Campaigns and Candidates Active ~~ January 23/2020

No Rest in the West

Kelly Pehrson Serving as Interim State Agriculture/Food Commission  

Former State Ag Commissioner Running For Dist. 1 Congressman

Kelly Pehrson wrote: "One of the ways we can help [protect Rural America] is to make sure good people get put in Congress. Kerry Gibson is running in District 1 in Utah, Rob Bishop's seat. I know that is not San Juan County’s district but he can help more than you know. Some of you may remember him, he spoke at the Bears Ears rally we had at the courthouse just after Pres. Obama declared it in 2016. He loves rural Utah. He loves San Juan County. He will fight for us. He has been my boss the last 9 months as the Commissioner of Agriculture and Food. He has been a legislator, Weber County Commissioner, 3rd generation dairy farmer, and a strong advocate for rural issues. He could use some donations to help him win the election. His website is GibsonforCongress.com. " 

~~

Governor and State Legislature Announce Full Repeal of 2019 Tax Bill -- Thurs Jan. 23,  2020

Thank you to all who talked the talk, and then walked the walk!!  

State Representative Explains Problems with Utah's Recently Passed Tax Law

San Juan county pays the highest taxes, yet has the highest percent of uninsured people in the state, at 17%.  The highest county per capita personal income in the State was Summit County (Park City) with a high of $131,606, Grand county per capita income was $50,010, second highest! yet substantially behind Summit county! San Juan's average income in 2018 was at the very bottom of all counties, at $26,638. Our county residents can't afford to pay more taxes. (Information on 2020 Economic Report to the Governor. p. 43.)

Shannon Brooks and Rep. Phil Lyman add their signatures to the growing list of

Utah Citizens upset with taxation ad infinitum enacted with little regard for 

rural Utah and lower income citizenry. 

  Utah County Law Firm Takes on SJ County Clerk's Case

"The case was referred to Grand County for investigation. Then-Grand County Attorney Andrew Fitzgerald ultimately declined to prosecute. Fitzgerald said that no criminal statute or election code directly applied to the incident. The attorney believed the issue to be more with a lack of professional knowledge than ill-intent on the part of the clerk.the case was referred to Grand County for investigation. Then-Grand County Attorney Andrew Fitzgerald ultimately declined to prosecute. Fitzgerald said that no criminal statute or election code directly applied to the incident. The attorney believed the issue to be more with a lack of professional knowledge than ill-intent on the part of the clerk."

~~ Snow Pack in SE Utah at 190% of Normal

~~ First Nations Chief Blasts 'Condescending' UN Anti-racism Directive Calling for Pipeline Closure

~~ Exploring Nuclear Energy Makes Sense for South Utah Cities

~~ Rich States vs Poor States  Utah Ranks 5th

~~ Texas, World's 3rd Largest Producer of Oil

"The United States is pumping more oil than ever before, making it less reliant on the turbulent Middle East for imports."

~~ A Bit of Satire Concerning the Aftermath of David's Choice of Weapons

~~ Crime Down 91% in Yuma Because of Border Fence

~~ Training in Blanding Sat. Jan. 25 on Off Road Protection and Education

    Banding in Blanding! 

      120 W. Center Slavens Castle House -- 9 AM.    30 min-1 hr.

~~ Sand Flats Area Near Moab Considered for Oil and Gas Lease.

~~ Organizer of State Tax Referendum Drive Optimistic that it will Make the Ballot

"The legislation, opposed by Democrats in the Legislature and enough Republicans that it fell short of the two-thirds majorities needed in the House and Senate to prevent a referendum, raises state sales taxes on food from the current 1.75% to the full 4.85% state rate, and adds sales taxes to wholesale gas prices as well as some services." Des. News Jan. 21.

~~ Top Six Oil Producing States

"In 2019 Investopedia states: "1. The United States is the top oil-producing country in the world, with an average of 17.87 million b/d, which accounts for 18% of the world's production. This is up from the 15.6 million b/d in 2017. The U.S. has held the top spot for the past six years.

The U.S. overtook Russia in 2012 for the No. 2 spot and surpassed former leader Saudi Arabia in 2013 to become the world's top oil producer. Much of the increased U.S. production is attributable to fracking in the shale formations in Texas and North Dakota. The U.S. has been a net exporter of oil (i.e., exports exceed imports) since early 2011. " It didn't break it down into how much is produced per state.

~~White Mesa Mill Lays off 30% of Their Workers 

Rep. John Curtis stated, "“This mill has provided families with good incomes and generated tax dollars to help the local infrastructure… Rural Utahns deserve the same quality of life that their urban friends have, including access to broadband, quality medical care, and good paying jobs. I will continue to work in Congress to bring these vital services to rural Utah. While it has been a difficult week for many in San Juan County, I know the community will be resilient and persevere.”

