Reader November 16 2017

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THE REDOUBT SERIES:

The Preparedness Community . HOLLYWOOD'S SCIENCE FAILS

Part 2

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[ET S CLEAR THE AIR• CONFERENCE AIMS TO TAKE A BIPARTISAN LOOK AT CLIMATE CHANGE

UNKNOWN LOCALS AND POAC TEAM UP FOR 1 WALDEN1 PLAY

EVANS BROS. EXPANDS TO CDA


FREE MEDICAL CARE Bonner Partners in Care Clinic is a FREE health care clinic providing quality health care to those in our community who are not covered by health insurance. We provide a health care safety net for those who can not afford medical care at no cost to the patient. We treat general and chronic health disorders such as Hypertension, Diabetes, Infections and other minor medical issues. We also have assistance for diagnostic testing, laboratory orders, referrals and prescriptions.

We are located in The Panhandle Health Care Building 2101 Pine Street, Sandpoint 208.255.9099 Clinic is one evening per week (either Tuesdays or Thursdays) first come first serve basis. Please visit our website for more information: www.bpicc.org Find us on Facebook

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(wo)MAN compiled by

Susan Drinkard

on the street

The roundabout on the Schweitzer Cutoff Road is scheduled to open this month. Are you looking forward to its opening? “I am looking forward to its opening. I like the other roundabout because it makes the traffic flow easier, but people need to drive correctly so I don’t have roundabout rage.” Crista Bushell Caregiver Sandpoint “I think a roundabout that big is going to cause problems for beginning drivers and even for older drivers from this area who are still not used to driving on roundabouts.” Jared Kluesner 11th grade Sandpoint High School “No, I think it’s ridiculous because it’s on a hill and roads get icy here. People on the roundabout in town don’t follow the rules; they don’t look and they don’t wait their turn. I hope the new roundabout works better than the one in town. I will be glad to see the road open, however.”

DEAR READERS, Is anyone else excited about going skiing this weekend? I sure am. This week, guest contributor Bill Harp kicks off the American Redoubt series with a first installment on self-reliance and the prepared community. Also included is the first of a series of profiles of folks who have contacted us that identify with the Redoubt and wanted to share their stories. While we encourage your input (we’ll have a couple of issues where we will run a number of opinion pieces from the community about the Redoubt series), we ask that you save your criticism or compliments until you’ve read through the series. In next week’s installment, staff writer Lyndsie Kiebert’s piece will talk about John Wesley, Rawles (yes, he spells it with the odd comma), the man who originally coined the term American Redoubt, and discuss a bit about the history of the movement. As always, thanks for reading. -Ben Olson, Publisher OPEN 11:30 am

GAME ROOM UPSTAIRS

Adina Hamilton CNA Sagle

I’m spooked because nobody on the roundabout we have now obeys the yield signs and they don’t signal out when they’re exiting. I’ve had so many people drive out in front of me on the roundabout by Super 1 Foods.” Dalton Loll 11th grade LPO High School “Yes, I am! It will lessen the traffic going to Baldy Road. It has been crazy trying to get anywhere for at least the last six months.” Marie Bayles Retired forensic scientist Priest River

The Psounbality with Per FRESH FOOD LIVE MUSIC THE BEST NW BREWS

212 Cedar Street Downtown Sandpoint

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READER 111 Cedar Street, Suite 9 Sandpoint, ID 83864 (208)265-9724

www.sandpointreader.com Publisher: Ben Olson ben@sandpointreader.com Editor: Cameron Rasmusson cameron@sandpointreader.com Zach Hagadone (emeritus) John Reuter (emeritus) Advertising: Jodi Taylor Jodi@sandpointreader.com Contributing Artists: Jodi Rawson (cover), Ben Olson, Kelli West, Schweitzer, Lyndsie Kiebert. Contributing Writers: Cameron Rasmusson, Ben Olson, Lyndsie Kiebert, Nick Gier, Jodi Rawson, Scarlette Quille, Jeremy Grimm, Bret Johnson, Bill Harp, Ammi Midstokke, Drake. Submit stories to: stories@sandpointreader.com Printed weekly at: Griffin Publishing Spokane, Wash. Subscription Price: $95 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 400 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 was painted by Jodi Rawson in the style of Thrasher magazine. Thanks for the awesome artwork, Jodi. Have fun on the slopes! November 16, 2017 /

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COMMENTARY

George Will confused and misinformed about abortion By Nick Gier Reader Contributor In a recent Washington Post column on abortion, George Will criticizes the 1973 Supreme Court decision for arbitrarily dividing pregnancy into three trimesters. He claims that the judges “postulated, without a scintilla of reasoning, moral and constitutional significance in the banal convenience that nine is divisible by three.” The trimester framework for fetal development is as old as the Greek philosopher Aristotle, who argued that the fetus starts as a nutritive soul, transitions to a sensitive soul, and then finally becomes a rational soul – a human person. The fact that there is explosive brain development in the fetus from 25-33 weeks gives credence to Aristotle’s theory (see www.NickGier.com/fetalbrain. pdf). Fetal movement, depending on whether it is a woman’s first or second pregnancy, occurs from 13 to 25 weeks, the second trimester. Contrary to Will, Aristotle’s trimester framework is neither arbitrary nor unscientific. Thomas Aquinas, one of the greatest Catholic theologians, was profoundly influenced by Aristotle and he accepted his theory of the soul with one crucial exception. Aquinas explained: “The rational soul is created by God at the completion of man’s coming into being. This soul is at one and the same time both a sensitive and nutritive life-principle, the preceding forms having been dissolved.” The equally great Catholic theologian Augustine believed that abortion should be restricted at the “sensitive soul” stage. Augustine argues that abortion is not homicide, “for there cannot yet be said to be a live soul in a body that lacks sensation when it is not formed in the flesh.” The idea of a formed (vs. unformed) fetus comes from Exodus 21:22-25. The Greek translation, which the early church fathers considered divinely 4 /

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inspired, states that if someone causes a woman to miscarry and the fetus is “unformed,” he will pay only a penalty, but if the fetus is “formed,” it is murder. This view was incorporated into Catholic Canon Law and it was not changed until 1917, when personhood was moved back to conception. English Common Law used the term “quickening in the womb” to establish the cut-off point for abortion. “To quicken” means “to receive life,” and this conforms nicely with Augustine’s “formed” and “live” soul and the “viability” criterion of Roe v. Wade. Under the influence of Sir William Blackstone (1732-80), quickening was incorporated in early U.S. law, and, significantly, this would have been the position of our founding thinkers. Many anti-abortionists claim that genetics make this traditional view obsolete and unscientific. The problem, however, is that genetic identity is not personal identity. There is always a possibility of twinning up to 16 weeks, and identical twins, while being genetically unique, are obviously two different persons. Furthermore, Aquinas (see above) and all orthodox

Letters to the Editor NFL Players... Dear Editor As a veteran who risked his life for our country, I don’t believe that those NFL players taking a knee or banding together during the playing of our national anthem are being disrespectful of our flag. They are exercising their First Amendment rights to peacefully protest issues — a right defended by our service members who fought and died for our country. To call attention to social injustices that must be addressed —- including racism and the inequities of our criminal justice system -— the best tool these players have is their place on the stage of a national sporting event which millions watch. And although these players are well paid, many of them had to work tirelessly to overcome hurdles others of us didn’t have to face to achieve success. A number of these players are active members of their community, visiting hospitals and shelters and working to solve community

Christians believe that a person’s essence is created by God, not by biology. Anti-abortionists are now proposing laws that protect the fetus at 20 weeks, when they believe that it can feel pain. But a 2005 article in the Journal of the American Medical Association surveyed all the research and concluded “that a fetus’ neurological pathways that allow for the conscious perception of pain do not function until after 28 weeks gestation.” In 2010 the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists agreed with those results and in 2012 the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists joined the scientific consensus. Last Wednesday House Republicans held a hearing on a bill

that would ban abortions at the point that a fetal heart beat can be detected. But animal fetuses have beating hearts, they feel pain, they quicken in the womb and they have unique genetic identities. The main problem with Aristotle’s concept of personhood is that we now know that animals can show intelligent, emotional, and moral behavior without large cortexes. Crows have distinctive tool kits and they recognize individual human faces. Dogs have a moral sense of being cheated on food portions. Alex, an African gray parrot, was the subject of a 30-year scientific experiment, and he reached high levels of cognitive performance. We can no longer make a moral distinction between our lives and those of our fellow

creatures. We should therefore reject the fallacy of “speciesism,” which privileges humans as the only beings with a serious moral right to life. I challenge all of us to embrace a consistent pro-life position that respects the dignity and value of all living beings. If women at abortion clinics must to listen to a lecture about fetal pain, then a similar script should be read out at every slaughter house in the world.

problems. It’s not a political party or presidential issue, but our president chose to make it a national issue by tweeting that these players should be fired. Fortunately for those of us who love football, and our country, this hasn’t happened.

and making it easier and more profitable for banks and corporations to abuse the public, dismantling laws that protect the environment and stepping back women’s health care rights. But there is one thing I’ll credit Trump and his supporters with. While running his campaign on a platform of name-calling, bullying, scare tactics, dishonesty and bravado, the world was informed via videotape that Trump is an admitted sex offender, with no respect for his wives, family and a complete lack of morals. Yet, with this information, for reasons beyond comprehension, people voted for him. Fathers, husbands, wives, mothers and Christians voted for a man who believes he’s above the law, and that it’s perfectly acceptable to sexually assault women. His election was a stab in the back to women and all victims of sexual assault. Now that the ugly underbelly of our society is out of the bag, with a sexual predator signing executive orders willy-nilly, which he doesn’t fully comprehend, women are enraged. The

election of a reality TV loudmouth with little character and decency has invigorated voters. Women are sick of being objectified in a country that boasts of its superiority and patriotism. Parents are also fed up with the lack of compassion and concern for their children, as we all should be regardless of party. With courageous resilience women are speaking out like never before, naming and shaming their perpetrators. So thank you, Trump, for starting an avalanche of assault victims coming forward saying enough is enough. I’m grateful to the men who have also named their attackers, with them taking part in naming the depraved behavior of the abusive scum who walk among us, we have strengthened the voice of those who have been ignored, mocked and abused. We are possibly only seeing the tip of the iceberg of a wave of accusations, as victims are no longer suffering in silence in a shame that isn’t theirs to carry.

Jim Ramsey Sandpoint

The Tip of the Iceberg... Dear Editor, With Republicans in control of the House and Senate and Trump in the White House, you would think Congress could manage to pass some of their wishlist legislation. Yet, it’s difficult to see any constructive success, aside from: failed attempts at dismantling health care and threats to abolish Social Security and Medicare, pushing dictators into Twitter wars and possibly into an actual crisis, lies about tax reform that clearly and blatantly favor the wealthy, taking protections away from consumers

Nick Gier of Moscow taught philosophy at the University of Idaho for 31 years. The full version can be read at www.nickgier.com/AbortionWill.pdf. He can be contacted at ngier006@ gmail.com.

