2016  postings for

SO WWW?

OK, try again—-

Saturday, December 31, 2016

SWRCB NOTICE:

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FOURTH REVISED NOTICE
COMMENT DEADLINE EXTENDED AND REMINDER OF FINAL PUBLIC HEARING DAY
NOTICE OF FILING AND RECIRCULATION, NOTICE OF OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC COMMENT AND NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING ON
AMENDMENT TO THE WATER QUALITY CONTROL PLAN FOR THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY/SACRAMENTO-SAN JOAQUIN DELTA ESTUARY AND SUPPORTING
DRAFT REVISED SUBSTITUTE ENVIRONMENTAL DOCUMENT
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) will receive public comments on the proposed updates (Plan Amendment) to the Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary
(Bay-Delta Plan) and the recirculated draft revised Substitute Environmental Document (SED) in accordance with this notice. The proposed updates include new and revised San Joaquin River flow objectives for the protection of fish and wildlife beneficial uses, a revised salinity water quality objective for the protection of southern Delta agricultural beneficial uses, as well as a program of implementation for those objectives. The State Water Board is proposing to update the Bay-Delta Plan in accordance with a regulatory program exempt under section 21080.5 of the Public Resources Code from the requirement to prepare an environmental impact report (EIR) under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (Public Resources Code, § 21000 et seq.) and with other applicable laws and regulations.
The State Water Board initially provided this notice on September 15, 2016, and revised the notice on October 7, October 18, and December 9, 2016. The notice, as revised, remains in effect except for the change in the comment deadline and the change to the room location for the January 3, 2017 hearing, as noted below.
COMMENT PERIOD EXTENDED
The time to submit written comments on the proposed Plan Amendment and SED has been extended until 12:00 noon on March 17, 2017. Procedures for submitting written comments are described below.
REMINDER OF PUBLIC HEARING DAY
As stated in the third revised notice, dated December 9, 2016, the public hearing to receive public comments on the proposed Plan Amendment and the SED began on November 29, 2016 and continued on December 16, 19, and 20, 2016. The public hearing will conclude at:
January 3, 2017 – 9:00 a.m.
Joe Serna Jr. – CalEPA Headquarters Building
Byron Sher Auditorium
1001 I Street, Second Floor
Sacramento, CA 95814
Webcast available at: https://video.calepa.ca.gov/.

2
For information regarding project background; hearing procedural matters; future notifications;
building parking, accessibility, and security; and additional information, please see the third
revised notice at the following link:
http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/bay_delta/bay_delta_plan/water_
quality_control_planning/2016_sed/docs/third_revised_notice_baydeltaplan_phase%201.pdf
SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN COMMENTS
The State Water Board will accept both written and oral comments on the proposed Plan
Amendment and the SED. Written comments must be received no later than 12:00 noon on
March 17, 2017, and addressed and submitted to:
Jeanine Townsend, Clerk to the Board
State Water Resources Control Board
1001 I Street, 24th Floor
Sacramento, CA 95814-0100
Comment letters may be submitted electronically, in pdf text format (if less than 15 megabytes
in total size) to the Clerk to the Board via e-mail at commentletters@waterboards.ca.gov.
Please indicate in the subject line: “Comment Letter – 2016 Bay-Delta Plan Amendment &
SED.” You may also submit your comments by fax at (916) 341-5620. Electronic submission is
preferred, but not required.
Couriers delivering comment letters must check in with lobby security personnel, who can
contact Jeanine Townsend at (916) 341-5600.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Please direct questions about this notice to Katheryn Landau at (916) 341-5588 or by email at
Katheryn.Landau@waterboards.ca.gov, or to Timothy Nelson at (916) 445-5987 or by email at
Timothy.Nelson@waterboards.ca.gov.
Additional information on the public hearing can be found at the State Water Board’s website at
http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/board_info/calendar.
December 22, 2016
Date Jeanine Townsend
Clerk to the Board

__________________________________________________________

Monday, December 26th, 2016

https://www.californiawaterfix.com/

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Thursday, December 15th, 2016

Well, I can’t figure it out, but certain photos and scanned documents from particular posts have failed to remain “attached to the post” and essentially disappeared (although they still remain in the upload library).  Discovered two more this morning from the Kampa’s POU Deja vu post originally posted on February 25, 2016 which can still be accessed under the February 2016 archive links.  Anyway, here is the “re-attached” document and photo that were as AWOL!  (Absent without leave) lol  :

KAMPA’s POU Déjà vu — (“what?”) — KAMPA’s POU Déjà vu

_____________________________________

Wednesday, December 7th, 2016

[Pearl Harbor Day]

Saw this article this morning – apparently the appeal hearing special meeting is planned to be held February 7th at the LDP high school gym.

_____________________________

Tentative Date Set For Dollar General Appeal

Don Pedro Dollar General Proposal Enlarge

Sonora, CA — The Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors are planning to hold a special meeting in February to decide the fate of a proposed Dollar General store in Don Pedro.

Around 300 attended a Planning Commission meeting in November at Don Pedro High School, when the plan was denied. In order to be close to the project location, and to house another big crowd, the county will again ask officials at Don Pedro High School to play host for the special meeting on February 7 at 6pm.

The store developer, Joe Dell, was on hand for today’s meeting and requested that the Supervisors allow him an adequate amount of time to provide an overview of the project at the special meeting. At the Planning Commission meeting he was only allowed three minutes. He noted that there’s “a lot of things in motion being compiled before the meeting” and he would like extra time to lay out the details.

Attorney George Harper, representing the Don Pedro Market, came up immediately afterwards and requested that the main opposition group (Don Pedro Market), also be granted additional time to speak, assuming Dell’s request is granted. The Board of Supervisors collectively agreed to allow the developer and the main opposition 10 minutes each to state their cases on February 7. All comments from the general public will then be limited to three minutes.

It is noted that only four Supervisors will vote on the appeal. At today’s meeting, District Four Supervisor John Gray stated, “In an abundance of caution I recuse myself from deliberation on the Lake Don Pedro Dollar General project. My partner represents the owners of a piece of property across the development that the developers have expressed an interest in.”

The developers will need three votes in favor of the project to allow it to proceed.

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MONDAY, December 5th, 2016

(My continuing blah blah blah regarding the proposed construction of a DG store next to the Don Pedro Market)

Monday 1400hrs.  Since I do not recall ever visiting a Dollar General store I decided to take a short road trip for just that purpose and visit the two in Tuolumne County.

(BELOW)  18300 State Highway 108 Jamestown (Across Hwy from the Jamestown Harley Davidson)

(BELOW) 20670 Soulsbyville Road x Hwy 108 Sonora (Left at the Soulsbyville Road traffic light)

Both stores are located in far more developed commercial areas.  (Soulsbyville location shown BELOW)

Jamestown location (BELOW)

Compared to our Don Pedro Market commercial area.  (BELOW)

 The proposed DG location would be just behind the white RV yard sign on the corner.

The DG store layout appeared to be the same for both locations so entering the second one in Jamestown I already had a good idea of where specific items would be located (pet supplies, household, paper products, groceries, etc.)

Reading about these stores the other night I was surprised to find complaints by customers of DG employees accusing the customer of purchasing DG products for resale at other non DG stores.

I was familiar with this practice concerning Walmart and the purchase of the (always) limited supply of 22 cal ammunition.  A year or so ago two separate Walmart location managers explained  that some customers would purchase the “value packs” and then resell them (for a profit of course) to other retailers and gun shops which again marked the price up for their piece of the profit.

I learned that DG plastic bags are bright green and some of their products actually request customers to report to the company if they observe DG items for sale elsewhere (below).

You know, from time to time I have observed “customers” taking detailed notes (some digital recordings) of product prices at different stores.  I assumed they were working for a competitor so as to be able to adjust prices on certain items in the attempt to increase customer traffic.

My Father used to have a “game plan” for purchasing certain items at particular stores also (following newspaper insert ads) but soon discovered that the prices were always fluctuating from store to store.  What was a bargain one day at store “A”, was a bargain the following week at store “B”.  Store “C” would sometimes beat both “A” and “B”, but made up for it on “impulse buys” which were generally higher.  Stores “D” and “E” were wildcards!  LOL  Pretty difficult for a regular customer to keep up with such price juggling advertising techniques without frequent trips and return trips which naturally blows the whole concept of saving money due to the price of fuel – not to mention lost time.

ANYWAY, I found the stores to be pretty much what I expected.  Both had about three customers at the time – a quick glance at the shopping carts revealed traditional convenience store items, soda, snacks, and miscellaneous dry goods. The Soulsbyville location had a sign out front (photo) “NOW HIRING”.  I was met at the front door of both locations by an apparent manager with a cordial greeting.  Prices seemed reasonable but I did not take notes (didn’t want one of the managers to think I was a spy for another outfit!  Lol)

I noticed at the Jamestown location the manager picking up a small piece of plastic at the front entry (I am not saying it was messy at all – just kudos to him for noticing and doing something to correct the situation.)  Mid morning seemed to be one of the delivery times for both stores and that’s about it other than the one major difference immediately recognized –

both the Jamestown and Soulsbyville locations are far more developed than our Lake Don Pedro area.

This difference was quite obvious with the many other businesses and heavier traffic on Hwy 108.

SONORA VIEW FROM HWY 108 COMING BACK FROM SOULSBYVILLE (BELOW)

NICE THING ABOUT A ROAD TRIP IS COMING HOME (BELOW)

More later – Lew

____________________________________

For those that may have missed it, here is a November 25th, 2016 SONORA UNION DEMOCRAT ARTICLE regarding the TUOLUMNE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS SETTING THE APPEAL HEARING DATE tomorrow in Sonora, California  (the DG appeal will likely be held at the LDP High School Gym in January 2017):

_________________________________

Developers of Don Pedro Dollar General strike back

By Alex MacLean, The Union Democrat

Published Nov 25, 2016 at 10:16PM

Here is the proposed DG location in Lake Don Pedro (Obtained from the Tuolumne County PDF report referred to below under Sunday’s posting.)

Sure seems pretty darn close to an existing business that has operated in Lake Don Pedro for decades with friendly local service.

Why would FOOTHILL LAND DEVELOPMENT llc (located on Arbolada Drive on the hill just North East of the “commercial area”) support such a proposal with the inherent risk of loosing (or severely harming) an established local business that we already have?

WHAT DO THE OWNERS OF THE DON PEDRO MARKET THINK ABOUT THE PROJECT?

(From the TUOLUMNE COUNTY PDF report Page 5 mentioned below – viewers are encouraged to read this extremely informative report.)

“I am the principal owner of the Don Pedro Market which has served the
community of La Grange and Lake Don Pedro for approximately 30 years. This
is a small community of perhaps fewer than 3,000 full time residents. This
community cannot support two general grocery stores. We are local people
and employ local people. We support local causes and the local community.
Dollar General is a nationwide corporation, based in Tennessee, and their
profits will leave our community and our state. Additionally, we provide
services and goods to the community that Dollar General does not provide. We
have a hardware store, a deli and sell gasoline. If our store fails because a
Dollar General is allowed to build a store next to us, then

these other services will no longer be offered to the local community.”

more later….

__________________________

Sunday, December 4th, 2016

I was asked for whatever support I could furnish in opposition to the controversial proposal of constructing a Dollar General store next to our existing Don Pedro Market located on Hwy 132 and Las Moras Street in our “commercial area”.   Foolishly I had hoped the recent denial by the Tuolumne County Planning Commission was going to be enough to end the matter thanks to the splendid opposition already made by concerned community members, but representatives of Dollar General are appealing to the Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors (December 6^th, 2016), so why not add my blah blah blahs to the mix while there is still time?

[The actual appeal hearing is likely to be held in January here in Lake Don Pedro at the High School Gym]

ANYTHING VALUABLE REQUIRES PROTECTION

The above title has been LAKEDONPEDRO.ORG’s motto for many years and at first blush is easily understood.  A look at the Sheriff’s booking log provides numerous examples as to how some folks are more than willing to liberate your property for their use without the traditional requirements of adequate compensation and legal transfer of ownership.   Such wrongful acquisition (often generally referred to as theft) can be accomplished overtly against the victim’s will as in an armed robbery or more covertly as in burglary or embezzlement where the passage of time is often required before the victim even realizes they have suffered a loss.    Heck, loss of personal property can even be achieved with our own misguided permission or acquiescence such as in the all too familiar fraud, misrepresentation, and con-game type scenarios.  This particular posting primarily addresses a POTENTIAL LOSS OF SOMETHING I BELIEVE TO BE QUITE VALUABLE that will not likely be appreciated until the passage of some time when it is too late to avoid the harm.  A delayed “gotcha” if you will.

YES! PROTECT THAT WHICH IS VALUABLE – BUT WHAT IS VALUABLE?

There is no great jump in logic in presuming some type of protection is required for things worthy of the title “valuable” or that the protection can range from something as simple as labeling property with your name or tracking identification (numbers, branding, etc) to far more elaborate measures like locking things up in safe deposit boxes or a bank vault.  Regardless of the method or degree of protection ultimately employed, the first requirement in protecting something valuable is recognizing that the proposed “subject of protection” actually possess some sort of value.  (And around we go!  Lol)

VALUE IS OFTEN A SUBJECTIVE DETERMINATION AND VARIES GREATLY

Ahhh, here lies the problem as we enter the realm of subjectivity which is necessarily born of individual perspectives.  This is a far more elusive concept to wrestle with than simply advocating the protection of something already judged, and accepted by others to be valuable.  What we have experienced, witnessed, and learned in our own lives shapes our understanding, recognition, and appreciation for what one might label as valuable.

(Geez – starting to sound like backyard philosophy huh?  Let’s see if I can get this back on track……)

Consider the following common expressions and what they might convey to you regarding value.

“You get what you pay for”

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”

“One man’s trash is another man’s treasure”

“A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush”

“Cutting off your nose despite your face”

 “You never know what you’ve got until it’s gone”

“It sounded too good to be true”

“There is only one chance to make a good first impression”

“ANYTHING VALUABLE REQUIRES PROTECTION”

So the veracity of the above assertion is inexorably dependent upon whether a viewer accepts the quality of “value” alleged to the “whatever” {anything} subject being discussed.  Right?  Take our drinking water supply for instance.  I seriously doubt there are many people who would argue that quality potable water (which is necessary for survival and healthy living) is valuable and therefore deserves the requisite protection.  That’s an easy one.  But what about other intrinsic “valuables” that are more subjective and difficult to explain because they orbit around other things including faith, trust, contentment, appreciation, serenity, common sense, ignorance, greed, convenience, etc.   WHOA!  Better coral this meandering little doggie and get back to the intended topic…

Basically what I am desperately trying to convey is the idea that we all have different perspectives of what is important and meaningful to us as individuals so what may be considered valuable and deserving of protection varies greatly from person to person.  So, please appreciate that my comments are only from my perspective and do not negate or dismiss legitimate desires of others who want the Dollar General and believe it to be valuable for them.

SO, WOULD A DOLLAR GENERAL STORE BE A WISE ADDITION TO OUR LAKE DON PEDRO COMMUNITY? 

Easy answer:  YES and NO. 

YES for those who desire greater convenience in obtaining lower priced common items at reduced cost, and,

NO for those concerned about not only protecting what we already possess and utilize (the Don Pedro Market, deli, hardware, and fueling station) but also in maintaining the rural atmosphere most of us specifically moved up here to enjoy.

New to this controversy my first step was to understand exactly what a DOLLAR GENERAL store was (I do not believe I have been in one yet) which meant obtaining some background information.  First the internet:

Dollar General

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dollar General store in Oscoda, Michigan

Dollar General Corporation is an American chain of variety stores headquartered in Goodlettsville, Tennessee. As of January 2016, Dollar General operated over 12,400 stores^[1] in all U.S. states except: Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Washington and Wyoming.^[3]

The company acquired the 280 stores of the P.N. Hirsh Division of Interco, Inc. in 1983, and in 1985 added 206 stores and a warehouse from Eagle Family Discount Stores, also from Interco, Inc.^[4] In recent years, the chain has started constructing more stand-alone stores, typically in areas not served by another general-merchandise retailer. In some cases, stores are within a few city blocks of each other.

Dollar General offers both name brand and generic merchandise — including off-brand goods and closeouts of name-brand items — in the same store, often on the same shelf. Although it has the word “dollar” in the name, Dollar General is not a dollar store by the strict definition of that term as most of its products are priced at more than $1.00. However, goods are usually sold at set price points in the range of .50 to 60 dollars, excluding articles such as phone cards and loadable store gift cards.

Outside of larger urban markets and small cities, Dollar General often serves smaller rural areas which do not have the customer base for a regular-sized discount department store, such as Beaver, Oklahoma in the Panhandle region, where the closest small city with larger stores is Liberal, Kansas an hour north. It competes in the dollar store format with national chains Family Dollar and Dollar Tree, regional chains such as Fred’s in the Southeast, and numerous independently owned stores.

Since 2000, Dollar General has experimented with stores that carry a greater selection of grocery items. These stores, (similar to the Walmart Supercenter, but much smaller), operate under the name “Dollar General Market”.

Contents

• 1 History
  • 1.1 Acquisition and spinoff
• 2 Dollar General Market
• 3 Motorsports connection
• 4 DG Brand
• 5 Expansion plans
• 6 Controversies
• 7 References
• 8 External links

History

The stores were founded in 1939 by Cal Turner Sr. and his father J.L. Turner in Scottsville, Kentucky as J.L. Turner & Son, Inc. Their descendant Cal Turner Jr. later worked as CEO of the firm for 25 years.^[5] In 1968, the business changed its name to Dollar General Corporation. In 2007, the company was acquired by the private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR), which took the company public in 2009.^[6]

The first Dollar General store opened in Scottsville, Kentucky, on June 1, 1955, the concept was that no item in the store would cost more than one dollar. The idea became a success, and other stores owned by J.L. Turner and his son Cal Turner were quickly converted. By 1957, annual sales of Dollar General’s 29 stores were $5 million. The Turners did not reach this level of success without obstacles. James Luther (J.L.) Turner’s father died in an accident in 1902 when J.L. was only 11. J.L. had to quit school so he could work the family farm and help provide for his mother and siblings. He never completed his education. J.L. knew his limited education demanded that he become a quick study of the world around him. After two unsuccessful attempts at retailing, J.L. became a traveling dry goods salesman for a Nashville wholesale grocer. J.L. left the sales job after 10 years and settled his family in Scottsville, Kentucky. During the Depression, he began buying and liquidating bankrupt general stores. J.L.’s only child, Cal Turner, Sr., accompanied his father to these closeouts at a young age, gaining valuable business knowledge and skills.

In October 1939, J.L. and Cal opened J.L. Turner and Son Wholesale with an initial investment of $5,000 each. Wholesaling quickly gave way to retailing – J.L.’s third and final attempt at retailing. The switch to retailing resulted in annual sales above $2 million by the early 1950s.

J.L. died in 1964. Four years later, the company he co-founded went public as Dollar General Corporation, posting annual sales of more than $40 million and net income in excess of $1.5 million. In 1977, Cal Turner, Jr., who joined the company in 1965 as the third generation Turner, succeeded his father as president of Dollar General. Cal Jr. led the company until his retirement in 2002. Under his leadership, the company grew to more than 6,000 stores and $6 billion in sales.

Effective June 3, 2015, Chief Operating Officer Todd Vasos replaced Rick Dreiling as chief executive. Dreiling will remain senior advisor and chairman until his retirement in January 2016.^[7]

Acquisition and spinoff

On July 6, 2007, all shares of Dollar General stock were acquired by private equity investors for $22 per share. An investment group consisting of affiliates of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR), GS Capital Partners (an affiliate of Goldman Sachs), Citigroup Private Equity and other co-investors completed an acquisition of Dollar General Corporation for a total enterprise value of $7.3 billion.

As a part of the transition to a privately held company, Dollar General assessed each location at the end of its lease against a model known as “EZ Stores”. This assessment included evaluating whether the location had a loading dock, garbage dumpsters, adequate parking, and acceptable profitability. Stores that did not pass this evaluation were relocated or closed. Over 400 stores were closed as part of this initiative.^[8]

In August 2009, the company announced it will file for an initial public offering, turning the company, again, into a publicly traded corporation.^[9] Although the timing of the Initial Public Offering (IPO) was not announced by Dollar General or KKR, Dollar General filed on August 20, 2009 for an initial offering of up to $750 Million^[10] The return of Dollar General to public ownership has been estimated to deliver up to a 30% increase in value to KKR over the two-year period it will have been private, making it a rare gem in KKR’s current portfolio.

Dollar General Market

Dollar General Market is a chain of hypermarkets that sells everything a Dollar General store sells, plus an expanded selection of groceries, as well as fresh produce. It is similar to a Walmart Supercenter, but smaller. Their store brands include Clover Valley, Smart & Simple, DG Home, and Everpet.

