Liz Writes Life 3-27-18

March 27, 2018

Liz Writes Life

Published in Siskiyou Daily News, Yreka, CA

Protest

More than 50 people walked the sidewalks on Main Street near the Miner’s Inn Convention Center, in Yreka, on Monday, March 19^th to protest the KRRC, Klamath River Renewal Corp., meeting. I don’t know why non-profit KRRC held the meeting except to espouse its rhetoric, one again, on why four hydro-electric Klamath dams should be destroyed. From what I can see, KRRC is currently in no government regulatory process where a meeting needs to be held for public comment. So, I assume it was propaganda. I talked with a few people that attended the KRRC meeting and was told about 25 people attended.

The protesters carried a variety of signs. One of my favorites is “Klamath Dam Scam,” which sums up the entire fiasco. Our Dist. 1 Congressman Doug LaMalfa supported the protestors and I heard that he wanted to be there, except he was in D.C., so his staff rep. Erin Ryan attended. Erin said she had a good time at the peaceful protest!

POW

Scott Valley Protect Our Water is holding its meeting this Thursday, March 29^th at the Fort Jones Community Center. Time is 7 p.m. Please bring a dessert to share as we eat before, during and after. After a two-month absence, Erin Ryan will be in attendance to give us updates on D.C. issues and Congressman LaMalfa.

Ethan Garrett is running for the position of Siskiyou Co. Assessor/Recorder and will explain what he plans to bring to the office if elected. The current assessor, Mike Mallory, is retiring and not running for the office.

Then, Jim Smith will be on the agenda. Jim is our Siskiyou Co. Ag. Commissioner. He grew up in the Tulelake area, with his family, farming potatoes, grain and hay within the boundaries of the Bureau of Reclamation Klamath Project. The Klamath Project was started way back around 1910, when our country was in dire need of food production expansion. So, when reading Jim’s bio on the county website, I learned that his grandfather actually earned a homestead following his service in World War I. I knew there was an influx and expansion of the project with World War II veterans earning homesteads in the late 1940s, but have never met anyone with World War I history. What a great heritage.

I chatted with Jim about the current water allocation situation in the Tulelake Irrigation District and also learned the ag. commissioner is a complex job; at least is seemed so to me.

One thing I asked Jim was about Siskiyou’s annual crop and livestock report. I speculated the gross income from agricultural products in the county had likely dropped. Jim said it hasn’t and made a brief comment about how the type of products grown change quite often. He referred to the fact that few potatoes are now grown in Butte Valley, but the strawberry plant industry in that high-elevation area has grown and thrived. In fact, the strawberry plants are such high-quality they are literally purchased by companies all over the world. Yep, strawberry plants from little ol’ Siskiyou County!

Easter

Get out those baskets and put running shoes on your kids. It is time for Easter Egg Hunts this weekend. The Etna Lions Club contacted me about its annual event, which will be this Sunday, April 1, 2018 at the Etna City Park. Parents and grandparents: You really need to be early, because these hunts start on time and are over in a flash. So, if you want your kids to have a chance at finding eggs, get there before the start time of 1 p.m.

There will be lots and lots of eggs, some traditional hardboiled and many plastic eggs with candy or money inside. Then there will be the special prize eggs. Oh, and this egg hunt will be divided into four different age groups, so little ones can have a good chance at finding eggs.

Sorry, I don’t have info on all the Easter Egg Hunts throughout the county. So check on your local bulletin boards, newspapers, facebook or however you find your news for events. And, once again, show up early so your kids don’t miss out!

Groundwater

Last week, Dr. Thomas Harter, hydrologist from U.C. Davis, gave a presentation to the Siskiyou Co. Flood Control and Conservation District during the county supervisors’ board meeting, where he explained the extensive groundwater work that is underway to meet the state’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act called SGMA. Our county was allowed to take the lead, by the state, on developing the sustainable groundwater regulations for our groundwater basins in Siskiyou. Local control is always a good thing.

Dr. Harter began advising the Scott River Watershed Council and then the Scott River Groundwater Advisory Committee starting back in 2007 providing guidance in developing water models and water budgets. This decade of information has proven to be extremely helpful for developing the SGMA groundwater management plan.

