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Wednesday
July 09, 2014
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Hugh Smith Lake Loon
Hugh Smith Lake is 55 miles south of Ketchikan.
Front Page Photo By STEVE RIPLEY ©2014
(Please respect the rights of photographers, never republish or copy
without permission and/or payment of required fees.)
Southeast Alaska: Prince of Wales' Communities Receive Behavioral Health Grant - PeaceHealth Ketchikan Medical Center in collaboration with the Prince of Wales Health Network announced it has been selected by the State of Alaska for an initiative entitled, “Comprehensive Behavioral Health Prevention and Early Intervention”.
Craig was founded in the late 1800's and incorporated in 1922. Craig is on the West Coast of Prince of Wales Island, 32 miles from Hollis, the port for the Inter-Island Ferry. Hollis is 34 miles by sea from Ketchikan.
Photo courtesy Inter-Island Ferry Authority
This grant has the potential for up to four years of funding to help bring more comprehensive behavioral health care to Prince of Wales.
Executive Director of the Prince of Wales Network and Program Manager Gretchen Klein states, “This project will build upon previous work of the POW Health Network, address issues raised in our Community Health Needs Assessment, and work toward meeting the initiative of improving behavioral health services in southern Southeast Alaska.”
A unique piece of this program will be utilizing Prince of Wales' community liaisons in Thorne Bay, Klawock, Craig, and elsewhere to work with community members like teachers, law enforcement, and religious leaders to help industry experts assess their communities and determine ‘next steps’ to improving care on the Island. Depending on the assessment findings, a work plan for activities will be developed by the coalition, and if approved, continued funding of $225,000 could be awarded annually for up to an additional three years.
This highly granular approach will allow for customized interventions following the assessment period. Program Director Matt Eisenhower states, “We understand that behavioral health is a complicated and multi-disciplinary issue involving more than healthcare providers. This program assumes different sectors of the community will rally toward one goal to provide better behavioral health care for the entire island. Bringing personal and community healing is part our mission and we are excited and honored to be part of this process in Southeast Alaska.”
“Having lived on the island for more than 20 years, I know first-hand how far we have come in the area of local health care in recent years and believe the Prince of Wales Health Network has been instrumental in that effort. I am so encouraged to have PeaceHealth and the Network working with residents and organizations around the island to look at the state of behavioral health at this point in time,” said business owner and member of the PeaceHealth Governing Board, Ken Owen. - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
Alaska: Alaska’s consumer protection laws regarding contract construction work updated - Tuesday, Governor Sean Parnell signed Senate Bill 193, sponsored by Senator Peter Micciche (R-Soldotna), which updates an important piece of Alaska’s consumer protection laws regarding contract construction work.
State law requires all contractors in Alaska to file a license bond with the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development (DCCED) to ensure contractors have adequate financial resources to pay taxes and other obligations as well as providing the public an avenue to seek recourse in the event there is a negligent or improper work or breach of contract. These statutes also help provide protection to the business community by helping contractors and vendors to collect for unpaid work or equipment rental.
However, the bond amounts were set in 1982 and have not been updated since.
“The current levels of $10,000 for general contractors and $5,000 for specialty contractors are too low and no longer protect the public like they used to,” said Senator Micciche. “If you consider even a bathroom remodel can easily now exceed $5,000, the bond balances are quickly drained and aggrieved parties are unable to be made whole when something goes wrong. SB192 brings the bonds in line with modern project costs.” - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
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Alaska: Murkowski’s HAARP Fight Keeps Wrecking Ball Away for a Year - U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski received official word last week from the Secretary of the Air Force that the Pentagon is delaying its plans to demolish the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program facility site in Gakona – or ‘HAARP’ – for another year so that a possible transfer to a university or scientific institution can be explored. This news comes as a result of Murkowski’s recent attempts to communicate the important work done by the facility among Pentagon brass, including sharing the favorable views of the international research community towards HAARP.
HAARP Project: Gacona, Alaska
In a Senate hearing on May 14, Senator Murkowski (R-AK) questioned why the Pentagon was planning to demolish HAARP this summer in order to cut costs, asking whether it was fiscally sound to destroy an approximately $300 million facility when it costs less than one percent of that amount to operate it each year. When she questioned the witnesses, she asked why they couldn’t consider handing off control and operational costs to the University of Alaska or another research institute and keep the world-class facility open and running.
In response to Senator Murkowski’s reasoning, the Secretary of the Air Force sent a letter stating: “Your letter indicates the University of Alaska or a consortium of academic or research institutions are interested in taking ownership of the facility in the near future. In response, the Air Force is willing to slow the closure process and defer irreversible dismantling of the transmitter site until May 2015... The Air Force will continue to maintain an open dialogue with the University of Alaska or a consortium of interested scientific research institutions should they wish to develop and assess alternative plans in a timely manner.”
