Monday, October 24, 2016

Nasty Presidential Election nothing new. Check out 1800!

The election for President in 1800 between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson was an emotional and hard-fought campaign. Each side believed that victory by the other would ruin the nation.

Federalists attacked Jefferson as an un-Christian deist whose sympathy for the French Revolution would bring similar bloodshed and chaos to the United States. On the other side, the Democratic-Republicans denounced the strong centralization of federal power under Adams's presidency. Republicans' specifically objected to the expansion of the U.S. army and navy, the attack on individual rights in the Alien and Sedition Acts, and new taxes and deficit spending used to support broadened federal action.

Overall, the Federalists wanted strong federal authority to restrain the excesses of popular majorities, while the Democratic-Republicans wanted to reduce national authority so that the people could rule more directly through state governments.

The election's outcome brought a dramatic victory for Democratic-Republicans who swept both houses of Congress, including a decisive 65 to 39 majority in the House of Representatives. The presidential decision in the electoral college was somewhat closer, but the most intriguing aspect of the presidential vote stemmed from an outdated Constitutional provision whereby the Republican candidates for president and vice president actually ended up tied with one another.

Votes for President and Vice President were not listed on separate ballots. Although

During the election of 1800, Federalists cast Thomas Jefferson as an infidel because of his strict advocacy for the separation of Church and State.

Adams ran as Jefferson's main opponent, running mates Jefferson and AARON BURR received the same number of electoral votes. The election was decided in the House of Representatives where each state wielded a single vote.

Interestingly, the old Federalist Congress would make the decision, since the newly elected Republicans had not yet taken office. Most Federalists preferred Burr, and, once again, Alexander Hamilton shaped an unpredictable outcome. After numerous blocked ballots, Hamilton helped to secure the presidency for Jefferson, the man he felt was the lesser of two evils. Ten state delegations voted for Jefferson, 4 supported Burr, and 2 made no choice.

One might be tempted to see the opposing sides in 1800 as a repeat of the Federalist and Anti-Federalist divisions during the ratification debates of 1788-1789. The core groups supporting each side paralleled the earlier division. Merchants and manufacturers were still leading Federalists, while states' rights advocates filled the Republican ranks just as they had the earlier Anti-Federalists.

Support for Thomas Jefferson throughout the entire Western frontier assured his victory over John Adams in the presidential election 1800.

The political cartoon above has the "Eye of God" directing the American Eagle to snatch the Constitution from Thomas Jefferson hands. Jefferson is kneeling at an alter to "Gallic (French) Despotism." The "Mazzei" letter in Jefferson's right hand where he refers to George Washington as "Monarchical." Jefferson was thought to be playing both sides of the fence. 

Sunday, October 16, 2016

North Coast Rail Authority (NCRA) Operator reports update!

The Operator for Northwestern Pacific Corporation (NWPco) is represented by former Congressman Doug Bosco and he had some interesting updates on freight news for the NCRA rail. Doug said there was escalating interest in goods movement and announced that they were close to an agreement with Innovative Molding caps. (They make plastic caps for many products.) There would be the need for a rail spur to the factory near Rohnert Park at the cost of $600,000. Of that expense SMART is liable to $400,000 per an agreement for rights for rail use, but SMART might fight that in the end.

Mendocino Forest Product wants to use the rail for freight. They feel it could be cost effective if they could trans-load in Windsor or Petaluma. Humboldt Redwood would be a future target. “Willits is our dream for trans-loading,” Doug said, noting that was not a pipe dream.  

Thursday, October 13, 2016

I met the Cannabis Boogeyman at NCRA Meeting!

At the latest North Coast Rail Authority (NCRA) meeting held 10/12/16 in Healdsburg I was introduced to Paul Trouette, the CEO of Lear Asset Management. (I am one of the 9 Directors for the NCRA.) This outfit is the absolute nightmare of trespass cannabis growers all over Northern California. They use helicopters and 20 paramilitary staff to eradicate or destroy illegal cannabis farms and arrest grow “Operatives.” 
   
Lear is expanding their services to include dealing with chromic trespassing of NCRA right away properties and is creating a Business Improvement Association (BIA) for about 542 property owners along the NCRA corridor between Willits and Arcata. Mr. Trouette reported that Lear has only eradicated about 140 plants along the NCRA properties and was focused more on trespassers such as Foreign Nationalists who are on the North Coast on a short time basis camping illegally. Can you say “Trimmigrants?”  

Lear is a “Private Security Contractor” with working ties with pretty much all law enforcement agencies in Northern California. 

Interesting meeting to say the least.

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

What happened to adult league basketball?

When I started out working in the Louisiana Pacific (LP) Sawmill in the 70's, I was asked to come out play in the mill basketball league on Saturdays. It was full of teams from Simpson, LP, Schmidbauer and other businesses related to forest product. There were also basketball leagues in Scotia, Fortuna, Eureka, Arcata, Blue Lake and Korbel. (Not to mention HSU) Lois Busey ran the LP league until the 80's. Then the city of Eureka decided to do a fall league for just 30 and over players. That left a hole for players under 30, so I ran the LP Fall Ball open league. We always seemed to be full and had spirited basketball for years. At one time I played in the Arcata, Eureka Rec and Church Leagues, Korbel, Samoa and tournaments to boot. Now you are limited to just Eureka. There are only 7 teams. About 70 players participating. I had more than that in the Samoa LP league! I know we have more people in the county now than in the 80's and 90's. Is adult recreation just not popular or is the opportunity lacking?

Monday, October 10, 2016

NCRA makes SF Chronicle.

North Coast Rail Authority is in the news for storing fuel on tracks. Well within their rights and done all over the east bay. It is more of a territorial war between SMART and the NCRA.
Love this quote, “The only authority (of SMART) is to dispatch the trains … to tell us whether or not the coast is clear,” said Mitch Stogner, executive director of the North Coast Railroad Authority. “It is not the freight police.”