Friday, April 24, 2009

California's NEW Stop Law

Yield
Does STOP mean s t o p ?

Based upon my observations of an intersection containing two stop signs and one bad blind corner on the right that has no stop sign, in other words through traffic with the right of way, at the most 25% actually stop. All others blow through the intersection as if they had the absolute right of way, most never slow to 15 MPH. Some treat it as an open intersection without any stop signs, but most just keep on rolling.

What's my point? The general scofflaw public has ALREADY VOTED IN CALIFORNIA!

They've made stop signs yield signs and probably for the same reasons as bike riders, save on gas, energy, or no laudable reason for actually stopping. Now is several states their thinking about making rolling stops actually legal for bike riders. Here's good explanation of what their talking about doing, thanks to Green Wheels. Here's another good link and discussion on the bike legislation.






So what's next? Build roundabouts where no one (mostly) pays any attention to "Yield" signs and slows to 15 MPH in major intersections? Turn all the traffic lights to flashing amber and call it a free for all? In a society where everyone (mostly everyone) thinks they're above the law it might save a few people from getting hurt or killed, in particular pedestrians, thinking the law will protect them. Considering the present state on our streets and highways where these highbinders rule, I'm not real sure any of these new laws protect bikers, old or young.

Of course, it isn't any wonder why people believe they can act above the law with impunity in this country. At one time not too long ago, this country executed criminals for crimes President George Bush and Barack Obama committed. Aside from that, the criminal bankers get rewarded while while the same bankers foreclose on thousands of families on a trumped up economic disaster they caused. Closer to home we've got classic examples of the "Law" protecting and defending the rights criminal killers. One was the poor fellow crossing the street by the North Coast Eureka Co-op and the other was Roger Rodoni just to name a couple. When was the last time you actually saw a police officer enforce a stop sign?

--Joe

Saturday, April 18, 2009

Shock and Awe Law

Updated Below - Update II


I picked up my Saturday, April 18, 2009, Times-Standard Newspaper this morning and was greeted with this brilliant piece of news: Eureka discussing implementation of citywide rental home inspection. "Citizen task force aims to target crime"

Where do they plan on targeting crime? "Rental home inspections" that's where! It seems some person by the name of Lisa Ollivier wants to ratchet up the police powers in Eureka. Donna Tam of the Times-Standard says about Ollivier:
After years of neighborhood watch, putting pressure on overcrowded houses riddled with drug abuse and cockroaches, and being a part of a citizens' task force to target slum housing and crime in their neighborhoods, Ollivier is looking forward to presenting an ordinance to the Eureka City Council on Tuesday that will help to address those problems one rental property at a time.
This is the commentary of some simple self-serving do-gooder's knee-jerk reaction to problems either not being taken care of by the Eureka Police Department and other responsible agencies or deliberately allowed to exist and fester so as to produce this response for a community that was too gutless to personally deal with their own problems.

First, it's extra judicial police roadblocks to check for drunk drivers, random stops and searches on the highways, then its random stops to check and identify people just walking down the street, now it's "overcrowded houses"! What's next? Our guns? One house at a time? Why not? Constitutional legal protection doesn't mean anything when problems are allowed to fester and grow until we need a "Shock and Awe" solution.

Ollivier says:

When Lisa Ollivier was pregnant with her son three years ago, the late-night activities of neighbors in her Clark District home kept her from getting much sleep.

"There were times when I would be on the living room floor because of gunfire going on," she said.

This it pure NONSENSE! This statement, if factual, is an indictment of the police. Which doesn't surprise me one bit. When my wife and I moved into our new home here in Eureka we had one outlaw neighbor that, when they refused to stop constantly harassing us, I was forced to call the Eureka Police Department for help. All we got for our effort was royally shined on. The police officer politely listened to us, could see we were really upset, but did nothing. All the police did was make the problem worse than before. The neighbor figured they had a green light now that the police couldn't even be bothered to speak to them. In the end I took the problem to the Police Chief to help descalate the situation, for all that was worth; a total waste of time. After exhausting considerable resources in life, health, time and money I was forced to deal with the matter personally. It was either that or move. Dealing with me and my solution was not something either the police nor the neighbor wanted, so the problem abated, but not after considerable unnecessary rancor and visceral anger at everyone involved.

