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it is no mystery
we makin’ history …
Linton Kwesi Johnson, “Making History” circa 1984
Black History Month is upon us again. Academic Carter G. Woodson, known as the Father of Black History, was responsible for the first Negro History Week celebration in 1926. The week was later expanded into a month and renamed Black History Month.
OK. That was 1926. Separate but equal was the legal status quo, decisioned by the Supreme Court of this land in the 1896 case of Plessy v. Ferguson. The arms of government and its citizenry allowed this purported equal sense of justice to sit on the books unmolested until 1954. In the landmark decision Brown v. Board of Education, public school segregation at the state level was declared illegal. Several later Supreme Court decisions outlawed segregation at the federal level and all race based legal restrictions on marriage.
That, my CyberSoulChildren, is the history of race relations in 145 words. Unfortunately, it’s not so simple. There are those among us who view the election of biracial American President Barack Obama as the fruit of the proof of the success of the all-inclusive American melting pot dream. Still others, far, far to the right on the political spectrum, view Obama’s election as the beginning of the end. (I’m speaking here of our right wing TV and radio hosts who are enjoying lucrative careers magically mixing politics and entertainment.)
The point of all this is that it would be oh so grand if American history were really all-inclusive and told the absolute truth about how this mess we call freedom sits simmering on the cauldron of discontent. There would be no need for Black History Month or American Indian Day or any of the schisms that bind us into the little boxes that Malvina Reynolds wrote about and Pete Seeger made famous in song. Our history, like the God, or whatever you choose to call The Great Entity that made us, is too large to be segmented.
*****
I am by no means an authority on any singular aspect of history. But today I am compelled to tell you of what happened to me the first time I attended a Bloody Island sunrise ceremony.
I moved to Lake County finally in 1999. This is after a trial run at living here led me back to the Bay Area in 1998. In 2001, when I became involved with Lake County Community Radio, I met my brother Clayton Duncan and became intrigued with the story of Bloody Island. I became aware of the ceremony that Clayton and the human tribe held every May commemorating the tragic events that happened in Lake County in 1850. (If you don’t know about it, do the research!)
I told Clayton I would come to the ceremony. I think I overslept the first two years I tried to go. Finally, sometime earlier in this decade, I got myself together and got up before daybreak on the designated Saturday morning to attend the ceremony. This particular year, the attendees were to meet at the Robinson Rancheria Education Center at about 4:30 a.m., then caravan over to the site of Bloody Island.
I was living in Nice at the time and drove over by myself. I encouraged my young son and other friends to come with me but there were no takers. It was a clear, cool, crisp morning. The stars dotted the sky as only they can do in these parts. I was sipping coffee as I traveled on Highway 20 toward the Education Center. When I was maybe 2,000 feet away from the right turn I was to make, I could see a swinging light. As I drove closer, I perceived a human figure waving what appeared to be a lantern or flashlight at the intersection. It looked like a woman. Surprisingly though, as I made the right turn, I glanced over to fully identify who or what was waving the light and, THERE WAS NO ONE THERE!
I think there was a group of about 50 people who turned up for the ceremony. We drove over to the site, parked our cars and walked the last yards to where the rock and plaque commemorate the sad event. As we approached, I noticed a group of horses, huddled together. Suddenly, the horses galloped away at a pretty fast clip. It was if they were saying, “Let’s let these human tend to there spiritual business.”
The events really had an impact on my consciousness. Clayton and his brother spoke on the history of Bloody Island. They told of how they believe that the spirits of the ancestors are yet bound to the site and can’t fully transition to the other side until we here on this side fully forgive and come together. I believe I saw evidence of this. I was stone sober. I had been for years.
After the ceremony I asked Clayton if perhaps he stationed someone at the intersection to guide folks into the Education Center parking lot.
“No, brother,” he answered with a smile. “Sounds like you were blessed with a guide from the other side.”
Keep prayin’, keep thinkin’ those kind thoughts!
