2 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
PEOPLE compiled by
Zach Hagadone
watching
“What’s your most precious family heirloom and why?” “The family heirloom that is most precious to me is my great-grandfather’s wooden chest. It has, over the years, held many treasures from the Langley clan. An heirloom holding generations of heirlooms.” Wyatt Langley Avid D&D player Sandpoint “Fortunate enough to grow up living off the grid in our mountains surrounded by nature. So, hands down, my most precious heirloom is the land that our families still own and care for, which will be handed down to enrich the life of my son, and perhaps his, for years to come.” Kate Lyster Interior designer, owner Base Camp Design Sandpoint “The Pend Oreille lake cabin! A beautiful piece of North Idaho now enjoyed by a fourth generation of great-grandchildren. Ken and Audrey Piatt left an infinitely memorable heirloom.” Jon Knepper Kid in the middle, circa 1980s Sandpoint “A mid-’80s Sandpoint Wrestling sweatshirt. There’s a family Christmas photo where nearly everyone is wearing one, now I have the only one left.” Ann Miller Analyst at Kochava Sandpoint “My favorite family heirloom is a rocking chair. Originally it belonged to my maternal grandmother, passed to my grandmother, passed to my mother and finally to me. Lots of babies were rocked in that chair. My mom made the needlepoint for the bottom. It’s pretty wobbly these days but still really comfortable.” Carrie Logan Former Sandpoint mayor and member of the Historic Preservation Commission Sandpoint
DEAR READERS,
Thank you to all of the artists who submitted covers for our ArtWalk issue this week. I loved so many of them, but ultimately we chose this painting called “Peace & Quiet” by local artist Sandy Wulf. Wulf said the painting depicts her son kayaking on Lake Pend Oreille. Great job, Sandy! If your submission wasn’t chosen, have no fear. I have already earmarked a few of them to appear as covers in future issues. We’re always so happy to feature local art on our covers, so don’t be shy if you ever have a painting or photograph you think we might like to run. In the meantime, check out Page 18 for all the information you need about POAC’s opening reception for ArtWalk on Friday, July 10. In closing, I’d like to commend those of you who stick to your convictions while also being respectful and civil with whom you disagree. In these rough and rowdy days of social media ugliness, don’t ever abandon the high road. Stay strong. Wishing you a good week and some much needed “Peace & Quiet.”
–Ben Olson, publisher
READER 111 Cedar Street, Suite 9 Sandpoint, ID 83864 (208)265-9724
www.sandpointreader.com Publisher: Ben Olson ben@sandpointreader.com Editorial: Zach Hagadone (Editor) zach@sandpointreader.com Lyndsie Kiebert (News Editor) lyndsie@sandpointreader.com Cameron Rasmusson (emeritus) John Reuter (emeritus) Advertising: Jodi Berge Jodi@sandpointreader.com Contributing Artists: Sandy Wulf (cover), Ben Olson, Bill Borders, Lyndsie Kiebert. Contributing Writers: Zach Hagadone, Ben Olson, Lyndsie Kiebert, Lorraine H. Marie, Emily Erickson, Rep. Jake Ellis, Brenden Bobby, Bill Litsinger, Luke Baumgarten, Susan Drumheller Submit stories to: stories@sandpointreader.com Printed weekly at: Tribune Publishing Co. Lewiston, ID Subscription Price: $115 per year Web Content: Keokee The Sandpoint Reader is a weekly publication owned and operated by Ben Olson and Keokee. It is devoted to the arts, entertainment, politics and lifestyle in and around Sandpoint, Idaho. We hope to provide a quality alternative by offering honest, in-depth reporting that reflects the intelligence and interests of our diverse and growing community. The Reader is printed on recycled paper using soy-based ink. Leftover copies are collected and recycled weekly, or burned in massive bonfires to appease the gods of journalism. Free to all, limit two copies per person.
Sandpoint Reader letter policy: The Sandpoint Reader welcomes letters to the editor on all topics. Requirements: –No more than 300 words –Letters may not contain excessive profanity or libelous material. Please elevate the discussion. Letters will be edited to comply with the above requirements. Opinions expressed in these pages are those of the writers, not necessarily the publishers. Email letters to: letters@sandpointreader.com Check us out on the web at: www.sandpointreader.com Like us on Facebook. About the Cover
This week’s cover features the painting “Peace & Quiet” by local artist Sandy Wulf. Thanks Sandy! June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 3
NEWS
COVID-19 cases spike in Idaho as lawmakers convene, businesses close and public events go forward By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff The number of COVID-19 cases has leapt both in the Panhandle Health District and Idaho as a whole in recent weeks. PHD reported five new lab-confirmed cases June 24, bringing the total in the district to 169 since monitoring began in March: 133 in Kootenai, 13 in Benewah and 14 in Bonner counties. Nine cases remain “undetermined,” meaning public health officials are unable at this time to determine the county of residence for individuals who have tested positive for the virus. Of the 169 cases, 56 are still being monitored — meaning they present active symptoms. One death has been reported in the district since monitoring began and one individual is currently hospitalized. Those numbers may sound small in total, but public health data shows a dramatic spike in cases that started around June 9, when PHD was monitoring fewer than 20 cases. In the space of 12 days, as of June 21, that number had nearly tripled — and not because of increased testing. As PHD officials told the Sandpoint Reader in early June, “Although it’s true that the amount of testing being done in our district has slightly increased, we don’t think we can attribute all the new cases to an increase in testing.” Similar upward trends in COVID-19 cases have been seen elsewhere in Idaho, including the state’s most populous county. Ada County, which is monitored by Central District Health, reported so many cases in the first weeks of June that officials there decided to roll back reopening to Stage 3, requiring the closure of bars and nightclubs, and prohibiting gatherings of more than 50 people. Idaho added 243 cases, confirmed and probable, on June 24, bringing the total to 4,645 cases and 90 deaths. Idaho’s “curve” of COVID-19 infections has been a spike since June 14, when the number of confirmed and probable cases exploded from 3,408 — a more than 73% increase in cases 4 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
in 10 days, as of press time. The surge in COVID-19 cases — which has been seen in states including Arizona, Florida, Oklahoma and Texas, among others — has led public health officials to consider scaling back reopening plans, and businesses are reclosing even without government order. In Sandpoint, at least one local business has already voluntarily closed its doors due to an employee testing positive for COVID-19. The 219 Lounge, which had reopened with strict social distancing and sanitation protocols, closed again after a staff member learned June 18 that they had been exposed to another asymptomatic individual. The bar worker tested positive for COVID-19 on June 19, prompting the closure. According to a Facebook post from the 219 on June 23, “We closed the bar and performed a deep cleaning and sanitization of the bar. From the time our employee encountered the asymptomatic carrier the staff member only worked the evening of June 17th. During that time, our staff member wore a mask and gloves as has been our policy since the reopening of the bar on June 3rd. When we were allowed to open the bar in early June we implemented a mandatory mask and glove policy for employees, temperature checks for employees prior to working, strict sanitizing efforts, reduced our capacity, limited tables to no more than 6 people and removed the majority of our barstools.” The bar went on to state that all staff members will be tested for COVID-19 in the coming days and plans to reopen as soon as possible. “We will continue to make masks and gloves mandatory for all bartenders, continue our increased sanitizing efforts and keep our capacity to a minimum,” bar managers stated on Facebook. A request for comment on reclosure planning from the city of Sandpoint went unanswered, but Panhandle Health District Public Information Officer Katherine Hoyer told the Reader that, “The decision to pull back would be made as a regional decision
involving input from our mayors, county commissioners, and our Board of Health. Local metrics that we will monitor in order to make those decisions include, but not limited to: number and trend in new infections; positivity rate; number and trend in COVID-related deaths; local outbreaks; and local hospital capacity, including PPE, emergency department visits, total bed and ICU capacity.” Hoyer added that, “It is nice to see restaurants making the proactive decision to shut down and clean. Restaurants closing should be a powerful reminder to others to implement productive prevention efforts so we don’t have to pull back on the reopening stages. We can remain open, but we need everyone to do their part to keep each other safe.” Meanwhile, the State of Idaho Controller’s Office issued a news release June 24 touting the $536 million in federal funding it had administered from the U.S. CARES Act coronavirus support bill passed by Congress on March 27. According to the controller’s office, among the recipients of the $1.25 billion federal program is the Idaho Rebounds Cash Grants for Small Businesses program, which gives monetary support to small businesses in a one-time grant to help alleviate financial stress from the virus. Other monies go through the Idaho Rebounds State, Local, and Tribal Community Support program, which
reimburses state, local and tribal government expenditures used to fight the coronavirus. Fighting the coronavirus took on a different meaning for some Idaho lawmakers, who gathered in defiance of health officials’ guidance in Ada County to pursue an ad hoc session of the Legislature on June 23, intended to push back against Governor Brad Little’s authority to dictate the closure — and reopening — of businesses in the state amid the ongoing pandemic. According to reports, 15 legislators, including Blanchard Republican Rep. Heather Scott, gathered at the Statehouse with approximately 200 onlookers — many of them armed and associated with Ammon Bundy. Bundy
A chart from Idaho Dept. of Health and Welfare showing the sharp rise in COVID-19 cases the past two weeks. and his family have been instrumental in several clashes with the government in recent years, including the Bunkerville, Nev., and Malheur County, Ore., standoffs. It seems unlikely that anything discussed at the June 23 gathering could be legally binding, and reports from the capitol are that no votes or legislative action were even undertaken. Concern over COVID-19 public gatherings notwithstanding, the group putting on the 2020 Fourth of July celebrations in Sandpoint received their permit from the city on June 19, according to city officials.
