Mendocino County Today: Friday, Jan. 19, 2018

• High Seas
• Skyhawk Platform
• Social-Media Protocols
• Little Dog
• Ed Notes
• Remorseful Trevor
• Greenfuse
• Fenty Sentenced
• Police Reports
• Yesterday's Catch
• Air Ambulancing
• Women's March
• Greater Crime
• Coastal Protection
• Sheer Silliness
• Father/Daughter Dance
• Cancer Resource
• Calendared
• Universal Sufferage
• Nuclear Posture
• Bloom Blast
• Wallterations
• Hearings Cancelled
• Poisoned Owls
• Fantasyland

FROM THE FORT BRAGG POLICE DEPARTMENT:

– Public Safety Notice –

Due to high seas and Public Safety, The Fort Bragg Police Department has closed the Noyo Beach and Noyo Beach parking lot until further notice. We ask everyone to please stay safe and out of that area. Thank you.

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NOYO HARBOR, Thursday morning, January 18, 2018

(Photo by Judy Valadao, via MendocinoSportsPlus)

RANDY BURKE OF GUALALA WRITES: “Skyhawk for District 5 all the way.”

THE MAJOR REPLIES: Based on his website’s vague generalities, Skyhawk so far looks like Hamburg Lite. I’m open to being convinced otherwise but he hasn’t attended a Supes meeting that I know of, has taken no position on a myriad of recent controversies (other than perhaps standing dead timber, but even that no specific way to handle the MRC objection), has no list of specific objectives and seems to be appealing only to liberals of the most superficial type, not the broader range of Fifth district residents/voters. Vacuity may be a savvy electoral strategy in the Fifth, yes, but not a good start for a serious campaign. He shows no knowledge of the Supes role, drifting into “platform” statements like “We must be creative and courageous in finding resources to fund affordable projects.” And, “A healthy ocean is essential for our tourism.” And, “I will work closely with local government and the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office to ensure that the 5th District gets the law enforcement coverage that it needs.” And, “I support a Public Bank that will enable us to keep our money out of corporate hands.” And, “…we must maintain a competitive position in the emerging legalized marketplace.” And, “I will advocate that County staff work closely with cannabis cultivators in this time of regulatory transition to encourage business development, economic certainty, and environmental protection.” Platitudes, all. Chris has to step up his game.

THE ANDERSON VALLEY FIRE DEPARTMENT is preparing something they are calling “social media protocols.” Apparently, at a recent incident, a dispute developed which involved the use of a cellphone and/or still or video camera during a response which involved medical aid case. The particulars of the dispute are unknown but we suspect it has something to do with photos or videos being taken of a patient or responders responding and possibly posted on line. Someone at the scene may have ordered the impromptu videographer not to take the video. A dispute ensued. There may have been threats made to post something on social media which may have been a privacy violation or an allegation of impropriety. AV Fire Chief Andres Avila wants to make sure that policies are in place and local first responders are prepared when social media related issues arise at an accident scene.

According to a website called “fireengineering.com” the problem has been around since at least 2010 when:

“It is possible that the habit of snapping a quick picture first posed a problem for fire departments on July 17, 2010. On that day, a 23-year-old woman named Dayna Kempson-Schacht ran off the road in a single-car accident. When the fire department arrived, the victim was already dead. Firefighter Terrance Reid took out his phone and shot a video of the victim, complete with graphic commentary, while she was still in the vehicle. At first, Reid shared the video only with firefighters with whom he worked, but the situation quickly spiraled out of his control. The next night, a firefighter who had received the video went out to a bar and began sending the video to the phones of other patrons at the bar. One of those patrons then put the video online; from there, it went worldwide and was posted on as many as 800 Web sites at one point. The video made it back to the parents of the 23-year-old woman. The pain of seeing their daughter mutilated and lifeless was almost too much for them to bear. Then, all eyes turned toward the fire department and others responsible for putting the video out there for all the world to see.…

“Had Reid been a private citizen, the video or pictures would have been his property, and he would not have been under no obligation to preserve them. But because he was on duty as a firefighter, he is considered an official of the fire department, and those pictures or the video can be used as evidence in a criminal or civil case. If another vehicle had been involved in the accident or had another death occurred, the video images taken by Reid would have had to be properly preserved as evidence. If any part of the photographic evidence were deleted, changed, or misplaced, Reid could have been charged with "spoliation," the misappropriation or destruction of evidence. Because spoliation can change the course of a criminal or civil case, the individual deleting such imagery could be sentenced to a term of imprisonment. In cases using spoliation as a defense, the defense attorney can argue that the missing images raise reasonable doubt, preserving his client's innocence. In a civil case, a judge can easily rule against one side for not properly preserving evidence."…

ETC. And so forth.

fireengineering.com/articles/print/volume-165/issue-5/features/the-fire-department-and-social-media-whats-your-policy.html

(More to come.)

