rep. in 2008, the staff cooperated without incident...[Yet] racial profiling is rampant in Berkeley.”

Now, now, Uncle Ish, not in Berkeley. Are you taking your meds? When I was a girl, yes, Berkeley was segregated. Blacks could only swim in the municipal pool on Friday night. And the stores had to be integrated by protestors from CORE.

But Berkeley is to integration what lace is to lingerie. Uncle Ish goes for espresso in the mornings on University Ave, the frontline of The Front. One day he had a meeting with officers of his arts foundation in the section where they serve lunch. As soon as Uncle Ish entered the area, a Hispanic waiter shouted at him, rudely asking him what he wanted.

Can a brother get some respect? The waiter must have confused Uncle Ish with the legion of homeless brothers out here, some of whom have mental problems. Uncle Ish is gray and bearded, a commonplace in Berkeley. Uncle Ish says this is not the only place that blacks in Berkeley have been quarantined. I love Uncle Ish's language, quarantined, bastion.

Meanwhile, another usher, this time black and female, walks over and pulls out that mama-ain't-playing-with-you tone; we stay firm. No matter we're professional, fifties+, spiffed up, law abiding. Don't matter. We might as well be Henry Louis Gates breaking into his own home in Cambridge. It takes another few minutes for my friend to appear and magically order the ushers to cease and desist. Our seats ordinarily were reserved for the tech crew, and no one had communicated that to the front of the house. We proceed to enjoy the play, if enjoy still applies to collisions at The Front between generations, races and attitudes. At play’s end, Anna Deavere Smith bows and graciously pulls Fania Davis up from her front row seat and kisses her ceremoniously. I guess the ushers really got that one wrong.

I jabber about the incident in an open letter to the playwright and the company on Facebook setting out the sequence of events. Two local papers The Daily Californian and East Bay Express, pick up the post. It becomes the controversy, and Berkeley Rep calls and apologizes - after much internal talk, so its director of marketing says. I ask for a formal letter of apology. She wants to know if I have any suggestions. Yes, offer more plays with ethnic and black writers, continue to give out free tickets, train everybody in diversity, pair productions with The Lower Bottom Playaz and other community-based theaters. I mention Elizabeth Warren's clarion call to the upper classes, that they don't own the bounty of this society nor merit it. And I remind her of TOBA, Theater Owners Booking Agency, informally known as Tough on Black Asses, that booked black acts in the south in the 1900s until artists like Lena Horne and jazz musicians broke the color barrier. It's not enough for Anna Deavere Smith to come for three weeks and leave, and BRT to go back to biz as usual. The Rep sends me a formal if we’ve offended you, we’re sorry apology, adding that their audiences are 20% people of color.

A friend who is a UC prof and season subscriber at the Rep scoffs at the 20% number. She and others say audiences are nearly all-white as I’ve seen at most of the plays I’ve attended there.

African-American entrepreneurs, intellectuals and artisans have long been the target of hostility and terror in this country. Many black shopkeepers were lynched by outraged and economically dispossessed white Southerners. Black Wall Street, one of the nation’s most affluent all-Black communities, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was burned down in 1921 by angry white residents. Many people are unaware that the terrorist bomb attack on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City in 1995 wiped out a solid bloc of the city’s black middle class who were civil service workers. My family is from Oklahoma; my aunt, a librarian and prominent soror, moved from Oklahoma City after the bombing, distraught at the loss of so many in her community.

I run the whole situation by Doug Jacobs, who established and ran The San Diego Repertory Theatre. My perceptions weren’t unjustified, Doug said in an e-mail:

“It’s a trip, isn’t it, Judy? At San Diego Rep we actually were able to diversify our audiences but it took constant work over many years. I think we were one of the few theaters that actually had success, because we believed there were solid markets in the black and Latin communities. The Globe and La Jolla actually followed us into those markets. Of course, it starts with a diverse staff, advisory councils, openness to feedback. We found, from our visiting actors, that San Diego was the most racist town they had experienced anywhere in the country, including the Deep South.

