No connection?

Remember, The Richard Salzman's aeb (the so-called "Alliance for Ethical Business") aka (goodtimberjobs.org) morphed into ourhumboldt.org, and now includes the sham organization "localsolutions.org," aka "behind the redwood curtain."

In this email, they are again actively soliciting money - trying to get people to commit to a payment schedule, to agree to donate a certain amount every month via their credit card. Presumably, once they have softened the mark, it is also easier to go back for "extra" donations for a specific "need."

It's interesting that Richard Salzman sends his "endorsement" of this so-called NEW group (localsolutions.org) as if it were unrelated to him - talking about 'them' doing good work, if 'they' are given funding.... He pumped this same message loudly and often on KMUD, calling in to various radio shows, and expressing his enthusiastic support for this "wonderful" group of people, this incredible grassroots effort, and by the way, send money...

People keep asking, "How does this guy support himself?" "Where does his money come from?"

The Recall was over. How do you keep the fundraising going when the election furor has died down and people go back to their normal lives? When you are trying to sell something, you have to come up with an idea that the public will "buy." Looks like jumping on the "progressive" bandwagon was a golden opportunity to keep the money flowing.

Local Solutions denies any connection to Richard Salzman, of course. But the email trails reveal the opposite to be true.

Where does the money donated to Local Solutions go? What do the candidates they support "owe" them?

These are only some of the questions that need to be answered as "Local Solutions" works to implement Ken Miller's vision to "groom folks to run for office."

Is it just about money? Or is it about power? Is it about being able to "count to three" on the Board of Supervisors? Or the Eureka City Council?

****

From: Richard Salzman [ mailto:salzman@inreach.com]

Subject: Re: Westhaven Progressives and Local Solutions Political Action
Committee

(.....1st paragraph deleted)

I hope everyone will join me in sending Local Solutions $99.00 to help them
raise the seed money they need to build the infrastructure with which
to run grassroots campaigns. The idea here is that by investing a
small amount in advance these people will build a mechanism that will
save us a lot of work later. It will still be up to us as a community
to find good people who are willing to run for office, but when we do,
LS would be there for us when we need them, if we give them the
resources (i.e. money) to get established now. It seems like a good
investment to me.
Best,
Richard (Salzman)

(......partially edited....)

>
> Thank you again for having us to your party! And thanks for your
> financial support for Local Solutions PAC!
>
> Here comes the pitch:
>
> As we said Thursday night, one of our initial goals in 2005 is to
> invite 1,000 local Humboldt progressives to become Local Solutions PAC
> supporters at $99 a year (that's $8.25 per month). You can become a
> $99 supporter online by clicking on:
>
>       Online Donations: http://www.localsolutions.org/donate
> .
>
> Some supporters like to use PayPal to pledge online at just $8.25 a
> month from their credit cards. Others use PayPal for a one-time
> contribution of $99. Other supporters prefer to send their checks
> directly to:
>
> Local Solutions, P. O. Box 782, Eureka, CA 95502.
>
> Let's stay in touch- there will be many opportunities to work
> together as elections approach. We all need each other!
>
> Best wishes!
>
> Michael Twombly
> Dennis Huber
> Alice Woodworth
> Patrick Riggs
>
> Local Solutions PAC
> (707) 443-3921
> P.O. Box 782
> Eureka, CA 95502
> http://www.localsolutions.org
>
>
UPDATE:
Open Letter from "Local Solutions"
"Local Solutions" sham
No connection?
Any doubt what "Local Solutions" agenda is?
For more of the story click on the labels below.
__________________
Note: Personal email addresses, home addresses and phone numbers have been either altered (so spam crawlers won't harvest them) or replaced with the words 'address' and 'phone' - business or organizational addresses remain intact.
New note: The deal is off. Richard.

The BLAME GAME

First Paul Gallegos tried to blame former Deputy District Attorney Ed Borg for not filing charges against Kiki Bugenig in the animal abuse case now revealed by the Eureka Reporter.

Then, he tries to pass it off as "politics" and then he blames Assistant District Attorney/Chief Charging Deputy Wes Keat.

It's not the first time he has claimed that anyone who points out that he is failing to do his job is just engaging in "political attacks." He tried this tactic when he tried to slip the loss of four positions in Humboldt County's Victim Witness Unit through the Consent Calendar. He never has explained why he didn't try to save the program and the four positions in the months between when he was notified that he had lost the grant that funded the positions, and when the grant ran out. Nor is there any evidence that he has worked to restore the funding or the program since that day. But he has time to plot a new "environmental crimes unit."

Nor is it the first time he has thrown Wes Keat under the bus. He blamed Wes Keat for his undercharging of Pedro Martinez-Hernandez.

And, judging by the editorial in today's Eureka Reporter, it looks like Gallegos' supporters are blaming the Eureka Reporter for the story that Gallegos failed to file charges against Kiki Bugening, "in the interests of justice" because he would have had to "prove intent."

Kudos to the Eureka Reporter for reporting the FACTS, and not being intimidated by the Salzman/Gallegos political machine.

The Local Solutions sham

Note the date of this article in the Eureka Reporter.

Local Solutions to meet with candidates
by Rebecca S. Bender, 8/12/2006
http://www.eurekareporter.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?ArticleID=13811

"With the filing period closed for candidates for the November election, the local political action committee Local Solutions will be conducting interviews in the coming days to consider its endorsements for what promises to be a spirited race."

***

I'm sure that all candidates who went to those interviews in good faith had no idea that the sham-organization local solutions had already shown who they were backing, through the messages they sent out to their listserve. Note the topics - and dates - listed below. Anyone wishing to see the full text of any of these messages, please ask in the comments section, and I will post it.

You can see that, though they announced they would be conducting interviews AFTER August 12th - in fact they were already actively promoting Larry Glass as early as June 28th, Peter LaVallee on July 14th, and Ron Kuhnel on July 26th. Besides pushing them through the listserve, they are also pushing them on KMUD and KHSU.

And to all current and future candidates who are considering participating in these sham interviews, know that your participation only lends legitimacy to their ultimate "selection" of the opponent they had already put into the race.

***
Note: LocalSolutions uses the name "Behind the Redwood Curtain" to send out their messages...
Many groups with different euphemistic names, all part of the same group, designed to make you think there is broad based support.

***

Richard's List   Sad News
Sun Jul 30, 2006 4k

Behind the Redwood Curtain
From Friends of Ron Kuhnel
Wed Jul 26, 2006 4k

Local Solutions PAC
Consider running for office in your community
Tue Jul 25, 2006 5k

Behind the Redwood Curtain
"News Junkie" Jason Leopold on Thursday Night Talk 7/20/06 with Rob Amerman 7:30...
Wed Jul 19, 2006 5k

Behind the Redwood Curtain
LaVallee FUndraiser Wednesday, July 19th 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm Women's Club
Fri Jul 14, 2006 4k

Behind the Redwood Curtain
This Week on Thursday Night Talk: Genetically Modified Trees with Anne Peterman ...
Wed Jul 12, 2006 7k

Behind the Redwood Curtain
Thursday Night Talk: 9/11 and Project Censored - July 6th at 7:30 PM on KHSU (90...
Thu Jul 06, 2006 7k

Behind the Redwood Curtain
Thursday Evening 7 PM on KMUD: Big Box discussion with Dennis Huber and Larry Glass
Thu Jun 29, 2006
4k

Behind the Redwood Curtain
Thursday Night Talk- June 29 KMUD 90.5 7:30 PM: HEMP Growing
Wed Jun 28, 2006 5k

Richard's List
EPD chief / 2500 dead / Voting Rights Act
Mon Jun 26, 2006 11k

Behind the Redwood Curtain
Thursday Night Talk- June 22nd Ray Raphael and Rob Amerman 7:30 PM KHSU 90.5 FM
Thu Jun 22, 2006 6k


Friends of Paul Gallegos
Yard sign deadline! Please help FOPG
Fri Jun 16, 2006 10k

Behind the Redwood Curtain
Monday June 19th: SOLUTIONS TO TOXICS 6:30 pm at the Wharfinger
Thu Jun 15, 2006 6k

Local Solutions PAC
No Rest for the Weary: A Next Step for Humboldt County Progressives

Years later, the name 'Local Solutions' surfaces, in a mention" ◼ Sopoci-Belknap and Brinton Leaving Humboldt For Sacramento - Lost Coast Outpost

Sopoci-Belknap has been involved in local political and social causes for many years, co-founding such groups as Democracy Unlimited and Local Solutions.

Salzman's Empire

Once the Recall qualified for the ballot, the so-called "Alliance for Ethical Business" went underground, but continued to communicate through their listserve. It became FOPG, the Friends of Paul Gallegos. All communications were handled by Michael Twombly, Salzman's communications manager. Identical email messages were mailed to both the so-called "Alliance for Ethical Business" and FOPG list subscribers, as the so-called "Alliance" continued to promote Paul Gallegos in order to protect the PL lawsuit..

After the Recall, the so-called "Alliance for Ethical Business" morphed from goodtimberjobs.org into ourhumboldt.org. Later, it became localsolutions.org. All communications continued to be handled by Michael Twombly.

