Haven’t been doing MUCH on the website as of late, but I’M editing and updating to get it more current.
I’ve left Elon’s weird Twitterverse so this site will be a good place to find me.
Also, here on Spoutible, IF I decide to hop on social media again. Big if.
AUGUST 15, 2023
The videos on the Circuit Breaker Tax Relief program from the Utah State Tax Commission are done and up on You Tube.
There’s a program to help qualified homeowners with property taxes and a program to help qualified Utahns who rent.
(Renters, you have to be 66 or older by last year or an unmarried widow or widower.)
Homeowners need to get with the agency they pay their property taxes to and qualify with them and get their applications in by September 1st!
Renters apply directly to the tax commission. That’s why there’s detailed instructions about the forms in the “Instructional Video.” It’s EASY to apply. The deadline is Dec 31st. Click on this for the Instructional Video link. The Instructional Video also has information about the homeowner’s program, so watch that first.
Click on this and it will take you to the State Tax Commission page with links for all the Circuit Breaker information, forms, and applying online.
And here’s a link to some information I trimmed from the original video. It’s important information about Circuit Breaker so I made a 4:28 minute video to share it.
All the information in the videos may be accessed by clicking on links in the note screen, which you get to by hitting the “more” button underneath the video screen.
And don’t forget to voice your support for Circuit Breaker by calling your elected representatives, especially during the 2024 legislative session.
************************************
July 17, 2023
I have to say I LOVE this ad that shows the dark reality of Republican “leadership.”
Click on that link!
July 10, 2023
On the 76th birthday of the great Arlo Guthrie, I’m reviving this Change dot org petition to get President and Dr. Jill Biden to name the pardoned White House Thanksgiving turkeys “Arlo” and “Alice” in 2023, in honor of “Alice’s Restaurant” and the place the song holds in the Thanksgiving traditions of so many Americans.
In 2017, the song was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or artistically significant."
PLEASE sign the petition here and spread it far and wide wherever you can. I started this last October and it was too late to get enough traction to make it happen for November. So I’m starting earlier this year.
Also, if you’d like to join me in e-mailing the President to make the request he do this, here’s the e-mail link in red for President Biden and the White House.
Let’s get the President some e-mails and let him see we’re serious and there is support out there!!!! Below is the reply they sent me on July 11th.
Thank you for contacting the Biden-Harris Administration.
President Biden and Vice President Harris value every opportunity to engage with the American people, and the Administration is grateful for your outreach. Our country faces many challenges, and messages like yours help us better understand how the Biden-Harris Administration can serve American families.
We take careful note of the suggestions, thoughts, questions, and stories we receive, and we’re working hard to ensure you receive an appropriate response.
Sincerely,
The Office of Presidential Correspondence
If the great song “Alice’s Restaurant” isn’t enough to get you to sign, watch the magic of Arlo Guthrie in concert at this link. He’s AMAZING!
**********************
December 2021
REDISTRICTING / gerrymandering
After seeing the ridiculous proposal from the Utah legislature I went to the hearing about redistricting and testified that “the only good thing about these maps is that my vote will cancel out Mike Noel’s.”
Here was their original proposal, totally ignoring the map proposals from Better Boundaries.
December 10,2021
Have you seen the final redistricting map where Millcreek City is divided in four with FOUR DIFFERENT congressional representatives? (Ignore the red circles representing people who commented on the maps.)
If you stop in at the 7-11 at the southeast corner of 3900 South and 900 East, you’re in District 3.
Cross 900 East to the west and stop in at the Iceberg Drive-In, you’ll be in District 4.
Cross 3900 South to the north to head to Cancun Cafe, and you’ll be in District 2.
After seeing the debacle of the gerrymandered districts by the Utah legislature, I went to the Millcreek City Council and asked them to rename the area on 3900 South between 2100 East and 900 East as “Boundary Pass” and turn it into a tourist attraction (kinda like Pikes Peak, eh?).
Here’s the bumper stickers I’ve made up.
Mayor Silvestrini has taken the humorous view that Millcreek City has more congressional reperesentatives (4 congressMEN and 2 senators) than quite a few states have!
September 11, 2021
Remembering the lost, and all the heroes.
My thoughts go to the families who lost loved ones that day, and to the families of the brave firefighters and first responder heroes who entered as others fled for their lives.
And especially to the heroes on Flight 93, who knowingly sacrificed their lives to save others.
My thoughts also go to a fella by the name of Darren Bohan, just one of the many lives lost that day. His story resonated with me, as he reminded me of me and so many of my friends, and maybe many of you as well.
I had the priviledge of speaking to his cousin Beth about him, and wrote some lyrics after. This is part of the song…
“He played lunchtime serenades in the World Trade Center’s shade
The last time that he played was September 10th.”
In the years after the attack, I so wished we could go back to September 10th.
Now with our country so divided, I wish we could go back to September 12th.
Darren Bohan
Darren Christopher Bohan
The Song in His Heart Will Always Go On
November 15, 2001 copyright - Newsday
A banjo, a mandolin, three guitars and little else filled the Kew Gardens apartment where Darren Bohan lived. The handwritten lyrics and song sheets scattered about chronicled his transformation from harmonica-playing teenager to locally touted guitarist.
"He was very committed, and he had quite an aptitude, especially since he was largely self-taught," said Bohan's older brother, Gary Jr., who was once a professional trumpet player. Bohan's early love of the Beatles, Woody Guthrie and other folk music melded in the bluegrass tunes he wrote and performed at jam sessions in Greenwich Village. Though he had decided to forgo life as a starving artist, obtaining a bachelor's degree in accounting from Sonoma State University, each day Bohan and his mandolin held a lunchtime serenade for his co-workers at the World Trade Center.
Bohan, 34, had recently accepted a temporary assignment at Aon Corp. to help with budgets. It was an irony his family could not have imagined. For much of his adult life, they had encouraged Bohan to get a traditional job. "He was a free spirit from A to Z," said Gary Bohan Jr. "He finally gets a job in accounting, and he gets there early ... " he said, his voice trailing off.