“We got great feedback from Cynthia Hammond, a black woman on our staff who also handled a local jazz program. She told us she could actually see our white ushers flinch when black people came to the door. In our pre-show speeches, we had to clarify the diversity of our audiences and tell ushers and ticket takers, not to “flinch”. Can you believe it? Cynthia also told us that we should put a greeter out in front of theater, as in a black church, to welcome people. That became part of her job. We also found group sales were essential to bringing in people who were uncomfortable trying out theater on their one… it didn’t matter if they were black, white working class or Latino. Another black woman handled group sales and she was terrific, very quiet in her own way, but fearless about approaching any ethnic group to make a sale. Good group sales people also tend to show up to take care of groups. When people come in a group, they might come later on their own.

“And then, racism is so pervasive, you have to retrain your staff every few years because of turn over. It’s really wild, isn’t it? You wouldn’t think this would be a problem in Berkeley, would you? But I grew up in Berkeley during the 50s, and there were vicious wars about real estate restrictions… the original Prop 13 were about that, as I recall. It’s good to hear from you now and then, and I’m glad you’re so active, and vocal, when necessary.

“BTW… my dad grew up in Oakland, and we learned a lot from him about how to break down the walls. We were raised as Berkeley Mormons, but my dad taught us to argue with Sunday school teachers that withholding the priesthood from blacks was a false doctrine. That became interesting once we moved to Los Angeles in 1960 and were surrounded by John Birchers. Again… all best to you! Doug

Home from his travels to the South, my grandson and his parents found most shocking that the white drinking fountains charged a nickel whilst the coloreds’ cost a dime. Ah, those darned public accommodations. If only they were not symptomatic of deeper issues. I imagine the pictures from Greensboro will stay in my grandson’s head as he skateboards and bikes around our lovely hometown — Berkeley.

CRITICAL MASS: BULLYING SF FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS

Typical that C.W. Nevius gets a lot wrong about Critical Mass in today's Chronicle, beginning with the hed on his column: Critical Mass dying of self-inflicted wounds. Critical Mass has been bullying San Francisco for more than 20 years, and there's no indication that it will stop any time soon.

He's also wrong about the role the Bicycle Coalition has played in promoting Critical Mass:

“Which is why this week the Bicycle Coalition nearly fell over its kickstand backing away from both Friday’s incident and Critical Mass. As far as they’re concerned, those were the bad old days. Because about 10 years ago the Bicycle Coalition wised up. Understand, they never sponsored Critical Mass, but in the early days of the event (it began in 1995) they attempted to mediate between the ride and public officials. They knew they had a passionate group of true believers, they just needed to mobilize them to do more than block an intersection. So rather than stage another tired rally on the steps of City Hall, the Coalition went inside, worked with politicos and got things done.”

One of the things the Bicycle Coalition "got done," by the way, was help the city rush the 500-page Bicycle Plan illegally through the process without any environmental review. When the court ruled against the city, the coalition's leader was furious.

The Bicycle Coalition has always had it both ways on Critical Mass. Of course it never claimed leadership of the monthly disruption of city traffic, since it didn't want to be liable for any violence or have to pay for the city police that were required.

But the Bicycle Coalition has never made a public statement urging its membership to not participate in the traffic-snarling demo. (Leah Shahum had her life-changing bike epiphany during Critical Mass.)

Instead of an outright endorsement of Critical Mass, the coalition listed it on its online calendar like this:

“Critical Mass! Fri., Apr. 29 6pm Justin "Pee-Wee" Herman Plaza, Foot of Market St. Join hundreds or thousands of other cyclists — -remember — -we are not blocking traffic — -we ARE traffic!”

With this weasly disclaimer:

“Events not officially sponsored or organized by the SFBC are marked with an asterisk. We post events that might be of interest to our SF area members; we do not necessarily endorse any particular group or perspective you may find represented here.”