SKRAG SPEAKING: ‘Had to laugh when mega-wimp Little Dog reads about dog flu then thinks he's got it. Only time you'll hear so much as a whimper outta me is when the food is late!”

ED NOTES

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THE FORT BRAGG City Council will discuss "Mill Site Land Use Plan and Sustainability Policies" at their meeting of Monday, January 22nd. You'd think Fort Bragg owned the 400-plus oceanside acres. Easy for me to say from Boonville, but it would be most gratifying if Fort Bragg simply annexed it, eminent-domained that sucker. Why should the Koch Brothers, of all people, decide the future of a whole town?

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THE SUPERVISORS, aka their CEO Ms. Angelo, have recently hired a pair of consultants, one (Michael Baker International, mbakerintl.com) to advise them on the in-County pot licensing and zoning process which, from its confused outset, has grown steadily much more confusing, so confusing most small-time growers are simply ignoring it. Illegality is now viewed as the good old days of the pot business and, in any case, Mendo law enforcement has kept right on busting pot farms whether or not they've tried to get legal.

THE OTHER CONSULTANT — both of them are picking up about fifty grand each — a homelessness “specialist” named Marbut, will advise the Supes as to who the shambling wrecks shuffling up and down the main streets of Fort Bragg and Ukiah really are. Are they locals, or have they come here to Progressive Land to feast on the freebies and the good vibes both towns offer?

INLAND SUPERVISOR McCowen spends much of his time away from the rigorous demands of his official tasks cleaning up after the homeless in the Ukiah Valley, particularly the homeless camps on the streams leading to the Russian River and the drink and drug camps along the banks of the Russian itself. He's on a first-name basis with many of the homeless and could give his colleagues a clear idea of who they are and where they're from. Maybe McCowen could take the Supervisors and the CEO's office staff out for a meet and greet so they wouldn't have to wait for their consultant to check in.

WHERE the homeless are from seems irrelevant. What to do with them is not irrelevant. Fort Bragg has placed them and their services in the center of town at the same time Fort Bragg tries to attract tourists to the downtown area. Ukiah's helping professionals offer meals and some grudging overnight shelter so long as the beneficiaries are sober enough to qualify.

THE CONSULTANT on the homeless will — betcha — recommend homes for the local homeless, a boot in the ass for transients, not that he'll phrase it that harshly.

THE RUB, of course, is the lack of housing even for people who work every day, let alone the small army of people who devote their every waking moment getting loaded and pick up a meal occasionally at Plowshares, Ukiah, or Hospitality House in Fort Bragg.

THE HARSH TRUTH is, and you can confirm it for yourself by dropping by the homeless respite area between WalMart and Jack-In-The-Box, Ukiah, is that the bulk of the homeless belong in lock-up rehab facilities like we used to have in the state hospital system. Why? Because most of them are versions of this guy, a mentally ill man who, wandering around on his own, aggravates his dysfunction with dope and booze.

PS. Here’s a link to the minutes of the last meeting of Mendo’s grotesquely unwieldy County homeless “governing board” in December. Note that the one “homeless person” slot is vacant.

mendocinocounty.org/home/showdocument?id=15155

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CALAVARAS COUNTY did what? Outlawed marijuana? Yup, the voters elected three people who ran on a platform to reverse that county's tolerance of proliferating grows. Could it happen here? No, but it would be a great thing for pot profitability if it were again totally illegal, as it was in the $5,000-a-pound days when the cops took off just enough every summer to keep prices up, and dealers in major cities risked jail selling the stuff. Legal or illegal, small-time growers who wisely remain outside this County's cockamamie and endlessly edited rules, will be able to make money under-selling storefront dope.

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RESIDENTS of the Fort Bragg-Mendocino area will be relieved to learn that the proposed trash transfer station for Highway 20 is permanently on hold. A call to the Mendocino Solid Waste Management Authority confirms that the agency is "still looking for land."

