UPDATE: Humboldt Alert Test Canceled Due to SoHum Outage
UPDATE: The Humboldt Alert test set for today to coincide with the ShakeOut at 10:17 a.m. has been canceled due to a power outage in Southern Humboldt. PREVIOUS: When the Humboldt Alert system triggers at 10:17 a.m. tomorrow, there’s no need to panic. The Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services will be testing the warning…
Yurok Tribe to Buy Mad River Brewing
Hold onto your Steelhead. The Yurok Agricultural Corporation, which is owned by the Yurok Tribe, announced today it’s in the process of purchasing the 30-year-old Mad River Brewing and its taproom and restaurant. This will make the Yurok Tribe one of the few tribes in the U.S. to own and/or operate a brewing company, along…
Large Surf Headed to Local Beaches
The National Weather Office in Eureka is reminding Humboldt County residents of the oft-said mantra — never turn your back on the ocean — especially with the first major winter swell set to hit local beaches late today. The west-northwest sets could hit heights of 16 to 20 feet for west-northwest facing beaches, with the…
Resident in Critical Condition After House Fire Rescue
Firefighters rescued one person from an early morning house fire after neighbors awoke to smoke and flames. Humboldt Bay Fire crews arrived at the house on the 6300 block of Purdue Drive near Humboldt Hill about 12:45 a.m. to find the residence “well-involved in fire,” according to a release. After conducting a search, firefighters found…
Eureka, County Seek Info on Impacts of Shutdown While Newsom Wants PG&E to Pay
The city of Eureka and the county of Humboldt are asking residents to help officials assess the economic damages and impacts to families as a result of PG&E’s Oct. 9 shutdown of the power grid. The blackout was what is known as a “public safety power shutoff,” a mechanism enacted by PG&E when certain weather…
UPDATE: Officials: The ‘Outage’ Letter Circulating on Social Media is Fake
UPDATE: It’s official. The Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services says the letter is a fake. There is a fraudulent letter being received by some Humboldt residents about a scheduled power outage this week. The letter is NOT from PG&E and no outage is scheduled. — Humboldt Co OES (@HumCoOES) October 14, 2019 PREVIOUS: The…
Eureka Announces New City Manager
The city of Eureka announced today that Dean Lotter of New Brighton, Minnesota, will be the next city manager. Lotter’s official employment agreement will be coming before the city council at its Nov. 5 meeting, with an official start date coming at the end of the year after current City Manager Greg Sparks retires, according…
HumBug: Fall along the River
There are next to no flowers blooming now. Most adult insects have lived out their lives, their eggs and larvae sequestered in anticipation of winter. The showiest life is along the river. The large body of moving water moderates the temperatures and many species employ this time of reduced predator numbers to complete their lifecycles…
McGuire at Town Hall: Legislature ‘Hyper-Focused’ on Holding PG&E Accountable
At Blue Lake’s “Community Conversation and Coffee” with Sen. Mike McGuire on Thursday, there was plenty on the agenda but the conversation started, ended and repeatedly returned to the previous day’s power outage that had left Humboldt County in the dark for more than 24 hours. McGuire was quick to open by admonishing Pacific Gas…
Eureka Schedules Ceremony for Return of Duluwat Island to the Wiyot Tribe
After 160 years — and some unforeseen delays — it looks like the city of Eureka is prepared to finally and officially return Duluwat Island to the Wiyot Tribe later this month. While details are still being worked out, the city of Eureka is planning a special council meeting to formally approve the island’s return…
Assault Investigation Now a Homicide
An Indiana man who had just moved to Eureka was assaulted Sept. 26 has died as a result of the injuries received, according to a press release sent out by the Eureka Police Department. The case is now an active homicide investigation and an autopsy is scheduled for today. On Sept. 26, a sergeant with…
Turmoil Continues in SoHum School District
Students and parents face another transition after Southern Humboldt Unified School District Superintendent Don Boyd and South Fork High School Principal Cyndi Aguiar handed in their resignations during a closed session school board meeting last night. “I was surprised,” said board member Michelle Bushnell when reached by phone last night. “And disappointed for our community.”…
‘He! Him!’
Editor: Thank you, Laura Cooskey (Mailbox, Sept. 19). Laura walked you through the history of the necessary slow tradition of a people’s language. We read and study what is referred to as “old English” — the English language that was spoken centuries ago. The study of any language demands the slow, gradual change in a…
‘A Confused Interpretation’
Editor: In her story “Flood Watch” (Sept. 26), Elaine Weinreb quotes county Planning Director John Ford as saying, “The California Coastal Commission seems to be undergoing a shift and appears less resistant to efforts to protect the shoreline,” with the follow-up of, “Their traditional [standard] has always been the Coastal Act, but the Coastal Act…
‘Concerned’
Editor: I had written a letter to you in the Sept. 19 issue wanting to answer Martha Johnson’s question (Mailbox, Sept. 12) of why Christians vote for President Trump, as well as to list some of the accomplishments so far of his administration about which I was glad. I am concerned to write again to…
‘A Public Service’
Editor: I hope the list of newspapers (“Endangered,” Oct. 3) Marcy Burstiner subscribes to had an omission, because the Times-Standard was not listed. Obviously, it needs all the help it can get (“Insurmountable,” Oct. 3). I know the cost is outrageous but can you imagine our area without a daily paper? Think about that. I soften the…
Huffman Gets Bleak Input on Fisheries
Long before the first refugees from the city planted cannabis seeds in the hills of Southern Humboldt, fishermen braved the seas in summer and winter to bring back crab, salmon, rockfish, lingcod and a variety of other seafood. It was always considered a reliable — if dangerous — way to make a living. Things have…
Correction
The story “Journalism at Three Arcata High Schools” in the Oct. 3, 2019 edition of the North Coast Journal misattributed two quotes and incorrectly described Eureka Mayor Susan Seaman’s affiliation with Eureka High School. The quotes should have been attributed to Pepperbox co-editor-in-chief Caledonia Davey and Seaman, who worked in economic development, volunteered her time…
‘Jolting and Surprising’
Humboldt State University Chief of Police Donn Peterson was with Vice President of Administration and Finance Douglas Dawes on Sept. 30 when he first learned of his officer’s no-confidence vote in his leadership through a press release from their union. Speaking to the Journal, Peterson said he was so shocked at the news that he…
Is Science Done For?