The High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) is an ionospheric research program jointly funded by the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Navy, the University of Alaska, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)
Work on the HAARP Station began in 1993. The current working Ionospheric Research Instrument (IRI) was completed in 2007, and its prime contractor was BAE Systems Advanced Technologies. As of 2008, HAARP had incurred around $250 million in tax-funded construction and operating costs. It was reported to be temporarily shut down in May 2013, awaiting a change of contractors. In May 2014, it was announced that the HAARP program will be shut down later in the year. - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
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Alaska: Wolf mother deaths threaten pack survival but not population By MARIE THOMS
- When a breeding wolf dies, its sex and the size of its pack can determine whether that pack continues, according to research published online this month by the Journal of Animal Ecology.
A gray wolf nurses pups in Denali National Park and Preserve.
Photo courtesy of National Park Service (NPS)
In 2012, biologists at Denali National Park and Preserve noted a drop in wolf sightings following the death of a breeding female from a pack that lived along the Denali Park Road. This was one of several instances where the death of an individual wolf from legal trapping or hunting sparked widespread attention in recent years.
“This isn’t the first time we have noticed that the loss of a breeding wolf can affect the fate of the pack. We thought it would be valuable to systematically look at what happens to the pack and population following the death of a breeder,” said author Bridget Borg, a University of Alaska Fairbanks biology graduate student and National Park Service biologist.
Borg’s research looked at changes in wolf pack fate, reproduction and population growth following the death of breeders.
“Given the park’s current low wolf densities and small average pack sizes, we are concerned about harvest of wolves from packs that reside primarily within the park,” said Don Striker, Superintendent of Denali National Park and Preserve. “The death of a breeding wolf could harm the packs that provide the greatest opportunities for park visitors to see a wolf in the wild, either through a lack of reproduction or the loss of the entire pack.”
Gray wolves typically live in packs consisting of the parents and their offspring from one or more years. Turnover among young members of a pack is common as they leave to search for mates and start packs of their own. Breeding members typically spend more time in the pack and act as “social glue.” - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014 |
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Southeast Alaska: Petersburg Man Pleads Guilty In Federal Court To Distribution, Receipt, And Possession Of Child Pornography - Tye Leif Petersen, 46, a resident of Petersburg, Alaska, pled guilty in federal court recently to distribution, receipt, and possession of child pornography.
Judge Timothy M. Burgess, who took Petersen’s plea, scheduled sentencing for November 11, 2014, at 11:00 a.m. The law provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of five years on the distribution and receipt charges, and each charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based upon the seriousness of the offense(s) and the criminal history, if any, of the defendant. - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
Columns
 JEFF LUND: Local-ized advice - There isn’t any new advice out there, though the ever-growing self-help sections at bookstores and online websites would like to us to believe differently.
It’s all recycled and decorated with hip, new examples. I heard a bunch of great stuff in grade school and college. Great quotes worth sharing from great and not so great people. The truth is I’ve liked so many more quotes than I’ve used or applied. The reason is probably the speaker. People make the quote.
Though no one is the perfect example, the best quotes are from those with words they struggle to live. That is, they do better than most at attempting to stitch those words to their soul rather than merely post them as a hashtag.
I wondered what professional basketball player and Ketchikan High School graduate, Damen Bell-Holter would say to the kids at the basketball camp he hosted in Craig.
He stood in front of 19 kids at half court at the end of the day and told them about character, reputation and to write down goals before chasing them. He didn’t brag about what he had done, he gave kids words. The invisible, intangible recipe of a good life which outlive the speaker.
Among other things, he told kids clad in everything from low tops to Lebron’s to “never stop chasing it”. He didn’t mean just basketball because he knows you can’t water your feet and end up 6-foot 9, 245 pounds like he is. - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
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Questions, please contact
the editor at editor@sitnews.us or call 617-9696
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 Collateral for City Loans By Ralph Marcello - There is one major error in the letter concerning the City's collateral for their loans. The collateral IS NOT the private real estate and personal property of the citizens of Ketchikan. The collateral is the TAXES collected, both current and future, from real estate and personal property assessments. - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
Wolf mother deaths threaten pack survival but not population By Richard Steiner - The research on Denali wolves confirms what we have said all along, that the killing of breeding females can result in catastrophic consequences. Indeed, it is absurdly obvious. - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
Final is Final By A.M. Johnson - History is established to leave a course for the present to learn from the past not change the past. A case in point is a quote from President Calvin Coolidge. - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
Sealaska Shareholders Meeting 2014 By Dominic Salvato - Participating online was a frustrating experience. The screen was blank at one time for almost an hour and still the meeting went on. - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
FairTax eliminates need for IRS By David Boone - According to a recent Fox News poll, an overwhelming majority (76 percent ) of Americans believe the Internal Revenue Service intentionally destroyed two years-worth of emails. - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
RE: Un-necessary consequences for Marijuana By Casey O'Brien - I'm writing this letter in response to Marvin Seibert's letter regarding marijuana legalization. - More...
Wednesday AM - July 09, 2014
RE: Behind the scenes of City Government By Douglas J. Thompson - Thanks again for another on the mark letter Mr. Dial. I just wonder how many residents know that their property or business within the Ketchikan borough & city boundaries are the collateral used to secure municipal (and all governmental bonds for that matter)? In the event of local bankruptcy your personal property can go to the highest bidder to repay that defaulted bond. Whether fully paid for or not. - More...
