Yay --
rain! It is fabulous, butwould
appreciate it if the temperature was just a little bit cooler so more snow
could be packing into the mountains. I did read where the Sierra mountain range
should get hammered with up to 10 feet of snow from this latest storm. That is
truly good news for the rest of the state. Sorry, if it sounded like I was
complaining!
The
indoor tulip bulbs have grown – two inches this week. Seemed like they really
took-off on Friday and Saturday. Guess their root systems finally started doing
the job. I didn’t get the manure on the rhubarb. Darn. Maybe this coming week.
Oh, procrastination!
POW
Scott
Valley Protect Our Water took a few months off from holding meetings. The next
meeting will be held on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2019 at the Fort Jones Community
Center at 7 p.m. So, there is no POW meeting this month.
2nd
Amendment
I heard
the fundraiser for the 2nd Amendment lawsuit was a great success on
Jan. 12th, so I called Mark Baird to get the skinny on it. He said
that every seat in the Miner’s Inn Convention Center was filled. Dave and Kathy
Tyler’s dinner with prime rib received raves and the generosity during the
auction was incredible.
The
auction included a beautiful Betsy Ross-type of quilt, a “Don’t Tread on Me”
flag, painting of George Washington praying, a Henry lever-action 45-70 rifle
with engraved stock, along with a dozen other guns, sculptures and many other
items. Bills are still coming in, so Mark doesn’t have a tally on the net
proceeds yet.
But, he
said there is enough to get the New York lawyer writing the complaint that he
believes will restore the 2nd Amendment to California by using the 9th
Circuit Court of Appeals decision regarding Young v Hawaii. That ruling states
“open carry” is the core right guaranteed the people under the Second Amendment
and that right extends outside the home to public spaces.
I
wondered when we lost the open carry right and Mark said it was back in 1967,
when the Mulford Act repealed a law allowing public carrying of loaded
firearms. It was signed by Gov. Ronald Reagan. But, it must be said that the
state government was reacting to the Black Panther Party, who was conducting
armed patrols of Oakland neighborhoods in opposition to police. This was later
termed “copwatching” and brought unease to residents. I remember those days.
Just
goes to show how a law that seems like a good idea at the time ends-up
affecting everyone and isn’t so good.
Then in
2012, the California State Legislature voted to take a tougher stand against
the carrying of any firearms in public, even those that are not loaded. And
under California Penal Code 26350 PC, it is a now a crime. This does not affect
the California Concealed Weapon Permit, which is a permit – not a right. I
haven’t talked with any local farmers, ranchers or hunters, but I believe this
law has made it difficult to carry a gun in your vehicle and adds to confusion. Mark’s
goal is to restore the 2nd Amendment right to open carry and will
file the complaint in the federal Eastern District California Court. To those
who are skeptical, Mark cites the Chambers v U.S. decision that stated all 9th
Circuit opinions are binding on all judges in the circuit.
To learn
more from Mark, attend the Yreka Tea Party Patriots meeting tonight at the
Convent Chapel Church at 200 Greenhorn Rd. in Yreka at 6:30 p.m. Ray Haupt,
Siskiyou Co. Dist. 5 Supervisor, will also speak on the status of growing hemp
in the county. There is a short-term moratorium, while the supervisors and
Siskiyou Co. Ag. Commissioner, Jim Smith, hammer-out the details.
Richard
Marshall, president of the Siskiyou Water Users Assoc., will speak to the
newest situation from the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, which
announced continued support of removal of four hydro-electric dams from the
Klamath River in its draft Environmental Impact Report on Dec. 27, 2018.
Remember
that the Water Quality Control Board does not have the authority to take out
the dams. Yes, it can claim it the best environmental alternative, but that
doesn’t mean the dams are coming out. In my estimation, this is just more
propaganda.
Last
month, Supervisor Haupt reminded us that Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
has not yet accepted Klamath River Renewal Corp’s definite plan to obtain the Klamath
dams’ hydro-electric license; and then remove the dams. So, the Water Quality
Control Board’s draft Environmental Impact Report is putting the cart before
the horse. I am sure the county will be responding to Water Board’s report.
Frustration
Our
Dist. 1 Congressman, Doug LaMalfa, sent out a statement this weekend regarding
$12.1 billion in disaster funding that was targeted to help residents
devastated by wildfires and hurricanes last year. Democrats amended the bill
the night before the vote to include a continuing resolution to fund the
government until Feb. 8, 2019, but did not include any funds for improved
border security.
LaMalfa
said: “This critical disaster
funding bill has been in the works for weeks, and now Democrats have pulled a
bait and switch and completely derailed it at the last minute. The Senate has
made it clear they won’t consider a funding bill that lacks border security and
the President has said he wouldn’t sign it. This was not a good faith attempt
to re-open the government, nor was it a serious attempt at providing
much-needed disaster funding to those who desperately need it. The people of
Northern California that were affected by the Carr Fire and Camp Fire can’t
afford these political games – a standalone disaster funding bill would’ve
passed both chambers easily. Unfortunately, Speaker Pelosi is more concerned
with obstructing the President than helping people recover from wildfires and
securing our border.”
Yep,
this stalemate is pretty frustrating and the lack of Democrat leaders willing
to work on real-life compromises is just wrong. I know political parties do not
like each other, but this is not putting our county and its people – first! 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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