Well, I didn't get this posted Saturday, and Sunday I was greeted with "Growing violence: Marijuana gardens are robbery targets throughout Humboldt County" - frontpage, Times-Standard:

Home-invasion robberies at houses with pot gardens occur with disconcerting regularity in Humboldt County, law enforcement officials say. And the potential for violence in any robbery is high. Within the past six months, at least three people have been shot during suspected grow house robberies in Humboldt County.

"I can't think of a home invasion robbery in the last two years in Humboldt County that hasn't had a drug connection to it," said Eureka Police Chief Garr Nielsen. In every case, "it's almost exclusively marijuana."

What do you expect when a major portion of society believes everyone should have the right to grow and sell marijuana regardless the law or harm and threat to their community? Criminals breed crime and crime breeds violence!

So, what's the solution? Punish (Nuke the innocent women and children.) the people that are the victims of both the criminals and the complicit community?

UPDATE :: Thursday, April 23, 2009
Glass pulls rental home ordinance off the agenda

"Glass said he believes in maximum public input, so he hopes to meet with the task force next week to decide what to do next. He thinks they may set up a public meeting in the future."
That "maximum public input" is the City of Eureka's new public representative, Lisa Ollivier (task force), speaking for the majority? Talk about a classic example of political whoring!

UPDATE II :: Friday, April 24, 2009

His latest bull run on law was published today Friday, April 24, 2009, Times-Standard

Eureka suspends cell tower construction, arranges Verizon hearing

Now Larry Glass has teamed-up with Linda Atkins to push their political "BS" agendas to circumvent the law when not politically expedient. Classic! Atkins says:

Councilwoman Linda Atkins reiterated her opinion that Verizon acted in bad faith when it started construction before obtaining all its permits.

”It's the city's conditional use permit,” she said, adding that the council has the jurisdiction to say whether the cell phone company violated it.

According to Atkins, Verizon acted on bad faith, but apparently the permits aren't worth the paper their written on when the city "council has the jurisdiction to say whether the cell phone company violated it" after the fact. As bad as that is, this statement tells the whole story about these two worthless representatives.

Atkins and Glass both stated that it is important for the council to represent its citizens and listen to their concerns, even if the matter goes to court.

Since when has the "council" listened to the concerns of the people they are supposed to represent? If they had there never would have been a problem to start with. I wouldn't want a cell tower near my home either, but at some point this slap-stick comedy needs some serious truth-telling. Property owner's deep pockets are finite and it's about time these ideological knot heads come to terms with that reality. Frank Jager, the lone dissenting councilman, who by the way received on a fraction of consideration in this lopsided report, was the only one to show some sense of propriety.

Councilman Frank Jager said that while he, too, wants to ensure that the council protects the residents of Henderson Center, he reminded them that in order to fight a lawsuit for them, the council would be putting the other residents of the city at risk.

”We're also required to protect all the residents in this city,” he said.

The concerned people of Henderson Center and others, like yours truly, were sold out, plain and simple. We can either get used to it or take those responsible to task. Maybe next time they'll think about the people they represent when dealing with the Planning Commission before trying to make all land and property owners pay for their sins.

[Source]

--Joe

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Can You Live On Hope?


If the Obama Aristocrats in this country have their way, we all may be reduced to begging.

We received this email from a friend and also believe, after some examination, that "the implications ARE frightening!"

H.R. 875: Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009



"This is one scary bill! I strongly urge you to get involved! The implications are frightening! Natural News wrote a pretty good short article, and I've included important addresses to save you the time and effort. Please pass this on to all the people you know who might be affected by food production (or the production of herbs and essential oils) or just interested in their rights. I think its clear that Monsanto is at it again."


HR 875 Introduced Feb 4, 2009, has been referred to committee

This bill is of serious concern to all U.S. citizens for many reasons. First is the formation of a Food Safety Administration, which appears to be the food equivalent of Homeland Security. Another is the very broad language used to describe the authority of the proposed FSA and who or what would fall under FSA jurisdiction. As written, the Food Safety Modernization Act could eventually be used to limit or eradicate everything from organic farming to backyard gardening. It also strips state controls over food production, yet another erosion of the 10th Amendment.