After attending high school in Hurley, N.Y., where he was raised, Bohan journeyed to Europe. Returning to the United States, he lived in Yosemite for almost 10 years, eventually becoming a tour guide for visitors and campers. "The environment was really important to him," said his cousin, Beth Udoma, who used to stay awake all night with Bohan, writing and singing funny songs. "He believed in the power of nature to heal. That was his religion."
Encouraged by the waterfalls and giant sequoias of Yosemite, a 20-year-old Bohan picked up a guitar and taught himself to play. His talent bloomed, leading him to experiment with several other instruments and, for a short time, to play in a band.
In his late 20s, Bohan returned to college. "I think he did want to become a professional musician eventually, but he was practical in the sense of realizing that you have to eat and you have to pay your bills," said his aunt, Noreen Kahlftorf.
Bohan wanted to have a family, and he knew that he needed to be more self-sufficient, Udoma said. "We called him a happy-go-lucky free-spirit, but he was in touch with his source," she said. "I don't think that people knew how connected he was with his own inner wisdom."
But even while easing his way into corporate America, Bohan's music never stopped. "For him, the art was 24/7," said Udoma.
At the memorial service held last month in Hurley, 350 people gathered in an oversized tent smack in the middle of an apple orchard. From the 2-foot-high stage, friends and relatives gave testimonials, read tributes, and played music -Bohan's music -all day and all night long.
-- Nedra Rhone (Newsday)
This is what a sunset from the top of the World Trade Center looked like. I took this on January 30, 1981, after we attended the ticker tape parade New York City held for the returned Iranian hostages. The Statue of Liberty is seen in the lower left.
AUGUST 28, 2021
Returning to the Utah State Capitol to commemorate the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s historic 1963 March on Washington. Voting rights are under attack throughout the country and we need to stand firm to protect those rights that too many veterans gave their lives for.
AUGUST 15, 2021
IT’S OFFICIAL !!!
MORE “LOONEY TUNES” IN UTAH!
THESE SELF-RIGHTEOUS RELIGIOUS ZEALOT VACCINE CONSPIRACY-BELIEVING CONSTITUTION-BENDING RIGHT-WING WINGNUTS ARE SELFISH…. AND INSANE!!!
YESTERDAY, AS A PUBLIC SERVICE OF COURSE, I ATTENDED THE “HEALTH FREEDOM” RALLY IN SALT LAKE CITY. THE MAIN SPEAKER ON THE PODIUM READ THE SIGN I HELD WHILE I STOOD FACING THE CROWD FROM ABOUT 15 FEET TO HIS LEFT.
(Note - I’m guessing I’ll always be to this guy’s left on most things.)
MY SIGN QUESTIONED THEIR KNOWLEDGE AND BELIEFS.
AFTER READING IT TO THE CROWD, THE SPEAKER PRONOUNCED THAT
INDEED, THESE VACCINE DENIERS
HAVE THE RIGHT TO SPREAD DISEASE!!!!
READ THAT AGAIN?
HE PRONOUNCED THAT THESE VACCINE DENIERS HAVE THE RIGHT, I ASSUME GRANTED BY THE CONSTITUTION, TO SPREAD DISEASE!!!!
SINCE HE TRIES TO FANCY HIMSELF AS KNOWLEDGEABLE ON ISSUES REGARDING CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES, I CAN ONLY ASSUME THE CONSTITUTION IS THE DOCUMENT WHERE THIS CITIZEN “RIGHT” WOULD EMULATE FROM. HE ATTEMPTS TO PROP UP HIS HIS ANTI-MASK / ANTI-MANDATES AGENDA BY CITING CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES, SO THAT’S MY ONLY GUESS.
IF ANYONE CAN FIND WHERE THE FOUNDING FATHER’S DROPPED THAT IN THE CONSTITUTION 245 YEARS AGO, WOULD YA CONTACT ME ?
I’M GUESSING SPREADING DISEASE WAS NOT WHAT THEY HAD IN MIND WHEN THEY TALKED ABOUT INSURING DOMESTIC TRANQUILITY AND PROMOTING THE GENERAL WELFARE IN THE PREAMBLE.
On the bright side of things, the rally was SPARSELY attended.
about 200, probably 6-8 times smaller than last April.
And i didn’t see any tv media there to cover it.
So either people saw the numbers and realized the value in the vaccine and quit believing his ridiculous stories, people in his crowd or members of their family got affected by the virus, or people are tiring of this guy’s schtick.
August 14, 2021
A bunch of damned wingnut patriot actors will be hold a rally today at noon at the City County Building to protest protections of our fellow citizens via vaccines and masks. Come join me to stand up to these selfish misguided idiots.
Noon between 400 and 500 South and State and 200 East, just a block north of where county health department workers are busting their asses to keep us safe.
Why are these folks willing to risk the health of the most vulnerable in our society, the elderly and children?
They say “Let Us Choose”, but they are not smart enough to realize they are choosing not only for them, but for the rest of society too? Transmission of the Delta variant is virtually unstoppable.
The numbers don’t lie.
Our ICU’s are over capacity, 102 % FULL, the hospitals are at 98%, the caregivers are stretched thin, morale is low, and critical care workers are giving up and quitting.
Maybe one of the overweight rednecks (High cholesterol? Diabetes? Smoker?) will have a heart attack at the rally and can then see first hand the situation they helped create when they arrive at the hospital. Maybe they’ll treat them in the hospital parking garage.
Some of these clowns cite The Constitution, as if “their rights’ allow them to jeopardize others.
The Preamble to the document says:
We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
These clowns leave out that stuff.
Question - when people get sick with COVID, where do they go?
To the hospital to see the doctors and nurses they don’t trust?
There’s laws mandating seat belt usage.
There’s laws prohibiting smoking in public buildings.
Mask mandates do the same - promote the general welfare.
Maybe we should go into a restaurant, or one of their churches, with a bunch of cigarette smokers and discuss the freedom to do what we want.
Luckily, those actions wouldn’t land them in an over-capacity ICU.
The thing about science is…
it’s true whether you believe it or not!