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INCIDENTALLY, MSWMA's former director, Mike Sweeney, the primary advocate for the redundant transfer station, is believed to have relocated to New Zealand. Sweeney remains the sole suspect in the 1990 car bombing of his former wife, environmental activist Judi Bari. Details of that Only-In-Mendo series of truly bizarre events are available at "Who Bombed Judi Bari?"

TREV MANS UP

Editor,

I wish for one baby hug.

This is to the community of Mendocino County and local law enforcement officers to whom I owe an apology. I am currently housed in San Quentin State Prison and I am sorry for my poor leadership in taking the young men who helped me in this stupid robbery that landed us all in jail. To Alex Nunes and your babies I am sorry to you the most. I wish I could take back my decision and could put you back with your babies. To Matt Sturges and Daniel Hernandez I am sorry. Thank you for being the strong minded friends who drove me to liking you. Truly I am sorry. I am to blame for the bad guidance.

That said, take this all in an learn and grow as people and don't get used to this life. Please go to school and get some education while you are in custody. Be good.

To the victims of my childish crimes I am sorry. I would like to tell everyone how much my heart hurts. I sit in my cell with 25 years in front of me wishing I could undo this nightmare that I am to blame for. My actions. I'm sorry to the people I've wronged. I am not sorry just because I am behind bars.

I'm truly sorry for two people I hurt and most assuredly let down. I cry writing this letter. I cry every time I think about my wife and my child. I left them to fend for themselves in the community. I was given a fair chance at being a positive member of the community and I failed to achieve anything other than being a bad dad and a liar and a cheat. I am a good guy at heart and I hope that the community will forgive me for the wrongs I have done. I have no room to ask for any favors from you but if you could please find it in your hearts to help my wife raise my best part of me into becoming a lady I would forever be in debt. I am not asking for money or anything other than help or guidance to my wife Alexandra Long just look in on her through your prayers and if you see them in their struggles please, I beg you, to help my family. They are the most beautiful things I ever did have a role in creating. I am a fool who can't tell you how I hurt and deserve this pain for not being a man and taking the time to work for my own like the rest of my beloved Mendocino County.

I don't know what I can say or what I can do for the pain I feel in my heart to stop. So I guess I just have to hurt. I am sorry Taylin Grace Jackson, you are the most beautiful girl in the whole world wide world to your dad, next to your mother of course. I hope that one day I can hold you before you get too big. I never got the time to teach you to ride a bike and I want to be there to pick you up or guide you through the trials and tribulations of this unfair life. I left you without a father. I am sorry, child, to you, for this wasn't something you signed up for. But I can trust in our beloved community to help you. I hope for the world to open up for you and provide a happy life and a chance for you to be that Princess with really long hair. I hope you get to bounce balls till your heart tires and you find a place in this world that makes you happy. Please, little one, be okay and listen to your mom and go to school and be a lady. I am so so sorry to you. I am never going to forgive myself. Never. I am sorry for my shortcomings and I am begging for a chance for one more baby hug or a chance to have you forgive me. They say time heals pain but the more time I spend away from you the more pain I will have to deal with. That's my punishment. Good God, world, I am begging for a second chance. Please help me be a father. I guess we just don't get second chances.

Don't forget there is a baby and a mother and a father. Please check out Alexandra Long on facebook and Trevor Jackson on facebook and Taylin Jackson on Reeves Canyon Road in Redwood Valley.

Trevor “Brush Bimp” Jackson BE 9877,

San Quentin State prison

San Quentin new CA 94974

PS. Pathetic Hanover. I am writing this note to set something right. First and foremost I would like to say thank you to Josh Hanover. I never wrote the AVA, but thanks for having my back, Bro. I'm still trying to read all the paperwork that I have on you but you know what? Nobody cares. And I will just say good luck in protective custody. Do the whole world a favor and embrace your surroundings. Most appropriate for you. How did the district attorney put it? Pathetic criminal caliber. You think anyone believes you or cares? Well, they don't. I am still on the main line with my head held high. About you, The response David Eyster wrote to your letter said all that needed to be said. You tried everything to lie your way out, instead you got 12 years protective custody. You should man up and get one of the child molesters or rapists you’re housed with. Man up, Wimp.

CORPORATIZATION, NOT LEGALIZATION

Editors,

A fine little paper, Greenfuse out of Humboldt County, is available at the Ukiah Co-op and the Mariposa Market in Willits, also by subscription. Maybe your Boonville market will carry it. The publishers give it away free. However, it's worth paying for.