Dollar General Market store in Nashville, Georgia

Motorsports connection

The Dollar General-sponsored truck of Jason Leffler in 2012

For several years, Dollar General has had a connection with motorsports, particularly in NASCAR. The company is currently a primary sponsor for Joe Gibbs Racing. Dollar General sponsored Brian Vickers in the Nationwide Series in 2013. Dollar General became a primary sponsor for Matt Kenseth in the Sprint Cup Series starting in 2013.^[11] Dollar General and Turner (formerly Braun Racing) have been partnered together since 2008, with the team previously sponsoring cars for Frank Cicci Racing and Kevin Harvick Incorporated. In 2010, Dollar General sponsored some races in the Camping World Truck Series for Kyle Busch Motorsports with Kyle Busch in the No. 18 Toyota Tundra and sponsored Kyle Busch’s Motorsports No. 51 Toyota Tundra for four races in 2014 with Busch driving three and Erik Jones driving one.^[12] Dollar General was the title sponsor for Nationwide Series races held in Charlotte every fall, Chicagoland every summer, and Phoenix in the spring. On May 23, 2016, Dollar General announced they would withdraw its sponsorship from NASCAR at the end of the 2016 season.^[13]

Dollar General is also active in the Verizon IndyCar Series since 2008, serving as the primary sponsor for owner/driver Sarah Fisher‘s Sarah Fisher Racing team. In 2010, both Fisher and Graham Rahal drove part-time for the team finishing 9th at the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Fisher also led the field at the Peak Antifreeze & Motor Oil Indy 300 at Chicagoland Speedway. In 2011, Dollar General continued to sponsor Sarah Fisher Racing, the team was still part-time but Ed Carpenter drove for nines races starting at the 2011 Indianapolis 500.

DG Brand

Dollar General created its abbreviation, the letters “DG”, as a brand for “inexpensive” household products sold through the Dollar General stores. DG is also the company’s NYSE ticker symbol. In 2010, Dollar General was able to outbid the famous Italian Fashion House Dolce and Gabbana that sells very expensive fashion products under another “DG” label in the acquisition of the “DG” symbol as the Internet address. The domain “DG.com” was purchased in a private sale from EMC Corporation, the successor to the defunct Data General computer manufacturer in June 2010, making Dollar General the 107th large company in the world to own their initials as a 2-letter Internet address. The DG symbol is used by the company for a variety of in-house products like DG Home,^[14] DG Baby,^[15] DG Health and DG Body.

In March 2010, Dollar General announced that it would become the exclusive distributor for Rexall products. Rexall vitamins and supplements had already started appearing at Dollar General stores with a full line of Rexall products followed by Fall 2010.^[16]

Expansion plans

On January 3, 2011, Dollar General announced plans to add 625 new stores in the 35 states where the chain already has stores plus Connecticut, Nevada and New Hampshire, and to hire 6,000 employees. The company also planned to improve or move 550 existing stores.

On August 18, 2014, the company lodged a competing bid of $9.7 billion against Dollar Tree for Family Dollar. The bid was rejected on August 20, 2014 by the Family Dollar board, which said it would proceed with the deal with Dollar Tree.^[17]

In September 2015, the Janesville City Council, in Wisconsin, approved an agreement to bring a Dollar General distribution center to the town. The center will create more than 500 jobs in the area.^[18]

On September 15, 2016, Dollar General announced plans to hire 10,000 new employees and open 900 new stores in fiscal 2016 and 1,000 in fiscal 2017. Dollar General had operated 13,000 stores as of August 2016.^[19]

Controversies

On April 30, 2001, Dollar General Corp was liable for making false statements or failing to disclose adverse facts about the company’s financial results,^[20] and paid $162,000,000 for settlement.

On April 30, 2001, Dollar General announced to restate its earnings for the past three fiscal years, due to accounting irregularities including allegations of fraudulent behavior.^[21]

On March 3, 2005, Dollar General announced to restate its results for 2000 through 2003, due to a clarification of lease-accounting matters issued by the SEC.^[22]

In November 2014, Dollar General was fined $51,700 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration following an inspection of a Brooklyn branch of the store. The statement from OSHA notes that Dollar General has had repeated health and safety violations: “Since 2009, OSHA has conducted 72 inspections of Dollar General nationwide. Of those inspections, 39 have resulted in citations.”^[23] In April 2016, OSHA reported that further citations had been given to the store for exposing employees to the risk of electrical hazards due to missing face plates on electrical outlets. The store was fined $107,620.^[24]

References

• “Dollar General Reports Record Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2015 Financial Results; Board of Directors Increases Regular Quarterly Cash Dividend by 14%”. Goodlettsville, Tennessee: Dollar General Corporation. 2016-03-10. Retrieved 2016-03-16.
• · “Dreiling to Become Senior Advisor and Remain Chairman of the Board”. Dollar General. May 28, 2015. Retrieved June 15, 2015.
• · “Store Locator”. Dollar General. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
• · Talley, Jim (3 June 1985). “Dollar General Prepares To Convert Eagle Discount”. Sun Sentinel. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
• · “Dollar General Newsroom | Former Dollar General Chairman and CEO Cal Turner Receives Lifetime Achievement Award from Retail Merchandiser Magazine”. Newscenter.dollargeneral.com. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
• · “Dollar General being acquired for $6.87B by equity firm”. The Tennessean. 2007-03-12. Retrieved 2007-03-12.^{[dead link]}
• · RAMAKRISHNAN, SRUTHI. “Dollar General says COO Vasos to replace Dreiling as CEO”. Reuters. Reuters.com. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
• · Susan Elzey (2007-07-19). “Location part of store closing”. Retrieved August 13, 2007.
• · Dollar General Files for an I.P.O.
• ·
• ·
• ·
• · Jensen, Tom (May 23, 2016). “Dollar General leaving Joe Gibbs Racing, NASCAR at end of season”. Foxsports.com. Retrieved May 23, 2016.
• · – DG home, a Dollar General Brand for cleaning products
• · – DB Baby, a Dollar General Brand for Baby Products
• · “My Private Brand – Rexall Private Brands Come to Dollar General”. My Private Brand. March 25, 2010. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
• · “Family Dollar rejects $9.7 bn acquisition bid by Dollar General”. Charlotte News.Net. 21 August 2014. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
• · Noggle, Amber. “Development agreement approved for Dollar General distribution center”. WKOW.com. WKOW Madison, WI. Retrieved 15 September 2015.
• · “Dollar General to add 10,000 workers in hiring spree”. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
• ·
• · “Dollar General Reports Financial Results for Fiscal 2000 And Restated Results for 1999 and 1998”.
• · “Dollar General Corp to restate 2000-2003 results”.
• · “Dollar General in Brooklyn, Mississippi, cited for repeat safety hazards; more than $51K in fines proposed”. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
  24. “OSHA inspection finds Mississippi Dollar General store continues to expose workers to safety hazards despite recent citations, penalties”. OSHA. 14 April 2016. Retrieved 18 April 2016.

External links

• Dollar General Website

• Business data for Dollar General: Google Finance
• Yahoo! Finance
• Reuters
• SEC filings

Please also check out this pdf report by TUOLUMNE COUNTY which is extremely detailed and informative:    agenda%20report

I will be adding to this tomorrow.   My best to you and yours, Lew

_____________________________

Sunday, November 27th, 2016

So much for a POST THANKSGIVING RECESS.

Yes, most certainly the SWRCB’s proposal for releasing more Lake McClure surface water for environmental purposes is frightening but have you noticed how LDPCSD MANAGEMENT has consistently evaded and ignored THEIR OWN LIKELY PROPORTIONAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR ENCOURAGING SUCH DRASTIC MEASURES BY THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA?

BUT HOW?  (A new viewer might ask)

By REPEATEDLY PROVIDING FALSE INFORMATION TO MULTIPLE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES while surreptitiously PURSUING THE KAMPA & KOMPANY’S RECONFIGURATION OF OUR SURFACE WATER TREATMENT PLANT into a SPECIAL BENEFIT GROUNDWATER SUBSTITUTION PROGRAM FOR LAND DEVELOPERS OUTSIDE THE PERMITTED PLACE OF USE UNDER WATER LICENSE 11395 which is ironically held by the MERCED IRRIGATION DISTRICT!

Oh!  But now they publicly advertise their deep concern over the potential negative results of their nefarious activity to OUR COMMUNITY?

(not where PETE KAMPA LIVES by the way)

They now request our community to JOIN THEM (?) in protesting the SWRCB proposal?

WHAT A BUNCH OF  lying  DECEITFUL   F)@&!#%    HYPOCRITES!

KAMPA & KOMPANY specifically INTENDED TO CIRCUMVENT THOSE MERCED RIVER WATER RESTRICTIONS

(of which Pete Kampa had clear knowledge of for twenty years due to his first employment tour with the LDPCSD)

with his plan of  developing  new GROUNDWATER WELLS

paid for with PUBLIC FUNDS

(which were actually intended for improvements to the infrastructure for EXISTING WATER CUSTOMERS)

in order to create a legally required “ALTERNATE SOURCE OF WATER”

to facilitate a GROUNDWATER SUBSTITUTION PROGRAM

for SPECIAL BENEFIT WATER SERVICE to third party land developers that were otherwise precluded from receiving LDPCSD water!

Adding insult to injury, KAMPA’s program was also intended to be financially supported with PUBLIC AGENCY FUNDS primarily derived from the legal users of MERCED RIVER  WATER in the Lake Don Pedro subdivision

for which that SURFACE WATER TREATMENT PLANT WAS DESIGNED, CONSTRUCTED and INTENDED TO SERVE!

Why is it that those responsible for such outrageous betrayals by a PUBLIC AGENCY are often allowed to “walk” while leaving innocent VICTIM CUSTOMERS to suffer the consequences?

Below is a recent LDPCSD request for community support, please notice:

“Subsitite”

“Subsitute Envrionmental”

“signifigantly”

“drastice”

” propsed”

“wanter to continure”

“lik”

“adaptively”

“sustainably”

“withour”

“furture”

“signifigant”

“signifigant”

“enginerring”

“propsosed”

“envrionment”

“propsal”

???

(Heck, the spelling errors contained in the following LDPCSD public announcement itself provides a glimpse as to its hastily prepared nature and lack of professional attention – another good example of what customers have received for the last two years under the KAMPA & KOMPANY special interest regime.)

May bets two u an yors, Lieu

(lul)

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Lake Don Pedro Community Services District Board Calls for Support of the Merced River S.A.F.E Plan

Last Updated: Friday, 25 November 2016 06:03

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Saturday, November 26th, 2016

Hope all had a wonderful Thanksgiving.   Judging by some of the “angry looking clouds” I think we’re in for some rain today.   Haven’t bothered to check weather sites yet – often it doesn’t help anyway.  Last week the forecast was no precipitation so I left some tools out, naturally it rained.  A few days later reports were expecting rain so I picked up all the tools (and various other stuff I didn’t want to get wet) stored everything, and of course, not a drop!  lol  Perhaps it’s the same everywhere (or at least averages out the same) but it sure seems like the weather here in LDP is rather difficult to predict.  Many times I have watched as storm clouds have headed directly for my location yet just a few miles before contact the “apparent precipitation producing mass” diverts around either side without any significant water.  (Of course other times a “storm cell” which looks like it is going to completely miss the area suddenly swerves and deposits the rust agent on all tools and equipment left out exposed.  Go figure.)

We probably need a standard weather report like:  Lake Don Pedro weather forecast: Clear blue skies, temperature range between 74-78 degrees with 5-8 MPH winds from the Southeast and a slight chance of plummeting temperatures with significant rain, sleet and hail – or not, just depends.   lol      As long as Lake McClure takes on more water, who cares?

Yup, seems like a good day to remain indoors and get caught up on some neglected house chores…hummm, I have a vacuum around here somewhere…..

YES INDEED, a quick look at online news confirmed my “window weather report” if higher elevations are looking at snow we may indeed get some rain!  Need to haul up some firewood.  later ?

Update: Post-Thanksgiving Winter Storm Warning

Tioga Pass (7-8-15) Enlarge

The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for the Sierra Nevada beginning at 10 AM this morning. This will be upgraded to a Winter Storm Warning from 4 PM this afternoon through 4 PM Sunday.

Snow levels are expected to drop to around 3,500 to 4,500 feet.

The main impact will be slippery roads and low visibility.

In addition to the snow, breezy to gusty winds may cause white out conditions at times.

Total snow accumulations will range from three to eight inches above the 4,000 foot elevation. Half a foot to a foot-and-a-half of snow is likely above 5,000 feet.

A Winter Weather Advisory means that periods of snow will cause primarily travel difficulties. Be prepared for snow covered roads and limited visibilities and use caution while driving.

A Winter Storm Warning means severe winter weather conditions are expected or are occurring. Significant amounts of snow are forecast that will make travel dangerous. Only travel in an emergency. If you must travel, keep an extra flashlight, food, and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency.

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ELECTION DAY!

Tuesday, November 8th, 2016

Just posted a quick photo and wanted to say “hey!”.  Burn day again (with permit of course).  Nice to get rid of those pine needles.  When they pile up on the ground on an incline they are like walking/slipping & sliding on ice!  (Tailbone can pay a heavy price!  Took 6 months for that “pain in the ass” to finally go away once.)  Pine Cones are no joy either and are very dangerous on a slope as well.  Anyway, need to get to work.  Going to try and “work out” some of the anticipation for tonight’s election results.   Sounds like it is going to be a nail-biter!  Good luck to all of us!

Monday, October 31, 2016

BURN DAY IN MARIPOSA COUNTY (with valid burn permit naturally)

After the recent rain, with more expected tonight, burn restrictions have been lifted.  Open burning is allowed with a valid burn permit (that is of course if you can get the material started after all that beautiful water falling from the sky and thoroughly soaking debris piles!  lol)

Let’s see….updated the TIMELINE with some of that annexation material recently posted.  I do not recall previously reading about that ZERO SPHERE OF INFLUENCE  PROPOSAL by Mariposa County Planning back in 1986 although it certainly made sense considering the MERCED RIVER WATER RESTRICTIONS in water license 11395 held by the MERCED IRRIGATION DISTRICT.

Can you imagine the protests and the behind the scene political pressures from property owners and land developers OUTSIDE THE MID POU who wanted the subdivision’s approved water for their proposed development projects? Can you imagine the millions of dollars in increased property values with the addition of quality potable water?

Heck, ANY PROPERTY receiving water from the LDPCSD SHOULD HAVE BEEN HELD TO THE SAME FINANCIAL REQUIREMENTS AND “ASSOCIATED REGULATIONS” AS THE PROPERTY OWNERS IN THE LAKE DON PEDRO RESIDENTIAL SUBDIVISION FOR WHOM THAT SURFACE WATER TREATMENT PLANT WAS DESIGNED, CONSTRUCTED AND WATER SERVICE LEGALLY APPROVED – ah but of course…… 

They didn’t want restrictive CC&Rs

Attached to their outside POU properties

All they wanted was subdivision water

To be paid for by others for eternity.

Later, Lew

Saturday, October 8, 2016

Good morning.  Certainly is beginning to cool off late at night and during the early morning hours – notice how the humidity difference enables the “smell of Fall”?  Not quite as pungent as the “smell of rain”, but never-the-less a definite change in the “foothill aroma”.

My drip irrigation system has been the victim of a real “chewing problem” lately.  Probably just another result of the drought and animals doing what they can to survive.  Lately a ground squirrel problem has developed in the neighborhood as it was fairly uncommon to see the little rascals running around like they do now.  Not sure if it is because natural predators have moved or the rodents for one reason or another reproduced much more this year.   Yes – yes, I realize that Rattlesnake in the garage a while back might have been a possible solution, but I cannot in good conscience leave an eight button rattler in the garage to assist with vermin eradication – just too much potential for an unpleasant human/pet encounter.

Need to haul more brush, pine needles/cones, leaves, etc. to the burn piles for the annual permitted burning later this year.  Strange, I no sooner get the place looking like I want with only a day or so to savor the good job before a slight weather disturbance, lately just wind,  adds more debris from the trees to the ground and messes everything up requiring more work.  Just not enough time to kick back and enjoy the results of the labor – and it gets even more difficult as the years roll by.  Imagine that – things getting more difficult the older we get?  Oh Dad, you were so right….all my planting and landscaping was only creating more work for my later years.  Ah what the heck, like everything else there are two sides to that coin as well.  At least I will never have to join a health club to maintain some basic minimal activity in advancing years….besides, I actually enjoy the work but time keeps slipping away regardless of how much time I put into it …….there is never enough time to accomplish everything, much less maintain the good results of what is temporarily accomplished.   Speaking of time, I’ve got to get moving with this day.  Later, Lew

Friday, September 30th, 2016

WANT TO SPOT THE SPACE STATION TONIGHT AS IT ORBITS OVERHEAD?

Just saw this:   Time: Fri Sep 30 7:03 PM, Visible: 6 min, Max Height: 52°, Appears: 13° above SSW, Disappears: 11° above ENE

A SIX MINUTE VIEWING IS GREAT.  NOTICED SOMETHING THE OTHER NIGHT AND ASSUMED IT WAS THE ISS (NO NEWS REPORTS OF INVADING SPACE ALIENS OR ANYTHING ELSE)   SORRY IT’S BEEN SO LONG HERE ON “SO WWW?) BUT I HAVE BEEN SUPER BUSY LATELY WITH ALL SORTS OF STUFF (JUST POSTED THE 5 “F”s OF ANY RATE/FEE INCREASES & ANOTHER MEETING VIDEO.)  warning:   LEWIE WAS A BAD BOY AND RAISED HIS VOICE.  SO?   SHOULD I APOLOGIZE FOR BEING FRUSTRATED AFTER MONTHS OF WAITING FOR REQUESTED INFORMATION THAT HAS NOT BEEN PRODUCED?  HOW MANY THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS WILL BE SPENT TRYING TO OBTAIN SOMETHING THAT SHOULD HAVE NEVER BEEN MODIFIED/CONCEALED/DESTROYED/ETC.  ?    NAWWW, I ONLY APOLOGIZE TO YOU VIEWERS WHO WILL LIKELY HAVE TO ADJUST THE VOLUME WHEN LISTENING.   (seriously)  KAMPA & KOMPANY ACT AS THOUGH SECURING SIMPLE MAPS FROM THE APPROPRIATE SOURCES IS A DAUNTING TASK REQUIRING WEEKS, MONTHS, YEARS ,.,.,,,,HELL!  DECADES TO ACHIEVE!  GOOD GRIEF.  WHILE TRYING TO SLEEP THIS MORNING I THOUGHT OF THAT WEIGHT LOSS COMMERCIAL FOR MEN THAT ALWAYS CRACKS ME UP WITH THE LINE  “GUYS — PUT DOWN THE PIE AND PICK UP THE PHONE”.  LOL!

YOU KNOW, WITH ONLY A SLIGHT ADJUSTMENT THAT LINE WOULD MAKE A PERFECT SLOGAN FOR KAMPA & KOMPANY IN THEIR MONTHS LONG JOURNEY IN ATTEMPTING TO SECURE LEGITIMATE DISTRICT MAPS…………………READY?

“PUT DOWN THE LIE AND PICK UP THE PHONE!”

(perhaps it was funnier w/o sleep and four Mountain Dews?)

HOPE ALL IS WELL ON YOUR SIDE OF THE SCREEN.  Do any of you also wonder where our legitimate government “WATCHDOGS” might be sleeping?  Under the porch?  Behind the barn?  Maybe down by the dry seasonal creek?  Perhaps where they are sleeping is not as important as WHY?  (Or are they being a “sneaky junkyard dog” crouched in position waiting for just the right time to confront?)   Ah, Who knows, but I certainly think it long over due to wake their asses up if they are indeed sleeping.  I sure would like to hear some legitimate “public watchdog barking”.  Wouldn’t you?  later, Lew

Here’s an interesting video to ponder while waiting for the November election:

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Wednesday September 14^th, 2016

Worked with the chainsaw on some dead trees yesterday – which is always a bit depressing.   So sad that only a stump remains as evidence of their prior grand existence as host to countless generations of other animals.  Everything has a life cycle.

HAVE YOU FELT IT THE LAST TWO MORNINGS?  FALL IS HERE!

Kind of chilly during the night and early morning – actually needed a blanket instead of the ceiling fan for a change. Speaking of FANS – FALL & CHANGE…the news has been insane lately.  Why do people quickly excuse extremely poor judgment regarding an absolute AND INTENTIONAL FAILURE to maintain national security regulations?  Why do FANS of HRC defend her outrageous activities when a FALL in political support should be the immediate reaction to encourage necessary CHANGE?

