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Letters
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- Written by: Teddie Pierce
As the former executive director of the Lake One-Stop, Inc. and a systems trainer who has presented to several Lake County businesses and nonprofit agencies I would like respond to Anne Card’s letter to the editor published in the newspaper on Friday, Feb. 18.
It is important that the public understand that what Ms. Card is referring to is an application under consideration by the state of California to move ONLY the administrative grant oversight functions of the federal workforce development funding.
At the current time, this oversight function occurs in Yuba City, within a consortium structured business entity that also manages the workforce dollars for Colusa, Sutter, Yuba and Glenn counties.
The proposed change is under review as Ms. Card indicated because this is the way things work at the state governance level.
The intent of administrative oversight agency is to align the federal workforce mandates with the needs of their designated workforce area and assure adherence to the federal and state guidelines for service delivery.
An administrative entity performs the following functions for a career service center which include: approves and disburses periodic requests for operating funds, develops collaborative training programs to benefit their defined local area (the five counties mentioned above), and monitor the service delivery to assure appropriate use of government funds.
There are several other functions performed by a workforce administrative entity that are too numerous to mention here but may be found on the web by searching keywords like “About WIA,” “WIA Oversight” or “One-Stop Systems.”
What an administrative entity does NOT do is to micromanage the counties they administer. They do not select the location of a One-Stop center, do not hire/fire staff, recommend or enforce appropriate program services within Lake County. These are all discussions and actions held at the local Lake County level. The Lake County Board of Supervisors have held several public discussions on the topic of their administrative entity in the past, two of which I have personally attended.
As jobseekers and business owners in Lake County, you should become familiar and utilize your local One-Stop services, as this is the federal government’s effort to link employers to skilled employees and many people don’t know these services are available.
No matter where you stand on the issue of an admin change, rest assured services are not leaving Lake County, and the program will not be run by Napa county’s welfare system. Program services are competitively bid in a legal procurement process like all other federal grants.
I, like Ms. Card am appealing to the California WIB Issues and Policy Committee to slow their process down and let Lake County residents attend a public forum where these issues and impacts can be clearly presented.
If you would like to do the same you can contact Daniel Patterson at 916-324-2853 no later than Tuesday, Feb. 22, at 5 p.m.
My personal email address is
Teddie Pierce is owner of Small Nonprofit Help. She lives in Windsor, Calif.
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- Written by: Tina Chiotti-Stewart
I say this with enormous gratitude: Wow and thank you!
Yes, thank you for making Middletown Florist & Gifts' fifth Valentine's Day a huge success!
I am once again impressed by the generosity of this county. I ordered 25 percent more flowers this year than last and only had 24 red roses and 24 white roses left at 8 p.m. on Valentine's Day. I had a wonderful time assisting men and women with their needs.
I would also like to thank all new fans of Chic Le Fleur.
Julie Hoskins, of Chic Le Chef and I are overwhelmed by the incredible embrace our tea and edibles shoppe has received in its first three weeks.
Thank you, Lake County.
Tina Chiotti-Stewart is owner Middletown Florist & Gifts and co-owner of Chic Le Fleur in Middletown, Calif.
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- Written by: Nelson Strasser
I accuse President Obama of being, at least in part, responsible for the deaths of an estimated 300 Egyptians who were killed while peacefully asking their government for a “redress of grievances. But first, I want to clear up some confusion about where Obama stands on the political spectrum.
Some folks accuse Obama of being a “leftist” or a “socialist.” However, if you go to YouTube and listen to the 1956 Inaugural Address of Republican President Dwight David Eisenhower, you will find that President Obama is to the right of Ike. In fact, Eisenhower warned of the danger of “The Military Industrial Complex.” Obama is the Military Industrial Complex. In the current “resource” wars that we are fighting, Obama is sending our boys to die to secure the oil supply for the ever thirsty energy sector of our economy.
Now, back to Egypt: There is no doubt that we prefer democracy in Egypt, but where democracy conflicts with stability, stability trumps principle every time. Obama knows that Mubarak must go, but he also knows, that when you begin change, you never know how things are going to end up. And, we don’t want an Egypt with a power structure that won’t be amenable to our interests. So, Obama calls for restraint, but acquiesces to brutal repression.
Obama could have stopped the needless deaths because, “he who pays the piper, calls the tune.” We have two billion reasons to pressure them to show restraint. And, in addition, the United States is very close with the Egyptian military. The argument could be made that our power is limited in Egypt and that we could only influence the Egyptian Government. However, when the United States has wanted regime change in the past, even when the regime was democratically elected, such as in Chile, Guatemala, and Iran, we had no qualms about exercising our power to achieve that goal.
When Obama offered us change, I guess he meant that if we elected him, we would have a president with black skin instead of white skin, because aside from that, I don’t see much difference. He directs an empire of endless war. His first chief of staff came from the financial sector, and his current one as well. He has rescued the rich and let the poor and much of the middle class flounder in an economic morass not of their making.
Yes, I accuse you Mr. President. I ask you to step down. Realistically, however, I must admit that you have one thing going for you: The American people are docile sheep compared to the Egyptians.
Nelson Strasser lives in Kelseyville, Calif.
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- Written by: Bea Moulton
Thank you, Lake County, for another fabulous, fun fundraiser.
The Rotary Club of Middletown’s 19th annual Crab Feast and Auctions was once again a rousing success. The many auction items were original, varied and interesting, and folks were as generous as ever. We truly live in a great community where even a recession hasn’t dampened our giving spirit.
Special thanks to our major sponsor, Calpine Corp., and to our other sponsors: Catholic Charities Lake County Programs, Clover Lake Dairy, Fox Marble & Granite, the Hoberg Family, LaTrease’s Sassy Scissors, Pat and Jon Meyer, Middletown Animal Hospital, Morgan Lane Real Estate, Elisabeth Rusth, St. Helena Hospital-Clearlake, U.S. Coast Guard Auxilliary, Westamerica Bank and the Perkins-Whitney Family. Rick Hamilton’s RAH Signs showed off our sponsors, and David Neft set up our sound system and offered himself as an auction item.
Thanks also to Tri-Counties Bank for the credit card terminal and savings bond, to Hardester’s Market for the grand grand door prize, and to Karen Jones and her Floral Design Class for the nautical themed floral centerpieces.
Special recognition goes to Karen Turcotte of EcoArts of Lake County for the ever-growing decorations, her auction donation and her two 12-hour days of working with a smile and a song.
The high school worker bees of the Interact Club at Middletown High School deserved their tips totaling $660, which they plan to donate to worthy causes. They all worked hard, worked smart and gave great customer service.
For some photos, go to our Facebook page listed as Rotary Club of Middletown CA.
We would also like to thank our local media for their coverage: Middletown’s finest newspaper, the Times Star, and the Record-Bee, the Clearlake Observer, and Lake County News online. Getting the word out with their coverage helps so much and is appreciated.
So thanks to all who participated and supported the effort. The good you did helps us do good throughout the year supporting local and international projects and programs.
Bea Moulton is president for 2009-11 of the Rotary Club of Middletown, Calif.