Willful Burning of National Forests

US FOREST SERVICE TO BURN ONE MILLION ACRES IN ARIZONA.

COMMENTS DUE WEDNESDAY.  Comments may be emailed to

4fri_comments@fs.fed.us, or posted here:

https://cara.ecosystem-management.org/Public/CommentInput?Project=34857.

This type of project is going on all over the country.  The Four Forests Restoration Initiative ("4FRI") is the largest yet proposed, totaling more than two million acres in central and eastern Arizona.  The first half of the project is in an area around Flagstaff, in the Kaibab and Coconino National Forests.  The Forest Service wants to replace the unbroken forest with "a mosaic of interspaces and tree groups"; to eradicate most of the Ponderosa pines, which it considers a "weed"; and to do this by thinning and burning one million acres of Arizona forest, including 98% of protected habitat for the Mexican Spotted Owl.  In order to permanently alter the landscape, the Forest Service plans to burn every area of the forest every five years, from now on.  Before it burns the first time, however, it will invite a logging company from Montana down to harvest 300,000 acres of trees. 

The Draft Environmental Impact Statement is available here:

http://a123.g.akamai.net/7/123/11558/abc123/forestservic.download.akamai.com/11558/www/nepa/75512_FSPLT3_1373457.pdf

I posted general information on Face book regarding the Forest Service’s attack on our National Forests. Only one friend responded. I also posted the email comment I sent to the Forest Service and still no comments. My comment to the Forest Service follows:

“This project to burn over a million acres of forest land after reaping benefits from selling 300 thousand acres to lumber companies is one of the most incomprehensibly evil projects I've encountered in my lifetime. Your 4FRI project is another of the "new" so called scholarly environmental interventions designed to return the landscape to the way you figure it was back at the turn of the century etc. What a bunch of bull crap. You redesigned the waterways throughout the west with disastrous results. You redesigned the grasslands of the Midwest and created the great dust bowl disaster and on and on it goes. I'm certain you're aware of the catastrophic history of the Army Corp of Engineers and others like the Forest Service. It's too, too unfortunate that the pencil pushing engineers of this destruction won't be on the front lines of the great burns, sucking up the poisonous smoke all the southwest will be forced to endure. Too bad you have no regard for the wildlife population that will suffer horribly through loss of habitat and smoke inhalation and for what. This is supposed to be the people's land - we have not given our permission for this horror to ensue, nor will we benefit from the $$$$ the government will gain. I would rather die in the gutter than work for or be associated with an organization so diabolically evil.”

The Forest Service policies toward the people’s land is certainly in keeping with the  general philosophy of the USDA which is responsible for developing and executing U.S. government policy on

Farming, Forestry, Food and Natural Resources.  And Obama shows his support of these philosophies in the signing of the Monsanto Protection Act which requires the USDA to approve the growing, harvesting and selling of genetically modified food.  Meanwhile, back at the “ranch”, Michelle is growing organic veggies  on the White-house lawn. Don’t you love the hypocrisy?

Dehydration is Painful!

     Have you fainted for no apparent reason or experienced painful cramps throughout the body? Before rushing off to the emergency room, treat yourself with16 oz of water pronto and be amazed as nausea and pain diminishes or disappears. Hospital emergency rooms do a lot of rehydrating of patients and charge thousands of dollars before releasing the patient in a few hours. Don’t contribute to their coffers. 

     A dear friend, who happens to be an MD, misdiagnosed her dehydration experience. She fainted and hit her head with considerable force. She went to the emergency room for diagnosis; they rehydrated her for several hours and dismissed her; the bill was $5000. That’s a lot of bucks for a little water.

       18 years ago, shortly after moving to New Mexico, I fainted on a restaurant terrace while eating and never went to a MD. Initially, I thought it to be food poisoning or a strange allergy. That was way before my knowledge of dehydration. Now I know it was dehydration. It took me years before getting the message: drink sufficient water or suffer serious consequences.

