January Chill Brings Changes, Chagrin, and Citizen Action

News in the West

~~ Bluff Balloon Festival | Jan. 17 - 19 starting at 7:00 AM

Learn more about this Gov. Candidate by attending this meeting

~~ Ut. Gubernatorial Candidates Debate

~~ Diné turning Hogans into Cash on Airbnb

      (Be sure to read the comments after the article.  Many Dine' have concerns about this; similar to the concerns about tourists tramping all over "sacred" lands in Bears Ears landscapes.)

~~ Is Renewable Energy Viable or Dammed?  High Country News

Utah's Unpopular Tax Bill Facing Possibility of Referendum vote: 
Have you signed?   14 counties have secured with enough signatures, but the combined effort must reach  116,000 signatures statewide.  To Sign: contact Logan Monson in Blanding, Kim Henderson in Monticello, Kelly and Cricket Green in La Sal, and Cassie Patterson in Moab.

~~ Mojave County Fights BLM Jeep Trail Closures   "The BLM Works for Us!"

~~ America a Nation of Builders; Pres. Trump Hopes to Speed up the Process

~~ Here's to a "Meatless" Golden Globe Awards Event by Matt Goble of Dry Bottom Farms in Utah

~~ BLM's Move West Based on Common Sense

~~ Businesses in Cedar City Help Referendum Push  -- Go and do likewise!

~~ Protesters in Virginia Stop Gun Confiscation Legislation

~~ Video Explains the Seriousness of Virginia's Infractions Against Constitutional Rights of Citizens

~~ Vegan or Beef?  What are the Facts? 

~~ Salt Lake Trib. via Zac Podmore Attacks Sutherland Institute The lack of balance in Podmore's reporting results in lopsided news, i.e. fake news. No listing included in the article of " Non-profits" and foundations who dump tens of thousands into support FOR Bears Ears enlarged. One such donor is the Wyss Foundation: 

Canyon Zephyr editor, Jim Stiles noted: "I've been perusing Guidestar this afternoon, looking at non-profits like the "Conservation Lands Foundation," whose chair is Mr Wyss...CLF gave $130,000 to Utah Dine' Bikeyah in 2018. And another $100,000 to Friends of Cedar Mesa. Mr.Podmore surely knows this because until recently his wife was assistant director of FCM. Cold scrutiny of groups like Sutherland is fair and necessary. But The Tribune KNOWS what resides on the other side of the coin, and so surely does Podmore. And they say nothing. Yet Podmore wasn't always like this. In an email to me three years ago, Podmore wrote, ""You make the best case against alliances between conservationists and the recreation industry that I've heard in a while. I agree with you. Silence about the destructive nature of industrial tourism is poisoning greater conservation movement, and like you've written time and again, it often threatens wild places more than extractive industry." I agree. "Silence is poisoning the greater environmental movement."

~~ Bad Forest management, Cause of California Fires

~~ Native Tribes Impacted Negatively Because of Kayenta Coal Mine Closure

~~  The Temper Tantrum that Never Ends: Environmentalists Using Tribes 

~~ Natural Resources Chair, Grijalva Opposes BLM Move to Colorado -- "because it's Racist" 

~~ The Irony of Wind Turbine Blades;  They take forever to Disintegrate

~~ Pork IndustryTakes Issue with Impossible Sausage Labeling

~~ Who Cares About Protecting US Citizens! Trump's Border Wall Compromises Fish!    More Non-human Rights Protection: High Country News

~~ Borden Dairy Co, Files for Bankruptcy.  "Borden Dairy Co., which was founded in 1857, announced that it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the District of Delaware. This comes not long after Dean Foods announced it was filing for bankruptcy in November.. . ."

DOI Faces Future Without Zinke -- Bear Essentials

Opinions 12-19-18

Vote for Utah Citizen of the Year
~~
Rob Bishop and Sean Reyes are on Sec. Interior Short List
~~

America is at a Rubicon Moment in History by By Michael Shannon

(Allusion:  "crossing the rubicon": Julius Caesar's crossing the Rubicon river was an event in 49 BC that precipitated the Roman Civil War, which ultimately led to Caesar becoming dictator for life and the rise of the imperial era of Rome. ... Today, the phrase "crossing the Rubicon" is an idiom that means to pass a point of no return.)
~~

ZviDance will present the world premiere of Bears Ears in NYC

~~ Rollbacks proposed on Excessive EPA Water Regulation

~~ EcoWatch Screams, while Miners with Leases Go to Work 150,000 Acres of Public Lands Available Near Utah National Parks

~~ Benefits of EPA Reduction of Water Restrictions 
  "This means that hardworking Americans will spend less time and money determining whether they need a federal permit and more time growing crops, building homes, modernizing infrastructure, creating jobs and improving the lives of their fellow citizens."