Last time, I discussed the possibility that pure science has reached some fundamental limits (“Is Science Done For? Part 1: Pure Science,” Sept. 26). This “end of science” idea was popularized (and employed as a title) by science writer John Horgan in his 1996 book. As I noted, Horgan claimed, “the era of truly profound…
A Wee Touch of the Lurgy
I have what I am telling myself is a slight cold. Maybe it has something to do with my multi-generational associates: My friend’s absurdly cute baby seemed a little snottier than usual when I picked her up the other day and I will tell you that nothing is more likely to Trojan Horse disease into…
Tiananmen, LLC
People’s Liberation Army soldiers corrected turbulence on June 4, 1989 at the Square of Heavenly Peace rewarded with commemorative wristwatches from the emperor. The chum under treads on red pavement too much taste to scrape the marmite off the toast.
The Cookies
My answer for any emotional extreme — sadness, joy, stress — is food. Recently my partner, who works in the production department at the Journal, was under a tight deadline. Naturally, the voice in my head was screaming: Must. Make. Cookies. But here’s the thing. Even though (or maybe because) I have a culinary background,…
Free Will Astrology
ARIES (March 21-April 19): “Love is when you meet someone who tells you something new about yourself,” wrote poet André Breton. I think that’s an excellent principle to put at the top of your priority list in the coming weeks, Aries. To be in maximum alignment with cosmic rhythms, you should seek input from allies…
Arts! Arcata
Arts! Arcata is Arcata Main Street’s monthly celebration of visual and performing arts, held at locations in Arcata. Visit www.arcatamainstreet.com, check out the Arts! Arcata event on Facebook and Instagram, or call 707-822-4500 for more information ALCHEMY DISTILLERY 330 South G St. Presenting bath bombs and soaps hand crafted by Tickle Soap. ARCATA ARTISANS COOPERATIVE…
Getting Covered and Putting up Apples
As the leaves turn color and pumpkins on the vine become more orange by the day, we welcome autumn on the home farm. Harvest season offers reward for carefully tending to the garden all spring and summer growing season: crisp apples, golden sunflowers and homegrown cannabis are soon to be harvested. Life in autumn offers…
Through the Eyesof Native Activists
I started my review of From Wounded Knee to Standing Rock: A reporter’s journey, screening at the Eureka Theater on Oct. 19, with some trepidation because of its local connection. Journalist and director Kevin McKiernan’s documentary looks at Indian actions at two different points in history. It focuses partly on the American Indian Movement, the…
Joker‘s House of Mirrors
JOKER. I am aware of the ex post facto politicization of Joker but I have not — will not — wade into that swamp. All art is a product of its time and place, of course, and this is a dark movie borne of dark times. To ascribe intent, though, to allow context to subsume…
Walter Lippmann in Wonderland: Project Censored’s Top 10 Stories of 2019 Project Censored
Every year, Project Censored scours the landscape for the most important stories that the mainstream corporate media somehow missed, and every year the task seems to get a bit stranger. Or “curiouser and curiouser” as suggested in the subtitle of this year’s volume of the organization’s work, Censored 2020: Through The Looking Glass, which includes…
Ryan’s Law
There’s a bill sitting on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk that could radically change end-of-life care options for some patients in California hospitals. Senate Bill 305, which passed both chambers of the Legislature with unanimous votes last month, would prohibit health care facilities from interfering with a terminally ill patient’s use of medical cannabis, giving dying…
‘Simple Acts’
Editor: For those individuals concerned for the Earth, I have a few simple things anyone can do right now (NCJ Daily, Sept. 26). Plant a tree, pick up a bag of garbage and don’t leave trash at the next demonstration. Can you imagine if each of these folks at all the gatherings would do these…
‘Robbed’
Editor: As British investigative journalist George Monbiot remarked, calling our planet’s temperature increase “climate change” is like describing an invading army as “unexpected guests.” The children striking on the Arcata Plaza last Friday (NCJ Daily, Sept. 26) have awakened to the fact that they are an oppressed minority being robbed of their right to life,…
Bohn-headed’
Editor: Ah, the relief when news broke that the Eureka Trucker’s Parade had no sponsor this year; this fuel-wasting, folksy tradition would die a natural death, and perhaps be replaced by an event lauding our citizens’ growing awareness of the climate crisis (NCJ Daily, Sept. 19). It matters not what caused climate change. Nobody but…