I spoke with Tom Menne, who has served on the Scott River Groundwater Advisory Committee since its inception and has been working with Dr. Harter. He appreciates Dr. Harter and told me, “Dr. Harter lets the science speak for itself. I can’t think of anybody better to be involved with this process than Dr. Harter.”

Ray Haupt, chairman of the Siskiyou Co. Flood Control District, told me that Dr. Harter is pleased with the work that has been accomplished in Siskiyou and Scott Valley basin saying it is well-organized and well-staffed. As a result, Siskiyou is way ahead of other counties in the state in developing its plan. That is impressive.

The Flood Control District took the next step in this process and appointed members to the Scott Valley Groundwater Basin Advisory Committee, which will become a legal-type of agency under SGMA. (I think that is how it works.) Menne was named to the committee as were Jason Finley, Tom Jopson, Michael Stapleton and Brandon Fawaz.

Liz Bowen is a native of Siskiyou Co. and lives near Callahan. Call her at 530-467-3515.

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Liz Writes Life 3-20-18

March 20, 2018

Liz Writes Life

All of this rain and snow is great! This is how March weather is supposed to act. We’ve been told that snow in the mountains this late in the winter season doesn’t pack well and melts quickly. That may be true, but it certainly is a help to our ground water and is much better than the extra warm temps -- without rain and snow -- that we experienced in January and February.

Iditarod

There was quite the upset, last week, when Norwegian musher Joar Leifseth Ulsom, 31, crossed the finish line in Nome, Alaska to win the 2018 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. He arrived with his eight-dog team in the early hours of March 14^th having unknowingly passed Nicolas Petit, 38, when Petit had gone off-course during a heavy snow storm.  

At 9 days, 13 hours and 1 minute, Leifseth Ulsom’s time was not as fast as some recent Iditarod wins, but it did the job.

Petit was in the lead over last year’s winner, Mitch Seavey, 58, during the last leg of the trip on March 12^th, but missed a trail marker and headed the wrong direction. When he realized he was off-course and turned around, he had lost 90 minutes. That was enough for Leifseth Ulsom to take the lead, who had over-taken Seavey.

The photo of the champion showed Leifseth Ulsom and his lead dog, Olive, graced with garlands of yellow roses. He will win a new pickup truck and a check for at least $50,000. I don’t know how the winnings are calculated, but the finishing teams split $500,000. Leifseth Ulsom said he was really pleased about winning the pickup, because his 1999 pickup broke down right before the race. He was also thrilled, because the win was a dream come true.

Bundy

Ryan Bundy announced he will run for governor of Nevada using his campaign to educate citizens about state’s rights. While waiting for his trial, Ryan was held in federal detention, without bond, for nearly two years. So, he studied law and successfully defended himself, which resulted in Ryan and his family being released from prison last fall. Ryan represented himself in the trial where he was able to prove federal prosecutors had filed trumped-up charges and withheld information. The federal judge declared a mistrial.

Ryan officially filed as a candidate for governor last Wednesday as an independent candidate. He will need to obtain at least 250 registered voter signatures before the June deadline to be on the ballot.

Last week, Ryan was quoted: “The state of Nevada needs someone who will stand up for statehood and recognize that Nevada is a sovereign state, not just a province of the U.S.

Remember that the Bunkerville standoff in April 2014, by his ranching Bundy family, was not about grazing or endangered species as the mainstream media falsely repeats over and over. The protest was about the federal claim of ownership of land within the Nevada state boundaries. The Bundy family believes Nevada is the rightful owner of its land.

Besides citing the U.S. Constitution’s 10^th Amendment regarding state’s rights, which is quite plain, Ryan also stands on Nevada’s statutes from 1979. This was Nevada’s response to the federal enactment of FLPMA – the Federal Land Policy and Management Act. A series of statutes declared ownership of and control and jurisdiction over all “public lands” within Nevada. Ryan believes it is time for Nevada to stand up to the feds and reclaim and manage its lands. 

Klamath dams

So, once again, the Klamath River Renewal Corporation is espousing its reasoning for destroying four hydro-electric dams in the Klamath River.  The non-profit KRRC held a public meeting, last night, and continued its false narratives. Never mind that Siskiyou County and other groups have proven the science and reasoning to be wrong. In my opinion, this meeting just repeated KRRC’s propaganda.