Reclaim Idaho comes out on top in federal case Governor, secretary of state have until June 26 to choose a path forward for the Invest in Idaho initiative By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff
The ballot initiative for education funding from Reclaim Idaho will no longer be on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic after a federal judge ruled that Governor Brad Little and Secretary of State Lawerence Denney violated the group’s First Amendment rights by not accomodating a path for-
ward for the initiative during the pandemic. U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill said he was “disinclined to tell the state” how to move forward, so he gave two options at a hearing June 23: to either accept the signatures already submitted and approve the Invest in Idaho initiative for the November ballot, or to give Reclaim Idaho a 48-day
< see RECLAIM, page 5 >
NEWS
Georgetown Law dubs Sandpoint militia activity illegal
Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection pens letter to McDonald, Rognstad
By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff The Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection, based at the Georgetown University Law Center, sent a letter June 19 to Bonner County Commissioner Dan McDonald and Sandpoint Mayor Shelby Rognstad raising concerns about the constitutionality of militia activity at a Black Lives Matter protest June 2 in Sandpoint. Mary McCord, legal director for the Washington, D.C.-based institute, cited local and nationwide news coverage, as well as Facebook posts from local officials, to point out that “militia members’ conduct in Sandpoint appears to have violated Idaho law” during the protest. Of particular interest in McCord’s letter — which was sent to all county commissioners as well as the city administrator and county prosecutor — was a Facebook post June 2 from McDonald sharing the time and location for a Black Lives Matter protest, in which he wrote, “It would be great to have some of the Bonner County folks come out to help counter anything that might get out of hand.” “We wanted to call this to your attention in light of Commissioner McDonald’s express request to the militia members to attend the protest, what appears to be Commissioner McDonald’s continued solicitation on Face-
< RECLAIM, con’t from page 4 >
deadline extension and allow for “online solicitation, collection and certification of signatures.” The state has until Friday, June 26 at 5 p.m. to make its choice. In the event that state officials allow the deadline extension and online signature collection, Reclaim Idaho co-founder Luke Mayville told the Sandpoint Reader that the group could likely set up a digital platform “within about two weeks.” The lawsuit, filed June 6, alleged that Little and Denney violated petitioners’ First Amendment rights by not accomodating a pandemic-safe alternative to signature collection, which is
book of militia members to attend additional protests, and the suggestion by some Idaho officials that no state law prohibits such conduct,” McCord wrote. McDonald also noted in his June 2 post that it was a peaceful protest, which is protected by the Constitution, and should be respected. McDonald said he “would rather see a replay of [Coeur d’Alene] last night” and that attendees should “send a message we will not tolerate looting, property damage or violent acts.” The evening of June 1 in Coeur d’Alene saw armed individuals patrolling downtown ostensibly to guard against violence and looting by Antifa — a loosely organized anti-fascist group rumored to be planning to infiltrate North Idaho. No evidence has been presented that Antifa or any other related group intended to cause unrest in any community in North Idaho. In a live stream video June 5, Sandpoint Police Chief Corey Coon said his department works with surrounding law enforcement agencies to vet each claim that agitators may be coming to town. As of June 5, Coon said all leads were “really just basically rumors.” Yet, Coon said of the armed patrols, “Their intentions are all great,” going on to applaud their ability to show up at a moment’s notice. “Their intentions were honorable.” “I would say there is no ill will or intention with those guys
walking [through downtown armed with weapons],” Coon said. “It’s odd for those of us who’ve never seen it … I know it can be shocking. … For the majority of them, it’s no ill will.” McCord cited a number of Idaho laws prohibiting private paramilitary activity in the letter, and said the ability to call unorganized militia into active service is reserved for the governor. She noted that ICAP filed a successful lawsuit on behalf of Charlottesville, Va., following the Unite the Right rally in 2017, which ruled the militia conduct at that event to be unlawful. In closing, McCord offered a pro bono consultation with Bonner County and Sandpoint officials “about how best to ensure that future protests remain peaceful and free from unlawful militia activity.” McDonald told the Sandpoint Reader in an email June 23 that he was “a bit confused as to [ICAP’s] allegations” about him “calling out armed militia” via his Facebook page ahead of the June 2 protest. “This appears to be an attempt to intimidate me and paint a narrative that does not exist,” he said, pointing out that the words “armed” or “militia” did not appear in his post. McDonald said the letter from ICAP “appears to walk in lock step with the Sandpoint mayor’s divisive statement about vigilanties,” referring to a June 3 Facebook post from Rognstad in
which the mayor stated that none of the protesters — mostly high school students — who he spoke with “felt any safer in the presence of these armed vigilantes.” “Rather, they felt scared, intimidated and in some cases harassed,” Rognstad said. The Reader confirmed similar sentiments among the parents of some of the participants in the June 2 march, with one father of a 19- and 21-year-old taking part in the demonstration stating, “I’m scared,” as he nodded toward a nearby Bonner County sheriff’s deputy and the group of armed individuals standing away from the protesters staging in the parking lot of the Bonner County Courthouse. The deputy paused to pose in a “thumbs up” photo with the armed individuals. “I’m not going to let them be here without me,” the protester’s father told the Reader. BLM solidarity members stated at a march June 6 that, “protesters do not accept protection from vigilante militia groups,” some of whom may have a history of white supremacy and “are even less accountable than police.” “We reject the notion that armed militia members are here for protester protection,” the group stated. “It serves only to intimidate the free and lawful expression of speech.” McDonald told the Reader that, to his knowledge, the armed citizens who showed up on June 2
“were just our neighbors and people we interact with every day.” When it was pointed out that organized militia did appear to have responded to his June 2 post — including Kevin J. Korsund, of Spirit Lake, Idaho, stating that “The North Idaho Militia will be on site” within minutes — McDonald said the Reader was “moving the goalpost.” “The charge from ICAP is that I illegally activated the militia or a militia, which I did not,” he said. “Contrary to [statements by] the Sandpoint mayor and some others, I don’t control groups of people, I didn’t call out the militia, I didn’t call people to arms and I don’t have my own private police force. Did we see organized militia? How many members were there? I don’t have the answer to either of these [questions] and have no knowledge of actual organized militia showing up. If they did, that’s on them, but they were never called to attend, at least, not by me.” McDonald said he has no plans to communicate with ICAP regarding the letter, aside from possibly working to “set the record straight, as clearly, someone has led them astray.” Representatives of the city of Sandpoint did not respond to a request for comment on the ICAP letter.
typically conducted face-to-face between Reclaim Idaho volunteers and citizens across the state. The Invest in Idaho initiative would increase taxes for corporations and the wealthy in order to provide an additional $170 million in funding for K-12 schools each year. Legal counsel for the state criticized Reclaim Idaho for using only six of the allowed 18 months to collect signatures, and said the record showed a limited number of attempts to reach the governor and secretary of state via email to talk about pandemic accommodations. The state also said that because the initiative campaign ceased efforts by March 18 of
its own volition — not due to any action the state had taken by that date — the state couldn’t be blamed for Reclaim Idaho’s decision to stop signature gathering. Winmill pointed to the state’s prompt shift to a mail-in-only primary election as proof that officials have “the ability to make those kinds of modifications” in response to a pandemic, and the same should apply to ballot initiatives, which are protected under the same state statutes as elections. He also noted Reclaim Idaho’s track record in qualifying the Medicaid expansion initiative for the 2018 ballot, adding that Medicaid “is, frankly, less polit-
ically popular” than an initiative to fund education. According to Reclaim Idaho, the group had already gathered more signatures by mid-March for its Invest in Idaho campaign than it had by that date in 2018 for the Medicaid initiative. Winmill said he doesn’t fault state officials for exercising their “constitutional obligations” regarding sticking to ballot initiative deadlines, but that in this instance, “this brought them in conflict with the citizens’ First Amendment rights.” Winmill ruled in favor of Reclaim Idaho from the bench, and said there would be a written decision released soon. This isn’t the last time the issue
will see a courtroom, based on a joint statement from Little and Denney following the hearing. “This decision is a surprising exercise of judicial activism,” they told Idaho Education News. “We plan to appeal this decision immediately.” As for Reclaim Idaho, Mayville told the Reader that the “decision is a victory for the Constitution and the right of every Idaho citizen to petition their government.” “By ruling in favor of Reclaim Idaho,” he said, “the court affirmed that no citizen should be forced to sacrifice their constitutional rights in the wake of a pandemic.”
Additional reporting by Zach Hagadone.
June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 5
NEWS
Bonner County gun suit sees further delay Judge concerned how 2020 Festival cancellation affects lawsuit
By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff
Bonner County’s lawsuit against the city of Sandpoint regarding The Festival at Sandpoint’s weapons ban policy is yet another hearing away from a decision, as Kootenai County District Court Judge Lansing L. Haynes on June 19 requested further briefing from both parties regarding the justiciability of the case in the wake of the 2020 Festival cancellation. The core issue in the suit is whether it is legal for the city to allow The Festival to ban guns at its events, which are held on public property at War Memorial Field. The city has long argued that The Festival is free under its lease agreement to set its own security policies. Others have argued that the city is barred by Idaho law from prohibiting firearms on any public property, and therefore cannot convey that right to a third-party — lease agreement or not. Meanwhile, Haynes, who was set to hear counter-motions for summary judgement at the June 19 hearing, said he was unclear whether the court had the authority to rule on the manner if the 2020 Festival — for which the lease in question was created — had been canceled. “This court is very concerned about acting on an issue that is not squarely before it — even one of great interest or one of interesting academic value,” Haynes said. “But without a 2020 Festival, should I be making a decision at all?” Amy Clemmons of Davillier Law Group, representing the county, argued that the facts in the case hadn’t changed with The Festival’s cancellation, and that the city had expressed intent to sign a similar lease with the nonprofit in 2021. Therefore, Clemmons said, a declaratory judgement is still needed. Peter Erbland of Lake City Law Group, representing the city, said The Festival’s cancellation only adds to Bonner County’s lack of standing in the case. At the request of Haynes, legal counsel for both sides will provide a briefing on the justiciability of the case in regard to the 2020 Festival cancellation to be submitted by Friday, July 24. The next 6 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
hearing in the case had not yet been scheduled as of June 23. Though both lawyers agreed to the additional briefing and resulting postponement, Erbland did note mounting costs to the city and urged the court to make haste. “I can point out that there have been continued delays in this,” he said. In response to a request by the Sandpoint Reader for the “total legal fees paid to Davillier Law Group specifically for work on” the suit regarding The Festival weapons ban, Bonner County reported a total of $93,325.50 spent on the case as of June 4. The city received an invoice from Lake City Law for $7,120, to be paid by June 4, and $12,120 due July 1. That brings the combined price tag for the suit to nearly $150,000 as of June 4, and up to about $155,000 in early July. The suit brought by Bonner County isn’t the only one looming over the city of Sandpoint in response to The Festival’s gun policy. Area residents Scott Herndon and Jeff Avery, along with Boise-based gun rights lobby group Idaho Second Amendment Alliance and the Second Amendment Foundation, of Bellevue, Wash., filed their own suit in district court May 29 alleging the city violated the Constitution and state law by allowing The Festival to ban weapons at Memorial Field. According to court records, summons were issued to the city and The Festival — both defendants in the case — on June 11, though both were listed as unserved as of June 12. Judge Barbara Buchanan voluntarily disqualified herself from the case June 22, leaving Judge Haynes as the judicial officer for Case CV09-20-0692. It was unclear as of press time what comes next for the Herndon et al. case. As Herndon told the Reader in an email June 1, “I don’t think we are going to be able to accurately predict a judicial timeline. However, we are well prepared to stick to the core issues raised in our complaint and pray to proceed at the most expeditious pace of the court given everything else going on in Idaho right now.” Additional reporting by Zach Hagadone.
Bits ’n’ Pieces From east, west and beyond
East, west or beyond, sooner or later events elsewhere may have a local impact. A recent sampling: Breakthrough mask technology from Indiana State University uses fabric that not only prevents spread of COVID-19, it also kills germs. The electroceutical fabric creates an electrical field that disables the virus, according to the South Bend Tribune. Mild COVID-19 onset observed in Wuhan, China, showed 25% had GI symptoms only; less than half had respiratory symptoms only, says an April COVID-19 study in The American Journal of Gastroenterology. In honor of Juneteenth, which marks the emancipation of African-American slaves in Texas in 1865, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., ordered the removal of Confederate portraits at the U.S. Capitol. Those in the portraits had taken actions such as swearing to “preserve and perpetuate slavery,” and had served in either the government or military of the Confederacy. Most are familiar with the dismal shortage of COVID-19 protective gear for health care workers. They may not know that hospital bills for treating the virus can run from $73,000 to more than $1 million, says Robert Reich, former U.S. secretary of labor. But, Reich notes, “we’ve seen no shortage of riot gear or tear gas” for police forces “cracking down on peaceful protesters across the country.” “Defund the police” isn’t a bid for anarchy, the Christian Science Monitor points out. Rather, it involves transfer of some police funds to projects shown to reduce the need for police response, such as education, social and health services and job opportunities in “marginalized” communities. Minneapolis recently made that commitment and plans to focus on affordable housing, opioid epidemic solutions and mental health resources. New York City has announced the end of its 600-officer plainclothes police unit, which is linked to the city’s “most notorious police shootings.” Oregon saw a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases last week. The epicenter was a church that held numerous gatherings, despite restrictions. Other church outbreaks, from The WEEK: in Arkansas 21 were infected and three died. At a choir practice in Washington, 52 of 61 members were infected and two died. In Virginia a preacher who insisted on resisting church lockdown died of COVID-19.
By Lorraine H. Marie Reader Columnist
The U.S. Supreme Court, in its recent 5-4 decision, upheld the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. The program allows children brought into the country illegally to gain a twoyear deferment from deportation, and also allows a work permit, but no path to citizenship. (Citizenship would be offered the DREAM Act, which has been stalled in Congress for 19 years.) The Court also ruled that employers cannot discriminate against LGBT workers. President Donald Trump initially indicated no resistance to the DACA ruling, but later tweeted that both of the above rulings indicate a need for new Supreme Court justices. Polls show 74% support for DACA. Last Thursday Facebook removed Trump campaign ads that used an inverted red triangle, the Nazi symbol for political prisoners (such as liberals, Social Democrats and Communists). The Washington Post reported there were 88 such ads; critics have noted that 88 is Nazi skinhead code for “Heil Hitler.” Media Matters suggested the ads were meant to demonize antifa while attracting media attention, which is cheaper than running more ads, and can attract racist and anti-censorship sympathizers. There were 1.5 million more unemployment claims filed last week, 58,000 fewer than the prior week, according to The Washington Post. More than 45 million Americans have filed at some point since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Retail sales were up 17.7% in May, but down 8% overall compared to February. The economic outlook could remain fragile when supplemental unemployment benefits end in August; in some states other unemployment expires after summer. In the U.K. use of inexpensive dexamethasone for severe COVID-19 cases has cut those deaths by a third, according to an article in Nature. The U.S. death count from COVID-19 was 122,596 on June 22, up from 118,264 on June 15, according to worldometer.com. On June 1 it was 106,562. Vice President Mike Pence recently advised governors to tell citizens that new coronavirus outbreaks are due to increased testing, The New York Times reported. The same day that Trump stated, “If we stop testing right now, we’d have very few cases, if any.” Blast from the past: “All of man’s unhappiness stems from his inability to sit quietly in a room, alone.” French philosopher Blaise Pascal, 1623-1662.