NOTE:  Please do not confuse my play on the word “FALL” as being related to HRC’s medical difficulties reported last Sunday in any way because that is not a laughing matter – for any human being.  Those fortunate enough to continue advancing in age (don’t expire – croak – die – etc) will all likely face some form of age-related debilitating illness /disease/hardship.  This I do not wish for anyone nor do I receive any comfort or satisfaction in the suffering of another, however, it does not change my steadfast opinion that HRC should be held accountable for her prior intentional actions.  Any medical treatment could just as easily be accommodated while serving a reasonable sentence in a comfortable federal correctional facility.

CLINTON USED A PRIVATE SERVER TO CONCEAL PERSONAL COMMUNICATIONS?

OK, but in what sort of environment was this activity taking place and were the majority of communications personal?  Certainly a person’s private life (outside government duties) should be private and not subject to public scrutiny and prying, however, it has already been clearly established that much material on that server was not limited to simple personal data, but rather, TOP SECRET INFORMATION.   Not only Top Secret, but SAP material as well which stands for SPECIAL ACCESS PROGRAM – a higher classification than TOP SECRET!

What did the thousands of emails HRC had destroyed actually contain?  Likely not limited to yoga or wedding and funeral plans. (Although funeral plans for other “innocents” were a likely result.)

Outrageous!  Government property is government property and HRC after years of experience (and specific training regarding TOP SECRET/CONFIDENTIAL handling of such information) clearly knew better.

PERSONALLY ATTACK THOSE WHO QUESTION

Unreal how those who legitimately question the bad behavior of HRC are routinely called derogatory names by those involved and/or actively concealing her duplicity.  Frankly, those who conceal this nightmare are just as culpable.  No different than an armed bank robbery – all who participate are culpable and subject to prosecution – be it in the planning, execution, “getaway”, disbursement of the loot, or concealment of the heist.  All are legally “bank robbers”.

The environment in which “concealing information” takes place is extremely important.  For instance: a person wearing a mask to conceal identity during Halloween or a costume party is obviously not involved in nefarious activity, however, doing so at that bank while making “unauthorized” withdrawals certainly would be.

NO INTENT?  MAYBE FOR HRC BUT NOT FOR REGULAR CITIZENS

All this talk of whether or not HRC had “INTENT” to violate the law?  Good grief!  Intent does not necessarily require a statement like:  “I knowingly decided to violate the law and security of the United States, it’s citizens, and countries all over the world because I did not want people to know how I was planning to return to the White House with the assistance of foreign money and behind the scene unethical activities”.

REGULAR FOLKS HAVE “ INTENT” PRESUMED EVERYDAY

Consider all those people who made the horrible mistake in judgment to drink too much and drive which resulted in another’s death.  Did they wake up that morning and decide they would kill an innocent person by reason of a traffic accident caused by intoxication?    Of course not – rather, for whatever reasons they chose to drink, take the gamble, and drive.  Unfortunately for the victim (and responsible party), the gamble failed.

“YOUR HONOR, I DID NOT INTEND TO KILL”

So how can someone be convicted in court of vehicular homicide without even the hint of possessing any purposeful intent to harm or kill another human being?  IMPLIED INTENT.  The conduct, in continuing to consume alcohol and then driving a vehicle while understanding what could happen, evidences a reckless disregard for the safety of others, and therefore, if an “accident” occurs and a human being is killed, the intent can be implied.

Likely we all know of someone who has had to “learn this the hard way”.  Imagine, having to live with the painful reality you ended the life of another person due to voluntary intoxication.  A lifetime punishment for most of us – assuming each possessed a working conscience,  ie, knowing right from wrong and consciously working to avoid the later.

I saw a story recently of a man from a neighboring county who killed his own son in this way (drunk driving).  Can you imagine the guilt, remorse and extreme emotional pain he will likely suffer the rest of his life?  (Hopefully he will receive adequate professional assistance.)  Any resulting prison/jail/probation time and/or heavy monetary fines will all be insignificant when compared to the loss of his son. So very, very sad.

REMORSE? 

Does HRC appear to you to be remorseful for the untold lives she has unequivocally jeopardized (perhaps sacrificed?) by use of such a “private email server” where TOP SECRET INFORMATION was not adequately protected?  Her self-described motivations (and excuses) appear to be only convenience and communication privacy.

Personally I have not observed one single example of genuine/sincere regret, but rather, only weak defenses of her activities which always circle the general bullshit excuse of not realizing such activity was improper and extremely dangerous.  If this is factual – she has NO BUSINESS BEING PRESIDENT ANYWAY!

HRC is not concerned about the damage done (much of which will likely not be realized for decades) – but rather only that she once again got caught doing bad stuff that might interfere with her agenda!

TRACK RECORD OF DISHONESTY AND INSINCERITY

Look it up for yourselves.  There is a vast record regarding good ‘ol Bill & Hill.  I don’t have the time, desire or stomach to further research their lack of integrity.

Ever notice how HRC seems to consider past and current investigations regarding her nefarious activities as being some sort of voluntary public disclosure!  UNBELIEVABLE!   I guess that bank robber caught on closed circuit television could argue to the jury he was only banking after a costume party and the video tape proves it!

I think TRUMPS use of the ROLLING STONES song is genius:

“You can’t always get what you want…but if you try sometime, you might find, you get what you need…”

PRESIDENT OBAMA CAMPAIGNING FOR HRC?

Wow, that sure is forgiving of him considering HRC betrayed his confidence in abiding by “their agreement” after  the president generously appointed HRC Secretary of State.   Sure appears to be betrayal, but was it really?  How can President Obama with a straight face point to HRC’s conduct as politically desirable?  Is President Obama simply over-looking her failures to support the party in attempting to hold on to power for a “third Obama term”?

Once again, President Obama would not have been my choice for President,   (can you hear the screaming accusations of my being a racist already?) but that is not the issue.  The fact he is an African-American has nothing to do with it (if anything that fact would have encouraged support), I simply did not know that much about the man.

Barrack Obama seemed to come on the scene out of no-where (which was something HRC was quite furious about since he “stole” her opportunity to be the first woman president (which also is of no concern to me if the right woman was elected) but as the information about Obama’s background came out – I didn’t care for what I read/saw.

Do any of you think the below information is important or helpful in understanding what the heck has been going on in this country for almost 8 years?

WOULD THE BELOW INFORMATION HAVE MADE ANY DIFFERENCE IN THE

2008 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION?  

(The 2012 election was influenced through VOTER INTIMIDATION BY FEDERAL AUTHORITY)

HAS OBAMA’S “FUNDAMENTAL CHANGE” IN OUR COUNTRY’S GOVERNMENT ALREADY PROHIBITED A RECOVERY?

IF HRC IS SUCCESSFUL WILL THERE EVER BE AN HONEST ELECTION AGAIN?

i

Below video published on June 16th, 2011.  NOTE TO VIEWERS:  The posting of this particular video (or any video/photograph/article, etc. for that matter)  on lakedonpedro.org should not be interpreted as evidence I personally believe everything “reported” in such communications.  Obviously, some of the information has been corrected and updated following the initial publication as more reliable information became available (or was finally released).  This is true with initial reports on ANYTHING because the passage of time provides the crucible with which to verify and fine tune such information with subsequent revealed fact.   I posted this video because there is much interesting information about President Obama’s personal background (which can now be substantiated through other reliable sources) which is quite helpful in understanding his position on many issues.  The title comment in itself is confusing because IF THE VIDEO WAS ACTUALLY BANNED BY PRESIDENT OBAMA how is it we can view it now?   A reasonable preemptive  answer?  Many things have been “banned from public view” for one reason or another but are now available – so who really knows if it was banned or not?

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Feb 15, 2013.   Dr. Ben Carson speech at the National Prayer Breakfast.

Here are some excellent observations and comments with one of the most important being: Our Country was founded on the concept of a well informed and educated populace because to do otherwise created a vulnerability for continued success.  Some pretty funny parables as well – the gifting of two extremely expensive talking birds and the Captain of a warship demanding a “contact” change course immediately come to mind.

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Back to making firewood for this winter.

My best to you and yours, Lew

Tuesday, September 13th, 2016

Well this certainly sucks.  I’ve tried multiple times to post the below NEW YORK TIMES article but the table showing the breakdown of HRC’s emails gets “jumbled” every time so I would suggest you check out the original material yourself.  The linked FBI report was 47 pages long and heavily redacted but extremely interesting, or frightening, depending upon your perspective.  Mine happens to be the later.  Anyway, there is still much information that was successfully displayed.  Unbelievable that someone with as many years experience in (purported) government service as HRC could “accidentally” make such horrible decisions regarding TOP SECRET and confidential information which was (is) vital to our nation’s security and the safety of countless human beings, both in the USA and elsewhere.  Who knows how many years (or decades) it will take to ultimately uncover the actual global damage done.  Frankly, there is little doubt in my mind that many people all over the world have already paid the ultimate price (loss of life) for HRC’s “convenience and privacy” while she schemed and plotted her course back to the White House with hundreds of millions of dollars from unsavory entities all over the world.  What has happened to this country to EVEN PERMIT SOMEONE LIKE THIS TO EVEN RUN FOR PRESIDENT?  Enough….here’s the article.

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(A question mark for every State in the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!)

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 12th, 2016

Well, there’s no turning back now.

True, but why should there be any concern or even minuscule thought of aborting the plan of clearly stating my choice (DONALD TRUMP) for this year’s presidential election on my own website?   I guess because of the apprehension that there are those who will interpret my EXTREMELY LOW OPINION of Hillary Clinton’s track record as some sort of insult or slam against those who support her which is absolutely incorrect.   True, I may not understand their position of support but we are all citizens of this great country and vote according to our own personal experiences, understanding of the issues, and belief as to what would facilitate the most favorable solutions to problems facing our Country, families, friends – perhaps the entire world in general.    If only one person reconsiders and decides to vote TRUMP – this endeavor will have been a success.

I am going to be posting some links to political articles, videos, etc. I believe are enlightening to some degree.  Here’s something I do not recall from school/college – (could be a result of my advancing age of course – lol) some rather shocking historical differences between Democrats and Republicans regarding the reprehensible and horrendous activity of slavery in this country.  Sure surprised me considering what we constantly hear in the news now as to which party has done the most to correct that deplorable and painful historical fact.

http://www.ushistory.org/gop/origins.htm

The Origins of the Republican Party

Trying times spawn new forces. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 divided the country at the 36° 30? parallel between the pro-slavery, agrarian South and anti-slavery, industrial North, creating an uneasy peace which lasted for three decades. This peace was shattered in 1854 by the Kansas-Nebraska Act. Settlers would decide if their state would be free or slave. Northern leaders such as Horace Greeley, Salmon Chase and Charles Sumner could not sit back and watch the flood of pro-slavery settlers cross the parallel. A new party was needed.

Salmon Chase

Where was the party born? Following the publication of the “Appeal of Independent Democrats” in major newspapers, spontaneous demonstrations occurred. In early 1854, the first proto-Republican Party meeting took place in Ripon, Wisconsin. On July 6, 1854 on the outskirts of Jackson, Michigan upwards of 10,000 people turned out for a mass meeting “Under the Oaks.” This led to the first organizing convention in Pittsburgh on February 22, 1856.

The gavel fell to open the Party’s first nominating convention, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on June 17, 1856, announcing the birth of the Republican Party as a unified political force.

Horace Greeley

The Republican Party name was christened in an editorial written by New York newspaper magnate Horace Greeley. Greeley printed in June 1854: “We should not care much whether those thus united (against slavery) were designated ‘Whig,’ ‘Free Democrat’ or something else; though we think some simple name like ‘Republican’ would more fitly designate those who had united to restore the Union to its true mission of champion and promulgator of Liberty rather than propagandist of slavery.”

The elections of 1854 saw the Republicans take Michigan and make advances in many states, but this election was dominated by the emergence of the short-lived American (or ‘Know-Nothing’) Party. By 1855, the Republican Party controlled a majority in the House of Representatives. The new Party decided to hold an organizing convention in Pittsburgh in early 1856, leading up to the Philadelphia convention.

As the convention approached, things came to a head — and to blows. On the floor of the Senate Democratic representatives Preston Brooks and Lawrence Keitt (South Carolina) brutally attacked Charles Sumner with a cane after Sumner gave a passionate anti-slavery speech which Brooks took offense (he was related to the main antagonist of Sumner’s speech, South Carolina Senator Andrew Butler). Both representatives resigned from Congress with severe indignation over their ouster, but were returned to Congress by South Carolina voters in the next year. Sumner was not able to return to the Congressional halls for four years after the attack. Brooks was heard boasting “Next time I will have to kill him,” as he left the Senate floor after the attack.

On the same day as the attack came the news of the armed attack in Lawrence, Kansas. As a direct outgrowth of the “settler sovereignty” of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, an armed band of men from Missouri and Nebraska sacked the town of Lawrence and arrested the leaders of the free state. The anti-abolitionists had made it clear that “settler sovereignty” meant pro-slavery. Labeled only as “ruffians” by Southern politicians, Horace Greeley was quick to decry both events as plots of the pro-slavery South. “Failing to silence the North by threats. . .the South now resorts to actual violence.” The first rumblings of the Civil War had begun. The stage was set for the 1856 election, one which held the future of the Union in its grasp.

Read the Republican Platform of 1856

And what of the nickname “Grand Old Party”?

The nickname of the Republican Party didn’t get attached to it until 1888. Previously, the nickname had been used by Southern Democrats. After the Republicans won back the Presidency and Congress for the first time since the Grant administration, the Chicago Tribune proclaimed: “Let us be thankful that under the rule of the Grand Old Party … these United States will resume the onward and upward march which the election of Grover Cleveland in 1884 partially arrested.”

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On March 20, 1854 the Republican Party was established in Ripon, Wisconsin. Referred to as the GOP or Grand Old Party, it established for one reason: to break the chains of slavery and ensure the unalienable rights endowed by the Creator of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness would be for all Americans.

The Republican Party was created to achieve individual freedom. Then, as now, the antagonist to the Republican party has been the Democrats, the party of collective subjugation and individual enslavement — then physical, now economic.

The first black members of the US House and Senate were Republicans. The first civil rights legislation came from Republicans. Democrats gave us the KKK, Jim Crow, lynchings, poll taxes, literacy tests, and failed policies like the “Great Society.”

Republican President Eisenhower ordered troops to enforce school desegregation. Republican Senator Everett Dirksen enabled the 1964 civil rights legislation to pass, in opposition to Democrat Senators Robert Byrd (KKK Grand Wizard) and Al Gore, Sr.

As a matter of fact, it was Democrat President Lyndon Baines Johnson who stated, “I’ll have those niggers voting Democratic for the next 200 years” as he confided with two like-minded governors on Air Force One regarding his underlying intentions for the “Great Society” programs.

Read more: allenbwest.com

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http://www.aim.org/aim-column/colonel-allen-west-talks-about-black-lives-matter/

 

Colonel Allen West Talks About Black Lives Matter

by Alex Nitzberg on May 24, 2016

The Black Lives Matter movement is a tool used by the left to maintain their “…90 percent plus hold on the black political electorate,” according to Colonel Allen West.

“I think that their whole existence is just a liberal progressive socialist movement to make sure that they keep the black community on the 21^st century economic plantation that’s been created by the left.”

While the organization purports to protest societal discrimination and violence against black Americans, Colonel West exposed the movement’s hypocrisy by noting its profound silence on a multitude of issues wreaking havoc in black communities.

“If it really was about black lives mattering, then they would be in Chicago, they would be at many of the inner cities, they would be talking about better education opportunities, they would be talking about the fact that since Roe versus Wade there have been 13 to 15 million black children who have lost their lives, been killed.”

Colonel West also said that Black Lives Matter ignores other significant problems including the demise of the black family unit and the necessity of a strong economy to support business opportunities for black citizens.

In his estimation, Black Lives Matter’s politically motivated determination of which lives matter and its complete failure to discuss crucial issues delegitimize the organization.

Employing an expression popularized by Vladimir Lenin, Colonel West identifies Black Lives Matter protestors as “useful idiots,” describing an activist involved in a recent incident as “…nothing more than a progressive socialist political pawn in an insidious game of distracting the black community from the failures of progressive socialism and its horrific adverse effects.”

When asked what person or group is pulling the strings to manipulate these “useful idiots,” he advised, “…follow the money…it’s coming from the far left progressive movement.”

James Simpson did just that in AIM’s report, “Reds Exploiting Blacks: The Roots of Black Lives Matter.” The report includes details about the complex web of organizations involved in funding Black Lives Matter.

Colonel West believes that while the left’s protest movements change their name and shift their focus over time, they remain fundamentally the same: He avers that Black Lives Matter is “…another iteration of what we saw with Occupy Wall Street and it’ll morph itself into something else in the next political cycle.”

Alex Nitzberg is an intern at the American Journalism Center at Accuracy in Media and Accuracy in Academia. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook.

 

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SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 11th, 2016

WOW.  Must get to work outside, just finished a video on the MID POU but thought today might be the perfect day to jump into national politics.

NEVER FORGET!

15 years? Just doesn’t seem possible.  Feels like only a few years ago in some respects.

The wound (emotional) is still quite painful.

No doubt we all have personal reference points to that horrible day that we will never forget.

Same as when JFK was assassinated – yes I am old and remember the PA announcement in elementary school.

9/11

Determined and organized enemies attempted to destroy OUR COUNTRY and way of life yet so many never understood this then, nor do they appear to care now.

The attack obviously continues but some people want you to forget history, ignore current warning signs, and eventually fall as inevitable prey to something larger than us.  BULLSHIT!

So, here it goes (despite over a decade of blah blah blah side-stepping national issues while focusing on local) please consider very carefully your choice for president in this November’s election.

I refuse to get bogged down in the “blow by blow” slug fest currently going on between candidates but do not believe this is just an issue between the two major political affiliations (Democrat v Republican).  This election is about OUR COUNTRY in general and whether it will continue under the “status quo political environment” of which HRC is intimately involved.

Neither candidate would have made my personal preference list but that is not the issue.

I love my Country, but do not trust Hillary Clinton or her supporters to do “the right thing”.

SOME “SHOTGUN THOUGHTS”

Political misuse of Federal Departments and Agencies?

IRS targeting political adversaries?

Military veterans receiving less attention and services than illegal immigrants?

Selective enforcement of extremely important issues such as  negligent handling of TOP SECRET INFORMATION on a private server?

I lived through the Whitewater/Rose Law Firm/Vince Foster investigations, etc..

I remember how the missing subpoenaed Whitewater legal records were later mysteriously discovered in the White House. (Good place to hide incriminating stuff huh?)

I recall the renting of the WH Lincoln Bedroom/the Blue Stained Dress and assurances by the president that “nothing happened”.

Benghazi is fresh but we still do not know the entire truth. (Wonder how many emails regarding “yoga” may have mentioned aspects of this little tidbit?)

ENOUGH GARBAGE!  SIMPLE QUESTION:

What was the purpose of that private computer server anyway?

The BASIC PURPOSE?

CLUE:  PRIVATE COMMUNICATIONS

Illegal, extremely dangerous, and SELF SERVING activities over the interests & safety of OUR Country, Citizens & others!

No pesky FOIA (Freedom Of Information Act) requests for what should have been “PUBLIC INFORMATION”.  (Theft of government property by the way)

No President Obama being aware of her “activities” in gearing up for her “deserved presidential run”. (There are millions of capable honest women far more worthy.)

Hundreds of Millions of dollars in political donations from foreign entities who often practice the very activities HRC claims to be against.

Interesting how she accuses everyone else who disagrees with her of the very conduct she repeatedly demonstrates. (Hypocrite)

How much more violent and unstable did the Middle East become due to those thousands of missing “yoga and wedding plans” that were wrongfully destroyed?

FBI cannot find evidence of “intent”?

Former President Bill Clinton meeting with Loretta Lynch on an airport tarmac?

Smashing equipment containing government information to prevent discovery?

Couldn’t recall 36 times as to important questions regarding the handling of TOP SECRET INFORMATION?

Missing communication devices – one supposedly lost in the US mail?

Who ultimately obtained those devices and/or information?   Still waiting for Wikileaks……

Perhaps Russia moved in Europe due to “confidential State Department information” and clues as to the USA non-intervention policy?

Korea and nuclear testing activities?

The current South China Sea military buildup by China in a major shipping lane?

The Iranian Nuclear Deal and whether a ransom was paid for hostages?

U.S. developed Uranium sold to Russia?

CRAP!  WHO COULD POSSIBLY REMEMBER ALL THE INVESTIGATIONS? 

One explodes, but before the public hears the fallout truth of the situation, another quickly slides into the news and the former is forgotten -but they all add up.