Cindy Aase Sagle


HUMOR

What to give moms for Christmas It’s November – otherwise known as pre-Christmas or “the only time of year I go to a mall.” I’m not a big holiday person. It’s this time of year when I can’t stop thinking, What kind of society comes up with the idea of implementing specific calendar days — even weeks — that mandate decorating, cooking and creating themed ambiances for your family members? The people responsible for this season and the chaos surrounding it must have been an elite congress compiled of people with disappointing childhoods, retail store owners and wealthy mothers who have servants and no job responsibilities (maybe first ladies?) Don’t moms have enough shit to do? Was it really necessary to create a six- to eight-week-long season, where we are expected to do even MORE to please the people in our lives? If you are considering getting pregnant, I would like to warn you: the part where you push a seven-pound, kicking, screaming, pooping human being out of your vagina will be the easiest part of the entire parenting experience. Soon that adorable toothless bundle will find out that you are where the food comes from, and after that it’s at least 18 years of trying to meet the child’s unrealistic expectations. In the beginning it’s pretty easy to impress them: food, cheap toys, and basic comforts will at least match, if not exceed the child’s demands. However, by the 13th year, your child will not understand what he/she ever saw in you. A conversation with your “tweenage” child will sound a lot like this: “All the other moms don’t make their kids do chores. Everyone else’s mom can cook like Paula Dean, throw parties that Pinterest hasn’t even heard of and remain seen and unheard in public. I hate my name, it’s my teachers fault I got caught twerking at the assembly.” Need proof? How many times have you seen a veteran mom — one that has kids above the age of 10 — pick up a baby, inhale the child’s intoxicating

fragrance, and then become teary-eyed before saying, “Makes me want another.” She’s not getting teary-eyed over how special the baby is. She is crying because her own kids haven’t laughed at her jokes for years, still require constant feeding and cleaning up after and haven’t made her so much as a macaroni necklace since the day they received a smart phone. Think about that, and plan your birth control accordingly. Also, consider the plight of the average mother the next time you have an annoying friend or co-worker who just gave birth. It might be annoying that you have to hear stories about how little “Juniper is already programming her iPad, and she is only 36 months old.” My advice to those who are subjected to baby-worshiping conversations frequently is to just smile and let that Mom have her moment. It’s the least we can do as a society. And if you are a mother, try to stop yourself from replying to the new mom with something like: “Oh, that’s nice. This morning I was able to stop Sarah from leaving the house wearing shorts that were just slightly shorter than her genitals. You might know the pair I’m talking about. She’s wearing them in her profile picture on Instagram. Kids are priceless.” As a mom, sometimes we have to just smile and nod, because there was a time in our lives that we were cautioned about the risks of raising children, and then we blatantly disregarded the information, because, well, likely it came from our mothers. You know what I’m saying? When this time of year rolls around I find myself thinking about my own mother, and how sorry I truly am for every holiday that I didn’t tell her how amazing her holiday cooking, cleaning, planning and ambiances were. I have no idea how she pulled that shit off, and I mean this when I say, she is the reigning queen of holidays. I guess the domesticity gene skipped a generation. When I produced grandchildren, their arrival combined with my lack

of skill in this arena created a scenario where my mother’s status as queen ascended to what can only be called Holiday Goddess. I will never reign over the holidays, it is not my path, and I am not a total failure in her eyes, because… grandchildren. However, I would like to take this opportunity to remind all of you to take a time out to appreciate the reigning queen of your holiday season. This person, male or female, exists in every family, and they have been training, baking, Pinteresting, all year for this six-week stretch of festivity. Thank them. Eat their food. Be nice to your brother. And do the damn dishes. As a public service, and in the spirit of recognizing the moms in our life, I am going to help you with one last thing: Christmas shopping for the Moms in your life. Feel free to cut out and save. WHAT TO GIVE “MOMS” ON CHRISTMAS:

PREGNANT MOM: You can still give this mom something like a massage or a pedicure. She doesn’t have children yet and still has free time. Make it an expensive, good one. It will be at least 18 years until she can have an experience like this guilt-free. MOM OF A TODDLER: Nothing

you can buy this person could bring them more happiness or laughter then the perfect being they recently brought into this world. Give this person a gift card to somewhere like Target or Macy’s. That way you can both pretend like they are going to spend it on themselves when deep down, you know they are going to buy shit for the kid.

MOM OF GRADE-SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN: Any of the following items will work: noise-canceling headphones, band aids, shop vac, laundry service or a vacation. MOM OF TWEENS: Gas money, Costco membership, respect, Saturday.

MOM OF TEENAGERS: Bottle of booze and emotional support.

MOM OF COLLEGE KID: A phone call — they are lonely. YOUR MOM: Regular phone calls and appreciation is what she will ask for, but it’s about time you took her on vacation — or got her pool and a man servant. If you can’t afford that, there are always GRANDKIDS. Thankful for every bit of the experience, Scarlette Quille

Neighbor John is in the house!

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COMMUNITY

Empty Bowls fundraiser aids Food Bank Bouquets: • For nearly 20 years all winter, the Clark Fork Library has kept a rack of donated coats in all sizes in front of the Library. It started with the Coats for Kids drive in Sandpoint when someone observed that, “If you live here and need a coat you may not have transportation to Sandpoint.” The sign on the rack says, “Take a coat or leave a coat.” Hundreds of coats have gone into the community, as well as boots scarves, mittens and other warm clothes. -Submitted by Diane Newcomer •It is becoming one of my annual traditions to hang out and watch the Sandpoint Parks and Recreation crew install the Christmas tree downtown at Jeff Jones Town Square. The crew – Shaun Warren, Gus Cocklin, Austin Hull and Bryce Sennett – are adept at the job of taking that 21-foot blue spruce from the truck to the ground in less than a half hour. If anyone wants to see a time lapse of the installation, check out our Facebook page. •Speaking of beautifying the town, last week a handful of small business owners volunteered to put up holiday lights around downtown Sandpoint. Because the BID dissolved, the city had leftover lights, which they doled out to businesses. Special thanks to everyone who turned out to make our town look special. There are still some lights available for downtown shops, so let the city know if you want in on that. Barbs: •I just addressed this recently, but to those who take giant stacks of the Reader (and other publications) for your firestarter: please stop. We have plenty of “dead issues” available for firestarter in the lobby of our office at 111 Cedar St. Anyone is welcome to come by and pick up as many copies as they like. Just walk in the front door on Cedar and you’ll see our recycling bin to the left. If there are copies in there, you are welcome to all of them. The Bonner County Waste sites also have large supplies of newspaper available for firestarter. In the meantime, let’s try to leave some copies of the Reader for our readers to enjoy. Burn ‘em after. 6 /

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By Ben Olson Reader Staff Hunger is an important issue for Nannette Heintzelman. For the past three years, Heintzelman has organized the Empty Bowls fundraiser in Sandpoint, which combines art with philanthropy and hot soup into one of the more unique events in town. The Empty Bowls fundraiser will take place Saturday, Nov. 18, from 4-8 p.m. at the Columbia Bank building. Empty Bowls is an international project that aims to fight hunger one bowl at a time. Heintzelman got the idea to be involved after volunteering at the Bonner Community Food Bank about ten years ago. “I had a friend from Lewiston who volunteered at their food bank,” she said. “She posted how

Boise does the Empty Bowls fundraiser the day after Thanksgiving and said it was their number one fundraiser.” Heintzelman went to the Bonner Community Food Bank and said, “Let’s do this.” The idea is simple: Heintzelman and other volunteers set up a wide variety of donated bowls at the Sandpoint Center inside the Columbia Bank building. Patrons pay a $20 fee and pick a bowl of their choosing, which is then filled with “Judy’s famous potato leek soup.” Throw in a hunk of bread and a truffle and the meal is complete. Also, the 219 Lounge has donated beer and wine available for purchase, with proceeds also going toward the Food Bank. What’s more, patrons keep the bowl they choose, which makes a great gift idea for loved ones. “The whole idea is to replicate

the soup line of the ‘20s,” said Heintzelman. “We have games and trivia, and we’ll also have a life raffle with items from over 50 local businesses.” Last year, the Empty Bowls fundraiser chose Bonner Homeless Transitions to benefit. This year, Bonner Community Food Bank will receive the proceeds. “I love helping with these fundraisers and this is a fun one,” said Heintzelman. “It’s a good way to get people out and spend some money for a good cause. The Food Bank really deserves the contributions because a lot of people lost their food stamps recently.” For more information, contact the Bonner Community Food Bank at (208) 263-3663.

Celebrate Family Reading Week with the Library By Reader Staff Celebrate the value of reading aloud together as a family at the Family Reading Week Party today, Nov. 16 at 4:30 p.m. at Kootenai Elementary School. Every November, the East Bonner County Library District hosts Family Reading Week Party to celebrate the Idaho Commission for Libraries’ statewide initiative. This year, The Library is partnering with Kootenai Elementary, 301 Sprague St. in Kootenai, to hold the event off-site due to Your Library Transformation, the Sandpoint Branch remodel and expansion project in progress. Festivities will include stories, crafts, party snacks and a special appearance by popular children’s book character, Olivia the Pig. On Nov. 1, Sandpoint Mayor Shelby Rognstad read an official proclamation, declaring Nov. 12-18 Family Reading Week in Sandpoint. Mayor Rognstad and Kootenai Mayor Nancy Lewis will both be in attendance at the party. “When parents read aloud to their children, their attention is focused on the child,” said Suzanne Davis, Children’s Services Librarian. “It creates a loving, learning experience for the child that has tremendous benefits for them.”

101 Women grants $10K to Food for Our Children

By Ben Olson Reader Staff

The Sandpoint group 101 Women awarded a $10,000 grant to Food For Our Children, a nonprofit organization that provides food to local schoolchildren. “We are ecstatic to be the recipient of this generous grant,” said Michele Murphee, volunteer coordinator for Food For Our Children. “This money will be used to provide 2,500 children with bags full of shelf-stable food they can eat over the weekend when food scarcity is a real issue.” According to Murphee, one in five children in Bonner County do not have access to sufficient food and half of kids in the Lake Pend Oreille School District qualify for free or reduced meals at school. “We hear from teachers over

and over again that students come back to school on Monday ravenous,” said Murphee. “We wanted to help bridge that gap between meals over the weekend.” Last year, Food For Our Children sent out around 14,000 food-filled bags. The backpacks contained a variety of foods that do not require adult preparation. Eventually, Murphee hopes the group will expand the program to include snacks during the school day as well as provide meals over holiday breaks and summer vacation. The organization operates with no paid staff and in cooperation with LPOSD, the Bonner Community Food Bank, Bonner General Health and Newport Hospital and Health Services Foundation. 101 Women Sandpoint was created to provide a simple and powerful way to leverage the mod-

est giving of many into substantial funding for local groups. The group gives out two $10,000 grants each year to Bonner County nonprofits, with only political and religious groups being excluded from consideration. The two other finalists considered for this grant were Music Conservatory of Sandpoint and the East Bonner County Library. To learn more about Food For

Pictured above are Members of 101 Women, Sandpoint and board members and volunteer of Food For Our Children. Photo by Kelli West. Our Children, go to their website is www.foodforourchildren.org or call (208) 391-5277. To learn more about 101 Women, Sandpoint, their website is www.101womensandpoint.com.


