Jeff Pelline's Sierra Foothills Report

From Sue’s website, SueforSupervisor.com

Mr. and Mrs. Patricia Adams
Mr. Glen Amos
Mrs. Wendy Amos
Ms. Glendora Andrews
Mr. and Mrs. Rene Antonson
Mr. David Barrett
Mrs. Lyndsey Barrett
Ms. Melody Blaz
Ms. Cheryle L. Brewer
Mr. and Mrs. Randi Briggs
Mr. Richard H. Briggs
Mrs. Judi Caler
M. Cantanesi
Mrs. Jean Carli
Mr. Robert Cook
Ms. Lynn Costa
Elaiwet Davis
Ms. Heather Davis
Mr. and Mrs. Jodi Davis
Mr. Mark Davis
Mr. Brent DeMartini
Mr.. David DeMartini
Ms. Margie DeMartini
Mr. Mark DeMartini
Mrs. Nancy DeMartini
Mr. Tim DeMartini
Mr. Timothy J. DeMartini
Ms. Kim M. East
Mr. Dave Feller
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Flanigan
Mr. Carl Fox
Mr. and Mrs. Jean Fox
Mr. Eddie Garcia
Mrs. Nancy Garcia
Mr. Ted Gilbert
Mr. Tony Gilchrease
Ms. Vicky Greever
Mr. Guy Greever, Jr.
Mr. Will Grenz
Mr. and Mrs. Roger Haines
Mr. David C. Hall
Mrs. Margot Hall
Mr. and Mrs. Michele Harrington
Mr. Tyler Harrington
Mr. Douglas Herfurth
Ms. Cheryl Heward
Mr. and Mrs. Ryan Hoskins
Mr. Newell Humphreys
Mrs. Sally Humphreys
Mr. Bruce Ivy
Mr. and Mrs. Clover Jacobs
Mr. Jim Jacobs
Mr. and Mrs. Kim Janousek
Mr. Bruce Johnson
Mrs. Julie Johnson
Mr. and Mrs. Shawn Jordan
Mr. Jim Keefer
Mr. and Mrs. Kathie Keefer
Mr. Bill Lapham
Mr. Phil Lock
Ms. Erleen Maki
Ms. Sylvia Maxstone
Mr. and Mrs. Barbara McDonald
Mr. and Mrs. Larry McDonald
Mr. Dai Meagher
Mrs. Susan Meagher
Mr. and Mrs. Elaine Meckler
Mr. Stan Meckler
Mr. and Mrs. Herb Miller
Mr.. Jeff Morrison
Mrs. Susan Morrison
Ms. Carol Nathan
Mr. Ed Nathan
Mr. and Mrs. Paula Nelson
Mr. Brian Payne
Mrs. Melissa Payne
Mr. David Peeler
Mr. Sam Pello
Mr. Kirk Pharis
Mr. Evans Phelps
Mr. Carl Plaza
Mr. and Mrs. Oliver Pong
Mr. Dave Pracht
Mrs. Roby Pracht
Mr. and Mrs. Barry Pruett
Mr. Bill Quirk
Mr. and Mrs. Linda Quirk
Mr. Lane Rollins
Mr. and Mrs. Valerie Rollins
Mr. Marco Rosas
Mr. and Mrs. Suzanne Rosas
Mr. Eric Rose
Mrs. Shelly Rose
Mr. Greg Savelly
Sandy Schmidt
Dr. and Mrs. Frances Sheridan
Dr. Ric Sheridan
Mr. Scott Spindler
Dr. and Mrs. Joy Van Noy
Dr. Michael Van Noy
Dr. John A. Vogel
Mr. Chuck Whitten
Ms. Karen Winguth

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Editor’s note: This letter is published behind a “paywall” in The Union this morning. You can read it here for free:

Board of Directors
Nevada County Consolidate Fire District
11329 McCourtney Road,
Grass Valley, CA 95949
Via U.S. Certified Mail

Re: Ballot Measure
 
Dear Sirs,
 
This letter is in response to your recent Ballot Measure to increase funding for your District. While I recognize your perceived need for more money, I do not recognize your methods to obtain those monies. I must state that this was an invalid method in which you proceeded to attain a vote of those to be polled. This was not a legitimate Ballot Measure!
 
The Ballot Measure, as instituted, would levy an additional annual fee on each property owner in the District… No problem here!

BUT, You purposely did not allow the property owners to participate in this process! BIG PROBLEM HERE.

The property owners have the right to vote on that Ballot Measure. NO QUESTION HERE!………. (Remember that Old saying; “No Taxation without Representation”?)
 
You erroneously put forth this Ballot Measure not to the property owners, but instead to registered voters only! These registered voters are not the same people who would be responsible to pay this additional fee. Therefore, this Ballot Measure is invalid.
 
The very nature of this Nation is the right to vote on fees and issues that affect each and every one of us as citizens of these United States. Your Board, for whatever reason, has elected to bypass these basic principles. In doing so, your Ballot Measure is illegal and the property owners are not obligated to pay these fraudulent fees and may legally deny any collection effort by Consolidate Fire District
 
In view of your action, I demand that the Nevada County Consolidated Fire District declare the Ballot Measure “Null and Void” and re-submit this measure to the correct voters within your District for a proper and legal vote. Those would be the legal owners of each parcel as it appears on the County Assessor tax rolls within your District.

