Oct. 30, 2018
Liz Writes Life
It was great to visit with our Dist. 1 Congressman, Doug
LaMalfa, this past weekend. Saturday night, he attended the Siskiyou Co.
Cattlemen’s dinner, at the Yreka Community Center, after knocking on doors in
Yreka most of the day. I caught up with Doug on Sunday morning, before he and
Republican supporters went door-to-door in Etna and Fort Jones. He also went
door-to-door in Weed and Butte Valley.
“I am energized by knocking on doors and talking with people,”
Doug told me. He has some funny stories to tell from his experiences. Many
times residents don’t believe that a congressman is really on their doorstep
and will voice their disbelief. And he doesn’t mind discussing the issues with
those who say they are voting for his opponent. In fact, he wants to set people
straight about his voting record and issues that are important to him.
I remember when Doug first ran for public office. It was back
in December of 2001, when this rice farmer decided to run for CA. State
Assembly. He showed up in Fort Jones to participate in the annual Christmas
Parade and stopped at the early-morning Pancake Breakfast sponsored by the Fort
Jones Volunteer Fire Dept. I liked Doug then and still do. He is down-to-earth
and has been a huge supporter of Siskiyou County.
During the years Doug has served in state and federal office,
he and his staff have helped Siskiyou landowners and veterans through many difficult
situations with government agencies.
Scott Valley Protect Our Water organized in May of 2010 to
stand against the CA. Dept. of Fish and Game’s newest permit idea (with a fee) regarding
legally-allotted water. As a CA. Senator, Doug and his staff worked to
intervene and explain laws and regulations to out-of-control bureaucrats. He
has never waivered and his support provided needed buffers for frustrated
landowners.
Congressman LaMalfa continues to work to save the Klamath
dams. He said that FERC, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, has not
approved the phony-baloney of the non-profit Klamath River Renewal Corp., which
is the entity trying to take the dams out. Doug added that the recent order by
President Trump will be helpful as it is requiring timely processing and
updates of biological opinions for animals listed with the Endangered Species
Act.
Doug said that the biological opinion used on the Klamath dams
is outdated and was not based on sound data, “but is being enforced as de-facto
law.” So, Klamath dam removal is not a done deal.
Every chance he gets, the congressman talks about the North
State. During the Carr Fire in Redding last summer, he met with Sec. of
Interior, Ryan Zinke, Sec. of Ag., Sonny Perdue, and Sec. of Homeland Security,
Kirstjen Nielsen and told them we have got to manage the forests and thin the
trees. The wildfires are out-of-control and everyone could see the fires were tremendously
destructive.
He was able to visit Donald J. Trump when he was campaigning
in Redding in June 2016. Doug told him three things about Northern California:
We need to keep water behind the dams for storage; harvest trees rather than
burn them up; and take better care of our veterans.
Doug is from a small unincorporated town of Richvale in the
heart of the Sacramento Valley. He likes small towns and understands what it is
like to be forgotten. “I know what it feels like to not be important,” he said
and is proud to be a voice for rural people.
I sure hope that Doug LaMalfa is re-elected to congress. He
works hard for us!
POW
Ed Kiernan, Siskiyou Co. Counsel, spoke at the Scott Valley
Protect Our Water meeting last week. He was hired to serve as the lead attorney
for the county board of supervisors seven months ago. He admitted he was
originally from Queens, New York, but did most of his growing up in Indiana. (We
didn’t boo!) He drove out to California in 1997, with his dog, and worked in
private practice, before being hired by Nevada and Marin Counties.
He explained that the county supervisors’ board makes policy.
It is his department’s roll to carry out the board’s directions. His office
deals with litigation. “We try to keep the county out of trouble,” he said,
explaining that he works with county department heads to solve problems. There
is a lot of bureaucracy and regulations. “We try to make the county government
as effective as possible,” Ed added.
The county has been and is legally arguing to save the
Klamath dams. He reiterated that although it is an uphill battle, dam removal
is not a done deal. The county is legally intervening and filing briefs and
coordinating with Modoc and Klamath Counties to stop dam removal.
Ed was asked a variety of questions regarding timber, wildfires
and the cannabis ordinance to name a few. He was informative and helpful in
explaining how he works for the county supervisors.
Veterans Parade
The 18th Veterans’ Parade in Etna looks to be a
good one and the weather should be great as well. Dave Harrison was chosen as
grand marshal. He served in the Army in the early 1960s and was stationed in
Florida when the Cuban missile crisis threatened nuclear war. He was a first
mate on an Army patrol boat stationed at Fort Estice in Virginia and was
mobilized to go to Key West Florida, when the Soviet Union decided to build a
missile base in Cuba. Dave would have been part of an invasion force to Cuba,
if the Soviet ships had not turned around at Pres. John F. Kennedy’s
insistence. It was a pretty tense time.
Veterans and active soldiers are invited to participate in
the parade. Michael Stapleton and the Etna Lions Club will be pulling trailers
that you can hop on. Meet at the Etna High School before 10 a.m. The Rotary
Club of Scott Valley will be handing out entry numbers and lining-up the
parade. Siskiyou Sheriff Jon Lopey will be there with the county’s humvee.
The parade starts at 11 a.m. Hot dogs and chili will be
available downtown by the Museum, which will be open by the Native Daughters of
the Golden West. It should be a fun and patriotic morning in Etna. Come out and
show your support of our military and veterans!
Liz Bowen began writing ranch and
farm news, published in newspapers, in 1976. She is a native of Siskiyou County
and lives near Callahan. Call her at 530-467-3515. Check out her blog at:
LizWritesLife.blogspot.com.
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