Of late, as Local Solutions pretends to be a non-partisan group (Twombly, who claimed to be a founding member of the Green Party registered as a Republican), and conducts sham interviews with local candidates while their listserve actively promotes the candidates Salzman has chosen, Local Solution has denied any connection to Salzman and the so-called "Alliance for Ethical Business. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

Til this was posted on one of the local blogs, triggering an error in the subscribe link of a local solutions email leads you to this page: CHOOSE A LIST:

(And note that it was this same listserve which Salzman used to send out an email vilifying Rex Bohn, as Salzman worked to keep Chris Kerrigan in office. Emails which Salzman then complained were "personal and private." Sent to 3,000 of his closest friends, no doubt.)

**** 3 ****

.: Dada Mail
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Available Lists:
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FOLLOWING the posting of this information on a local blog, the list was changed.
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___________________
UPDATE:
Open Letter from "Local Solutions"
"Local Solutions" sham
No connection?
Any doubt what "Local Solutions" agenda is?
For more of the story click on the labels below.
__________________
Note: Personal email addresses, home addresses and phone numbers have been either altered (so spam crawlers won't harvest them) or replaced with the words 'address' and 'phone' - business or organizational addresses remain intact.

Salzman, Shellenberger and Twombly

**** 1 ****

List Name Alliance for Ethical Business: Timber Yes, Fraud No (No Fraud) 
Purpose: Alliance for Ethical Business is sponsoring this list serve to organize and mobilize Humboldt County residents to fight fraud by Maxxam/PL.
Website URL: http://www.timberyesfraudno.org
List Type: Moderated discussion Subscription: Requires owner approval
Archive: Readable by subscribers only
Created: Mar 26, 2003 Owners: Michael Shellenberger, Michael Twombly
To Join: Subscribe here, or send an email to mshellenberger-subscribe@topica.com
To Post: Send mail to 'mshellenberger@topica.com'  
Stats: 26 subscribers / < 1 messages per week
Categories: Society & Culture | Crime

**** 2 ****
"Ownership" changed hands

List Name
Alliance for Ethical Business-Humboldt County (AEB Humboldt)
Purpose:
The Alliance for Ethical Business (AEB) is a citizens group in Humboldt County, California working to ensure that corporate fraud and illegal business practices are prosecuted in a court of law. Use for corporate fraud issues only, please.
Website URL:
http://www.goodtimberjobs.org/
List Type:
Moderated discussion
Subscription:
Requires owner approval
Archive:
Readable by subscribers only
Created:
Apr 08, 2003
Owners:
Michael Twombly, Richard Salzman
To Join:
Subscribe here, or send an email to aeb_humboldt-subscribe@topica.com
To Post:
Send mail to 'aeb_humboldt@topica.com'
Stats:
160 subscribers / 1 message per day
Categories:
Business  |  Ethics  |  Socially Responsible
Business  |  Ethics

Gallegos' latest attempt to IMPLEMENT SALZMAN'S PLAN

This week, in Daniel Mintz's article in the Arcata Eye, McKinleyville Press and The Independent, Gallegos announces that he is planning to put together an "environmental crimes unit".

"The idea is that we would be a leader, a hub in northern California for top prosecutors,” said Gallegos.
Staffing would be modest at first, he continued, possibly beginning with a prosecutor that he would hire and the CDAA would pay for. As the unit progresses, fines culled from successful prosecutions might allow further staffing.

“If someone is ripping people off or engaged in unfair business practices, they can expect to be prosecuted as criminals, or sued civilly, or both,” Gallegos said. “And if they’re creating a dangerous work environment – same thing.”

More code words that say, in no uncertain terms, that Gallegos continues to try to implement Salzman's Plan. Using taxpayer's money to fulfill the activist's agenda at the expense of the People's business.

The purpose of the so-called "Alliance for Ethical Business" was "to promote corporate responsibility and to ensure that fraud and illegal business practices are prosecuted in a court of law."

Code words for "get Palco."

read the full article at
http://arcataeye.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1
New DA unit to take up Hagen's work
Also posted the FIRST COMMENT on this post.

more on the agenda

From the so-called "Alliance for Ethical Business" listserve:

To:
"Michael Shellenberger" michael@thebreakthrough.org

CC:
aeb_humboldt@topica.com

From:
"Ken Miller" tamer1 @ cox.net    Add to Address Book

Subject:
Re: FW: Coastal Commission Appointment

Date:
Sat, 6 Mar 2004 17:57:26 -0800


From the Alliance for Ethical Business (AEB) List serve:
ABSOLUTELY!

At 9:39 AM -0800 3/6/04, Michael Shellenberger wrote:
Michael Shellenberger, The Breakthrough Institute
3020 El Cerrito Plaza, #113, El Cerrito, CA 94530
510-525-9900, fax 510-288-1325, cell 415-309-4200

http://www.theBreakthrough.org >

Forwarded Message
From: Richard Salzman salzman@inreach.com
Date: Fri, 5 Mar 2004 18:55:23 -0800
To: Michael Twombly twomblym @ cwo.com
Cc: Richard Salzman < salzman@inreach.com >, Nancie Four Waters
< rootwaters @ asis.com >, Donald Forrest < DM4Rest @ aol.com >, Michael
Evanson >< evenson @ igc.org >, Michael Shellenberger
< michael@thebreakthrough.org >,
Julie Francis < Juliefrancis@earthlink.net >
Subject: Re: Coastal Commission Appointment

The original meetings for the recall were held at Bonnie's house. She
was the driving force from day one. Bring her down now.

On Friday, March 5, 2004, at 03:10 PM, Michael Twombly wrote:

Sacramento Insider Poop: Confidential

1. Not too late to derail Neely appointment

Neely is all out for this appointment, balls to the
wall.
Her support with Gov. Arnold comes from Tracy Walsh (wife of Danny
Walsh and Maria S. chief of staff) and from Red Emerson (big $$$ to
Arnold). Other than that, no support for Bonnie with Arnold.

2. DA Recall could play BIG in Coastal Commission appointment
(John W. A WINNER, Bonnie a loser.)

Gov's office is laughing over Maxxam/PL's stupidity and
big loss; Flanigans are a joke; Obviously Reeps and Demos voted
against Neely and the recall. Neely's star sinking. Let's help it.
Tie Neely to Recall. Keep her losing.

3. Letter writing campaign to Arnold is the way to go, with
letters to Editor, and groups coming forward like fisherman,
birdwatchers, Audubon society, Reeps for Ethical Business, etc. 
This can be won now, if we use the momentum of the recall against Neely
and for John.

4. What does John say? Shall we go for it?

5. Everyone who voted for Recall would support John over
Bonnie.

Yes?

M


Michael Twombly
address
address

phone

End of Forwarded Message


--
Ken Miller
address
address
phone

This message came to you from the Alliance for Ethical Business. This
list is intended to serve exclusively as an information and organizing
tool for building a strong volunteer base to promote corporate
responsibility and to ensure that fraud and illegal business practices are
prosecuted in a court of law.

This is currently an unmoderated open and informal news and organizing
information list. Please limit postings to news and information about
current issues of corporate ethics and fraud in Humboldt County.

To reply or respond to messages, use the reply button in your email
program so that your email will go directly to the author of the 
posting replied to. Please avoid one-on-one discussions on this list
serve.

Anyone can subscribe by sending a blank email to: aeb_humboldt-subscribe@topica.com :
To unsubscribe, send a blank email to aeb_humboldt-unsubscribe@topica.com :
To post a message to the list, send it as an email to aeb_humboldt@topica.com :


To read this list on the web, visit the following url (this is
unneccessary but allows archive
readings and requires joining topica's member list): http://www.topica.com/lists/aeb_humboldt Michael Twombly, Alliance list co-ordinator
mailto: twomblym@cwo.com

__________________
UPDATE:
Open Letter from "Local Solutions"
"Local Solutions" sham
No connection?
Any doubt what "Local Solutions" agenda is?
For more of the story click on the labels below.
__________________
Note: Personal email addresses, home addresses and phone numbers have been either altered (so spam crawlers won't harvest them) or replaced with the words 'address' and 'phone' - business or organizational addresses remain intact.
New note: The deal is off, Richard.

The AEB's agenda

In this email from the so-called "Alliance for Ethical Business," Ken Miller lays out his agenda for the future of the DA's office.

Believing Gallegos was now "untouchable" they believed that he would attract bright young disciples who would train at the feet of the master as they waged their gallant battle against Palco.

***

lizard2183@yahoo.com, michael@luminastrategies.com *

CC:
aeb_humboldt@topica.com

From:
"Ken Miller"    Add to Address Book

Subject:
Re: Elation

Date:
Wed, 3 Mar 2004 13:43:16 -0800


From the Alliance for Ethical Business (AEB) List serve:
1. DA's office can fight meth and heroin and their related crimes
including crooked cops. Crime prevention programs, in-patient rehab
locally.
2. DA can exploit his national notoriety by recruiting seasoned as
well as fresh bright younger prosecuters
3. Raise money to prosecute the PL case aggressively
4. Put forth an economic vision focusing on a diversified local and
regional organic economy, including energy policy, LNG, appropriate
Bay, airport, rail, etc development
5. Organize ourselves politically to accrue power, groom folks to run
for offices. Database, outreach, etc.
6. Get rid of Tom Herman on the planning commission thanks to
Rodoni, he has been central to all of PL's fraudulent activities and
is therefore vulnerable to public outcry. This is a powerful
position.