Report about the Saturday, August 14th rally:
As I stood in the front facing the crowd 15 feet from the podium, some of the people around me were pissed, waving flags in front of my signs, actually drawing MORE attention to them. A couple of grumpy older ladies told me I had to leave. LOL
At the podium, the clown leader Moutsos cited a "dissenter" being there and granted me my rights as an American (as if I need his blessing?), telling the small crowd that I had a right to be there and he was glad I wasn't being disruptive. I had to really bite my tongue with some of the absolute horse shit he was laying out, but when he said he trusted God, I shouted out "Trust God's vaccine!"
But what was amazing was Moutsos read one of my signs (above) to the crowd, and then pronounced that “Yes indeed, we do have the right to spread disease”, and the crowd erupted in applause.
It appears the media is a little fed up with these clowns as no TV stations were there today. Maybe they didn't like seeing a “Three Percenters” supremacists flag being waved in the county building while singing patriotic songs the other day. There was a reporter for AP there today but he didn't come talk to me. And there were only about 200 people there. Response on the clown’s FB page was sparse, so maybe folks are waking up to this self-promoting provocateur or seeing his advice about vaccines is just plain wrong and costing people their lives.
This morning in the paper, they reported ICU beds in Utah were at 102% capacity, hospitals at 85%, and Primary Children's Hospital is full. As the PCH doctor said last night on the news, "if your child is in need of medical care, we will have to wait for one the children here now to die first."
In the spirit of peace, I did pass on messing with one family. As I passed them on the way to the rally, I was gonna tell the kids not to hurt themselves today because if they need to go to the hospital, they won't be able to because they are full and another child will have to die first. Let 'em ask mom and dad about that! But I held off.
PLEASE wear a mask when needed
and get a damned shot!
Let’s get our country
back on track!
Standing up for
Bears Ears National Monument
At the utah state capitol, the
scene of the crime four years ago!
utah politicians screwed us as soon as they had their chance.
Now they whine to Interior Secretary Haaland that they must be involved in restoration efforts by the administration.
Now it’s time to fix their crime.
restore and Protect Bears Ears
President biden!
Time to fight for our democracy!
How sad to think the thousands that died on the beaches at Normandy get disrespected by our U.S. Senators and politicians in many states right before Memorial Day weekend by failing to protect our constitutional democracy and the right to vote.
Add to that the anniversary of the Tienanmen Square massacre of Chinese citizens protesting simply for the opportunity to vote in a democratic election just a week or two later.
Our soldiers died to protect this democracy, and others die in countries around the world wishing to have what some here take for granted, and our politicians totally disrespect.
This could not be more despicable.
Do you support democracy, or are you a Republican?
I called slimebag Utah Senator Mike Lee, who voted against the investigation of the insurrection, and let him have it with a voice message.
If you would like to, here’s his contact info:
Wallace F. Bennett Federal Building
125 South State, Suite 4225
Salt Lake City, UT 84138
Phone: 801-524-5933
Fax: 801-524-5730
May 19, 2021
concerned about rising drug prices? This is so great to see.
Representative Katie Porter (D-CA) destroys a pharmaceutical executive on his company’s lies.
Please watch here.
After seeing her stand up for the American people, especially seniors, I called Representative Porter’s office to thank her.
If you would like to, 202-225-5611.
Here she is speaking on public lands legislation protecting U.S. taxpayers.
And to a fossil fuel lobbyist on Earth Day 2021.
If you want to follow her, check her Twitter feed here.
Oh, if only Utah had a representative with her courage.
Instead, we have shit.
Men hellbent on destroying our beautiful FEDERAL PUBLIC LANDS
that belong to all United States’ citizens.
Read Article Three of the Utah Constitution:
The people inhabiting this State do affirm and declare that they forever disclaim all right and title to the unappropriated public lands lying within the boundaries hereof, and to all lands lying within said limits owned or held by any Indian or Indian tribes, and that until the title thereto shall have been extinguished by the United States, the same shall be and remain subject to the disposition of the United States, and said Indian lands shall remain under the absolute jurisdiction and control of the Congress of the United States.
PROTECT BEARS EARS!!!!!
Interior Secretary Deb Haaland visited southern Utah checking out the monuments and gathering input for President Biden and his decision on what to do to counter the possibly illegal reductions from a few years ago.
Here’s the Secretary’s twitter feed and the twitter feed from the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance to follow the events.
The Secretary reported:
This has been a meaningful trip, and I deeply appreciate the many people who took the time to share their wisdom, perspectives, and prayers with me. It's a powerful reminder that how we manage public lands and national monuments will provide a path for future generations.
But the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition has asked folks to flood social media with support !
Here’s a message from Friends of Cedar Mesa sent for a MONUMENTAL DAY OF ACTION and how YOU can help.
And a message from the coalition!
Your voice matters. In fact, it is critical to creating community and connecting with one another. Together, our voices can build support to restore protections for the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments.
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland visited the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments in Utah. Her visit will influence President Biden's decision to restore these cultural, living landscapes.
The unlawful reduction of the national monuments manufactured harm to their rich and fragile cultural and ecological resources. Protections for Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante must quickly be restored, and we need your help!
We ask you to help flood social media with a groundswell of support for restoring protections for Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments.
Show your support by sharing a photo or video on social media using one of the following options:
Print out a sign or make your own
Wear your Bears Ears or Grand Staircase t-shirt
Change your Facebook profile frame. Click here and search “Monuments For All.”
The finishing touches - don’t forget these details when you're ready to post:
Use the hashtags #MonumentsForAll, #ProtectBearsEars, #HonorTribes, and #SaveGrandStaircase
Tag us and our partners:
Instagram - @bearsearscoalition (BEITC) @ProtectBearsEars (UDB) @grandstaircasepartners (GSEP)
Twitter - @UtahDineBikeyah (UDB) @SaveBearsEars (BEITC) @gsepartners (GSEP)
Facebook - @protectbearsears (BEITC) @UtahDineBikeyah (UDB) @grandstaircaseescalantepartners (GSEP)
Social media not your thing? No worries! Consider supporting us directly with a donation. Click here.
ALERT!!!!!
THE INLAND PORT
This massive project is one of the slimiest things ever to escape the sewage lagoon that is the Utah legislature.
