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WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Wednesday, Congressman Mike Thompson, Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Terrorism, Human Intelligence, Analysis and Counterintelligence, embarked on a five-day intelligence oversight trip to the United Kingdom and Sweden.
The purpose of his trip is to examine the growth of religious extremism in Europe and the threat that this trend poses to the U.S. and our allies.
In addition, Thompson will meet with local officials to discuss how the U.S. and European countries can better coordinate counterterrorism measures and the sharing of intelligence.
"Strong intelligence is our best weapon for fighting terrorism," said Thompson. "And close collaboration with our allies and partners is critical given that many of these extremist groups operate in multiple countries. We need to share information with our allies and learn from each others' experiences if we are to counter the threats posed by these dangerous groups."
Thompson, a Vietnam combat veteran, will also spend a day with wounded soldiers at the Army's Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in Germany.
This is his second visit to the hospital since the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan began.
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LAKE COUNTY – With last week's passage of an emergency supplemental bill through Congress, there's good news for rural schools.
The bill, HR 2206, included $120 billion for the war in Iraq, but also included a one-year extension of the county payments law, known officially as the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act.
The county payments law distributes funds to rural counties based on historic timber receipts for those areas. Supporters of the program say that it has provided hundreds of millions of dollars in funding to rural areas, with most of the money going to schools and county road programs.
HR 2206 included $425 million for county payments law funding through the end of this year. The bill
was passed by both the House and Senate May 24. President George W. Bush signed the bill into law the following day, according to the White House press office.
As Lake County News previously reported, Lake County's most recent payment payment from the law was roughly $1 million, which was split between the county's road department and local schools.
Half of the schools funding – nearly $250,000 – went to Upper Lake schools, based on the amount of Forest Service land in the district's boundaries and the number of students in the district who are the children of Forest Service employees, as Lake County News has reported.
The funding had been included in a previous war supplemental, which the president vetoed.
Congressman Mike Thompson said he voted to add the funding to HR 2206, but ultimately voted against the bill as a whole, because he said it lacked a timeline for bringing US troops homes from Iraq.
The original Secure Rural Schools bill became law in 2000 and expired late last year. Efforts are under way to get the funding renewed on a multi-year basis.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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LUCERNE – A controlled burn that took place above Lucerne Wednesday is scheduled to continue Thursday.
The fire, which the Northshore Fire District's Lucerne office reported was taking place on the Jones Ranch, was noticeable along the Northshore. But officials said there is nothing to worry about.
Late in the day, a Cal Fire helicopter and plane were dispatched over the area to look for what was believed to be a wildland fire.
Cal Fire's incident command center said that fire turned out to be another controlled burn near Paradise Cove.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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COW MOUNTAIN – An early morning collision between a dirt bike and a four-wheeler sent three people to area hospitals and resulted in one arrest for driving under the influence.
The accident was reported to the California Highway Patrol at 6:36 a.m. on the Lake County side of Cow Mountain, according to CHP incident logs.
A report from CHP Officer T.R. Hester explained that Blake Allen Edwards, 20, of Redding was riding a Kawasaki KX4500 dirt bike northbound on a dirt trail in the area of the Red Mountain campground when the accident occurred.
Coming downhill on the trail from the other direction was Colt Samuel Vincent Ross, 21, of Ukiah, who was riding a Yamaha Raptor four-wheel motorcycle at “a high rate of speed,” Hester reported. Melinda Diane Hicks, 20, of Redding was a passenger on Ross' four-wheeler.
As Edwards was traveling through a curve, he saw Ross fishtailing towards him, Hester reported.
Both vehicles collided head on, according to Hester's report. The collision ejected both men from their motorcycles.
Hicks was airlifted to Santa Rosa Memorial with major injuries, CHP reported. When contacted by Lake County News, the Ukiah CHP office refused to state the extent of Hicks' injuries.
Edwards and Ross both sustained minor injuries. Edwards was taken to Ukiah Valley Medical Center where he was treated and released.
Ross sustained minor head injuries and was taken to Sutter Lakeside. The hospital released him later in the morning.
Hester said Ross failed a field sobriety test at the collision scene. Ross was arrested after his release from the hospital for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs causing injury, in this case to Edwards and Hicks.
Ross was booked into the Lake County Jail on $10,000 bond. He bailed out of jail later on Wednesday.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
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