PERSPECTIVES
Emily Articulated Gaslighting
By Emily Erickson Reader Columnist Gaslighting is a subtle, yet powerful series of rhetorical tactics used by people in order to dominate, control and create doubt in the minds of others. In psychology, gaslighting is understood as a form of manipulation used by individuals or groups of people to intentionally make their victims question their own thoughts, feelings, perceptions and experiences. This is achieved through techniques like denial, minimizing, reframing and diverting, and often results in victims feeling destabilized or dissociated from their reality. Although efficacious, gaslighting can be hard to recognize because of the subtle and subversive nature of its practice. But, by identifying and describing the most common ways it is expressed both at the individual and group levels, we can easily place gaslighting in the context of interpersonal relationships and in the collective consciousness of certain social groups within our society. Common gaslighting techniques include: Blocking and Diverting. When using blocking and diverting as a gaslighting technique, the manipulator diverts the conversation away from the subject matter with the intention of taking control of the narrative. With this tactic, the topic is pivoted away from the original conversation, focusing on the manipulator’s experience rather than the previous subject matter. This can sound like, “Don’t put me through this same old fight again.” Countering. Similar to diverting, countering uses manipulation to shift the subject matter away from the topic being discussed. By changing the subject, the manipulator will call the victim’s thoughts into question; will refuse to acknowledge an experience or recollection; and will often pose a self-serving question as a
Emily Erickson. response, seeking to diminish their victim’s conviction. An example of this is, “Don’t you remember what happened the last time you thought that way?” Minimizing and Trivializing. When gaslighting with the techniques of minimizing and trivializing, a manipulator will attempt to make their victim’s thoughts, feelings or perceptions seem insignificant. The manipulator will imply the victim’s experience is blown out of proportion, or that they are being irrational for feeling strongly about something. Gaslighting through minimizing sounds like, “I was just kidding, don’t be so sensitive.” Avoidance and Denial. When using avoidance and denial to gaslight their victims, manipulators will circumvent conversations that are disadvantageous to them, and will strategically forget experiences, conversations and promises to maintain power over the narrative. An example of this would be, “That is not what happened, you’re making things up again.” Twisting and Reframing. When a manipulator uses a twisting and reframing technique, they’re reconstructing their victim’s words and experiences to make themselves the victim or to paint themselves in an altruistic light. To do this, manipulators often call the victim’s experience or memory into question, and use confidence
and bravado to foster doubt. This would sound like, “If you’d actually stop to think about what happened, you’d realize I was trying to help you.” The techniques of gaslighting are not limited to individual relationships, and can be used by larger groups of people to manipulate or suppress the viewpoints of other groups of people. Group gaslighting occurs through the concept of collective consciousness, or when a set of beliefs, ideas or moral attitudes are shared by a group of people. Lately, locally and in my own circles, I’ve noticed the manifestation of group gaslighting being used to suppress conversations and calls to action around the Black Lives Matter movement. Although many of the gaslighters I’ve identified aren’t consciously engaging in these tactics, their comments and counter-arguments neatly fit the bill of manipulation. Examples of collective gaslighting from my world of late: Blocking and Diverting. When confronted about her agitation with the Aunt Jemima syrup bottle being rebranded, one woman I know from my hometown shifted the conversation away from the subject matter, highlighting her own experience instead. She said, “I’m just so sick of all of this racism crap. Slavery was a long time ago. I’m just glad my grandkids won’t have to experience this.” Countering. When discussing the present-day effects of the institution of American slavery, another woman near to my heart countered my question about the Black experience in America with a question of her own. She asked, “Well, what about Irish slavery?” What’s more, Irish “slavery” is a myth — indentured servitude, while being its own injustice and affecting many groups other than Irish immigrants, was not the same as chattel slavery for several reasons — not least of which was that indenture could be worked off and
A column by and about Millennials
was not inheritable by children. Minimizing and Trivializing. When presented with a list of demands by local activists, one local government official attempted to make their ideas seem trivial, and the subject of their concerns small. He said, “We will always have that small percentage of bad actors in every society and even here in Bonner County but to paint the entire population with the broad brush of racism and bigotry is irresponsible and ignorant.” Avoidance and Denial. When discussing the importance of making people of color feel welcome in our community instead of fearful, one local Facebook commentator denied the fact that some people have had negative experiences with racism in our community. She said, “If people of
color were to come walk around our town, they’d get nothing but smiles.” Twisting and Reframing. When considering the idea behind the “Love Lives Here” movement, many commentators have reframed themselves into being victims instead of manipulators. They say, “The problem is, love does not live there, I’ve seen more hate and bias labeling behind those signs than love. Love only is extended to those that agree with their narrative.” By understanding gaslighting and its manipulation effects, we can better prepare ourselves to recognize and counteract the tactics, preserving productive conversation and confidence in our own perspectives.
Retroactive
By BO
June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 7
City survey regarding dogs in park...
Bouquets: • In June 2019, Lars and Wendy Jacobson bought the Porthill Mercantile and changed the name to Jake’s Landing. When COVID-19 hit in March, the border between the U.S. and Canada shut down and the Jacobsons lost 90% of their business overnight. Now, they are potentially losing their water supply due to new restrictions from the local water association. Some locals started a GoFundMe page to help this North Idaho family weather the storm after losing $12,000$15,000 per month. To help them out, visit: gofundme.com/f/savejake039s-landing • This week’s Bouquet goes out to members of the Sandpoint City Council — especially Mayor Shelby Rognstad — for their patience with the public during the council meeting on June 17. I’ve seen a few dumpster fires in my day, but the public forum portions of that meeting sure took the cake. It reminded me of the “Two Minutes Hate” that George Orwell wrote about in 1984, when the populace gathered daily to scream vitriol and hate at whomever was their sworn enemy at the time. I suppose it makes some feel better when they project their anger to others without offering any constructive critique or ideas. It was embarrassing to listen to this hot mess of conspiracy theories, low blows, gaslighting and downright rudeness projected by some members of this community and some out-oftowners. Kudos to the council for staying professional throughout that ugly portion of the meeting. Barbs: • Coronavirus cases are rising in Bonner County, as well as statewide. To those who refuse to take this pandemic seriously: What if it was a member of your family that died because of your stubborn refusal to follow basic public health guidelines? 8 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
Dear editor, The city of Sandpoint has opened up the discussion of allowing dogs on leashes in parks. Sandpoint has increasingly become a town of dog lovers. The subject of allowing them in parks hasn’t come up for conversation for a long time. The ban on dogs in parks has been in effect since 1994. This is our chance to speak up on the issue. One point to consider is about City Beach specifically. There has been a drive going for the last few years to reduce the number of geese at the beach by transplanting them elsewhere and possibly euthanizing the ones that return. A hazing dog has been used as one of the solutions. The dog’s presence scatters the geese, but doesn’t keep them from coming back. If dogs are allowed on a leash at City Beach their constant presence may serve as a deterrent. It could be a win/win for dogs, their owners and the geese. Whatever your feelings are, please make them known by participating in the survey: opentownhall.com/portals/287/Issue_9060. The survey will be online until the end of June. Cynthia Mason Hope
Jumping the wave… Dear editor, Now that we have become numbed by the repeated dribbling of a COVID-19 case here, a COVID-19 case there, it would be wise to have a deeper insight into who was afflicted and where the cases have occurred. If there were to be a repeat of the wave of virus-related cases, each of us would be better prepared if we knew more details about the current cases. Starting with the current number of cases and adding the average duration of illness, as well as the number (and percentage) of recoveries in Bonner County, only. a breakout of the age groups hit (say, below 20, 20-40, 41-60, 61-70, 71+) would provide a deeper understanding of how to protect ourselves. A generalized description of the occupations of the patients (health care, police and fire, entertainment, etc.) would identify the occupations most at-risk. An explanation of how many of the cases were residents of Bonner County would further deepen the awareness of the threat. As nursing home residents have been hard hit by the virus, a reporting on how many COVID-19 cases occurred in Bonner County nursing homes, and the percentage of cases fully recovered, would aid everyone to plan and prepare before
another outbreak occurs. Instead of being susceptible to the chicken little syndrome of running from the threat, it would be wiser to better know the threat and to take it on directly. Certainly an enterprising investigative reporter could gather those facts and inform everyone. Jeremy Conlin Cocollala
Editor’s note: The Panhandle Health District, as well as state and federal health agencies, are compiling and tracking the information you referred to every day, and several of the points you mentioned can be found by looking at coronavirus.idaho.gov. Until this is “over,” whatever that looks like — and health experts, academic researchers and journalists can sift through the resulting mountains of information — wear your mask and wash your hands.