These clowns, who lament federal control of federal lands in Utah and scream for local control, actually stole 25% of the land base of it’s capital city, Salt Lake City, and re-appropriated where the economic benefits of the project would go and who would control these things.
Whenever there’s legislation to be decided on this ill-conceived monstrosity, it’s unveiled in the last days of the session so there’s limited time for the public to review the proposals and speak out and for legislators to review them as well. It happened again this last session, with legislation revealed in the last days of the session that would establish a slush fund of $75 million for rural communities to draw from.
One of the more slimy legislators to emerge from the Capitol was former-House Speaker Greg Hughes, who help usher this thing through and actually attempted to become the head of the Inland Port board while “forgetting” he had land and interests in the area that precluded him from even being a board member.
I have been in opposition to this project ever since learning of it, and participated in the rally at the Capitol last year and sang my Inland Port song to the crowd. I also printed up these bumper stickers. If ya want one, let me know.
Here are highlighted links to the websites for Stop The Polluting Port and Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment , two organizations united in efforts to educate Utahns about the devastating public health effects and are leading the public efforts to stop this environmental nightmare.
If you’d like to support the cause and download the “Inland Port” song I played at the rally at the Capitol (studio version with fiddle and mando), feel free to see my currently available music here.
COVID-19
Thanks to the leadership of the Biden administration, vaccination rates are skyrocketing throughout the country.
Here in Utah, go to this state website to find out about vaccination sites in your area.
If you live in Salt Lake County, the Salt Lake County Health Department has done a tremendous job getting vaccine to the people, following the incredible pandemic response since last winter to keep case counts down. The employees of the Salt Lake County Health Department deserve our respect and deep gratitude for their amazing efforts.
Go to the Salt Lake County COVID website here,
and get vaccine appointment information here.
THANK YOU Health Care Workers!!!
I’m grateful I have two doses of the Moderna vaccine in me with no side effects.
******************************
Alliance For A Better Utah
Hey, have you seen the latest from the Alliance For A Better Utah?
They’re a nonprofit organization that holds politicians accountable and advocates for progressive policies that make Utah an even better place.
Check out their website by clicking on the red link above and see the work they do in covering the legislature, politics, and issues in Utah.
They have Mike Lee and his despicable statements and behavior in their sights and have started this website called “Humans Against Mike Lee.”
Here’s my shirt from them, and I just know you would great in one, too!
They’re offering merchandise to help support the cause including hoodies, t-shirts, mugs, stickers, buttons, signs - all sorts of stuff!
Go to this link to help support the cause and show your disdain for this unqualified and embarrassing clown.
Remember - Lee’s up for re-election in 2022!
Let’s get started mobilizing against him now!
The Slickrock Stranger says “It’s never too soon to call out a buffoon.”
Hallelujah!
It’s A New Dawn!
DIGNITY RETURNS TO
WASHINGTON DC.
REMEMBERING THE VICTIMS OF COVID-19.
IT’S TIME TO WATCH THE ABSURDITY AT THE STATE LEGISLATURE FOR SO MANY REASONS, ESPECIALLY THE “INLAND PORT”.
Here’s highlighted links to the websites for Stop The Polluting Port and Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment two organizations united in efforts to educate about the public health effects and are leading the public efforts to stop this environmental nightmare.
If you’d like to support the cause and download the “Inland Port” song I played at the rally at the Capitol (studio version with fiddle and mando), feel free to see my currently available music here.
You can subscribe to the N.Y. Times here.
Support an essential investigative news gathering service
with a special online rate of only $1 per week.
Below we mentioned earlier this year about the GREAT series from the amazing John Krasinski called “Some Good News” that helped lift spirits from late March into late April in the beginning of this pandemic.
Glad to report he came back with a holiday edition right here!
*******
SEPTEMBER 16, 2020
CHECK OUT MY NEW VIDEO !
iT’S “THE LYSOL SONG”!
A musical Public Service Announcement commenting on the clowns who claim a constitutional right to NOT wear a mask (really?) and warning of the dangers of listening to that lying narcissistic “Clown Prince of Stupidity” in the White House.
PLEASE WEAR A MASK AND HELP GET THIS SCOURGE UNDER CONTROL!
*****
I told you about “Some Good News” from John Krasinski months ago, and now it’s turned into a global phenomenon of joy and love and heart-warming good vibes. It’s here, and if you’re just catching up, check out ALL the episodes. This is the greatest! Guaranteed to make you smile and put joy in your heart. Unfortunately, John did not have time to continue the series and sold the rights to it.
And enjoy all my music videos here. Lots to choose from, including shows from Targhee Festivals in Wyoming and the Ogden Music Festival in Utah. Sadly, both were canceled in 2020.
If you want some info on live streams and such to watch while you’re home during the pandemic, click here for jam bands on nugs.net.
A Pooh Bear Reminder
**********
Back in Spring, I posted many articles and resources documenting this clown’s failed response to the pandemic, but the days of needing to document his failure in order to convince people he is unfit for the office are over. He has been voted out, even if he is unable to accept that fact. In order to remove the continuing tragic news from the home page, I created a COVID-19 section. Now that those articles about our failed leadership are less relevant, I will delete them from the site and try to cover the ongoing efforts and honor the brave women and men who are on the front lines and those in our communities helping others.
The damage to our country medically, psychologically, and economically will be a challenge and will take a long time to overcome.
But we will survive. We will persevere. The people can and will lead the way, supporting and connecting with each other, our friends, and our neighbors.
Be part of the magic. Reach out to someone in need. Our love will overcome this.
Hang in there friends!
APRIL 18, 2020
The Stranger visits The “Petri Dish Patriot Actors” at their Protest
I did go down to the rally in Salt Lake at the City-County Building. Didn’t see or talk to Ammon Bundy as I didn’t want to go into the crowds to look for him as physical distancing was NOT happening with them, as “suggested”. Not a lot of concern displayed, as if they have some “constitutional right” to spread disease. I practiced distancing and wore an N-95 mask for the entire 30 minutes or so I was there, staying on the perimeter. But I thought it was important to defend the sensible stay-at-home measures our community leaders have implemented TO SAVE LIVES and I was successful in getting local media to broadcast that message. That was my purpose of going down there.