I will unashamedly vote for DONALD TRUMP rather than an obvious (and repetitive) liar who has and will continue to  jeopardize the lives of every single American in harm’s way during this war on terrorism – then/now/and in the future.

My best to you and yours, Lew

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Thursday, August 18th, 2016

My fingers are sore!  Sewing some more of those shade clothes – sure gets tiring, but the finished product is worth the effort.  Did you see the new report regarding MERCED RIVER WATER and the SWRCB?  Bad news for LDPCSD and even another reason to watch how this precious resource is used by KAMPA & KOMPANY outside the MID-POU.  If the proposal passes LDPCSD could be looking at much less available water from Lake McClure making those public funded ground wells that much more critical for continuing the water supply for the subdivision – AN ENTITLED PLACE OF USE FOR MERCED RIVER WATER UNDER THE WATER LICENSE!  Check out the goldrushcam.com article:

MID Says Study Predicts Major Economic Fallout and Job Loss in Merced Area from State’s Plan to Divert Local Water

Last Updated: Wednesday, 17 August 2016 14:48

Thursday, August 4th, 2016

Damn good question – the title of this part of the site: SO Where were we?

Re-reading the post below is interesting.  I mean, how Kampa clearly places the responsibility for his RE-CONFIGURATION OF OUR SURFACE WATER TREATMENT PLANT on the Board of Directors in approving his plan (made up of numerous Board Resolutions which he and his company prepared for Board approval).  But let’s be serious, the BOARD OF DIRECTORS is not irrevocably bound to this plan and can indeed put on the brakes to KAMPA’s continued expansion of our district operations to the clear benefit of those massive land holdings OUTSIDE THE MERCED IRRIGATION DISTRICT PLACE OF USE FOR MERCED RIVER WATER UNDER THEIR (MIDs) WATER LICENSE 11395.

KAMPA’s GROUND WATER SUBSTITUTION PLAN (any Merced River water leaving the legal Place of Use must be replaced with an equal or greater amount of ground water) was created with public funds to construct and develop those GROUND WELLS – which incidentally, were supposed to serve ONLY EXISTING WATER USING CUSTOMERS!  I was told those grants would never have been issued had KAMPA’s OUTSIDE MIDPOU plan been disclosed.  Sneaky Pete!

You might wonder why these facts are repeated so often……simply, because new viewers should not have to research pages of old material to understand what has happened to our LDPCSD.  Even a first time viewer can understand the problem quickly and then research for the particulars under other areas of this website.

And so it continues.  Kampa now needs more power, authority and LDPCSD employees because of the extreme amount of work THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS expect from Pete and his professional management company!   WHAT A LAUGH!

He misrepresented to State and Federal agencies why our district required an alternate source of water to survive the drought to begin with then attempted to use that “emergency alternate source” as a GROUND WATER SUBSTITUTION PROGRAM to further expand water services OUTSIDE THE MERCED IRRIGATION DISTRICT PLACE OF USE restrictions in water license 11395.   Kampa wiped out over a million dollars in hard-earned district public funds to leverage those government grants (also public funds) and for what?   To supply third party special benefit water services to land development interests who otherwise could not receive MERCED RIVER WATER from the district because of pesky regulations!  Now, after being caught in the act of betraying all parties, he blames the Board of Directors for expecting too much work from him/KAMPA COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS llc,  and needs to restructure the district with more employees.

ANYWAY, haven’t been by SO WWW for a while and just wanted to say  HEY –  “HEY!”

Why does the Lake Don Pedro CSD consistently refuse to post a legitimate map displaying where Merced River Water (pumped under Merced Irrigation District water license 11395) can legally be used in this area? Properties outside the 11395 Place of Use MUST use ground water. Why should 99% of legal Merced River water users in the subdivision (for whom the water plant was constructed) pay for this ground water special benefit for land developers outside the subdivision?

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Wednesday, June 2nd, 2016

Hello!  Wanted to see if I could copy and paste something:  IT WORKED!  I was working on Episode 12 of the May 16, 2016 meeting and listening to Director Sult’s explanation of why he personally could not sign off on a Resolution which cited three obvious misstatements in support of an affirmative vote (in approving the resolution), and was reminded of the “ADMONITION TO DIRECTORS” about accepting KAMPA’s VISION 2020 plan.  Anyway below is an excerpt from this  Prior post on February 9th, 2016

____________________________________________________

VISION 2020 DIRECTOR CAUTION

Speaking of directors, check out the GM’s VISION 2020 admonition to them on page 77 of the December 11, 2015 packet.  (a portion quoted below)

As stated in prior meeting, this is YOUR strategic plan, so you must

Feel very comfortable with approving this document, as it will drive many future actions and decisions. Please make sure that you have a full understanding of the goals, objectives and actions of this plan. The purpose of the discussion today is to make sure the full Board

is in support of the plan, and that it reflects your vision of where you want to see the District in 2020. At this meeting, the Board can make any changes, modifications, additions, clarifications and deletions it sees fit. The Board should be commended for undertaking the effort to prepare this first ever strategic plan. The results of the plan will drive daily work, budgets, benchmarks/expectations and actions for many years to come. Congratulations!”

YOUR STRATEGIC PLAN

YOU MUST FEEL comfortable with approving

WILL DRIVE FUTURE actions

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE FULL UNDERSTANDING

MAKE SURE FULL BOARD IS IN SUPPORT

REFLECTS YOUR VISION

WHERE YOU WANT to see District

Whoa there cowboy……

Talk about preemptively assigning future DIRECTOR RESPONSIBILITY for what is undoubtedly going to happen when greed, circumvention of rules and special deals are made with complete disregard for the existing District customers, both water consuming and availability.

WHO’S STRAGETIC PLAN IS THIS AGAIN?

This GM pushed for expanded water service outside the permitted use area twenty years ago during his first term of employment with the district.  The very day he resigned he encouraged the board to expand district boundaries even further.  There’s nothing really new or exciting about his dream of building a Water Empire on the financial backs of the 99% of entitled water users.

ANY DIRECTOR WHO SUPPORTS THIS PLAN TO RADICALLY CHANGE THE FUNCTION AND OPERATION OF OUR SURFACE WATER TREATMENT PLANT SHOULD REALIZE THEY ARE THE ONES WHO TOOK A SOLEMN OATH OF OFFICE, NOT THE GENERAL MANAGER.

Also not taking that Oath are the GMs employees at Kampa Community Solutions, employees with other businesses, companies, corporations, and the other vocal cheerleaders advocating this major re-direction of our surface water treatment plant.  Heck, many have made, are making, and will continue to make very good money regardless of what happens to the rest of us in the future.

Directors in a Public Service agency, however, do take that Oath of Office and therefore do have legal duties and obligations to the District and therefore, its customers.    It would be quite unfortunate if any one, or all of them (as suggested in the admonition), mistakenly believed they were doing something beneficial only to later discover they had “been had” and gambled and lost both their personal and public service reputation.  It’s happened many times before, and it will most assuredly happen again.  Stop, take a deep breath and think about what you are doing.

________________________________________________________________________

OOPS!  Been a while huh?

Monday, May 30th, 2016

Well, not really in some ways because I have been posting, but here @ SO WWW?, yes, I am guilty.   So, are you keeping up with the ongoing drama that can only be Lake Don Pedro?   Dang!  Still can’t believe that beautiful Lake Don Pedro Recreational Facility is gone.  My understanding is it was a total loss.  You know, the complex itself was laid out and constructed beautifully.   The timbers, style, paths, elevation, lookouts over the dam and surrounding area – BEAUTIFUL.  (One of the first places I took my pup to acquaint her with heights, stairs, ramps, and view – good place for unobstructed views of gliding Vultures “Big Bird”.)  Exquisite beauty/function and a horrible loss for sure – but hopefully it will be rebuilt with some of the same sensitivity to the environment as its long lived and enjoyed predecessor.  What I almost instantly thought about, when first learning of the distressing news, was that wonderful walk-through museum of display case presentations regarding nature, gold/water history, indigenous people and the artifacts of their lives, beliefs, and endeavors – just about anything of which one might be curious of an area.  How can you replace those pieces of history and life?  Sure, there are other examples, but a finite and quite requested inventory for other facilities I would suspect.  So sad.  Hope everything was carefully photographed and inventoried – it might possibly live on in digital form for future appreciation at least.  Shoot.  This is depressing.

Speaking of which….some leak out there at Barrett Cove huh?  (Yes, I did get just a little bit of Poison Oak on my forearms, but recognized, treated and isolated it from spreading.  No biggie, but I need to remember to buy some more medicated soap.) Nice little foothill stream if the water wasn’t electrically motivated up that hill with pumps and boosters only to have gravity pull it back to the lake.   Memorial Day weekend camping visitors had a beautiful running stream to appreciate.

When I see that water flowing from under that angled pipe I imagine the power required to push that amount of water uphill to the treatment plant.  Amazing, but to then have a breach that size on the pipe wall – probably incremental, but who knows until examination of the actual perforation/tear?  Rusted out?  Maybe a sudden blowout?

I still find it difficult to believe ANY SURFACE WATER TREATMENT PLANT could be constructed without WATER MONITORING METERS IN CRITICAL LOCATIONS SUCH AS THE INTAKE.   This defies COMMON SENSE!

What a surface water treatment plant INTAKES from Lake McClure under L11395 for TREATMENT, STORAGE, DISTRIBUTION and SALE, is one of the most important volume figures ANY business formula would require.   How can you accurately calculate how much electricity it costs to move the water from lake to the treatment plant if you don’t know how much of the water safely arrives at the raw water storage tank for mechanical/chemical processing and distribution?  What is an acceptable loss rate for over two and a half miles of decades old steel pipe?  How many sections?  How many connections?  How many angles?  What angles?  Never a check-point meter?  No wonder there has never been a check meter on the private water line through a sitting director’s cattle ranch – we don’t even know how much water we are pumping out of the lake ostensibly for subdivision use under the water license!

This is insane!  Or, diabolically simple for the systematic abuse of a nonprofit surface water treatment plant with an unorganized built in mandatory customer base with less than half able to vote in elections (and yet other non stakeholders voting by reason of expanded LAFCo annexed boundaries based on misinformation that the DISTRICT could provide some of the 5,000 + AF of Merced River water to land development projects outside the license PLACE OF USE when in reality such developments would by necessity have to be served with expensive to obtain ground well water in this fractured rock geology) and those that do vote have been intentionally denied relevant information by the district for decades……. <breathe lew, breathe….>

How do you run a public service agency providing potable water for almost four decades (40 years) when the district doesn’t even know how much water pumped from the lake makes it to the treatment plant?  I can’t believe this.  But of course, it is much easier to believe when you consider it makes a wonderful “built in excuse” for other possible causes of missing water which HAVE BEEN DOCUMENTED through the years by those who took an interest.  later –

THURSDAY, May 19th, 2016

Two weeks exactly since Kandi had her own little “episode”.  Still not sure exactly what happened, but it was unequivocally a close call.  I did find what  I thought were a couple of “pecked at” Wisteria seeds, but they could have also been stepped on and broken open.  Also, there is much information tending to support the conclusion such “toxic poisonings” of free range hens are fairly rare, so my best guess is poor old Kandi is the lowest hen in the pecking order and was denied food for sometime before whatever triggered her complete “break down”.  Dehydration, lack of food, flock attack, other predator attack (includes sudden fright/shock), egg bound, and then possibly a nibble of something unhealthy may have been the final straw for the poor thing when she collapsed in the doorway.

A couple of times I seriously thought of “dispatching her”, but due to the fact there was no indication of pain or severe discomfort I chose to risk causing a little discomfort with the force feeding in hopes she would regain enough strength to stay awake, eat, and get some exercise.  Fortunately it appears to have worked, but now a definite bullying environment has also been identified for the recovering hen.   The aggressors have been pulling feathers from the back of her head and this morning I noticed a bruise on her right foot (she stays in the closed cardboard “hospital box” at night for now, but I let her roam outside with frequent checks).  Think I may invest in a children’s pump water cannon with a good reach – might work sometimes, but the violators are not stupid by any means.  Lucy generally just hangs around “pretending” to be uninterested but I have left a video camera running to document what happens when I leave……Lucy bee-lines it right over to Kandi and starts pecking at her.  (I am slowly beginning to understand the bar-b-que remedy for chronic violators of “flock etiquette”.)

Back to the meeting I guess…..I know!  Maybe a quick “pick me up?”…..

Wednesday, May 18th, 2016

Whoa.  Tired and sore.  While changing oil in the motorcycle this morning, I was shuffling through miscellaneous shelves, drawers, and boxes looking for a can of chain lube.  Walking through a garage “debris field” of miscellaneous stuff on the floor my right boot snagged a power cord and next thing I know I’m participating in a forward fall dancing contest to keep my balance.  Ultimately, BOOM – suddden “gravity lesson” in the form of a skinned shin, some bruising and swelling.  Oh it hurt pretty bad for a few minutes.  Just laid there for a second or two face towards the concrete floor but holding most of my torso up with my arms (kind of a weird sort of push up position),  lowered to the floor and rolled over and started doing inventory….

nose, teeth, chin….check, fingers, wrists, elbows…..over extended fingers and sore wrists due to absorbing some of the impact, not broken or bleeding…..check….. torso – the already sore ribs…..still sore, check…..back and shoulders sore – tolerable -check,…..knees had impact, no blood and obvious damage – a little sore, check….lower legs……(ow ow ow ow ow!) RIGHT SHIN ALARM!  RIGHT SHIN ALARM!  Shin scraped and bleeding, very swollen good hematoma developing, very painful –  cause?   Power cord was to an old paper shredder and when I snagged and tripped on it, the basket with motor unit fell over – I was trying to regain my balance and while rapidly falling forward with exaggerated irregular steps – jerked the motor and shredding unit housing by the power cord right off the basket.  The heavy motor/shredder housing goes flying by me on the smooth concrete floor then suddenly stops like a dog full speed at the end of a leash run  (reached the end of the power cord -wrapped around my foot) — and stopped dead  —  right there!

Where?  You already know where don’t you? ……….Yup, directly in front of my  impending “landing zone”.  Caught that motor/shredding unit on the right shin as I fell to the floor.  (ow ow ow ow ow!)  Looking back I was quite fortunate considering I could have fallen fingers first into that extremely sharp and exposed shredding cylinder that was face up on the floor!   My shin still hurts like heck, but fingers in that cutting cylinder would have likely ruined my day at the very least.  As is, so far I have just received a painful reminder for a few days to pick things up – or at least clear an adequate path for walking.  Yeah, yeah, yeah….getting old too, but not older if I don’t start picking up stuff right?  lol

Audio file experiment didn’t work out too well.  Finished Episode 1 and posted.   MBTYAY, Lew

SATURDAY, MAY 14th, 2016

Well, I will tell you…….so far ….success.  Looks like Kandi is going to survive (sure was a dying bird 9 days ago – must remember to show Wisteria Seeds!) however, introduction back to the flock has been a bit trying at times.  She sure is picked on by bullying sisters.  Pecking and pulling feathers from her head and neck – both the dog and I have intervened at times and the aggressors are cognizant of this and wait until out of site for another spontaneous attack.  I am not quite ready to return Kandi to that family “pecking order” gladiator pit  – I think it best Kandi puts on some more weight first; I want to make sure she is getting plenty of recovery rest and all necessary vitamins, minerals, and supplements; I’d like to see her start moving a little quicker on her feet; and able to duck and weave a little smoother; her escape “backup flutter” could use some work before she is “jumped back in” to her bullying flock.  She’s just not ready yet.

Perhaps some private self defense poultry karate training will even the playing field?

Maybe a call to “ROBOT CHICKEN” for help?

lol

later

FRIDAY, MAY 13th, 2016

1436hrs: A little bit of pecking and semi-challenging and intimidating postering and staring by “LUCY” (Rhode Island Red Hen who has been the “boss” since chicks.  Lucy was the chick who was always standing guard OUTSIDE the nest.  That’s right- all the others huddled under the heating light but Lucy was standing “watch” outside the nest just standing there in the cardboard box.)

********

What do you think of the new website format?

Personally I think it is much easier to read.

Cleaner.

Not as distracting with that passion flower vine border.

Could almost hear the bees in your ears.  Lol

ANYWAY, cleaning up some things, apparently some update’s on poor old Kandi’s condition were lost in the transition.  No biggie, I am very pleased to say she started eating a few days ago (Walmart freeze dried crickets and Meal Worms – they love ’em)  I started by grinding them up a little with crumble and adding electrolyte fluid so it became a paste – then some grapes.  You know, when started she couldn’t even break the skin of a grape she was so weak.  Now?  Pow!  A beak peck penetrates the skin, a quick bite and turn of the head and a juicy chunk of meaty grape is devoured.  So good to see her eating and pigging out!   Slowly introducing her to her peeps again.  Unfortunately, although only 8 days, the dominant hen is reaffirming the “pecking order”. Kind of sad, but a truism of all animals I guess.  Whether it is who calls the shots in the hen house or which countries will dominate others in the geopolitical/military realm.  There’s always a “pecking order” to all societies – in a sense.

Hey!  I need to do a quick test….I had maxed out on my server capacity (probably the reason for the loss of the “Kandi Update”  (lol).

Let’s see if this works…….

Well, need to check on them (everything good).  later.  Sure hope you viewers like the new format.  I sure do!  My best to you and yours, Lew

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Friday, May 6, 2016.  A little rain today & every drop appreciated.

GET YOUR “RED HOT” PROPOSED

DROUGHT SOLUTION RIGHT HERE!

FRIDAY, April 29, 2016.

FILE YOUR SRA FIRE FEE PROTEST DOCUMENTS IN TIME?

The protest procedure requires submittal of certain information within 30 days of the Fire Fee billing.  This FIRE bill has been push-pinned on my “to do cork board” concealed under more timely “to do junk” resulting in my almost missing the deadline due to obsession with something that seemed more important at the time.    Fairly recently……what the heck was that?     Gosh, almost had it,…… on the tip of my…….. fingers….oh yeah….

DECADES OF

FINANCIAL

EXPLOITATION

of the

99% MAJORITY OF

ENTITLED USERS OF MERCED RIVER WATER

In the

Lake Don Pedro subdivision

who also happen to be

MANDATORY FINANCIAL SUPPORTERS

of that non-profit

public agency

due to their property ownership !

Ahh, yes, home…..

Typing in a larger font does seem therapeutic.

ANYWAY, the other morning leaving La Grange my mail carrier and I were discussing the recent forecast for rain the night before – nothing.  I clearly remember the clouds rolling in like it was going to cut loose pretty good so I reluctantly started picking up all the tools and equipment scattered about the various projects.  Sure enough, beautiful day without a cloud in the sky.  So? Haul everything back out to continue miscellaneous chores and – POW it rains with a little thunder and lightning bonus.  Lol

Kind of like when you deliberate as to whether or not your vehicle requires and good washing and general cleaning up  …. ahhhh, maybe not today, looks like it might rain…..It doesn’t rain and your vehicle looks like crap until Summer when no rain is “almost” guaranteed.

But on a crystal clear day without a cloud in the sky and only a chance of a cloud or two in the forecast – and you vacuum, wash, and maybe even wax your ride – it rains like crazy.

Inspired by some of the decisions and policies pursued by our LDPCSD recently – I came up with a drought solution program perhaps also worthy of Board approval.

Large geographically based divisions of the state population assigned on a rotational participation basis in support of an “Emergency Vehicle Wash & Wax Standby Program” in an effort to “fool Mother Nature” into producing rain!   It is so simple! If precipitation is needed in a particular region of the state, a notification alert goes out to that division activating the designated EVWWSP population to immediately start washing and waxing their cars!  PRESTO!   In no time – rain is pouring down in that area!  I know, I know, as appealing and brilliant of an idea as this may be, every exciting new program needs a little work and I am cognizant of this fact.

I know!  Perhaps a blue-ribbon ad hoc committee to research study and accumulate relevant statistical data with subsequent analysis focusing on the actual probability of success, while simultaneously producing detailed reports with sufficient unrelated specificity so as to facilitate the board’s timely approval which would clearly be based on manufactured affirmatively supporting evidence and conclusions?

Alright!  Now we’re cooking……is next Thursday good for everyone?  I’ll bring cookies.

My best to you and yours, Lew

PS:  Here’s another great “can’t miss INSPIRED idea” regarding future LDPCSD FINANCIAL SECURITY ……….. purchase as many LOTTERY TICKETS as we possibly can.  Hey!  Maybe we could snag some more government grant money?     ?

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“POSTER CHILD” SCREAMS FOR HELP – BUT FEW RESPOND TO THE CRY

Wednesday, April 27, 2916.

So where were we?  Good question.

I hope the audio and video clips are working out OK.  There are good and bad aspects of this experiment.  I believe hearing someone’s own words can add much to what is being conveyed to the audience and assist the listener in understanding exactly what that person may be trying to communicate – or avoid.  Video even more so with body language and facial expressions.