OPINION

Follow the community’s vision on university property By Jeremy Grimm Reader Contributor

Sandpoint has a historic opportunity to make sure the University of Idaho property on North Boyer Avenue remains a community asset that is open and accessible to the public. Donated by the Humbird Lumber Company nearly a century ago, the 75acre parcel is the largest undeveloped property close to downtown. Since the university research center closed in 2010, Sandpoint area residents have found creative ways to use this open space for recreation and events — from cross-country skiing to cyclocross — and to build the bonds of community. Earlier this year, the University announced that it would sell the Boyer parcel. Although we don’t know what will happen to the property, this change will impact the character and community of Sandpoint for generations to come. To help shape future development, the city of Sandpoint is updating the Comprehensive Plan for the parcel and surround-

ing areas, with the goal of putting new guidelines in place by the time the university plans to sell the land in 2018. During a series of workshops this fall, participants from all walks of life discussed how the site might be developed with a mix of housing, commercial and agricultural uses, parks and recreation. This planning process is an important start — and I’m hopeful that Sandpoint area residents will share their feedback at upcoming meetings and online — but we need to recognize the limits of this path. Comprehensive Plan and Zoning changes alone won’t protect what we love about the Boyer property. Let’s consider for a moment if the property were to be sold to a private buyer; how are we to ensure that the community’s vision is truly represented in the final development of the site? Alternatively, if successful in their aspirations to secure funding to purchase the land, the city might be better positioned to activate the property based on the feedback and insight gathered from the community. Albeit a truncated timeline, it may be possible for the city to

raise the funds needed to buy the property and more precisely guide its future use. At LOR, it is our mission to partner with rural communities in the Intermountain West to improve livability and quality of life. Since 2013, LOR has worked with nonprofit organizations and engaged with the Bonner County community to support its vision through transportation options that keep our communities connected, expanding trails and improving public access to Lake Pend Oreille, supporting local economic development, and ensuring access to safe, clean drinking water. In continuing our engagement with the community, the Foundation has invited city representatives to make a presentation in March 2018 to the LOR team, when the foundation will consider a request for financial support toward purchasing the property. Consistent with our approach to community driven solutions, our team is interested in a long-term and sustainable vision for the property that has been shaped by extensive community engagement. LOR is looking forward to understanding the

Annual

city’s plan and its reflection of the input gathered from a broad cross-section of Sandpoint area residents. We understand that the development of such a plan will require the consideration and balancing of a diverse set of views, aimed to meet a range of community needs, and be financially viable into the future. Acquiring the University of Idaho property is a multifaceted process that depends on many factors, including adequate fundraising and approval from the university and the state. LOR is looking forward to hearing from the city, on behalf of the community, on its plans for activating this historic property. Jeremy Grimm is a program officer at the LOR Foundation based in Sandpoint and previously served as the Sandpoint planning and community development director 2007-15.

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NEWS

Seeking budget funding, SPOT bus officials anticipate a bright 2018 By Cameron Rasmusson Reader Staff

The city of Sandpoint approved the Selkirks-Pend Oreille Transportation bus system, better known as SPOT, for another year of funding Wednesday. The bus system, which is preparing for one of its busy seasons marked by the opening of Schweitzer Mountain Resort, will keep rolling on $78,000 from the city, in addition to revenue from other cities and sources. The request was an increase by $8,000 from last year, and according to Clifton Warren, treasurer of the Selkirks Pend Oreille Transit Authority, that’s to establish budget parity with the city of Ponderay, which paid $78,000 last year. According to Warren, SPOT has grown substantially from its humble beginnings seven years ago. The service now operates seven vehicles in its fleet, and that number

will soon be expanded. It also kicked off special event service, transporting people to high-profile attractions like the Festival At Sandpoint. That service offered 2,800 rides this year, an impressive figure for its first year, Warren said. It also took an estimated 100 potential cars per night out of the residential areas surrounding the Festival, which Warren said played a significant role in reducing congestion. “It was convenient, and we got nothing but good feedback from the riders,” he added. “They loved it. SPOT also recently added Boundary County to its list of community partners, offering three days of demand-response service in Boundary County and two days of service from Bonners Ferry to Sandpoint, a useful service for seniors making their doctors appointments and shopping trips.

Also new is a van pool program, with one van coming up from Coeur d’Alene to Quest, which employs many people from the area. Warren said SPOT officials hope to expand that service in the future. In the near future, Warren said SPOT will likely take over bus service from the Schweitzer Red Barn to Schweitzer Village. Officials received quotes this week for the buses, which should be delivered in time to start service this year. If grant opportunities come through, expanded winter service to Bonners Ferry could bring additional skiers and snowboarders down to the mountain, Warren added. Another opportunity is to establish a SPOT route linking to a Greyhound service, which would connect Sandpoint and Bonners Ferry to Coeur d’Alene. From there, riders could connect to buses

City to study feasibility of rec center By Cameron Rasmusson Reader Staff

A study approved by the city Wednesday may shed some light on the long-sought goal of establishing a Sandpoint recreation center. The Sandpoint City Council authorized a contract with the YMCA that will investigate the options available in a rec center project. Of the study’s $20,000 cost, the YMCA is committing $7,500, while the city will fund the remaining $12,500 through a High 5 grant from the Blue Cross Foundation. The study follows the announced sale of the University of Idaho extension property on Boyer, which is popularly considered a prime 8 /

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location for a recreation center. The city previously voted to pursue a grant from the LOR Foundation that could aid the property’s public purchase. Not everyone was thrilled with the city over the project timing. Resident Anita Aurit said based on the dates of emails sent out to the YMCA Advisory Council, the city had evidently made up its mind to purchase the university property before the public input process had concluded. “... It is clear that the decision to purchase the U of I land had already been set in motion at least a week before the Sept. 27 site tour,” she said. Councilman-Elect Joel

Aispuro agreed with Aurit, saying the city could have been more transparent in the process. Mayor Shelby Rognstad replied that the effort to establish a rec center is an independent project that pre-dates the potential purchase of the university property by many years. The specific partnership with the YMCA launched two years ago, and once organizers identified the University of Idaho property as a prime location, a study centered around that location became realistic. “It made sense at that time to develop a survey and really assess what the community’s response around that location would be,” Rognstad said.

A passenger rides the SPOT bus in Sandpoint. Photo courtesy YouTube.

heading toward Spokane and the airport. SPOT’s staff consists of one full-time manager, a parttime dispatcher and 14 drivers. Indeed, a lack of drivers are one of the primary challenges facing the system, and another full-time office position is sorely needed, Warren

said. Other challenges include aging buses, which Warren said are being pushed to the limit of allowable mileage. However, officials are already pursuing funding to replace fleet vehicles as needed.

Climate change discussion aims to ‘Clear the Air’ Friday By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff Writer

Climate change can be a particularly divisive topic, so local forces are teaming up for a night of bipartisan discussion. “Let’s Clear the Air: A Conversation about Climate, Energy and Jobs” will take place 5:30-7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 17 at the Sandpoint Community Hall. Bonner County Commissioner Glen Bailey and Bob Boeh of Idaho Forest Group will be part of a panel discussion regarding how climate change can be addressed across the political and faith spectrum. State Rep. Sage Dixon, R-Ponderay, who was originally advertised as being a part of the panel, had to cancel due to scheduling difficulties.

A climate scientist, a former business executive and an Audubon conservation manager will also be there, sharing presentations about the impacts of climate change, new energy solutions and economic policies that might mitigate climate and financial risk. This is the culminating event of a 12-city “Water, Wind and Fire Tour” around western Washington and North Idaho, put on by Citizens Climate Lobby and Audubon Washington volunteers. Friday night’s theme is “Saving our Farms, Forests and Fish while Strengthening the Economy.”


NEWS

City Council revives talks Earliest opening in two decades at Schweitzer over railroad quiet zone By Ben Olson Reader Staff

By Cameron Rasmusson Reader Staff

Sandpoint Councilman Bob Camp, set to retire from the council in January, revived talks about establishing a railroad quiet zone in town Wednesday night. A topic originally raised years ago, the proposed quiet zone fell off the radar due to cost problems. Camp said a recent re-evaluation and East Hope’s successful application for a quiet zone warranted that Sandpoint officials re-examining the issue. According to Camp, it took East Hope two years to get the zone approved and cost the city $11,000 per quiet zone. “I think the city could look into this, because it is doable,” he said. Camp said a Federal Railroad Administration official told him the first step is to form a diagnostic team. It’s an effort he believes the city should take, especially along the Boyer crossing, which runs near residences like the Milltown apartment complex. Many of those residents are senior citizens, he added, and especially for them, it’s a quality of life issue.

“Speaking as a senior citizen, when you get woken up in the middle of the night, it’s really hard to go back to sleep,” he said. According to Sandpoint Public Works Director Ryan Luttmann, the crossings at Boyer and Division have the necessary equipment to be considered for a quiet zone. The ballpark figure for establishing a quiet zone on those two crossings is about $30,000. Other crossings bring with them additional costs due to their unique circumstances. For instance, the Boyer crossing lacks safety arms on the pedestrian path, a risk the city will want to consider. Luttmann said the approximate cost of installing that equipment is $300,000. Should the city want to establish quiet zones on four crossings that could benefit from them, Luttmann said the city would likely want to budget around $1 million for the project. “We just need to make sure we have the appropriate funding, and again, this does take time,” Luttmann said.

Schweitzer Mountain Resort will be open for business Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 18-19. According to Dig Chrismer, Schweitzer marketing manager, this is the earliest season opening in over 20 years. “In 1994-95, we were open by Nov. 16,” said Chrismer. “Before that, in 1984-85, we were open on Nov. 11, so this is the third earliest opening we’ve had since we started keeping track in 1974-75.” Schweitzer received over 50 inches of snow in the month of November alone, and according to Chrismer, “That’s just the natural stuff. That’s not even counting the snow we’ve been able to make as well.” The resort will offer limited operations Nov. 18-19, with Musical Chairs and the Basin Express Quad running from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. both days. Adult full-day lift tickets will be $45. The mountain will close mid-week, but will be open again Friday, Nov. 24, for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Full seven-day-a-week opera-

tions will begin Friday, Dec. 1. As of Wednesday evening, the summit snowpack is at 32 inches and the base is 20 inches. Chrismer said snow-making machines have been operating every time the temperatures have allowed them, with grooming crews pushing that manmade snow to high traffic areas to help with base pack. “Also, we had a great summer in the sense that we had a brush-cutting crew on the mountain opening up some areas primarily on the backside of the mountain,” said Chrismer. “Peo-

ple on opening weekend won’t see the impact, but as the season progresses and as conditions allow, people will be thrilled to see that we’ve tidied some spots up.” NOAA confirmed last week that La Niña conditions have formed on the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, which should bring more snowfall and colder temperatures to the extreme Northwest, in which North Idaho is included. The weather agency said there is a 70-percent chance these conditions will continue throughout the winter.

BOOBS N’ BEER FOR A WORTHY CAUSE

Assembled Carousel of Smiles to be unveiled next month By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff Writer The Carousel of Smiles restoration project will reveal the assembled but unrestored carousel Dec. 16 and 17 at the Bonner County Fairgrounds. Saturday, Dec. 16, will kick off the weekend with doors opening at 1 p.m. and the official reveal at 2 p.m. Attendees can see the carousel up close, browse exhibits and enjoy hot cocoa and cookies. Sunday, Dec. 17, is a public open house from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.,

and will feature the same activities as Saturday, sans the reveal. In restoring the 1920s carousel, Clay and Reno Hutchison hope to bring to Sandpoint the joy they’ve found in exploring carousels across the U.S. Next month’s unveiling is a chance for others in the community to get involved in the restoration project. “We need a little magic in our lives and in our community,” Reno told the Reader last November. “I think carousels can do that; they can provide a little much-needed magic.”