Remember, KRRC is not a government entity. It is a non-profit corporation. It can say the dams are coming out, but there are still major government hurdles that must occur. Yes, it is scary to constantly hear the drums beating – the dams are coming out. But, just because KRRC says it, doesn’t mean it is true.

A major hurdle is that FERC, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, must approve the transfer of the hydro-electric license from PacifiCorp to KRRC. Siskiyou County has filed as an intervener and is fighting this move, which is one where a lawsuit is likely to happen.

As of yet, I don’t believe KRRC had actually paid money to own the dams and if or when it does, the tremendous cost and liability of taking out the dams should play a huge part in FERC’s decision. KRRC should have to prove those hundreds of millions of dollars are in their grimy hands to pay for the destruction.

Also, NEPA, the National Environmental Policy Act, process has never been completed by federal agencies. FERC must also finalize NEPA on dam removal, before KRRC can take out the dams. An estimated 20 million cubic yards of sediment behind the dams will make a huge environmental mess and must be addressed.

LaMalfa

Recently, our Dist. 1 Congressman Doug LaMalfa grilled U.S. Dept. of Interior Ryan Zinke, when Zinke appeared at a National Resource House Committee meeting, where LaMalfa serves. I watched the video showing LaMalfa specifically asking Zinke to withdraw the previous DOI Secretary’s signature showing approval of Klamath dam removal. Guess what? Zinke replied that the DOI does not have a role in the Klamath dam situation. What a lie.

LaMalfa really backed Siskiyou County and accused Zinke’s “bagman, Allan Mikkelsen,” of pushing dam removal during several public meetings. I was at one of those meetings, several months ago, and was shocked at the insulting indifference from Mikkelsen when I, and 70 others, spoke against dam removal. Mikkelsen has stated the dams are coming out! But major hurdles have yet to be accomplished. So, I will repeat again loud and clear: Klamath dam removal is not a done deal. Don’t believe the rhetoric!

Liz Bowen is a native of Siskiyou County and lives near Callahan. Call her at 530-467-3515.

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Liz Writes Life 3-13-18

March 13, 2018

Liz Writes Life

I was wondering what was happening last year at this time, so I checked my articles from March 2017 and found that my daffodils were blooming. Yep, mine are blooming this year as well.

The big “but” is that our snow levels in the mountains are dreadfully lacking. The 2017 snowfall in the mountains around Scott Valley were at 145 and 125 percent of 50-year averages. That was super great after the five previous years of drought.

Now, we have had another really poor snow and rain year, even though the first part of March has given us moisture -- just not enough. The March 1, 2018 Snowpack Survey by USFS Klamath National Forest employees found the snowpack for the same areas surrounding Scott Valley is at 26 percent of average. Hopefully, March will keep giving us snow to increase that snowpack.

Back to the garden, garlic is up about five-inches as are the tulips. Jack decided to roto-til the garden last week, which was just in time to get the weeds that were really starting to grow. The rhubarb is just barely showing and Jack promised not to disturb them with the roto-tiller. Whew! He reminds me quite often that he doesn’t like rhubarb!

The iris and daylilies are up about five-inches, but until this last week’s rain everything was looking very dry – not thriving very well.

Oh, I forgot to mention that the hyacinths that I “forced” by putting them in a bowl with rocks and water in the house did bloom. They were pink, purple and white. I love their fragrance. It was fun to have them bloom in February.

If you haven’t planted peas, now is a good time.

Genealogy

During the first few days of March, I was on-line checking-out the Roots Tech Conference that was held in the Salt Palace in Salt Lake Utah. Literally, thousands of people attended from around the world. In less than 10 years, Roots Tech has become the largest family history conference in the world. This year, it started on Wed., Feb. 28th and ran through Sat. March 3, 2018 with several hundred workshops and presentations.

Steve Rockwood is the FamilySearch International CEO and he shared a powerful keynote speech highlighting human emotion as the primary element that engages people to do family history. In other words, it is the historical stories that tug at our heart-strings and helps us appreciate our ancestors.

Other keynote speakers included Olympic Gold Medalist ice skater, Scott Hamilton; Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr., who hosts the television show “Finding Your Roots”; and Brandon Stanton, who owns a “Humans of New York” blog with millions of followers. He has captured photographs and stories of over 10,000 people.