Sunday AM - July 06, 2014
This is the rest of "the story" my dearest Paul Harvey. By Heather Herndon - The State of Alaska wants to gamble with your money to support a mining company that has never successfully produced anything. Worse, the company in question, UCore, has failed on its last two mining claims, Lost Pond in Newfoundland and another in Canada. Its sole remaining asset is the Bokan-Dotson Mountain project. - More...
Saturday PM - July 05, 2014
Move To End Federal Funding Of Alaska Predator Control By Richard Steiner - I realize that public interest in Alaska's predator control issue waxes and wanes, but the issue we disclose here is a new, significant finding, which should be of interest to the Alaska public. - More...
Saturday PM - July 05, 2014
THE 1967 FAIRBANKS FLOOD By James M. Eagan - Just finished reading The 1967 Fairbanks Flood by June Allen which tells about how the people of Fairbanks managed so well during the flood of 1967. That is not exactly the way I remember it and I was there. The mention of one critical aspect of the story is conspicuous only by its absence. Were it not for the heavy equipment and volunteer efforts of personnel from both Fort Wainwright and Eielson AFB, the city of Fairbanks and nearby communities such as North Pole would have been disaster areas until at least the next spring. - More...
Saturday PM - July 05, 2014
Don Young By R.K. Rice - So, the penalty for illegal use of campaign funds, and accepting illegal “gifts”, (bribes) is the unbelievably harsh penalty, of having to pay back the amount that was received. Apparently the fox is guarding the henhouse. - More...
Saturday PM - July 05, 2014
Grant Street Garbage By Vanessa Bruns - As residents of Grant Street we all know that there are bears that love to wander through our neighborhood and they are attracted to our garbage cans. The past two weeks I have gone into the woods and picked up MULTIPLE garbage items that have been ripped out of garbage bags (which are from our garbage cans) by these bears. The bears are not the point of my issue, my issue is with the residents of Grant Street that are not securing their garbage cans appropriately. When confronted about the issue everyone has the "it's not mine attitude" When in fact in some cases, the garbage that I have picked up has mail that has the person's name on it. - More...
Saturday PM - July 05, 2014
Checking ID, Assumed Guilt and a Lack of Common Sense By Amanda Mitchell - I wanted to bring to light a recent local experience in our town of Ketchikan. My husband and I went into Safeway. After picking up a few items, we walked together into the liquor store where my husband purchased beer. My husband was carded, but he was almost refused beer because I didn’t have my identification on myself. I have been into the same liquor store with my kids to pick up beer and my kids were never carded. As much as I would like to say it, I do not look like I am in my 20's. It was automatically assumed if we are with another adult we are guilty of buying alcohol for minor. However, I literally can have a minor with me, who is not carded, and be sold alcohol. To the cashier's credit, who else gets to decide whether or not the person who is purchasing the alcohol is going to commit a future crime and has the intent of purchasing to/for a minor? The cashier position has just gotten really cool as now the job duties includes being a detective, judge, jury and psychic. Move over, Miss Cleo! - More...
Saturday PM - July 05, 2014
RE: Un-necessary consequences for Marijuana By Marvin Seibert - First I need to clarify Mr Johnson's comments, I do not work in a state funded halfway house or in the substance testing industry. I have not lost my job due to Pot legalization in Colorado. I have moved to Ketchikan and still employed in the same industry and company for the past 14 years and it is 0% drug related. I am still trying to figure out how long you need to live here before you should be able to comment on important issues as this. I am a registered voter in Ketchikan.
You suggest that we should not leave our children's future to a judge. That is emotion talking and not reason. What decisions do you want to take away from the legal system. Who will pick and choose what judges are allow to handle. Do we go the way of the anarchist and just let judges rule when we know and like what the outcome going to be. We are a nation of laws ( except in the Whitehouse unfortunately ) not mob rule. - More...
Saturday PM - July 05, 2014
My idea of tax reform. By Wiley Brooks - Reform serves the purpose getting rid of that which is bad and replace it with something better. That is why I call for tax reform --- real and true tax reform. The present income tax code punishes good behavior, taxes production and jobs, drives jobs, companies and capital out of our economy into off-shore tax avoidance havens, and; it hides taxes embedded in the price paid by the consumer. Without production there is nothing to buy, no improvement in standard of living, no tax base to support government. The cost to all of us who pay taxes to comply with the 75,000 pages of codes is over $440 billion per year. It gives imported goods a price advantage while it rewards domestic special interest by embedding favors in the codes. The system which includes the Internal Revenue Service is corrupt. - More...
Saturday PM - July 05, 2014
RE: Behind the scenes of City Government By Laura Plenert - Rodney Dial, as ALWAYS is correct. This is a man who has studied and reviewed what is going on in Ketchikan. He is not just shooting from the hip. He digs and knows his stuff. - More...
Saturday PM - July 05, 2014
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