Members of 7B Women celebrated a job well done with Celebrate Life, Community Cancer Services and Mickduff’s associates early this month. The nonprofit donated proceeds from its Boobs n’ Beer event, offering $8,500 to both Celebrate Life and Community Cancer Services. Photo by Cameron Rasmusson. November 16, 2017 /

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Mad about Science: By Brenden Bobby Reader Columnist

hollywood’s science fails Part 2

We’re back. I hope you’re ready to learn, or at least laugh at some sci-fail silliness. Faster-than-light travel is a big offender in just about every movie. For objects with mass to reach the speed of light, the amount of energy required becomes infinity. The offense in movies has more to do with time and plot than vehicles moving really fast. Remember those annoying word problems about trains on the SAT? When you factor in time dilation, if you have the trains traveling at the speed of light, the passengers would experience an instantaneous trip until the trains began moving below the speed of light or collided. However, time would be unchanged for people outside of the vehicle. Let’s say that “Cloud City” was four light years away from Dagobah. By the time that Luke left Dagobah, Han, Leia and Chewie had already been betrayed and were in trouble. Luke would jump into his X-wing and experience an instantaneous trip. But as soon as he slows down and enters Bespin’s atmosphere, he would come to find that Han Solo had already been frozen in carbonite for four years. At least Luke would still have both of his hands! Orson Scott Card is one of the few authors that has gotten time dilation and the effects of near-light-speed travel pretty darn close, and used it to mold 10 /

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his plots and pacing very well. The conundrum of FTL travel is even further compounded by figuring out how you’re going to slow down to reach your destination without passing it or liquefying everyone inside the ship. It would take the same amount of energy to slow down the ship in a vacuum as it would have taken to speed it up. This would take some very serious and precise calculations, because everything in space is moving at all times. Then there’s the trope of “aliens” always looking like us. This one is impossible to disprove…to an extent. We haven’t found extraterrestrial life of any kind, yet. To be fair, with our technology, it’s like trying to use a telescope to see what the president is tweeting while you’re in Utah. One thing we know for sure, even if alien life was at one time reminiscent of Earth’s primates, they definitely won’t have our body structure. Our skeletons lose anywhere from one to two percent of their total mass for each month we are in microgravity. Why? The primary purpose of our skeleton is to counteract gravity. When we’re not dealing with gravity, our bodies see that it’s made of resources that would probably be put to better use elsewhere. It’s believed that you can counteract this by spinning your ship, using centrifugal force as a surrogate for gravity, but if you’re using the same amount of energy to do that as you would to make some awesome exoskel-

eton that is 10x cooler than your normal body, wouldn’t you take the exoskeleton? Think those cool loaders from the “Alien” movies. Do you even lift, bro? Yeah, like a forklift! If alien life spent a significant time in microgravity, it would probably look more like a jelly blob than a tall, hunky human or a blue-skinned spacebabe, as sci-fi has taught us. Sorry, Captain Kirk! Enhance it! This is an ironic trope of crime shows. The entire case is stalled; the group doesn’t have enough evidence. At least not until the handsome lead detective leans in and delivers a stern command to their quirky tech guy:”Enhance it!” Suddenly, the image on the screen gets all grainy, but sorts itself out better than before. Bingo, they have their criminal. The irony of this is the show is being produced, filmed and edited by visual engineers that eat sleep and breathe cameras. Digital cameras capture images as pixels, points of light that, by themselves, are just a single box of color, but grouped together in the hundreds of thousands create a discernible image. You can zoom into a digital image, you can make it bigger, but you’re just enlarging the pixels, not unearthing previously unseen detail. That’s why it looks fuzzy when you zoom, you’re just zooming in on colored boxes. A detective using an “enhanced digital image” to prove something in court would be the equivalent of drawing a mustache on Charlie Chaplin and saying that you proved he

“If TV science was more like real science.” started World War 2. Now that I’ve made bitter enemies of North Idaho’s moviegoers, I’m gonna go crawl into a bag of popcorn and hide

until next week. Hey, your favorite movie might be scientifically implausible, but at least it’s still fun to watch things blow up.

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• After watching “Star Wars,” James Cameron decided to quit his job as a truck driver to enter the film industry. • Sandra Bullock won the Oscar and the Golden Raspberry (for worst film) in the same weekend. She collected both in person. The Razzie was for “All About Steve” and the Oscar was for “The Blind Side.” • Before being an actor, Bruce Willis worked as a private investigator. • Actor Richard Gere’s middle name is Tiffany. • Two actors have died playing Judas in live Biblical productions by accidentally hanging themselves for real during his death scene. • The Horse Head used in the movie “The Godfather” was real. • The movie “Little Miss Sunshine” was partially inspired by a quote from Arnold Schwarzenegger saying: “If there’s one thing in this world I despise, it’s losers.” • James Cameron was homeless when writing the movie “The Terminator,” and sold the rights for U$1, on the condition he could direct it. • Schwarzenegger was paid approximately $21,429 for every word he said in “Terminator 2.” • The time traveling machine in the movie “Back to the Future” was originally supposed to be a refrigerator. • “Jurassic Park,” “Pulp Fiction,” “Forrest Gump” and “The Shawshank Redemption” were all in theaters at the same time in October of 1994. • Sylvester Stallone was so poor, he had to sell his dog for $50. A week later, he sold the script for Rocky and bought him back for $3,000. • When Charlie Chaplin received his honorary Oscar, he got a 12-minute standing ovation, the longest in Oscar history.


COMMUNITY

Evans Brothers expand to CDA

Veterans offer glimpse into past with students

Veterans speak to LPOHS students last Wednesday. Courtesy photo. By Bret Johnson Reader Contributor

Randy Evans, left, and Rick Evans, right, in Costa Rica. Courtesy photo. By Jodi Rawson Reader Contributor The future is looking bright for Rick and Randy Evans of the popular Evans Brothers Coffee Roasters in Sandpoint. The pair have announced they are opening a new Evans Brothers coffee shop in Coeur d’Alene on Friday, Nov. 17. In 2009, brothers Rick and Randy Evans started a coffee roasting business in Sandpoint. In the beginning, it was just the two of them selling small batches of specialty roasted beans. Previously, Randy was roasting beans near Seattle and Rick was selling real estate in Southern California, but they wanted to reunite and work together. The brothers grew up feeling as if they had no real home as they were “Air Force brats.” When deciding where to live, the brothers planted themselves in Sandpoint because they love everything outdoors and wanted to grow strong roots. According to Randy, Evans Brothers has seen steady, organic growth. Neither of the brothers wants the business to grow to where quality of the product is compromised, or to the point where they can no longer be directly involved. Today their shop is a thriving community with lively reunions, interesting conversations and heavenly aromas greeting those walking in through the front door. They roast and sell around 2,000 pounds of quality coffee beans every week. Talking with the brothers, it’s obvious that they have a deep, abid-

ing love for coffee. “Coffee is exciting to me because it is the exchange of a lot of different people bringing their passions together to create a beautiful product,” said Randy. “It really starts with the farmer and the passion that they put in, and how that coffee was handled, stored, transported, how we take care of it by roasting it, and then how our baristas prepare the coffee. When all of those things come together the end result can be fantastic. Every step along the way, from seed to cup, is very important to have a good result.” The brothers have a direct relationship with the Menendez family in El Salvador. Each January they visit the seven small farms that this family owns and cares for. The Menendez family are virtually autonomous, unlike many cooperative farmers. They own their own mill and, by extension, their own their coffee, all the way to export. For the Menendez family, fair trade—which helps farmers receive fair market value for their product—is just not enough. They sell directly to the Evans brothers. Those beans contribute to unique blends that have achieved widespread popularity throughout the region. There are specialty blends for Schweitzer, which purchases around 200 pounds of coffee a week in the winter. Kootenai Medical Center purchases 150 pounds per week, year round, for their four coffee kiosks). The brothers also sell to nearly a hundred business, ranging from doctor’s offices to grocery

stores. And their coffee is sold from Spokane to Boise. Randy is the primary roaster, a job requiring an attention to detail that Rick says he lacks. Skill and patience is vital because every step is crucial, and carefully selected beans need care. But Randy says Rick is “the engine” driving their company. They hire their employees based on “attitude and passion,” according to Randy. These days, Evans Brothers depends on its employees to keep the business humming. The brothers recently hired four new people to bring their employee total to 15. The new hires are from Coeur d’Alene and are being trained to open up the new Evans Brothers coffee shop, a 1,500-square-foot space in downtown Coeur d’ Alene on Fifth and Sherman. This location will open Nov. 17 and host a grand opening celebration Dec. 1. The first employee came along in 2011 when they brought on Jeff Dunwoody to help serve customers. Since then, the team has grown. One longtime employee, Ashley Cugno, has worked at Evans Brothers for two and a half years and loves it. Cugno has been apprenticing on the 15-kilo roaster, which she says is “like taking dad’s nice car out for a spin.” For Cugno, her coworkers are like a second family, a constant support in getting through life’s ups and downs. Just like a great cup of coffee, her team is a little slice of home. “We really are family here,” she says.

On Wednesday, Nov. 8, Lake Pend Oreille High School hosted its annual Veterans Day Assembly. Seven local veterans; Ed Karasek, Tom Clark, George Garvey, Harold Hew and former LPO history teacher Tom Bass (as well as two other veterans who joined last minute), volunteered to be part of a panel tasked with fielding questions from curious students — many of whom are considering military service after graduation. If interest can be measured in sound, or lack thereof, the collective silence each man’s voice commanded — on the cusp of a four-day weekend no less — acted as testament. Principal Geoff Penrose began the assembly with a sincere welcome to the “honored guests… for the choice they made to take up arms to defend this country,” something “two million Americans,” he reminded those in attendance, are “out there somewhere, right now, actively doing to protect our ability to meet in this little gym.” This was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance led by emcee and LPO English teacher Bret Johnson, which segued nicely into Doug Bond’s ethereal rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Finally, it was time for the men of honor to share their stories. The veterans sat comfortably around a table, folding chairs supporting bodies that, as Tom Clark anecdotally revealed, the other veterans chuckling in agreement, had once been made to “duck-walk with footlockers weighing some 60 or 70 pounds held above their heads.” But these weren’t just stories about boot camp. From the get-go, there was a no-nonsense,

brass-tacks candor from each man. Questions written by students acted as mere suggestions, the men choosing to share what they felt relevant, and microphones, a veritable necessity during most such events, were reduced to table decor, each veteran electing to forego amplification devices in favor of greater intimacy. It worked. If words can be bound and carried, shared, even experienced, so can personal histories. Ed Karasek, his body visibly shaking with laughter at the emcee’s suggestion veterans can be long-winded, didn’t disappoint. His firsthand account of a tour in Vietnam, albeit censored to PG13, painted a picture, not just of combat, but of human adaptability, of the horrific becoming, in an effort to survive the conditions of war, commonplace. Students, many of whom struggle to sit still for more than a couple minutes, listened rapt with attention. See Ben Olson’s “Vietnam Veterans of Sandpoint” series in the Reader for the nitty-gritty details. Not only were the stories compelling, they were honest— something adolescents can sniff out with hound-dog precision. While not all veterans agreed on the recent trend to nonviolently protest the National Anthem — Mr. Karasek outspokenly defended each person’s right to kneel, even calling it “courageous” — they did agree that their experiences in the military, good or bad, made them the men they are today. To capstone the event, Behavioral Specialist Sarah Wood, along with students Mercedes Johnson and Laura Abromeit, led everyone in singing “America the Beautiful,” which, in its heartfelt solemnity, made our divided country feel, at least for a moment, a little less so. November 16, 2017 /

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event

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Family Reading Week with Olivia the Pig 6:30pm @ Kootenai Elem. Meet Olivia the Pig, hear stories, and enjoy a celebration to remember. Free!

