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Letters
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- Written by: Megan Lankford
I first met Shanda Harry when we were both hired to be prosecutors at the Lake County District Attorney’s Office and I was immediately impressed with her keen legal mind and strong sense of justice.
Shanda also has an innate ability to defuse stressful situations with her calm and capable demeanor.
Shanda introduced me to my husband and we have been friends for over 10 years now. We both chose to raise our families in this community and Shanda is dedicated to keeping Lake County safe.
I know that she will work hard every day to make sure that everyone who appears before her is treated with fairness and dignity.
Join me in voting for Shanda Harry for Lake County Superior Court judge on Nov. 6.
Megan Lankford is an attorney. She lives in Kelseyville, Calif.
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- Written by: Mike Tabacchi
Democrats expressed numerous doubts and concerns and concluded that Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court is not merely a threat mind you, but a direct and fundamental threat to equal justice for all Americans.
Then an allegation from the nominee’s distant past surfaced. An opportunity to derail Kavanaugh’s nomination and tarnish his otherwise exemplary life and exceptional career: kill two birds with one stone. Suddenly, I can see the upside to my unremarkable and modest life.
What of those grave dangers to me and you if Judge Kavanaugh is confirmed? Many are extravagant exaggerations right from the Democratic Party’s playbook.
Their biased opinions of how Judge Kavanaugh may or may not rule on matters before the court conjure up memories of the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy excoriating conservative Judge Robert Bork on the Senate floor during Bork’s confirmation battle in 1987.
It might be politically expedient and popular with some for the Dems to invoke fear in those following the hearings. However, in my opinion, their fears are not commensurate with the situation.
In response to their dire predictions for the Affordable Care Act if Kavanaugh is confirmed, I believe we can all agree that the ACA is not without its flaws or detractors.
Let me begin at ground zero: its enactment. This law passed without a single Republican vote. Furthermore, recent polling data by the Kaiser Family Foundation shows 50 percent view the law favorably, 40 percent unfavorably and 10 percent have no opinion.
Furthermore, I take exception to predictions that Judge Kavanaugh’s presence on the court will, over time, result in invalidation of the ACA.
At its worst, this might be seen as a calculated smarmy attempt to capitalize on the fears and frustrations shared by most Americans with our health care system. And the ACA is part and parcel to our broken health care delivery apparatus.
I believe this highly qualified nominee could potentially pave the way for more sorely needed incremental improvements to the system.
For example, I support efforts in Arkansas to phase in work requirements or other eligibility requirements for those able-bodied childless young adults receiving Medicaid. Arkansans who are working, volunteering, going to school or looking for a job at least 80 hours a month meet the threshold.
My understanding is Judge Kavanaugh’s dissent in 2011 in Seven-Sky v. Holder was based on technical, jurisdictional grounds. At the time, conservatives decried his failure to declare outright the ACA unconstitutional.
He has also focused attention on the legal idea of “severability” while opining on ACA issues during meetings with senators prior to the hearings. This doctrine says that even if one part of the law is found invalid, the rest could still stand.
Judge Kavanaugh’s critics have said he would not faithfully apply our nation’s laws nor guarantee equal justice under the law for all Americans. I disagree.
Mike Tabacchi lives in Middletown, Calif.
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- Written by: Emma Blatcher
Over a year ago my then-16 year old's car caught fire whilst she was driving it – within seconds of smelling burning my husband who was thankfully with her at the time made her pull over immediately. Within seconds the car was alight and was completely destroyed (the photos were awful and life lessons learned).
With this in mind – as well as the horrific wildfires of October 2017 – I was driving home Wednesday night on Petrified Forest Road in my husband’s rather old Mustang and smelt burning. I opened the windows and couldn't smell anything outside – I knew I was just about to lose my phone signal as I headed over the mountain so pulled over. My biggest fear is to start a wildfire on a mountain that was so devastated by last year’s fires and have no cell coverage to call for help.
It was so scary, the lorries and cars zooming past me on the narrow road. I tried to open the hood and just couldn't. I was stuck there on the side of the road for what seemed like an eternity.
Suddenly a white Mustang zoomed up and a girl jumped out and popped the hood in under 30 seconds (I had the humility to blush at my inadequacy to get the hood open). She took that car apart to ensure nothing was burning – she was quite simply amazing.
Turns out I have an angel: Jacqueline, a Mustang lover and lady with a heart of gold was on her way home from Santa Rosa to Hidden Valley Lake and spotted me struggling in a precarious part of the mountain, so she turned around and come back to help. I have no doubt that she was Heaven-sent.
It filled my heart that, after a day at work and children to get home to, she turned around on that mountain and came back to help. Cal Fire stopped to assist but thankfully no further assistance was needed.
I had to share this story with you because she really deserves recognition for her outstanding community spirit. You have a hidden hero in Hidden Valley Lake.
I have invited Jacqueline to the winery for a VIP visit and will give her a gift as a thank you her for being my Hidden Valley Lake hero.
Emma Blatcher lives in Marin County, Calif.
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- Written by: Margaret Silveira
On behalf of our residents and city, I first want to thank Cal Fire, all the mutual response fire agencies, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, the Lakeport Unified School District, our Lakeport Fire Department, Lakeport Police and our own City Hall staff. If there is ever a moment for government to execute and deliver for our community, a major public safety threat is the best example, and on that front, we all have much to be thankful for. I am proud of their response and dedication throughout the fire threat.
However, the recognition does not stop there.
Crisis is a chance to see the soul of a community and what I have seen the past weeks are neighbors helping neighbors, the business community rising up to unleash their considerable resources to help, and a spirit of civic duty that has infused everyone.
This is not just government – this is an entire community working for its survival and assured safety of its residents. It is the best of us.
Residents are also to be commended for heeding the warning from our emergency system and responding to public safety messages. An efficient evacuation process is critical to life preservation.
While smoke drifts in the air, we should capture this momentum to prepare for an inevitable future fire risk to our community. Residents in the wildland urban interface should prepare plans and yards to defend their homes with proper spacing and vegetation removal.
Everyone should check their registration with the city’s emergency alert system NIXLE (even though we more than doubled our registration during the fire event), to ensure you are registered and have an updated email, cell phone, home phone and other entries for every member of the family.
Make a plan now for your “go bag” and the items you want in there if you had to walk out of your house in five minutes. It is a sobering effort, but important.
While I ask that residents plan, know that the city is planning, too. We are in pursuit of grants to address wildfire mitigation plans and will be working proactively with authorities to address broader scale fire risks in our county.
Lakeport offers a simpler pace of life, a chance to know your community, a chance to connect with neighbors, a chance to have a positive impact. The actions of our community reaffirmed these community traits.
Stay strong. Stay connected. Stay prepared. Onward.
Margaret Silveira is city manager of Lakeport, Calif.