Wednesday, July 10, 2019

Celebrating Freedom in Rural Utah July 10, 2019



Epic Blanding 4th of July Celebration

Blanding Fireworks 2019  Some of the best in the West! 

Thanks Raini Chee


Short Version of Stan Bronson's Concert, July 4


Combat Veterans are Grand Marshals for 4th of July


>>News In the West <<

~~ 1984 Voting Boundary Decisions Compared to Gerrymandering of 2017

"in the November 1984 general election, voters approved the boundaries of the new voting districts. These voter-approved boundaries remained the same for nearly 30 years.

In the general election, 64 percent of voters approved the new voting districts, with 2,055 approving and 1,161 opposing.

~~July 2 Commission Meeting in Oljato

~~ Commissioner Maryboy Comments on July 2 Commission Meeting

~~ Moab Considers New Nightly Rental Policy



Opinions in Recent San Juan Record
















~~ Government's $22 Trillion Debt, and Annual Gov. Shutdown, Makes Case for State Control of National Parks and Monuments

"The federal government, on the other hand, has no skin in the game when it comes to shutting down monuments and national parks thousands of miles from Capitol Hill. For the feds, it's all a political game in Washington, DC. What happens in the communities bordering federal lands — many of them rural — is but a mere afterthought to people like Nancy Pelosi. But at the local level, access to local tourist attractions could mean a restaurant's ability to pay its staff with income from tourists."

~~ Stop Relying on Tourism to Save Rural Communities

"No less than five new hotels are currently being built (in Moab). Tourists are pouring in like the end is near and Moab is the only safe place. The sewer system can barely keep up. And yet, Moab and the State of Utah continue to advertise the area throwing more than $2.3 million dollars into promoting the area each year.
Regardless of the fact that the land is suffering, that the roads cannot hold the amount of traffic, that the sewer system is being overwhelmed, growing tourism in Moab continues to be a top priority. In 2017 more than 46% of Moab’s job force labored in the tourism industry compared with the 11% of Utah’s total workforce."

~~ Administration Reining in EPA Union

~~ Families of Blanding Veterans Post Information on this Site

~~ America Has A Moral Obligation to Develop and Export Clean Nat'l Gas

~~ Utah's Cattle Herds are "Udderly" Astonishing: Cow Appreciation Day

~~Three Pillars of Good Navajo Communication

~~ Big Government is Not the Answer to Climate Change

~~ Does Supreme Court Decision Have Local Implications

"I recently reviewed the 1984 issues of the San Juan Record to better understand the issue. I walked away from the process with an increased appreciation for what happened in 1984. I also had a growing concern about what happened in San Juan County in 2017.

In 1984, the process to create the voting districts, at several key points along the way, was a public process. This is in marked contrast to the process to create the current voting districts." San Juan Record editor, Bill Boyle















~~ Roads in Ruin in Parts of Utah


"A transfer of ownership of some roads in San Juan County, Utah, from the county to the Navajo Nation has resulted in disappearing road signs, general confusion, and spreading potholes.
Around October 2018, Manuel Morgan, a former San Juan County commissioner, noticed that the county roads signs in his community between Ismay and Aneth were missing.
“One morning they were gone – everywhere,” he said. “No county road signs to help people find us. No one told us the county roads signs would be taken down.”  Four Corners Free Press

~~ Developers Redirect Water Resources Away From Agriculture in Colo.

~~Taxing Tourists is Popular, Taxing High Density Housing is Divisive

~~ Uranium Mining Ban and Russian Cash: Arizona Lawmakers at Odds

"trade tensions between the U.S. and a number of countries have heightened the need to assure adequate domestic supplies of minerals and metals.
Uranium, a crucial part of the nation’s energy supply as a fuel for power plants, is one of those minerals. Yet the country’s uranium production is near historic lows because of an international oversupply."
 Ten Years Since Infamous Blanding Raids of 2009  

~~ Emotions Run Hot After Artifact Raid in Blanding

~~ Artifact Raid Raises Questions Years Later

~~ BLM Used Excessive Force

~~ Artifact Sting in the Desert Goes Awry

~~ The Shameful, Archaeological Raids in the Four Corners

            (Be sure to read Jay Redd's Reply)

~~ Widow Sues Over Husband's Death

~~Artifacts, Suicides, and Struggle over Federal Lands

~~10th Circuit Court Clears Federal Agents In Doctor's Death 

________________

I think you'll find this as upsetting.