Girls Pint Out 5-7pm @ Idaho Pour Authority Cool Chicks! Great Beer! No Dudes! Join Vicki at the big table for an evening tasting and talking about Porter, Brown Ale and Scotch Ale

“Murder on the Orient Expr 7:30pm @ Panida Theater Adapted from Agatha Chris novel. See Panida ad for full sh Dollar Beers! 8pm @ Eichardt’s Pub

Live Coun Live Music w/ Denis Zwang & Mike Johnson 5:30-7:30pm 6-8pm @ Cedar St. Bistro Wine Bar Live Music w/ Truck Mills Band Tom D’O Live Music w/ Brandon & Cole Show 9pm @ 219 Lounge Truck and his 4-piece are blues masters guest Patric 6:30-9:30pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall Farmhouse A dynamic duo. Food served by Edelwa- Little Black Dress Fundraiser gen Food Truck with handcrafted sausages 5:30pm @ Ivano’s Ristorante Live Musi To benefit Bonner Homeless Transi- 5-7pm @ I Live Music w/ Ron Kieper (Jazz) tions. No tickets, just show up! 5-8pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery Americana Fall Serenade Concert Panida’s 90th birthday! Live Music w/ John Firshi 5-7pm @ Idaho Pour Authority 7pm @ The Heartwood Center 9am-3pm @ New Song Bible A truly awesome player in town The Music Conservatory of Items for sale will include, Live Music w/ The Somethings Sandpoint hosts this annu- jewelry, hand sewn items, w al Fall Serenade, featuring ing items, gift baskets, and m 9pm @ 219 Lounge works by the great masters, All proceeds will go directly Chris Lynch and Meg Turner Live Music w/ The Cole Show performed by MCS artist in- ministry projects through Pa structors. $20/each, $5/MCS national. For Info: Lynn 208-2 6pm @ Arlo’s Ristorante Live Comedy at Ol’ Red’s P Live Music w/ Ken MayGinnes Turkey Bingo 8pm @ Ol’ Red’s Pub 6-8pm @ Kootenai River Brewing Co. 12-4pm @ Bonner Mall Cheap, fun entertainment for Have a blast down under wit the whole family. Great priz- comedy at Ol’ Red’s Pub. $10 Schweitzer Opening! LPOIC Annual Fall Derby Saturday and Sunday this week es, gift certificates and more! Nov. 16 - 26 @ Lake Pend Or www.LPOIC.org

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Christmas Fair 10am-3pm @ Bonner County Fairgrounds A two-day holiday shopping event Monday Night Blues Jam w/ Truck Mills 7:30pm @ Eichardt’s Pub

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Night Out Karaoke 9pm @ 219 Lounge Don’t listen to the others - you actually have a lovely voice

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Live Music w/ Josh Hedlund 7-9pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall An amazing local singer/songwriter with a great catalog of original songs

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Sandpoint Chess Club 9am @ Evans Brothers Coffee Meets every Sunday at 9am. All are welco

KPND Monday Night Football Party • 5 Host Bob Witte will have tons of prizes to tickets, KPND new music samplers, and m

Tuesday Backgammon Tournament 5pm @ Laughing Dog Brewery The tournament takes place every Tuesday with beer specials and prizes

Mother Goose Storytime 10:15am @ Creations (Ceda Enjoy stories and singing f toddlers 0-3 years of age and

Memory Cafe 2-3:30pm @ Kokanee Live Music w/ Ben & Cadie This casual gathering 7-9pm @ Beet & Basil tion, and fellowship fo A multi-instrumental duo who mer’s or other related will be drinking 40 ouncers

10th Annual Turkey Trot 9am @ Travers Park Work off that turkey dinner with the 10th Annual Turkey Trot! Arrive early to sign a waiver; minors need a parent or guardian signature. Entry fee is only a can of non-perishable food for the Bonner Community Food Bank!

Happ Dollar Beers! 8pm @ Eichardt’s Pub Good until the keg’s dry


ful

November 16 - 23, 2017

ient Express” film heater tha Christie’s famous for full showtimes

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A weekly entertainment guide to keep you on your toes. To list your event free, please send an email to calendar@sandpointreader.com. Reader recommended

Sandpoint Nordic Club season rentals 4-8pm @ Syringa Cyclery Cross country ski packages including skis, boots, and poles will be available to rent for the winter season. Classic ski packages: $119. Skate ski packages $149.

Alzheimer’s Support Group 4-8pm @ Syringa Cyclery Cross country ski packages including skis, boots, and poles will be available to rent for the winter season. Classic ski packages: $119. Skate ski packages $149. “Walden: The Ballad of Thoreau” play Turkey Bingo 6-8pm @ Bonner Mall 7pm @ The Heartwood Center Presented by POAC and Unknown Lo- Sponsored by mall merchants cals, this is a funny and charming play for Sandpoint Lions Club two-act play discusses our relationship kick off for Toys for Tots. with the environment through the banter Cheap, fun entertainment for between Henry David Thoreau and Ralph the whole family. Great prizes, gift certificates and more! Waldo Emerson. Tickets $15 / $11 / $5

ive Country Western music :30-7:30pm @ The Farmhouse om D’Orazi and special uest Patrice Webb play at The armhouse on Hwy 95 Live Music w/ BareGrass -7pm @ Idaho Pour Authority Americana all-stars hday! A Holiday Gift and Craft Fair ong Bible Church 9am-3pm @ New Song Bible Church l include, handmade Items for sale will include, handmade items, wood work- jewelry, hand sewn items, wood workets, and much more! ing items, gift baskets, and much more! o directly to women’s All proceeds will go directly to women’s rough Partners Inter- ministry projects through Partners InterLynn 208-263-9956 national. For Info: Lynn 208-263-9956 “Walden: The Ballad of Thoreau” play ’ Red’s Pub 7pm @ The Heartwood Center b under with some live Meet Olivia the Pig 11am @ Clark Fork Library Pub. $10 cover Live Music w/ The Other White Meat l Derby 6:30-9:30pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall e Pend Oreille Classic rock band

are welcome

A Fair To Remember - Empty Bowls 4-8pm @ Columbia Bank A benefit for the Bonner Community Food Bank featuring live music by Mobius Riff, raffle prizes, Judy’s potato leek soup, beer and wine from the 219, games for the kids and much more. $20 Cedar St. Bridge Public Market 10am-2pm @ Cedar St. Bridge Come enjoy indoor shopping on the bridge spanning Sand Creek Christmas Fair 9am-4pm @ Bonner County Fairgrounds A two-day holiday shopping event

Unique selection of Excellent Wines Local Beers On Tap

Yummy Tapas Menu

Wine $ Cheese Sampling Wine & cheese sampling Saturdays 12-3p.m. p.m. Saturdays 12-3 Open 5 p.m. - Closing Thurs. - Sat.

Game Night at the Niner 9pm @ 219 Lounge

l Party • 5:30pm @ 219 Lounge f prizes to give away from area restaurants, concerts tickets, WSU football lers, and much more. Drink specials, plus food by Mandala Pizza

orytime ions (Cedar St. Bridge) singing for babies and of age and caregivers

Preschool Storytime 11am @ Creations (Cedar St. Bridge) Enjoy stories and crafts for kids ages 2-5 years and their caregivers

fe Kokanee Coffee gathering provides socialization, interacowship for persons diagnosed with Alzheier related dementia and their care partners

Robotics with Lego Mindstorm 3pm @ Clark Fork Library Learn to build or code during this Robotics class for boys and girls age 8+

Happy Thanksgiving!

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Thursday Ladies Night $1.00 off all drinks

Nov. 24 Annual Christmas Tree Lighting @ Jeff Jones Town Square Nov. 24 Harold’s IGA plays ‘90s night @ 219 Lounge

Nov. 25 Shook Twins “Giving Thanks” concert @ Panida Theater

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The American Redoubt Series Preparedness and Self-Reliance

By Bill Harp Reader Contributor Editor’s Note: This first article of the American Redoubt series focuses on the preparedness community and self-reliance — a key principle of the Redoubt as proposed by one of its original proponents, James Wesley, Rawles. Next week, we’ll take a closer look at how Rawles affected the movement. It is written by a contributor with personal experience in the preparedness community. The preparedness community is a diverse movement of many types of folks. They are united by the belief that modern society is far less resilient than most people think, that an unexpected calamitous event could sever access to the many systems that we depend on. With electric power, fuel, food, medicine, water and law enforcement cut off, the well-ordered social contract of civilization could slip away. The preparedness community understands how fragile modern society could be under these circumstances and takes steps to ensure a better chance of enduring such a life-changing disaster. Calamitous Events

Not everyone agrees on the what the calamitous events could be and what type of event is most like to occur. They fall into three general categories: natural, social and hybrid. Natural events could be floods; wind, snow and ice storms; fires; earthquakes; volcanic eruptions; meteors and electromagnetic pulses from the sun that could disable sensitive electronics and the power grid. Social events include financial meltdown, war, terrorism, cyber-induced energy grid failure, nuclear events and political instabilities. And then there are hybrid events such as famine and far-reaching disease outbreaks. In the Inland Northwest, you could add a serious chemical spill on the railroad or highway. Any of these events could have complex and difficult-to-predict effects on communities, regions, states or nations.

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Part 1

The event could be short term and local, or it could endure for years and be global in scope. Two popular expressions for defining events are TEOTWAWKI (the end of the world as we know it) and WTSHTF (when the shit hits the fan). Response

What might be an appropriate preparation for a calamitous event? Well, that is the source of a lot of debate within the preparedness community. Some might buy a couple of how-to books, store 40 gallons of water and two weeks of freeze dried food in their garage and call it a day. Others might outfit a complete off-grid retreat in the North Idaho back-country along with a year’s supply of food, water, fuel and medicine. And, of course, there’s every combination of in-between responses. Each member of the preparedness community researches and decides exactly how they are going to prepare for a TEOTWAWKI event. Information Sources

Detailed preparedness resources and discussions are available online as well as in print. One internet site stands out in its quality and scope of information and its political and social philosophy. This is www.survivalblog.com, a web site operated by James Wesley, Rawles (author, founder, owner-operator) and Hugh James Latimer (managing editor). The more than 1.5 million unique visits per month indicates the massive and global level of interest in this site. Although many folks in the preparedness community may not share all the components of Rawles’s preparedness philosophy, he is widely recognized as a world-class authority on the preparedness subject. The Survival Blog website houses more than 27,000 articles on all aspects of prepping, offering a sort of one-stop shop of information. Enter the Redoubt

Rawles is credited with the invention of the concept of the Redoubt. The Redoubt identifies a geographic area (Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and the eastern halves of Washington and Oregon) as meeting

the requirements important to maximizing survival in calamitous events. Requirements include primarily conservative, agrarian communities; low population densities; far from large population centers; good subsistence horticultural potential; affordable property; low taxes; abundant wood-fuel and timber sources; diversified economies; minimum of natural disaster risk; excellent hunting and fishing; good and abundant water; no strategic nuclear strike targets and a minimum of governmental intrusion. North Idaho is one of the surprisingly few areas of the U.S. to meet these criteria. Many embrace the concept of the Redoubt as a political movement, too, and have moved to the Redoubt. Rawles’s thought leadership and philosophy can be reviewed at: https://survivalblog. com/redoubt/. In many ways, then, the Redoubt movement is a subset of the preparedness mindset. Many families who consider the threat of a TEOTWAWKI event have relocated to the North Idaho area. Existing residents, too, may consider themselves members of the Redoubt movement because of their preparedness mindset and sympathy for the Redoubt movement’s philosophy. Movement Genesis

Historically, traditional smallscale cultures and homestead pioneers developed skills and a

mindset oriented toward energy efficiency, appropriate technology and local food production. The preparedness movement draws heavily on these traditional skills and technologies. After World War II, the Cold War impressed on an entire generation the concept of preparing to survive a nuclear holocaust. A wave of blast-resistant bunkers mushroomed in American suburban backyards in the 1960s. In the 1970s and ‘80s, the term “survivalist” showed up in mainstream culture. It mostly referred to families that moved to rural homesteads to develop the skills and resources to survive life-changing events. The Rogue River in southern Oregon became one of first noted survivalist safe havens, due, in part, to the influence of Mel Tappan, perhaps the intellectual father of modern survivalism. The 1977 book “Survival Guns” by Tappan, along with his other works, influenced a generation of survivalists and thought leaders in the preparedness community. However, a defining moment came in the buildup to the Y2K event in 2000. As most may remember, there were dire warnings about the many ways that society could crumble if critical systems failed because they depended on a 20th-century year-date system (1900-1999) and were not prepared to accept “2000” as a date. Fortunately, a lot of smart people worked hard to patch critical legacy computer code, and disaster

was averted. However, en masse preparations took place, and out of this event came many of publications that supported the modern prepping movement. The Survival Blog website started up in 2005 when many of the current generation of preppers were scoping out the mountainous Inland Northwest as their potential new home. Natural and political disturbances on the global scene and disenchantment with the national economy and political systems precipitated this major preparedness social movement that has much in common with the back-to-the-land movement of the hippies in the ‘60s and ‘70s. The many parallels included growing your own food, practicing energy efficiency, reclaiming the mindset and skills of the pioneer generation and honoring the value of hard work and self-determination. The destination of both movements was a parcel of land. As geography would have it, our local community was right in center of what many considered an optimum location to shelter from a WTSHTF storm. Stewart Brand’s “Whole Earth Catalog” (first published in 1968 and the bible of the back-to-theland movement) and the Survival Blog web site (the core resource of the Redoubt moment) have a lot in common. Even a cursory review of preparedness websites will reveal articles on organic gardening,