You folks that have followed this website already know I have advocated for many years that the LDPCSD should have something like other Community Service Districts (or any agency geared to providing public services for that matter) to provide business and important operational information to their customers. (What about a true emergency notification?)

Whether audio or video, coverage of our entire monthly meeting should be available online for customers 24/7.  The expense is far less costly than an uninformed customer base taken for granted.

When you think about it, LAKE DON PEDRO CSD is the “poster child” for such an information distribution system.  We do not have news media coverage of our meetings or business operations.  We do not have a local daily newspaper (much less a dedicated column in a daily paper).  No radio broadcasts, certainly no television coverage (unless our administration office is destroyed by arson or the world is told we will be completely out of drinking water soon unless drastic measures are taken immediately – actually to obscure the surreptitious installation of a “PERMANENT GROUND WATER SUBSTITUTION PROGRAM” CREATED WITH PUBLIC FUNDS INTENDED FOR OUTSIDE PLACE OF USE PROPERTIES NOT OTHERWISE ENTITLED TO MERCED RIVER WATER PUMPED FROM LAKE McCLURE UNDER WATER LICENSE 11395.)

The Mariposa Gazette is the oldest weekly newspaper in the State (which is a very cool fact and a testimony to its resilience during the deaths of so many weekly papers) but unfortunately, the information is, due to necessity, often a bit stale for the outlying areas.  Many times I have read about a class or training opportunity that I would have liked to attend but it was scheduled for that very day or had already been held.  Oh well, saved me an 80 mile round trip.

Still it is extremely rare when there has been coverage of the happenings out here in the “boonies” of Lake Don Pedro.  Please!  This is just an observation- I am not slamming the Gazette at all, because I would think it pretty obvious that the majority of their subscribers are in, or close to the town of Mariposa, just as the majority of subscribers to the Sonora Union Democrat are primarily located around the city of Sonora.  Even the free bi-monthly local Foothill Express ignores the happenings of our CSD which may or may not be of surprise when you consider it has quite effectively been used for political purposes by a sitting LDPCSD director who also happens to be an outside Place of Use ground water substitution customer of the district, and smack dab in the middle of this controversy for over twenty years.

For whatever reasons, the “the powers that be” have steadfastly refused to invest any of our funds in an effort to develop such information distribution for our geographically scattered customer base.  Evidently they are not interested in our comments, opinions, suggestions or COMPLAINTS.  After all, it is not as though we can “walk away from the LDPCSD” and go elsewhere for water service.   WE ARE MANDATORY CUSTOMERS OF THE LDPCSD AND HAVE NO ALTERNATIVE BUT TO TOLERATE WHAT EVER HAPPENS.

The legal Merced River water using customers of the Lake Don Pedro Subdivision are prohibited from drilling their own water wells, unlike the land developers who have been scheming for our water since before the LDPCSD was even formed in August of 1980 – they CAN DRILL THEIR OWN GROUND WELLS.  There is no competition for water service in the Lake Don Pedro subdivision.

As a result the customers’ perspective has been dismissed as unimportant – actually unnecessary, because there is nothing we can do in response to being routinely ignored.

Folks, there is a Fox in our hen house and the lack of information to customers is making the situation worse with each passing day.

My best to you and yours, Lew

Friday, April 15th, 2016

Bee Safe.  ?

buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Tuesday, April 12th, 2016

Drove up Hwy132 towards Coulterville today because I was curious what Lake McClure looked like at Horseshoe Bend after these recent storms – – – beautiful!

Amazing how much better Horseshoe Bend looks now (above)

Lake Don Pedro (below) is also looking much better with more water.

Sunday, April 10th, 2016

My place is approximately 1,100 feet above sea level with what I believe to be a nice view of the valley from about the Chowchilla area along HWY 99 to just south of Modesto. (One of the primary reasons I chose this lot was due to the view I had of where my Father was a Command Flight Instructor for the KC-135 – the old Castle Air Force Base outside Atwater, California.)  Extending further beyond these two outside city markers  on the horizon the “valley view” is obstructed by rolling foothills sprinkled with cattle and chicken ranches, farms, a variety of orchards, water bodies from small seasonal stock watering ponds to larger bodies like the Modesto Reservoir, Turlock Lake, etc.

Everything else is pretty much that vast expanse of rolling hills – lush green with seasonal precipitation yet a tinder box of dry, tan & brown waves of vegetation in the summer.   Even the rolling hills, which at first blush may appear to offer nothing of interest unless you study them,  possess a beauty of their own with the variety of visually identified objects.  This too is a pleasant view.  Clusters of Oak trees or the lone survivor rooted-in and existing against all odds;  boulders, rocks, barren red clay blotches and scrapes from heavy fire-break equipment, those stock watering ponds that slowly recede as Summer takes hold with concentric arcs of fading green grass trampled by meandering bovines.  Canyons, ravines, peculiar land formations formed from eons of rain runoff and erosion carving their distinctive jagged paths which can be seen for tens of miles with the naked eye.

Actually, when I stop to think about it, just about every view from any LDP property is desirable in one way or another.  The wildlife inhabited gullies and creek beds.  Yesterday I watched four or five huge turkeys as they wandered around the area.  Raptors gliding the sky….so much.   This area is very beautiful if you take the time to appreciate (true with anything in life) what we have as residents of this subdivision.

What possibilities could be achieved (OR DANGERS AVOIDED) if our mutual concerns, opinions, and appreciation for these hills could be presented and actually heard in the correct & necessary forum for change?

Just a pipe-dream thought I guess.

Anyway, here are some quick photos taken this morning as the fog was rolling in and some taken during the other night’s power failure.

When I thought to take another photo just a short time later —–

FRIDAY NIGHT’S POWER OUTAGE PHOTOS BELOW

Lew.Who?Lew.Who?Lew

JUST A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE?

LDPCSD SHOULD ALSO STOP WEARING

“THE SHIRT”

Years ago while attending Merced College an instructor (God bless him) took me aside one day and offered his advice regarding how I had dressed that day.  When he started speaking with me I had no idea what it was about and was quite worried as the instructor was obviously deeply concerned and being very serious.  It seemed more like a genuine “father to son” type communication.   “DEAR GOD!  WHAT HAVE I DONE?”

Ever hear of JOE BOB BRIGGS?  Among other things, such as being a stand up comedian, movie actor and publisher of the “WE ARE THE WEIRD” newsletter, JOE BOB also hosted the television Movie Channel Drive-In Theater with an unusual gimmick:  A pre-showing critique of the movie using BLOOD – BREASTS  & BEASTS as the grading attributes.  lol

Typically, during the commercial just before the movie started JOE BOB would announce what viewers were going to see in the upcoming movie with a comment such as:

“Tonight’s horror movie has about 5 quarts of blood, three and a half naked breasts, and two beasts wrecking havoc on the unsuspecting victim town”.   

Pretty funny, but I guess like everything else, trying to explain something like this is always inadequate – you just had to see DRIVE-IN THEATER yourself to appreciate and understand the humor.  (Now you’ve been introduced there were a couple of “politically sensitive subjects” I thought old “JOE BOB” addressed perfectly – maybe some other time. Back to the current blah blah blah in progress.)

ANYWAY, JOE BOB had a contest for viewers and the first place prize was to host the Drive-In Theater’s Blood, Breasts & Beasts presentation with him.  Naturally I submitted an entry.  Although not  chosen as the first place winner my entry (written explanation as to why I deserved to be the first place winner) was selected as one of the top runner ups which resulted in a bunch of complimentary gifts including a subscription to the above mentioned publication “We Are the Weird”, seeing him perform his “standup routine” in Santa Rosa, and of course, the subject of this particular blah blah blah post, a T-shirt with “I AM A LOSER”  brightly and prominently displayed on the front.

Back to the college instructor…..he explained to me that the T-Shirt I was wearing at the time was a very uncomplimentary representation of who/what I actually was to everyone who did not know me.  You know, how first impressions are important and could only be made once.  How others might believe I lacked confidence in myself or my accomplishments, or that I was incapable of being a “winner”.  Of course I explained the whole story about the Drive-In Theater contest – and removed my outer button-down shirt and showed him the other side of the T-shirt.  He laughed about the situation but held to his original concerns as to first impressions, encouraging wrong impressions, and perhaps I should reconsider where I wore such a T-shirt.

You know, he was a very good instructor and that little bit of time he took to suggest a different “public presentation” out of genuine concern for one of his students, meant very much to me, and as I recall out of respect for that concern, I never wore the shirt to classes again.  Hardly wore it at all actually because he made a good point – without seeing the other side of the shirt, others could misunderstand the meaning.

This morning while digging through t-shirts for something to throw on that I didn’t care about getting rather dirty I came across my old Movie Channel Drive-In Theater T-shirt.

Isn’t it time that our LAKE DON PEDRO COMMUNITY stop wearing such a public reputation as well?  We are not a “loser – disadvantaged community” incapable of determining our own future so much as one that has been intentionally exploited for our valuable resources for decades by a host of “unscrupulous special interests” unconcerned with the resulting damage we are left to tolerate and financially correct.

Our geographically scattered membership; lack of timely and accurate information; and resulting failure to organize as a recognizable political entity demanding justice, have all played a role in the current and outrageous attempt to reconfigure our surface water treatment plant into a “cash cow” for third party interests.

How?

Though the special benefit producing mechanism of “ground water substitution” for Merced River surface water transfers outside the Place of Use under the water license.

The solution was EVIDENTLY ACHIEVED THROUGH KAMPA & KOMPANY’s intentional concealment, and misrepresentation, of our obvious (despite MID’s refusal to acknowledge the 16 years of compliance reporting THEY REQUIRED) GROUND WATER SUBSTITUTION PROGRAM HISTORY required because of repeated violations of the water license.

KAMPA never explained why our LDPCSD only had one ground well constructed after decades of Merced River water service being pumped from Lake McClure.

Unfortunately those providing the public funds never asked either.  And once again I would imagine they were more focused on helping a disadvantaged community keep its water supply during an unprecedented emergency drought – and again, very generous assistance – why would they think someone applying for such money was “gaming the system” for other surreptitious reasons of providing further water service outside the permitted POU?

Especially after experiencing other serious droughts, and threatened minimum pool situations as well, – about every 15 years or so, why no planning for the next emergency drought?   I believe it was a 1990s complaint from the LDPCSD to the SWRCB (State Water Resources Control Board) regarding environmental releases of water for wildlife that they believed would result in lack of water at McClure, that the SWRCB basically said:  sit tight, our analysis indicates there is time – sure enough the rains came, lake rose, everyone happy.  But why no preventative action for future serious droughts?  Doesn’t the LDPCSD have an obligation to prepare for such emergencies instead of waiting for their reality?

FOUR YEARS of the LDPCSD saving money every way it could after near bankruptcy and DIRECTOR EMERY ROSS  telephones his old BUDDY PETE KAMPA with confidential information about the GM position opening up soon? (NO PUBLIC NOTICE AT ALL.)

Then in walks a FOR PROFIT CSD “REMOTE IGM/GM” MANAGING LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY (owned by a former employee known for advocating district expansion of water service) under the guise of saving legal MERCED RIVER WATER consuming customers from potentially loosing their drinking water.  KAMPA then immediately begins to burn through our approximate $1.1 Million Dollar savings trying to find ground water to treat through our Surface Water Treatment Plant then sell outside the Place Of Use of the water license under which our SWTP was designed to, and has always, operated.

And then proclaims customers should not worry because FREE GOVERNMENT MONEY is on the way?

MY OPINION?  PETE KAMPA SHOULD BE ARRESTED for fraud, or at the bare minimum, he & whatever company he ends up controlling should not ever be permitted to apply for, much less obtain, any government funding grants for ANYTHING ever again.

Private profiteering in the use of public funds designed and intended to assist emergency drought stricken communities from running out of necessary drinking water?

What sort of person…….

Here’s an example of what I’m talking about:  SWRCB ACTION IN ANOTHER CASE

[Another way to look at the same question:  Since LDPCSD was obviously aware of the potential for the lake to drop below minimum pool where our floating barge intake pumps couldn’t reach, WHY WAS THERE NO EFFORT TO CONSTRUCT MORE GROUND WELLS TO INSURE THE CUSTOMERS WOULD NOT RUN OUT OF WATER IF LAKE Mc CLURE WAS TO EVER DROP TOO LOW?  (Only had the legal “remedy well”)

WHERE WAS THE RESPONSIBLE PLANNING FOR SUSTAINABLE WATER SERVICE IN THE FUTURE?

LIKE THE Mc CLURE POINT DEEP WATER INTAKE PROJECT?

WHY NO ACTION IN OVER 35 YEARS?]

Nor did KAMPA & KOMPANY advise the granting authorities (much less CSD customers) that the true reason for construction of new ground wells was to solve the problem of financing the TREMENDOUS COSTS INVOLVED IN CREATING AN “alternate source of water” required to continue and expand HIS TWENTY YEAR HISTORY OF special benefit water service to properties not entitled to water under the water license.

Misrepresentation. 

[Although obtained from an old Black’s Law Dictionary Fifth Edition – I would imagine the basic concept has not changed much.)

“Any manifestation by words or other conduct by one person to another that, under the circumstances, amounts to an assertion not in accordance with the facts.  An untrue statement of fact.  An incorrect or false representation.  That which, if accepted, leads the mind to an apprehension of a condition other and different from that which exists.  Colloquially it is understood to mean a statement made to deceive or mislead.

In a limited sense, an intentional false statement respecting a matter of fact, made by one of the parties to a contract, which is material to the contract and influential in producing it.  A “misrepresentation,” which justifies the rescission of a contract, is a false statement of a substantive fact, or any conduct which leads to a belief of a substantive fact material to proper understanding of the matter in hand, made with intent to deceive or mislead.”

Is that not a misrepresentation of material facts which probably would have precluded even eligibility for the grants since they were supposed to be used for maintaining the existing customer drinking water supply (and not service expansion) in the first place?

Isn’t that a motive in itself for concealing and misrepresenting the facts – to gain millions of dollars in public funds to use the way you want and not as intended?  I mean, they seem to portray that it is FREE MONEY FROM THE GOVERNMENT!   Whoopie!

FREE OFTEN ADDS UP INTO SOMETHING ELSE AS WELL —  http://www.usdebtclock.org/

AND then misappropriating substantial State and Federal grant money specifically intended to sustain the drinking water for existing customers of this district to the benefit of those not entitled to water service under L11395?

Misappropriation.

“The act of misappropriating or turning to a wrong purpose; wrong appropriation; a term which does not necessarily mean peculation, although it may mean that.  Term may also embrace the taking and  use of another’s property for sole purpose of capitalizing unfairly on good will and reputation of property owner.”

Peculation.  The unlawful appropriation, by a depositary of public funds, of the property of the government intrusted to his care, to his own use, or that of others.  The fraudulent misappropriation by one to his own use of money or goods intrusted to his care.”

Similar principle?

Seriously….why should a “legal remedy ground well” specifically constructed because of intentional violations of the water license become the operating policy FOR OUR CSD?

SOMETIMES WE JUST HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE FOG TO CLEAR  –   EVENTUALLY IT DOES

My best to your and yours, Lew

Saturday, April 9th, 2016

Well, I don’t know about this morning, but the power sure was out all over the subdivision last night before 2100hrs (9PM) for a few hours.  Pretty good rain coming down as well.  Check out the Merced River flow chart below, Lake Mc CLure should get a good “bump” in lake level with this series of storms.  Too bad we were “what If’d” by KAMPA & KOMPANY to spend so much money on ground water wells to increase his desired “OUTSIDE MID POU” district water service for his twenty year old dream of building a “water empire” in these drought prone foothills.

I’ve got stuff to do right now, but think about this carefully:

“If the State/Federal grant money (clearly provided to support efforts in sustaining the drinking water supply for existing district customers) was not wrongfully intended by KAMPA to be used as the original Ranchito Drive well for further “ground water substitution for illegal Merced River surface water transfer outside the Place of Use,—-

Why did KAMPA & KOMPANY twice attempt to abolish the prohibition against serving further properties outside the L11395 Place of Use unless there was a plan to resume further water service to those properties?

Why did Merced Irrigation District suddenly discontinue 16 years of L11395 monthly compliance reporting by the LDPCSD originally demanded by MID?

Why would the Merced Irrigation District refuse to acknowledge such required reporting by the LDPCSD to the MID ever even existed?

How does more ground water production assure proper compliance with the terms of water license 11395 if there is no longer any compliance reporting to confirm and verify that sufficient ground water production is achieved to replace Merced River water illegally transferred beyond permitted areas?

Interesting, seems one part of the government is providing money that will be used to intentionally circumvent specific Place of Use requirements in License 11395 which are regulated and enforced by other parts of the government.

more later –

CHECK OUT THIS WATER FLOW!

& & & & & & &

Update: Wet Weather Wreaked A Little Havoc In Mother Lode

 Wednesday, APRIL 6th, 2016  Welcome! 

Found the below tune while looking up “The Devil Is In the Details” today.  I understand what some say, once you hear it you can’t get that tune out of your head!   LOL   Perfect for imagining the work  our “Butterfly Remote Manager” has been doing behind the scenes for some time now….   sneaky, devilish, duplicitous….. yup, perfect music for a cartoon about this mess.    Later

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Tuesday, April 4th, 2016

YOU MADE IT!

CHECK IT OUT!  The traffic counter is finally fixed!  (Sometimes you just have to suck it up and get help!)  As I’ve said many, many times before, contrary to what some might think – I know very little about this computer stuff.  What I do know is this – if you are not absolutely sure of what you are doing – STOP!  Don’t screw around with computer equipment settings – default or otherwise.

That is where most of us freak out.  SOMETHING IS WRONG AND I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO!   Same as anything else – take the problem to those trained in that particular field.  Please don’t misunderstand what I am saying here.  I prefer to do things myself when feasible or necessary but things change too – take a look at vehicle maintenance.  What use to be routine vehicle maintenance and upkeep has changed dramatically with technology.  I can still change my own oil and stuff but without much of the sophisticated equipment needed to properly diagnose and adjust timing, well, suffice it to say vehicles are much more complicated than when I was younger.

I tried reading up on how to solve some of these computer software difficulties myself but  had problems just getting through the basic instruction material due to all the specialized vernacular and terms .  I was spending more time looking up what the average viewer had already learned, used, and was basically re-familiarizing themselves with for another project.

So – why try to make repairs/upgrades/additional functions/etc.  and possibly make things worse?  Suck it up, get a professional, move on with other things you can do.

I AM THRILLED NOT SEEING THOSE WARNINGS ON THE TRAFFIC COUNTER!  (that would bug me if I visited a site and saw that)

I FORGOT WHAT THAT EMPTY SPACE TO THE RIGHT LOOKED LIKE!

So, like I mentioned earlier, there will finally be some needed changes and reconfiguration of this site in the near future.

TIME

Time has flown by for the last month and a half.  Never enough of it to accomplish the things I wish I could.  I watch in astonishment as my “to-do list” exponentially grows while realizing many projects are merely quietly slipping into the realm of never to be completed dreams. The older I become, the older that particular dream.

Seems I am aligning myself with something I cannot see with my eyes or physically touch with my hands yet  am constantly aware of its presence.  Not an uncomfortable or annoying sense but not to be confused with the strength and assurance received from religious faith either, but something simultaneously new and familiar.

Rather like visually noticing a recent shadow that refuses to retreat for lack of illumination.  Day or night it is there.  Neutral.  Not interrupting but never vanishing and ultimately just accepted as a life traveling companion.  Omnipresent.  Cognizant 24/7 appreciation for its existence.

Doesn’t matter what I am doing.  Listening to music.  Watching television.  Working around the property or otherwise engaged in other more adventurous activities.  I feel it now as I clumsily attempt to convey with a keyboard these abstract emotions.  So, back to the traditional approach – wrap it up in the cocoon of this  website, toss it into the rapids of the digital information stream for review or rejection by many people I do not know or will ever even meet, and pray for the best – blah, blah, blah…..I’ve got other stuff to do!

?

WOW!   NO PROGRAMMING ERROR WARNINGS TO THE RIGHT!

WHOOPIE!!!

MONDAY, April 4th, 2016

Hopefully my video attempt was understandable (MUST remember to keep text smaller so it won’t run off page!)  If I don’t use those programs every once in a while I forget how to perform even some the the “bonehead” stuff.  Just gets overwhelming at times.

Yes indeed, some interesting stuff right towards the end of the March 21, 2016 Board Meeting.   Sounds like for some reason PETE KAMPA is not concerned in the least about some sort of required monthly reporting?  Confident that something will be easily met.  Humm, what could that be?  Guess we’ll get back to that question with part III very soon.

