Jeff Pelline's Sierra Foothills Report

“The weekend after the final installment of the Harry Potter films premiered, select theaters around the US debuted Sarah Palin’s full length documentary ‘The Undefeated’ to a nearly empty audience, reports The Atlantic,” according to the Huffington Post.

“As the publication’s Conor Friedersdorf found out, a viewing of the film in Orange County, CA included himself, two women (who lasted 20 minutes), and a brief visit from a couple with intentions not pertaining to Palin at all.

“Shortly before the end of the film, a young couple entered, walked to the back row, started making out, then interrupted their session and left (spoiler alert) as Andrew Breitbart, who made one of several guest appearances, started talking about eunuchs.

“Then I was alone again, working. Instead of researching civil liberties violations, or the war in Libya, or the contest to elect the next president of the United States, I was both a journalist and the only member of the public willfully paying attention to Sarah Palin, as if standing in for the pathologies of my profession.”

The rest of the article is here.

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A public hearing on the appeal of the Mountain Stream Meditation Center in a Nevada City residential neighborhood — the city’s latest litmus test of the sanctity of “R1″s in the small town — is set for July 27 at 6:30 p.m., as previously reported.

But a new wrinkle has appeared about city policy-making in the case, raising some questions of fairness:

“The city is charging us for actual time spent by them to process this. Our June invoice is $650 and we are just getting started!” one of the residents who is appealing the decision wrote to me. “I have not heard of this type of billing, I am used to a flat fee. Grass Valley charges a flat fee of $330.”

But wait there’s more correspondence!

From one of the appellants: “Attached is a copy of the invoice. And to answer Steve Cottrell’s question, my guess is the final bill will be around $1200. Again, just a guess. And all documents we generate or receive are public documents.”

So what do we pay our city staffers for? A link to their salaries is here.

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“An investigation into the July 2 shooting death of Susanville resident Rory McGuire, 20, has yet to find evidence that he or the five other men in his car were armed,” according to the Plumas News

“Gregory Chad Wallin-Reed, 36, of Reno, Nev., faces eight felony counts, including murder, after he admitted opening fire on the Susanville men during a car chase.

“Wallin-Reed, who called the Plumas County Sheriff’s Office after the shooting, said the men stole solar lights from his residence along the Janesville grade. Officers later found two solar lights in the men’s car.

“A sign warning trespassers on Wallin-Reed’s driveway read WARNING:

“YOU ARE ENTERING THE R.O.C.

“This is a restricted area. Only Red Blooded Patriotic Christian Americans Are Authorized For Access Upon Approval And Verification Of Credentials By The Commanding Authority

“The Use Of Deadly Force Is Authorized For Use On Those Found In Non-Compliance With Above.”

The rest of the article is here.

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“The economy is still suffering from the worst financial crisis since the Depression, and widespread anger persists that financial institutions that caused it received bailouts of billions of taxpayer dollars and haven’t been held accountable for any wrongdoing,” The New York Times is reporting.

“Yet the House Appropriations Committee has responded by starving the agency responsible for bringing financial wrongdoers to justice — while putting over $200 million that could otherwise have been spent on investigations and enforcement actions back into the pockets of Wall Street.

“A few weeks ago, the Republican-controlled appropriations committee cut the Securities and Exchange Commission’s fiscal 2012 budget request by $222.5 million, to $1.19 billion (the same as this year’s), even though the S.E.C.’s responsibilities were vastly expanded under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

“Charged with protecting investors and policing markets, the S.E.C. is the nation’s front-line defense against financial fraud. The committee’s accompanying report referred to the agency’s ‘troubled past’ and ‘lack of ability to manage funds,’ and said the committee ‘remains concerned with the S.E.C.’s track record in dealing with Ponzi schemes.’

“The report stressed, ‘With the federal debt exceeding $14 trillion, the committee is committed to reducing the cost and size of government.’

“But cutting the S.E.C.’s budget will have no effect on the budget deficit, won’t save taxpayers a dime and could cost the Treasury millions in lost fees and penalties. That’s because the S.E.C. isn’t financed by tax revenue, but rather by fees levied on those it regulates, which include all the big securities firms.”

The rest of the article is here.

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A public hearing on the appeal of the Mountain Stream Meditation Center in a Nevada City residential neighborhood — the city’s latest litmus test of the sanctity of “R1″s in the small town — is set for July 27 at 6:30 p.m., as previously reported.

But a new wrinkle has appeared about city policy-making in the case, raising some questions of fairness:

“The city is charging us for actual time spent by them to process this. Our June invoice is $650 and we are just getting started!” one of the residents who is appealing the decision wrote to me. “I have not heard of this type of billing, I am used to a flat fee. Grass Valley charges a flat fee of $330.”
 
One of the appellants brought it up at this week’s council meeting under “hearing form the public”.

A flat rate is a reasonable policy. Charging for “actual time spent,” however, is questionable.

It seems to stack the deck against appeals because of the cost, making it tougher to question City Hall decision-making. To ensure “democracy” in a small town, sometimes you have to eat the cost.

Nevada City still has a lingering reputation for an “autocratic” power structure at City Hall. The city should review its policy.

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