So, I'm hiking through Wire Pass which is a beautiful slot canyon that leads to an opening that's so breathtaking and sacred. It's a huge natural amphitheater that the Native Americans held so sacred. It's a huge natural amphitheater that the Native Americans held so sacred. You can actually feel it. I just get to the amphitheater and sit for lunch and notice who's here, I see a nice couple with two dogs soaking in the beauty. Then, I see a woman and daughter (I'm only guessing mother and daughter). I see the daughter open the metal box which contains a brief history of this historic place how sacred it was to the Native Americans and about it being unlawful to deface this area. I then stopped paying attention but then something drew my eyes over to where the girl was. I look and think she's carving into the wall but I see her mother watching her so I think naw, but curiosity got to me so I took out my camera and zoomed in. I yelled 'hey' to her and she walked away. I told her mother about it, I said your daughter just destroyed Native American Sacred history. I said look, she never said a word to me and walked towards her daughter. I was thinking she was getting her to bring her over when they both took off! Then, I go back to where I was sitting and I see a man letting his kids use this sacred place as a jungle gym destroying artwork. If you look at the picture with the name she carved you'll see it's right in the middle of petroglyphs This was all within 15 minutes of being there. No stopping this. It's going to be all destroyed soon. If you want to see this, best do it soon. I'm happy I can share these wonders with those who can't get here.
Update, she was caught. Here is the link
https://www.facebook.com/120889757943366/posts/2519780228054295/?substory_index=0

Monday, July 1, 2019

Celebrate and Protect Freedom *****July 1, 2019

Happy 4th of July 2019



                                    "Best Small Town Celebration in Utah"  Video


Life in the West

~~Climate Change Forecast For The Four Corners 

~~ Property Owners and Nightly Rentals Facing Scrutiny

~~ Opinion: Bluff City Should Rethink Objection to Solar Farm

~~ What's Best?  Ban Plastic Bags or Other Alternatives?

~~ Supreme Court Determines to Stay out of State Political Boundary Issues

~~Letting Fires Burn  VS.  Value of New Growth  Is it Really Worth it?

~~ Agenda for July 2, Commission Meeting--Note new location

SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMISSION MEETINGMONUMENT VALLEY WELCOME CENTER - MONUMENT VALLEY, UTAHAGENDAJuly 2, 2019

9:00 A.M. Work Meeting 1. San Juan County Marketing & Promotion Initiatives Briefing - Natalie Randall 2. Budget Briefing / 2019 Tax Rates Discussion - John David Nielson, John Fellmeth, David Everitt 3. Status of Maintenance for Roads on the Navajo Nation - Ben Musselman, David Everitt 4. County Administrator Appointment Process - David Everitt 5. Public Lands Issues Report - Nick Sandberg 10:00 A.M. Commission Meeting 1. Approval of Minutes - June 10 & 18, 2019 2. Citizens' comments* (Please complete the request form - available at the door) 3. Designate the County's representative at the upcoming NACo conference 4. Ratify BLM Letter confirming participation as a Consulting Party in the Canyon Rims TMA - Nick Sandberg 5. Authorize Chair to sign comment letter regarding the draft Colorado River Management Plan and the draft Green & Colorado Rivers Mineral Leasing Plan - Nick Sandberg 6. Authorize the Chair to sign a Cooperative Agreement with Utah State Division of Parks & Recreation to install vault toilets at Hook & Ladder Trailhead - Ben Musselman 7. Ratify 2019 property tax rates - John David Nielson 8. Approve new hires - Walter Bird 9. Mental Health Board Appointment 10. Ratify approval of Reimbursement Agreement with SITLA for planning work in Spanish Valley - David Everitt 11. Commission Reports


~~Uranium Mining in the Four Corners Could See a Revival this Year

~~ Video of June 18 Commission Meeting

~~ Rep. Bishop and Team Introduce RNR Bipartisan Act: Recreation Not Red Tape (RNR) Act

~~ Rural Communities Seek Help through Utah Coal Miners Strike Team



~~ Reintroduction of Wolves into Colorado has Negative Impact on Elk Herds

    ~~ Related video The Devastation to Other Wildlife

~~FEMA and the Dysfunction of Federal Bureaucracy 


"Another bureaucratic fiasco simply reinforces why the nine most terrifying words in the English language are still: “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.”
The number of declared national emergencies—and how much we spend on them—is rising, yet one of the agencies tasked with handling national emergencies has been particularly opaque about its effectiveness."