Keep on keeping on with COVID-19 precautions... Dear editor, I want to thank the Reader and the Bee for their excellent coverage of COVID-19 in our area. Governor Brad Little announced [last Thursday, June 11] the state narrowly met criteria to enter the final stage of the Idaho Rebounds plan to safely and responsibly open the economy in stages, highlighting the importance of individuals strengthening their personal actions to slow the spread of COVID-19 in Idaho. “Our economic rebound cannot occur without sufficient health care capacity, a healthy population, and consumer and employee confidence. The most effective way to achieve a strong rebound and keep Idaho open is for all of us to step up our personal actions to protect ourselves, our families and our neighbors and preserve the sacrifices we all made to get us here,” Governor Little said. Community transmission has occurred in Kootenai, Bonner and Benewah counties, according to Panhandle Health District. We’ve seen our first death (in Kootenai County). As we all watch to see what will happen, I urge everyone to take four basic precautions: Social distance; Wash hands often; Wear a mask. Frequent restaurants, supermarkets, drug stores and other businesses that follow these guidelines and also wipe down surfaces. We have done a great job in protecting our community so far. Let’s keep it up! The best way for me to protect myself is to protect against community spread. As a bonus, I will continue to see my family, friends and neigh-
bors healthy and happy. Nancy Gerth Sagle
‘A hollow demagogic fraud’… Dear editor, If the GOP elected officials are that concerned about keeping their jobs why do they continue to support the president when his ratings are falling? Rats appear smarter than GOP senators. The GOP has long ignored the president’s moral failures, misogyny, racism, xenophobia, corruption, narcissism, hubris and the opinions of medical professionals in their scramble to retain power. What will it take for these officials to wake up? America has two crises on hand now: a systemic, moral one that has been building for 400 years and the other is a real plague. Neither of these has been dealt with appropriately by this president or congress. When peaceful protesters are gassed for a photo-op is that the breaking point? There are things that must be done by Congress for the good of the American people. History will show that if the Senate had done its constitutional duty during the impeachment trial and listened, instead of napping as did Idaho Republican Sen. Jim Risch, we wouldn’t be in this position today. They took an oath to defend our Constitution. Nationwide let’s elect representatives that will do that instead of supporting a hollow demagogic fraud. Vote for America and all of her people this November. Gil Beyer Sandpoint
No interest in Fourth of July ‘partisan political rally’... Dear editor, As I understand it, a “group” of “local” citizens have decided to put on a July 4 celebration. From reports in this publication, other ones and word of mouth, the “events” will be an “exclusionary” affair. That only those who entertain a certain political viewpoint will “really” be welcome. I and most of my fellow Sandpoint natives will not be attending, or so I hope. The Lion’s club, a long time “inclusionary,” “real” patriotic organization is remembered fondly for their legacy that celebrates what the United States really should be — not a partisan political rally. Hopefully we’ll be able to celebrate our Independence Day in 2021 with President Joe Biden. Lawrence Fury Sandpoint
Camo or tie-dye… Dear editor, Contrary to the opinions of letter writers Giddings, Rutherford, and Audit [Letters, June 18, 2020], I find it useful to know the backgrounds of the Fourth of July organizers so I know what to wear: camo or tie-dye. Ted Wert Sagle
‘Some say’… Dear editor, I am no scholar of the English language, although I am pretty adept at four-letter words. However, I have learned a brilliant language technique from our orator-in-chief that I would like to pass on. It seems that you can use the phrases “some say,” or, “a lot of people are saying,” preceding any thought and that thought is anointed with instant credibility! To wit: “ Some say ingesting household disinfectants will kill COVID-19 (a.k.a The Kung Flu).” I foresee many uses for this. Here’s an example that could be used by our chamber of commerce: “Some say that Sandpoint is sunny year round.” Let me dig out my sunglasses! As a public service, I feel compelled to offer other ways of using “some say” to show how it might be applied in daily life: “Some say that Commissioner Dan McDonald calling on good ole boys with black guns to patrol a peaceful Black Lives Matter rally was not only constitutional but had zero chance of intimidating normal citizens and getting out of hand.” Or perhaps, “Some say McDonald called on the citizen ‘militia’ to patrol the rally since the Sandpoint Police Department and the National Guard were all pretty busy.” “Some say Sheriff Darryl Wheeler only used his office letterhead to send a letter to the Idaho governor to roll back the COVID-19 shelter-in-place guidelines, ‘reinstate the constitution’ and point out the governor’s confusion that this was not the Black Plague because his home printer was out of paper.” “Some say that McDonald called ITD to remove the chalk ‘graffiti’ under the City Beach bridge not because he disagreed with the political expression, but rather came from a love of bridges that he has had since he was a young boy.” Are you getting the hang of it now? Duke Diercks Sandpoint
< One more letter to the editor on page 9 >
OPINION
Defining ‘vigilante’…
It’s time to restore fairness to our property taxes By Rep. Jake Ellis, D-Boise Special to the Reader As an Idaho taxpayer and state representative, it is my priority to address the property tax problem that is crushing everyday Idahoans. Governor Brad Little has proposed the use of pandemic relief funds for lowering property taxes related to emergency services. Let’s be clear, however: this is a temporary fix for a broken system. Property values are still rising, and we shouldn’t kick this can down the road any further. Idahoans want strong schools for our children, safe roads that get them to work, and a reliable emergency response system. They understand that our property taxes provide revenue for these crucial services and much more. What Idahoans expect is that the revenue will be raised fairly, and this is where the state is falling short. Property taxes are rising at an unsustainable rate and we must enact real solutions urgently. As a member of the House Revenue and Taxation Committee, I hear you and I agree: I don’t want our elders choosing between medication and food just to stay in the homes they’ve worked their entire lives to pay off. Homeowners in Idaho find themselves surrounded by rapid growth, traffic, and increased costs for daily life. Unfortunately, the Idaho Legislature has enacted policies that continue to shift the tax load onto homeowners and away from other taxpayers. And the House refused to hear workable solutions to reverse this trend. Most homeowners receive an exemption — a portion of their home’s value that is considered non-taxable. Before 2016, homeowner’s exemptions were indexed to inflation, so as values rose, exemptions increased as well.
But in 2016, exemptions were capped — a major victory for business lobbyists and one more straw on the camel’s back for the rest of us. If I had been in the Legislature at the time, I would have voted against this bill (as did every Democrat in office) because one could have easily predicted how this would hurt regular Idahoans. We have seen the shift in Ada County. Today, homeowners pay 70% of the tax load and the rest is divided among commercial and agricultural property owners. It is well past time to restore the inflation-index to the homeowner’s exemption and make sure others pay their fair share. Another avenue for help is Idaho’s circuit-breaker. This property tax assistance program helps seniors and veterans with disabilities with a portion of their property tax if they are income-eligible. Yet even with the circuit-breaker, low-income seniors are paying four times more in property taxes today than they did in 2006. Senate Bill 1417 was introduced in 2020 to update the circuit-breaker and allow more Idahoans to participate, but House leadership refused to hear it. To make matters worse, there are 73 property tax exemptions written into State law. Entities including entities like big business, developers, and oil & gas companies, don’t pay property taxes in many cases. These exemptions are rarely reviewed and don’t expire. Finally, it must be noted that a large portion of education funding was shifted from the state responsibility and placed on individual school districts beginning in 2006. Since then, levies and bonds have added to property taxes. The Idaho Constitution requires that the state provide a “free and thorough” education but schools are given inadequate resources to meet this obligation. The state also prevents school districts from
assessing impact fees on developers to pay for the new school buildings that growth demands. Here’s what I’ll be working for in the 2021 legislative session: increase the homeowner’s exemption. Increase the circuit-breaker to assist more seniors and veterans with disabilities with their property taxes. Fund schools so bonds and levies are unnecessary. Devote a greater portion of sales tax revenues to benefit the cities and counties where they are generated. Allow school districts to assess impact fees on new development to pay for new school buildings, so that growth pays for itself. The State Office of Performance Evaluations is systematically reviewing exemptions and deductions. I will study those results and look for ways to make our tax system fairer. The super-majority in Idaho’s legislature has the power to help homeowners any time they choose. I supported numerous bills during 2020 that would have reduced property taxes, but the House of Representatives refused to give them a hearing. What we will continue to do, is listen to Idahoans, seek common ground with the majority party, and bring creative solutions to the table. We won’t give up. Jake Ellis is a first-term Democratic House member, representing District 15, Seat B in Boise. A retired firefighter, he serves on the Commerce and Human Resources; Environment, Energy and Technology; and Revenue and Taxation committees.
Dear editor, The definition of vigilante offered by Sandpoint Mayor Shelby Rognstad is defined as: members of a self-appointed group of citizens who undertake law enforcement in their community without legal authority, typically because the legal agencies are thought to be inadequate. Rognstad’s description omits the italicized language to promote ideological division. “Patriots” exercising their constitutional and statutory rights are of the same law enforcement understanding… that as peaceful as the local protests are, it is well proven and undisputable, that there are many nationwide that have an agenda and desire to usurp “events” by interjecting violence. The Constitution is founded on life liberty and happiness. Life being the primary interest here, though liberty and happiness also apply. Life has no qualifiers of color or age, born and unborn. “Patriots” assumingly understand the concept of life to the point they were ensuring safety by aiding some property owners to their vehicles and deterring property destruction. They were truly demonstrating the “Love Lives Here” philosophy. Great job in acting as a deterrent force. Again, the peaceful protesters supporting life are not the “patriot” opposition. Inaccurate and inflammatory descriptions and characterizations of community members is unproductive. As proven in past weeks, yes, we “can all get along.” I’m greatly inspired by the nonpartisan response to the Recall of Gov. Brad Little. We really do have some First and Second Amendment common ground. However, fraudulent representation serve Little good! Daniel Rose, Samuels
Editor’s note: Mr. Rose’s definition of “vigilante,” as it relates to the phrase “typically because the legal agencies are thought to be inadequate,” is not an accepted definition of the term. It appears on encyclopedia.com, oxfordreference.com (not to be confused with The Oxford English Dictionary), and conservopedia.com. Neither my Webster’s, nor my Britannica, nor my Oxford dictionaries (nor any of my thesauri) include that phrase or any related verbiage. Regardless, dictionaries are not legal documents, much less online “dictionaries.”
June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 9
Mad about Science: By Brenden Bobby Reader Columnist Aside from the wooden club, so-called “cavemen” are often depicted with wooden spears. While it’s true that the spear is among the most primitive weapons used by humans, spears were also used regularly in combat as recently as 56 years ago. The origins of the spear as a hominid technology likely date to between 300,000 and 400,000 years ago, used primarily as throwing weapons for taking down large and lumbering megafauna of the neolithic period. Think about it: Would you want to go toe-to-toe with a wooly mammoth or a megasloth when you could throw a pointy stick at it and run away? The basis of the spear is extremely simple while also being highly versatile. As a melee weapon, a spear provides greater reach than what your arms can achieve on their own. Additionally, the sharpened point acts as a force multiplier, focusing the kinetic energy applied into a small area — that makes it more likely to damage flesh and vital organs than if you were to use an object with a larger surface area like a blunted stick. This force is further increased when the weapon is thrown, as all of the energy that is making the weapon travel is applied the moment it impacts a target. Due to the nature of how force is applied with a spear, it is also capable of becoming a powerful lever. As you likely remember from high school physics, the way a lever works is by 10 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
spears
distributing the force on either end across its total surface when leveraged against a fulcrum. The longer your lever, the lighter the object you’re trying to lift on the other end is perceived to be. This trait has been utilized to devastating effect for its most pivotal purpose in warfare: as an anti-cavalry weapon. The strength of a cavalry unit in warfare is its speed and the amount of force it can exert against a target by transferring a tremendous amount of kinetic energy from the horse to an infantry target. When that level of force is transferred to a human body, the bones and organs are destroyed and death ensues. This can be flipped when a line of infantry utilizes spears to intercept the horse. Instead of transferring all of that energy to a soft and squishy human body, the force of the horse’s impact is spread through a very small area, the tip of the spear, which will then impale the poor beast and potentially deliver catastrophic damage to both the horse and its rider. Now this might sound insane if you imagine yourself holding a slim piece of pointed wood at a thousand-pound animal rushing straight at you, and you’re right. If you were simply holding the weapon, the force being delivered by the horse’s momentum would transfer to you, potentially knocking the weapon out of your hands and trampling you in the process. To counteract this, the front line of spearmen would wedge the back of the spear into the ground in a tactic called bracing, which would transfer the shock of the impact into the
Brought to you by:
ground, safely dispersing it away from the soldiers — provided the spear didn’t break. The spear was a common weapon throughout the Bronze Age, employed by the hoplites of Greece and eventually the legionaries of Rome. The spear gave tremendous reach to organized formations that could effectively poke the weapon’s point through gaps in enemy armor and shield formations. It was a weapon used extensively by the vikings who invaded England from 793 CE to 1066 CE for the same reasons it was so favored during the Bronze Age: It was an effective tool that was inexpensive to mass produce — traits that were favorable enough to keep the weapon in common use through the Medieval period and all the way into the age of gunpowder. Even though swords were highly romanticized during the Middle Ages, they were difficult for most people to use and very expensive to produce while the tip of a spear required only a fraction of the amount of metal required to forge. As for its modern uses, spears have largely fallen out of favor, but it may surprise you to know that a rifle fashioned with a bayonet fulfills all of the roles utilized by spears throughout the history of warfare. Bayonets were used often during the American Revolutionary War as well as the American Civil War, and they were employed with tactics used by the Swiss pikemen of the late-Medieval period: form a line and stab the bad guys before they could shoot you. Bayonets were last in regular
use during the Vietnam War, where they were well suited for vicious close-range combat in the dense jungle foliage. Bayonets are seldom used today, having been pushed away in favor of automatic weapons and devastatingly powerful sidearms used alongside cutting-edge combat optics and military tactics, but they did see very brief usage in Afghanistan after a unit of British soldiers led a surprise bayonet charge in 2004.
Outside of the military, spears are now primarily used for ocean harpoon fishing and Olympic javelin throwing — the world record being a throw of 323 feet, nearly the length of a football field. If you’re curious about the history of the spear or warfare in general, stop by the library. I’m sure the librarians will be happy to point you in the right direction. Stay curious, 7B.
Random Corner body? man
Don’t know much about the hu
• Your nose can “remember” 50,000 different scents. Let’s hope most of them were pleasant. • Humans shed about 600,000 particles of skin every hour. • There are 100,000 miles of blood vessels in an adult human body. • An average person produces about 25,000 quarts of saliva in a lifetime, enough to fill two swimming pools. • Your body has enough iron in it to make a metal nail 3 inches long. • The majority of us have tiny mites living in our eyelashes. • The strongest muscle in the human body is the masseter (jaw muscle). • Sweat itself is odorless. It’s the bacteria on the skin that mingles with it and produces body odor. • Having excessive body hair is linked to higher intellect.
We can help!