At 8:36 AM -0800 3/3/04, David A. Jeffreys wrote:
> >From the Alliance for Ethical Business (AEB) List serve:
>Hello all,
>
>This is a great morning!!!!! We have a wonderful
>victory on our hands and I do not have to sell my
>house and move, heeeeee.
>
>One question, what does the AEB do now? We have an
>excellent organization here that should never go away.
>
>
>Thank you all,
>
>David A. Jeffreys

Refresher

For those who are interested in this story, be sure to read the archives:

For Salzman's Plan:
http://watchpaul.blogspot.com/2006_04_01_watchpaul_archive.html
Detailing proposed funding plans that involve soliciting accepting and using special interest money to fund a public lawsuit

For Gallegos' Request for Opinion:
http://watchpaul.blogspot.com/2006/04/2-gallegos-request-for-opinion.html
Gallegos taking Salzman's Plan a step closer to fruition, submitting a request for opinion, seeking approval from the Attorney General.

For Tim Stoen's letter to the FPPC
http://watchpaul.blogspot.com/2006/04/tim-stoens-letter-to-fppc.html
Stoen's correspondence asking the FPPC, among other things, if he could contribute personally to fund the PL lawsuit. Never mind that he is the public prosecutor in charge of the suit.

For the FPPC's response to Stoen:
http://watchpaul.blogspot.com/2006/04/fppc-response-to-stoen.html
In which they say that, yes, he can donate personally, and that Gallegos can use his campaign funds to fund the PL lawsuit.

(Any trouble with these links, just go to this blogs APRIL 2006 archives)

"In the interests of justice"

IN THE 'INTERESTS OF JUSTICE'?

After reading this story in the Eureka Reporter, you have to ask yourself what part of his job Paul Gallegos IS doing.

He's not prosecuting serious animal abuse cases, "in the interest of justice."

He's not prosecuting child abuse cases.

Besides playing rock star of the western world for the activist community, what is he doing?

***
The article (added later):

caption: Shannon Miranda examines the contents of blue barrels found Sunday night near Mad River. The seven barrels contained 10 or 11 dead dogs and part of a sheep. Heather Muller/The Eureka Reporter

IN THE 'INTERESTS OF JUSTICE'?
by Heather Muller , 8/23/2006

In yet another twist in the Mad River dog abuse scandal, information uncovered late last week suggests that officials on this side of the county line missed at least two opportunities to intervene on behalf of the unknown number of horses, sheep and dogs that ultimately died at the former Trinity County residence of Roberta Bugenig.

As recently as June 2004, Bugenig, now 65, lived in Humboldt County, on Chalk Mountain Road near Bridgeville, and in January and June of that year was investigated for alleged offenses related to her care and treatment of 61 dogs and a blind horse named Lucky.

But according to public records, charges against Bugenig requested by the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office — including 122 alleged misdemeanor county code violations for failure to vaccinate and license her dogs, and one alleged felony violation for abuse of the horse — were never filed by the Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office.

John and Stacy Malcolm are expected to be charged in Trinity County with multiple felony animal cruelty charges stemming from their treatment of the Bugenig animals.

But why were charges not filed against Bugenig years earlier in Humboldt County?

Lt. Steve Knight, who heads up the animal control division of the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office, said he doesn’t know.

“As I understand it, we had one case where (Bugenig) was cited for numerous counts for no rabies vaccination and licensing of the animals,” he said. “That was back in January 2004. In June of 2004 deputies went out again to investigate a report of animal neglect and cruelty, and a case was referred to the DA’s Office for charges.”

Knight added, “I don’t know what the DA did with it.”

District Attorney Paul Gallegos said Monday that the first case, involving the 122 alleged misdemeanor violations, was received by his office June 15, 2004, and was rejected Oct. 26 of the same year.

“These were regulatory offenses, not neglect offenses,” Gallegos said, adding that the reason given in the file for rejection of the charges was “interests of justice.”

“There could have been issues of proof,” he said.

The alleged felony offense of abuse of the horse was received by the DA’s office July 9, 2004, and rejected Aug. 23, 2004, for lack of evidence, according to Gallegos.

“We can do nothing unless we have sufficient evidence of an offense,” he said. “That’s it in a nutshell.”

Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Brenda Godsey said Tuesday that she could not speak to the evidentiary value of information provided to the DA’s Office, but could officially confirm that a videotape had been booked into evidence.

Godsey also confirmed that deputies had posted a pre-seizure notification on the stall of the horse June 4, 2004. But when deputies returned June 9 to follow up on the notice, all of the animals were gone.

Bugenig had left Humboldt County and moved approximately five miles across the county line near Mad River in Trinity County.

Timothy Noal Gray, the Malcolms’ defense attorney, confirmed that Lucky died on the Mad River property of unknown causes in March of this year.

The horse was old, Gray said, and he believed its death was “a natural thing.” The Malcolms, he said, had it buried at “considerable personal expense.”

Dozens of dogs were found dead and dying in and around the kennels at the former Bugenig property on Aug. 10, after a U.S. Forest Service law enforcement agent found blue barrels containing dead dogs that had been dumped in Six Rivers National Forest. They were eventually linked back to the kennels.

Knight said Humboldt County Animal Control did everything it could to intervene in the matter. According to documents obtained by The Eureka Reporter, one deputy even prepared a declaration in support of a warrant requesting the arrest of Bugenig for alleged “failure to provide care” for the animals.

Although charges were not filed by the DA’s Office, Knight said his office did inform Trinity County that Bugenig was moving into its jurisdiction.

Trinity County Animal Control Officer Christine Edwards confirmed that she had been notified about Bugenig in 2004.

“There were complaints at one time of a woman locating here with too many dogs,” Edwards said in an Aug. 18 interview.

But Edwards insisted that she didn’t know who the woman was or where she had moved until law enforcement personnel were called to the property in March 2005 to forcibly evict Bugenig from the residence.

“I think we did our job,” Knight said — and, in light of subsequent events, “I’m glad we did our job.”

It is impossible to know whether the prosecution of Bugenig in Humboldt County could have averted the tragedy.

“If we had filed, based on the charges,” Gallegos said, “probably the best results — or the worst results from her perspective — would have been probation.”

Copyright (C) 2005, The Eureka Reporter. All rights reserved

Related Stories:
Two mass dog graves discovered near Mad River 8/16/2006
Trinity County Animal Control warned of dogs' plight since 2005 8/18/2006
"Dogs seemed fine," Animal Control Officer Edwards says 8/18/2006
Defense attorney says John and Stacy Malcolm not to blame for abuse of dogs 8/18/2006
Dogs' condition consistent with starvation, report states 8/20/2006
Death toll rises in Mad River dog deaths 8/22/2006
IN THE 'INTERESTS OF JUSTICE'? 8/23/2006
Evidence mounts in animal abuse case 8/24/2006
Report details 'horrific' conditions 8/26/2006
Community responds to dogs' abuse by donating to rescue 8/27/2006
51 CHARGES FILED IN DOG CASE 8/30/2006
National Animal group challenges Gallegos over abuse case 8/30/2006
National, international animal groups weigh in on abuse scandal 8/30/2006
ER Editorial - Specious arguments
8/30/2006
78 additional felonies charged in Mad River dog abuse case 9/1/2006
Malcolms 'walked through' arraignment 9/2/2006
When law enforcement fails, 'vigilantism' sometimes needed 9/4/2006
Third suspect in dog case arraigned 9/7/2006
Mad River dog abuse case suspect speaks out 9/9/2006
Hearing set for Mad River dog suspects 9/14/2006
Dog suspects head for trial 10/13/2006
Code addressing animal abuse requires low burden of proof 10/16/2006
Animal abuse linked to serial killings, needs to be addressed 10/16/2006
Gallegos says he will not file felony in Bugenig horse case 10/21/2006
If Lucky had been seized, perhaps he would have survived 10/23/2006
Original owner of Mad River dogs released from prison 11/1/2006
Malcolm attorney requests charges be dropped 12/13/2006
Defendant in Mad River dogs case accepts plea deal 8/20/2007

Seeking more outside funding

This is Ken Miller seeking outside funding to support the lawsuit he helped draft and force through.

You should know that Ken Miller is listed as co-founder of BACH (Bay Area Coalition for Headwaters).
His other groups include Salmon Forever and Humboldt Watershed Council. Like Shellenberger, he cross-pollinates his groups, attempting to imply the widespread support of a "growing" coalition.

The same Ken Miller who professed to be stunned when Gallegos and Stoen announced the filing of the PL lawsuit, and who was later revealed to be in Stoen's office helping draft the suit.