~~ Media Manipulation of Washington State Representative Matt Shea

~~ How Off-Road Trails Get Designated --- or Not!

~~  Moab Groups Campaign to Oust BLM Director Pendley

"Pendley’s tenure at the department has been controversial in the west, where he has long been known for campaigning against the federal control of public lands as an attorney and the president of the board of directors for the Mountain States Legal Foundation, a “non-profit, public interest law firm, focused on defending the constitution, protecting property rights, and advancing economic liberty,” according to its website."

~~UN's Plan for "Climate Refugees!  

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.. . ."

January Gatherings: Snow Storms and Referendum Signatures

Happenings Across the West

 ~~ Contact Logan Monson to sign Tax Referendum (158 S 200 E Blanding) Bring ID

       For More Information

~~ Commission Meeting January 7 in Monticello

11:00 A.M. Commission Meeting

1. Approval of Minutes December 17, 2019
2. Citizens comments to the commission* (Please complete the request form - available at the door)
3. Ordinance Adopting the 2020 Annual Commission Meeting Schedule
4. Hazardous Materials Emergency Preparedness Grant Tammy Gallegos, San Juan County Emergency Manager
5. Contract Amendment to Aging Waiver Budget Tammy Gallegos, San Juan County Aging Director
6. Letter of Thanks for Salt Lake County Aging and Adult Services Tammy Gallegos, San Juan County Aging Director
7. Grand Water and Sewer Service District Board Appointment Approval Mack McDonald, San Juan County Administrator
8. Beer License Renewals John David Nielson, San Juan County Clerk
9. 2020 Commission Assignments
10. Commission Reports

~~ Doomers vs. Boomers: Generational Fear, Angst and Loathing  by Jim Stiles

~~ Garkane Energy Cooperative Returns $1,100,000 to its members

~~ Commission Meetings in Garfield County/ What's Up

~~ Fifty Years ago on the Navajo Reservation  -Navajo Times Dec. 31

~~ 2019 in Review: Despite Negativity, US Economy Best in 50 years

~~ President Trump Signs Bill to Protect the Navajo Language

~~ BLM Funds Five Year Watershed Restoration Project

~~ Utah Groups Push Referendum on Tax Reform Law 

~~A Spoof on Vegan Diets and Climate Change

~~ History of Voting Districts in San Juan County by former County Clerk Gail Johnson

~~ Western Governors Association Forcing Urban Values on Rural West

~~ A Sea of Change in San Juan County: Government Gone Sour

*Part 1: Rule by resolution.  Kenneth Maryboy and Willie Grayeyes took their oaths of office as commissioners a little over a year ago after what was described as a “historic” election. They immediately staked their claim to power by choosing to govern primarily through resolutions written by their longtime private attorney and approved without advice or informed consent of virtually anyone in the county.

*Part 2: The Power of Non-Profit Organizations in County Politics: Bill Keshlear
"It’s hard to overstate the influence Utah Diné Bikéyah and its national allies have had in advocating for Native American interests connected with use and management of public lands in southeastern Utah." In its campaign to create Bears Ears National Monument, the organization succeeded in a way that eventually took a presidential election and proclamation to derail it.
     The advocacy organization based in Salt Lake City has a staff of eight and an estimated 50 volunteers, according the latest IRS Form 990. It has assumed a visible lead in the national initiative to create Bears Ears National Monument.
     Part of that success is directly attributable to its ability to tap funding sources outside of San Juan County and even Utah.
     The organization had revenues of $1,281,371 in 2017 — all but $45,847 came from grants and contributions. Total revenue since UDB began reporting to the IRS beginning in 2014 is $2,656,931.
     UDB and its allies give voice to a historically marginalized group of Americans. Ironically, voices of hundreds of Utah Navajos, unaffiliated with the nonprofits, have been muted in the multimillion-dollar, multiyear national political campaign.  Though supposedly conducted on their behalf to create a sacred sanctuary to protect artifacts of indigenous peoples; it has instead focused on becoming a playground for tourists, rock climbers, mountain bikers and ATV riders.

     In another strange twist, Attorney Kendall Laws wanted a legal firewall to protect the county, if the new commissioners crossed an ethical or legal line. And that’s what he got.
     In an effort to oust him from office, the scheme was deemed “unlawful” and “unconstitutional” and was tabled. Both Grayeyes and District 1 Commissioner Bruce Adams voted in favor of this action; Maryboy abstained and expressed his disappointment.

