letter to craig tucker klamath dams by kc walden 100606

Our Klamath Basin Water Crisis
Upholding rural Americans' rights to grow food,
own property, and caretake our wildlife and natural resources.

October 6, 2006

THANK YOU MR. TUCKER FOR RESPONDING TO THE LETTER I FORWARDED ON TO YOU RE: THE KLAMATH RIVER AND DAMS. THIS WASN'T MY LETTER, BUT I ENJOYED READING YOUR RESPONSES AS ALWAYS. I DO HAVE A COUPLE OF ISSUES YOU WROTE ABOUT THOUGH THAT I FELT I SHOULD SHARE WITH YOU.

FIRST: THE 2002 FISH DIE-OFF YOU STATED 70,000+ FISH, ALL PUBLICATIONS ON THIS IS 30,000 TO 33,000 WHICH IS STILL ALOT, BUT HALF WHAT YOU STATED.

SECOND: YOU STATED THAT THE NATIVE AMERICANS USE HIGH POWERED FIRE CRACKERS TO SCARE OFF THE SEALS AT THE MOUTH OF THE KLAMATH? WELL DURING MY EXCURSIONS TO THE VERY FISHING AREAS AT THE MOUTH OBSERVING THE INDIANS WITH NETS ECT. FISHING, I DID NOT WITNESS THE FIRE CRACKERS, INSTEAD I WITNESSED HIGH POWERED RIFLES, AND THEY WERE BEING SHOT AT THE SEALS DIRECTLY, IS THIS ANOTHER OPTION? WERE WE NOT SUPPOSED TO SEE THIS?

I HAVE BEEN READING AND KEEPING ARTICLES ON THE RIVER FOR YEARS, SOME HAVE BEEN QUITE ENTERTAINING, AND SOME DISTURBING, THE ENTERTAINING I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH YOU AT THIS TIME SINCE YOUR OCT 25TH RALLY IS NEARING AND THIS IS AN ISSUE. THE STATEMENTS THAT THE NATIVES ARE NOT EATING THE CORRECT AMOUNT OF SALMON DAILY IN THEIR DIET THEREFORE DIABETES, HEART PROBLEMS, WEIGHT PROBLEMS ETC... ARE THE RESULT. THEY ARE BEING FORCED TO EAT HAMBURGERS ECT. INSTEAD. OH GIVE US A BREAK, SHOULD I AND EVERY OTHER AMERICAN BLAME PACIFIC CORP. THE DAMS, THE LAKES, THE WATER, THE WATER QUALITY FOR OUR FAT/WEIGHT PROBLEMS TOO? DON'T BLAME YOURSELVES FOR LACK OF EXERCISE, MC DONALDS FAST FOODS, THE WAY YOU EAT, OR DON'T EAT. I CAN HONESTLY STATE THAT ANY MEDICAL, WEIGHT, OR OTHER SELF INDUCED PROBLEMS I OR ANYONE ELSE I KNOW HAS IS TOTALLY OUR OWN FAULTS. CAN YOUR PEOPLE?

THE ISSUE OF THE METH LAB DUMP ON THE OPHAH CREEK (SORRY I PROBABLY MISSPELLED THAT) IS BEING INVESTIGATED BY MANY NOW, I'M CURIOUS TO HEAR WHY THIS WASN'T PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE BEFORE. ANYWAY MY POINT IS, YOU WROTE THAT YOU WERE AWARE OF DRUG PROBLEMS ECT. IN SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES, HAVE YOU BEEN IN HAPPY CAMP LONG? HALF OF IT'S POPULATION IS ON WELFARE AND USES OR DEALS IN DRUGS. (MAYBE NOT HALF OF THE ELDERLY O.K.?) POINT BEING IS THAT THE POT GARDENS BEING CULTIVATED IN THAT AREA MAKES FOR ALOT OF NITRATES IN OUR WATER SHEDS. TRUE? POLLUTION IS A PROBLEM EVERYWHERE, AND HOPEFULLY SOMETHING WE CAN WORK ON.