When there's violence during Critical Mass, the coalition tries to justify it, like it did in 1997:

“Leah Shahum, executive director of the San Francisco Bike Coalition, said this entire story has been one-sided and it overshadows the everyday dangers of biking in the city. ‘We've got a totally unacceptable rate of bicycle and pedestrian deaths and injuries in this city and that should be the real story,’ Shahum said.”

Shahum in 2002:

"‘Critical Mass has definitely brought attention to bicycle issues, and we wouldn't have been able to do it without them,’ said Leah Shahum, executive director of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. The coalition isn't affiliated with Critical Mass. Rather, in the words of one bicycle advocate, it operates as Sinn Fein, the Irish political party, does to the more shadowy Irish Republican Army.”

Nevius gets other things wrong: Critical Mass began in 1992, not 1995.

Nor has "biking doubled since 2007." Nevius is apparently referring to the city's annual bicycle count when cyclists are counted at specific locations, which is not an overall count of cyclists or cycling in the city (Only 3.4% of all trips in the city are by bike, a percentage that has been more or less static for years).

Nevius refers to the police escort for Critical Mass that now costs city taxpayers $188,000 a year, ordered by Mayor Newsom after the massers terrorized motorists in 1997.

Nevius talks to the police chief, but apparently he didn't ask him where the cops were on Friday night.

See also San Francisco Citizen.

— Rob Anderson, District 5 Diary

TAN OAK SNAGS & FIRE

Editor,

I realize the "hack and squirt" controversy is primarily a philosophical one, and will avoid venturing down the fruitless path of discussing it in that context. But I will respond to the face of it, as a fire issue.

I have been using herbicides to control hardwoods, including tan oak, in my redwood forest in Comptche since 1985. I also do thinning and pruning of young trees, and logging, all of which produce dry fuel that can easily burn if ignited. All these forest practices I employ also serve to reduce the potential of a wildfire moving rapidly through my forest because they improve access and break up fire fuel continuity. Every fire season, I am intensely concerned about the possibility of a wildfire, and do what I can to prevent such an event.

Are my forest management operations my primary fire concern? In short, no. My primary fire concerns are what everyone’s primary concerns are. First, because all our native landscapes burn, I try to prevent ignitions and focus on where an ignition is most likely. Ignitions are most likely where people are, especially along public roads. Second, I secure a defensible space around my house, and other high value structures. This requires a minimum of 100 feet where all fuels are treated. A defensible space around my home is also good for my neighbors because it improves the chances of my fire not spreading to my neighbors property. Third, I concentrate on the fire fuel that is up wind from structures, since the worst fire will be coming from the up wind direction. Up wind in my neighborhood, is from the North and West, and downhill. Fourth, I focus on dry grass and brush on my property. Fires easily start and move quickly in dry grass. Dry grass is present every year, and doesn’t just rot away as forest residues do. Dry grass in association with brush is worse, dry grass and brush in association with dense forest is worse yet.

How concerned am I for fire where I have dead oaks and where I have performed other forest operations? My fire concern here fits in the context of my concern for fire in my forest in general, and in general, the presence of hardwood snags, and dry fuel, in it self, is not the biggest concern. Like all our native landscape, my forest can burn, and on a bad fire day can burn intensely. That said, my primary fire concern is for a fire that burns in young forest with lots of light green fuel and fire fuel continuity. My strategy is to prevent ignitions, and maintain fire breaks, so if a fire gets started, it can be contained with minimal forest loss. The areas where I have done logging or conducted other forest improvement operations that create dry fuel that readily burns if ignited, are in areas with newly opened roads. These roads lesson the ability for a fire to spread, improve fire fighter access, and increase the opportunity for fire containment. The logging and forest improvement operations also break up fuel continuity in the forest. Breaking up fire fuel continuity, reduces the potential fire intensity. In a short number of years these dry fuels from my forest management operations rot away. Of course my wildfire concern remains, because as the light fuels from my forest operations disappear, young redwoods and brush return along with the new fire fuel concern. This is the reality of managing the fire ecology landscape that most of us live in.

It has been stated that the creation of hardwood snags is a significant added safety risk for firefighters. Is it? That is a good question that needs further explanation. What is the fire scenario that results in significant added risk to firefighters? I don't know, and I have never heard anyone explain this.