NCCFD Board Ltr
March 25, 2012

Redistributing the ballots and polling the correct voters would not be a burdensome task as you already have on files the correct names and addresses of each property/parcel owner. You currently send them a bill for existing fees.
 
Please advise when this re-balloting can be accomplished.
 

Sincerely,

Charles H. Shea
A Concerned Citizen

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From the local tea party website. The judge’s name is misspelled: It is Tamietti. BTW, judge Tamietti is running for re-election:

PRE-LUNCHEON MEETING RALLY – APRIL 11
10:30 to 11:15 AM – Safeway Downtown Grass Valley. SHOW OUR COLORS!
You will have RESERVED SEATING at the lunch meeting.

APRIL LUNCHEON MEETING
Wednesday, April 11 – 11:30 AM
At the Nevada County Fairgrounds, Ponderosa Hall

Speaker: Superior Court Judge Tarnietti (sic)
Topic: “Four Things You Always Wanted to Ask a Judge”

Exit question: Is Judge Tamietti pandering to a partisan group in an election year? I think so. And he should know better. The judge’s recall (McManus) and campaign against incumbent Tom Anderson has got the Courthouse folks in a real tizzy.

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From the local GOP website:

Nevada County Republican Party Monthly Meeting Featuring Jeff Ackerman
Posted By: Rich Ulery
Date: Wednesday, April 11, 2012 – 6:30 p.m.

Location: Eric Rood Administrative Center
950 Maidu Ave.
Nevada City, CA, 95959

Join the Nevada County Republican Party at its April meeting on Wednesday, April 11, beginning at 6:30 PM. Our guest speaker will be Jeff Ackerman, Editor and publisher of The Union.

Exit question: When did The Union publisher last speak at a local Democratic meet-up? LOL.

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“Across the country, activists with ties to the Tea Party are railing against all sorts of local and state efforts to control sprawl and conserve energy. They brand government action for things like expanding public transportation routes and preserving open space as part of a United Nations-led conspiracy to deny property rights and herd citizens toward cities,” the N.Y. Times is reporting.

“They are showing up at planning meetings to denounce bike lanes on public streets and smart meters on home appliances — efforts they equate to a big-government blueprint against individual rights.

“Planning groups, several of which said they had never heard of Agenda 21 until protesters burst in, are counterorganizing.

‘”The Tea Party people say they want nonpolluted air and clean water and everything we promote and support, but they also say it’s a communist movement,’ said Charlotte Moore, a supervisor who voted yes. ‘I really don’t understand what they want.’

The rest of the article is here.

This same rhetoric highlighted this year’s CABPRO dinner, as I reported previously.

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“Car giant breaks off 20-year relationship with Heartland Institute in ongoing row over its role in questioning global warming,” Raw Story is reporting.

“General Motors, the world’s largest carmaker, has confirmed that it is pulling funding from the Heartland Institute, an ultra-conservative thinktank known for its scepticism about climate change.

“The decision by the GM Foundation to halt its support for Heartland after 20 years underlines the new image the carmaker is seeking to project as part of its social responsibility programme. In the past GM has itself been associated with efforts to discredit climate change science, but in recent years it has been investing heavily in green technologies and cars including the electric/petrol hybrid, the Chevy Volt.

“In a statement, GM said that it now runs its business ‘as if climate change is real and believe we have a role to play in developing new cars, trucks and technologies that can make a difference.’

The rest of the article is here.

The L.A. Times version is here.

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“2-4-23-38-46, Mega Ball 23″

“If those are the numbers on your Mega Millions lottery ticket, you’ve won a jackpot worth a world record $640 million,” USA Today is reporting. “Lottery ticket-holders in Kansas, Illinois and Maryland each selected the winning numbers and will split a $640 million jackpot that was believed to be the world’s largest such prize, a lottery official said Saturday.

“Mike Lang, spokesman for the Illinois Lottery, said his state’s winning ticket was sold in the small town of Red Bud, near St. Louis. The winner used a quick pick to select the numbers, he said.

“The Maryland Lottery announced earlier Saturday that it had sold a winning ticket at a retail store in Baltimore County.

“A winning ticket also was purchased in northeast Kansas, according to the Kansas Lottery website. A spokeswoman didn’t immediately return a message Saturday morning.

“Lang said each winning ticket was expected to be worth more than $213 million before taxes.”

The rest of the article is here.

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Here’s some TGIF entertainment. Our longtime friends Marty and Laura, from San Rafael, and our family have been know to celebrate TGIF with some Pink Floyd. Once I joked that the building show here was supposed to be a rendering of the Idaho-Maryland Mine — but it’s not so, the executives have assured me. Here’s to the weekend!

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“The group launching a $3.6 million ad campaign hitting President Barack Obama on gasoline prices has deep ties to the billionaire libertarian industrialists Charles and David Koch,” according to Politico.

“The American Energy Alliance is the political arm of the Institute for Energy Research, and sources tell POLITICO that both groups are funded partly by the Koch brothers and their donor network.

“The groups are run by Tom Pyle, a former lobbyist for Koch Industries. Pyle regularly attends the mega-donor summits organized by the Koch brothers, including the 2012 winter summit in Indian Wells, Calif., where the Kochs raised more than $150 million to be directed to groups ahead of the general election.

“In all, the brothers’ network is aiming to steer significantly more than $200 million to conservative groups for political advertising and organizing ahead of Election Day.”

The rest of the article is here.

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