I was amazed, not to mention dismayed, when I saw Saturday’s edition of The World. A story about ORCCA filled 3/4 of the front page, followed by two full pages of expository writing inside. It has been many years since I have seen such an attempt at in-depth coverage by The World.
Why the intensive coverage of a relatively minor issue in our area, and the almost total lack of in-depth coverage of our major issues, namely, the LNG proposal(s) and the O&C timber receipts problem?
Where was the explanation of the gross defects in FERC’s EIS for the LNG import terminal that prompted a legal appeal by the Oregon Attorney General? Where was the explanation of what a legally-sufficient EIS is supposed to contain? Why hasn’t the public been alerted to the wasteful absurdity of processing various state permits for an LNG proposal that is still under appeal, and has now been replaced by a LNG export proposal? Why not explain to the public that, within a year, they will be presented with two new Draft EIS’s by FERC and the US Corps of Engineers relating to the LNG export proposal and the channel modifications within Coos Bay needed to make it feasible? Why hasn’t the public been educated as to what the NEPA regulations require so that they might reasonably review the Draft EIS’s that will come before them? Is the public aware that the new EIS’s might be inappropriately timed in that regulations suggest the prior preparation of a Programmatic EIS in cases such as this?
Does anyone really think the answer to the O&C problem is to kick out the Feds and simply cut more trees?
This is a crucial time for our area. The long-term future health of our social, economic, and environmental systems are at stake.
Why focus on the administrative problems of ORCCA and neglect to provide the public with the background, information, and analyses so desperately needed if we are to move intelligently into the future?
An engineer W Connections has in their back pocket. You can bet on that. Slick and sweet isn’t it? Right before your very own eyes.
These people answer to no one. Not even trying to hide what they’re doing.
Thanks. I guess Oregon doesn’t have anyone that could do the job. It should have been put out for bids.
As I understand it, the county’s consulting engineer Mumford??? hired a subcontractor to come up and do the work. Someone from California – Brady I think
Too much to keep up on…I’m still back at the “independent engineer” who is going to assess the work needed at BHDS – I do business with the county, I am invited to submit bids and I usually face between 3-5 competitors for the work. I can’t find anything on the County webpage (although I wasn’t on there for too long because I got tired of seeing the smug grins on the Commissioners faces) about any request for bids and cannot find out who is doing the job. Cam is notoriously connected to “consultants” from outside Coos County. I’d like to know if they put the job out for bids. I thought that was the law.
SCDC needs to go. Waste Management needs to pay up. I was at a secret meeting with those Waste Management Yahoo’s. What a bunch of crooks & liers. Ol’ Jeffey Boy (Ex-Mayor) sucked it right up and wore his eye out doing the Ol’ Wink-Wink. They planned this a couple of years ago.
Those of us who have watched Clark operate since his arrival know that this is typical. He will do all possible to get Messerle and Sweet or Bishop elected. There will be a letter writing campaign starting about mid April supporting Messerle. Any person who tells you that they worked their entire professional life to end up at one of the worst performing Lee Enterprises 53 papers is speaking with forked tongue. You will find that those who succeeded are not tooting their own horn around town.
Look today how Clark has ginned up the entire ORCCA issue. They worked overtime this weekend to show us how many people are mad at the food bank. Covered the entire weekend paper. Not one word, except Barton continuing to claim solid waste has lost money for years. Complete saturation of information geared to ignore Waste Connections, Messerle’s conflicts of interest, etc.
And a good job of it too. Like a steamroller. Watch it work.
We know one thing for certain, neither Barton/Sherman or Pettit know how to analyze an operating statement. Messerle has claimed publicly solid waste is losing $25K per month and we have identified that solid waste accounts for as much as $35K per month. Messerle says the department loses another $25K in debt service on $400K in capital expenditures from its own contingency fund AND closure costs which is an optional payment made at the expense of maintenance. The debt service is $65K per year or $5400 and in only one quarter of operation the site earned back $250K of the $400 cost of the metal shakers. But those “businessmen” keep saying the site is losing money. At least they have finally acknowledged that Waste Connections owes the county.
How precious. Clark lets Jon Barton post on the comments regarding solid waste on a Sunday, I’ve not seen that before. Good boy Clark.. Jon Barton continues to claim the facility has been losing money for years. But at least he mentions Waste Connections owes money.
http://theworldlink.com/news/local/feel-the-no-burn/article_3640d36e-ae02-53c9-9960-8e11d390ef1c.html
Absolutely no burning in barrels or not, during “burn season”. So no smoke allowed in Coos County, and it’s all being done to cut down on “false alarms”. So I’m assuming everytime there IS smoke, all hell will break loose, as it will bring the firemen. I think this is going to be another mess, or I’m unreasonably paranoid now. Think about it.