  *Part 3:  Stonewalling Gramma Requests/ Commissioners Fail to Comply

~~ December 31, 2016:  Anniversary of Bob Weaver's Tragic Death

   "The case of Bob Weaver is not the first account in which military-style home raids, over-the-top interrogations, and cruel threats from federal agents have led to the deaths of decent, law-abiding citizens. On the morning of June 10, 2009, 140 BLM and FBI agents dressed in body armor and armed with automatic weapons, arrived in dozens of SUVS and stormed into the small town of Blanding, Utah, raiding the homes of more than 20 local citizens. "   

~~  Far-left Groups Trying to stop Restoration Efforts GSNM --opinion

Political Cartoon by Jack AHasteen Begay, Navajo Times 12/19/19

~~ Winter is a Good Time to Think about Global Warming and get the facts straight. 

San Juan Winter 2019: Welcome to A Wet White Global Cooling

Wrapping up 2019

~~Dividing Rage from Reason: Impeachment 2019 style

Ornaments made by Montezuma Creek Students, Teacher Georgiana Simpson; Photo by Kate Groezinger

~~ Hand Painted Christmas Ornaments from SJC Sent to White House

~~ Congratulations to  Ryan Benally and Gen Mitchell who were married Dec. 20 in SLC by Gov. Herbert~~Two wonderful San Juan County Citizens! 

~~ Gov. May Ramp up Domestic Uranium; Positive Impact on White Mesa Mill

~~ "Go West, BLM, Go West" -- Will Congress let it Happen?

   "The BLM personnel will be moved where they will have a greater impact on, and input by, the people who live in the regions where their influence is greatest. Not by bureaucrats from thousands of miles away.” — Rep. Rob Bishop

~~ Utah Task Force Looks at 2020 Bill to Combat Violence on Reservation

~~ Utah’s taxpayers and grassroots organizations are at odds with the Utah Legislature

Locally: Logan Monson spearheading Signature Collection for 2019 tax referendum. "We should have packets to start collecting signatures by the end of the week. We will hold events for people to come and sign. I will keep everyone that is interested posted."   Check Save the Bears Ears for info. 

~~BLM Seeks Input on Northern Corridor in SW Utah 

~~ Millenial Looks at US Prosperity through Conservative Eyes. (Fact checked on Snopes) 

“I’m sitting in a small coffee shop near Nokomis trying to think of what to write about. I scroll through my newsfeed on my phone looking at the latest headlines of Democratic candidates calling for policies to “fix” the so-called injustices of capitalism.

I put my phone down and continue to look around. I see people talking freely, working on their MacBook’s, ordering food they get in an instant, seeing cars go by outside, and it dawned on me.

We live in the most privileged time in the most prosperous nation and we’ve become completely blind to it. Vehicles, food, technology, freedom to associate with whom we choose. These things are so ingrained in our American way of life we don’t give them a second thought. We are so well off here in the United States that our poverty line begins 31 times above the global average. Thirty. One. Times.

Virtually no one in the United States is considered poor by global standards. Yet, in a time where we can order a product off Amazon with one click and have it at our doorstep the next day, we are unappreciative, unsatisfied, and ungrateful.

Our unappreciation is evident as the popularity of socialist policies among my generation continues to grow. Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez recently said to Newsweek talking about the millennial generation, “An entire generation, which is now becoming one of the largest electorates in America, came of age and never saw American prosperity.”

Never saw American prosperity. Let that sink in. When I first read that statement, I thought to myself, that was quite literally the most entitled and factually illiterate thing I’ve ever heard in my 26 years on this earth. Now, I’m not attributing Miss Ocasio-Cortez’s words to outright dishonesty. I do think she whole-heartedly believes the words she said to be true. Many young people agree with her, which is entirely misguided. My generation is being indoctrinated by a mainstream narrative to actually believe we have never seen prosperity. I know this first hand, I went to college, let’s just say I didn’t have the popular opinion, but I digress.

Let me lay down some universal truths really quick. The United States of America has lifted more people out of abject poverty, spread more freedom and democracy, and has created more innovation in technology and medicine than any other nation in human history. Not only that but our citizenry continually breaks world records with charitable donations, the rags to riches story is not only possible in America but not uncommon, we have the strongest purchasing power on earth, and we encompass 25% of the world’s GDP.

The list goes on. However, these universal truths don’t matter. We are told that income inequality is an existential crisis (even though this is not an indicator of prosperity, some of the poorest countries in the world have low-income inequality), we are told that we are oppressed by capitalism (even though it’s brought about more freedom and wealth to the most people than any other system in world history), we are told that the only way we will acquire the benefits of true prosperity is through socialism and centralization of federal power (even though history has proven time and again this only brings tyranny and suffering).

Why then, with all of the overwhelming evidence around us, evidence that I can even see sitting at a coffee shop, do we not view this as prosperity?