There were two things I wondered and asked. Many of the people there were clearly staunch supporters of the current occupant of the White House. I wondered why their anger was directed at local governmental leaders and health care professionals, when they ought to be disappointed in the person who’s egregious failing to prepare our country for this public health emergency has magnified the effects they are feeling and protesting. And since they gathered just a block away from the Salt Lake County Health Department’s Infectious Disease Bureau, where staff is working 60 and 70 hours weeks in a valiant effort to protect our community, why wasn’t a representative invited there to explain why these measures are important? These people are not interested in facts and discussion. And the media’s not interested in a soundbite longer than 5 seconds.
Interesting that the organizer of this Salt Lake City event lives 300 miles away in the St. George, Utah area and Bundy came down from Idaho. The organizer is a former Salt Lake City policeman who resigned from his job after a dispute with his supervisors. Kinda odd that a guy who pursued and then held a job ENFORCING RULES IMPOSED ON OTHERS BY DEMOCRATICALLY ELECTED LAWMAKERS FOR THE GENERAL BENEFIT OF SOCIETY (i.e. - You can't drive like a maniac on streets, you can't drive drunk, you can't be violent or unruly, you can't do what you damn well please because YOU feel like you have a right to act that way) is now protesting having to obey rules for the public good. For a guy who thinks he knows constitutional rights, he sure seems to be way confused about how a lawful democracy works.
We know where his politics lie as he was also once a Development Manager for Sutherland Institute, but their website doesn’t show him on the roster there anymore either. He was quoted in the media beforehand saying he was holding a “socially distanced rally”, but it was obvious he was not practicing nor promoting that behavior. He claimed he wanted to bring people to downtown Salt Lake City to buy take-out meals from local businesses to support them. I didn’t see much of that at all. He also claimed that he was concerned about suicides as the effects of the shutdown was impacting people and could cost lives. While mental health is a valid concern during these extraordinary times, he didn’t bother to mention how lives and people’s health could be impacted by 800-1,000 people gathering close to each other during a pandemic, where asymptomatic people are spreading disease, not to mention it’s effects on the entire community and it health care system. As Robert Gehrke from The Salt Lake Tribune described them, “Petri Dish Patriots”.
There’s a term folks use these days called “Astroturfing”. It’s when something is portrayed as a “grassroots movement”, but in reality is conjured up by other people with larger agendas. I think this falls into that category. The people at the rally acted as if the public health measures implemented to save lives and not tax our health care systems beyond capacity were attacks on their constitutional rights. (Did they have pandemics to consider in 1776?) Constitutional scholars much smarter than I are debating this point, and thus far have come down on the side of common sense and public good and suggest this is not an attack on our rights. But there’s some folks out there you’ll never convince of this, and their social media networks and sadly, our national “leader” who is supposed to be unifying the country, have stoked this argument to further divide our political landscape and turn public health measures into religious and political issues. We need these “patriot actors” to do something in the interest of their fellow Americans and quit acting like spoiled children peddling global conspiracy theories. You’re not gonna die wearing a mask, but you and your friends and relatives might if you don’t. We need to resist this division and listen to the doctors and scientists who are doing all they can to address this global pandemic that has taken so many lives. We will get by and we will survive - TOGETHER.
Maybe the religious crowd, and this organizer in particular since he’s bringing religion into the mix, will remember Jesus replying when someone asked if they needed to heed Caesar and pay taxes. Jesus said "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's; and to God the things that are God's." (Matthew 22:21) And in Romans 13:1 "Let every person be in subjection to the governing authorities.” In other words, obey the rules and laws of the land.
You wouldn’t think that people who seek to live in harmony with others and show good will and do what’s best for the country and it’s citizens would find it so difficult to help protect the health of their families and fellow citizens during a pandemic with a highly infectious virus. “Pro-life”, huh?
So get on with it, and wear a damned mask!
In another city, I was grateful to see health care workers blocking the vehicle parade of protesters in Denver. The differences in their concerns were starkly displayed. Here’s the story.
Credit for the above illustration to Elizabeth Miller on Facebook.
She posted this on the Salt Lake protester’s page for them to enjoy.
APRIL 17, 2020
Well, it looks like the right-wing militia types have raised their ugly heads once again, seeing the restrictions placed for the good of public health as an attack on their constitutional rights.
This article in The Guardian tells who is behind these protests, many of them the same “Patriot Actor” types associated with the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge takeover.
Read it and you’ll see the group in Michigan is linked to a member of the cabinet of “The Occupant”, the boob who is now asking protesters to “liberate Michigan”.
I guess it’s the newest take on
“GIVE ME LIBERTY OR GIVE ME DEATH”
Okay, if you insist! You sure?
But how about “Public Health trumps Public Wealth.“
Maybe we should revise the old Beatles tune, “Money Can’t Buy Me Life.”
Maybe if the idiot they voted for had done his job, we wouldn’t be in the deadly mess we’re in.
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FEBRUARY 21, 2020
Here we are at the Rally for Accountability and a Just Transition! outside the meeting of the state’s Seven County Infrastructure Coalition (SCIC) and the Community Impact Fund Board (CIB).
This board and their actions are not monitored the way they ought to be and they squander tax dollars that are meant to support local communities that have large percentages of federal land and a dearth of private property holdings able to be taxed by counties to support infrastructure. Instead of on-the-ground infrastructure improvement, they use this money to fund lawsuits and large corporate projects of questionable viability.
Many organizations and activists are calling for the Seven County Infrastructure Coalition (SCIC) and the Community Impact Fund Board (CIB) to be held accountable for misusing public funds.
According to the website for the Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment
“We all deserve equity, justice, clean air, and a livable climate. But in order to create this future we need to stop propping up oil, coal, and tar sands companies. We must instead start investing in the power of our communities to create a better future.
While you may never have heard of the SCIC, they quietly push many of the biggest fossil fuel projects in Utah, while the CIB bankrolls their efforts.
The Uinta Basin Railway oil train would quadruple oil extraction in the state’s northeast corner. Inland Port “satellite” hubs would boost coal mining and exports. And the Book Cliffs Highway would be another gift to companies that want to mine tar sands from the Tavaputs Plateau.
