How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
Opinion
- Details
- Written by: Melissa Fulton
The Lake County Chamber wishes to thank our major Memorial Day Parade sponsor this year, Westamerica Bank, which has sponsored this parade for several years. Also, for the past 19 years, the judges' stand was provided courtesy of Piedmont Lumber & Nursery. Our announcer was Paul Reading of Piedmont Lumber. Paul has graciously volunteered for several years to handle this sometimes-challenging task and always does an excellent job.
Our judges this year were: Margaret Silveira, city manager of Lakeport; Ted Mandrones, marketing director for Piedmont Lumber & Nursery; Chuck Holder, owner of Holder Ford Mercury; and Kim Cipro, California State Horsemen's Association, who judged our equestrian entries.
We had a special treat this year, our national anthem was sung by Mckenna Rose Enger, age 7, from Middletown. Mckenna was born with spina bifida but has proven herself to be a hero to everyone around her. Through the Make A Wish Foundation, Mckenna realized a special Wish on May 8 when she sang the national anthem at the Lakeport Speedway.
Because of Mckenna, who is now known as the Lakeport Speedway Princess, there is a fundraiser being held all this summer for the Make A Wish Foundation. Thank you to Mckenna and her family for sharing her with us this year. Thanks to Mckenna’s grandmother, Marsha, for helping to decorate our stage.
Again this year, John Fulton made sure our stage had tables, chairs and the sound system for announcing the parade.
The Lake County Chamber Board of Directors also expresses their gratitude to the city of Lakeport Public Works Department for their assistance with street barricades and the Lakeport Police Department for their assistance with traffic control.
Many thanks to longtime parade lineup Chair Ginny Clinton and her husband Barry, who have worked this parade for the Chamber since 1992. They were ably assisted by Chamber Director Gloria Flaherty of Lake Family Resource Center, Nicole Johnson, executive assistant in the chamber office, her mother Eileen Johnson, Dianna Hendrick and son Eli Hendrick, We are fortunate to have office manager Stephanie Codling and several chamber office volunteers who help us with organizing the parade entries: Myra Wendt, Pat Norcio, Shirley Younce, Bill Knoll and Barbara Lee Conley.
Parade awards will be mailed to all the winning entries. Congratulations to our Grand Sweepstakes winner, the Pearl Harbor Survivors, Chapter 23 North, who also won the Theme Award. Judges Choice went to the Clear Lake High School Marching Band.
Thanks to everyone who worked so hard to bring this parade to Main Street, Lakeport and to all who watched and applauded along the parade route.
Melissa Fulton is chief executive officer of the Lake County Chamber of Commerce, based in Lakeport.
- Details
- Written by: Jack Baxter
I would like to address Rodney Mitchell’s erroneous statements in his campaign ads in the Record-Bee.
Once again he has misrepresented my public statements concerning my plans to increase the size of patrol services and decrease response times to calls for service, particularly in our south county.
Mitchell: Some candidates for sheriff promise to double the size of the patrol force, or add lots of special units and positions … Of course that means a lot more patrol cars, training expenditures, increased office space and a lot of new equipment. Presumably, they’ll find it with magic fairy dust.
Jack Baxter: Perhaps you did not understand or chose to misinform the public as what I have repeatedly said.
I do intend to increase the size of the patrol force and reduce response times to calls for service. I do plan on making patrol more accessible to the community we service.
I will do so by reassigning personnel and responsibilities to make them more efficient, more accountable and make better use of what we have.
I did not say I would create lots of specials units. What I said is that I will evaluate each unit to combine tasks and responsibilities thus make them more efficient, accountable and successful.
This requires no additional cars, training expenditures, office space or new equipment. I will see to it that we work smarter and make better, more efficient use of the manpower and resources we have.
Magic fairy dust is not needed. I bring to the position of sheriff 38 years of professional law enforcement experience with the highest standards of education, and training, organizational leadership, with proven responsible sound management skills.
Many of us in Lake County are tired of Mitchell’s excuses for everything, repeatedly telling us why he can’t do things. I offer no false promises, no smoke and mirrors, no excuses and sadly, to quote Mitchell, no “magic fairy dust.” I have too much respect for law enforcement and the position of sheriff.
I join the community in wanting to know why the current sheriff is so resistant to change and new ideas.
Jack Baxter is a candidate this year for Lake County sheriff. He lives in Lakeport.
- Details
- Written by: Ron Fidge
Vote for honest officials with the courage to correct our present legal system.
I was born here 60-plus years ago and I have no record, yet there has been two failed attempts by these local engineers to railroad me in recent years.