Representative Rosa L. DeLauro (D - CT) sponsored the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009 HR875:

- Her husband, Stan Greenberg, has MONSANTO as a client.
- She received $180k in donations from agribusiness PAC's.

There are 39 cosponsors of this bill. It could be a tough battle. Information and contact of your rep and the committee members are only a few clicks away!

Informative article: http://www.naturalnews.com/025824.html

Online petition: http://www.leavemyfoodalone.org/

Write Your Representative: https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

The bill has been referred to the following committees:

House Committee on Agriculture: http://agriculture.house.gov/inside/members.html

Committee on Energy and Commerce: http://energycommerce.house.gov/

It is important to voice your opinion to the committee members as well as your Representative. The best time to address concerns about a bill is while it is under consideration in committee.

READ the bill HR 875: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h111-875
The next meeting of the Senate is Apr 20, 2009; the House next meets Apr 21, 2009.


Update :: Saturday, April 11, 2009

Lose your property for growing food? "Big Brother legislation could mean prosecution, fines up to $1 million"

Another link with more information: Could the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2009 be the End to Farmers’ Markets and Organic Farms?

And . . . just to be fair, here's a differing viewpoint on The Huffington Post.


"The only thing that is humiliating is helplessness."

So they make you dependent. First they take away your ability to think, fill you full of lies and phony beliefs, take away our jobs, our homes and businesses, our children, our right to self defense and last but not least, our right to grow our own food. They already got all our money!

More than just a food issue. For 40 years America's Aristocratic Elite have plundered the Middle and Poor Classes and Third World Countries. Systematically taking away their self-esteem, their value as human beings and as sovereign nations. The price we all pay for the right to be members of the community of Nations. Or, are we really looking at "pre-revolutionary France" in America?

--Joe

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Tasers and Excessive Force


The Report has discussed Taser use in the past. We firmly believe that Eureka City Police use of Tasers does NOT serve to protect the best interest of the community or its citizens. When will the EPD arm and certify use of the new Taser gun -- called the Shockwave -- a powerful crowd-control weapon?
"With the push of a button at a stand-off distance of up to 100 meters, the Shockwave unit deploys multiple standard TASER® cartridges that are oriented across an area arc. Full area coverage is provided to instantaneously incapacitate multiple personnel within that region."

Tasers Are the New Killers: Watch Their Popularity Surge!

As Taser use proliferates and deaths grow, lack of police accountability becomes a serious problem. Continuing to argue that Taser's are safe is:
... allowing Tasers to occupy a gray area -- not lethal except when they are -- will make it that much harder for police to be held accountable for excessive force and homicide. Cops already get away with shooting suspects dead with little to no consequences. Arming them with Tasers under the pretense that they are safe will only perpetuate this trend as inevitable deaths occur.

Like "pre-emptive" arrests, the 50,000-volt Tasers that London police are carrying as they stand off with G20 protesters this week may be seen as a necessary precaution. But the past several years have shown the slippery slope governments create in the name of security.
This issue seems most appropriate for Humboldt County with its sordid history of impunity and lack of accoutability as Taser use emphasizes police safety rather than that public safety. Because Taser's are proven lethal, this community needs to know every time a Taser is used by the Eureka Police Department or any other agency and why. That report needs to be published by the local news media.

Since Taser use is about intimidation and forced submission, actually torturing "suspects" into agreeing that the police have the right to arrest them, police safety and simple logic suggests people just might be a little more cooperative with police officers:
- "while also suggesting that suspects are less likely to resist police officers for fear of being tasered to death. "People now recognize that the Taser is painful and that Taser -- maybe they're thinking -- may kill me, and they're co-operating too"
If city, county and state governments are putting public safety first, then put out Taser usage so that we know what we're dealing with the next time a police officer decides to have a talk with one us.

You can read the complete discussion here.

Addendum :: Why torture is legal in America today:
America, due to Bush/Cheney policy, has added torture to our standard operating procedure, even if it is now held in abeyance by the Obama administration. That morally reprehensible act, while now out of favor, is essentially legal and Constitutional because no Congressional objection has been made and no one has been held accountable.
[Source of quote]
--Joe