In attempting to subsidize failing fossil fuel industries, the CIB and SCIC have squandered tens of millions of dollars meant to help communities deal with the impacts created by that very same industry. These public entities have nothing to show for it and they need to be held accountable for the time, money, and energy they have wasted and the damage they continue to inflict.
Utah communities are creative, vibrant, and resilient. We can choose a different path forward. We can transition away from fossil fuels and we can allow justice to take root and grow.”
If you want an idea of what nasty deeds these folks have in mind, check out this excellent story appearing on the website of the Salt Lake Tribune contributed by the Utah Investigative Journalism Project. I urge you to join with me in supporting the essential journalism of the UIJP. Visit them at their website to see other stories and contribute financially to their efforts.
For more information on how you can help stop the Uinta Basin Railway, here’s a link to their site.
February 18, 2020
Here’s a great video called “The Day Democracy Died” I thought I’d share with you!
It’s a send up of the Don McLean hit about the elections and recent events. Click on the red link and check it out and have a laugh.
February 15, 2020
The Wet’suwet’en Nation stands to protect their indigenous lands from a pipeline!
Right now there’s a battle across Canada as rail lines are being blocked in mass wave of action in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en Nation, who is fighting to remove both the Canadian security forces and the Coastal GasLink corporation from their unceded lands.
According to the CBC, “CN Rail and Via Rail are shutting down huge sections of their railway networks as Indigenous blockades continue to cripple the country’s transportation systems."
Via Rail is temporarily ending all passenger services nationwide, expanding an earlier work stoppage that restricted train cancellations to the Toronto-Ottawa-Montreal corridor.”
Check out media stories here and here and search for more information as it becomes available. Supporters have raised their voices in cities across Canada and in the United States, including protesters who gathered on February 12th at the United Nations headquarters in in New York City and also in Minneapolis.
To read about the issue directly from the Indigenous tribes, go here.
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REPEAL THE PORT RALLY!
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD FROM 4-5 PM
AT THE STATE CAPITOL
It had been almost five years since I played the State Capitol for the public lands rally, and on Monday, February 3rd, I had the pleasure to play at the Repeal the Port Rally.
Click on this to see the beginning of the new Inland Port song as recorded at the rally by Katie McKellar from KSL-TV.
NEW MUSIC!
I have a new Inland Port song entitled, oddly enough, “An Inland Port Song”. I named it that (“An” instead of “The”) as I hope there’s other artists out there who will be covering the topic and my song will be just one of many. It’s fresh and warm right out of the oven and now available for download right here. Please support the cause by parting with a buck and downloading it and feel free to spread the word. I’ll be supporting both Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment and Stop The Polluting Port with some of the proceeds so download away and spread the word! Click on those names to access their websites for more information.
I
DECEMBER 18, 2019
IMPEACHED!!!!!
Recognizing and carrying out their constitutional duties, the United States House of Representatives impeached the occupant on December 18, 2019.
The pictures above are from a rally I was at in Salt Lake City the night before supporting impeachment. Organizers there spoke in 32 degree weather and mentioned the discomfort of the cold. All I could think of was that it was nothing compared to the “discomfort” all those young souls endured on the beaches of Normandy as they saved our country and democracy. I was proud that most of our representatives honored the constitution and the democracy these brave soldiers fought for.
December 11,2019
Congratulations to Greta Thunberg,
TIME magazine’s Person of the Year!
Thanks to “@PaulLidicul” for the illustration.
August 16, 2019
Another great time at the Targhee Bluegrass Festival in Wyoming. All the new videos from the festival are up. Check out the “Videos” link above, or click on this link to my You Tube page for the complete selection of videos from various festivals and some home made ones also.
July 29, 2019
Went to the bulging metropolis of Bicknell, Utah (population 321) for BIFFStock, the Bicknell International Film Festival celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair. (http://www.thebiff.org/). I rode my horse over there to check it out as some of the folks over there in Wayne County and the Entrada Institute (https://www.entradainstitute.org/) are trying to bring quality events to the area and it’s good to support them. Movies, a costume contest, tie-dye galore, and great vibes from all the participants made for a cosmically wonderful weekend, wrapped up with a dance with music provided by the semi-fabulous Disgusting Brothers.
In attendance was Bobbi and Nick Ercoline, the couple in the blanket on the cover of the Woodstock album. They’re still together after 50 years, a wonderfully loving couple, and they signed the 48 year-old album I brought.
A Utah Politician Embarrasses the State - AGAIN!!!
Oh, it’s not enough that we had Jason Capputz and Orrin Hatch and Mia Love showing the world the clowns Utahn’s send to Congress. Utah Senator Mike Lee recently topped them all with a ridiculous display on the floor of the U.S. Senate on March 27, 2019, stating that falling in love and having babies would solve the global warming crisis. While that might be one of the more enjoyable ways to approach the problem, it also makes absolutely no sense, and makes Mr. Lee look like a lunatic and makes us look like boobs for sending him to Washington
Here’s the link to a classic reaction from CBS TV’s Stephen Colbert.
January 3, 2019
As FORMER-Congresswoman Mia Love departed Washington D.C., we sent her off with a new twist to the Everly Brother’s classic!!!
Bye Bye Love!!!
Her name is Mia They spelled it right
Missing - In - Action Stayed out of sight (unless you had Skype!)
‘Til election time We’d see her then
Didn’t recognize her and we kinda liked Ben
CHORUS:
Bye Bye Love Bye Bye phoniness
Hello resistance I think that you know why
Bye Bye Mia Love Goodbye.
She expensed vacations to Disneyland
The Correspondent’s dinner spending out of hand
After investigations they made her pay it back
Her moral compass is off the track
CHORUS
Her constituents pleaded to protect Bears Ears
She only sought protection for her career
They didn’t boost her PAC with a fat payday
Like the Koch brothers and the NRA.
CHORUS
Jason Chapputz embarrasses humanity again
Last week former Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz shocked Utah, and the nation, when he spoke about the terrible death of a 7-year-old girl from Guatemala who died while in the custody of the U.S. Border Control after making the hopeful journey to a better life. She died of starvation and thirst.
Chaffetz’s message to other immigrants was, “Don’t make this journey, it will kill you.”