The pot thing: these excessive regulations are corporatization rather than legalization. I think all marijuana is medicinal. It's an invaluable herb to help with the insomnia brought to us by the United States government's Lyme and co-infection epidemic. I plan to write more extensively on this.

Dorotheya Dorman

Redwood Valley

FENTY GETS THREE YEARS

A defendant criminally responsible for a two-vehicle collision was sentenced to three years in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation late Wednesday afternoon in the Mendocino County Superior Court. A video of the scene, posted by the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, shows that it was a miracle that no one was killed in this horrific crash.

Appearing for imposition of sentence today before the Honorable Ann Moorman was defendant Kevin Richard Fenty, age 27, of New Jersey.

He earlier had been convicted by plea of driving a motor vehicle on May 13, 2017 under the influence of hydrocodone causing bodily injury, a felony; possession of more than an ounce of marijuana, a misdemeanor; and driving a motor vehicle without a driver's license, a misdemeanor. It also did not go unnoticed this afternoon that just over a month after his May arrest for the crash here in Mendocino County, the defendant was arrested driving a vehicle in New Jersey and subsequently convicted in the New Jersey courts of a felony drug charge again involving prescription pills.

Defense counsel for defendant Fenty argued for leniency at today's sentencing, citing among other things the defendant's prescription pill addiction and the defendant's need for court-enforced help. It was suggested that a sentence of probation, no additional jail time, and compulsory residential treatment was the appropriate course of action.

Opposing these requests, District Attorney Eyster argued for the maximum prison sentence allowed by law (three years), asserting that the defendant continues to pose too great a threat to the motoring public as evidenced by the severity of the crash on Highway 101 and the long-term physical and psychological injuries inflicted on the victim. With a separate felony drug matter still pending in New Jersey, Eyster argued that the defendant was welcome to apply for and pursue a rehab program in New Jersey once his California state prison sentence was completed and he is released to parole supervision.

Special thanks are hereby extended to the motorists who began calling 9-1-1 on the morning of May 13th to report the defendant's erratic driving as he was heading north on Highway 101. Further thanks are extended to the citizens who stopped and provide first aid and comfort at the crash scene, and finally to the fire personnel, CHP officers, medical first responders, tow drivers, and Caltrans workers who also responded to help the injured and clear the highway of vehicles and debris.

THEY ALL SHOW UP AT THE CASINO PARKING

On 01-16-2018 at approximately 12:57 A.M., a deputy with the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office was patrolling the area of the Sherwood Valley Casino in Willits (100 Kawi Place). While patrolling that area, the deputy exited his patrol vehicle to speak with some subjects who just parked in the parking lot of the casino. When speaking with the occupants, one of the subjects exited the vehicle and walked into the casino. During this time, the deputy noticed some suspected drug paraphernalia inside the parked vehicle. The deputy entered the casino to speak with the other subject and question him regarding the drug paraphernalia in the vehicle. This subject was identified as Kevin Phillips, 46, of Bethel Island, who was displaying numerous symptoms of recently using a controlled substance.

The deputy and Phillips exited the casino to conduct some tests to determine if Phillips was currently under the influence of a controlled substance. The deputy ultimately determined Phillips was in violation of “Recent Use of a Controlled Substance,” so Phillips was advised and placed under arrest without incident. The deputy also located numerous items in the area where Phillips was previously seated in the vehicle. The deputy found a large amount of suspected heroin, suspected methamphetamine, and other items consistent with the sales of controlled substances. After his arrest, Phillips made multiple threatening statements towards the arresting deputy relating to this criminal investigation. Phillips was additionally charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance for Sale, Transportation of a Controlled Substance, and Resisting or Threatening an Officer. Phillips was subsequently booked into the Mendocino County Jail where he was to be held in lieu of $35,000 bail.

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MILLION DOLLAR PREDATOR

On 01-17-2018 at approximately 10:43 A.M., a deputy with the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office responded to a residence in the 77000 block of Logan Lane in Covelo, to attempt and serve a felony arrest warrant. The deputy knew that Charles Pina lived at the location and was aware that Pina had a felony warrant issued for his arrest in Oregon.

The warrant was issued in November of 2017 by Washington County in Oregon for four counts of sexual abuse in the first degree. The arrest warrant bail was set at $1,000,000. The deputy contacted Pina at the residence where he was advised and placed under arrest for the above warrant. Pina was subsequently booked into the Mendocino County Jail where he was to be held in lieu of $1,000,000 bail.