We have people who are dying to get into our country. People around the world destitute and truly impoverished. Yet, we have a young generation convinced they’ve never seen prosperity, and as a result, elect politicians dead set on taking steps towards abolishing capitalism. Why?

The answer is this, my generation has ONLY seen prosperity. We have no contrast. We didn’t live in the great depression, or live through two world wars, or see the rise and fall of socialism and communism. We don’t know what it’s like not to live without the internet, without cars, without smartphones. We don’t have a lack of prosperity problem. We have an entitlement problem, an ungratefulness problem, and it’s spreading like a plague.

With the current political climate giving rise to the misguided idea of a socialist utopia, will we see the light? Or will we have to lose it all to realize that what we have now is true prosperity? Destroying the free market will undo what millions of people have died to achieve.

My generation is becoming the largest voting bloc in the country. We have an opportunity to continue to propel us forward with the gifts capitalism and democracy has given us. The other option is that we can fall into the trap of entitlement and relapse into restrictive socialist destitution. The choice doesn’t seem too hard, does it?”

- Alyssa Ahlgren

~~ 2020 county budget includes tax increase

~~  How Utah's Tax Restructuring Affects Rural Utah by Rep. Phil Lyman

~~ Salt Lake "Non Profit" Tribune Identifies SJC Commision as "Citizen? of the Year.  

"Methinks Tribune editors or whomever wrote the nomination know little to nothing about the mayhem caused by commissioners Maryboy and Grayeyes during their short time in office: nothing about their GRAMA stonewalling, their flouting of Utah's open meetings law, their petty insults targeting constituents, their unsubstantiated and unabashed charges of racism and religious bigotry leveled at political opponents, their use of a personal attorney to conduct county business behind closed doors, their egregious conflicts of interest (Do they represent the Navajo Nation, Utah Dine Bikeyah and its allies in creation of Bears Ears National Monument and expansion of trial sovereignty or all residents of San Juan County?), their grossly incompetent, uninformed, even malicious management of county staff, planning and budgeting, and their giving the old Bronx Cheer to citizen advisers."  Bill Keshlear

~~ Have Opinions about Pipeline from Lake Powell to St. George?  Let your voice be heard.

~~ Highway between Monticello and Blanding:"Hotspot  for Wildlife Collisions

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Recommended Reading for a Long Winter's Night

~~   The Politically Incorrect Guide to Global Warming and Environmentalism

by 

Christopher C. Horner

3.96  ·   Rating details ·  566 ratings  ·  60 reviews  (On Goodreads)

Global warming: The Left's last best chance to gain a stranglehold on our political system and economy

For decades, environmentalism has been the Left's best excuse for increasing government control over our actions in ways both large and small. It's for Mother Earth! It's for the children! It's for the whales! But until now, the doomsday-scenario environmental scares they've trumped up haven't been large enough to justify the lifestyle restrictions they want to impose. With global warming, however, greenhouse gasbags can argue that auto emissions in Ohio threaten people in Paris, and that only "global governance" (Jacques Chirac's words) can tackle such problems.

Now, in The Politically Incorrect Guide(tm) to Global Warming and Environmentalism, Christopher C. Horner tears the cover off the Left's manipulation of environmental issues for political purposes--and lays out incontrovertible evidence for the fact that catastrophic man-made global warming is just more Chicken-Little hysteria, not actual science. He explains why, although Al Gore and his cronies among the media elites and UN globalists endlessly bleat that "global warming" is an unprecedented global crisis, they really think of it as a dream come true. It's the ideal scare campaign for those who hate capitalism and love big government. For, as Horner explains, if global warming really were as bad as the Leftist doomsayers insist it is, then no policy imaginable could "solve" it. According to the logic of the greens' own numbers, no matter how much we sacrifice there would still be more to do. That makes global warming the bottomless well of excuses for the relentless growth of big government.

Horner (an attorney and senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute) reveals the full anti-American, anti-capitalist, and anti-human agenda of today's environmentalists, dubbing them "green on the outside, red to the core." He details how they use strong-arm legal tactics--and worse--against those who dare to point out the weakness of their arguments for global warming. Along the way, he explodes ten top global warming myths, carefully examining the evidence to determine how much warming there really is and what is actually causing it. He exposes the lies that the environmental lobby routinely tells to make its case; the ways in which it is trying to impose initiatives such as the Kyoto Protocol on an unwilling American public; and much more--including the green lobby's favorite politicians (John Kerry, John McCain, Joe Lieberman, and others).

It's time to stand up to the environmentalist industry and insist: human beings are not the enemy. In breezy, light-hearted, and always entertaining fashion, The Politically Incorrect Guide(tm) to Global Warming and Environmentalism gives you the facts you need .  (a CD set of this book is available at the San Juan County Library or order on Amazon. )