     The next episode occurred years later when I awoke into horrible nausea while lying in bed. The ceiling rolled and the walls swayed. Fortunately a friend came to my aid in the middle of the night with mucho water and a potassium tablet. What an ordeal.  Soon as I drank approximately 16 oz of water all symptoms disappeared.

     For a while I drank more water, but gradually returned to earlier habits of juice, Kombucha and black tea. Little did I know the fire of fate challenged with my careless approach.  Then …..after sitting in a hot tub without drinking water, I fainted, in extreme nausea, while struggling toward drinking water and a potassium pill. I awoke on a cement floor, initially unable to move or determine how I arrived there.

     It took a while to get up…………. and move across a large room to a bed; a difficult assignment as I zigzagged, totally out of control in the general direction. The knot on the back of my head was enormous….. the size of a large orange. Once again I didn’t go to the hospital and felt prepared to die. My mom died 10 hours after falling from a 9 foot platform so it wasn’t out of the question. I had no fear as I drank a massive amount of water and quickly felt 100% better.

     I used to ignore a painfully dry mouth but now I know it calls for immediate action.  At 74 and living in the desert, I drink 8 oz of water every 3 hours AND always have water on hand in case of first signs of nausea or a sudden cramp, ache or pain. Each fainting spell was preceded by unbelievably severe nausea, a signal that must never be ignored in order to avoid cracking head or worse. Now I know to quickly lie down in order to avoid the crash against the floor.
      Never drink sport-drinks or water that comes in plastic. All plastics off-gas BPA, phthalates or other toxins. Never drink fluoridated water, instead try reverse osmosis and add electrolytes.Chemtrails leach potassium from the body so I take potassium and magnesium every day along with cell-salts.
    Everybody 60+ and desert dwellers must read Your Bodies Many Cries for Water. Years ago I thought the book most interesting. But now I know it’s truth from personal experience.  The book discusses the many health issues successfully treated with water including knee pain, arthritis and headache to name a very few.
   
     

     

Loving to Paint

I came to art in my ‘50s which means I’ve been drawing and painting for 20 years. It began when beloved Mousie died and I needed illustrations to convey his beautiful story. Living in Georgia at the time and running a newspaper, it was a delightful pastime away from the horrors of local news.

With the exception of “Gypsy Caravan” everything is focused on animals and desert scenes. Animals are my passion, the desert my endurance - compelling me to work at the canvas when I’d probably enjoy the simple pleasures of snoozing in bed.

The donkeys lived with me in Georgia and filled each day with many delights. Bumble, the silver jackass, was air lifted from the Grand Canyon, during the donkey removal in the ‘80s. Although he was already quite old when he came to Georgia, he was full of fire and brimstone, producing a lovely family with beautiful Ginger.

Traveling throughout the southwest I walked the magical arroyos, Rockies, mesas, and pedernals, experiencing wondrous scenes from long ago when native populations ruled the day.  Bumble’s World is the first of the mirage series. I was walking an unusually deep arroyo in the Capital Reef area when suddenly 4 children between 10 and 12 appeared, running in front of me. They cut in front from the right and quickly ascended a mound overlooking a vast expanse where a monumental event was occurring. The drumming and chanting could be heard from a distance calling forth the gigantic spirit forms often depicted in the abundant rock art.

Often my art tells a story, in keeping with a long history in NYC theater. For example, “Finale”, shows a penguin family watching an elder walk off into the desolate mountains to die. This is a yearly occurrence in the frozen wilds of the South Pole. 

A love affair with Ravens started at Grand Canyon. We pulled into the tourist shower area where I sat transfixed by enormous Ravens large as penguins. I’d never seen one before; it was love at first sight.

“Fire Storm” is inspired by living next to a national forest that has burned several times, creating very scary experiences. One night I awoke at 3 am to see an enormous fire raging behind my house.   

In Georgia I sold controversial color drawings showing the KKK at outdoor carnival-fair and sharks circling an island of beauty. I love juxtaposing opposites. I plan to do some more of the small social commentary pieces in the near future…………..I guess, if I continue loving to paint.

This is the first time I’ve shown my art in a very public venue. Hope you enjoy them – and let me know if you would like to make a purchase.