These speakers encouraged us to get family history stories written, audio or video recorded and then uploaded to genealogy websites like Ancestry.com, Family Search, My Heritage, Find My Past and others. Technology and innovation is moving at break-neck speed and this conference showcased these products.

Indeed, and somewhat ironically, Roots Tech’s philosophy claims that the future of family history lies in technology and innovation. Companies, both large and small, presented their newest ideas and projects on stage, in contests and in the huge commercial conference center.

So why am I talking about something that has already happened? Well, there are more than 40 workshops that you can watch for free. Yep, I am hoping to get you motivated, as well as myself, to do family history. Whether it is finding your ancestors and putting them in a family tree or getting those family stories documented. Remember, it is a really good idea to document your current family’s stories and the newest technology makes it so simple. People are using their smart phones to audio or video record family stories. Now that is easy!

Videos of the keynote motivational speakers are also available to watch from the RootsTech.org website. Hamilton’s is really fun. He was adopted at six-weeks of age and laughs at the trials that life has given him, including cancer.

One of the live-streamed workshops I watched was about Google Photos. Did you know that we can use your smart phone to take photos of our photos (this is great for the old black and whites) and immediately upload them to the invisible cloud (yep, I don’t know where this is) where they are stored, then they can be sent to family history sites, facebook social-type posts or emailed, where they can be enjoyed by others who are looking for these ancestors. A lot of connections and sharing of family tree info is being done on social media.

This kind of technology is creating avenues for networking that is quick and easy. No more old-fashioned letter writing, sending by snail mail and waiting months for responses.

There are also millions of census, birth, death, marriage, church, social security, and much more that have been digitized and are now available on-line. It is truly amazing what technology has already accomplished, but innovators are not slowing down.

Some of the video presentations available teach you about DNA testing and how to use your results to help you find more relatives. Another helps you decide which DNA test you should take. World War II research is a topic and another presentation talked about the ‘hidden treasures” in the Library of Congress, which is on-line. Some workshops are for beginners and others for the more advanced.

If you want to dabble, just to see what you can find, check out the free website FamilySearch.org. It is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and has millions of digitized records and resources; and claims to have the largest collection of family trees in the world.

Next week, I’ll report on the winner of the Alaska Iditarod Sled Dog Race! As of Monday morning, Nic Petit left Shaktoolik 2 hours and 34 minutes ahead of Mitch Seavey, who won the race last year. The winner will cross the finish line sometime on Wednesday.

Scott Valley Protect Our Water will hold its next meeting on Thursday, March 29, 2018 at the Fort Jones Community Center. Time is 7 p.m.

Liz Bowen is a native of Siskiyou County and lives near Callahan. Call her at 530-467-3515.

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Liz Writes Life 3-6-18

March 6, 2018

Liz Writes Life

Homelessness

Several weeks ago, I attended the Siskiyou Co. Republican Women Federated February meeting held in Yreka. Lisa Nixon spoke on the recent push to truly understand and affectively deal with homelessness in Siskiyou County. Lisa is the Siskiyou Co. Supervisor for Dist. 4, which covers the Yreka area. But, basically, she serves independently as a volunteer on a county-wide coalition.

Ed Pecis is a detective with the Siskiyou Co. Sheriff’s Dept. and has been working, for years, on the homeless problem in the Mt. Shasta area – not only through law enforcement, but also as a volunteer with faith-based groups. He shared with Lisa that a locally-based concerned residents group was expanding. Its name is Team Shasta and would include representatives from the cities of Mt. Shasta, Weed, Yreka, Siskiyou Co. Dept. of Health and Human Services including Behavioral Health, Community Resource Centers, the county board of supervisors, Siskiyou Co. Sheriff Dept. and Sheriff Chaplains, Yreka Police Dept., Beacon of Hope and a variety of concerned citizens and bus owners.

There is a philosophy along with a goal: How do we give a “hand up” and not a “hand out?” A positive outcome is needed, so Team Shasta agreed that in order to provide needed services and life-changing attitudes, they must learn and address the core reasons for homelessness. Lisa was excited about this prospect and joined the Team.