Besides the utter lack of empathy and grace, Chaffetz’s comment was horrific in its substance. “She should have never, ever made that journey. That should be the message. Don’t make this journey. It will kill you.”
——— Michelle Quist, Salt Lake Tribune, December 20, 2018
Also on December 20, 2018, the Salt Lake Tribune Editorial Board:
“ Jason Chaffetz has made his choice.
The former Utah congressman has not just taken a break from a career as a media-savvy and slightly wonkish politician, someone who might reasonably have aspired to the U.S. Senate and/or the Utah governor’s office. He has left public service, burned his bridges behind him, and gone completely over to the Dark Side of American culture.
His political career should be over.”
Who couldn’t agree with that?
Pulitzer Prize nominee Pat Bagley from the Salt Lake Tribune nailed it again, invoking his family’s mormon pioneer heritage.
My reaction? Why I oughta…
*******
THE TIMES THEY ARE A CHANGIN'
This classic song from from Bob Dylan released in 1963 had been on my mind for a while, given the growing resistance movement in our country and all the revelations attached to the #metoo movement. And while watching the protests after the Parkland School shootings, it really grabbed me and inspired me to finish adding some new lyrics to adapt it to today's happenings. The song copyright belongs to Bob Dylan, of course. To see more of Bob Dylan's music and check out tour information, go to https://www.bobdylan.com/
This performance was by The Slickrock Stranger at the 2018 Utah Arts Festival and is posted for entertainment purposes only.
That’s Even Stranger (Nick Boyer) on guitar and Wayfaring Stranger (Anastasia Lund) on fiddle.
February 9, 2018
U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke came to Utah again, this time to Salt Lake City to visit the Hunting and Conservation Expo, where he announced a new initiative to protect wildlife corridors. While this sounds like a great thing at first glance, I'll wait to see the details and hear what the experts in biodiversity and habitat protection have to say. After all, we know Ryan Zinke is not to be trusted.
But while he was here, the folks at SUWA organized a rally to protest the reduction of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments. It gave me a chance to ask again, why do the 17,000 residents of San Juan County, about half of whom support the monument, have such a say on lands owned by 326,000,000 Americans?
January 8, 2018
Presenting a different viewpoint at the Bundy trial in Las Vegas as the charges were dismissed and the Bundyciples had themselves a good ol' cowboy circle jerk.
The sign says "America’s Public Lands Are Not Rancher’s Private Stands"
Stop US Taxpayer Fleecing
Increase Grazing Fees
Where else can you feed two animals for $20 a year?
The woman in this pic above asked her friend “Why is he holding those signs up here?” I guess she saw the flag bandana and cowboy hat and was confused, like a lot of those folks were. Mission accomplished. As I say in my LaVoy Finicum video, "Any clown can grab a cowboy hat and an American flag. Doesn't make 'em any more right, doesn't make 'em any smarter, and it sure as shootin' don't place 'em above the law to where they get to decide what laws they need to obey."
While the Bundyciples were celebrating outside, TV crews were interviewing Ryan Bundy and asked him “What will you do now?” He said he’d be going back to the ranch and fixing the improvements and I butted in his TV interview asking, “So does that mean you’ll start paying your grazing fees now?” He asked “What grazing fees?” I said, “The ones you're supposed to pay for using public lands." Surprised that someone dressed with a flag bandana and cowboy hat was questioning and challenging him, he looked at me and asked “Who ARE you?” I said “Doesn’t matter. The question’s the same.” I suggested he pay the fees like everyone else has to, reminded him it's less than $20 a year for a cow and a calf on our federal public lands, and that the lands belong to 326 million Americans. He went back to stating it’s not federal property, it's state property, suggested I read the constitution, and walked away. I'm not sure if that exchange made it to TV, but Maxine Bernstein from The Oregonian did post a short video on Twitter of the tail end of our exchange. You don't need to be on Twitter to view it.
Almost all the Nevada media didn't seem too interested in opposition voices. But I'm very grateful to Karen Castro of the local CBS affiliate who did interview me and Patrick Donnelly from the Center for Biological Diversity and presented our views on the 6:00 news that evening.
Here's a photo from the story Maxine Bernstein from The Oregonian posted online of Ryan Bundy and I discussing rangeland science and the economics of public lands grazing. OK, it never got that deep.
The picture below shows what the other side of the signs said. They're pictured on the sidewalk in front of the courthouse where protests were allowed.
At first, seeing my American flag bandana and cowboy hat, the Bundyciples by the sidewalk signs in the distance welcomed me as I walked by to scope things out. When I didn't join them but sat down away from them, they wondered why. After a couple came by to see my signs, they returned to their area and then began yelling at me from afar. Then they approached me. I had good friendly conversations with some, but some had long-winded, whacked-out personal interpretations of the Constitution to share with me. Privately, one friendly told me "There's some crazy people in this group." Uh-huh.
While I'm glad the judge saw fit to protect citizens from federal judicial misconduct, it's a shame these Bundy clowns were the direct beneficiaries of prosecutorial malfeasance. Twenty years ago, Cliven Bundy quit paying the already overly-subsidized grazing fee charges he had previously been paying for twenty years, back when his family recognized federal government authority and grazing fees. After he quit paying, he ran about ten times more cattle than he was previously allotted on whatever lands he chose, including places where they were prohibited like National Recreation Areas, and did so without paying a dime for the feed his cattle, which he sold for a profit, consumed on OUR federal lands. He only owns 160 acres, but ran cattle illegally on hundreds of thousand of acres of federal land. He had been ordered numerous times to remove his cattle in court orders from federal judges and he chose to ignore their authority. I guess the Bundy's get to choose which federal court decisions they will honor. When law enforcement chose to do something about this two-decade old problem, Cliven called in militia members from around the country and they threatened law enforcement officers who were enforcing a court order and pointed loaded weapons and assault rifles at them. The BLM backed down to avoid bloodshed.
I invite you to click here to read an excellent story from Washington Post reporter Leah Sottile published in December of 2107 exposing the religious fanaticism that colors the Bundy philosophy. This article helped inspire the sign about false religious whackos.