< see REDOUBT, page 17 >


Profiles of the Redoubt

Part 1

By Ben Olson Reader Staff Editor’s Note: Each week, we’ll feature interviews with people who identify with the American Redoubt movement that have reached out to the Reader. If you would like to participate in this series, please email ben@ sandpointreader.com. Athol resident Beth Baumann moved to North Idaho in the spring of 2016 in search of a place free from the “hustle and bustle” of her native Riverside, Calif. “My now-husband – my boyfriend at the time – we knew we wanted to get out of California,” said Baumann. “I knew that wasn’t a place I wanted to raise a family.” Baumann left southern California to attend college at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Ariz. where she obtained degrees in political science and public relations before moving onto Washington, D.C., to intern for the American Conservative Union and CPAC. She was in charge of social media, strategy and registration. After moving back to Riverside and working for a small boutique PR firm for two years, Baumann and her then-boyfriend were eager to leave for greener pastures. “I lived in the same house my whole life,” she said. “I saw my neighborhood significantly change. We went from being a neighborhood where people were very family oriented, looked out for each other, to everybody keeping to themselves.” Baumann said North Idaho appealed to her because “it reminded me a lot of Flagstaff — that small town feel, but it had the conservative values I was looking for, that sense of community.” It wasn’t until after she had settled on five acres in Athol that Baumann heard about the Redoubt. “My dad actually mentioned it to me,” she said. “He emailed me this article and said ‘You should read this,’ and I was very intrigued by it. It was an older profile of the area done quite awhile ago that talked about (John Wesley,) Rawles and his idea of it, and how people are fleeing California and these liberal areas to the Northwest.”

Baumann found a job in publicity and worked as a freelance social media writer for Bearing Arms, a Second Amendment website. She later settled in as a social media staff writer for Town Hall. Being involved in the media, Baumann’s opinion of the coverage of the Redoubt is mixed. “Everything I’ve read (about the Redoubt) has been written by people who aren’t from here, who don’t live here,” she said. “I think that everybody instantly labels this area as a bunch of white, gun-toting racists. That really is the feeling I’ve gotten.” One of the most intriguing parts of the Redoubt movement to Baumann is the fact that it is a “leaderless” movement. “I don’t think the media understands that because they’re so quick to want to put a face and a figurehead on it,” she said. “That goes against everything the Redoubt stands for. The Redoubt is this idea about these people who really just want to be left alone, to do their own thing. They don’t want government to infringe. But there’s also this level of respect that I haven’t found elsewhere, where you respect your neighbor’s space and what they have to do, but you’re willing to lend a helping hand when needed.” While Baumann identifies with the tenets of the Redoubt, she calls herself a “homesteader light,” when it comes to preparation. “I have a garden and grow my own food,” she said. “For me, it was less about the doomsday prepper side of things and more about proving to myself that I can do this.” Baumann said she has always identified right of center in the political spectrum. “I always say I’m too conservative for the libertarians and too libertarian for the conservatives,” she said. “I fall into this really gray area of being conservative but also being libertarian in the sense that I just don’t care what people do. Let them live their lives.” While Baumann said she identifies as Christian, she isn’t a church goer: “I don’t identify as conservative because of religion. ... I believe in Christian beliefs and values, but a lot of my beliefs stem from the idea of individual-

ism and people making the best decisions for themselves.” Baumann’s libertarian side comes out most when it comes to social issues, she said. “I’m pro-life, but at the same time, I’m pro-life for myself,” she said. “I could never have an abortion, but who am I to tell another woman that she should or should not? I don’t live her life. I probably do have different values than some people on the abortion issue because I’ve been the victim of sexual assault, so I know the implications of that. ... There is more gray area than I think some liberals and conservatives want to admit.” When asked what she thinks about moderates and progressives in North Idaho who feel their communities are being changed by the influx of conservatives, Baumann said, “The majority rules. That’s one of the great things about America – we rule by majority and we protect the minority. If progressives don’t like what they are seeing, they have to get out and do the work. ... If they’re not happy with the conservative policies, then why stay in this area?” When it comes to racism and the Redoubt, Baumann feels the two don’t go together at all. “I think if you look at the people who naturally come here, yes, a lot of them are white,” she said. “For me, it’s never been about the race card. I don’t see it that way. ... I know a lot of people in the Redoubt are afraid of being mischaracterized. Their way of dealing with it is not talking.” Another issue that has polarized the region in the past few years is refugee resettlement, of which the majority of those who align with the Redoubt often oppose. Baumann admits she needs to learn more before coming to a decision. “As much as we don’t want to label everybody, we also have to be cautious,” she said. “Part of being cautious and protecting our citizens is looking at where these refugees come from and the religion they come from and the extremism in that part of the world. As much as I don’t like to lump people together, I’d rather be called a racist than to be blown up.” At only 25 years old, Baumann said being a millennial and

Beth Baumann. Photo by Ben Olson. a conservative gives her a unique perspective in the rapidly shifting political climate. “I know a few conservative Millennials who are unapologetically conservative,” she said. “It’s become more socially acceptable to go against the grain.” While she voted for President Donald Trump in 2016, Baumann said she “plugged her nose” while she did it. “I actually wrote in 2015 that Trump scares me as much as Obama scared me,” she said. “I thought he would legislate from the phone and the pen, and that he would do executive orders up the yin yang, and so far, I’m not surprised by anything I’ve seen. But I hold everybody to the fire. Everybody should be held to the fire, regardless of political party or position or if you voted for them or not.” Baumann has recognized a divide surrounding Trump, but added, “I think we are just as polarized as we were in 2008, just in opposite ways. ... But, I’ve had people who won’t talk to me anymore because I’m not on this MAGA train. It’s not that I don’t want to be supportive, but I’m going to call out any type of wrongdoing I see regardless of who it is. That’s how it’s supposed to be.” Regarding the Redoubt movement, Baumann said it has similarities with other movements in the past. “With things like the Tea Party and the Redoubt, I don’t necessarily think that these are new groups,” she said. “I think it’s the same group of people who get ignited every so many years and the name changes. Because they’re the same people you’re going to

see in your Republican Central Committees. They’re the people who are already involved.” When asked whether those on the fringe of the Redoubt causes harm to the conservatism in general, Baumann said, “Yes, 100 percent. I think it makes us all look batshit crazy. People like Alex Jones don’t speak for the majority of people. Yes they have their followers, but the average person is level headed. They just want to be able to have decent jobs, support their kids. They just want to be left alone. That’s what I take out of the Redoubt. We’re people who want to be able to express our constitutional rights. We want to protect the Second Amendment. We want to be able to hunt and whatnot, but that doesn’t mean that we’re all sitting around in our basements wearing gas masks and thinking of the latest conspiracy theories about how the government is going to kill us. I personally think the government serves a purpose. We need government for things like roads and whatnot, but that doesn’t mean that it has to be large.” Though she identifies with the movement, Baumann said she probably isn’t the typical Redoubter. “While I live in the Redoubt, I’m probably not the purest Redoubter in the sense of I’m not a doomsday prepper,” she said. “I’m not a conspiracy theorist. Yes, I believe that terrorists really hit the Twin Towers and that Sandy Hook really happened. While I do agree with a lot of the principles, I think that the conspiracy theorist side and doomsday-mad prepping in places ... hurts us in the long run because people don’t resonate with that unless they are that, and that population is so small.” November 16, 2017 /

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IN FINE FETTLE Seasonal Affective Disorder (and other sad states of mind)

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By Ammi Midstokke Reader Health Columnist “Maybe I’ve got SAD,” I tell my mom as I whine about lethargy, lack of motivation, crying over pudding commercials, and a voracious appetite for cookies. “Or it could just be Monday.” She aptly points out that Seasonal Affective Disorder doesn’t typically start until later in the year, although some people have opposite SAD and get depressed in the summer. These people must live in Backwards Land (or Phoenix, or they work as ski patrollers). Even if I did have SAD, I don’t know if I could ever admit it, because the acronym lends an even more pathetic note to the statement, “I get depressed when I can’t drink cocktails on the boat in my bikini.” The fact that my paddle board racks are still on my car is a sign that I am reluctant to give up summer, but how do I determine if I have SAD or I just need a kick in the pants? Well, the Mayo Clinic lists a hosts of determining factors and symptoms to guide us. Symptoms of SAD include but are not limited to: •fatigue •depression •depression that is related to seasons •eating cookies more than you should •sleeping in and then eat cookies for breakfast •still not feeling better despite a life of cookie consumption Recognizing how difficult it is to determine the difference between a diagnosis and a Monday, I set out to see if I could have an effect on the affective disorder. I got up on time, went to yoga, and stopped eating cookies. I had a glass of water instead of wine at dinner. I wrote in my gratitude journal. I took a ridiculous amount of Vitamin D and an amino acid called L-Dopa. This is a direct precursor to the neurotransmitter dopamine, known for encouraging pleasure centers of the brain (not surprisingly, also blamed for addiction). For the sake of science, I took a dose just shy of lethal-for-lab-rats and waited for sensations of overwhelming joy. At this rate, I could survive winter in Alaska. After a few days I thought maybe I felt better. I told a story about my grandmother’s death and did not sob. I went to the gym and did not hate it. But it wasn’t until Saturday that the epiphany came to me. I had strapped on my snowshoes and headed out for a run in the mountains. All three of my dogs were frolicking in the snowflakes, bounding through the white

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Ammi Midstokke with Freya the Brown Dog. powder. It was too deep to run, so I slowed to a comfortable hike as we wound our way around the hillside. I had left my phone and watch at home. The sound of my snowshoes matched my breathing, and in the distance a bird chirped as though it too was denying the season. The Tamaracks, ill-prepared for the early winter, were shedding carpets of fiery orange onto the white ground. I slipped through a tunnel of trees, heavy and leaning from the weight of the snow. Narnia has nothing on North Idaho. I made an observation: I was happy. In fact, I was nearly elated. It could have been a combination of the cocktail of happy-sauce I had been mixing all week, but I believe it was related to a small but profound acknowledgment: I never regretted going outside. Throughout my entire life, whether depressed, sick, mourning, falling in love or broken-hearted, I never went for a walk, run, or hike and came home saying, “Well, that was lame.” Nope. Every time, without fail, I felt better after going outside. Even more important to the recognition that the outdoors makes me happy is the reality that I am in control of my choice to go outside. It is no surprise that dozens of studies correlate increased production of happy hormones such as serotonin and endorphins for those who spend time outdoors, in particular those who exercise outdoors. Note: A great argument to not spend your winter solely in the gym. So if you begin to think you’re suffering from SAD, try a litmus test of what we might think is common sense though we seem to need reminders: Take good care of your body, have self-compassion, and go outside. If you’re stilling feeling sad after that, see your doctor, but keep prescribing the above. In the very least, it will minimize the cookie damage. Ammi Midstokke is a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner in Sandpoint. She can be reached at ammi@twobirdsnutrition.com.


