Work 24/7 to repair Highway 89
Editor:
California Highway 89 was recently closed due to a debris flow just outside Markleeville. It will be closed for as long as three weeks, with Monitor and Ebbetts passes being the only alternative, adding an hour to trips for necessities.
CalTrans inaction on the repair is killing Markleeville. They say they are working expeditiously but no work has been performed in the past three days. If this was Highway 50, they would be all over it. They need to be working 24/7 to get the road back in full service no later than Aug. 26. And we desperately need a bypass before then. Monitor and Ebbetts Pass is not acceptable.
CalTrans chose to do this urgent project (identified by the Tamarac Fire BAER report last year) during the worst time of year; the thunderstorm season when the probability of high rainfall and debris flow is the highest. And they did so without contingency plans.
They did so on a lax schedule. And now they propose stretching it out in the middle of the thunderstorm season. This is gross negligence.
It is a safety issue: The post office is closed, and my prescriptions are locked inside and they will not get them. Emergency services (e.g. CalFire) has to go over Monitor or Ebbetts Pass adding an hour to the transit in the heart of the fire season. There are limited evacuation routes, and those routes are mostly without cell service.
The closure will probably permanently close several of the Markleeville businesses. This is the tourist season which derives most of their annual income. And now that is gone.
Make CalTrans work 24 hours, seven days a week until the road is repaired and open. Give it the same level of attention as Highway 50 or Interstate 80 would receive.
Bill Young
Markleeville
How long does Markleeville have?
Editor:
It appears that the U.S. Forest Service’s negligence has started the process that produces ghost towns. Only the resilience and tenacity of the residents of Markleeville keep that town from becoming one.
Every year for the past decade, fires have threatened Markleeville’s existence. Tamarack almost wiped it out. The aftermath of that fire, flooding, has wielded one more punch. And that’s on top of COVID.
After Tamarack, it seemed more for sale signs appeared. A few people want to get out while the landscape still looks somewhat pristine. Now that the road’s closed and winter is bearing down upon the repair schedule, I wouldn’t be surprised if people simply drove away from their beautiful mountain homes.
Because Alpine County lies completely on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada, California government has dismissed its needs for a long time. The county even depends upon Douglas County to assist with emergencies through a reciprocal agreement. Now the post office has relocated to Gardnerville, which implies that many Alpine residents already have jobs and resources here. Perhaps Alpine County should seriously consider annexation to Nevada.
The American West has seen this process countless times. Stragglers hang on until they die, but eventually, western towns empty completely, leaving doors and shutters to creak in the wind.
We can blame climate change all we want, but it’s government’s corruption and lack of will that devastates communities like Markleeville. Despite such official failures, residents carry on as best they can. Someday, though, Markleeville may join hundreds of other Western ghost towns. And that would be heart-breaking.
Sue Cauhape
Minden
In praise of shorter letters
Editor:
I very much agree with the new letters protocol you’ve established. It gives a fairer shot to those who want to put out some small personal opinions important to them vs. those who are publishing Ph.D. dissertations on the same boring theme ad nauseum, mostly thinly disguised as political rants.
Persons, like myself, who have been published in peer-reviewed opportunities offer an abstract at the beginning of the paper or presentation hitting the highlights of what the person offers. These are usually 200-300 words which succinctly synthesize what’s to come. This is also the perfect format for letters.
If a person can’t write a simple abstract as a letter of those main points, then their thought priorities and processes are damaged as a writer. You and The R-C also waste precious and expensive column space and readers get turn off quickly by the dissertations.
I personally enjoy seeing many different, smaller opinions of my neighbors in short letters, especially ones I am not aligned with to try to get a feel of the thoughts of the whole, very diverse community.
So please do prioritize towards the shorter letters to give a broader scope of our whole community’s thoughts, worries, problems, and aspirations. I believe that more of these will be of much greater and wider reception to your reading public.
I also believe that a restricted wordage will encourage others to write their opinions if they feel they have even a small chance of seeing their thoughts published for the community to read in The R-C. I feel very honored to see my few comments in print and believe others would, too.
Steve Lang
Minden
Follow rules on trails
Editor:
To add to what Kirk Dixon says about bicycles on trails: I spent countless hours hiking up and down the trails in the valley over the years. Not now as the mountain bikes have taken over. Too many close calls with inexperienced cyclists led me to give up on our system. Besides Fay Luther and Jobs Ranch I can’t think of any others specifically designated for foot traffic.
It’s the same with paved paths in the valley. Experienced riders have to dodge loose dogs and walkers stopping to chat in the middle of the path. Too many not following cycling etiquette are putting pedestrians and those with strollers and small children at risk. Beware newbies with E-bikes riding tandem zipping along at unsafe speeds. There is an increasing number of adults riding bikes on sidewalks instead of in designated bike lanes forcing pedestrians to move.