***

Google search:
Challenge to Pacific Lumber's recall campaign needs support
... This alert was originally sent by Ken Miller, who is with the Humboldt Watershed
Council and Salmon Forever on the north coast. ...
www.headwaterspreserve.org/html/updates_update_3.html - 19k - Cached - Similar pages
[ More results from www.headwaterspreserve.org ]

SEE THE FIRST COMMENT ON THIS POST FOR THE FULL TEXT.

Michael Shellenberger and EPIC

http://www.infoshop.org/news/pepper1.html (since pulled down)

a press release issued by
EPIC * Environmental Protection Information Center, Inc.
POB 397, Garberville, CA 95542 * 707-923-2931 * FAX 707-923-4210
http://www.igc.org/epic/

Contacts: EPIC, Cecelia Lanman (707) 923-2931
Communication Works, Michael Shellenberger  (415) 255-1946

SEE FIRST COMMENT ON THIS POST FOR FULL TEXT

Michael Shellenberger and Ken Miller

Press Releases /

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
January 21, 2003

For more information, please contact:
Michael Shellenberger, Salmon Forever, 510-525-9900
Ken Miller, Humboldt Watershed Council, 707-839-7444
Jesse Noell, Salmon Forever, 707-443-7433
Cynthia Elkins, EPIC, 707-923-2931

SEE FIRST COMMENT ON THIS POST FOR FULL TEXT

"We publicized civil disobedience and lock-downs..."

Words can sometimes be innocuous. "We publicized civil disobedience and lock-downs..." doesn't sound like much does it?

When I first saw the Pepper Spray incident, I had the TV sound off, and I thought I was watching something from some third world country, until the phrase "Humboldt County" popped up on the screen. I was horrified, along with many others. Those were just idealistic young kids, and that should never have happened, I believed.

I had a conversation with a friend in the news business who had seen the entire video, not just the few seconds that were broadcast around the world. The comment made was that you would not believe how considerate the officers were, and how many times they gave the protestors the chance to unlock themsleves. And that this was all planned, you know. There had been a previous incident in which pepper-spray had been swabbed onto protestors eyes that had not gotten much publicity. That this time, they had gone in to provoke an incident, in the Congressman's office. That it was a planned PR move.

I was unimpressed at the time, adamant in my indignation over what had been done to the kids.

But when I read the self promotional piece below in which the activist PR firm takes credit for publicizing civil disobedience and lockdowns, I knew in an instant that my friend was right. And that we have all been played. Our goodwill has been abused and used.

Worse, those young kids were sent in there to have Pepper Spray applied to their eyes. Activists scream about the torture to this day.

But in my opinion, sending those kids in there is only one step away from strapping suicide vests on them and sending them out to blow themselves up. Using the idealistic youth as pawns in order to gain advantage is unforgivable.

That is the other side of the much publicized Pepper Spray incident. And it is part of this decade long effort to "get" one company, Palco.

That's my opinion. You can draw your own conclusions.

***

"Once the deal was struck, however, our work was far from over." 
An excerpt from Fenton Communications Website:
http://www.fenton.com/casestudies/headwaters.asp (since pulled down)

"We built a communications strategy around two key elements: consensus for protecting 60,000 acres of old-growth and casting the redwood conflict as a battle against corporate greed, embodied by Charles Hurwitz, the lumber baron and CEO of Maxxam Corporation, which owned Headwaters.

For the next two years, Fenton provided media strategy and outreach on a broad range of initiatives to mobilize public support and pressure Hurwitz and policy makers to protect the forest. We went beyond the usual suspects - environmentalists - to build influential and newsworthy alliances with religious leaders, local residents, small business leaders, and celebrities such as Woody Harrelson and Bonnie Raitt.

We publicized civil disobedience and lock-downs, lawsuits and high-level government meetings. We drew on the expertise of the state's top scientists, and leveraged the support of law makers to lend credibility and political traction to the cause. As the drama escalated, so did the media coverage, spreading beyond California to the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Business Week, and all the major national TV networks.

In 1998, feeling the heat on their necks, government officials brokered a $380 million deal with Hurwitz to buy the crown jewel of the forest, the 7,500-acre Headwaters Grove.

Once the deal was struck, however, our work was far from over. Part of the agreement involved the Orwellian-titled "habitat conservation plan", which gave Maxxam the green light to log much of the company's remaining 200,0000 acres."


Michael Shellenberger
Communication Works (founder)
(http://www.communicationworks.org/who.shtml) (since pulled down)
Michael Shellenberger, Executive Director

"As a media consultant and strategist, Michael has been instrumental in shaping public opinion on a range of issues, including forest protection, sweatshops, gay rights and the drug war. In 1996 Michael co-founded Communication Works, which is today the largest public interest PR firm on the West Coast.

As the lead media consultant behind the Headwaters Forest Coalition's struggle to save the world's last old-growth redwoods still in private hands, Michael helped focus the message and maintain the onslaught of public pressure that led to stronger protections for California's ancient trees...."


then Shellenberger joined
Fenton Communications (Western Division Director)

then became:
Lumina Strategies
http://www.luminastrategies.com/whoweare.html
Michael Shellenberger
Co-Founder and President

and that is not all.

WHO WAS BEHIND THE PL LAWSUIT?

So who were these people Salzman couldn't call off? He said there were five of them working on it every day. Who were they.

If you assume Richard Salzman, Paul Gallegos and Tim Stoen make up three, was it fair to assume that this Michael Shellenberger was number four?

And why is someone from Sacramento involved in starting the so-called "Alliance for Ethical Business" to protect the PL lawsuit Stoen had announced he would be filing?

Who was Michael Shellenberger?

A quick google search revealed a rather powerful public relations activist who had been involved in the activist side of the Headwaters saga, on the ground in Humboldt County on and off since 1997, with links to Earth First, Salmon Forever, and Ken Miller.

Bragging about pressuring public officials and swaying public opinion in the Headwaters Deal. how they had successfully portrayed Hurwitz as the "robber baron," how they had "publicized lockdowns" and how, once the Headwaters Deal was finalized, their "work was far from over."

Largely behind the scenes during the Recall, once the Recall failed, Shellenberger wrote a self congratulatory piece, in which he claimed that he had been hired by Richard Salzman, and that he had moved himself and his family up here for the final weeks of the Recall campaign.

If he had in fact been hired by Salzman, it means Richard had a lot of money up front in this deal. How much money did the so-called "Alliance for Ethical Business" have, where did it come from, who put it up, and how was it utilized?

Since Shellenberger was involved from the inception, I find it unlikely that he was hired by Salzman.

So many questions that needed answering. So many questions remain unanswered today.

But it is fair to conclude that this was no simple lawsuit. Paul Gallegos had not "discovered evidence of fraud" and simply decided to file charges. there was much more to it than that.

This is a highly complex and highly politically charged story.... It involves fraud and corruption, it involves powerful alliances, the environmental activist community, plots to stack the county's power structure with sympathizers, and deception of the highest degree. It involves the use of easy rhetoric to deflect any attention to what is going on - and, most importantly it showcases what appears to be the extreme arm of the environmental community's powerful new weapon - the court system, in the form of the newly elected District Attorney of Humboldt County.

It appeared to be the culmination of a decade long effort to get Palco.

And I quote:

“Tim’s a stud,” he said. “He really is; anyone would be stoked to have him.”
District Attorney Paul Gallegos

1/29/04
http://archives.eurekareporter.com/archive/fp-01290401.htm
by Christine Bensen
The Eureka Reporter

Signing away his kid

I, Timothy Oliver Stoen, hereby acknowledge that in April 1971 , I entreated my beloved pastor, James W Jones to sire a child by my wife, Grace Lucy (Grech) Stoen, who had previously at my insistence, reluctantly but graciously consented thereto. James W Jones agreed to do so, reluctantly, after I explained that I very much wished to raise a child but was unable, after extensive attempts to sire one myself. my reason for requesting James W Jones to do this is that I wanted my child to be fathered, if not by me, by the most compassionate, honest, and courageous human beings the world contains.

The child, John Victor Stoen, was born on January 25 1972. I am privileged beyond words to have the responsibility for caring for him and I undertake this task humbly with steadfast hope that said child will become a devoted follower of Jesus Christ and be instrumental in bringing God's Kingdom here on Earth, as has been his wonderful natural father.

I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct. May 1976

___
one link: http://invisible.gq.nu/jonestown.html
Also included in the books
---

Stoen's "Diversions Department" AKA "the Dirty Tricks Department" - plots to murder Les Kinsolving and poison the water supply of Washington DC

For people who would like to know more about Tim Stoen, there are many books written about Jonestown. They all have pieces of the story, which, when put together, give you a clearer picture of Tim Stoen's role as second-in-command-right-hand-man to Jim Jones in the People's Temple.

A recent North Coast Journal cover story on Tim Stoen asserted that there was a whisper campaign against Stoen, and that the "whisper campaign" only tells half the story "at best." The reader is left to assume that that half is negative, with the implication that it is, therefore, untrue.