CATCH OF THE DAY, January 18, 2018

THOMAS BARNICK, Santa Rosa/Ukiah. Suspended license, priors, failure to appear.

WILLIAM BARRY, Ukiah. Disorderly conduct-alcohol/in a lodge without owner’s consent. (Frequent flyer.)

JESUS CALVILLO, San Bernardino/Ukiah. Probation revocation.

BRADLEY DANAHY, Willits. Disorderly conduct-alcohol, parole violation.

ALEX DEEL, Willits. DUI-alcohol/drugs, controlled substance.

MICHAEL ELDREDGE, Ukiah. Probation revocation.

RAMIRO GONZALEZ JR., Hopland. Suspended license, evasion, probation revocation.

AMANDA SCHROEDER, Cloverdale. Paraphernalia, failure to appear.

HARVEY READING WRITES:

Re: “FIRST the sirens then the medical helicopter overhead…”

I suspect that those ridiculously expensive air ambulances are called far too many times. And they are embarrassingly expensive.

As our county commissars were holding “public meetings” to supposedly gain public approval for their foregone decision to privatize ambulance service here, the commissars’ own hired consultant made exactly that assertion as he urged people to oppose privatization.

Across the face of my driver license, I have placed one of those sticky notes that states clearly, “NO AIR AMBULANCE.” The note also directs the reader to a copy of my holographic will, legal here in the land of REAL, real men, which makes it clear, among several other things, that if someone calls for an air ambulance for me then that fool can pay for it.

Believe it or not, sometimes it can take longer to make an air transfer than it would have taken by land. Air ambulances are one of the biggest ripoffs ever. Just another example of greed in a kaputalistic society.

WOMEN'S MARCH IN FORT BRAGG SATURDAY, 11:00 AM

Details: We will be marching concurrently with The 2018 March for Our Future, led by the Mendocino High School Amnesty International Club, the Fort Bragg High School Progressive Club, and students from Mendocino and Fort Bragg middle schools. Everyone is welcome at these marches.

Gather at Fort Bragg Town Hall and march on the sidewalks through downtown, with a rally and program at Bainbridge Park, rain or shine. Confirmed speakers include Ui Wesley, Karina Becerra, Misty Meadlin, Lia Holbrook, ruth weiss, and Sherry Glaser as MC, with more to come. The Coast Democratic Club will offer voter registration at the park as well.

Please note: This event is a celebration of solidarity and positive purpose. The intent is not to protest local targets or disrupt local citizens or businesses. Participants are asked to stay on the sidewalks and observe normal pedestrian/traffic guidelines.

Volunteer: Would you like to help out on the day of the march? Contact mendohuddle@gmail.com

* * *

We also saw this posted to the MCNlistserv Wednesday @ 10:15 am:

Women’s March Saturday, 11 Am. Town Hall, Fort Bragg [Sunshine Predicted]:

Note: Bring Your Own Sign Or Get One At Park Next To Town Hall

* Plan to carpool if you can. Parking will be challenging.

* If walking is easy for you, please park at a distance and leave the best parking spots for folks who have to save their energy for the 10-block march.

* Stay on the sidewalks, wait for stoplights, and watch for traffic. Volunteers will be at the intersections to help with this.

* We march rain or shine, so make a plan for rain. Don’t let it keep you at home!

* Bring your own water and/or snacks.

* Help pick up trash, and bring your sign home with you.

* Participants with disabilities have several options. One group will stay at Town Hall and maintain a Main Street presence throughout the march.

Walking the 3 blocks straight to Bainbridge Park at 11:30 is another option. If disabled participants need a ride to their cars after the program ends at Bainbridge, there will be private citizens offering rides.

NO OFFSHORE DRILLING

Editor:

A headline on Sunday’s front page of the Press Democrat said, “Half-century oil battle rekindled by Trump.” There are good facts in the article, but there is no mention that, in 2000, the off-shore rocks and islands from Oregon to Mexico were named the California Coastal National Monument. Protection extends out 12 nautical miles from the shoreline. This monument is managed by the Bureau of Land Management, which is part of the U.S. Interior Department — yes, the same agency proposing to open the coast to off-shore oil drilling. We cannot let this happen.