~~ Sean Reyes and Rob Bishop on "short List' for Zinke Replacement

~~ Coal Production Up

     Varying News Reports on Zinke's Resignation

~~Washington Post:   "Interior Department Secretary Ryan Zinke submitted his resignation to the White House on Saturday, facing intense pressure to step down because of multiple probes tied to his real estate dealings in his home state of Montana and his conduct in office."

~~ Zinke to leave at End of Year: CNN  "Some possible contenders for his position include Deputy Interior Secretary David Bernhardt and Nevada Republican Sen. Dean Heller, who lost his re-election race, sources with knowledge of the situation said.

Zinke said in a statement on Saturday that he was proud of his work as interior secretary and called the allegations against him "false."

~~ New York Times Editorial Attacks Zinke "The New York Times ripped outgoing Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Saturday as a cheerleader for President Donald Trump’s “boneheaded” policy of “energy dominance.” The editorial noted that Zinke is leaving his job under the shadow of an” impressive number” — 15 — “ethics investigations.”

~~Pelosi Promises Tougher Gun Laws

~~ Why Wyss plans to buy $1 Billion in land to Save the Planet

       Response from Ben Burr: "You’ll notice that all of the land he plans to buy is in developing countries. This is just the latest instance of imperious Europeans colonizing the planet at the expense of indigenous peoples. History will be just as kind to Mr. Wyss as it has been to Columbus, Cortez, and Custer." 
Hansjörg Wyss was born in Switzerland, founded the medical device company Synthes and          now lives in Wyoming.

~~Wyss and Companies:  Bad to the Bone  2012 investigation 
"The company repeatedly ignored evidence of potential lethal consequences. Interviews with more than 20 former employees and surgeons involved in the Norian project, hundreds of pages of court transcripts, and company documents submitted in the case reveal that Synthes not only disregarded multiple warnings that it was flouting the rules, but also brushed off scientists’ cautions that the cement could cause fatal blood clots."

~~ Back Pack Grand Gulch with Conservation Lands Foundation $2600 in April 2019

"A portion of the trip costs goes to support the Conservation Lands Foundation's efforts to defend America's National Conservation Lands, including Bears Ears National Monument, while building and empowering the Friends Grassroots Network to protect them for the future. "

~~BEAR ESSENTIALS: FEB. 24, 2018~~

*March 14 Wallace Stegner Center Symposium:

Public Lands in a Changing West

*Bill Boyle Reporting live: Feb. 21

Top stories: Voting, Shooting, Lawsuit dropped

*Stay in Contact with your 3^rd District Rep:  John Curtis https://curtis.house.gov/contact/email

n  Restore Habitat, Prevent Fires via Chaining Juniper and Pinion

n  Utah House Resolution Passes Exempting Utah from Antiquities Act

n  Time to Move the BLM West  

n  Big Shakeup for DOI Taking Place   High Country News

n  Zinke Working on Decentralizing Agencies/ Public Lands  Az Daily Sun

n  Frivolous Law Suit Settled Regarding Voting Rights in SJC

n  SL Trib Settlement of Voting Rights Law Suit

n  Utah AG’s Office Hints at Public Lands Lawsuit

n  Colorado Legislator Tackles Easement Abuse Legislation

n  Pennsylvania County Thrives with Natural Gas Development

n  Utah and Wyoming Challenges California & Washington Coal Policies

  

n  Ute Mountain Tribe Accused of Laundering Money via Casino

n  Sierra Club Continues to Promote “Monumental” Hysteria

n  Russian ties to Green Groups Under Scrutiny

n  Colorado Congressman Focus of Billboard Reminder on Hyw 160

n  Despite Checkered History of Corruption, Wm. Woody Back at BLM

n  La Plata Commissioner facing Ethics Charges tied to Green Funding

n  Enviro Group Nit Picking Rep. Noel’s Property

“Noel said he told county commissioners his preference was that the monument be cut to 200,000 acres — with half in each county — but didn't propose specific shapes.”

n  SL Tribune & Rolly attack Mike Noel

“The Kanab lawmaker said an American Indian group opposed to shrinking Bears Ears National Monument is funded by the Grand Canyon Trust and the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance.”

n  Wilderness/ Green Groups Lobby for Bears Ears Via Cat Walk

n  Illegal Border Crossings Cause Environmental Destruction

n  Greens Try to Block Life Saving road in Remote Aleutians/Alaska

Other Articles/ Events of Local Interest

v How Will “Animal Migration Corridors” Affect Utah Sportsmen?
 v How Do Western States Gun Laws Stack up? High Country News

v Dinosaur Fossils Found in San Juan Count

Michigan Landowners Fighting for Rights for 4 years. Victory Close

v Washington Ranches Lock Horns with Fed. Gov. over Public Lands

v Pay attention to Voting Districts:  Things have changed in SJC

v Help Support Free Range Report – Truth in the West

v Best Memes of 2017 from Free Range Report

                                                                 ~~~~~~                                                                   

http://beyondthebears.blogspot.com/          

                     Documenting Bears Ears “No Monument” efforts since July 2016                                                                    

~~ Bear Essentials ~ Oct. 8, 2017~~

Quote of the week: “It is often said we now live in two Americas. Nowhere is that description truer then when it comes to land owned by the federal government. In the United States east of the Rockies, the federal government owns just 4 percent of all land. But west of the Rockies, the federal government owns more than half of all land including almost two thirds of all land in Utah. When an unelected and unaccountable bureaucracy owns and manages more than half the land in your state, that is a recipe for disaster.”               Senator Mike Lee

v DOI moving in the right direction on National Monuments:

“Creating too large national monuments — results in agencies lacking the necessary resources to adequately manage sites. The federal government currently has a backlog of $18.62 billion in maintenance projects. A better approach is to right-size monuments and allow for limited economic activity in areas where there won’t be damage.” 

v National Monuments Discussed by Heritage Foundation Washington DC (10-4)  Includes: Senator Mike Lee, Congressman Rob Bishop, Matt Anderson, Ryan Benally, New England fisherman, and Maine sportsman. The Antiquities Act was also discussed.  This was very informative.  Listen and Learn..

v Endangered Species Act:   

 “In the nearly fifty years since it was signed into law, the ESA has done more to impede economic activity, obstruct local conservation efforts, and give federal bureaucrats regulatory control over private property, than it has done to protect endangered species."    Senator Mike Lee

v Antiquities Act is Robbing Rural Communities of Their Land

v KUER Looks a Bears Ears Stories   Local interviews with Judy Fahys

v Brief History of Recapture Canyon  A video series compiled by Monte Wells

v Consider Donating to Free Range Report (Majorie is a non-NGO funded, patriot who deserves our support and thanks.  No one has helped San Juan County more.)

                         

Good News Bears

n  Secretary Zinke given High Marks for Return to Conservation Ethics

~Mr. Zinke has ordered all his agencies to put a priority on active management against wildfires. “We are spending $2 billion a year fighting fires, money that could be going to far better conservation efforts,” he says, visibly annoyed. ~Such mismanagement is what drives Western frustration, which threatens to become a new Sagebrush Rebellion. “Some of the anger is that our grand bargains have been broken, and those bargains said that you had wilderness, but you also have grazing; you could also hunt and fish,” Mr. Zinke says. Now Westerners “watch these catastrophic fires, and they’ve lost any faith that the federal government is capable of being a good steward.”

n  Trump Oks Emergency Funding for Wildfires and Urges Forest Service Reforms

n  DOI Blasts BLM Dan Love as Example of what is not Appropriate 

“We will hold people accountable when we are informed that they have failed in their duties and obligations,” Bernhardt

n  Yes, Presidents can Revoke National Monuments

“There is a reason we allow presidents to undo the actions of their predecessors. A president who could unilaterally set policy forever would have far too much power and be free of political checks and balances.  President Barack Obama designated most of his record-setting monuments during the twilight of his second term, long after the threat of electoral defeat had passed. Free of political checks, he ran wild with this power.”

n  Navajo Nation Should Not Sue Over Bears Ears  by Ryan Benally

n  “No Use” Public Lands Should Change to “Many Uses”

“Federal lands included in Bears Ears and other national monuments need management by local people on the ground , not by judges in black robes. A starting point would be to require approval by state congressional delegations of any national monument designated in their state. Let state wildlife managers have more say in whether grizzlies are removed from the endangered species list. Entrust Indian tribes with management of their antiquities as they already are with Canyon de Chelly National Monument.  Most of Bears Ears is under the purview of the Bureau of Land Management. It is time to return to the BLM motto: “Land of many uses”—not land of no uses.” 

n  Standing in Another Man’s Shoes   by Jim Stiles, Canyon Zephyr editor

n  BLM Reverses Obama Era Mineral Leasing ban in the West [This is huge!]

n  Should Trump Dump Pernicious EPA Regulations Affecting Farmers?

n  Sage Grouse need Ranchers for Survival

n  Forest Service Reform on Tap/ Helping Prevent Forest Fires

n  Western Caucus Calls for Bipartisan Forestry Management Reform

n  Book about the Bundy Family Written by Utah Author, Lyman Hafen

n  New Bill would Engage Local Stake-holders in Coal Mine Reclamation

 

Bad News Bears         

n  Antiquities Act Weakens Rural Communities by Locking up Land

n  National Review accuses Zinke of Failing to Free up Fed. Lands

n  Access Fund: Alarmist Voice Concerns about Bears Ears

n  Burdensome regulations counteractive to Conservation

n  Environmentalists Sue to Give Colorado River Human Rights

n  Zinke is for shrinking monuments, except in Montana?  Go figure?

n  Greens take on the Working Class

n  Westwise Claims Zinke’s Report is Riddled with Lies

~~~~~

http://beyondthebears.blogspot.com/

                                     Documenting Bears Ears “No Monument” efforts since July 2016