I am considering some major reconfiguration with this website in anticipation of some extra and different kind of work that may develop in the near future.  Hopefully what ever changes are made will be fairly seamless with no prolonged interruption.  We’ll see.

Great weather lately huh?  Shade screen project is progressing I hope the 550 nylon strands hold up better than that typical nylon string found in most hardware stores I used last year.  The string was thicker but didn’t hold up as well as I had imagined.  True, I did intentionally expose the shades to some rather violent wind storms a few times before taking them down for the season but was still disappointed so many stitches failed.  Most damage appeared to be the result of UV deterioration and not friction rubbing against another object.  Like everything else, time will tell, but I least I have provided some relief from that unrelenting Sun.  Now, if one more prolonged cooling period would develop I might “think about” refinishing the deck incrementally now there is at least some cover from the radiation.    Later, Lew

Saturday, April 2nd, 2016

HEY!  TONIGHT….check out the International Space Station (ISS) when it passes over this area:

Time: Sat Apr 02 8:03 PM, Visible: 3 min, Max Height: 40°, Appears: 37° above WNW, Disappears: 11° above NE

Further information (sign up for notifications and such- PLEASE!  No calls to Paul Benhiem Phd!  IT WAS AN APRIL FOOL’S JOKE!    LOL!  (seriously though……):

HQ – spotthestation NASA

HETCH HETCHY HAS BALLS?

Everybody survive the typical pranks and jokes associated with the First of April?  I hope so.  (Sorry about the ZX111 Stargaze Micro Particle Shield for $128 at Amazon and the sudden ISS orbital maneuver performed by NASA’s ISS Flight Director Paul Benhiem Phd. at NASA.  Don’t know what came over me.  lol)  OK back to reality.

Did you know Hetch Hetchy has balls?  Perhaps I should rephrase that.  Were you folks aware of all the balls in Hetch Hetchy?  Maybe I’ll try again –

did you know 96 million black plastic balls were dumped in the lake?  Sounds like the set up for a joke huh?  Guess it has been going on for a while but I just read about it this morning – wondered if it was an April prank as well.  Doubt it though, I do not believe the State of California has much of a sense of humor about this devastating drought and the economic affects on so many businesses and people.

You would think such a procedure would block necessary light for creatures living in the water and certainly bring an immediate halt to certain types of wildlife hunting – like birds diving from above and snagging fish.  I’ll have to read more later.  The idea of at least slowing down the evaporation rate makes sense though.  (But would doing even that have some other negative ripple effect considering yet another natural process is being interrupted by human beings again?   Anyway, check it out, see what you think  –  HETCH HETCHY COVERED WITH BLACK PLASTIC BALLS

Going to try and get some more of the March 21, 2016 LDPCSD Board Meeting done – I hope using the audio is working out alright because towards the end of the day my old eyes and hands start to feel the stress of that transcription stuff <ahhhh, poor baby Lewie – his itsy bitsy fingers are sore….ahhhh—too bad….get to work!  lol>  There are a couple of portions that will naturally deserve some short transcription.  Need to find a better way with the digital format because my old cassette tape steno machine has likely out lived its usefullness.  WIth this digital recorder I have to listen to recording, shut it off type what I can remember  (ok, that’s probably the biggest hardship -lol), go back correct, listen, correct, listen, correct, listen – you get the idea.  No doubt if I were one word off all hell would break loose with the SO GOSIP (Same Old Group Of Special Interest People).

later, Lew

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April 1st, 2017: Here are some of the time exposure shots of the International Space Station passing by last night.  Did any of you catch any of it?  I know, I know, once you’ve seen it pass overhead a couple of times it becomes a “less special event”,  HOWEVER, never underestimate the variable of chance and/or luck.  Last night I was EXTREMELY LUCKY WITH THE CAMERA!

Actually I almost missed the whole 6 minute passing because I had set everything up in advance according to the Watch Report  (Time: Thu Mar 31 8:09 PM, Visible: 6 min, Max Height: 78°, Appears: 10° above SW, Disappears: 10° above NE).  Thought I was really prepared.  Had the camera and tripod all set facing the South West, snacks, cold beer, even had my new ZX111 Starzshield micro particle shield set up that I recently ordered through Amazon,  (A little expensive at $128 but certainly worth the money because it would only take one of those micro particles to ruin a night’s stargazing.  A stargazing friend of mine once had one go right through the roof of his prized Mustang rag top!  Boy was he angry.  Couldn’t even see the hole (which is why it is called a micro particle) in normal lighting conditions, but if it was night and someone held a bright flashlight pointed at the area, from inside the car a passenger could see just a little light coming through that micro hole.  He was eventually able to fix it with a small dab of epoxy – but still upset about his “damaged” vintage Mustang “rag top” convertible.)

ANYWAY, so there I am all set up with the gear, support supplies (cold beer) and facing the South West and waiting.  And waiting.  And waiting.  I started to get a little nervous just before 2009 hrs (8:09PM) because I could not see any bright light moving across the sky in the SW direction with the exception of a few aircraft.  Luckily I did scan a little further to the south and there SHE WAS!

The actual ISS arrival direction really surprised me coming in from more of a SSW position (from the area above Merced and the old Castle AFB direction rather than from over Livingston-Delhi area as expected). No biggie but I had to quickly reconfigure the tripod and ZX111 to start shooting the exposures.  Naturally because of the limited area that can be viewed with the standard camera optics available on my model the Olympus TG-4 (not the extra wide field of view screen option) the actual passing of the ISS had to be shot with multiple exposures (different photographs) which meant as soon as I had captured enough of its path with one shot, I had to quickly reset the tripod, camera and ZX to a new position to take the next exposure.  I HAD TO DO THIS FOUR TIMES DURING THE 6 MINUTE PASSING!

At the time I thought it a horrible inconvenience FOR ANY CITIZEN interested in our country’s space program (or currently the lack thereof) yet it was precisely this inconvenient procedure that resulted in a photograph that will likely remain the best time exposure I will ever shoot in my life!  (Not likely, but it might even be worth some money to a specialty magazine or space publication because it is so rare to capture such an ISS procedure – [the only thing close to this that I have ever observed is when one of the shuttles docked with the ISS] — but I’m getting ahead of myself again.)  I still cannot believe I captured this rare image and the ONLY REASON I was able to catch the best time exposure of my life?   I filed a formal complaint with NASA!

Although it took considerable time to navigate the “automated information line” and secure the right series of telephone numbers for the National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA), persistence finally paid off and I was fortunate enough to obtain a direct line to one of the primary flight directors in charge of releasing public ISS orbital tracking information.   I explained the situation, my exact location in Mariposa County (longitude and latitude),and the time the ISS was passing overhead.

I ended up filing a formal telephonic complaint regarding the apparent incorrect sighting information which was indeed extremely unusual as that information is traditionally and almost unusually quite precise.  When I say precise I mean down to the second and a fraction of a degree! So I explained how I was required to move all the equipment, including the ZX111 (which can be a little difficult due to the individual protective plates that must be reinstalled and configured) which although not ruining the experience, certainly made it more difficult and time consuming.

My criticism was accepted without complaint.  Evidently a new employee at the NASA facility had calculated the entry position incorrectly due to not moving a decimal point on a positional orbital formula variable to the left- resulting in the minor variation of the ISS approach  – WAY BEYOND MY UNDERSTANDING as I only completed bonehead math in college – lol!

But what really surprised me was that Mr. Paul Bendhiem Phd, (the orbital flight operations supervisor who I contacted) ultimately suggested how I should set up towards the end of the second orbital passing of the ISS over the same location in approximately 1 hour and 26 minutes!   WHAT?   I only had 1 hour and 26 minutes to prepare for the best time exposure I would likely ever take in my life!  CRAP!  I had to get moving fast.   Getting ahead of myself again…..

So let’s start with the series of time exposures of the ISS first passing between 8:09-8:15 and then the BIG SURPRISE which Mr. Bendhiem instructed me how to capture with a time exposure upon the ISS’s second orbital passing.

Tripod and camera, Stargaze ZX111 set up facing the South West and waiting for the ISS

Almost directly overhead this was another short time exposure of the ISS

Notice the red aircraft light trail below the ISS  (that’s the Big Dipper to the left)

OK, this photo above is the precise location Mr. Benhiem advised I position all the equipment and wait for the next passing of the ISS.  Paul told me to be especially observant and to make sure I had everything set up for 1 hour and 26 minutes from the last departure passing.   OK, some quick calculations:  1st passing arrived 8:09 + 6 minute view = departure of 8:15 PM + 1 hour/26 minutes = 9:41PM.  9:41 was my target time and I was set to capture whatever was going to happen.  I double checked,  triple checked this formula and believing it was correct started waiting for the second pass of the ISS over Mariposa County.  I was sipping a cold beer and excitedly waiting.

I had my telephone with me (after the formal telephonic complaint to NASA) and at EXACTLY 9:40 PM ONLY ONE MINUTE BEFORE MY TARGET TIME – it rang – guess who?  That’s right!  Paul Benhiem from NASA – I will never forget his words:  “Check out this orbital correction Lew” and he hung up!  That’s it.  “Check out this orbital correction Lew” and he hung up.  I had no idea what he was talking about, and later upon reflecting upon the night’s outing, much less that the technology in orbiting vehicles had developed to this point they could even do such things —

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March 31, 2016:  Hey folks check out the ISS tonight:

Time: Thu Mar 31 8:09 PM, Visible: 6 min, Max Height: 78°, Appears: 10° above SW, Disappears: 10° above NE

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MONDAY, March 28th, 2016

Busy morning – turned out to be most of the day.  Rather interesting I think but  instead of blah blah blah here and re-directing you folks with a link to another page I think another “regular posting” more appropriate.  I apologize for “jumping around this website” like I have been but it is really difficult organizing this stuff – especially since so much of the information FINALLY RECEIVED is not chronologically presented….

EXCEPT IN THE TIME LINE.   Jeez, that reminds me – I’ve got some updating to do on the TIME LINE as well.  There just aren’t enough hours in the day.     (“Always thought we’d have more time”  how true, how true.)

Maybe that financial advertisement concept might work if I didn’t argue with my clones.   LOL  (Fortunately don’t have to be concerned with this since the technology is far from expedient enough to provide some extra help with this stuff. LOL)

I’m afraid WE (the LEGALLY ENTITLED MERCED RIVER WATER USERS in the Lake Don Pedro residential subdivision – for whom the SURFACE WATER TREATMENT PLANT was originally [and specifically] constructed to SERVE IN THE FIRST PLACE) may have found out too late about KAMPA & KOMPANY’s  apparent MASSIVE MISREPRESENTATION AND FRAUD against our interests.  They have been working on this behind the scenes for some time and did an exquisite job of concealing their betrayal with DROUGHT EMERGENCY excuses for not doing the job they were hired to do:  MAINTAIN EXISTING CUSTOMER WATER SERVICE.

NOT EXPANDING SPECIAL INTEREST BENEFITS!

Gosh, how could that have happened?  I was assured at the board meeting (while still a director on the board in 2014) that the (proposed at the time) new ground water wells constructed with public funds WOULD NOT BE USED FOR OUTSIDE MID PLACE OF USE properties.  My how things change.

YES INDEED THIS IS REPETITIOUS BUT SUMS IT UP:

I’m getting ahead of myself….. OK, here’s the plan – I’ll catch you folks later with a new posting regarding this morning’s outing.  Later, Lew

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Friday, March 25th, 2016.

EMAIL TODAY FROM THE LDPCSD OFFICE:

Interesting.  I also (before the meeting) received the agenda and then later an email with no packet as was noted to be attached but I figured it was a “special omission” since it has happened other times when “interesting meetings” were to take place.  Gee, isn’t this is the same method of operation used with other LDPCSD record-keeping business where an agreement specifically refers to “attached exhibit C” and there is no “attached exhibit C” – ANYWHERE!  ANYWAY, rather than make an issue of it I just logged onto the LDPCSD site and picked the packet up there.  Watch, next time there will be no information packet for anyone, any where.

LESS EYES = MORE LIES

FOLKS – why not send an email to the LDPCSD right now and request that an electronic copy of all board and committee meeting materials (agenda and supporting data in the board packet) be sent to you?  What could it harm?  No one will force you to read it if you don’t feel like it.  You can always delete it later too.  IT IS FREE and who knows, you might decide to attend a meeting sometime just to discover for yourself WHAT ELSE IS NOT INCLUDED as an “entitled legal consumer of MERCED RIVER WATER“ under L11395? 

Of course in all fairness, perhaps due to this being another unprepared KAMPA & KOMPANY “remote general managed” board meeting filled with suspicious and/or bad and/or incorrect information, just maybe the resulting increased stress was too great and it was just a simple mistake due to ……

NAW – this is bullshit extremely unprofessional conduct that has happened before (with the same “close the barn door after the cows are out” apology and is an insult to the concept of government transparency.

You know, this correction makes me FEEL BETTER and WORSE simultaneously.  BETTER as to knowing I was not the only customer whose information packet was not attached to the email, but WORSE in that it is just another unfortunate example (for whatever contributing reasons) of LEGITIMATE LDPCSD CUSTOMERS BEING SERVED LAST!

Although it may have been polite of Syndie to acknowledge the error with an “after fact” correction, the resulting harm, as always, is a done deal.

Humm, similar to  the illogical and expensive special interest direction KAMPA & KOMPANY and the Board of Directors are currently leading this public agency Community Services District now?

Perhaps one day they too will apologize to customers for what they have done, and are doing, right now?  (But please do not hold your breath.)

later, Lew

????????????

So what’s happening within your slice of the world pie today?

(I have absolutely no idea.  Perhaps I’m hungry?)

Right.  OK, good morning – I’m still listening to the meeting recording – a little bit at a time.  Having to sit through hours of the meeting the first time is painful enough but listening to a recording of that train wreck over and over and over is, well, not very pleasurable.   I do appreciate however (and I hope you do too) the ability to now post audio clips so viewers can listen for themselves as to what was said by whom and without the time consuming transcription work.

HOW something is said is often more important than WHAT is said.

I am still having some difficulty with the website’s top menu bar and do not know what works, much less what works best, for viewers since there are so many different types of internet accessing devices.  What is most often used by a typical viewer?  (Is there even such thing as a “typical viewer”?)   I previously thought a desktop computer or laptop would be most common.   But what about tablets and the varied internet/phone combinations?   I’m not very knowledgeable about what sort of equipment is even out there now.  Just learned a while back that hard drives are on the way out in favor of “the cloud”.

Personally, I use a desktop for most stuff but picked up a tablet a while back which is really convenient for some things.  I really like the mobility aspect.  Unfortunately I have also learned many sub-menus that work properly on my desktop often do not display or access correctly with the tablet.  (Operating certain features of the website software with the tablet is also more difficult and “error easy” with the tablet’s touch screen.  One night I was changing things around a bit with the tablet and thought the new layout a great idea but the actual results were horrible when viewed the next morning on the desktop!)

What to do, what to do? Eventually I’ll figure it out but right now there are more important things to pursue because those wishing to “liberate our subdivision water” have been working on their plan for quite some time now.

Consider also they had (have) access to vast “FREE” resources to exploit in crafting and executing their diabolical plan of re-configuring this non-profit public agency into a profitable CASH COW for third party interests not entitled to L11395 MERCED RIVER WATER.

They have a limited liability management company, contracted advisors/consultants, attorneys, sympathetic politicians (some who may not appreciate what is actually being done to the LDPCSD), etc.

“They” are pursuing this goal despite previous verbal assurances of NOT USING NEW GROUND WELLS to expanded Outside Place of Use water service – such duplicitous excuses for honest public agency officials.  What does a solemn Oath of Office actually mean to such individuals?

PETE KAMPA (KAMPA COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS LLC)  was SPECIFICALLY RECRUITED by board members for his water industry training and vast California state political contacts to continue the program of LDPCSD WATER SERVICE EXPANSION OUTSIDE THE PERMITTED SERVICE AREA.

Heck, KAMPA was actively involved with that issue here in Lake Don Pedro twenty years ago (first employment tour was from January 1, 1994 to October 17, 1997 when he gave notice of resignation.  Unknown actual “last day”.)

Think about this:

KAMPA personally knew, and had forged working relationships with, some of the original players involved with this OUTSIDE PLACE OF USE NIGHTMARE and INTENTIONAL HI-JACKING OF OUR COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT SURFACE WATER TREATMENT PLANT.

KAMPA was indeed quite familiar with the festering issue because he personally assisted in making the problem worse during his first employment tour with the LDPCSD.  WHy should he care – he and his LLC make money no matter what happens to the customers and their district.

The LDPCSD closed recruitment process designed by Board Directors was completely successful and did exactly as intended – brought PETE KAMPA back to the LDPCSD to RESUME SPECIAL BENEFIT WATER SERVICE EXPANSION for third party profit while simultaneously continuing the funding with PUBLIC REVENUE on the financial backs of the 99% of the legal MERCED RIVER WATER customers in the Lake Don Pedro subdivision….  <gasp…..must take breath…lol>

later, Lew

UPDATED:   Mar 21 2016 LDPCSD Board Meeting

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OK, that’s it for me today.  My best to you and yours, Lew

Thursday, March 24, 2016.  Good morning viewers.  I’m still trying to take care of some things around here but before I get started wanted to post a photo of the typically crowded LDPCSD board room during Monday’s meeting.

Pretty sad when board members routinely outnumber the audience.

Later-

Hello once again!

I will be updating with installments of material from last Monday’s MARCH 21 2016 LDPCSD BOARD MEETING as time permits. This, unfortunately, will once again be a work in progress as it is difficult to keep up with so many individuals who are apparently dedicated to obscuring the truth from the 99% of legal Merced Water consuming customers WHICH INCLUDES our “out of area subdivision property owners” who pay “AVAILABILITY FEES” for their entitled FUTURE water service by way of TUOLUMNE and MARIPOSA COUNTY PROPERTY TAXES).

So, let’s start a NEW PAGE LINK:  MARCH 21 2016 LDPCSD BOARD MEETING

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Wednesday, March 23^rd, 2016/1900hrs

 Good evening!  We always thought there would be more time.  (Lyrics to a Third Eye Blind song?- don’t have time to look it up, but I think so).   I always thought there would be more time also.  We were all wrong huh?  Lol  (There it is again!  That lol stuff)  What the heck?  If I left it as “We were all wrong huh”, well, that’s sounds, I don’t know, depressing. Negative.  Maybe even kind of sad and that isn’t what I was trying to convey.  It was meant more like, “we all learned time is precious”.  Perhaps time gets more valuable (or seems more so) the older you get?  So the “lol” was like, what the heck, we all feel like that at times, right? No biggie!  “GO WITH THE FLOW”   Laugh about it, time isn’t going to slow down for us to finish whatever project or goal that might be dear to us personally.  Enjoy one day at a time.  If you don’t actually enjoy each day (or at least moments in that day), at least attempt to appreciate the unique experience of “your life”.  Whatever.  Too deep.

ANYWAY, seems like, feels like, gosh I am! always in motion.  Maybe like most of the folks up here in these “remote foothills”?  (Anywhere I guess.  Whether 35-40 miles to the store or 10 minutes, still have to schedule the time and make arrangements.  Typical stuff, groceries, doctor-dentist appointments, maintenance or project materials, and for those with children?…..I bow in respect (& relief) for I only have a theoretical understanding of the sacrifice and hardships involved.  Naturally I can reflect on what it was like for me growing up and I still apologize to my Mom for some of the crap I pulled when young (yes, I still remember young!).  Enough said.

Anyway, time seems short in every direction I look.  While shopping today I finally purchased some electrical supplies for a project I’ve thought about for years but just never got around to actually starting. I also did something I’ve thought about for a while but never pursued believing it too frivolous considering other recent events.  You know, that the money would be better spent on something else – maybe like an over-due electrical project?  (you know…..lol)   Still getting it done provided so much needed personal satisfaction and I’m not looking back regardless of what it cost!

Surely you have some “pet project” or “improvement” you’ve wanted to do but for one reason or another never got around to starting, much less finishing.  Right?  Well, today I completed a project AND while at it got my nails done!

GOT MY NAILS DONE TOO!

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LATER  on during Tuesday, March 22nd, 2016/1815 hrs.

WARNING

EXPLICIT OBJECTIONABLE LANGUAGE USED IN THIS POSTING

(ONLY two “bad words” – that’s right – you count them – ONLY two bad words)

I am still digesting yesterday’s five hour LDPCSD Board Meeting which concluded after an hour plus of killing time in the parking lot waiting for the BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND PETE KAMPA to finish their CLOSED SESSION (public attendees must leave) and reconvene the OPEN SESSION of the regular meeting.