Ruth Sparks

Fort Bragg

ON LINE COMMENT OF THE DAY

Ironically the people admonishing other people to check their privilege are the most obscenely privileged, that is, white students attending spectacularly expensive colleges paid for by wealthy parents. Absurdly, they’re the ones exercising the lexicon of grievance most vigorously taking dire offense at everything, even wood. Maybe it was a practical joke by someone intending to satirize the sheer silliness of it but a student at the University of Michigan actually complained that the wood panelling in a university facility was “racist” because it was quiet, imposing and masculine and would make minority students feel marginalized. Can’t make this shit up.

FATHER/DAUGHTER DANCE

CANCER RESOURCE CENTERS OF MENDOCINO COUNTY 2018 EVENTS

Happy New Year from the Cancer Resource Centers of Mendocino County!

Whew! It is difficult to believe, but I have just completed my first full year as executive director of Cancer Resource Centers of Mendocino County. It was an amazing, full, challenging, and rewarding year. Our vision, "no one will face cancer alone," continues to inspire me, and our mission, "to improve the quality of life of those facing cancer in Mendocino County," is one I repeat to myself every day but I know we can only accomplish together. I am grateful for the support of the community, our donors, the board of directors, and for the mentorship of Sara O'Donnell. I am ready and excited for what the new year will bring.

Karen Oslund, Executive Director

The numbers tell a story . . .

Our annual data review is complete and shows that we were busier than ever in 2017. We served 416 unique, unduplicated clients in 2017, compared to 354 in 2016, an increase of 17%. We met with 266 clients who came to us with newly-diagnosed cancer, an increase of 18% over the prior year. Remember, these numbers do not mean that there was more cancer in Mendocino County, just that we served more people. My hat is off to our wonderful patient navigators: Nancy, Jill, Jack, and Carla, for the personal, compassionate help they continue to give to every single person who comes to us.

Save these important dates!

2018 will be another busy year for the Cancer Resource Centers. Please mark your calendar now for these fundraisers and events. Note that our annual Big River Walk and Paddle is moving back to May this year--construction on the haul road is complete so we are making plans for a bigger event this year.

Friday, January 19: "The Back Porch Project" in concert at Ukiah United Methodist Church, 7 p.m. This is a benefit for the Cancer Resource Centers of Mendocino County and the UUMC "Building For our Future" fund. Tickets are $20 at the door, $15 in advance at Mendocino Book Company.

Thursday, February 8 at 5 p.m. Sid Garza-Hillman will speak at The Stanford Inn in Mendocino. Get inspired to improve your health by learning how to take small steps toward a more natural life. Free to the public, but RSVP is appreciated to CRC Coast office: 937-3833 or info@crcmendocino.org

19th Annual Big River Walk and Paddle Saturday, May 19, 9 a.m. --at Big River State Park, Mendocino. Come walk or paddle and defy cancer. Register - http://cts.vresp.com/c/?CancerResourceCenter/0bd47ac3fd/c8bebd9577/1bdd5262fd and download a pledge sheet online at crcmendocino.org or call our Coast Office, 937-3833.

14th Annual Goldeneye Winemaker Dinner Saturday, July 28: Save the date for this enchanted evening of fine food and wine in a beautiful setting.

14th Annual Pure Mendocino Saturday, August 25: Dark Horse Ranch, Ukiah. Save the date for our signature fundraising event.

This year, resolve to make new friends but keep the old . . .In my January blog post –

http://cts.vresp.com/c/?CancerResourceCenter/0bd47ac3fd/c8bebd9577/63109cdc16

I discuss the importance of friends to good health and a happy life. Some studies have shown that loneliness is as bad for our health as smoking or obesity. Making and keeping friends is easier said than done, especially for those, like me, who thoroughly enjoy their solitude. But when an illness comes, your friends need you and you need them. Make this the year you expand your circle of friends, for good health and also a good life.

Enjoy the lengthening of the days, and I hope to see you at one of our upcoming events. As always, please reach out to me with comments or suggestions: karen@crcmendocino.org

HE DIDN'T GO OUTSIDE any more during the winter, but he would sit out on the front porch sometimes in the summer and stare past the rose bushes in the front yard to the street beyond where life calendared its days without him as if he had never existed out there at all.

— Richard Brautigan

DIATRIBE

Editor,

Cronyism, nepotism, patronage, inurement through their slimy foundation, stalking and raping; possibly murder — I despise the Clintons for being guilty of all of these crimes (and more) from the time Bill was one the most corrupt governors in history until Hillary was one of the most corrupt Secretaries of State in history.