If my forest management strategy were strictly to prevent intense wildfires, instead of commercially growing redwoods, I would regularly open up the forest by reducing the forest canopy and understory. Thinning the forest by logging does this, as does pruning, thinning small trees, and killing hardwoods. Yes, the very operations I mentioned above that, for the short term, create light dry fuels that if ignited, readily burn.

George Hollister

Comptche

ON LINE COMMENT OF THE DAY

What is happening to America is that all of the surplus in the system accumulated over decades of success is being used up. Americans have had no interest income from their savings since the Federal Reserve decided to print trillions of dollars with which to purchase the troubled financial assets of a small handful of mega-banks. In other words, the Federal Reserve decided that, contrary to the propaganda about serving the public interest, the Fed exists to serve a few oversized banks, not the American people or their economy. As an institution, the Federal Reserve is so corrupt that it should be shut down.

— Paul Craig Roberts

SINKYONE HIKE

Join Sanctuary Forest on Saturday, September 12^th for the Sinkyone Indian Land, Water and Culture hike! The hike will be led by representatives of the InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council and will be held in the Sinkyone Wilderness State Park. The Sinkyone Council, founded in 1986, is a nonprofit conservation consortium of 10 federally recognized California Indian Tribes that established the first InterTribal Wilderness area in 1997 on the Lost Coast. Hike leaders will discuss the cultural history of the Sinkyone Indian people and contemporary efforts by the Sinkyone Council and local Tribes to protect and restore their cultural environment, especially along the coast. Please meet at the Sanctuary Forest office in Whitethorn at 10 a.m. Hikers are asked to bring high-clearance, four-wheel drive vehicles to help with car-pooling down to the Needle Rock Visitors Center. This moderate, 2-mile hike will return to the Sanctuary Forest office at 3:30 p.m. Bring a lunch and water and wear sturdy hiking shoes. This is a group excursion, and participants are asked to stay together at all times. The hike is free of charge, though donations are gladly accepted and help Sanctuary Forest offer this program year after year. For questions or clarifications, contact Marisa at marisa@sanctuaryforest.org, or call 986-1087 x 1#. Hope to see you there!

Support from volunteers and local businesses have made this program possible for Sanctuary Forest. Local businesses that have made generous contributions are James Holland, MSW Counseling Services, J.Angus Publishing Group, Southern Humboldt Fitness, Sylvandale Gardens, The Security Store, Blue Star Gas, Caffe Dolce, Charlotte’s Perennial Gardens, Coffee Break, Mattole River Studios, Monica Coyne Artist Blacksmith, Randall Sand & Gravel, Whitethorn Construction, Ned Hardwood Construction, Pierson Building Center, Chautauqua Natural Foods, Dazey’s Supply, Madrone Realty, First Fig Gallery, Hohstadt’s Garden Center, Humboldt Bar & Grill, Roy Baker, O.D., Redwood Properties, Vella Wood Flooring, Wildberries Marketplace, Whitethorn Winery and Mattole Meadows

Sanctuary Forest is a land trust whose mission is to conserve the Mattole River watershed and surrounding areas for wildlife habitat and aesthetic, spiritual, and intrinsic values in cooperation with our diverse community.

POSTCARD FROM OKLAHOMA

by Valeria Luiselli

Driving to the interior of the United States is like falling asleep and plummeting ever deeper into layers of a tortured subconscious.

We park the car next to two other cars in front of a lake. Sprawled comfortably in a green inflatable boat, is a man drinking a can of beer. When he finishes it, he raises the can in the air and his wife, seated on a towel a few meters away, grabs another can of beer from the cooler and exchanges it for the empty can.

In the lake, a Labrador is waiting for a sign from its master. From within the boat, the man grabs a smooth, round stone. He throws it into the lake; the stone drops and sinks. The eager Labrador runs, swims, dives, and swims back toward its master with the stone in its mouth. We are before a dog that fetches stones.

