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Opinion
When the sample ballot for the Nov. 4 election arrived in my mailbox I was appalled to see an “Argument Against” Measure S (the initiative to protect and restore Clear Lake) that consists entirely of half-truths, innuendos and outright falsehoods.
For example, this unprincipled set of deceptive statements argues that the Board of Supervisors could fund quagga mussel prevention programs and other lake projects by (illegally) “restructuring” the Lake County Vector Control District Board of Trustees and raiding that independent agency’s dedicated funding.
How ironic that Measure S opponents – who rely heavily on the argument that local government can’t be trusted to spend tax revenues as intended – should propose looting funds levied by a benefit assessment voted by the people for the specific purpose of protecting human beings and animals from serious vector-borne diseases such as West Nile Virus.
The ballot argument claims that Lake County Vector Control District money can be used for invasive mussel prevention because “quagga qualify as ‘vectors’” – despite an explicit ruling by Dr. Vicki Kramer, the chief of the Vector Borne Disease Section of the California Department of Public Health, that “quagga mussels, zebra mussels, algae, and aquatic weed abatement are not considered vectors under the California Health and Safety Code, and that the control of these organisms is not included in the powers that the State legislature has delegated to mosquito and vector control districts.”
For more information about the errors of the Vector Control assertions and a detailed point-by-point refutation of the rest of the Argument Against, please visit www.savethelake.info .
In the meantime, here is the truth:
Measure S will benefit everyone who lives in or visits Lake County: homeowners, landowners, farmers, business owners, seniors, Native Americans, water users. It’s the best investment we can make to safeguard our lake, our communities, and our children’s future. Without it, continuing cycles of noxious algae, weed-choked waterways and the likely infestation of quagga mussels will send water bills soaring, destroy an amazing natural treasure, and ruin our economy and quality of life.
Measure S will be paid by residents and visitors alike, and the cost to individuals will be too small to notice. In return, we will get the resources we need to protect and restore Clear Lake, the heart and soul of Lake County and the greatest asset our community has. No other plausible source of funding exists to develop and implement programs to save the lake.
All Measure S revenues will stay right here in Lake County, and they all MUST be spent on our waterways.
The oversight committee will meet four times a year to review specific projects and make recommendations to the Board of Supervisors. There will be full public participation at every stage to ensure that the best choices are made.
The truth: A vote for Measure S is a vote for Lake County’s future.
Victoria Brandon lives in Lower Lake, Calif.
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- Written by: Victoria Brandon
We do favor legalization and support the use of medical marijuana, but we don't support Measure O for these reasons:
1. It is naïve to believe that growers will voluntarily pay per-plant fees to provide for a medical enforcement division.
2. Measure O states that “cultivation shall not adversely affect the health or safety” of neighbors. Who is to determine what constitutes excessive noise, traffic, odor and dust? How much do we have to endure until it's considered excessive?
3. The passing of Measure O allows more plants to be grown on smaller lots in more neighborhoods.
Think what is best for our children and neighborhoods and vote no on Measure O.
Richard East lives in Clearlake Oaks, Calif.; Mitch Markowitz in Clearlake, Calif.; and Paula Mune in Lakeport, Calif.
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- Written by: Richard East, Mitch Markowitz and Paula Mune
Harken! What is this word they call justice? Where was it put into use in the trial of Andrew Serranno?
What an atrocity! A jury could rule that premeditated murder was not the factor after all of the facts and incidents?
And then to deem not guilty by reason of insanity?
I beg to differ. This man is not insane. Just manipulative and sly like a fox.
This went on for years and he knew exactly what he was doing. And now the rest of the recipients can still live in fear of what can still happen to them next!
From where was this jury panel selected?
This should not be the last of this terrible decision.
It is time to examine your thoughts and hearts, as he gleefully plays out his game. Let us not settle for this.
Lillian Secrist lives in Elko, Nev.
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- Written by: Lillian Secrist
Please join me in voting no on measures O and P.
These measures pose the single biggest threat to our quality of life in Lake County. Both measures seek to allow increased marijuana cultivation with little or no enforcement capability.
If O or P passes in November, the current and effective county regulations approved by the voters in June (Measure N) will be replaced and our neighborhoods will be overrun by out of county growers seeking to move here to profit on pot.
Measure O, at first glance seems somewhat reasonable; it is not.
This ordinance is a cleverly written document constructed by marijuana growers, for marijuana growers.
The enforcement procedures of Measure O, buried on page 20 of this document, will prohibit the county from proactively enforcing excessive marijuana grows and reduce violations to an infraction.
The only way actual enforcement action would be allowed is if two written complaints are filed with the Community Development Department by a someone who lives or works within 600 feet of the grow. The name of the person(s) filing the complaint must be included to be accepted for follow up.
The first complaint would limit the county to simply sending a “courtesy” letter to the grower, giving them 10 days to comply. If the grower fails to comply, the county cannot follow up with enforcement action unless a second written complaint is filed within 15 days of the first complaint.
If a second written complaint is filed in time then the county can inspect the site, verify the violation and post a notice of nuisance giving the grower 10 more days to comply or file an appeal to the Board of Supervisors and drag the process out even further.
The true intentions of the authors of Measure O are to turn Lake County into the location for pot growers. It is all about profits and greed, hidden behind a smoke screen of medicine.
Prohibiting effective enforcement will help assure that violations will be rampant and growers will have no need to register their collective grows or pay per plant fees that the advocates of Measure O claim will generate revenues.
I do not believe for a moment that growers will register plants and pay fees; most of them already ignore all federal, state and county laws regulating the cultivation of marijuana.
Measure P seeks to allow people to grow whatever they want, wherever they want and in whatever quantity they want. Enforcement provisions are almost nonexistent in this measure.
We have land use regulations for good reason, so that hog or poultry farms, or industrial parks are not located in neighborhoods. For-profit marijuana cultivation should not be in our neighborhoods either.
If marijuana is so good for our economy, then why haven’t the sales tax revenues and property values increased yet?
Please join me in voting no on measures O and P, and send a strong message to the growers that this is our community, not their pot factory.
Dave Rosenthal lives in Middletown, Calif.
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- Written by: Dave Rosenthal