Obama expanded Bush’s wars and added his own. He destroyed Libya and Syria, and backed a coup in Honduras. He didn’t fulfill his promise of providing a "card check" provision for the EFCA, which would have allowed unions to be certified solely by majority sign-up.

His “Affordable Care Act” is a disaster that has enriched insurance companies and undermined the best chance Americans had to obtain free lifetime single payer health care.

I didn’t think Obama’s successor could possibly outdo him and the Clintons in damaging the interests of the working and middle classes. Obama bailed out the banks and left out in the cold people who lost their houses — due to the corrupt business practices of Wells Fargo, Countrywide, Goldman Sachs (of course) and many other corrupt banks and bankers. The banks got “bailed-out” at a cost of over a trillion dollars and working people lost their homes. Not one banker went to jail.

But Trump, Trump is something completely different. Exponentially different. A dim-witted AVA commentator, who appears to have reading and intellectual skills equal to Trump’s, has called him “transformative” — and that he is. This failed businessman, who has been rescued from being a street person by his lawyers’ deft exploitation of bankruptcy laws, is dismantling the remaining functioning parts of our government not gutted or blown up by Reagan, the Bushes, Clinton, or Obama.

He seems determined to take this country to war — and determined to use nuclear weapons.

Trump is a stupid, vulgar, ignorant, illiterate, narcissistic, sack of trash — like the people who support him in the comment section.

Reading the accolades to this psychopath by some of the AVA’s least intelligent readers has changed my view about universal suffrage. I am now against it. No one who cannot pass a national literacy test that measures not merely the capacity to decode, but the capacity for inferential and critical comprehension, should be allowed to vote.

However this may be academic. I’m not sure if the country or the world will survive the Trump presidency.

Louis Bedrock

Roselle, New Jersey

U.S. PEOPLE'S NUCLEAR POSTURE: DETERRENCE ONLY TO AVOID NUCLEAR ATTACK

Dear Editor,

As Donald Trump prepares to announce a nuclear weapons posture based on aggressive first-strike threat, I'm inviting all my fellow hostages to Trump's insane provocation of nuclear attack to join me now in making a "U.S. People's Nuclear Posture" based on Deterrence Only to Avoid Nuclear Attack.

I believe the greatest threat to our nation's survival is the increasing danger of "accidental" nuclear war erupting from the many "flash points" of confrontation. Trump's threats to destroy North Korea have the nuclear forces of Russia, China, and North Korea on edge. For our own safety, the U.S. must de-escalate all threats and military confrontations with these nuclear powers.

Inspired by the two Koreas agreeing to open the Winter Olympics under one flag for a unified Korea, and by the 122 nations signing the Treaty to Ban Nuclear Weapons, let's announce a U.S. People's Nuclear Posture of Deterrence Only to Avoid Nuclear Attack.

John Lewallen

Philo

www.avoidingnuclearwar.com

BLOOM BLAST & MORE AT BOTANICAL GARDENS

http://mailchi.mp/gardenbythesea/t6k8zemj13-639337?e=85053924b3

DELTA TUNNELS HEARINGS FOR JAN. 18 - FEB. 1 ARE CANCELLED!

by Dan Bacher

The California Water Fix hearing team at the State Water Resources Control Board in Sacramento today announced that the Delta Tunnels project hearing days scheduled for January 18 through February 1, 2018 are cancelled.

They cancelled the hearings to give the hearing officers time to review all four motions filed by counties, cities, fishing groups and environmental organizations yesterday asking for a 90 day stay in the hearings due to alleged illegal “exparte communications” and meetings between the Department of Water Resources and State Water Board staff.

“Unless the hearing officers notify the parties of any additional changes to the hearing schedule, the parties should assume that Part 2 of the hearing will resume on February 2, 2018 with policy statements only. Unless rescheduled the evidentiary portion of Part 2 will resume on February 5, 2018,” the team said.

The Save the California Delta Alliance yesterday filed a request for continuance of the California Water Fix proceedings at the State Water Board. The alliance, represented by lawyer Michael Brodsky, alleges ex-parte communications between DWR and State Water Board staff, and requests that steps be taken to correct the problem, such as “disqualification of hearing team members and replacement with administrative law judge; removal of flow criteria from evidentiary hearing and including it with the Bay Delta Water Quality Control Plan update, or dismissal of the petition.”

This emails documenting the ex-parte communications were released through a California Public Records Act (CPRA) request by Patrick Porgans and Associates.