Please recall the ORIGINAL AGENDA for this meeting was:

5. f. Consideration of agreement with Kampa Community Solutions, LLC for the position of General Manager

Remember, it was a similar “consideration of agreement” that provided KAMPA with a closed recruitment process devoid of the possibility of any competitors orchestrated by the board of directors which immediately appointed him on the same day he presented a contract ready for signature without even a background check regarding his sudden termination from last employment.   This original agenda item indicates PETE KAMPA and THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS had evidently decided to make “AN HONEST GM” out of KAMPA.  Just a technicality because since PETE and his KAMPA COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS LLC were appointed as the Interim General Manager, PETE was already actively using the full title GENERAL MANAGER.  Heck this started right after the initial appointment in early October 2014.  This is not my opinion, please refer to KAMPA’s self described position in an introductory letter he sent to the MERCED IRRIGATION DISTRICT less than a month after IGM appointment.

<INSERT>  “SAY YOU ARE WHAT?”

ANYWAY, the “new and improved” amended agenda changed 5.f. to:

6. CLOSED SESSION – California Government Code Section 54954.5

Public Employee Performance Evaluation – General Manager.

WHY START with the END of the MEETING Lew?

Jeez, good question.  I guess because I am sore, tired and had hoped to just hit some highlights as I seem to be caught in a perpetual dilemma of choosing what work to actively pursue and what to procrastinate.  The procrastination list seems to be winning.  I was grinding the ‘ol grey matter in deliberation over what to do and caught myself thinking “no matter what I do, there’s always something else” when I recalled those Frank Zappa lyrics from “Flakes” which humorously express the idea there will always be other problems requiring attention:

“While yer children is sleepin’- Yer puppy is crappin’”

Lol

Probably not the best example of sentence structure, grammar or appropriate language but it is expressive and to the point.   Although I may not have actually “Laughed out Loud” a smile did crack across my face, I chuckled at the imagery and the internal consternation subsided.  Good medicine indeed.   Yes, I am aware I frequently use the lol shorthand in almost all of my blah-blah-blah offerings.  Perhaps the “lol” use is just another bad habit like my penchant for

LARGE COLORFUL FONT EXPRESSION?

Well, it is SPRING AFTER ALL!

Maybe my writing style is an evolving outward manifestation of the building frustration, anger and resentment with the arrogant duplicity of this public agency and the recent long overdue emergence of the truth regarding the permitted area of service in the PUC approval?    DECADES OF DECEIT

You know – something like a self-defense mechanism that tempers the harsh reality that every single property owner in the Lake Don Pedro subdivision has been deceived for decades as to how their Community Services District was designed, intended, and legally approved to operate versus the special benefit CASH COW it has become due to special interest influenced corruption?

OK, but could my frequent use of “LOL” possibly risk the misunderstanding by a new viewer (unfamiliar with my poor writing style and various attempts at humor) that I actually think the subject of “Public Agency betrayal of customers is ”funny?   I hope not.

There is nothing funny about the LDPCSD’s orchestrated betrayal of rate and property tax paying customers who have supported this thin and repeatedly corruptible layer of local government for over thirty years.

Regardless, I believe humor is an inexpensive and beneficial salve for the open festering wound of public corruption and without opportunities to step back, take a breath and laugh about an otherwise extremely serious breach of public trust, other enjoyable things in life will be adversely affected such as the pleasure received in feeding and providing nesting materials for numerous indigenous ungrateful fucking birds that continually shit all over my truck!  lol

That’s right, I used two bad words in one sentence, so what the…..?  (Almost three!)

Is such expression ever useful in certain instances?   I seriously doubt such outbursts of vulgarity will become routine on this site because I am already experiencing a bit of “blogger’s remorse”. [Sure I could always delete it with a “change of heart”]   I was raised better than that and am a little embarrassed, but then again, what harm was there?

It is not as though I am purposefully misusing public funds to produce private third party benefits to the detriment of 99% of the legally entitled Merced River water users under water license 11395.

ANYWAY, I did not sleep very well last night due to a common aliment affecting many old guys my age – a belly in the front, but no butt in the back!  That’s right, I said it, I am sporting the traditional “old man with no butt look”.   (Evidently quite popular)  Since a belt proved of little help I started wearing suspenders years ago, true, they can be quite inconvenient at times (not too much imagination required here) but they do prevent the “wannabe gang banger with pants around the knees look”.

Although not sufficiently conscious of it at the time to fully remedy the situation, I now recall constantly re-positioning my body in that uncomfortable folding steel chair during the entire meeting. As it turns out there is a raised leather connecting element for the suspender cross straps in back that is the perfect height for rubbing against my spine with the pressure from the backrest of the metal chair.

OK, so much for the physical pain that encouraged some tossing and turning last night, but there was also something else, more of an emotional element to this whole situation that assisted in the restless discomfort experienced that I will undoubtedly share with you later.

Soooooo, back to ending this installment……..while waiting for the Board to reconvene the OPEN SESSION I was outside wandering around the parking lot in the drizzling rain experimenting (aka playing) with some of the new camera functions which produced some rather bizarre results.

WARNING

  ONE OF THESE EXPERIMENTAL PHOTOS LOOKS LIKE SOME OFF-WORLD ALIEN CREATURE

PLEASE REMAIN CALM

DO NOT BE ALARMED

DO NOT PANIC

THERE ARE NO PHOTOS OF ALIENS ON THIS WEBSITE [yet]

THERE IS NO REASON TO CONTACT THE AUTHORITIES AGAIN! 

lol

MAYBE A CLOSE UP MIGHT HELP?

NO COMMENT

OH YEAH – the OPEN SESSION report to the public regarding action taken by the Board on the agenda item?

As the only “public” present, I can tell you first hand, no action taken on that item, but there are a few other things I believe worthy of discussing later when time permits.

My best to you and yours, Lew

Tuesday, March 22, 2016/0326hrs:  Did you see this?  The “New News?”  Finally got hold of the official CALIFORNIA PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION approval of the SIERRA HIGHLAND transfer of facilities and assets to the LDPCSD.  And guess what?  It describes what the legal service boundary is – you probably already know huh?  It is the LAKE DON PEDRO SUBDIVISION and all that other garbage was just added on to “wanna be” documents as “evidence” justifying district water service outside the subdivision proper.   Seems like some sort of fraud to me.  Taking money from customers for over thirty years for one thing but using those funds for another.  Sound familiar?  How sad and deceitful.

Check it out: WATER SERVICE AREA CPUC ACTUALLY APPROVED JAN 21 1981

Attended Monday’s LDPCSD meeting.  First one since I left the Board in 2014.  Mixed feelings about the experience, no doubt I will fill you in later (you wouldn’t be that lucky to avoid the blah blah blah-lol)     Time to crash.

Monday, March 21st, 2016.  A little light rain here, but who knows about the higher elevations?  Hope all creatures are protected and safe but that the mountainous environment is abnormally cold, frozen and what we might otherwise consider absolutely miserable – if not for the continued potential for Summer drought related difficulties. KNOWWHATTHISIS?

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Bird nesting material!

Dryer lint is the perfect solution for those annoying cracks and gaps between twigs, sticks, and other construction materials used by nesting indigenous birds.  (Actually, many creatures find good uses for the fibers.)   Spring is a great time to leave this nest building material where birds have easy safe access because we obviously do not want to unintentionally bait the birds for a cat or other predator – kind of defeats the purpose of doing something kind    ? .

Sometimes I toss handfuls of the stuff around social areas frequented by feathered friends, other times I will stuff an old sock, with multiple holes cut in it to permit fiber withdrawal, and then hang the sock in a tree branch near a feeder.  I chuckle to myself when I see blue jean fibers and/or colored bath towel lint expertly woven within a solid and comfortable looking nest for the little ones – sometimes quite a distance from where it was originally offered.  I have also discovered stockpiles of it underground where various rodents have appreciated this useful material to personalize their subterranean existence.  The process doesn’t take much time, will make you smile when you later observe it in use, and performs a useful benefit rather than just going to the landfill.

later, Lew

Sunday Night 3/20/16 @ 2220hrs– Last contribution for the day – playing around with the camera again.  Set everything up and wait.  Not too many aircraft out tonight.   Light traffic on HWY 59.  A couple of good vehicle light trails.  Yak with you tomorrow.

Sunday, March 20th, 2016.   30% chance of rain tonight – such is the forecast on one weather channel right now.  Hiked around the property yesterday throwing handfuls of granulated fertilizer near the base of trees and shrubs – just in case – because it is always appreciated when natural precipitation does the rest.

<YES INDEED THIS IS BREAKING NEWS!>

I interrupt this previously posted blah blah blah with some interesting news – I finally snagged a CALIFORNIA PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION January 21, 1981 Order which documents the approval of the LDPCSD Service Area – yup!  The Lake Don Pedro Subdivision.  GO figure huh?  Check it out:

WHAT THE CPUC ACTUALLY APPROVED RE: LDPCSD SERVICE AREA

(REM THOSE OLD TV ANNOUNCEMENTS?)

<I NOW RETURN YOU TO THE POSTING ALREADY IN PROGRESS >

I noticed there have been a lot of spelling and grammar mistakes lately – sorry.  Normally I prefer to write using a word processor and when finished simply “cut and paste” into a post or page on the site.  This takes a bit longer but cuts down on mistakes.  I think it is also a more relaxed method of writing.   Sometimes the words I am searching for are just not there (writer’s block?) so I shut it all down, walk away and try to get some other work done around here, and believe me, there is always something that needs to be done.  No doubt my lengthy project list will outlive me but I think that is normal judging by the comments others make in regards to their own “to do” lists.

Other times, probably the majority, there are so many words and thoughts buzzing about within the grey matter that it is difficult to pick and choose, or channel if you will, the desired expression into something readable.   This new experimental menu format (menu headings whose material changes frequently) was a quick-fix attempt to keep moving forward while trying to organize a great deal of material covering a time line of decades.  This method of  incremental “updating here and there” poses other difficulties – redundancy the most obvious and annoying.  Hearing the same thing over and over and over again in slightly different variations throughout the menu structure.  This is annoying even to me and frankly, I have difficulty remembering what was posted or waiting to be finished and then posted.

With “direct entry” posting I also sometimes accidentally post and expose you viewers to, shall we say, quick organizational or private notes intended to remind me to finish an incomplete thought process, comment or posting.  Maybe a reminder to locate some supporting document related to a comment.  The frequent saving and updating of files is also necessary to prevent the accidental loss of information but represents another pitfall.  (Loosing an hour or so of typing due to a power spike or lag is disheartening.)   Many times with this frequent updating I activate the wrong button and WHAM!  Ready or not – it is published for the world to see.  Sure, if I realize it at the time I can remove it from public view until it is “fully cooked” but often I have no idea what I had just done.  OH BOY!  SURPRISES!

I remember one morning getting on the website after a few hours sleep and searching all over for something I was working on the night before but couldn’t find it anywhere.  Maybe I renamed the file?  Still in the word processor?  A draft? Where the heck is it?    Yup, you guessed it, there it was publicly displayed as a new post in its incomplete glory.  Fortunately a couple of quick paragraphs connected the “in progress post” into something more acceptable.

There are PROS and CONS to everything.  Recently I have used a bright green color in an effort to alert myself to incomplete “in progress” material or identifying where I stopped the night before, but as you all well know, I have a problem with using too much color and font emphasis.  I don’t know why I do it,

BUT I DO!

   lol

Thank you for your patience.

Saturday, March 19th, 2016.   A bit sore this morning, but like most of the time, satisfied with what was accomplished.  Yesterday it was weed-eating, raking, burning and spraying again; cleared a path by “relocating a very large rock” and breaking up and piecemeal removing another.  That’s the kicker when it comes to muscle soreness – fracturing, digging/prying up, and eventually removing all the various sized sharp fragments.  A lot of bending over and picking up – but it looks sooooooo good when done!  (Why do I bother to tell you this – or anything about the LDPCSD for that matter?  I guess just to confirm that I do possess other interests besides what might appear to be constant complaining about the direction of our water company!  LOL   Oh well, must be true to ourselves right?)  Speaking of the LDPCSD, there will be a new posting shortly regarding the GM position and some more “not so earth-shattering news” about what’s scheduled for the next board meeting on Monday.  OOPS! BETTER DOT THE “is” and CROSS THE “ts” TO MAKE IT LOOK RIGHT!

<Below>  A few images taken during  breaks from the Spring Slaughter yesterday, aka (also known as) bathing in liquid green chlorophyll and mangled vegetation fragments.

Here are some “time exposures” taken Saturday evening around 2000-2100 hours from the top of the Cul-de-sac looking towards the valley.

later, Lew

Friday, March 18th, 2016.  Good morning!  Looks like it is going to be a bright foothill Spring day thus far.  Very few clouds in the sky – a bit of traditional haze in the valley.  Weather reports indicate some more rain this coming weekend and first of next week.  FANTASTIC!  I understand Lake McClure has risen another several feet but as we all know, it is going to likely take much more time to completely recover.  But who knows?  Remember the projections on the oil spill off the Gulf Coast?  Certainly devastating but the estimates on recovery were off quite a bit.  HOPE always SPRINGS ETERNAL right?

Rechecked the 1980 LDPCSD furnished public information files (about the sixth time) and unfortunately my initial research was correct –  there is no map of the Service Boundary in that material despite a clear reference that a MAP WAS ATTACHED to the original document – where ever that might be.  The only map is the one I posted from a 1968 contract.  What an insult to any thinking customer concerned about this district’s chaotic and expensive operation for decades.

Doesn’t that raise your suspicions?  I mean a water company without a map detailing its approved service area for doing business?  Folks, this is just plain wrong for any business but especially one that is a publicly funded agency with TAX DOLLARS.  What happened to accountability?  Yes, I am a dinosaur but still dearly miss the old days where people displayed some integrity and pride in their work.  Like so many  other things in life, only time and the inevitable emergence (and appreciation) of the truth will expose those responsible for this abuse of public trust.

Want to know a secret – of sorts?  Some of these individuals [who have perpetrated and assisted in continuing this fraud against the “99% of legally entitled Merced River water using customers in the subdivision“] do not actually care, or perhaps understand and/or appreciate that their behavior is indeed wrongful and injurious to others.  Seriously.   They are too focused on achieving their Special Interest goals to be concerned with the concepts of legality or fairness and how it affects the unequivocally intended, and entitled, customers of this district.

The truly sad part of all this is that these people are gambling with something far more important and valuable than just their individual reputations regarding public service betrayal, however, personal religious belief systems and the potential for “after-life” consequences for life transgressions, are not subject matters for this website.  Just a passing observation.

SO, yet another beautiful foothill Spring day – A DAY WHERE SOME RECENTLY IGNORED OUTDOOR CHORES ACTUALLY GET ACCOMPLISHED!

UPDATED:

DISTRICT FORMATION DOCUMENTS PAGE

FOILED FOIA

New attempted humor of a serious subject:

A FREE LDPCSD CUSTOMER GIFT?

Later –  Lew

Thursday, March 17, 2016.  Much trouble with printing some of the documents regarding our District’s Formation.  Really strange since other much less important documents print just fine.  I tried multiple times with different approaches but every time two documents would not complete printing so I will have to “re-type” the information so you can read for yourself.  (Of course I will also include photographs of these files taken from the computer monitor but those are often quite difficult to read.)

I hope my inserting these EXHIBIT documents (that are specifically mentioned in the PUBLIC UTILITIES APPLICATION where Sierra will transfer and assign its business to the LDPCSD) between the pages of the application where they are mentioned isn’t too confusing.  When I read material that references something else I dislike having to search for it and prefer to have easy access so it fits chronologically with the flow of information.

Perhaps it’s best if we link back to the FORMATION DOCUMENTS PAGE?  Just click or tap here:  DISTRICT FORMATION DOCUMENTS PAGE

Monday, March 14, 2016.   Were you able to get your clocks set forward 1 hour?  [You know, the old “Spring forward & Fall back” procedure for daylight savings?]  I completely forgot until a friend reminded me the next day.  I still have a few around here somewhere that need setting.  I’m sure I’ll find them before it’s time to “fall back” again. (Actually that has happened in the past with clocks not usually used but if you wait until the next time change it will self correct – lol)  SIMILAR TO:  “Even a broken clock is right twice a day”  Funny comment but like everything else there are exceptions.  If the clock were a digital 24 hour read, 8PM would be 2000hrs, 9PM would be 2100hrs, etc.  therefore, military clocks would only be correct once a day.  lol

The rain has been falling on and off for days now.  I was wondering about the rain amounts higher up the mountain.   The recent addition of the link to the Merced River flow chart is actually pretty cool in this regard.  (Looks like the flow meter on the Merced River might need time adjustment as well if I’m reading it correctly.)  What do you think:  http://www.merced-river.com/merced-flows.htm) Seems to me the red ink is lagging by one hour for March 14th. Oh well, who really cares when looking at how much water is rushing by?

OK, if the chart reads 3,050 cfs, (cubic feet per second)  and one cfs = 449 gallons per minute, …therefore

3,050 cubic feet per second x 449 gallons/min = 1,369,450 gallons/minute rushing by at that point?

one AF (acre foot) = 325,861 gallons.  So 1,369,450 gallons divided by 325,861 gallons = 4.2 AF per minute!

WOW!

That is a lot of water rushing downhill.

Unfortunately much, much more will be needed through the years to raise McClure to a normal high water mark.  Hope I live long enough to see water once again covering the dirt scarred water level marks on the shoreline.

Heck the referenced graph even had its upper limits increased from just a few days ago which of course is a good thing.  Bring on the runoff to our Lake McClure!   Wonder how many more feet in elevation this might raise the lake level?

1030:  Flow is still going up! – Over 3100 cfs/4.27AF/min.   Time adjusted also.  Can you imagine what the flow is going to look like in April, May & JUNE?  Prior to the last several  years of drought I don’t believe I truly appreciated this natural water cycle quite as much.

Sure, I am pretty familiar with the Merced River on a geographical basis having visited a number of different locations from its birth in the mountains to spots along its meandering valley journey to ultimate delta-bay acceptance.  But I have also experienced the Merced River on a chronological basis due to the intertwining of my own life journey as a young boy to, shall we say older individual since I haven’t quite reached my “delta-bay” equivalent.

I have had the pleasure to walk, jog, bicycle, motorcycle, and other wise motor vehicle drive/ride near, over or on its waters.  I have been swimming, floating, and tubing in it’s currents and eddies; even pretended to know what I was doing when panning for gold (found a little color was about all -lol);  I have camped in the mountains near crystal clear water while listening to thunderous collisions with rock, and at lower elevations near mellow slow moving hypnotic swirls where turtles and butterflies leisurely warm themselves on the banks, but until right now, this minute, have never appreciated it more.

Sure the fact I live in a residential subdivision whose primary source of potable water is Lake McClure which is fed by the Merced River has something to do with this appreciation, but I think the admiration and awe I have for the Merced River is more of a collection of good memories and hopes for what might continue to be.

YAK MORE WITH YOU LATER-

Friday, March 11th, 2016.   Much better – amazing what a good night’s sleep can do. Let’s see, strong winds from the Southeast right now – an occasional sprinkle hopefully more later.  1400hrs-it has really been coming down pretty good for the last hour or so-heavy rain, moderate wind with strong gusts.  Wish I could capture more of the water flowing downhill but every bucket and trash can is already full.  Wonder how many feet this will raise the elevation at Lake McClure?

Thursday, March 10th, 2016.  I am tired.  A bit sore from removing a few large and heavy limbs from the strapped and supported Leland Cypress tree – it is resting comfortably after the procedure, thank you ?   Rain barrels full.  Monitoring the success of the last Spring weed slaughter.   Before this cold snap I noticed a few young lizards running about.  I have noticed over the years once adults are observed scampering about it is about two weeks when rattlesnakes come on the scene.  Not quite time yet, but when it warms up – be aware of your surroundings.  Updated the Time Line with some more documents.  Still thinking about that very informative MID response to my information request.  Future postings regarding this subject will be under the main menu heading: FOILED F.O.I.A.

Wednesday, March 9th, 2016

This morning I received the MERCED IRRIGATION DISTRICT (MID) RESPONSE to my FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) request for the monthly MID POU compliance reports MID has required of the DON PEDRO COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT (LDPCSD) for over 16 years.  Good thing I already had a scheduled doctor appointment.  You know, my blood pressure is usually right on the mark but not so today – very much higher.  LOL

I’ll be posting my response to MID’s absurd and extremely curious reply under the opening menu item     FOILED F.O.I.A.

But until then I wonder…..

Why would MID be reluctant to provide the monthly compliance reports it required from the LDPCSD to protect itself from potential SWRCB enforcement action for not assuring L11395 restrictions on Merced River water Place of Use were being obeyed by the LDPCSD?

-later-

??????????????????????