• The human ears and nose never stop growing. • Similar to fingerprints, everyone also has a unique tongue print. • Ounce for ounce, human bones are stronger than steel. • People with blue eyes have a higher alcohol tolerance. • The human eye can distinguish between about 10 million different colors. • We spend about 10% of our waking hours with our eyes closed, blinking. • If the human eye was a digital camera it would have 576 megapixels. • All of the bacteria in our body collectively weighs about 4 pounds. • Your heartbeat changes and mimics the music you listen to. • There are more bacteria in your mouth than there are people in the world.
POINT / COUNTERPOINT
Is ‘defunding the police’ a good idea?
To reform or not
Hammers and nails
By Bill Litsinger Reader Contributor
By Luke Baumgarten Reader Contributor
Some might say that the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back. The camel in this case being many members of society, who, after seeing the video of his death felt that something historic had to be done in the way that police perform their duties and justify their actions. I, for one, agree that the video was hard to digest and could not for a moment understand how this incident took place while three officers stood by as if they were afraid to challenge the actions of a senior officer. The main questions so many have asked, including myself, are why on earth did this officer think his actions were justified? This was not the way he was trained, or was it? Did he think his actions would be overlooked by superior officers in the department? Was the lack of interaction by the other three officers tacit approval of what was being done to Mr. Floyd? Law enforcement in Bonner County is extremely intimate. I know many of the deputies, two of the chiefs and some of our Sandpoint officers. That gives us a real advantage over bigger municipalities in terms of accountability. And I have seen accountability during the time I’ve lived here, beginning in 1994. Intimacy brings law enforcement and the people to a more personal level. I know this because I worked for a law enforcement agency that had 10,000 sworn officers. In a community and agency like that, not only is it difficult to get to know the people you serve, at times you barely know your partner. Historically, city police departments have been governed by a city council and the mayor. They set policy, determine minimum standards for hiring and retention, and set the policy for conduct while on and off duty. This is good. I applaud local control because those in control are put in office by the voters. Reform or change in police work is an ever-evolving process, and I believe there is a necessity for some reform or change. But any change in policy or training should be made at the local level. The secret to success in any movement is finding a balance between what changes are going to take place and what effect these changes will have on overall organizational performance. Law enforcement officers are commissioned with a great deal of authority over the populace they serve. There is not much
of a choice by the citizens of any community when their lives or property are in danger of being injured or destroyed. You might say law enforcement agencies carry a monopoly over the people they serve. My experience tells me that change does not come easy in police work. There seems to be a built-in resistance to change. That being said, the police have to evolve along with society. That makes it incumbent on all involved — the community, elected officials and the departments themselves — to periodically review policy, training and standards used in the hiring process. Building a successful police department is much like constructing a multi-story structure: You have to have a solid foundation with those you hire and those that manage in order to continue on the upper floors. Some change is massive, some not so much. Before we fly off the handle and throw the baby out with the bath water because of a few bad cops, massive media coverage, a great deal of justified community outrage and more than a fair share of lawlessness by a few in the community, we must sit down with all involved and put on our thinking caps. We must not act in haste when evaluating such a strategic service to our community. As long as state statutes are adhered to, policy must be made by individual departments. You can’t have a one-size-fits-all approach in determining policies across the board. What works, or would work, for the Sandpoint Police Department may not be so for the Idaho State Police. Community mores, geographic location and community needs must be taken into account. This “defund the police” and “dismantle and rebuild” approach is knee-jerk, unnecessary and extremely counterproductive. It reeks of anger and anti-police sentiment, and that solves nothing. When deciding what change — if any — is going to take place, consider the conditions under which police work. They often don’t have the luxury of a “wait-andsee” perspective. They often have to make a split-second decision. Don’t take away the tools they need to do their jobs professionally — after all, they are the community’s first line of defense. Bill Listinger is a retired Los Angeles police officer and formerly taught in the Justice Studies Department at Lewis & Clark State College. A Bonner County resident since 1994, he hosts “The Voice” radio talk show, which airs Tuesdays at 12:10 p.m. on 1400-1450 AM and 97. FM.
As “Defund the Police” has come to occupy a central place in American discourse, I’ve seen a lot of people acting dazed. Like it came out of nowhere. While it’s new to the center stage of American politics, the movement to rethink policing has been around for a long time — not just because of the rate at which people of color die at the hands of police. In his 2017 book, The End Of Policing, Brooklyn College professor Alex Vitale makes a forceful argument that the horrifying abuses that go viral online are the tip of the iceberg. Just the most blatant, visible tip of a much bigger problem: We ask cops to do too much. Violent crime — the stuff that fills seasons of CSI and Law & Order — is less than 4% of a cop’s job. The rest is a mix ranging from civil infractions like traffic tickets to petty vandalism to minor possession to theft to mediating interpersonal conflicts between intimate partners to responding to front-line mental health crises. We ask police to do these things without specific or adequate training; we ask them to do even the least dangerous things while carrying a sidearm, and we give them a narrow list of possible final outcomes in any situation: give someone a warning, a ticket or send them to jail. When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. We don’t ask carpenters to be psychiatrists, but we do ask cops to be couples therapists. Historically, politicians — including and perhaps especially sheriffs and elected prosecutors — have been afraid to incarcerate fewer people for fear of being labeled weak on crime. Then coronavirus happened. In response to COVID-19, Spokane County, where I live, reduced its jail population from a daily average near 1,000 to closer to 600. Spokane Police COMPSTAT stats show crime has not meaningfully risen. The Spokane County Jail budget is close to $40 million per year and officials estimate that on a cost-basis, one cop’s salary and benefits can buy you two social workers. Spokane Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich and county commissioners have bemoaned for more than a decade that the jail is the county’s largest mental health facility — but never express willingness to build mental health capacity elsewhere. Let’s trade in some of our hammers for saws and drills and — God forbid — maybe some lumber and concrete so that we might actually build something new, something lasting, something that might actually heal
people and get them back on their feet. In the end, what good is a locked box of broken nails? But because we aren’t actually talking about hammers and nails, we can’t stop at jail. In law enforcement, the hammer is actually a gun — and since the mid-2000s, military surplus weapons and vehicles. The reality is that social workers, health care workers and mental health workers do their jobs day-in, day-out without the use of weapons. De-escalation is the point. Keeping people safe when they’re at their absolute lowest is the point. Diversionary programs like community and drug courts have proven incredibly effective. In the roughly 10 years since Spokane began its community court more than 70% of participants have completed the program and never reoffended. Jail certainly doesn’t have that kind of success rate. But because we spend so much money on policing and incarceration, we have little left to make these programs more than pilots. Seeing these successes, there’s a growing national reform movement advocating for Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD). It’s a promising way to create buy-in among officers within the system we have, but many community leaders feel it’s too little, too late. Especially because the most strident opponents of even basic reform are police guilds themselves — a topic that would require a whole other column to unpack. So I’ll end with this: my parents taught me it’s what you do when people aren’t watching that matters. If law enforcement was serious about reform, agencies would have invested in LEAD before George Floyd, before Philando Castile, before Otto Zehm and before everyone had a video recorder on their hip. They would have changed before Rodney King. Before that Bloody Sunday in Selma, Ala., 1965. Certainly before the entire nation exploded in revolt over the increasingly videotaped murder of unarmed civilians, jumping above the baseline radiation of a system that polices too harshly and over-incarcerates everyone, but especially people of color. Decades of calls for reform have fallen on deaf ears. Is it any wonder the demand is now to defund? Luke Baumgarten began his journalism career at the Reader in 2004, followed by a long, award-winning career at the Pacific Northwest Inlander. You can find his latest media project, RANGE, at range.substack.com. June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 11
OUTDOORS
Doggie do’s By Susan Drumheller Reader Contributor The dog days of summer have arrived and with them come the perpetual joys and challenges of socializing and training our beloved pets so they can coexist easily with others on the trails and in other public spaces. The Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail is a favorite haunt for pups and people alike. This shoreline trail is an oasis where dogs and people can run free of leashes. But along with the intense use the trail has been getting this spring, come the complaints. The most common is failure to pick up doggy doo-doos. Eclipsing the concern over fecal matter on the shoreline and on the trail (or those little plastic bags filled with dog turds that do not actually disappear without help) is the complaint of an overeager or even semi-aggressive dog that accosts a walker or a runner or another leashed, or better behaved, canine. Numerous complaints have led the Friends of the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail to remind all trail users that not everyone appreciates a dog barreling toward them, no matter whether it intends to lick or snap. To drive home that message — and a couple others — the Friends of the Bay Trail will be installing signs with a few gentle reminders to keep your dog under control and to clean up after your furry companion. Coincidentally, the city of Sandpoint is inviting residents to take a survey about dogs in parks. This was partly in response to a request that dogs be allowed at City Beach to provide a deterrent to the flocks of geese that pollute the shallow swimming area and the promenade with their own slimy droppings. This is a fabulous idea, because the “official” trailhead of the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail (“Bay Trail” for short, or — for you diehard locals out there — “Bum Jungle”) is actually at City Beach. The distance markers along the trail installed several months ago are measured from the point where 12 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
the beachfront promenade in front of the Edgewater Resort meets the sidewalk that encircles City Beach. You can see the Master Trail and Interpretive Plan on the Friends of the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail website (pobtrail.org), which has a conceptual design for what that trailhead might look like. The city embraced the idea of a trailhead in its latest proposal for the makeover of City Beach, and that trailhead may also include some dedicated parking spaces for trail users. However, dogs are well-established on the Bay Trail. That’s why it only makes sense that dogs are allowed — at least on leash — at City Beach, so that they and their owners can get to the shoreline trail and run free. Once there, along the water’s edge and in the dappled sunlight of the forested trail, make sure your dog is under control at least by your voice, so that peace can prevail in our collective front yard. So what would Emily Post say about dogs and people sharing the trail? After doing some research, here’s what the Friends found to be the most common dog etiquette guidelines; • All dogs need to be under control at all times when using the trail. This means that if your dog is off leash, it should be under voice control. If this is not possible, keep your dog on a leash. Dogs should also be within sight at all times, and should not harass/chase wildlife or other dogs or people. • Dogs should only approach other people and dogs after there has been communication with the other people. Do not let your dog run up to other people or dogs without asking first. • Pick up after your dog. If you don’t have bags, grab a couple at the head of the trail, where they are provided for free and use them to help keep the Bay Trail beautiful and clean for all. • If someone is trying to pass you and your dog, move yourself and your dog far enough off the trail that the other party can
“Please clean up after us!” get by comfortably. This means bringing your dog close to you, perhaps holding it as others pass, and making sure that everyone is safe and comfortable while passing. Susan Drumheller is president of Friends of the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail, and secretary of Trail Mix, a local collaborative group of land managers, government entities, trail groups, and others with a stake in access, maintenance and expansion of trails in Bonner County. Trail Dispatches is an educational effort of Trail Mix.
FEATURE
Female SHS grad deployed for historic combat launch By Ben Olson Reader Staff
Air Force fighter pilots and maintainers have traditionally been male, but the future looks a lot different as more and more females join the ranks of these career fields and make history while they do it. Recently, Capt. Emily “Banzai” Thompson, an F-35A Lightning II pilot, deployed from the 388th Fighter Wing at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, made history as she flew in combat, making her the first female to do so in that airframe. “This is my first deployment … so for me it was a pretty big deal, the first combat sortie for me. … Of course being the first female, it’s a pretty big honor,” Thompson said in a 388th Fighter Wing newsletter. “There’s a lot of females who have come before me and there’s a lot of females already flying combat sorties in other platforms. So just to be the person who gets that honor, that first, it just meant a lot.” Thompson graduated from Sandpoint High School in 2009. According to classmate Dalton Hawkins, Thompson ran cross country and played in band. She later went on to study aerospace engineering at Kansas University, where she also participated in Air Force ROTC. “She spent a year or two in South Korea before being selected to fly the F-35,” Hawkins told the Reader. Thompson said her childhood dreams were to be a veterinarian or a police officer. “From there, realistic dreams set in and I wanted to be an engineer,” Thompson said. “I went to college to be an aerospace engineer, which is what my degree is in. Then I sort of found out about the whole pilot thing — I could fly, instead of build the airplanes, and it just kind of took off from there.” It has taken Thompson time to get to this point in her career, which began as an F-16 Fighting Falcon pilot. After graduating college, she spent about a year and a half in pilot training
for the F-16, completed a tour in that airframe, then went on to training for the F-35A. On the day of her first combat sortie, she had an all-female maintenance crew launch her off for the historic flight. Airman First Class Ashlin Randolph, a weapons load crew member, was one of a four-person team on duty for the historic launch. “It was very empowering, it was awesome,” Randolph said. Randolph, also on her first deployment, is new to marshalling jets. It was only her third time marshalling on the day of the launch. “I always get really nervous, so I had medics, my lieutenants and intelligence [personnel], and they were all females,” Randolph said. “They were all there to support me.”