~~ Recent Supreme Court Decision Looks at Gerrymandering



~~ Nat'l Parks and Monuments Crumbling After Years of Neglect


"Nearly $12 billion is needed to repair infrastructure, mostly crumbling roads, at 419 park units managed by the National Park Service (NPS). The maintenance backlog grew $313 million in 2018 alone, federal figures state."  So why would Dine Bikeyah want to resize Bears Ears back to original designation if the NPS can't even maintain what they already have?    Free Range Report

      "The maintenance backlog goes beyond just NPS-managed lands. In total, the Interior Department faces $18 billion in deferred maintenance when lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other agencies are factored in."
    Editorial Comment:  "Back in 2016 and 2017 when were were actively fighting the 1.9 Obama Declared National Monument, this issue was one of the concerns we had, and it hasn't gotten any better.  In fact, it's gotten worse, because now our country has a 22 Trillion debt!  How can we suppose the Federal Gov. can take care of our Public lands, or Nat'l parks and Monuments when they are indebted to other countries?  Collateral for debt appears to be the confiscation of more public land.  Local and State control is in most cases better; they at least pay their bills."   Janet Wilcox

Monday, June 17, 2019

GRAMA, Governor, Growth, and Global Environmentalists: Bear Essentials 6/17/2019

News in the West

  Two New Republican Candidates for Utah Gov. in 2020

~~Greg Hughes Running for Gov.

~~ Jeff Burningham Tosses his Hat in the Ring

 ~~N. San Juan County Support and Concerns about Love Truck Stop




~~A Democratic Society or Constitutional Republic? 



~~ GRAMA REQUEST APPROVED: DOCUMENTS FROM DEMOCRATIC COMMISSIONERS' ATTORNEY MUST BE PUBLIC


~~ Bears Ears Advisory Council Meets for the First Time

~~Dan Love's Mentor, Wm. Woody Ousted from Dept. of Interior 

"Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Office of Law Enforcement Services (OLES) director William Woody seems to have followed a path similar to that of his corrupt protege, Dan Love. Woody has been under investigation for numerous apparent abuses of power and mishandling of government funds since the time he retook the position in 2017. According to our source, on Thursday, June 13, Director Woody’s gun and badge were stripped from him and he was escorted out of the Department of the Interior headquarters in Washington D.C."  Free Range Report

~~Lake Powell on the Rise

~~ Growth in Utah Triggers Need for Tax Restructuring 

~~ Consumers, Cobalt, Controversies and Compromise by Bill Keshlear

~~ Free Event: Agriculture/Legislative Convocation: Red Acre Center

Location: Monticello College: 1849 North Creek Road, Monticello
Date: Saturday June 22, 2019
Time: 7:00pm Red Acre Center (RAC) advocates for local food economies and for small farmers in Utah. RAC has an impressive track record getting bills passed and building bridges that support food freedom. Online: redacrecenter.org and monticellocollege.org Phone: 435 590 1661



~~ Global Environmentalists Targeting Beef Industry for Destruction

"The American beef industry has long been a tasty target of the environmentalists and their allies in the animal rights movement. To understand the reason is to know that protecting the environment is not the goal, rather the excuse in a determined drive for global power. Their selected tactic is to control the land, water, energy, and population of the Earth. To achieve these ends requires, among other things, the destruction of private property rights and elimination of every individual’s ability to make personal lifestyle choices, including personal diet." 

~~ Only 3% of Nation's Energy produced via Sun and Wind, Despite $50 Billion in Subsidies  

(How can a Nation $22 Trillion in Debt justify such frivolous spending?)

~~ SL Tribune: Gerhert Opinion Claims Rural Utah Spawns Violence

~~More Decisive Forest Management Needed: Catastrophes Forecast

"The USFS says since 1994, bark beetles have wiped out over four million acres in the southern Rockies. The trees turn red, then brown, then become fuel for catastrophic fires."