< REDOUBT, con’t from page 14 > solar power and homemade water filters, a topic shared by the New Age back-to-theland counter culture of the ‘60s and the Redoubt world of preparedness post-2000. Of course, security is an important tenant of modern preparedness, so there are numerous articles on self-defense strategies in almost all the survivalist web sites. Media Representation

Much of the media representation of the preparedness movement focuses on the process of prepping and some of its more radical, somewhat unhinged practitioners. It is relatively easy for the media to point out the folly of stocking massive amounts of ammo and firearms for an expected Armageddon. Few articles have considered that the broader preparedness community’s inclination toward a more sustainable, independent lifestyle is a reasonable response to potential global societal disruption. The media also tends to consider the preparedness movement as a relatively homogeneous subculture with its own anti-society worldview. These representations have serious flaws and are based on a superficial analysis of perhaps a small minority of the community. The movement is far larger and more diverse than the majority of media may lead us to believe. Part of the dilemma is that urban media often have little insight

into the requirements for living in a rural setting with a self-sustainable strategy of growing and raising a local food supply or generating local energy. They focus on — perhaps exaggerate — the bunker mentality of the more visible practitioners and often ignore the larger group of folks that are, in many cases, friends and neighbors.

Preparedness Culture and its Adaptation to the Redoubt Movement

Preparedness culture crosses educational background, socio-economic class, religious belief, age groups and political philosophy. But the Redoubt movement, a subset of preparedness culture, tends to attract mostly conservative, libertarian, Christian practitioners. Most serious adherents practice very disciplined OPSEC (“operations security,” a military term for not communicating critical information that could be used against you — as in the motto “loose lips sink ships”). The preparedness community understands that it should not communicate preparedness strategies and intentions except to a very close-knit group of family and like-minded folks. Therefore, preppers cannot be easily identified. They generally do not speak about their beliefs in open forums and do work hard to ensure the OPSEC of their preparedness strategies. No one wants to be ridiculed or embarrassed because others don’t share their

beliefs, but that is not the primary reason for OPSEC. The primary reason is that, in a post-calamitous event scenario, a prepared family could become a target for hungry and desperate groups. Self-proclaimed preppers who do not practice good OPSEC are often ridiculed by others in the community as “armchair preppers.” Many, such as generations of homesteaders, farmers and ranchers are preppers by family tradition. Many of these folks don’t generally consider themselves an active part of the Redoubt culture. Another example of the wide diversity of prepping are Mormons, who include disaster preparedness in their religious doctrine. There are, of course, many outspoken preppers who are involved in other highly visible social movements. They represent a minority of the general community that thrives by ensuring that it stays below the radar. Rawles states that he is a conservative, libertarian Christian. Like Rawles, many who have come to the Redoubt follow a similar philosophy, but the preparedness movement, as a whole, is not constrained by these philosophical beliefs.

This overview introduces the preparedness community and its association with the Redoubt movement. Future articles will explore: •The history of the Redoubt and James Wesley, Rawles’s philosophy, as well as interviews with current members of the preparedness community •Redoubt sub-cultures and social implications such as regional, political and demographic impacts of the movement •The preferred media of the Redoubt •The religious foundation of the Redoubt •Lessons learned from preparedness and the goal of self-sustainability as a lifestyle choice. If you have moved to the Northwest in the past decade and identify with the Redoubt movement, we are interested in telling your story. Please feel free to contact publisher Ben Olson at ben@sandpointreader. com. We promise to treat you with respect and professionalism. Bill Harp is a technologist, geospatial analyst and cultural anthropologist. He is the former Director of Technology of Bonner County with a long career in defense and intelligence.

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OUTDOORS

AHWF plans black bear enclosure Falcon graduates and finds a home By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff Writer

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff Writer

There are only a handful of facilities in the United States and Canada that have the ability to provide care for black bears in need of rehabilitation. If someone in Bonner County came across an orphaned black bear cub, North Idaho’s very own American Heritage Wildlife Foundation could not provide direct rehabilitative care for that cub like they can for several other species in the area. But now, AHWF is looking to change that. Through volunteer efforts and community donations, AHWF is planning to build an enclosure appropriate for black bear rehabilitation efforts. The enclosures must be large enough to ensure development of natural foraging behaviors, but secure from other species. Idaho Fish and Game also requires that bears from other states be held in separate enclosures. AHWF is the only nonprofit in North Idaho that has both IDFG and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service permits to provide rehabilitative care for the injured

Lilly Mitsui sent Falcon, her third puppy raised to become a service dog, to “graduate school” in the spring. This month, she and her husband flew to Santa Rosa to see Falcon graduate from his final training, and to meet the person he’d been matched with — all of this thanks to Canine Companions for Independence. CCI is a nationwide company that specializes in providing service dogs for people with a variety of needs. These dogs, valued at $50,000 after graduating from training, are provided to those with disabilities at no cost. Mitsui said there are about 400 people on the waiting list for a CCI dog, and some wait up to three years before meeting a companion. She said there was a luncheon before graduation where she and her husband were going to get to meet Falcon’s new family. “I hardly slept the night before,” she said. “I was so excited.” When they met Falcon’s companion — a woman who suffered a stroke in her 30s and who has an 11-month-old son — it was incredibly emotional. “We just immediately clicked and I know we’re going to be friends forever,” she said. “Both my husband and I just felt like we couldn’t have asked for a better match.” Also before the ceremony, Mitsui was reunited with Falcon after six months apart. “He knew who I was right away,” she said. Graduation consisted of Mitsui handing Falcon over to his new companion before hundreds of ceremony attendees — a testament to the fact that it is a “big deal,” Mitsui said. “When we take this on the ultimate goal is to have them graduate, but not all dogs make it,” she said. Mitsui is currently raising her fourth puppy, Evie. Mitsui will raise Evie until

A black bear cub. Photo courtesy of American Heritage Wildlife Foundation. and orphaned non-game mammals and most bird species. Instating a black bear enclosure would expand those animal rehab abilities. Now through Dec. 31, AHWF is raising funds through www.loveanimals.org. To donate, visit the website and search “Black Bear Rehab.” To follow the project’s progress and to keep up to date on AHWF’s other happenings, follow the nonprofit on Facebook and Twitter, or visit their website at www. ahwf.org.

Top: Mitsui reunites with Falcon after six months apart, just before his CCI graduation ceremony. Bottom: Falcon and his new family. Courtesy photos.

she’s about 18 months old, at which point the pup will follow in Falcon’s footsteps to her final training. Mitsui said if anyone is interested in more information about becoming a CCI puppy raiser, they can visit the Forrest Bird Charter Middle School’s multi-purpose room on Tuesdays from 3:30-4:30 p.m. to watch the puppy raisers work with their trainer, Lindsay Feist. Also, if there are organizations or businesses who would like more information on CCI, Mitsui said a presentation can be made to your group. Contact her at Lilly3Wells@aol.com. You can learn more about Canine Companions for Independence at www.CCI.org.

Defining achievement and success is easy. Mapping out your family’s goals and staying on track to reach them takes determination, planning and a team you trust. The Gibson Wealth Strategy Group can partner with you on your path to success at many different stages: from wealth accumulation through retirement, and into legacy planning. We would love the chance to become part of your team.

805 Pine Street | Sandpoint | (208) 263-2010

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Tom Gibson, CPA, CWS® Senior Vice President, Financial Advisor

Candice Nelson, RP® Senior Registered Associate


STAGE & SCREEN

Unknown Locals and POAC team up for ‘Walden’ By Cameron Rasmusson Reader Staff One of the tricks of good storytelling is finding themes that resonate irrespective of historic time and place. “Walden: The Ballad of Thoreau,” the latest play from arts organization Pend Oreille Arts Council and theater company Unknown Locals, finds that universal idea in its exploration of humankind’s relationship to the environment. It’s one of the elements that drew Hannah Combs, POAC director of events, and Madeline Elliott, Unknown Locals co-founder, to the play. “We read the script and thought it told a lot about a story that people might be starting to forget,” Elliott said. “Walden” tells the story of Henry David Thoreau, the famed American writer, poet, social critic and philosopher, as he spends his final days in his cabin before leaving Walden Pond. The play follows his conversations with his friend and mentor, Ralph Waldo Emerson, as he comes to terms with man’s place in the environment and the realities of developing his ideas. “(He realizes) if he wants to make his life matter, he has to take it to a larger audi-

ence,” Elliott said. Both Elliott and Combs have plenty of experience planning local productions, with Unknown Locals producing multiple local theatrical projects and POAC sponsoring everything from concerts to the popular annual “Nutcracker” ballet. However, this is the first time the organizations are teaming up on a project. Given the amount of combined talent, they say the collaboration has been fruitful. “It’s so wonderful to work on a production when you know this and this and this are in the good hands of another party,” Combs said. “It’s strange to me, because we do many of these things on our own,” added Elliott. “It’s like, ‘Oh! I don’t have to worry about that!’” The idea first came up when a POAC member recommended that Combs consider that play for a POAC production. Combs asked around for possible partners who could make the project happen and eventually turned to Unknown Locals. “(Madeline took) the reins … and found a wonderful cast,” Combs said. In turns playful, funny and serious, “Walden’s” themes are expressed by a talented cast of local actors. Mike Clarke leads as Thoreau, bringing a robust, thoughtful

quality to the burgeoning intellectual mind. Seneca Cummings delivers good-natured wisdom as Emerson. Two fictional supporting characters, Joshua Barnett and Rachel Stuers, round out the cast of characters and The “Walden” creative team includes, from left to right, Madeline Elliott, Seneca Cummings, Nicole Buratto, Mike Clarke and Cory Repass. Courtesy photo. are portrayed by Cory Repass and Nicole Buratto. Elliott said the Center. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., and the actors do a wonderful job delivering the performance begins at 7 p.m. All ages are banter-heavy dialogue, which feels remarkwelcome. Tickets are $15 for adults, $11 ably fresh for a play set in the 19th century. for POAC supporters or $5 for those 18 “It doesn’t seem to me to have that awk- or younger and can be purchased online ward stiltedness that (you sometime see),” at http://artinsandpoint.org/events/perforshe said. mance-series, at several in-town locations With only two nights this weekend to or on the night of the show pending availcheck out “Walden,” be sure to get tickability. Call POAC at 208-263-6139 for ets soon. Showtimes are Friday, Nov. 17, more information. and Saturday, Nov. 18, at the Heartwood

nov. 16 @ 7:30pm | Nov. 17 @ 5:30pm | Nov. 19 @ 3:30pm Nov. 20-23 @ 7:30pm | nov. 24 @ 1:30 & 5:30pm Nov. 26 @ 3:30pm | Nov. 27-30 @ 7:30pm

“murder on the orient express” saturday, nov. 18 @ 6pm

panida’s 90th birthday celebration the Panida's mainstage will be alive with music, theater, dancing and the silver screen lighting up your eyes and ears as you are taken through the ages of show biz

saturday, nov. 25 @ 7:30pm

shook twins and friends “giving thanks” concert featuring special guests marshall mclean and john craigie friday, dec. 1 @ 7pm

2017 backcountry film festival Saturday, dec. 2 @ 5pm

jack frost fest

Four great americana bands playing live, including: BareGrass, Sasha Bell Band, Moonshine Mountain and Shakewell

Sunday, dec. 3 @ 7pm

Eugene Ballet’s ‘The nutcracker’ The timeless christmas play, presented by pend oreille arts council Sunday, dec. 3 @ 3:30pm

Frost Fest Weekend Sunday Animation Matinee November 16, 2017 /

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RAPID LIGHTNING AERIAL

This aerial drone photograph gives a unique view of Rapid Lightning Creek. Photo by William Greenway / HoverSight Photography.