Randolph is new to the Lightning Technician Program, which allows F-35A maintainers to broaden their knowledge and experience on the airframe. Thompson, who is part of a small number of F-35A female pilots, looks to what’s next. “I think it’s a bright future,” Thompson said. “There [are] a number of us already in the F-35 and I think the number is just going to continue to grow. It’s a very supportive community, it’s very open. I think the opportunity for women to really excel in the F-35 is definitely there.” Thompson encouraged young females coming up after her. “Know there’s a lot of supportive people out there,” Thompson said. “Just stay positive, work hard and you can achieve whatever you set your mind out to do, you can get it done.”
Top right and left: Capt. Emily “Banzai” Thompson readies for a sortie in an F-35A Lighting II with the 388th Fighter Wing at Hills Air Force Base in Utah. Photo courtesy 388th Fighter Wing, USAF.
June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 13
Always Something N
ew!
14 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
COMMUNITY
CAL announces grant, scholarship recipients By Reader Staff
Community Assistance League Grants Chair Tracy Gibson and committee are pleased to announce that CAL has given financial support totaling $101,200 to 38 local nonprofit organizations. The committee was challenged this year with COVID-19, canceled programs, extended deadlines, meeting logistics, emergency funding requests and a quiet Bizarre Bazaar Store — the main source of funding for CAL’s activities. Yet, the service organization continued its fourdecades-old practice of issuing grants and scholarships to support local groups, students and government programs. The following nonprofit organizations and government programs are the recipients of the 2020 grants: Sandpoint Parks and Recreation, for the department’s Youth Scholarship Fund; Kinderhaven, to fund the replacement of interior doors and hardware; Sandpoint Middle School, for use of the school garden by the culinary class; and the Sandpoint Youth Center, to fund the culinary healthy food after school program. Other nonprofits benefiting from CAL support included Creations Sandpoint, for new learning tools in the nonprofit’s Discovery Museum; the Sandpoint Pirate Ship, for treasure chest toys and maintenance; the Sandpoint Soccer Association, to fund scholarships for low-income families; Friends of the West Bonner County Library, to create an educational play area; the Priest River Museum, to fund a safety gate; the
local chapter of Court Appointed Special Advocates, to fund web-based conversion and training for advocate reporting; and Food For Our Children’s weekend food program. The Festival at Sandpoint received a grant to fund its youth school programs, as well as the Clark Fork-Hope Food Bank, to help purchase new refrigeration equipment; Community Cancer Services, for grocery vouchers; Sandpoint Community Resource Center, to create resource directories; the Bonner County Historical Society, to fund archival material kits; Panhandle Special Needs, Inc., for greenhouse repairs; Sandpoint Area Seniors, to upgrade the organization’s entrance for ADA compliance; and The Panhandle Chapter of Trout Unlimited, to help fund the annual Trout About Festival. Other recipients included Helping Hands Healing Hearts, for housing support for local families; the Bonner Community and Priest Lake Food Banks, for food purchases; the Farmers’ Market at Sandpoint, to fund the market’s SNAP low income food program; the Sagle Fire District, to upgrade gas detection equipment; Bonner Homeless Transitions, to restore a two-bedroom unit for homeless women; Sandpoint High School, to fund the annual Finance Fair for senior students. Finally, Idaho Hill Elementary School received funds to support the creation of a maker-space classroom and rural household free bookstore; Southside Elementary School, for classroom supplies; Junior Achievement, for SMS classes relating to finance education; The Village
Green Project, to provide books for area children; Selkirk Outdoor Leadership Education, to fund its Snow School programs; Priest River Elementary, to fund project-based learning; North Idaho High School Aerospace Program, for an aircraft completion project; the Sandpoint Nordic Club, to fund ski and snowshoe programs for Bonner County students; Pend Oreille Arts Council, for the nonprofit’s Kaleidoscope and Ovations programs; and the Music Conservatory of Sandpoint, the fund instrument repairs and the purchase of a piano. CAL also awarded 49 scholarships to area students in 2020 — the most ever given by one organization. “CAL is the most generous and consistent group with whom we work,” said Sandpoint High School counselor Jeralyn Mire. “I marvel at their commitment to our school through their scholarship and grants programs.” CAL is also unique in that, in addition to high-school graduates, the organization offers renewal scholarships to college students. This year, CAL Scholarship Chair Sally Lowry and her committee members persisted under difficult circumstances to award these students. From Sandpoint High School, CAL gave scholarships to Tyler Almeida, Erica Bocksch, Paige Davidson, Isabel Edwards, Josephine Fry, Seth Graham, William Hawkins, Abigail Hendricks, Conner Hutchings, Jaycie Irish, Andrew Kual, Shea Kirkpatrick, Autumn Luther, Kendall Milton, Madeline Morgan, Shelby Mohler, Kaylee Ollertoi, Angelina Pebbles, Mary Peele, Dylan Peter-
son, Brody Ponsness, Sage Saccomanno, Jenny Slaveck, Mikayla Schoening, Sadie Stulz, Jake Suhr, Bionce Vincent and Kiley Webster. Clark Fork High School recipients included Charles Abbott, Sara Hathaway, Mathis Heisel and Aleehia Valliere. Priest River High School students awarded CAL scholarships are Lily Bonbino and Natalie Randolph, and Forrest Bird Charter School student Garrett Hoyt was also recognized by the organization. Saydee Brass received a delayed scholarship, and Tessa Beeman, Niah Brass, Curtis Hauck, Hannah Hurst, Jensen Kristian, Jessica Klein, Elloria Lambert, Peik Lund-Anderson and Jesiah Neff all renewed scholarships through CAL in 2020. James Griffin, Taylor James, Ryan Pirot and April Radford received Schweitzer Chair scholarships from CAL.
June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 15
events
June 25 - July 2, 2020
THURSDAY, JUNE 25
Live Music w/ Benny Baker 6-8pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall
Train Watch Workshop 6pm @ Gardenia Center Info: WildIdahoRisingTide.org
FriDAY, JUNE 26 Opening Day at Schweitzer 11am-5pm @ Schweitzer Mountain Resort Opening day for summer operations Live Music w/ Luke Yates 6-8pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall Spotlight Message Projection 9pm @ Downtown Sandpoint Info: WildIdahoRisingTide.org
Live Music w/ A Perfect Mess 5-8pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery Trio playing country, pop, rock and funk Live Music w/ Bright Moments Jazz 6-8pm @ Matchwood Brewing Co.
Live Music 8-10pm @ The Back Door
SATURDAY, JUNE 27
Summer Fling Fundraiser 8am-1pm @ Hope School Parking Lot Annnual fundraiser with BBQ lunch, bake sale, yard sale and car wash. Bake sale and yard sale opens June 26 from 3-7 p.m. Live Music w/ Bright Moments Jazz 7-10pm @ The Two Tones (Bonners Ferry) Live Music w/ Echo Elysium Live Music w/ The Powers 5-8pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery 6-9pm @ Matchwood Brewing Co. Acous. & elec. guitarist and singer/songwriter Classic Americana, folk, and country Stop Oil Trains Outreach & March Live Music 9am-2pm @ Farmin Park 8-10pm @ The Back Door March to Long Bridge at 2 p.m. Sandpoint Farmers’ Market 9am-1pm @ Farmin Park The Market is back at Farmin Park! Live Music w/ Harold’s IGA 6:30-9:30pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall Music on the front lawn with Harold’s
SunDAY, JUNE 28
Piano Sunday w/ Dwayne Parsons -- 3-5pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery
monDAY, JUNE 29 Monday Night Blues Jam 6-9pm @ Eichardt’s Pub A Sandpoint tradition going back 25 years, hosted by Truck Mills
Outdoor Experience Monday Night Run 6pm @ Outdoor Experience A chill, three-mile(ish) group run with optional beverages to follow
State of the Scotchmans 6-7pm @ Streamed - scotchmanpeaks.org The hourlong livestream will include live music from Bob Missed the Bus; the announcement of volunteer awards and a drawing for some amazing raffle prizes scotchmanpeaks.org for link
Fox and Bones concert 7pm @ Panida Theater Portland-based touring folk duo returns to the Panida for a night of storytelling and music. Tickets $15, free for Star VIPs. Panida.org for ticket information
ThursDAY, JUly 2
16 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
COMMUNITY
Lake Pend Oreille hits summer level By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff
Lake Pend Oreille reached summer pool level June 23, on schedule with early predictions from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which monitors lake level and operates the Albeni Falls Dam. USACE Senior Water Manager Jon Moen said dam operations will now hold the lake at summer pool level — between 2,062 and 2,062.5 feet above sea level measured in Hope — until drawdown begins in the fall. Refill operations were smooth in 2020, with flooding limited to streams and creeks at higher elevations during peak runoff season. Moen said refill began in April, and that Albeni Falls Dam is used throughout the process to “manage flood risk and fill the lake amidst changing inflow conditions.” “We saw some notable rainstorms in the Pend Oreille Basin during May, which increased inflows to the lake,” he said. “As a result of the melting of a slightly above average snowpack, plus the spring rainfall, May inflow to Lake Pend Oreille was above average, and the monthly inflow for June is also expected to be above average.” Moen said the dam went to free-flow operations May 21-June 9 to manage peak spring inflow to the lake, and operations have since been adjusted “to maintain a steady and controlled final refill of Lake Pend Oreille to reach the summer range.” Moen will present a talk on spring and summer Albeni Falls Dam operations at the Lakes Commission meeting
on Thursday, June 25 at the Priest River Events Center. The meeting, scheduled for 10 a.m.-1 p.m., has options to either attend in person or through a Zoom webinar. Contact Lakes Commission Executive Director Molly McCahon at lakescommission@gmail. com to obtain digital access.
COMMUNITY
Ting Internet expands its network By Reader Staff Ting Internet announced it is expanding fiber internet service to north Sandpoint and Ponderay. Ting is taking pre-orders to help gauge demand. The refundable $9 pre-order provides up to $200 to cover the full cost of installation and will be credited to customersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; accounts when they sign up. The company encourages potential customers
to check online at ting.com/sandpoint to see if they will be building in their area and to pre-order to reserve their spot. The internet provider is offering up to 1,000 megabits-per-second fiber internet for residential customers at $89 per month and for businesses at $139 per month. A 5 Mbps residential plan is also available for $19 per month. Contact Ting customer service at 208946-5404 for more information.
paid advertisement
June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 17
A stroll in the art
POAC’s 43rd ArtWalk gives local artists and businesses a place to shine
By Ben Olson Reader Staff Imagine for a moment what the world would be like without artists. There would be no sculptures, no paintings, no photographs, no movies, no books, no music. Nothing. Perhaps George Barnard Shaw put it best when he wrote, “Without art, the crudeness of reality would make the world unbearable.” If the last few months is any indication of the “crudeness of reality,” escape it by attending a celebrated annual event that’s all about local artists. The 43rd annual ArtWalk will kick off with an opening ceremony at 5:30 p.m. Friday, July 10, showcasing work by dozens of local artists at 34 venues throughout downtown Sandpoint. Hosted by the Pend Oreille Arts Council, which has been highlighting local artists’ work for decades in Sandpoint, this annual event is a great excuse to stroll downtown in search of something that moves you. For POAC Art Coordinator Claire Christy, matching artists with the perfect venue is a highlight of her job. “I absolutely love that part,” she told the Reader. “We have a woman who makes stained glass bike wheel weathervanes, and she’ll be at Murphy’s bike shop. That was a perfect pairing. It’s always my favorite part of this job to match an artist with a venue and know they’re going to be a perfect fit.” Christy, who took over as art coordinator in February, said this year’s ArtWalk will see the most venues in the history of the event. Many of the venues will host multiple artists, virtually guaranteeing that ArtWalkers will find something that speaks to their artistic souls. The opening receptions differ from venue to venue, but many offer hors d’oeuvres and wine to ArtWalkers. POAC recently did some renovations to its gallery space inside Cedar Street Bridge, so Christy said the evening will serve as a grand opening for the new POAC Gallery. “We put in a new hanging system that allows us to fill the walls with paintings,” she said. “It’s called ‘hanging salon style,’ where you start hanging high and fill up 18 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
the walls instead of keeping everything at eye level.” Christy said some of the artists’ submissions are sure to make a splash. “One of our artists, Barry Burgess, will be here at the POAC Gallery grand opening,” Christy said. “He did a collection called ‘Love in the Age of Corona,” and it’s bright and weird and wonderful. I love it.” Normally taking place every June, POAC postponed ArtWalk to July 10 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Because confirmed cases of coronavirus are rising statewide, as well as in Bonner County, Christy said POAC is recommending wearing face masks and practicing social distancing while visiting the venues. “It’s up to each venue what they provide or what they’re comfortable with, though,” she said. “POAC recommends everybody wear a mask, and most places will have hand sanitizer out.” The opening ceremony goes from 5:30-8 p.m., but if you can’t make it, ArtWalk will continue to hang at 34 venues around Sandpoint through the summer.