Brodsky was encouraged by today’s decision by the California Water Fix hearing team.

“It’s a recognition that this is a very serious situation and that the ultimate outcome of the hearings could be irrevocably tainted if they don’t take some action on the ethical violations that have taken place,” said Brodsky. “They gave the Department of Water Resources until Friday to respond. It might have been better to REQUIRE DWR to respond.”

“I’d like to thank Patrick Porgans, who brought this whole situation to our attention with his CPRA request,” emphasized Brodsky.

Read the request for continuance here: req for continue tofile (002)

San Joaquin County, Sacramento County, City of Stockton, City of Antioch, and Local Agencies of the North Delta also jointly prepared and filed one motion yesterday asking the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) to stay the hearing on the controversial project at least 90 days.

Osha Meserve, one of the attorneys for the protestants, explained, ”We’re asking the water board to look at the scope of the exparte communications and the implications of those communications for the water rights hearing. We don’t think part 2 of the hearing should proceed until this critical investigation has been completed, since the entire hearing may have been compromised.”

Tom Keeling, attorney at the Freeman Firm, noted in a recent press release that, “The unlawful ex parte communications in this case are substantive and concern issues at the heart of the ongoing evidentiary proceeding. These ex parte communications violate constitutional due process requirements, California law, rules of the Board itself, and other ethical guidelines that apply in such proceedings.”

In addition, numerous other counties, water agencies and environmental groups, including the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA), have filed joinders — and additional joinders to the motions are expected to be filed.

“This is an egregious violation of due process,” said Bill Jennings, Executive Director of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA). “The hearing staff and hearing officers are absolutely prohibited from any private communications with any involved parties, since this a quasi-judicial proceeding.”

“There needs to be a full investigation including discovery and depositions of hearing staff and officers. While the emails reveal significant bias, they represent only the tip of the iceberg,” said Jennings.

The most critical approval needed for Governor Brown’s twin tunnel legacy project is that of the State Water Resources Control Board. The approval process was initiated by DWR and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in August 2015, when they filed a Petition for Change in water diversions.

The motions were filed at a time when the California Department of Water Resources is going through a major shake-up as opposition to the project builds throughout the state.

On January 11, the agency announced the appointment of Karla Nemeth as DWR Director at the same time that her husband works as a senior strategist for the Metropolitan Water District, a key promoter of the WaterFix. More information: fishsniffer.com/…

Then on the afternoon of January 16, Associated Press reporter Ellen Knickmeyer released a story with updates to the breaking news from last Friday about the Brown Administration’s plan to scale back the Delta Tunnels project.

Her report confirms what many environmental groups suspected when the San Jose Mercury New’s story was published last Friday—“that the state would build one tunnel now, and eventually build the second tunnel at a much later date,” according to Restore the Delta.

“The revised state proposal talks of building the tunnels in stages, with one of the four-story-high tunnels built now, and another at some indefinite date,” said Knickmeyer. “Water contractors have previously talked of the possibility of permanently paring the project from two tunnels to one, in hopes of winning support for a smaller project.”

POISONING THE SPOTTED OWL

"Exposure to rodenticides in Northern Spotted and Barred Owls on remote forest lands in northwestern California: evidence of food web contamination"

MORNINGS WITH CRAIG

Unity with the Holy Spirit in Aloha Land — Awoke early this morning, and following the usual 20 minute bathroom ritual, walked over to Safeway for a scone 'n coffee, followed by a trip to the post office to check for mail at the po box. And then, bussed to Saints Peter & Paul for the morning rosary. This was followed by mass and the reception of Holy Communion. Thanked the presiding priest for a "fabulous" mass, and exited the church, to meander to the Ala Moana shopping center, going to Vim & Vigor for an avocado burrito and a lemon flavored Yerba Mate, which was consumed in the food court area near the Hawaiian guitar players. Continuing to be mindful of all thoughts, I took a bus ride to the Honolulu Public Library main branch. Now comfortably sitting in front of a public computer, my only wish is to forever have the mind centered in its spiritual source...moment to moment to moment.  If there is any doubt about the need to unite the mind with its source, I encourage reading the new book "Fantasyland" by Kurt Andersen (which I speed read last night at Barnes and Noble). I've been warning everyone for years about postmodernism! The sunsets and good beer will daily be served up at Waikiki Beach, but don't forget to identify with your true nature.

Craig Louis Stehr

Email: craiglouisstehr@gmail.com