The three children of the couple are in the lake: two girls with almost satanic laughter are pursuing a turtle and a smaller boy, significantly overweight, is floating like a useless buoy in his orange tube. Now and then, the boy shouts from the water: “Broccoli! Broccoli!”

The mother responds: “Yes my love, at home we’ll give you broccoli.”

With that, some of us notice that what the two satanic girls are chasing is not the friendly head of a turtle, but a snake. A woman seated in a folding chair on the other side of the lake is the one who delivers the news. She does it with the calculated drama of someone narrating a documentary on animals: “But the turtle is actually a snake...”

While the father of the girls begins to throw stones at the snake, confusing the poor Labrador, another woman gets out of her car with her two very small dogs and her aged father, who is perhaps is senile. One of the little dogs runs into a branch.

“Are you OK, bon-bon?” she asks the dog, which, predictably, does not answer. But the old man answers.

Yes, daughter, we’re all fine here.”

Maybe the old man is right: we’re all fine.

(Translated from the Spanish by Louis Bedrock.)

PROPOSED CHANGES

Editor,

Proposed Changes to KZYX&Z Policies and Procedures for Board Elections To the Board of Directors of Mendocino County Public Broadcasting (KYX&Z):

Please consider the following proposed changes to the KYX&Z Policies and Procedures for Board Elections. The changes have three purposes: 1) to increase the total number of members; 2) to increase member participation in the election process; and 3) to increase communication with and amongst the members and the public.

The Board must appoint a new Election Coordinator by September 30. The Coordinator will begin the election process no later than November 30. Thus it is time for the Board to act. Please instruct the Election Committee to consider these proposed changes, with a final vote by the full Board during your meeting the first week of November.

These proposals are not vague policy pronouncements that are impractical to implement. They are precisely worded amendments to the Policies and Procedures, common sense solutions to recurring problems. Their adoption will benefit the organization, its members, and the public, and will guarantee the integrity of the electoral process.

Thank you very much for your consideration. Please contact me if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Dennis O'Brien Member

Proposed Changes to KZYX&Z Policies and Procedures for Board Elections

1. Extend the deadline for becoming a member eligible to vote from December 31 to February 28, the date the Election Monitor certifies the eligible voter list. (Note: although February 28 is the certification date given on the chart, the wording in the Policy itself says February 20.)

Amend Section IV, Paragraph 6, to begin "February 28 is the deadline to become a member eligible to vote in that year's election. On February 28, the MCPB Election Monitor certifies…"

2. Publicly announce the availability of simple living and volunteer memberships during the election period, e.g., the winter membership pledge drive and the January mailing to the members.

Amend Section IV, Paragraph 2, by inserting "Membership requirements, including simple living rate and volunteer option" in the first section and "included in membership mailings" in second section.

3. Ask candidates for their email addresses and permission to disclose to any media or other person/group seeking to contact them.

Amend Section IV, Paragraph 3, by adding "Requests from each candidate their email address or other contact information along with permission to disclose to any media or other person/group seeking to contact them." Amend Candidate Application to request the information/consent.

4. Either establish an interactive internet discussion service on the kzyx.org website, or announce the availability of member-established services, e.g., KZYXTalk.

Amend Section IV, Paragraph 2, by adding "Availability of interactive internet discussion services established by either the organization or its members" to the first section.

5. Notify the membership in writing of the annual membership meeting, the final step in the process, when they are sent their ballots.

Amend Section IV, Paragraph 7, by adding "along with an announcement of the annual membership meeting" at the end of the first sentence.

6. Prohibit the use of organizational resources, including internal email lists, for campaigning for or against any candidate for the board of directors.

Amend Section IV by adding: "14. Use of the organization's resources, including internal email lists, to campaign for or against any candidate is prohibited. Exceptions: 1) the candidates' official statements; 2) an interactive internet discussion service that can be accessed the public.

7. Establish written procedures for controlling ballots and providing replacement ballots to those members who did not receive one.

8. Amend the Chart of election procedures (Section III) to reflect the above changes.