The “hanging salon style” at POAC’s gallery on Cedar St. Bridge. Photo by POAC.
PARTICIPATING ARTWALK VENUES Allstate Insurance: Jason Funk Art Works Gallery Azalea Handpicked Style Baxter’s on Cedar Burlwood Dreams Carousel Emporium Columbia Bank Community Plaza Eichardt’s Pub Embodied Virtue Evans Brothers Coffee Roasters Gethsemane Oil & Vinegar Shoppe Grace & Joy Hallans Gallery I Saw Something Shiny Idaho Pour Authority La Chic Boutique Lakeshore Realty North
Lisa V. Fine Art Marsha Lutz Photography Monarch Mountain Coffee Murphy’s Music Conservatory of Sandpoint Nieman’s Floral Market Northwest Handmade Outdoor Experience Pend d’Oreille Winery Pend Oreille Arts Council Realty Plus Sandpoint Laser Works Syndicate Tattoo TruArt The Powerhouse Vanderford’s Books & Office Products Zero Point
STAGE & SCREEN
Panida Theater seeks community members for board, committee positions
Sandpoint library uses 3-D printer to make face masks
By Reader Staff The Historic Panida Theater is opening applications for its board of directors and various committees. According to theater managers, “This is a rare opportunity for creative, enthusiastic and forward-thinking citizens. You must be willing and excited to provide leadership, time and energy in a position that will make a lasting contribution to coming generations of Bonner County citizens. At the same time, helping the Panida promises to be a personally enriching experience.” Noting the rapid pace of growth in the area, the Panida has also faced challenges stemming from changes in the movie industry, expanded opportunities for entertainment dollars and changes to the local economy. “Being on the board of the Panida or a board committee offers individuals an outstanding opportunity to be in the forefront of ensuring that our innovative, broad range programming continues in our beautiful, ornate and historic setting,” theater managers stated in a news release announc-
ing the call for volunteers. “You will have the opportunity to work with resourceful, enthusiastic individuals who focus on ensuring the Panida operations can continue to offer vibrant, vital, and quality artistic productions in our community. Your presence will ensure that the Panida marquee will continue to blaze and be the ‘heart’ of our downtown; a unique place where friendly people will convene and kibitz, meet, sip wine and enjoy their neighbors while being immersed in memorable productions” Qualities sought in board members and committee volunteers are those “who enjoy people, who can think outside the box, provide creative fundraising
The Panida Theater in Sandpoint. Courtesy photo. ideas, who are team players and enjoy opening new vistas of enrichment for others.” To apply, complete the application on the panida.org website. Applicants will be interviewed by current board members and put to a vote by the Panida membership at the annual board meeting. Those interested in serving on one of the Panida’s committees are asked to fill out the same application but signify which committee they are interested in serving. Committees include Fundraising/ Development, Facilities, History, Panida Playhouse Players Live Theatre or Marketing.
By Reader Staff The East Bonner County Library Sandpoint branch used one of its 3-D printers to assist MacNeill Family Dental staff with a unique request: help deliver improved surgical masks. Joni MacNeill learned that Bellus3D and Loma Linda University School of Dentistry created an app that scans the face to create a digital file for a 3-D printed design that improves the seal of surgical masks. MacNeill had heard about the library’s 3-D printing classes and inquired about sending the file to the library to order 3-D printed mask fitters for her staff.
Staff at MacNeill Family Dental pose for a photo wearing masks enhanced with 3D printed fitters that improve the air seal. Mask fitters were printed by staff at the Sandpoint Library using their 3D printers. Photo courtesy MacNeill Family Dental staff. “I was searching for ways to keep our team safe as we reopened our office during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said MacNeill. “N95 masks were impossible to find and I heard about an app that scanned your face and designed a custom-fit frame that could be 3-D printed. When worn over a surgical mask, it improves the seal to be more like a N95. My thanks to the library for helping to print these.”
For those about to rave
Scottish party film Beats to show at the Panida
By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff When the British Parliament passed the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act of 1994, the legislation saw widespread opposition throughout the United Kingdom. Many felt the act — which was mainly an attempt to stop raves and other unlicensed parties — constituted extreme government overreach in response to a simple distaste for
certain lifestyles. The part of the legislation addressing raves outlawed “gathering on land in the open air of 100 or more persons ... at which amplified music is played during the night,” defining music as “sounds wholly or predominantly characterised by the emission of a succession of repetitive beats.” The act made it illegal to attend such an event and allowed police to arrest anyone “making preparations” to host one.
So what did rave-loving youths of the UK do when the government declared their parties against the law? They threw some incredible raves. Such is the plotline of Beats, a 2019 Scottish film showing Friday, June 26 through Sunday, June 28 at the Panida Theater. Beats follows best friends Johnno and Spanner, who resolve to attend an illegal rave together as a final adventure before
their lives take them on different that only teenage boys can truly paths. The black-and-white film appreciate,” reads a review in The has earned favorable reviews for Guardian. “It’s a terrific little film its humor and raw that combines the Beats (Not Rated, earthy humour and emotional depicadult content) tion of a teenage honesty of a Shane friendship about Meadows movie Friday, June 26 at 5:30 p.m.; Saturday, June 27 at 7:30 p.m.; to experience its with an unexpectSunday, June 28 at 3:30 p.m.; bittersweet end. ed expressionistic doors open 30 minute before “Theirs is a the show; $9 adult, $7 with Star section — flooded bond forged on a with colour — that Loyalty Card, $6 students. The mutual love of the Panida Theater, 300 N. First channels the boys’ Ave., 208-263-9191, panida. kind of exuberant joyful dancefloor org. Get tickets at the door or banging techno abandon.” at panida.org. June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 19
FOOD & DRINK
Cheers, America
A colonial cocktail recipe, garnished with some history
By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff My copy of the Old Mr. Boston “De Luxe” Official Bartender’s Guide, fifth printing 1941 (price: $2) and gifted to me years ago, associates its mixological contents loud, proud and often with the origins of the United States. According to the foreword, the 1941 edition — the first edition was published in 1935, two years after the repeal of Prohibition — added to its forebears with “a new, colorful sixteen-page insert, beautifully illustrating the most popular mixed drinks, together with suggestions for some very appetizing and simple to make hors d’oeuvres.” Public health demands a dis-endorsement of those hors d’oeuvres in toto; no one should pour booze on a belly full of “ham canapes” (blending ¼ pound of softened yellow cheese with 1 ½ tbs cream, ¼ tsp mustard, dash of cayenne, “a few drops each” of Worcestershire sauce and vinegar, spread on buttered or toasted rectangles of bread and topped with thin-sliced ham in julienne strips). The “rolled crabmeat sandwiches” are equally suspect: 1 cup flaked, cooked crabmeat; ¼ c mixed pickle relish; dash of salt and pepper; and ¼ c mayonnaise, spread on buttered bread and rolled “as for jelly roll.” Prohibition sounds more appetizing. More interesting are the 16 pages of color plates advertising a variety of Mr. Boston liquors juxtaposed with fanciful illustrations from early American history. “Mr. Boston” himself, addressing the “gentlemen” of the drinking public, states that “from the shadows of Bunker Hill, Faneuil Hall, the Old South Church — inspiring monuments all to this eternal spirit [eds. note: see what he did there?] — I offer, for the consummation of your pleasure, 20 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
my distinguished line of liquors.” What follows are mini-histories of the aforementioned landmarks, as well as The Old Bridge at Concord; Plymouth Rock; the Paul Revere House; Green Dragon Tavern, where the “Sons of Liberty” were known to gather and scheme; Benjamin Franklin’s house and others — all accompanied by advertisements for Mr. Boston whiskeys, rums, gins, sloe gin and vile-sounding brandys (“apricot nectar”? Pass the Boone’s Farm… we’ll all be better off). What this long preamble affirms is that America is a drinking country and always has been. Evidence: The tab from the so-called “Founding Fathers’” drinking binge on Sept. 17, 1787 — two days before they signed the Constitution — included 54 bottles of Madeira, 60 bottles of claret, eight bottles of whiskey, 22 bottles of port, eight bottles of cider, 12 bottles of beer and seven “bowls” — big enough “for ducks to swim in,” according to one source — filled with boozy punch. The guest list for the party numbered only 55 men. That’s almost three “bottles” per person, not counting how much they slurped out of those seven duck ponds filled with hooch. (I got all that from The Best of Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader, Page 400, but for a more “sober” analysis of how and why the United States was perpetually plastered from 1790 to 1840, read The Alcoholic Republic: An American Tradition, written in 1979 by historian W.J. Rorabaugh.) Puckered, pious Puritans, as well as cask-smashing Carrie Nations, are anomalies in our national story and, as we approach the Fourth of July — which this year falls on a Saturday, ye gods — it seems appropriate to offer an authentic colonial/early Republic cocktail with which to celebrate or mourn whatever historical epoch we’re living through right now.