As Stoen has come through the years, the stories about him become more and more sanitized.  His past has been reduced to one journalistic line ... "Tim Stoen, right-hand-man, second-in-command, legal advisor to Jim Jones." Some shorten it to say that Stoen has a "colorful" past.

The Journal article states that Stoen was the Attorney of Record and the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the People's Temple. Very benign titles. There is much more to it than that.

In "The Strongest Poison," author Mark Lane writes that "Timothy Stoen was later to recount in magnificent detail - - how he had been taken in by Jones. Since many others also had been, Stoen's exposition rang with the feeling of truth..."

Stoen, in fact "... was the closest, the most loyal, the most "in" - strategizer, planner, executor, mastermind of every facet of the church's legal affairs. ..." In essence, Tim Stoen was a partner to Jim Jones. The fiery breakup of this partnership ended up costing 910 people their lives. Some 287  of them were children.

The Journal article quoted Stoen as not knowing of incidents of child abuse, beatings and torture. "Grace told Tim stories that she had learned as the Temple's chief social counselor - stories of physical abuse at the hand of Jones. Stoen hadn't known things had gone that far, he says."  

The record clearly indicates Stoen was aware of incidents of child abuse, beatings and torture. Stoen was the highest ranking member of "The Staff" and the "The Planning Commission" - the upper echelon governing bodies of the People's Temple, where the most egregious offenses, the most startling forms of mental, physical and sexual abuse took place.

Read the previous post It's not Family fare for some of details about the child abuse that occurred.

Beatings took place in "Planning Commission" Meetings. "The beatings were intensely brutal. … Many times the beatings would be done on children four and five years old. … ...beaten the number of times decided by Pastor Jones, often as many as 150 times. ...Jones would demand that a microphone be held to the child's mouth so that the audience could hear the groans of pain. ....:

"Following such beatings and punishments, the TEMPLE'S ATTORNEY (emphasis added) secured protective legal documents, notarized parental releases and "requests" for punishment."

As mentioned, in Jonestown, "Big Foot" replaced "the Blue-Eyed Monster." Ordinary childhood antics and mischief resulted in a trip down a dark path, each child firmly escorted by camp enforcers, to where Jones waited at the side of a water well. White with fear, the children were hoisted and dropped by rope into the water. Other members waited in the blackness of the well, coached by Jones to seize the children and drag them underwater. In the darkness, cut off from parents and any possibility of help, the children paid for naughtiness, dunked again and again.... ...Their terrified screams often reverberated through Jonestown, then faded into the lush, silent jungle."

Stoen. living in Jonestown, could not have been ignorant of this.  Yet  Stoen says "the weeks he spent in Guyana were the happiest of his life."

Whether one wants to believe he was a victim or not, consider this: When Stoen defected all charges and investigations against him were dropped. When he fought Jones' it was for custody of 'his' son, not to save others.

Worse, over the years he aided and abetted Jones in his actions, facilitated the ever escalating cruelty and helped perpetrate the cover-ups, arranging notarized "permission" and after the fact "requests" from parents to beat the children, securing and storing coerced incriminating statements from all followers, designed to keep them in line, and intended to be used against them in the event they "defected."

Reports of criminal activity on the part of the People's Temple were thwarted at every turn by Tim Stoen. His duplicitous role as Temple official and Assistant District Attorney for Mendocino Counties and San Francisco is a matter of record.

But it is Stoen's pivotal role as the head of "The Diversions Department" - also known as "The Dirty Tricks Department." that is most interesting - and most relevant today. Described in varying degrees in all the books, the primary purpose of "the Diversions Department" was to "ensure that the Temple's secrets be kept." This was accomplished through various methods "starting with anonymous threatening phone calls and unsettling letters ..." intended to terrorize potential defectors. "The Diversions Department's" efforts to deflect public scrutiny were intended to manipulate and pressure the media and public officials, first through phone calls and carefully orchestrated letter writing campaigns - given stacks of different kinds of paper and stationery, ink pens in various colors, and typewriters that had been picked up at thrift stores, Temple Members were instructed to write a barrage of letters to be sent to public officials in order to sway their opinion. They used names chosen from phone books from all over the country, varied the message slightly so that they would appear to be from the population at large, and destroyed the typewriters afterwards so that no links would remain. (Many of the books recount these activities, some by people who were part of the letter writing campaign)

"The Dirty Tricks Department" was completely under Stoen's control and operated autonomously, without having to get approval from Jones for its activities. (pg 257 "The Strongest Poison" also detailed in other books) At a meeting in August of 1973 (four years before the Massacre) Stoen opened a meeting of "the Diversions Department" by stating that the result of the meeting should not be reported to "Jim" (Jones). He said that it was his opinion that Jim should not be present at the meetings for tactical planning because Jim was vital to the leadership of the organization and if anything were to go wrong. "We want to be able to say we were acting independently and Jim had not been advised of our actions." Stoen said the group should come up with some contingency plans. The first contingency to be considered, he said, was what the reaction should be if Jim was killed. Stoen then wrote on a piece of paper a "hit list" comprised of Temple defectors and critics that "should be made to pay if anything happens to Jim." On that list was the name of Lester Kinsolving, a man who had written a series of articles critical of the Temple. Stoen then suggested that a kidnap list be compiled. He thought, he said, that if Jim were arrested, political figures should be punished by being kidnapped, not killed.... ....The kidnapped officials were to be held hostage until Jones was released... ... Stoen then assigned a task to each of the members present: "Before the next meeting, come up with the names of likely people to kidnap." ... Stoen then proposed a program for "simultaneous political action" in which some members of the Temple would perform "political activities," while the church as a whole moved forward with its regular program. The "political activities" Stoen suggested included the establishment of a bomb factory and poisoning the water supply of Washington, D.C., and that someone should take on the responsibility of researching the kind of poison that could effectively be used for that purpose. ..." The record shows that Stoen used the District Attorney's office to research the kinds of poison that could be used, and the survivor's books claim it was Stoen who introduced the idea of mass suicide by poison, and Stoen who "found us Guyana."

Recent activities surrounding Stoen's controversial lawsuit against PL  - the extensive spate of letters to the editor supporting  the lawsuit and Gallegos, fund-raising activities designed to raise money for an extensive lobbying campaign designed to pressure the Board of Supervisors - all bear a striking resemblance to the practices of the People's Temple's "Dirty Tricks Department".

The record shows that Tim Stoen is an expert at taking money through legal means - the People's Temple after all, took people's property, pensions, inheritances, alimony, child support, welfare and social security checks - even foster care payments. All legally. All in the name of a cause.

This is the man Paul Gallegos hired to fill one of the County's top law enforcement positions.

People have a right to know how far he will go in the name of a cause, since in Humboldt County, he appeared to have taken up the banner of the radical and extreme arm of the environmental community. And, as that faction has come to use the court system as a weapon, Stoen's position, talents and inclinations were of particular value to them!

Tim Stoen hasn't changed. He has just found a new cause.

*******
Note: Tim Stoen responded to what I have written here when a portion of this appeared in the McKinleyville Press, saying that it was all just "fantastical imaginings," that none of it was true. He has tried to imply that he was nothing more than a pro-bono attorney for the "church."

Indeed.

Do your own research.
(all passages in quotes above are direct quotes from the books.)

********

READ THE BOOKS!

There is SO much more to the story.  READ THE BOOKS! They are readily available at amazon. I bought and read them all. I warn you, it is like descending into hell to read these books. What those people endured is truly disturbing.

The reporters accounts:

"Guyana Massacre, the Eyewitness Account" by Charles Krause of the Washington Post. He was on the airstrip the day of the shootings.

"The Suicide Cult - The Inside Story of the People's Temple Sect and the Massacre in Guyana" by Marshall Kilduff and Ron Javers, Staff Correspondents of the San Francisco Chronicle

"Raven" by Tim Reiterman who currently works for the LA Times.

"White Night" by John Peer Nugent

The Survivor's Accounts:

"Six Years With God" by Jeannie Mills

"Seductive Poison" by Deborah Layton

"Snake Dance - : Unravelling the
Mysteries of Jonestown" by Laurie Efrien Kahalas  http://www.jonestown.com

"The Strongest Poison" Mark Lane (Chapter 18 is titled "Timothy Stoen", 55 pages)

Other accounts:

"The Children of Jonestown" by Kenneth Wooden

Or type the name "Tim Stoen" in on a websearch. You will be amazed at what you find.

***
I do warn you however, that they are very disturbing, and reading them is like descending into Hell.
(all passages in quotes above are direct quotes from the books.)

UPDATE: I strongly recommend http://www.jonestownapologistsalert.blogspot.com/
Tom Kinsolving has posted his father, Les Kinsolving's 1972 People's Temple Exposes on his blog... Kinsolving was the religion reporter for the San Francisco Examiner back then. I haven't found them anywhere else on the net. Tim Stoen is front and center, with details of his machinations and bizarre behavior.
PBS & Director Nelson Claim Jim Jones Cult's Ukiah Years Filled With "Social Advocacy"--While Covering Up Reported Killing & Terror
Illegal Marriages, Welfare Fraud, and More Phony Faith Healings--3rd 1972 People's Temple Expose
Jim Jones 1972 "God Almighty!" Spectacle--and a Monday Morning Quarterback Reporter's Desperate Derision
"Raising The Dead"?....Gun-toting "Guardians"? Ignored Warnings of a Murderous Cult--6 Years Before Jonestown

What happened to Paul Gallegos in the 9 months between when he won the election and when he took office?