Upcoming cool events:
New Orleans Soul Queen Irma Thomas at Yoshi’s San Francisco. Sunday, Feb. 15. Shows at 7 and 9 p.m. 1330 Fillmore St. Telephone 415-655-5600.
Pete Escovedo and Family Feat. Sheila, Juan and Peter Michael at Yoshi’s Oakland. Sunday, Feb. 15. Shows at 7 and 9 p.m. 520 Embarcadero W. Telephone 510-238-9200.
Malo at Cache Creek Casino. Sunday, Feb. 15. 8 p.m. 14455 Highway 16 Brooks. Telephone 800-452-8181.
T. Watts is a writer, radio host and music critic. Visit his Web site at www.teewatts.biz.
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At approximately 1:40 p.m. 854 customers lost power as the result of a tree going into power lines, said Brandi Ehlers of Pacific Gas and Electric Co.
The first 566 customers had power restored at 3:11 p.m., with the remaining 288 customers regaining power at 3:16 p.m., Ehlers said.
Throughout the day Cobb experienced snow showers and wind, according to Cobb resident Roger Kinney.
The National Weather Service issued a wind advisory for Lake County that remains in effect through noon on Sunday, warning of 35 to 50 mile per hour wind gusts overnight and early Sunday morning.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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LAKEPORT – Two drivers were injured in an early morning crash on Friday that the California Highway Patrol said appeared to have resulted from an icy roadway.
The collision occurred just after 7 a.m. on Highway 29 just south of Park Way near Lakeport, the CHP reported.
Officer Craig Van Housen said 45-year-old Sherrie Stanley of Upper Lake was driving her 1988 Toyota pickup southbound on Highway 29 when she lost control on the icy roadway.
The pickup slid sideways, going across the center divider and colliding with a 2002 Ford pickup driven by 33-year-old Glenn Greer Jr. of Lakeport, Van Housen said.
Van Housen said Stanley's driver-side door hit the left front of Greer's pickup, which also had three passengers, including two children, inside.
The crash closed the roadway completely for about a half hour, with the northbound lane reopening shortly before 7:40 a.m., the CHP reported.
Rescuers had to work to free Stanley from the wreckage, Van Housen said. “It took a while to get her out.”
Stanley sustained major injuries, with her left side and left arm badly lacerated, Van Housen said. She was transported to Sutter Lakeside for treatment.
She was wearing her seat belt, as was Greer and his passengers. Van Housen said two children in car seats in the pickup were properly secured and suffered no injures.
Greer's pickup, however, caught fire after the collision and was burned. Everyone got out with no problems, according to Van Housen.
Greer, who Van Housen said saw the crash coming, braced himself, and suffered what may be a shattered left wrist.
Although Caltrans has been very diligent about keeping the highways sanded, Van Housen urged drivers to be especially careful in the morning while driving to work, especially if it's between 5 a.m. and 7 a.m., when roads are likely to be very icy.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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Areas of Cobb have been seeing light to moderate snowfall during the week, with the snow usually melting off fairly quickly, according to Cobb area resident Roger Kinney.
But on Friday the snow was spreading itself around the county.
Areas of the Northshore were coated white during a mid-afternoon snow flurry, with snow continuing into the evening.
In Kelseyville, snow was reported to be falling at about 6 p.m.
Snow shut down the Hopland Grade for about three hours early Friday evening, according to the California Highway Patrol. The roadway was reopened at about 7:15 p.m.
The Lake County Public Works Department reported Friday that chains are currently required on Bartlett Springs Road and on Elk Mountain Road.
CHP reported numerous collisions around the county and the North Coast on Friday due to the winter weather.
No serious injuries were reported in Lake County.
However, a collision involving a single car that went off Highway 128 east of Yorkville in Mendocino County early Friday afternoon claimed the lives of both people in the car, which hit an oak tree, according to a CHP report.