The Stone Fence For proof that sugar made the colonial world go ’round, look no further than the controversy over the tax on sugar that went back and forth between America and the Mother Country in the 1760s. It’s easy — or maybe convenient — to forget that the “13 colonies” were only half of Britain’s holdings in the Americas. There were actually 26 colonies, the other half comprising in large part Caribbean islands whose primary purpose was to turn slave labor into export profit via sugar. Those “other” 13 colonies didn’t revolt because they were getting stinking rich off slave-produced sugar, which they sold in huge quantities to Britain and the more-trouble-than-theywere-worth 13 colonies from Georgia north to Maine. The trade was so lucrative, that it helped bankroll the colonial enterprise as a whole. When the government that regulated the “dealer” colonies told the “buyer” colonies that the tax on the raw material for their drug of choice would impact the per-dram price, well, that was one of the first, crucial, steps toward “Give Me [Cheap Rum] or Give Me Death.” Fitting then that among the first “American” mixed drinks should draw on rum as its base and mingle it with produce growing in profusion on the landscape throughout the Atlantic seaboard: apples. Jump ahead from the “colonial crisis” of the late-1750s and 1760s to the Revolution itself, and booze enters as a fellow combatant. Then-General George Washington was a devotee of the 40-proof apple brandy known as Applejack, which remains to this day the exclusive product of the Laird family of New Jersey and, as Laird & Company, retains the distinction of being the first commercial distillery in the nation with a pedigree that dates to 1780. Washington reputedly asked the Lairds for the recipe and made it
himself for those afternoon porch sessions, watching his slaves labor at Mount Vernon. We’re not sure how it tastes when sucked through false teeth made of walrus, elephant and/or human dentate/ivory; regardless, Washington should be remembered as the first Mixologist-in-Chief. You can make a Stone Fence — or Stone Wall, as it’s known in some quarters, both names referring to how blank-faced you’ll be after too many and/or the stopping power of the drink — with Applejack as a base, which we highly recommend along with Applejack in general. However, since we’re being sticklers about authentic “Americanism” these days, we mixed up a batch of these cocktails using the original recipe, which calls for a straightforward mingling of 2 oz. rum — better make it Caribbean, so we picked the cheap-o but still good Cruzan, from the U.S. territory of St. Croix — and topped with the driestyou-can-find hard apple cider in a pint glass. (Ice optional, but not encouraged for Revolutionary War re-creations, as it didn’t exist as a readily accessible bar accoutrement until the advent of industrial refrigeration.) Anyway, the Stone Fence harkens to a legendary war-time booze up with colonial guerilla leader/backcountry terrorist Ethan Allen and his famous “Green Mountain Boys,” when they stopped over at Remington’s tavern in Castleton, Vt., en route — without orders — to attack then-British-held Fort Ticonderoga in New York on the evening of May 9, 1775. Legend holds that the Boys hunkered down on the eve of battle by draining the publican dry of his front and back stock of hard cider, fortified with a fusillade of dark rum shots. It is lost to history just how hungover the Green Mountain Boys were when they marched the next morning, May 10, on Fort Ticonderoga, but it may be that the
British sentries were even more incapacitated — either way, Allen’s men found the guards asleep and pretty much stumbled through the gates unresisted, scoring one of the first offensive victories for the colonists in the Revolutionary War. The Stone Fence, like many of the details of Allen’s raid, later drifted into obscurity. Its origins as a rum-based drink suffered a blow as early as the mid-1800s, when acclaimed New York bartender Jerry Thomas published the Stone Fence in his bar book as a bourbon drink. By the time Old Mr. Boston got to it in 1941, the recipe was especially far removed from its Remington tavern days, with variations calling for things like Italian vermouth and sherry, bitters, scotch and soda water. Don’t be distracted by these latter-day fripperies: Make America rum-drunk again with the original colonial fighting juice, but stay away from the ham canapes. Better to be Revolutionary than revolting.
Stone Fence (a.k.a. Stone Wall) 2 oz. dark rum in a pint glass topped with dry hard apple cider and ice. Stone Cocktail ½ oz. Old Mr. Boston imported rum ½ oz. Italian vermouth 1 oz. sherry wine Shake well with cracked ice and strain into 3 oz. cocktail glass. Stone Fence Highball 1 cube of ice 2 dashes bitters (Angostura, of course) 2 oz. Scotch Use 8 oz. highball glass and fill with carbonated water, and stir gently.
MUSIC
The power of love and lyrics
Alt-country band The Powers set to play Matchwood Brewing June 27
By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff When Dan Powers released a solo record in 2011, something didn’t feel right. He realized quickly what was missing — his wife, Shelley, who he met through church and campus life at North Idaho College. Both were raised in music — Dan started playing classical violin at age 12, and Shelley sang in church choir. “I knew I did it wrong,” Dan said of his solo project. “It should have been the both of us.” The couple has since joined forces to create North Idaho alternative country band The Powers, which will play Matchwood Brewing on Saturday, June 27 at 6 p.m. The Powers is made up of Dan and Shelley — who live in Spirit Lake, Wash., with their six children — as well as percussionist Cody Cummins and fiddler Sarah Jean. The band released an album titled Life of We in 2016. “We pick music that makes us feel things,” Shelley said, “and songs that have messages.” But as far as what makes each of them “feel things,” it differs between the musical spouses. Dan said he always gravitated toward powerful instrumentation, while Shelley sought out lyrics that could pull her in. By dividing and conquering, The Powers are able to create music that has all the desired elements.
This week’s RLW by Ben Olson
READ
Most of us saw the film of the same title, but how many have read Michael Blake’s novel Dances with Wolves? Sure, the film was great and won some awards, but as is usually the case, the novel layers much more depth and detail into John Dunbar’s story of living with Native Americans in the post-Civil War era in the American West. Blake also wrote a sequel called The Holy Road that is every bit as good as Dances with Wolves.
LISTEN
“We’ve combined forces to convince a listener that their and been able to do both — voices were always meant to be find that beauty and that reach, heard together. What’s more, something that connects with that connection between them the heart,” Dan said. translates effortlessly into a deThough The Powers’ sound sire to connect with others — could accurately be described something Shelley said makes as country, Dan said that’s an their live shows special. umbrella term that encom“We love meeting new peopasses influences from folk to ple — whether it’s the people jazz to bluegrass to punk. Each listening or the people that of these ingredients combine we’re actually working with,” to create a sort of alt-country she said. reminiscent of Dan said the Brandi Carlile or music oftentimes The Civil Wars. feels like a secDan and ondary mission Saturday, June 27; 6-9 Shelley play off p.m.; FREE. Matchwood for The Powers. of one another in “It’s a Brewing, 513 Oak St., a phone interpathway to get view like they do 208-718-2739, match- into places, into in their music — woodbrewing.com. Listen lives,” he said. with a level of “But we do at thepowersmusic.com. comfort and conlove it,” Shelley nection enough said of playing
The Powers
Dan and Shelly Powers of the Spirit Lake, Wash. band The Powers. Courtesy photo.
One genre of music that has been getting me through these hectic days is shoegaze, which is a mix of nostalgic, warm, electric sounds that have carved a distinct niche alongside usual indie rock. No Vacation is a perfect example of this style, blending a cruisy shoegaze quality with lead singer Sab Mai’s calming, ethereal voice dominating the sound. The track “Yam Yam” put No Vacation on the map, but check out any of the group’s releases for a breezy background soundtrack to your troubling days.
WATCH
music, and Dan concurred, adding that he and his wife aim to use their art to spread a philosophy they’re also working hard to pass onto their children. “It’s the concept of choosing to love people no matter what,” Dan said. “We very much live by ‘love God and love people,’ … We’re always looking for opportunities to serve people and love people, and to do something unexpected for them — to remember their name, or remember where you met them.”
In case you missed it, Spike Lee’s epic film Blackkklansman is one of those movies that angers you in the right way. Starring John David Washington, Adam Driver and Laura Harrier, Lee’s film is the unbelievable true story of Ron Stallworth, a Black police officer from Colorado Springs, Colo., who successfully managed to infiltrate the KKK with the help of a Jewish fellow officer The final scene in this film is one that will haunt me for years because it shows how art and life are really one and the same. June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 21
HUMOR
We forgot Father’s Day We have a feeling that the dads didn’t mind
From Northern Idaho News, July 28, 1905
RAISE TRACK SIX FEET The Northern Pacific has commenced its improvements in Sandpoint. A force of carptenters arrived here Monday and began changing the present passenger station and preparing it for raising, as the plans call for the tracks to be raised six feet and two inches at the present depot site. The present depot will be jacked up to that height and will continue to be used as a passenger station during the time the tracks are being raised and the new passenger depot being erected. Grading to raise the tracks through the city will be commenced at once, and pushed to completion. The new passenger station will be erected on the west side of the tracks and some distance north from where the present depot stands, being about opposite from the Pend d’Oreille hotel. The raising of this grade will tend to drive the business men who have remained along the right of way onto the west side of the creek and already Charles R. Foss, A.R Sweet and the Sandpoint Cedar company have began to figure on new locations, as they say they will feel like they were down in the ditch after the tracks are raised six feet above them in front of their places of business. When the work is completed Sandpoint is promised as nice a station building as any town along the Northern Pacific, while the present depot building will be converted into a freight room. 22 /
R
/ June 25, 2020
By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff Last week, the Reader had no mention of Father’s Day between its pages. Our June 18 edition — the one slated to precede Father’s Day 2020 on June 21 — inadvertently gave dads everywhere the ol’ finger. Despite our intentions to track upcoming holidays and the fact that one-third of the editorial staff is a father himself, the day of dads flew right past us. In retrospect, this is fitting. I’m sure my dad closed the back cover on last week’s issue with a contented smile. “No droning on about Father’s Day,” he likely said over a handful of salted cashews and a crispy cold beer. “How refreshing.” Well, I’m a week late, but here it is. Being a woman and not yet a parent myself, I can’t pretend to know why dads are so weird about the holiday meant to celebrate them. Most of the men in my life don’t desire being the center of attention, and are offended by gifts beyond something consumable or reasonably cheap (read: my dad’s endless stack of used novels). This aversion to Father’s Day seems to be fairly common across the board, and doesn’t appear to stem from any self-deprecating or playacting modesty. Seriously, dads just want to go fishing for Father’s Day, and if there’s a special dessert, they’ll only be annoyed for a moment before digging in. My hypothesis now is that fatherly distaste for holidays meant to celebrate them — including birthdays, on which I recently texted my dad and he replied “Thx. Just another day!” — comes from feeling that these days simply come around too often. This is because a father’s concept of time is skewed. This hypothesis began to form for me
last September at a high school volleyball tournament. It was the first major tournament of my baby sister’s senior season and, as with every game, my parents sat in the stands. As a coach for the team, I was also there, watching my dad make fast friends with a fellow spectator. As the story goes, once my dad proved himself knowledgeable regarding the sport and the day’s schedule, the man had asked him how long he’d been watching varsity volleyball. Some quick math brought the answer: 10 years. A decade of September Saturdays in some echoing, uncomfortable gym as my two younger sisters and I played our favorite sport. Did my dad seem phased by this realization? Not in the slightest. My dad has been a father for 30 years now, and he’s maintained this role in the kind of even-keeled manner that brings me to the conclusion that even as everything changes, time is not passing for him like it does for other people. Because of this, Father’s Day feels like a Groundhog Day of unnecessary fuss that just doesn’t suit his character. So here’s to my time-defying and goofy dad. He’s thoughtful and fair to everyone,
STR8TS Solution
Sudoku Solution
The author’s father Travis on a recent outing on Pearl Island. Photo by Lyndsie Kiebert. and taught me the importance of writing things down. That lesson apparently stuck. Happy belated Father’s Day, Dad.
Crossword Solution
Just because swans mate for life, I don’t think it’s that big a deal. First of all, if you’re a swan, you’re probably not going to find a swan that looks much better than the one you’ve got, so why not mate for life?
Solution on page 22
Solution on page 22
Laughing Matter
Augean
Woorf tdhe Week
Copyright www.mirroreyes.com
CROSSWORD ACROSS By Bill Borders
/aw–JEE–uhn/ [adjective] 1. difficult and unpleasant
“Trying to please everyone is an Augean chore.” Corrections: No corrections to note this week, dear readers. Hope you all have a good week. Wash your hands, wear a face mask in public and be kind. – BO
1. Mountain pool 5. Ascend 10. Stepped 14. Assist in crime 15. Eagle’s nest 16. Indian music 17. Sorrowful 19. Comply with 20. Eastern Standard Time 21. Amidst 22. Gowns 23. Impresario 25. Slack-jawed 27. Ancient unit of measure 28. Jokester 31. Master of ceremonies 34. Military brass instrument 35. Nigerian tribesman 58. Monster 36. Depend 59. Embellisher 37. Swift (comic art) 38. Be cognizant of 60. Throat-clearing 39. Ribonucleic acid sound 40. Courted 61. Seedcases 41. Indications 62. Untidy 42. Having a higher rank 63. Learning method 44. Suffer 45. Trademark DOWN 46. An ice sport popular in 1. Stories Scotland 50. A single-masted ship 2. Humble 3. Odd-numbered page 52. Feudal lord 4. Greatest possible 54. To make a fool 5. A semiaquatic reptile of (archaic) 6. A tart fruit 55. Tailless amphibian 7. Press 56. A language of India
Solution on page 22 8. Guessed incorrectly 9. Spelling contest 10. Soldiers 11. Joining of wood 12. Curved molding 13. Not nights 18. Bog hemp 22. Sexual assault 24. Watery part of milk 26. Aureate 28. Peculiar 29. Black, in poetry 30. Seating sections 31. Makes a mistake 32. List of options 33. Weatherboard 34. Lineage
37. Thrust with a knife 38. Murder 40. Envelop 41. Fathers 43. Wears away 44. Omen 46. Yields 47. Potato state 48. A nine-piece musical group 49. Filth 50. Cease 51. Corporate image 53. Writing fluids 56. Not her 57. Black gunk
June 25, 2020 /
R
/ 23