Two years of malicious prosecution by the District Attorney's Office while refusing to interview the two men who stopped the hopped up meth cooker from killing me on my property. How many thousands of dollars did this senseless two years of prosecution – which were shameful to our nation's law system – cost us?
The sheriffs reports in both cases are slanderous, untruthful and biased pieces of work. Nine pictures of the cooker, none of me. A four-page report for the tweaker, none for me. A thick record for the communist Hungarian immigrant, who was under the FBI witness program, and I didn't have one.
It seems that these present law enforcement officials take delight in attacking upstanding Americans, while protecting the meth houses while they are under years of surveillance. How many know that a operational meth house makes hundreds of thousands of dollars per year and their product makes zombies and problems for us who care.
The latest railroad attempt has its biased sheriff's report (over 120 errors, lies, slanderous and untruthful statements) but was put to rest when my video showed the complete bias of the sheriff in his reporting of the lies of the aggressor. These present engineers are using their skills against their electoral opponents: slander.
A friend of mine got railroaded into prison when 30-plus statements in his court transcripts were altered to cover up the wicked criminal actions of our court's railroad engineers felonies.
Correcting our legal system will help bring the tourism back to our beautiful county and make it much safer when once again meth labs are destroyed and the cookers and the accomplices put into prison.
I'm voting for my friends (caring individuals), Don Anderson and Francisco Rivero, who will restore our confidence in this county's legal system. Vote and pray.
A citizens' legal oversight team with a hot line for the county's citizens, coordinated with the grand jury and the county's attorney, to be implemented. I care!
Ron Fidge lives on Cobb.
- Details
- Written by: Kip Ringen
This is in response to Chief Kevin Burke’s letter to the editor (Burke: The truth about the narcotics task force).
First, let me say that I respect Chief Burke and I find him to be a knowledgeable and honorable man. That being said, I believe his comments in the letter are a bit misguided.
Chief Burke took issue with sheriff candidate Frank Rivero’s comments about the narcotic task force. Mr. Rivero had stated he will “reinstate the drug task force which was eliminated by the current sheriff.” Chief Burke states that the current sheriff did not eliminate the local drug task force. He places all blame of the closure of the task force on the California Department of Justice (DOJ) Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement (BNE).
It is true that the funds were withdrawn by DOJ. But, why did they withdraw the funds? Chief Burke paints a picture that the only reason the task force was shut down was because of the lack of funds. He conveniently leaves out that there were numerous problems within the task force.
The current sheriff was to assign a sergeant to the task force so that there would be better supervision within the task force. The sheriff never assigned a sergeant to the task force.
Chief Burke also chose not to inform the reader that because of the lack of supervision within the unit, one of his own officers which was assigned to the task force, had been forging receipts for money which was supposedly for informants.
There are 58 state-sponsored task forces in California. Only two had their funding canceled. One of those task forces was Lake County’s. Both of the defunded task forces had internal problems and were not being run properly. The 56 remaining task forces are still in operation. If the Lake County Narcotic Task Force would have been supervised and run properly, it would still exist.
As for Chief Burke's comment that, “no elected sheriff has the authority to bring BNE back …,” and, “Deputy Rivero knows or should know this,” sheriff candidate Frank Rivero does know this. He never said he would bring BNE back. He stated he would restore the task force by redirecting current resources away from marijuana enforcement and into the task force.
One last item, Chief Kevin Burke is a friend of Rod Mitchell and is using the, “letters to the editor” as a campaign statement on behalf of Mitchell rather than a letter to the editor as it purports to be.
My name is Kip Ringen and I retired as a sergeant from the Lake County Sheriff’s Department after serving the county for 27 years. One of my many assignments at the sheriff’s department was in the narcotic task force. I was also the president of the Deputy Sheriff’s Association for 11 years and vice-president for four years, served two terms as president of the Redwood Chapter of the Peace Officer’s Research Association of Calif. (PORAC), served three terms as the state director of the Redwood Chapter of PORAC and served four terms as the state vice-president of PORAC.
Kip Ringen lives in Kelseyville.
Editor's note: The California Department of Justice issued a letter early last year, obtained by Lake County News, and quoted in a story about the changes in the task force printed in April 2009 (DOJ pulls out of local narcotic task force; local officials continue effort), that attributed the pullout from the two task forces to budget issues, which DOJ spokesperson Dana Simas confirmed to Lake County News at the time. A followup call was placed to the DOJ this week about Ringen's allegations regarding other reasons for the state leaving the task force. Spokesman Evan Westrup noted that outside of the official reasons given, “We cannot confirm or speculate on why this group disbanded.” He also noted that there are just over 40 narcotic task forces around the state. Chief Kevin Burke was contacted for comment regarding the allegations about his officers. He said he cannot respond to any accusations about personnel, because such matters are confidential.