The car was traveling 55 miles per hours in rainy conditions when the car slid off the roadway, according to the CHP. No identifications were offered Friday for the Windsor residents who died in the crash.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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LAKEPORT – A three-vehicle collision in Lakeport late Friday morning sent one person to the hospital and resulted in traffic being diverted around the scene for an hour.
Shortly after 11 a.m. the crash at Forbes and 11th was reported. Within minutes paramedics, police and a handful of Lakeport city employees arrived on scene, the latter group taking up positions around the scene to offer traffic control.
Traffic was closed one block south and one block north of 11th Street, as well as one block east and west at Forbes. A large amount of debris from all three vehicles was scattered across the intersection at 11th and Forbes St.
A white Buick Regal was driving north on Forbes and witnesses said it didn't stop at a stop sign before entering the intersection and colliding with a gray mid-1970s Chevy pickup. The pickup then collided heat-on with a GMC pickup traveling west on 11th.
Both the Buick and the Chevy were heavily damaged.
The driver of the Chevy pickup sustained injuries and was transported to the hospital.
The driver of the Buick was examined at the scene by medical personnel and appeared shaken but not in need of immediate care.
E-mail Harold LaBonte at
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Beneficiaries of the $700 billion bailout package in the finance and automotive industries have spent a total of $114.2 million on lobbying in the past year and contributions toward the 2008 election, the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics has found.
The companies' political activities have, in part, yielded them $295.2 billion from the federal government's Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), an extraordinary return of 258,449 percent.
"Even in the best economic times, you won't find an investment with a greater payoff than what these companies have been getting," said Sheila Krumholz, the Center's executive director. "Some of the companies and industries that have received payments may now consider their contributions and lobbying to be the smartest investments they've made in years."
While the Treasury Department, not Congress, doles out TARP funds to specific institutions, congressional lawmakers had to authorize that money in the first place, and lawmakers will determine in the future whether to release more funds to prop up the US economy.
During the bill-writing process, members of Congress were able to specify to some extent where the money should go, and they have lobbied regulators to urge them to inject funds into specific banks and financial institutions, including those in lawmakers' own districts.
"Taxpayers hope their money is being allocated entirely on the merits, but with Congress controlling how much money the Treasury gets to hand out, it will be impossible to completely exclude politics from this process," Krumholz said.
Some of the top recipients of contributions from companies receiving TARP money are the same members of Congress who chair committees charged with regulating the financial sector and overseeing the effectiveness of this unprecedented government program.
They include Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut, chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs (he received $854,200 from the companies in the 2008 election cycle, including money to his presidential campaign) and Sen. Max Baucus of Montana, chair of the Senate Finance Committee (he received $279,000).
In total, members of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, Senate Finance Committee and House Financial Services Committee received $5.2 million from TARP recipients in the 2007-2008 election cycle.
President Barack Obama collected at least $4.3 million from the companies and their employees for his presidential campaign, while Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona), Obama's opponent in the presidential race, received $2.1 million.
The Center for Responsive Politics also provided Lake County News with specific information on the area's legislators, who received much smaller donation amounts.
In the 2008 election cycle, US Sen. Barbara Boxer received $7,300 from the TARP bailout companies. Boxer's counterpart in the Senate, Dianne Feinstein, doesn't appear to have received funds from the companies in the 2008 election cycle, but the center reported that Feinstein didn't do much fundraising for herself in 2008 because her next election isn't until 2012.
Congressman Mike Thompson, who represents several counties including Lake in the US House of Representatives, received $28,500 from the companies and their employees in the 2008 election cycle, according to the center's records.
Most of Thompson's contributions came from PACs, including those for Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Co., International Bank of Commerce, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, American Express, Morgan Stanley, FMR Corp. and Goldman Sachs, according to the center's records.
Thompson said his votes were predicated on helping get the country moving forward.
"I voted for the bailout legislation because we had to get our credit markets working again,” he said in an exclusive comment granted to Lake County News.