Saving the ancient redwoods is an honorable cause, tree-sitters engender a certain degree of grudging respect for their youthful idealism. At least in the beginning. Now, just as the hippies became the establishment they had so despised, so these guys have now become everything they once railed against. There is now corruption and deception, and powerful forces at play. And the idealistic youth became the cannon fodder.

The best way to save the redwoods is to buy the property, and control its fate. That was the beauty of the Headwaters Agreement. Though there were many compromises, there was final agreement.

Lawsuits against the timber companies are a staple story here, it seemed there was another one every other week, and no one paid much attention (including me). Everyone knew what it is about, trying to find the chink in the armor, trying to find the one little thing that can bring logging to a screeching halt.

Apparently Tim Stoen's case was a major achievement for the environmental movement because it is the first time the suit comes from within the court system, filed by the DA's office.

Gallegos' PR machine claimed the gallant young surfer had "discovered" evidence of fraud within his first couple of months in office - and filed the lawsuit because 'no one is above the law.'

Truth was, that lawsuit had been sitting in a box for years, apparently because it had been determined that there wasn't enough there - and because the very agencies needed to pursue the case were honor bound to defend PL under the terms of the Headwaters agreement. The statute of limitations was about to run out.

As the State agencies tried to explain to Stoen why his case had no merit and why they would not be helping him, they found they became the enemy. (See North Coast Journal article, the Lawsuit that never was)

During the Recall campaign, which eventually took place, e-mails were leaked from the D.A.'s office that revealed that Ken Miller, a long-standing PL critic had been in the office drafting or helping draft the suit.

************

ODD BEHAVIOR:

The circumstances surrounding the filing of the case are interesting... Stoen launched a curious "public relations" campaign, trying to sell the merits of his case, in essence try his case in public, taking his dog-and-pony show to the Bar Association, the Rotary Clubs, the City Councils, and various small community groups... This all occurred following the announcement of his intent to file the case, but the case had actually not been filed, and it had yet even had a chance to pass demurrer.

Why was he doing this? Why was Salzman so intent on protecting this case?

When he chose to ask the Board Of Supervisors for funds to cover the costs of hiring Cotchett's Bay Area Firm to help prosecute the case, he was turned down. The media jumped to the conclusion that the Board was pressured (by Palco) to deny him. Since everyone hates Palco, the story was believable. The easy rhetoric wins the day.

But it was not true.

In fact, the pressure being exerted on the Board appeared to be coming from Stoen.

What happened to Paul Gallegos in the 9 months between when he won the election and when he took office?

Who convinced him to take up this lawsuit as his first order of business?

And why was this case such a big deal?

SALZMAN SOLICITING MONEY

An example of "Viral Email":

http://www.ratical.org/corporations/PaulGallegos.html
(this link is still good as of 8/16/06)

From: Paul Cienfuegos
Date: Friday, May 02, 2003 12:28 PM
Subject: Humboldt County (California) urgently needs your help

Dear friends across the United States, from the people of Humboldt County struggling against Maxxam Corporation,

         As many of you probably already know, we have a world-famous case here of corporate fraud and environmental destruction caused by Maxxam Corporation, which is headquartered in Texas (CEO: Charles Hurwitz) and is chartered in Delaware. In November of 2000, in an upset election that toppled the good-old-boy power structure here, a dissident District Attorney was elected by the people of our county to replace a D.A. who had been looking the other way for years as Maxxam Corp violated the law literally hundreds of times. Just weeks after taking office, Paul Gallegos stunned everyone by filing a major fraud lawsuit against the corporation. That event set off a firestorm across California's north coast. And because Maxxam still runs the county politically, its allies have responded by quickly organizing a recall campaign to oust our new D.A. as quickly as possible before he shakes things up too badly.

         The reason that I'm writing to all of you is that we urgently need your help here to defend our new D.A. from the recall campaign while simultaneously supporting his bold move to sue Maxxam for fraud.

         Below, you will find a brief note from Richard Salzman who is coordinating the local campaign to support the D.A. and his historic lawsuit. Justice will not be served in this county unless we can raise substantial amounts of money to at least try to match what the corporation's supporters are already raising in their already vicious media campaign against Gallegos. Thus I am asking you to consider making a generous donation toward this cause.

         Also below, you'll be able to read an Op-Ed written by our D.A. in our local daily last week, followed by two major articles about the issue from the Los Angeles Times and the Daily Journal .

Please respond not to me, but to Richard Salzman.

Thanks in advance,
Paul Cienfuegos
Arcata, CA
Co-director, Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County

A note from Richard Salzman to our supporters across the nation

Last year the residents of Humboldt county, on California's redwood coast, elected Paul Gallegos, a man of the people, not beholden to any special interest as District Attorney in an upset victory against the incumbent DA of 20 years, best known for his authorization of the use of pepper spray as a pain compliance technique on non-violent protesters. Eight weeks after taking office and one day before the four year statue of limitations ran out, he filed a lawsuit alleging fraud against Maxxam corporation's wholly owned subsidiary Pacific Lumber. Pacific Lumber's apologists have now launched a recall of the district attorney in hopes of removing him from office in order to avoid answering these charges in a court of law.

This is clearly a David and Goliath story when viewed from the national stage. A community faced with having exercised true democracy now being subverted in the most overt manner by an out-of-state corporation using all the worst tactics of instilling fear in their workers and promoting hate-mongering against any who dare oppose them. We will need the support of concerned citizens from throughout the country if we are to keep Maxxam from buying this election.  We have invested all we have on producing a series of nine commercials which we are now putting into rotation.

In order to buy the air time to run the whole series, we will need to raise some $30,000 (what their campaign had already raised by the time they served Paul the notice of recall) over the next few weeks/months. In addition to financial support we are asking voters around the country to write to their representatives as well as to ours, urging their support of our beleaguered DA. We need elected officials nationwide to speak up in outrage over this attempt to circumvent justice and buy an election. This story has been covered in both the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times as well as the San Francisco Chronicle and papers in DC and elsewhere. We encourage people to speak out wherever they live in opposition to this attempt to circumvent justice.

Yours in solidarity,

Thanks for your support.
Richard Salzman - coordinator
Alliance for Ethical Business
po box 387
Eureka Ca 95502
707.845.3700
aeb@inreach.com

"The Alliance for Ethical Business is a citizens group working to ensure that corporate fraud and illegal business practices are prosecuted in a court of law."

***

MY WORD
All people are equal under the law
by Paul Gallegos
27 April 2003
Eureka Times-Standard


To the people of Humboldt County:

One of the primary goals of our society is to realize the unfulfilled promise that all people are equal before the law. I was elected district attorney by the people of Humboldt County because they share my commitment to fulfilling this promise.

Shortly after taking office we became aware that Pacific Lumber Co. may have engaged in fraudulent conduct. We had a duty to investigate the matter and did. As a result of that investigation and the evidence we uncovered, we filed a lawsuit against them.

Because it is a matter which will be resolved in court, I do not wish to discuss the details of it here. Nor will I engage in a discussion about the possible outcomes. As with all court cases, the pleadings which have been filed are public records and are available for public inspection. For convenience we have placed a copy of the complaint and other documents of public interest at our web page at http://www.co.humboldt.ca.us/distatty/.

However, I would like to explain what this case is not about. It is not about whether Pacific Lumber Co. is being properly regulated by the government. Nor is it about forestry and water laws. It is not an attempt to put any company out of business or to end logging. Clearly the wealth of our county is tied to the wealth of our people. Rather, it is about fraud and, ultimately, whether our laws apply to all or just some of us.

It has been suggested that we should not have filed this case against the biggest business in Humboldt County. This suggestion is troubling and perplexing, as it implies that we either do or should have different rules for people based on their wealth or political power. Clearly, this cannot be.

Nobody is above the law. This fundamental principle was at the heart of the American Revolution more than 200 years ago. As American citizens, we are not bound by race or religion but by the beliefs enshrined in our Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. I know we all share these beliefs and a commitment to their fulfillment. I also know that it is our individual conduct that gives meaning to these beliefs and that they will only be realized by our commitment to fulfilling them.

Some people say that our suit against Pacific Lumber defined me. My response is that it has not defined me, it is defining US. We are all in this together. It is a painful process. But we will come through it together and be better for it because all people will know that in Humboldt County all people are equal under the law and no one, not even the most rich or most powerful, gets preferential treatment.

As your DA, I know where I stand. It is where I have always stood: for equal treatment before the law. As readers of this paper know, I wasn't the candidate predicted to win the election. I didn't have nearly as much money as my opponent. I wasn't well-connected. I had never before run for public office. However, I won because the people of Humboldt County elected me. They elected me for the very change that some seek to prevent.