When I later talked with Lisa, she sent me a 27-page report from Robert G. Marbut Jr., Ph.D, who was hired by Team Shasta to survey and research homelessness in Siskiyou County. He has spent three decades analyzing and working on this complex issue throughout the nation, including a stint as a White House staffer to President George H. W. Bush.

As most people know, homelessness is a national, state and local problem. In July 2017, he delivered this report. It is eye-opening and provided comprehensive information for a realistic county-wide discussion. Yes, mental health, substance abuse, domestic violence, medical issues and more contribute to the problem.

Lisa said that opinions and emotions run strong on the homeless issue. She, nor I, discount these beliefs and compassion -- after all we are a faith-based society.

So, here is what the Team learned from Dr. Marbut’s six-month study on homelessness in Siskiyou. Not only did he talk to involved non-profit and faith-based groups, government service agencies, businesses, cities, law enforcement, hospitals, ambulance operators and RV parks (more than 50 of these individuals), he visited the camps and even disguised himself going undercover to talk with the homeless.

Dr. Marbut reported there are four basic groups of homeless in the county.

First are the I-5 travelers. They stay close to the freeway and are always moving, but are underfunded and panhandle.

Second are the spiritual and Eco travelers, who tend to have some money, are generally good stewards, but a subgroup does beg and panhandle.

The third group is the vagrants and criminals that stay in an area a few days to all summer in encampments, where there is garbage, disregard for health and safety laws; and displace residents and tourists disrupting businesses. There have been several murders, a drowning; and out-of-control fires from this group in Siskiyou Co.

Fourth are the year-round truly homeless, who meet the federal HUD housing definition. In July 2017, Dr. Marbut identified about 85 of these people in our county.

All four groups do take advantage of street feeding, soup kitchens, voucher systems and primarily faith-based compassion and generosity.

There are government systems and services in place, but each group needs a different solution. Believe it or not, in general, providing hand-outs often continues to enable the same behavior. The Team’s goal is to transition the truly homeless to a better situation. Of course, housing, shelter and available beds for the variety of treatments and services needed are limited in Siskiyou Co. But the Team believes it now has accurate information to base their next steps.

One paragraph in Dr. Marbut’s report was particular enlightening to me. The heading is “Individuals Experiencing Street-Level Homelessness:” and is explained this way.

“Even though the number of individuals experiencing “street-level” homelessness is relatively low in Siskiyou County, there are still 12-20 individuals in Mt. Shasta, 15-32 individuals in Yreka and 23-30 in the balance of Siskiyou, for a total of 50-82 individuals within the County.  The number of individuals fluctuates throughout the month with fewer individuals living on the street earlier in month and more individuals on the street later in the month.  This phenomenon occurs because many individuals receive Federal support funds at the beginning of the month and are able to afford short-term lodging for 2-3 weeks.  Once the funding runs out, individuals move back to the street.  The harsh winter weather is the most powerful deterrence to year-round street-level homelessness within Siskiyou County.”

That makes sense to me, but still the Team’s focus is to transition people out of homelessness. Management, updating data and continued tracking of the homeless is a must and recently the Team received funding for the software to aid this aspect.

Also, there continues to be an expansion of calls for emergency medical service and law enforcement for the homeless, which adds a burden to local communities.

Dr. Marbut said we must move from a culture of enabling to engagement. Yet, it must be done with kindness and compassion. Hum, not always an easy feat.

He provided a no-nonsense guide for “Moving from Enablement to Engagement.” It includes the following: Move to a culture of transformation instead of the old culture of warehousing. Be sure to integrate as many available services as possible. Customize the management and tracking system. Reward positive behavior. Have consequences for negative behavior. Have zero tolerance of encampments. Stop external activities like street feeding or redirect for the truly poor in the community. Remember that panhandling encourages the same behavior. Dr. Marbut explained that unearned cash is very enabling and does not engage homeless individuals in job and skills training that is needed to end their homelessness.

Lisa is extremely pleased with the extensive information Dr. Marbut’s report has provided. It certainly is timely and was an eye-opener to me. This sounds practical and realistic. It feels good to be pro-active on a difficult societal issue.

Liz Bowen is a native of Siskiyou County and lives near Callahan. Call her at 530-467-3515.

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