“I was outraged, like most Americans, at the greed and incompetence at many banking institutions that got us into this mess in the first place,” he said. “Unfortunately, our financial institutions were on the brink of collapse and hard working people in our district and across our country were caught up in a credit crunch that threatened home owners and small businesses. Even the State of California was unable to raise the funds to pay for health and safety programs."
He added, “It was clear to me that we had to act in order to begin to work our way out of this crisis – and we had to act quickly, even if the plan wasn't perfect, so that our entire financial system didn't collapse.
“Voting no on this bill would have been the easy vote, but given the unprecedented economic circumstances I had to make the hard vote in favor of this bill,” Thompson said. “I am glad that the Obama administration has already taken several steps to ensure this money is spent wisely and doesn't end up lining the pockets of bank executives.”
Some, not all, TARP recipients hired lobbyists
Of the more than 300 companies that have been aided by TARP, 25 paid lobbyists a total of $76.7 million to represent them on Capitol Hill in 2008.
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said recently that institutions collecting these funds won't be allowed to lobby the federal government going forward.
In the fourth Quarter of 2008, when Congress was crafting bailout legislation, these companies spent $17.8 million on lobbying – less than what they spent in the prior three quarters, probably because they were strapped for cash.
In total, 161 companies approved for TARP money gave $37.5 million to federal candidates, parties and committees in the 2007-2008 election cycle, with 57 percent of that going to Democrats (post-election data is not yet available).
The employees of these companies, rather than their political action committees, gave the bulk of that, at $26.1 million, or 70 percent.
These two groups of donors seem to have differed in their partisan allegiance – individual employees gave 61 percent of their donations to Democrats, while PACs were more evenly divided, giving 51 percent to Republicans.
Some of the companies to give the most in contributions, including Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley, are also among the biggest donors of all time to U.S. politics.
The companies giving the most to fund lawmakers' campaigns and spending the most on lobbying efforts were also those that received the most TARP money to help them stay afloat. This includes General Motors, which spent $15 million between campaign contributions and lobbying expenditures and got $10.4 billion (more than all other companies), Bank of America (and the investment company it bought last year, Merrill Lynch), which spent $14.5 million to play politics and received $45 billion from the bailout bill; and American International Group (AIG), which spent $10.6 million and was paid out $40 billion.
Citigroup was also one of the largest spenders to see a big result: between lobbying expenditures and campaign contributions, the company spent $12.5 million and got $50 billion. For a complete list of TARP recipients that spent money on campaign contributions and lobbying, see the chart below.
"TARP needs to be far more transparent," Krumholz of CRP said. "Hundreds of billions of dollars have already been handed out with little more than a one-line announcement. What qualified these companies for the money they're getting? What disqualified other companies? What contact has there been between members of Congress and the Treasury? What contact have lobbyists had with Congress and Treasury? These are reasonable questions, and taxpayers deserve answers."
The finance, insurance and real estate sector, including all companies and trade groups (not just those that qualified for TARP funds), spent $453.5 million on lobbying in 2008, an 8.7 percent increase from the year before.
In the last quarter of 2008, the sector spent $106.9 million on its influence-peddling efforts. The securities and investment industry spent $20.5 million in the fourth quarter, insurance companies spent $36.7 million and real estate companies spent $16.5 million.
And although this was a decrease from the third for each of these industries, they had plenty of additional support. Trade associations in the finance, insurance and real estate sector spent $123 million on lobbying last year, more than they spent in each of the three years prior.
The Center for Responsive Politics' Web site, www.opensecrets.org, tracks both campaign contributions to federal lawmakers and lobbying expenditures by organization, industry and sector.
CRP calculated the numbers in this report by mashing up these databases with a list of TARP recipients accessed Feb. 2 from www.treasury.gov.
Post-election contribution data is not yet available but should be incorporated into www.opensecrets.org in the coming weeks.
For the table of TARP recipients that spent money on lobbying or were associated with campaign contributions, visit www.opensecrets.org/news/2009/02/tarp-recipients-paid-out-114-m.html.
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