I am honored and privileged to have the responsibility of serving the people of Humboldt County. I am honored and privileged to have the opportunity to work with the people at this office, who work tirelessly to serve this community. I know that I can comfortably speak for all of them when I say that we feel fortunate to have the opportunity to work for you.

Thank you.

Paul Gallegos was elected district attorney in March 2002 and took office in January. He lives in Eureka.

***
Update: And his suit against PL didn't even pass demurrer. That is to say, it was found to be without merit and not worthy of going to trial. In the meantime, the Humboldt County District Attorney's Office is in disarray, Gallegos has been the subject of a scathing Grand Jury Report, he has lost all but three of the veteran Prosecutors he inherited, and he has been unable to replace them. Some of his new hires leave after a matter of weeks, one lasted only a few days. He has lost his secretary, his office manager, and three of his investigators. His relationship with law enforcement is so bad that every single law enforcement group in the County endorsed his opponent in the last election. He has been caught plagiarizing his Op-Eds in the local paper - and that is just the beginning of the legacy Paul Gallegos will be leaving in Humboldt County. All the national publicity he got as a result of the services of a fancy out of town PR man won't change that.

And if you read that viral email above and are moved to send money, you should be asking where that money is going.

Is Stoen's past relevant?

Is Stoen's past relevant?

Isn't that just character assassination?

Wasn't he just a young college student who made some mistakes in his early years, for which he will pay for the rest of his life?

Shouldn't we be sympathetic to him, feel sorry for him, maybe even look up to him for what he has been through?

"Paul (Gallegos) can't trust anyone in that office except Tim."

"Paul can't trust anyone in that office except Tim."

So, let's learn more about Tim Stoen.

IT’S NOT FAMILY FARE...

Imagine yourself in Church. The Pastor speaks.

“You know how far I have told you to go and don’t go any further than that. You can sleep with her but do not fuck her. Tell her that you don’t believe in it, or that you are homosexual or something, but do not fuck her.” He is speaking to “Mark”. He continues: “Some people in here are wondering why I trust you with these sex assignments so I think you should tell about the time you asked me to fuck you.”

Mark’s dutiful reply (anything less would result in punishment): “I know that your teachings are that I am a homosexual. I appreciated your fucking me because I knew I needed it. I found the experience to be both physically and mentally painful. I know that the pain was an indication of how much I needed to be fucked. I am taking your advice and using a vibrator up my ass so that I can learn to enjoy it. Thank you for helping me realize what I really am.” Mark had said all the right words, wording his answer cautiously,

WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WOULD STAY ANOTHER DAY IN THAT CHURCH?

In another incident, the Pastor forces a man to perform oral sex on a woman who is on her period - in front of the group.

WHO WOULD STAY ANOTHER MINUTE IN THAT CHURCH?

In yet another incident the Pastor tells about the women he is “fucking to keep them in the Cause.” But now he was being “forced” to perform the same service for some of the men. He referred to Eric as “The Noxema Kid” “When Eric asked me to fuck him, he said he always uses Noxema, and I believed him,” he said, laughing in spite of Eric’s blushing mortification. “As soon as we used it, we both knew it was a mistake.” Even in this act, he had to make himself look good. “As Eric was crying in pain from the burning Noxema on his rectum, I got a cloth and helped him wash it off. I didn’t even take the time to clean myself up, although I was also in pain.”

SHOCKED? These were regular occurrences in the meetings of the People’s Temple’s inner circle, known as “The Planning Commission.”

Long before this, Jim Jones had announced to his followers that John Victor Stoen, the then one-year old child of the People’s Temple head attorney, Tim Stoen and his wife, Grace was really his child. That Grace had not taken to the work very well, having come into the church only out of marriage to Tim. She was having marital problems and threatened to leave the Church, and slander Tim (the reason left vague, though some accounts say Grace was unhappy about Stoen’s transvestite tendencies. Jim had to prevent her from bolting, so he seduced her “to protect us.”

Meanwhile (again left vague), Jim had also gone to bed with (fucked) TIM. He said men needed this, too.

WOULD YOU STAY IN THAT CHURCH?

Tim Stoen did. And what makes Tim Stoen different than the others caught up in this story is that for 10 years he aided and abetted Jones as the mind-bending violence, rape and torture escalated. For 10 years. Tim Stoen. Second-in-command-right-hand-man-attorney to the People’s Temple. Head of the “Diversion’s Department” or “Dirty Tricks Department” of the People’s Temple. 

Educated man. Former Assistant District Attorney in Mendocino County, Former Assistant District Attorney in San Francisco, both WHILE he was with Jim Jones, more recently former Assistant District Attorney in Mendocino County, former candidate for State Assembly, most recently the Assistant District Attorney for Humboldt County.

OVER THE YEARS, TIM STOEN PROVED THAT HE WOULD DO ANYTHING FOR THE CAUSE.    

Most people take their kids to Church to foster a sense of community and morality, to teach them right from wrong.

In the Catholic Church, members are expected to unload their guilty consciences in the Confession Booth. The penalties exacted for sins committed and confessed are penitent recitations of Biblical verses - the proverbial “10 Hail Mary’s.”

In the People’s Temple, members were expected to confess their “sins” publicly at every turn, and if they had none to confess, they had to make them up. They were required to sign “confessions” - bizarre notarized affidavits, some of those blank, which could be filled in by Temple higher-ups at a later date. These were held to prevent any members from defecting for fear it would be used against them

Then, at best, they were subjected to humiliation and excoriation in sessions known as “catharsis” in the “Planning Commission Meetings.”

At worst, they were beaten… Most of the beatings took place in Planning Commission Meetings. "The beatings were intensely brutal. They used large people such as Jack beam and Ruby Carroll, both of whom weigh 200 pounds. Many times the beatings would be done on children four and five years old. The board they used ("The Board of Education") was three quarters of an inch thick and about two and a half feet long. Children were beaten the number of times decided by Pastor Jones, often as many as 150 times. During the beating, Jim Jones would demand that a microphone be held to the child's mouth so that the audience could hear the groans of pain. A microphone was unnecessary as the screams could be heard throughout the entire building.: (Al and Jeannie Mills sworn statement, Oct 18, 1976 - As Temple Attorney, Stoen was surely aware of that.)

In another "Planning Commission" Meeting in 1976, a man accused of molesting a young boy was beaten. Mills recounts: "While the boy, Searcy, was forced to watch, Peter was stripped naked and beaten with a board all over his body. His penis was banged until it drained blood. The nurse had to catheterize him, and a stream of blood and urine poured out. When the beating ended, all the P.C. Members had to walk past Peter, one by one, to see his bruised and bleeding body."

Telling on others became a means of self defense, self protection and advancement.

Special punishment was reserved for children. Jeannie Mills describes "The Blue-Eyed Monster" as related by a 5 year old - kindergarten age girl who had come back into her care..."I got in trouble in the church because I lied, and Father (Jones) said I'd have to go to the Blue-Eyed Monster. Then they took me in this dark room, and the monsters were all over the room. They said, "I am the Blue-Eyed Monster and I'm going to get you." Then a monster grabbed my shirt and tore it open. You remember, Mommy, that shirt I had in my suitcase when I came here, with the big tear in front? That's the shirt the Blue-Eyed Monster tore open." ... "Then all of a sudden the monsters started to say, "I'm going to get you again" and then one hit me right here," she said pointing to her chest. "Then it felt like a knife was going right down to my back, and my body started to shake back and forth like this." ... "Then my teeth were tied together so I couldn't open them." ... "I couldn't believe it - it hurted so bad." A five year old child.

In other books you learn that the little girl is describing a darkened room filled with adults armed with cattle prods (thus the BLUE electric light). They zapped the child with the cattle prods, the impact of the electrical current locked the child's teeth together as they were propelled across the room to be hit yet again.

Jeannie Mills describes this and other abuses and notes that, "Following such beatings and punishments, the Temple’s Attorney secured protective legal documents, notarized parental releases and “requests” for punishment. "

"The Temple's Attorney." "The Lawyer."

In Jonestown, the sadistic torture evolved:

Adults who were punished spent up to a week in “the ”box” - a wooden prison 3x3x6 feet... For Children, “Big Foot” awaited.” replacing "the Blue-Eyed Monster."

“Ordinary childhood antics and mischief resulted in a trip down a dark path, each child firmly escorted by camp enforcers, to where Jones waited at the side of a water well. White with fear, the children were hoisted and dropped by rope into the water. Other members waited in the blackness of the well, coached by Jones to seize the children and drag them underwater. In the darkness, cut off from parents and any possibility of help, the children paid for naughtiness, dunked again and again....
...Their terrified screams often reverberated through Jonestown, then faded into the lush, silent jungle.” ("The Suicide Cult," also mentioned in "Seductive Poison.

“Stoen was our head attorney. Any risk ever taken was cleared through him. The one who made sure that our legal department (you know, the legal department files complete with 'blank signed papers' and 'self-incriminating affidavits' and 'irregular notarizations' was all shipshape... ... it was Stoen who authored many of the transgressions of the law, as often as not, autonomously!.)"