SPEAKING OF WORKING ON SOMETHING, MAYBE YOUR ENERGY AND KNOWLEDGE ALONG WITH THE COMMUNITY OF SISKIYOU COUNTY WOULD DO BETTER TO STOP OPPOSING EACH OTHER AND WORK TOGETHER TO SOLVE THE PROBLEMS AND ISSUES ON THE KLAMATH. WE FEEL THAT THERE IS A FIX TO ALL THE PROBLEMS YOU KEEP BRINGING UP, LIKE THE ALGAE, YOU AND I BOTH KNOW THERE IS A FIX TO THIS. WHY DON'T YOU EVER SPEAK OF IT? DO YOU WANT THE DAMS OUT SO BAD THAT YOU HAVE MADE THIS YOUR OWN PERSONAL ISSUE, AND ARE THAT DETERMINED THAT IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW IT WILL AFFECT ANYONE ELSE JUST SO LONG AS THEY COME OUT? PRETTY SELFISH DON'T YOU THINK? AT LEAST WE ARE WILLING TO WORK ON THE PROBLEMS, FIND SOLUTIONS, FIX WHAT IS BROKEN, MAYBE YOU SHOULD THINK ABOUT THAT SIDE JUST A LITTLE.

I TRULY WISH WE COULD JOIN YOUR HAPPY GROUP ON OCT. 25TH IN SACRAMENTO, IT SOUNDS LIKE FUN, A DAY OFF, VISIT TO THE BIG CITY, A PEACEFUL LITTLE PROTEST, BUT UNFORTUNATLY MOST OF US WORK FULL TIME JOBS, WE DON'T RECEIVE ANY GOVERNMENT CHECKS MONTHLY, NOR GRANTS ECT... TO FUND OUR FIGHT ON THE DAMS, OR WATER QUALITY ISSUES, WE HAVE TO SPEND ANY FREE TIME WE CAN FIND TO WRITE OUR LETTERS, SEND OUR OPINIONS IN, BUT THEN AGAIN I GUESS WE ARE THE ONES YOU FEEL DON'T MATTER IN THE RIVER - DAM ISSUES. REMEMBER? PACIFIC CORP CAN PAY US OFF FOR OUR PROPERTY LOSES, AND I'M SURE WE CAN MOVE TO HAPPY CAMP OR SURROUNDING AREAS AND LIVE LIKE SO MANY THERE ON WELFARE. WAIT IF WE DON'T WORK WHO WILL PAY THE TAXES THAT ARE NEEDED TO SUPPLEMENT ALL THE GRANTS ETC.. THAT ARE NEEDED TO REMOVE THE DAMS? OH WHAT A DELIMA!

I HOPE WE ALL CAN SOMEDAY WORK TOGETHER FOR A BETTER WORLD, I WILL ALWAYS KEEP HOPE THAT WE CAN WORK TOGETHER TO FIX THE KLAMATH WITH OUT DESTROYING WHAT IS THERE NOW. AS I SAID BEFORE, IT'S NOT ALWAYS ABOUT YOU, OR THE INDIANS, OR THE GREENIES, WE ALL LIVE HERE AND WILL ALWAYS LIVE HERE, LETS LEARN HOW TO LIVE TOGETHER, HELP EACH OTHER AND FIX WHAT OUR ANCESTORS HAVE BROKE. THEY ALL ARE TO BLAME, NOT ONE COMPANY, ONE PERSON, ONE TRIBE, ONE NATIONALITY, OR GROUP, ALL WHO DIDN'T THINK AHEAD WHEN THEY WERE PLANNING THE FUTURE FOR US TO LIVE IN. MAYBE SOMEDAY WE CAN MEET AND TALK, MAYBE SOMEDAY WE CAN BE ON THE SAME SIDE OF THE RIVER?

THANKS FOR YOUR TIME, K.C. WALDEN IRON GATE LAKE, HORNBROOK CA.