Sunday, March 6th, 2016

Heavy rain and strong winds last night! I can’t complain though. I asked for it. I got it – and now must deal with the consequences – the two key variables associated with falling trees around here: rain and wind.
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Due to the often shallow thin foothill topsoil over rock strata there’s not much room for the root structure to adequately secure a tall top heavy tree. The ground gets saturated with water and then repeated gusts of (sometimes seemingly relentless) wind rocks and sways these narrow tall trees back and forth. LeLand Cypress can get a bit bushy so when you add moisture to all those branches the pounds really add up for a tall mature tree. Then add powerful winds pushing more rain = trouble.
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I was performing a routine “storm walk about” last night with a flashlight, picking up stuff blown around and clearing debris from drainage pipes. The wind was really blowing, trees swaying, with rain falling pretty good when I heard what sounded like an animal moaning or groaning. The scene was kind of creepy with the storm, like one of those cheap horror flicks that you know doesn’t end well when the character (soon to be victim) goes wandering into the darkness with a flashlight to investigate a strange noise.
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Checking the area I discovered one of the tallest and healthiest Leland Cypress trees along the side path was leaning heavily towards the garden shed. Suddenly, there was that “moaning” again – startled me at first until I realized the tree wasn’t just leaning towards the garden shed – it was “on the garden shed”. The tree would lift a bit off the roof then slide back across the fiberglass sheeting making a, you guessed it, moaning sound. Further inspection revealed some minor damage to the roof overhang but at least it was supporting the tree’s weight when lifting and leaning back against the roof with the cycling wind.
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Standing there in the rain looking at the base of the tree, I could see, hear and feel the earth move under my feet near the trunk. I could hear roots snapping and popping in their muffled saturated underground world. I watched as one side of ground would lift due to upward force of the root ball pushing towards the surface, while on the other side of the trunk the ground was compressed under the increased weight of the further leaning tree. All of this magically choreographed in synchronous rhythm to the howling wind above. So there I was in the pouring rain, water dripping down my back with wind whipping at my clothes trying to mitigate damage. I ended up grabbing one of those hand levered ratchet steel cable “come a longs” and some log chain and was able to “right” the tree temporarily.
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Sometimes this works if there wasn’t too much damage, the weather settles down, and the roots can repair. Many years ago during a brutal rain/wind storm I had five pine trees about fifteen feet tall go down right in one area. Surveying the damage the next day reminded me of the tornadoes in Arkansas where you could easily follow the path of destruction in an overhead view of the area. That year I lost three of the five trees later that summer. Evidently if the pine leans a little too far over the “tap root” will break underground. Although the damage is unobserved and the tree survives for a while with the other root system when the real hot weather arrives tree is unable to absorb and “lift” enough water to sustain life.

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So sad to see the results of decades of work and maintenance slowly fade away, but then again, many enjoyable campfires have been fueled with their remains. Sometimes I can save a tree by “topping it” and allowing it to grow into something more like a gigantic mutant bush. Lol

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Oh well, the emergency stabilization project last night might work, if not, I’ll be removing yet another large 26 year old tree that has well served this environment.

I will honor it with a toast
Remembering a meaningful life
I will feel its warmth in crackling fire
On another cold-wet  foothill night.

_________later_________

SATURDAY MORNING, March 5, 2916:  Well not quite as much rain last night as expected but every little bit helps.  Hope there was a lot of snow in the higher elevations.

Be sure to check out “MISC NEWS” located in the top menu bar and to the right.   Ahhhh, OK, since you’re already here….here’s the link to the report on PETE KAMPA’s newest special district employment acquisition:   PETE KAMPA’S NEW SPECIAL DISTRICT EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT

Here are some specifics of the OSOS CSD agreement with KAMPA COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS, llc made on February 12, 2016:

http://www.losososcsd.org/Library/2016%20Agenda%20Packet/03.03.16%20/Agenda%20Item%2011F%20Approve%20Consulting%20Agreement%20with%20Kampa%20Community%20Solutions%20to%20Provide%20IGM%20Services.pdf

??????????

“Kampa has more than 22 years of experience in special district management. He served as general manager of the Tuolumne Utilities District from December 2006 to October 2013 and the McCloud Community Services District between 1997 and 2005.”

??????????

Notice that ONCE AGAIN KAMPA’s EMPLOYMENT HISTORY [that is routinely cited in glowing reviews and solicitations for more district employment]  CONSPICUOUSLY OVERLOOKS THE FACT HE STARTED HIS CAREER HERE IN LAKE DON PEDRO?  [1993-1997]

Why is that?  Is it possibly due to the controversy of KAMPA’s INVOLVEMENT with serving properties outside the MID POU with ground water substitution due to the many illegal surface water transfers of MERCED RIVER WATER?

Anything to do with the clear misrepresentations to county planning departments and LAFCos?  SPECIFICALLY,  that the LDPCSD could legally serve water under the Merced Irrigation District’s water license 11395 to properties OUTSIDE THE SUBDIVISION and MID’s Place of Use?

Could it be that this Special Benefit of private subsidized water by a public agency has been, and is planned to continue to be, financed by the 99% of legally entitled Merced River water customers for perpetuity?

What a complete scam and betrayal of the district’s legal customers.

What an amazingly misrepresented, self-serving and one-sided employment history of our illustrious GM and his for-profit management corporation.

Notice also the article states our Lake Don Pedro Community Services District is in Stanislaus County!  Now isn’t that interesting – the LDPCSD serves properties in the counties of Tuolumne and Mariposa with a SURFACE WATER TREATMENT PLANT located in Mariposa County near its Lake McClure source.  You would think GM PETE KAMPA, (especially since starting his water career here in Lake Don Pedro in 1993), would know this and make sure such information was reported correctly.

Oh well, guess he is just too busy to get things right for us here with all the other special district work he and his corporation performs? – not so lol

_______________________________

THE CURRENT LDPCSD BOARD OF DIRECTORS HAS ABROGATED THEIR SWORN RESPONSIBILITIES TO THIS DISTRICT AND ITS LEGAL CONSUMERS OF MERCED RIVER WATER UNDER L11395.

THIS BOARD HAS ESSENTIALLY SOLD OUR LOCAL PUBLIC CONTROL OF ONE OF CALIFORNIA’S FINEST QUALITY WATER SOURCES.

THE BOARD’S INTENT TO CONTINUE THIRD PARTY SPECIAL INTEREST SUBSIDIZED WATER DELIVERIES TO PROPERTIES OUTSIDE PERMITTED AREAS UNDER WATER LICENSE 11395 USING GROUND WATER SUBSTITUTION IS CLEARLY DOCUMENTED.

THE BOARD’S REFUSAL TO ABIDE BY WATER LICENSE RESTRICTIONS AND THE INTENDED FUNCTION OF OUR SURFACE WATER TREATMENT PLANT IS “A SPECIAL INTEREST DRIVEN POLICY TO THE OBVIOUS DETRIMENT OF THE AVERAGE & LEGAL WATER CONSUMER”.

YES, THEY CAN IGNORE AND RE-WRITE REGULATIONS AND STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES AND POLICIES TO SUIT THEIR NON-DISCLOSED SECRETE PLANS.

YES, THEY CAN RESTRICT INFORMATION TO WHICH CUSTOMERS PREVIOUSLY HAD ACCESS.

YES THEY CAN USE YOUR MONEY AND OUR PUBLIC AGENCY FUNDS TO DRAMATICALLY INCREASE THIRD PARTY PROPERTY VALUES OF THOSE NOT ENTITLED TO OUR WATER.

YES THEY CAN MISREPRESENT THE TRUE INTENT OF CONSTRUCTING EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE GROUND WATER WELLS WITH PUBLIC AGENCY AND GRANT FUNDS SPECIFICALLY ADVERTISED TO PROTECT AND SUSTAIN EXISTING CUSTOMER WATER SERVICE.

YES, THEY CAN DO ALL THIS AND MORE WITH COMPLETE DISREGARD FOR THE AVERAGE CUSTOMER’S PERSPECTIVE, OPINION AND CONCERN.

JUST REMEMBER THE ABOVE WHEN

“THEY” want “YOUR PROPOSITION 218  APPROVAL VOTE”

  for SUBSTANTIAL RATE & FEE INCREASES

to CONTINUE SUCH OUTRAGEOUS BETRAYAL.  

(you know, it does actually “feel a little better” to express myself in CAPS and LARGE COLOR FONT!  lol)

$$$$$$$$$$$$$

FRIDAY NIGHT March 4, 2016 @ 1829hrs

WOW! It is finally coming down pretty hard.  Have the rain barrels in place and hopefully all the tools up from the annual slaughter.  Boy, windy too!  (Yes, umbrella is completely down no unscheduled flights!)

I read where PG&E was gearing up for these coming storms anticipating some power outages which are quite typical up here during powerful storms – we shall see.  Fortunately they usually don’t last that long but can be tough on sensitive electrical equipment without surge protectors and a battery back up for power lags.  I recall several years ago being without power for four days.  OH BOY semi-camping again. Generator is ready.  Going to grab some more firewood.  Hope everyone stays warm and dry.  BRING ON THE RAIN!!!

MBTYAY, Lew

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03032016

ahhh…SPRING!

That’s right – I had to get out to continue the yearly weed slaughter in reclaiming firebreaks and paths.  While sitting on the hillside taking a break from some relatively strenuous work, I more closely inspected what I was eradicating with the hungry “weed-eater”.  Actually quite beautiful.  (Stop to smell the flowers sort of thing)

Oh, OK, guess I’ll leave a few reseed survivors for next year’s chlorophyll splattered sacrifice. LOL!

SWRCH AG RULING COULD MEAN LESS WATER FOR DISTRICTalt=”P3010014o” width=”640? height=”427? />

Later –

A from the heart Saturday, January 21st, 2017 UPDATE:  I JUST DISCOVERED MANY MORE IMPORTANT FILES HAVE NOT BEEN ACCESSIBLE FROM THE TIME LINE links and when selected report:  “Sorry you are not allowed to preview drafts”, which is quite interesting since they were not “DRAFTS” but “PUBLISHED PAGES” until some peculiar difficulties outside my control occurred (previous hacks and malicious material being inserted into the website and server.)    No doubt the same type of characters who burn down public agency administration offices, can prevent USPS Certified mail from being delivered, or have been “hands on” in continuing this public agency fraud.  OK, I’ll just republish them again in an easier to see/access format so they will even stand out a little bit better now.   Despite the many hours of extra work guess I should be appreciative that someone fu@%1ng a$$hule(s) has/have been (unintentionally) kind enough to identify which documents they believe important enough to sabotage.You will obviously recognize which were nonfunctional due to the new white WordPress boxed links inserted for easier visibility.

Hundreds of millions of dollars in the balance?  Hell, could be far more than that when you consider the entire issue and how many entities and individuals (public and private) would be required to create and maintain the decades of “INSTITUTIONALIZED FRAUD & CORRUPTION” that the LAKE DON PEDRO COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT sure appears to represent.

Geez, fu@%1ing with a low level, nonprofit, individually operated website would be child’s play to these professional A$$hules.but more on that later, back to cleaning up the Time Line.

____________________________________________

WARNING

THE BELOW TUNE WILL BORE INTO YOUR BRAIN AND STAY THERE FOR A WHILE

Please listen responsibly!    lol

Found this today searching for “The Devil is in the Details”.  Very strange tune that gets stuck in your head.  LOL!  Perfect for pursuing this TIME LINE and seeing what’s been going on for decades.  I think the music stops if you go on another link.  I don’t know.  If it doesn’t work out I’ll remove it.  Just thought it a funny addition for a while.  later, Lew

Here are some events in chronological order influencing PETE KAMPA aka KAMPA COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS LLC, aka KAMPACS, and his Board of Directors attempt to permanently reconfigure our almost 40 year old nonprofit LAKE DON PEDRO COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT (LDPCSD) Surface Water Treatment Plant  [SWTP].

PLEASE REMEMBER THIS:

The Lake Don Pedro Community Services District is a CALIFORNIA SPECIAL DISTRICT formed by the Counties of Tuolumne & Mariposa to provide water service to the Lake Don Pedro residential subdivision and golf course.

WATER LICENSE 11395 , under which the LDPCSD operates, permits the pumping, treatment and distribution of MERCED RIVER WATER in permitted PLACES OF USE (POU) which are primarily the Lake Don Pedro Subdivision and the golf course: (from license):

“Domestic use at homesites within the service area of Sierra Highlands Water Company and at homesites and recreational facilities adjacent to Lake McSwain and Lake McClure including McClure Point, McClure Boat Club and Barrett cove.”

Since PETE KAMPA (aka KAMPA COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS LLC) and his Board of  Directors wish to expand service EVEN FURTHER beyond the permitted POU of the license, these properties must receive water from our new, and extremely expensive groundwater wells.  (Something KAMPA and DIRECTORS assured the public back in 2014 WOULD NEVER HAPPEN!)

This reconfiguration changes District policy, function and operation in order to serve water to third party speculative land development interests that the District has no legal duty or obligation to serve.

Public funds were also used to develop this “alternative source of water”  which the District clearly presented as being necessary to keep the water flowing for existing water consuming customers.

Not a word about redirecting water production from those wells to other properties that could not otherwise be legally served. 

Classic “Bait and Switch” deceit.

Here is only a portion of the KAMPA “BAIT & SWITCH” MEDIA BLITZ  for your consideration.

Gosh, what happened to all the media coverage PETE KAMPA had on the internet about his great accomplishment of creating a foothill water empire?

(Much less his European educational/managerial experience at Delft University?   Was that simply another Kampa lie?   Or just inconvenient informational fact that had to be removed when the depths of his criminal activities were being discovered?)

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

IMAGINE THAT?  PREVIOUS KAMPAGANDA REMOVED from outside media sources regarding nefarious activities at the LDPCSD during a STATE WIDE DROUGHT – and how Kampa was unethically returned to the scene of the crime to finish what he started 20 years ago with all those LAFCO ANNEXATIONS INTO THE LDPCSD THAT REQUIRED A GROUNDWATER SOURCE TO legally DEVELOP.

Strange such public news announcements are apparently no longer accessible as originally posted.    How peculiar – KAMPA’s previous public postings of his prior experience in the Netherlands as a manager and GM at DELFT UNIVERSITY just disappear?  So the question becomes, were those original postings truthful or not?  Why remove truthful information as to one’s employment/educational background achieved halfway around the world much less his professed desire to only help the customers of the LDPCSD?  If legitimate, why not leave the information? 

HELP THE LEGAL CUSTOMERS OF THE LDPCSD?  Naaaa, more like helping himself to the over ONE MILLION DOLLARS IN PUBLIC FUND CASH accumulated after near bankruptcy to finish surreptitious development plans for LAFCO ANNEXED PROPERTIES OUTSIDE THE PLACE OF USE FOR MERCED RIVER WATER per WL11395!  Those ANNEXED LAFCO PROPERTIES needed an “alternate source of water” in the form of a GROUNDWATER SUBSTITUTION PROGRAM in order to develop their projects and PETE KAMPA had the education, experience and powerful influential state connections (thanks to his director position with the  CALIFORNIA SPECIAL DISTRICTS ASSOCIATION  (CSDA) for approximately 20 years) to get the job done through acquisition of state and federal grants – naturally all essentially funded by the MR WECs  of the Lake Don Pedro subdivision. 

(Psssst!  MR WECs are also MANDATORY LDPCSD CUSTOMERS due to their property ownership in the residential subdivision.  TRAPPED and forced to subsidize this special interest benefit for as long as they own their subdivision property/home.  Sweet deal for the exploiting crooks!  Those subdivision property owners who are entitled to the quality Merced River water in Lake McClure are now provided a lesser quality “contaminant blended” water and pay more for that reduction in quality and service!)

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

SO….what did KAMPA actually do starting with his “UNETHICAL BOARD ORCHESTRATED RETURN TO LDPCSD IN OCTOBER 2014?”   (REM: this is an outside POU issue and Pete Kampa was returned to the LDPCSD 20 years later through the unethical efforts (disclosing confidential Board information) of OUTSIDE POU COMMERCIAL CATTLE RANCHER EMERY ROSS. 

EMERY ROSS is a “director fixture on the board” and has successfully caused much dysfunction for decades because “non stakeholders” (those OUTSIDE POU property owners who receive no water and pay nothing in the form of district financial support) can never-the-less vote in and determine who will represent the thousands of subdivision customers on the Board of Directors.   I only recently discovered which Board of Directors were responsible for completing and activating this planned wrongful “GERRYMANDERING OF DISTRICT ELECTIONS”.    BOARD EXPANDS VOTING BOUNDARY FOR NON WATER USERS      What a scam.   Complain to county officials about the corruption in this local public agency and they advise:    the community should simply elect better directors.  WHAT?

SERIOUSLY…..in a GERRYMANDERED SYSTEM the county assisted in setting up which only continues the board dysfunction and special interest advocacy to the detriment of the thousands of intended beneficiary customers of the established COMMON INTEREST DEVELOPMENT subdivision?

Essentially the plan called for providing any new drought emergency groundwater well production to other properties outside the permitted water license Place of Use as a legal remedy for multiple license violations (along with intended further expansion outside the boundary.  PETE KAMPA has a long history of advocating for such third party special benefit expansion on the financial backs of the 99% of legal consumers.  He apparently also has no qualms about selling our community’s newly developed “emergency water source” to owners of LAFCO annexed properties he worked with between 1994-1997 when busy exploiting the area during his first tour of employment. 

Essentially Pete Kampa was planting the “ANNEXATION SEEDS” in the 1990s for a later bountiful harvest of massive project developments when the GROUNDWATER SPIGOT for his new groundwater source was turned on for the thirsty land development projects he was orchestrating in the 1990s.  Thank you Emery Ross for providing the confidential board information to Pete Kampa and his KAMPA COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS, llc, aka, KAMPACS, Special District Management Company, so that he could have a prepared contact ready for board approval at the first available Board Meeting.  (In fact, the agenda which had already been distributed, was quickly changed to include that Kampa contract which was approved by the board at first introduction without even a simple employment background check.  But of course, that board already knew exactly what sort of character they were dealing with, which is precisely why Kampa was appointed GM/Treasure and given near completely authority over all district operations.)

Kampa said we had to spend all our money

(the Board I was on (2010-2014) started right after our near bankruptcy and after four years had saved over one million dollars)

and obtain government grants

to drill multiple wells to create a source of water to sustain our community in a water emergency –

that all sounded logical, yet as soon as some of the wells started producing water KAMPA&BOARD  wanted to expand service and SELL OUR EMERGENCY SURVIVAL WATER to third party land owners and developers for new businesses, competing subdivisions, ranches, agricultural endeavors, etc., which quite naturally, will ONLY INCREASE THE DEMAND FOR MORE GROUNDWATER PRODUCTION! 

They are creating a vicious cycle for a SPECIAL BENEFIT groundwater demand that the 99% of legal MERCED RIVER WATER  using customers will be funding for perpetuity!

PETE KAMPA and his complicit BOARD OF DEFECTORS were pushing forward the continued fraud of the LAKE DON PEDRO COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT that was set up by the conspiring TUOLUMNE & MARIPOSA Planning Departments and their respective LAFCOs (Local Agency Formation Commissions – which wields the power of the State of California directed on the local level) which created a SHAM OF A CALIFORNIA SPECIAL DISTRICT so that the many LAFCO ANNEXATIONS of property into the LDPCSD could eventually receive water in the future!   All concealed from the thousands of oblivious Lake Don Pedro residential subdivision property owners who were, and still are, paying for this special interest groundwater substitution program.

In other words, LAFCOs created the LDPCSD in order to provide their LAFCO approved ANNEXATIONS a special benefit water service surreptitiously paid for by the thousands of legal Merced River Water Entitled Customers, or MR WECs – as I have named our large group of innocent victims!  The LDPCSD was a fraud from day one created to serve the interests of LAFCO and those with property annexed into the LDPCSD.

Imagine, a CALIFORNIA SPECIAL DISTRICT fraudulently created and then further intentionally misdirected by PETE KAMPA who has been a CALIFORNIA SPECIAL DISTRICT ASSOCIATION (CSDA) Board Member for approximately 20 years!  Yup, a FOX in a HEN HOUSE.

Want to talk about utter betrayal by one of the state’s largest lobbying organizations?  Sorry, but there is no other way to look at this other than a decades long continuing criminal conspiracy and abuse of the California Special District concept.  Every single defining characteristic of a special district has been intentionally violated in order to provide water service to these “outside boundary” approved LAFCO ANNEXATIONS thanks to a California Special District (the Lake Don Pedro Community Services District) which the these two county LAFCOs formed in 1980 that continues to defraud every single owner of LDP subdivision property because of substantial increased special benefit costs paid for by the majority of legal customers.    

I will be adding to this page incrementally.  Thanks for your patience, Lew.

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