~~Oak Foundation, Subsidizes Environmental Agendas

~~~~~~~~~~


Like the Music Man said, "You've got to know the territory." 

Saturday, June 8, 2019

Tariffs, Tourism, Texas Tour, SLC Tribune in the News; 6/8/2019 Bear Essentials


Warm Weather Finally Arrives in San Juan




~~Utah Attorney General Reviewing SJ County Open Meeting Complaints

~~ Trump Returned Nat'l Monument Public Lands to Former Status 

~~ How Decent People Can Save America from the Culture of Contempt

~~ Peter Stirba an Advocate for Rural Conservatives in Utah

       ~~So Should we Care?? Remembering the Past:

                    ~~Outdoor Gear Companies Tried to Sabotage Utah 2017

                    ~~ Patagonia Leads Boycott in Utah Feb. 2017

    ~~ Deja' vu How Many Feel about Outdoor Gear Companies













~~Industrialized Tourism and its Impact on Moab  -- Canyon Zephyr June 2019

~~ Transfer of Power in San Juan Commission Makes for Rough Ride  Bill Keshlear

~~ Solar Panels also Produce Toxic Waste

~~Socialism: A Substitute for Community Self Governance?

Graphic by Devin Bayles Hancock@2017

The Deceitful Land "Protection" Network (2017 Revisited)


--Wyss Foundation and other Big Funders Seeking to Control Public Lands  by Bill Keshlear 2019

"William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, whose endowment is in the neighborhood of $10 billion, is apparently not a direct contributor to UDB. However, since 2006 the nonprofit has directed $5.225 million to Grand Canyon Trust, which has greatly assisted the Bears Ears project with organizational sophistication and communication expertise."

Other Businesses Working against Multiple Land Use :

ArtPlace America, Colorado Plateau Foundation, Conservation Lands Foundation

Patagonia, Inc. , Conservation Alliance, Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation

                       First Nations Development Institute, Community Foundation of Utah


Lush Cosmetics, Chaco Sandals, Wigwam, Marc Toso Photography

Thursday, May 30, 2019

Advisory Council, Electoral College, Tell Your Story ~~ June 1, 2019


Reservoirs Fill After Winter Snows


Remember all the years the City Council in Blanding was dogged in their resolve to drill deep wells, build reservoirs, put in pipes for better water distribution, fund additional engineering projects to protect this this valuable resource!?  
Well, it was a priority, and after the drought of last year, we understand even more why local governments are key in making decisions that benefit all its citizens.
~~~~

# Bears Ears Nat'l Monument Advisory Meeting June 5-6

Plan to attend

#Utah's Public Radio Story Telling Project.  Here's how to be involved:


           Follow the link and fill out survey.  UPR will be in San Juan County June 19-21
They hope to involve many local people in short interview sessions

#This Week's SJ Record: News in a Nutshell Bill Boyle

#Last Week's News: Editor Bill Boyle, SJ Record



#Videos Show LaVoy Finicum Death was Planned Assassination 

"Evidence proves that LaVoy was murdered in cold blood. Had authorities responded to Greg Bretzing and Dan Love in 2009, this chain of events may have been much different. Instead we stand and watch as our friends and neighbors are raided, falsely accused and prosecuted, and subjected to the lies and derision of hateful colluding special interest groups. Can LaVoy’s death be anything but wrongful? Instead of covering the truth, the media has done nothing but denigrate the honest people, while protecting the snakes who are orchestrating these actions."  Rep. Phil Lyman

#Montezuma County: A Sanctuary County For the Right to Bear Arms?

#Bears Ears Referendum: Should Decision be made by Voters?

 #SJ County Wrestles with Litigation, Referendum Requests Four Corners Free Press:


~~ Blanding City Reaps the Benefits of Dry Wash Reservoir Pipeline

~~ 101 Things to Do in San Juan County

" The one economic sector that meets the American appetite for raw materials, gadgets, high-tech equipment, cars, jetliners and "renewable" energy technologies that we take for granted -- all of which are made from minerals and metals -- mining!.