Do any of the readers out there remember something reported – I know – about a county wide ban on all burning of trash? I might have dreamed it, but it seems some entity is pushing absolutely no burning of rubbish. That would queue nicely in with Waste Connections wouldn’t it? I may not be right. I haven’t researched but I will. Also, please buy Wim’s book, my gawd you guys, I’ve been reading it for weeks and I am amazed that these guys have strung the state along with the absolute same BS for forty years, TDocks,smelters, ferrys, trains planes and automobiles folks !! They don’t even try to be creative. They buy junk,then spend millions on the junk, then find new junk to sustain their funding. Works every gawd damned time. I have never experienced anything like this in the three states I’ve lived in as an adult. Never. With no help from the states, and Peter and the Dems working harder than the righties to sustain the port, WHO YOU GONNA CALL?
One of the original motivations behind MGx was very simply that local media provide no analysis. They report what someone said, correct or incorrect, and that is usually the end of it. If a document titled “report” is handed to them, they quote from it as if it is gospel despite evidence to the contrary.
Now they are even printing innuendo about ORCCA repeated by former employees and board members who were terminated for one reason or another. Have they uncovered anything wrong? Any fraud? No, but they will keep digging while a multimillion dollars public asset is effectively sabotaged to benefit just one of several trash haulers in Coos County.
Regarding Mr. Barton and the ORCCA Board. Please remember that Barton has NEVER been elected to any local position by the public. He was APPOINTED to the Port Commission and then, as the World paper of 10 December 2003 reported, he was “booted” from the port commission by the governor (I recall that he was not reappointed). The World paper had earlier reported, on 23 Augus 2003, that the reappointment of Mr. Barton was being blocked by the local maritine union. Mr. Barton was APPOINTED to the airport board. When he ran for the position, he was defeated. Now he has been APPOINTED to run SCDC, an organization that has done nothing other than to create two jobs; one being the position held by the APPOINTED county commissioners wife.
And speaking of SCDC, I just spent an hour reading the county elections department web site (and other related web sites). SCDC has stated many times that it is a quasi gvernment organization. Yet not one single candidatre for the office of commissioner told us that they had been affiliated with SCDC in any way. Several have. And that includes Mr. Sweet who in the summer of 2001 was appointed SCDC chairman.
My understanding is that ORCCA has asked the DOJ to do an investigation to put the paper’s innuendo and speculation to rest once and for all. To my knowledge having a co-worker be godparent to your child is not yet an indictable offense.
I just read that Jon Barton WAS on the ORCCA board at one time. Now how hard is it for the public to connect the dots. That’s one organization he lost control of. I also heard that Sandra Messerle was dissed by some of the women there when she tried to get joint control of some of the resources(grant writers), that ORCCA has control of. Now how hard do you have to think before you see what they(SCDC) are trying to do. The story was she dissed M.S.C. and a few other women there at some public function, before she understood they were a take over target of Jon’s.Then it was too late to fix the social damage she had done. So this is payback for her and Jon, courtesy of Clark and provides a nice distraction as to what SCDC is doing to this county. Clark is more than happy to oblige Jon and Sandy.
Many know this , but theworldlink would never admit it. ORCCA should call for a complete investigation by the Oregon DOJ.
Its not a shock anymore that the corruption we see at the port, theworldlink, the BOC, and of course SCDC, has been allowed to go unchecked by the state, and the feds. Most adults in this area just simply do not know that this pandemic corruption even exists, and if this site goes away, there will be very few local sources left to inform the public of just how corrupt these people are. We have learned that there is no help coming from the state, since the governor is fully aware of whats going on here, and these paper crimes to reroute tax dollars to the same old characters are fully sanctioned by this governor and the ones that preceded him. I think saying this out-loud to all who will hear, is just going to get ORCCA spanked by theworldlink every time they need the distractions to cover the lies and deceit, and thievery of our tax dollars.
Jon Barton may be the local ring leader, but he has many com-padres in these schemes to bilk the public, and another will surely rise to replace him with the same political cover that Jon enjoys now, when he falls..
This system cant be fixed locally, and Kitzhaber will not step into this mess, because he serves the same masters as Barton and gang. We will never defeat this corruption by taking turns yelling at them one at a time, it won’t happen until the rest of the voting public becomes aware of the damage being done to our society, by these corrupt humans and their political protectors. Full revolution against the system is the only way to stop them, and the american people aren’t that fed up yet, but they’re getting there, maybe sooner than those in charge realize. Keep up what your doing MGX, your contributions are going to make a difference in the long run. The generations to come should not have to fight this fight, but they will, if we can’t stop this madness on our watch.
The “world” is easily distracting the easily distracted.
People with the ability to think do not find value in the local reporting but must look elsewhere, like here.
Thanks again, Mary!
How about SCDC spending $2 million of public and private money and accomplishing nothing; or the need for substantiation of structure committee findings; or meaninful interviews with candidates. The paper is too busy with long articles about Aunt Birdie and the new editor at the local pub or long articles about why our local restaurants suck. Even the educated in current events local athletes ask why are we front page news. There is good reason why the World paper circulation drops at least 10% every six months (according to Lee Enterprises). The March numbers are due soon.
Cause it’s so damn easy?
Cause Jon Barton has his fist up the Editors’ wazoo?