Some 287 children died in the Jonestown massacre. Many were wards of the State of California who had been turned over to Jim Jones and other Temple members by California judges. All the paperwork was in order. All the i’s dotted and t’s crossed. All arranged by the Temple's lawyer. All in order to bring more money flowing into the Church's coffers.

Considering the physical and psychological torture the children of the People’s Temple endured - one could argue that they were lucky to have died.

And that's not all.

Note: Everything in quotes comes from the books on People's Temple. For those who would say I have selected the most salacious passages from the various books on People's Temple, you would be correct, for the purposes of this post. But reading those books is like descending into Hell, and these passages only reflect a numbing series of daily practices that went into the mindset of the people who ultimately ended up dead in Guyana.

Paul Gallegos hired him to be his Assistant District Attorney, said Tim was a "stud" - that anyone would be "stoked" to have him. And these are not the most disturbing passages.

A funny resemblance

What does a good-looking, naive, young, idealistic, charismatic D.A. in Humboldt County have in common with a good-looking, naive, young, idealistic, charismatic preacher named Jim Jones?

Tim Stoen.

So, was I right about Stoen? What was his role in People's Temple? And how did it compare to what he was all of a sudden doing here?

More questions that had to be answered

So, who is this Michael Shellenberger guy?

Who is this Michael Shellenberger guy who lives in Sacramento (actually its El Cerrito) and is working with Richard Salzman to form the Alliance for Ethical Business? And what does he care about this new D.A., Paul Gallegos? HOw is he involved with Tim Stoen? Is he involved with Earth First?

What's going on?

Why is Ken Miller posturing? Is he involved in all this?

These are some of the questions I was asking after talking with Richard.

What did he mean when he said it was bigger than I could possibly imagine?

bits and pieces -

Press Releases:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
January 21, 2003

For more information, please contact:
Michael Shellenberger, Salmon Forever, 510-525-9900
Ken Miller, Humboldt Watershed Council, 707-839-7444
Jesse Noell, Salmon Forever, 707-443-7433
Cynthia Elkins, EPIC, 707-923-2931

Groups Demand Water Board Curtail Excessive Logging
Independent Scientific Panel Says Pacific Lumber Logging Will Prevent Recovery of Five North Coast Watersheds
Eureka, CA -- The North Coast Regional Water Quality Board will decide whether or not to take actions to reduce Pacific Lumber Company's rate of logging in five watersheds at a meeting on January 23. The public hearing comes on the heels of a strong report by an independent science panel, which unanimously recommended an immediate reduction in the rate of logging to ensure recovery of the sediment-impaired watersheds.

The Panel scientists wrote that "it is essential that corrective actions be started soon and not be postponed awaiting research and monitoring that will take place over a period of years."

"If the Water Board hopes to salvage any of the credibility it has lost with the public, scientists and local residents, it must slow down the logging that's causing flooding and landslides," said Dr. Ken Miller, an emergency room physician and a Director of the Humboldt Watershed Council, an association of local residents, some of whom have been flooded out of their homes because of sediment build-up in stream channels from Pacific Lumber's logging.

"PL's logging threatens to permanently destroy some of California's most ecologically and economically important watersheds," Dr. Miller added. "Humboldt County is seeking over $5million in emergency disaster relief due to recent storm damages to property, roads, bridges, and sedimentation of Humboldt Bay. Much of that damage is attributable to PL's excessive rate of logging."

California water law says that when water quality conditions are threatened or degraded, the Water Board must step in to require a "Report of Waste Discharge" by the discharger-in this case PL. If the Board follows the law, it will require PL to temporarily halt activities that threaten sediment discharge, which, according to the report, includes the cutting of trees, while the Board considers options.

Jesse Noell of Salmon Forever said: " The Report provides a detailed list of the needed information to decide what actions to take to protect these watersheds."

Cynthia Elkins of the Garberville-based Environmental Protection Information Center (EPIC) stated: "The Regional Board has ignored its duty to protect these watersheds for far too long. With this report in hand, it has no excuse to allow PL's rapacious rate and style of logging to continue."

Where, how, and how fast PL logs are the central issues. The best available science, according to the Panel, can determine with sufficient accuracy, how much can be logged in these watersheds before landslides and erosion destroy the streams.

Residents say the Water Board has broken the law to accommodate Pacific Lumber, whose logging operations have clogged streams, killed threatened species and knocked over ancient redwoods in Humboldt Redwoods State Park. Water Board members are appointed by Governor Davis, who has received $450,000 in contributions from the timber industry.

- end -


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"BIGGER than you can POSSIBLY IMAGINE!"

"BIGGER than you can POSSIBLY IMAGINE!"
"I can't promise you I can call these people off, but I will try."

Richard Salzman's words. March 2003.


It's impossible to separate Richard Salzman from the phenomenon that is Paul Gallegos.

Largely credited with having gotten Gallegos elected, Salzman came into Gallegos' campaign committee weeks before the (March 2002 Primary) election. He claimed to have turned things around, alienating many of Paul's friends and supporters.

I met Richard on election night. He wasn't at Paul's party. He was at Jill Geist's election night party, working the phones, calling the elections office, getting the updates. He was dynamic and energized, and fun. And he wanted to join Jill's campaign team.

We knew nothing about him. But we welcomed him aboard. He had sales experience, he said, being an artist's representative, he became the primary fundraiser for the campaign. He wasn't afraid to make cold calls, to ask for money.

He worked on the campaign from March until the November General election, which Jill won.

She and Paul both took office in January of 2003.

In March of 2003, things changed.

Shortly after the PL lawsuit was announced (which was LONG before Stoen actually FILED it), Richard had heard a rumor that there would be a recall effort. He came to find out if I knew anything about it.

Richard was in full gear. fully mobilized, in the process of forming the "Alliance for Ethical Business," opening a bank account, and planning an ad campaign to support the lawsuit, or support Paul's filing of the lawsuit, and in essence against the Recall. I advised him against it. Pointed out that even if it was true, the issue would die, the only way it would have life is if he gave it life. Recall's have a poor history of success.

I didn't understand his actions. I knew he was a Paul supporter, and he had never shown this other side. WHY was he doing this?

We argued about what he was doing. After 3 hours, I had him convinced that he would do nothing but hurt Paul Gallegos, who he supposedly cared about. I told him that if he persisted in what he was doing people would think Paul was "bought and paid for." Little did I know.

He said he couldn't promise that he could call these people off, but that he would try. And that he would give my name to a guy in Sacramento, Michael ShAllenberger, who would call me, so that I would know "they" had considered what I had to say.

Shellenberger did call me, and I told him the same thing. But it wasn't what he wanted to hear.

At that point, I had no idea who - or what - Michael Shellenberger was. My early attempts to find out were unsuccessful because Richard pronounced his name ShAllenberger. Whenever I typed the name Michael Shallenberger, nothing came up.

Only when Paul was injured in his surfing accident, and he claimed to have been surfing with his "college-buddy" Michael Shellenberger, was I able to type the correct name into a websearch.

Then the pieces began to fall together.

But, back to that first conversation with Richard. He said, "Paul can't trust anyone in that office except Tim." And suddenly I could see Stoen whispering in Jim Jones' ear, "You can't trust that guy, that guy is an FBI informant, that guy is a mole, that guy over there is...." you get the idea. It was chilling.

Richard went on, "There's a mole in the office." So, he said, he had advised Paul to fire three people the next day. This, he said would accomplish two purposes... one, it might eliminate the informant/mole, and two, if it didn't, it would scare them all into submission. He was talking about the D.A.'s office.

Now - I ask you, two months into office, what did Paul have to hide?

He went on to make his ads, some of them featured a guy named Chompers Cook, talking about how if this lawsuit went through, he could see more logging jobs to come, that logging would return to the way it used to be.

I had the opportunity to stop Paul Gallegos in the coffee shop and tell him to tell Richard not to run those ads. That they would be damaging to him. He said, "What ads?" This was surprising since Richard's implication had been that Paul was in on the whole thing, and the ad agency preparing the ads was under the impression that they were working for Paul. I have since come to believe that Paul was not being honest. That he knew full well what I was talking about.

At any rate, a week or so later, I received a call from Richard, saying he was not upset that I had talked to Paul, but he clearly was upset.

I repeated what I had told him earlier, that I believed he was being used, that the people behind the so-called "Alliance" should have to disclose who they were and what their interests were, that he was being put at risk, that they should be honest and do things legally and in an up-front manner.

His reply was that he knew what he was doing, he told me there were "five of us working on this every day!" and assured me that he would have names up on the website within the week.

What he then did was start soliciting people's donations and endorsement, and running those names as the backing of the AEB. Using them as cover, if you will. To this day, the names of those behind the AEB have not been revealed.

He grew angrier as we spoke, demanded to know who I was working for.

He said, "This is BIGGER THAN YOU CAN POSSIBLY IMAGINE!" in a how-dare-you-interfere tone.

So, I started to look into it.

And, what I have found is very disturbing.

Why maintain this blog?

Time to answer some of the FAQs.
What makes you so critical of Paul?
Why haven't we been told any of this?
How much more is there?

Answers coming up.