~~Senator Romney Introduces Legislation to Settle Water Rights for Navajos


~~Mill Protesters Chose Not to Research Facts

"If anyone wants to see the data for sampling that happens at and around the mill [Energy Fuels] go to the link below. Everything that is sampled is public information and can be found on this site including the mill license and requirements to operate. The samples that are analyzed in these reports are all done offsite at independent labs. The sample results show the tailings ponds are not leaking. Also, white mesa gets their drinking water from the Navajo aquifer and there is an impermeable layer of clay between the Dakota aquifer and the Navajo aquifer. 
So even if there were a leak it cannot get into the Navajo aquifer that is used for drinking. 
There are over 100 wells that get sampled, air monitoring stations, soil sampling, vegetation sampling, seeps and springs sampling, stack sampling, radon sampling, and surface water sampling done all around the mill. These samples all show the mill is not contaminating anything in the area. The results are all provided in the link. There is a lot more information I could post on here but it would take all day. Hope that helps.    G. Palmer  

https://deq.utah.gov/.../ener.../white-mesa-uranium-mill.htm


~~ Gov. Docs reveal who donated To SJC Democratic Campaign

 . . ."interesting financial information can be found by reviewing the financial disclosures statements of the San Juan County Democratic Party and both the Maryboy and Grayeyes' Campaigns. All 3 show sharp increases in money beginning in July 2018 and running through the election. We learn two things from this. First, very few San Juan County residents contributed to their campaigns. Two, San Juan County can be bought for about $60,000 - the cost of the two Commissioner races." 

"When you look into the disclosure statements of the non-profit groups that donated to the San Juan County Democratic Party and the Maryboy Campaign you'll also find very interesting results. The chair of one of those non-profits is the former Political Director for the Utah Democratic Party and the current CEO/Chair of the Rural Utah Project. The Rural Utah Project is the one that registered all those new voters last year in San Juan County." 

~~ Will Trump Administration Revive Domestic Uranium Market?


#Up to Date News from the BLM



~~Nat'l Parks More Affected by Climate Change than other Areas

                     (Hmmm, Did they factor in Industrial Strength Tourism?)

~~Toxic Flowers Suspected in Cattle Deaths

~~ SJ County Commission Declines Referendum Application May 21 

~~ Mix of Anglos and White Mesa residents March to Uranium Mill in Protest

~~ Vandalism on Shinob Kibe in Washington, Utah

~~ and the irony ....Tourism Boosts the Economy. . .but is the price worth it?


Saturday, May 18, 2019

Unrest in the West, Bear Essentials May 18, 2019

News in San Juan County, Utah and the Rest of the West

~~~~~~~

~~State Rep. Coleman Seeks to Bring Back Bill for Splitting Counties 

~~Spanish Valley: Potential Development  with Problems  Moab Sun Times

~~Comm. Maryboy Promotes Moratorium on Spanish Valley Development

~~ Gate Way Community Planned for East Side of Zions Park

~~Deaths in Zions Park and Other Sites in the West










~~ Bears Advisory Board Meeting June 5-6, First public meeting

~~Utah State Code Regarding County Government

~~SITLA's Involvement with Spanish Valley Development

~~Truck Stop Will Comply With Dark Skies Request in Spanish Valley 


4th grader in Syracuse Learns about San Juan County









~~Protest March May 18: Uranium Mill  Moab Sun Times

~~ Thieves Steal Artifacts from Danger Cave

~~ What's Behind the Anti-Animal Agriculture Movement

"The anti-animal agriculture narrative and plant-based diet agenda combines political ideology and commercial interests. This “movement” is insidious, unsavoury, and cannot be ignored by those who value liberty and consumer choice."  Free Range Report

~~Crowding in Nat'l Parks Brings Plan for Timed Entry for Visits to Arches

~~Another Version of Pehrson/ Everitt County Admin. story  Moab Sun Times

~~ Babylon Allotment: Co-management or Co-Negligence?

"Our purpose in publishing Part I of this revealing history of the Babylon Allotment is to bring scrutiny to what appears to be a pattern of mismanagement by a coalition of the Grand Canyon Trust (GCT), a well-moneyed left-wing environmentalist group funded primarily by Swiss billionaire, Hansjorg Wyss, and the Ute Mountain Tribal Council (UMTC). It appears that the nearby Gooseberry Allotment, along with grazing allotments within the boundaries of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM), are also held by GTC.
Our research into the Babylon Allotment management file has been intensive, and we believe these records will serve to either prove or disprove the veracity of the “co-management” narrative that has repeatedly been used to justify Utah’s million-acre federal land grabs. What we have uncovered in the Babylon Allotment file paints an unflattering picture of a dysfunctional relationship between two entities who give lip service to the idea of co-managing these important lands and resources, but are doing more to harm the environment than good. Furthermore, these entities went to the trouble of formulating a contract with the federal government to co-management Forest Service grazing allotments, but there is strong evidence that they have failed repeatedly to fulfill the terms of the contract."  Free Range Report