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MUSIC

This week’s RLW by Ben Olson

READ

Four voices, one goal

The SHS Chamber Choir’s quartet looks to fundraise, but mostly they just really like to sing

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff Writer Ben Robinson, Ryan Baumgartner, Burton Anderson and Riley Anderson are juniors at Sandpoint High School. They lead different lives, whether as athletes, play actors or student council members. They all aspire to study different topics in college, from musical theater to engineering to economics. But Robinson, Baumgartner, Burton and Riley are also a bass, a baritone, a tenor and a lead, respectively. Together, they make up the Sandpoint Chamber Choir’s quartet, and together is exactly how they’ve been since they all joined men’s choir their freshman year. “We just like singing, and we like music, and we like each other,” Burton said. The four students sing in the SHS choir under teacher Jon Brownell. Robinson said while the choir used to always have a quartet, they hadn’t for a couple of years until this year, when he asked Brownell if he could bring it back. “We approached our director and said ‘This is what we’re going to do and we hope you support us and back us,’” Robinson said. “I thought we had a good group of guys to make it happen this year.” Brownell gave them the OK, and thus began the rehearsing, tweaking and learning that comes with creating music with four voices. “They just love to do what they are doing,” Brownell said. “Most of the time, I don’t even need to motivate them to rehearse. They do it even if I’m not there.” Forming the quartet also created a unique fundraising opportunity for the SHS choir as a whole. While the entire choir will go out and perform at the local restaurants on the weekends in order to bring in donations, having a smaller group of singers who could approach locals on

weeknights meant the choir would have more chances to raise money for trip they hope to take this summer, Robinson said. That trip, part of a program called Festivals at Sea, is an opportunity for the SHS Chamber Choir — made up of 43 students — to take a cruise boat from Florida to the Bahamas while performing for nationally renowned music educators. Brownell said he has had a number of his current students for six years, and that he’s proud of the work they’ve put in so far. “They deserve this last little memory for all of their hard work and diligence over the years,” he said. “They are a very talented and respectful group of young adults.” Last Thursday, while singing at Trinity, the quartet approached the right table at the right time: Andy Hackbarth, a singer-songwriter who was performing at the Panida that night, heard the boys sing and then asked them if they’d like to share the stage with him for a song later that evening. They said yes, and after singing “The Longest Time” by Billy Joel, the Panida’s audience applauded the quartet and reached for their pocketbooks. The boys all agreed that it was an unexpected and awesome experience. “The most important thing about us is that we’re a tight group of great friends, and we love what we do,” Robinson said. Anyone interested in helping send the quartet and the rest of the choir to Festivals at Sea can make checks out to the SHS

Anyone who knows me well knows one of my biggest desires is to travel back in time to the mid-1800s, quit my desk job and join a sailboat heading around the world. While that’s probably not in the cards for me, I still enjoy reading about others who have made similar voyages. One obscure book I found while rummaging around at a thrift store is “The Wanderings of Edward Ely: A Mid-19th Century Seafaring Diary.” The diary reads like an adventure novel, and takes the reader along on Cape Horn passages, the Gold Rush days in California, and a rollicking passage across the Pacific with a drunken captain and cantankerous crew.

LISTEN

The Sandpoint Chamber Choir Quartet, from left to right: Ryan Baumgartner, Burton Anderson, Riley Anderson and Ben Robinson. Photo by Lyndsie Kiebert. Chamber Choir, or keep their pops in to sing a few tunes and eyes peeled while eating out in accept donations. Sandpoint in case the quartet

Thank you to the following businesses, organizations and individuals who so generously gave to the 88.5 KRFY Fall Online Auction. We sincerely appreciate their kind and thoughtful support! Alpine Shop Baxter's on Cedar Bella Terra Boutique Blue Creek Press Bonner County Bicycles Bonner County Historical Society Bridges Home Carousel Emporium Charlie and Donna Parrish Charesse Moore Curt and Bonnie Hagan Curves Dan Earle Fiddlin’ Red Forty-One South Friends of Scotchman Peaks Green Tree Naturals Highlands North Day Spa

Image Maker Ivano's Ristorante JD's SUSHI Joe's Philly Cheesesteak Joy Orecchio Julie Kallemeyn Julie Perchynski Keokee Lake Pend Oreille Cruises Marilyn McIntyre MickDuu's Brewing Company Mike Bauer Moose Valley Farms Out of the Blue Eyewear Outdoor Experience Pend Oreille Arts Council Petal Talk Ponderay Garden Center

Red Wheelbarrow Produce Risa Devore Schweitzer Mountain Resort Sherrie Daily Simon Ronniger Skeyes the Limit Spuds Steven Lazar Sunshine Goldmine Susan Dalby SWAC Syringa Cyclery Tango Café The Festival at Sandpoint Viggo Mortensen Wild Salmon WinoWorld.com Zany Zebra

Sometimes musicians are so prolific, it makes me look at my own output and shake my head. Matthew Houck, who plays under the moniker Phosphorescent, is in that category. The Alabama-born singer-songwriter has slowly gained attention from those who appreciate non-commercial, thoughtful music. I like all of his albums, but my favorite is probably 2013’s “Muchacho,” or, if you Spotify, check out the deluxe version, “Muchacho de Lujo.”

WATCH

It’s official, I love “Stranger Things 2.” The first season was everything I needed in television: nostalgia, mystery, weirdness and a slight dash of surreality. Way to go, Netflix. After the last season ended with a bit of a cliffhanger (and many unanswered questions), I waited patiently to be disappointed when the next season came out. It didn’t happen. The second season takes off with a bang, introducing a couple of new characters, but mostly keeping the focus on those plucky kids we all grew to love so much.

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The Straight Poop:

The quest for dog-friendly businesses in North Idaho

Small Business Saturday – Sandpoint Style By Drake the Dog Reader Pet Columnist Where am I taking my humans today? I’ll give you a clue. Where do dogs go when they lose a tail? A retail store! With the holidays right around the corner, the Missus is encouraging Mr. Procrastinator (aka “the Mister”) to fetch the day and get the shopping done early. I’m droolin’ over this idea. They will have so much free time, which means I will have many, many days of winter walks and rolling in the deep snow. Wowza, holy dog biscuits! We’re off to Shop Small Saturday Sandpoint Style on Saturday, Nov. 25 (that’s 30 days ‘til the BIG ONE!) Here’s your chance to return the love to all the paw-some K9 businesses. They make our town special by inviting you and your human to experience their hospitality. Shopping small makes a big difference. And if you smile, shake-a-paw, and exhibit your best leash shopping behavior, you might score a special holiday treat. Look for the Reader Paw Print Stickers on the following barkin’ friendly businesses. You’ll find something for every friend, family member and critter on your list: For the ARTSY FARTSY: •Lisa V. Maus Studio •Hallan’s Gallery •Something Old, Something New •Outskirts Hope Market •Northwest Handmade For the FOODIE: •Flying Fish Company •Kyoko Sushi Bar For the CAR NUT: •Taylor and Sons Chevrolet •Alpine Motors For the SPORTS ENTHUSIAST: •The Alpine Shop (Downtown and Schweitzer locations) For those who love to LOOK GOOD: •Eve’s Leaves •Sunshine Goldmine Company •Carousel 22 /

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•Creations •Larson’s Department Store •Out of the Blue Eyewear •Once Again Consignment •Finan McDonald’s For those who want to DRESS UP THE DOG HOUSE: •Meadowbrook Home and Gifts •Sandpoint Upholstery and Design •Keller Williams Real Estate •Sandpoint Carpet One For the PETS: •Petco •The Pooch Parlour •Boomer’s Barley and Biscuits (in Meadowbrook) •Cathy’s Critter Care •EZYDOG •Panhandle Animal Shelter and Thrift Shop •Pend Orielle Vet Service and Pet Lodge SANTA’S HELPERS: •The UPS Store For the FLOWER LOVER: •Petal Talk •Fresh Sunshine Flowers For the TIPPLER: •Cedar Street Bistro Wine Bar •Small House Winery •Idaho Pour Authority •Milltown Distillery •219 Lounge: A Five Star Dive Bar •MickDuff’s Beer Hall and Brewery •Laughing Dog Brewery Something for ALL THE PACK: •Sharon’s Hallmark •Simply Sandpoint •The Christmas Store •Saturday Market •Staff of Life •Kitchen Essentials •American Angel Studio •The Sand Stallion •The Festival at Sandpoint •The Corner Book Store •The Reader •Great Stuff •North 40

•South Fork Hardware •KHQ TV

Left: Tim Frazier, owner of Cedar St. Bistro (and Wine Bar) hangs with Drake at the Cedar St. Bridge.

For the MORNING CUPPER: •Cedar Street Bistro •Evan’s Brothers Coffee •Understory Coffee & Tea

Right: Gretchen with Petco takes a moment to pose with Drake.

DOGGIE DECK DINING: Sorry folks, no doggie deck dining this time of year. Tell your humans to leash you up outside while they fetch a gift certificate. •City Beach Organics, •Chimney Rock Grill •Gourmandie •Baxter’s on Cedar •Ivano’s Ristorante •Trinity at City Beach

Crossword Solution

Have fun lapping up my favorite four letter word… SHOP! Holiday hugs and seasonal dog kisses. —Drake

The tired and thirsty prospector threw himself down at the edge of the watering hole and started to drink. But then he looked around and saw skulls and bones everywhere. Uhoh, he thought. This watering hole is reserved for skeletons.


Copyright www.mirroreyes.com

CROSSWORD ACROSS

HOUSE FOR RENT

For rent in Sandpoint (in the Selle Valley): 3 bedrooms on 20 acres, wood and electric heat, garage, close to town, pet considered. $1000/month + deposit. Call Dennis at (406) 293-7424.

arete

Wortdhe of

Week

/ahr-i-TEY/

[noun] 1.the aggregate of qualities, as valor and virtue, making up good character.

“The arete of a man or woman shows in their actions.” Corrections: We listed the SASi Baskets and Books sale on the events calendar occuring on Friday when it was actually scheduled for Saturday. Sorry about the confusion. We also misspelled Julie Kane’s name in the Lost Horse Press article.

1. Appointed 6. “What a shame!” 10. Widespread 14. Home 15. Be dressed in 16. Leer at 17. Denote 19. Reclined 20. Nuclear 21. Coniferous tree 22. Bloodsucking insects 23. Children 25. Agile Old World viverrine 26. Vipers 30. Blood vessel 32. A passage for pedestrians 35. Drool 67. Filly’s mother 39. Ethically indifferent 68. Scallions 40. Scant 41. Umpire DOWN 43. Straightaway 44. Guarantee 1. Zero 46. Scallion 2. Foment 47. Preserves 3. Not stereo 50. Paths 4. Anagram of “Dome” 53. Anagram of “Wort” 5. To yield or submit 54. French for “Good” 6. Barley bristle 55. Reddish brown 7. Layabout 60. Hindu princess 8. Creative persons 61. Anger 9. Clairvoyant 63. Angers 10. A sport involving a 64. Place ball and a net 65. Cravat 11. Anon 66. Cut back

Solution on page 22

12. Slash 13. Basic belief 18. Frozen 24. K 25. Fondle 26. Remote 27. A few 28. “____, and it’s gone” 29. Urban smarts 31. If not 33. Alerts 34. Beers 36. French cheese 37. Feudal worker 38. Stink 42. Eulogies 43. Tall hill

45. Fire warden 47. Thin piece of wood or metal 48. A kind of macaw 49. Hermit 51. East southeast 52. Rope fiber 54. Emollient 56. Anagram of “Sees” 57. Agreeable 58. Cozy corner 59. Picnic insects 62. Regret

November 16, 2017 /

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