The trails and paths are there for all of us to enjoy. Take the time and learn the rules: https://bikexchange.com/bicycle-etiquette/
https://www.bikeperfect.com/features/mountain-biking-etiquette-the-dos-and-donts-of-the-trails
Maureen Casey
Minden
Voting for Burns, Dickerson and Jansen
Editor:
I am responding to some of the letters written by people who support the School Board team of Robbe Lehman, Heather Jackson and Roberta Butterfield simply because they have “collectively” lived in our area for 76 years. Their opponents, David Burns, Katherine Dickerson and Susan Jansen, have resided in our area for over 18 years plus 22 years. Don’t understand the significance with “years” because this is not the issue, experience is. Mr. Burns, Ms. Dickerson and Jansen (and their engaged spouses) have over 75 years of experience collectively as “teachers” in the Public School system here and out-of-state. I believe that their backgrounds qualify them much more when you consider that Robbe Lehman, Heather Jackson and Roberta Butterfield have little to no teaching experience. I also question why Ms. Butterfield recently re-registered as a Republican prior to the primaries. Why is that Ms. Butterfield?
Our children’s futures are at stake here. More than 60 parents have pulled their children out of the Douglas Co. School System this year and I ask why? While superintendent Keith Lewis boasts that D.C. schools are the highest achieving district in the state (currently sitting at 50th position in school achievement scores according to the 2019 US News “Education Report”). This data was collected before Covid started. If the incumbents are so good, why are graduating students’ college readiness scores at 39.1 percent according to said report? Our children deserve so much better. So do their families. That is why I’m voting for David Burns, Katherine Dickerson and Susan Jansen because they have the needed experience and will support and defend the teaching core subjects, will include and represent parents and demand Board transparency to increase education and test scores for our children. The test scores stated show a much different story and if we want the “best” for our children, we must stop this current woke agenda. It is not the responsibility of teachers to teach such absolute nonsense that has nothing to do with “education”. Please do your own research on these matters because quite frankly, I don’t believe this district is telling the complete truth when it comes to these issues.
Sue Sullivan
Minden
Local state elections matter
Editor:
Nevada’s local state elections this November are more important than ever. Two recent Supreme Court decisions made that clear.
Rugged, beautiful Nevada is the nation’s most mountainous state with an extraordinary diversity of species; 300 are found nowhere else in the world. Nevada is also the driest state, but its hidden resource, groundwater, provides clean drinking water and supports wildlife ecosystems, industries, farming, and recreation, and must be protected.
Protecting Nevada’s way of life means protecting our environment. Now that the Supreme Court has stripped the power of the Environmental Protection Agency to protect America’s environment, we’re responsible for protecting Nevada. The last legislative session passed good bills, but we can’t stop there.
We must enable state agencies to develop greenhouse gas reduction strategies, community wildfire prevention plans, and effective water conservation plans to guarantee efficient use of water to safeguard jobs, wildlife, and recreation. Mining is necessary for the raw materials needed today, and will bring good paying jobs, but there must be environmental oversight.
With its decision overturning Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court also limited a woman’s right of personal autonomy. Abortion is healthcare and women should have the right to make their own reproductive decisions in consultation with their physician and family. Luckily in Nevada they do. We must make sure that it stays that way.
We need to remain vigilant and elect candidates, like Dr. Janice Noble running for Assembly District 39, who will work hard to protect Nevada’s way of life.
Elizabeth Valdes
Minden
Inflation Biden’s fault
Editor:
In a letter to the editor July 27 by Irene Rice cites that the COVID Pandemic was the main reason for the inflation, actually what effect it had was the way Biden and his supporters handled it, seizing dictatorial emergency powers, mandated industry and school shutdowns, masks and forced vaccinations, paying excessive unemployment benefits without requirements to seek re-employment. Booster shots without knowing long term effects. He reversed the successful America First policies of President Trump that had U.S. energy independence to exporting fossil fuels. If these policies were kept in place the 4million/barrels/day extra U.S. production would have helped stabilize the world supplies. Trying to minimize U.S. production was by far the main reason for inflation, money added in the second year of the pandemic, Fed policies of low interest rates and Quantitative easing were contributors. Fuel costs tripled, Fertilizer for Farmers up 4fold [derived from natural gas] so the food prices have sky-rocketed. Biden re-joined the green energy Paris Accords [will cost U.S. economy$50 trillion with negligent Global warming benefits] excludes major polluters China and India and eventually China will control the U.S. energy grid and replace us as the leading economic and military power. Bidens Foreign policy no better, Afghanistan Fiasco, Caused the Russian fuel exports of 8 million/barrels/day to increase their revenues by $180 billion/year, no assistance to Ukraine while Russia was building up their military on the Ukraine Border. Border policies There are none; it is open borders with Biden’s encouragement. He ended the successful preventive trump Policies that had the annual border crossings in 2020 at 458,000/year, now with 18 months of Biden open borders over 3.5 million from 160 different countries and one million getaways--[potential criminals] no health checks like forced on the citizens, Hundreds of potential sleeper cells to attack our infrastructure. Cartels and gangs reinforced both sides of the border. Human trafficking, deaths of over 100,000 Americans from Fentanyl from China brought over by cartels. Now much of this chaos including the annual inflation penalty of $3,400 per individual, and the 25 percent drop in your IRA and 401k plans. is directly caused by Biden’s green agenda with support by the Democrats. Ask yourself are you better off now vs end of 2020. If you have concerns for yourself or your family’s future vote GOP while you still can and turn the country to America First Agenda.
Mark Tarvainen
Gardnerville