This link will take you to a great story by John Dougherty entitled "Zion, Militias and Public Lands" that appeared in the November 29, 2017 edition of City Weekly, Utah's alternative weekly published in Salt Lake City, that examines the many ludicrous claims of the Bundy's.
Here's a four-paragraph excerpt:
"Cliven Bundy's claim to property also ignores that fact that nearly all the land he was grazing his cattle on has been owned by the U.S. since it was ceded from Mexico in 1848 as part of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo that ended the Mexican-American War. The land originally belonged to the Paiute tribes. Bundy only has title to 160 acres. Despite Bundy's claim that his family had been grazing cattle in the area since the late 19th century, there's no official record showing his family had legal title to land prior to 1948.
Clark County Recorder documents posted by KLAS-TV show the 160-acre Bunkerville ranch Bundy calls home was purchased by his parents, David and Bodel Bundy, from Raoul and Ruth Leavitt on Jan. 5, 1948. The purchase included the transfer to the Bundys of certain water rights, including water from the nearby Virgin River. Cliven Bundy was born in 1946.
Beyond that, the elder Bundy also accepted federal jurisdiction over the public grazing lands for decades and paid grazing fees on his Bunkerville federal allotment from 1973 through 1993. He ceased paying the fees after the Bureau of Land Management reduced the size of his allotment and the number of cattle that could be legally grazed in order to protect the endangered Mojave desert tortoise.
The bureau canceled his grazing permit in 1994, but Bundy continued to trespass his cattle on more than 1,200 square miles of Bureau and National Park Service land at the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. The ongoing encroachment led to the roundup of Bundy's cattle that culminated with the armed standoff between Bundy, his militia supporters and federal law enforcement."
Check out the full story in this link.
This superb illustration below is by Danny Hellman.
DECEMBER 4, 2017
This amazing mural of the Bears Ears landscape was created by artist Josh Scheuerman, painted on a building’s wall across from Fisher Brewery in Salt Lake City. It's on the south side of 800 South between 300 and 400 West. This picture doesn’t show the whole 20’ x 100’ mural.
As the presidential motorcade passed on it's trip around town, some employees of this great brewery stood in front of it and held up monkey wrenches. Hayduke Lives!
This excellent editorial cartoon from Tom Toles of the Washington Post has me wondering if someone read the press release below?
December 2, 2017
I joined with 7,000 others to tell Orange Mussolini not to mess with Utah's national monuments.
Click here to go to the website for the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance to stay up on the latest efforts to save Utah's wildlands.
Click here to go to Utah Dine Bikeyah to donate to the cause.
NOVEMBER 5, 2017
Strange
Possibilities
News Service
Stories That Might Seem Unimaginable
Pouncing on the theme of local control of federal lands and incorporating “local custom and culture” into federal land use decisions, a coalition of land use and other organizations has filed suit in federal court to gain more control of federal land in New York City.
The loosely-based coalition of land use and constitutional “patriot” organizations has filed suit against the U.S. Department of Interior and the National Park Service in U.S. Second District Court at the Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse in New York City. The suit asks the government to respect the wishes of a large majority of the 8.55 million residents of New York City who want more control on 27.5 acres of federal land.
The suit comes on the heels of statements regarding land use decisions and local control made by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, the Trump administration, the state of Utah’s congressional delegation, and state leaders in Utah. The lawsuit claims that since only 16,890 residents of San Juan County, Utah get to exert local control over approximately 3 million acres of federal land in that county that is home to the newly-declared Bears Ears National Monument, the 8.55 million people of New York City should have more control on the 27.5 acres of federal land in New York City. The group claims that they, as American citizens, are not being given equal protection and influence in federal land management decisions. They cite that the land to people ratio in the San Juan County case is one citizen for every 177 acres of federal land, while conversely, the ratio in the New York case is over 310,000 people per acre. They also point out that citizens in San Juan County total only five one-thousandths of one percent of the citizens in the United States who own the federal land, proving that rural Utahns are being given a disproportionate level of influence in these decisions.
Citing “local custom and culture”, the lawsuit stems from an effort by citizens of New York and the tri-state area to have a New York Yankees baseball cap permanently installed on the Statue of Liberty on Ellis Island, a 27.5 acre unit of the National Park Service. The Park Service and Department of Interior denied the request, noting that Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty belong to all Americans and as caretakers of that property, what it represents, and the emotional value of the Statue of Liberty, concluded that the action would be not in the best interests of American citizens.
The organizations have utilized a tactic employed by the State of Utah in their fight with federal land management agencies, going to an out-of-state law firm willing to give a favorable forecast of the chance for a legal victory that most other legal advisors say will be a costly, fruitless endeavor. The coalition has employed the law firm of Nowduwee, Maake, Abundle, and Howe to represent them.
FEBRUARY 18, 2017
On February 16, 2017, the Outdoor Retailers Association announced that due to the positions of the Utah legislature and Utah's congressional delegation and their efforts and resolutions to rescind the newly-declared Bears Ear National Monument and to rescind or modify the boundaries of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument established in 1996, they would no longer bring their trade shows to Salt Lake City after 2018. This, after the ORA had non-binding contracts to locate not just the two shows they brought annually for the last 20 years that brought $45 million dollars in direct spending to Utah, but to add three more shows, putting their potential contribution to Utah's economy at a half-billion dollars by 2023.
Go to this link for a February 18, 2017 column in the Salt Lake Tribune by Robert Gehrke describing the monetary impact of Utah's politician's stupidity.
I visited this Patagonia store in Salt Lake City two days later to express my thanks and support to Patagonia, who told the Outdoor Retailers that even if the organization did keep it's outdoor products shows in Utah, they would not participate due to our state legislature and congressional delegation's regressive policies. Patagonia also supported Tim DeChristopher in 2011 when he was going through his ordeal while standing up against the BLM's oil and gas leasing policies.
THANKS, Patagonia!
FEBRUARY 10, 2017
"When it gets down to having to use violence, then you are playing the system's game. The establishment will irritate you – pull your beard, flick your face – to make you fight. Because once they've got you violent, then they know how to handle you. The only thing they don't know how to handle is non-violence and humor."
- John Lennon
