“Grand Protest”

The 4-way Test

heidi08 Beavers or Social Ambasadors April 22, 2009

{column1}

{/column1}

{column2}

Is it the TRUTH?

Is it FAIR to all concerned?

Does it promote GOOD WILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIP?

Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?

{/column2}

I hadn’t known about this 4-truth philosophy of the Rotary Club until they repeated them at the meeting I spoke at this morning. There had been a scheduling mix-up and I got a last minute phone call to ask if I would pinch-hit by talking about beavers. Remembering the not uncontroversial reception beavers got at the Kiwanis club I approached with cautious optimism and figured it was probably best for attendance if beavers weren’t on the “official schedule.”

Like the Kiwanis club, the meeting was a “who’s who” of Martinez, with a member of the school board, our past and present superintendents, city manager and council member Janet Kennedy all in attendance. I was aware I’d be preaching the beaver gospel to mostly non-believers, and the response was generally positive, although there were flooding, mosquito and burrowing questions all in attendance.

I thought I was pretty much home free when I was surprised during the question period by councilwoman Kennedy expressing her disappointment that my “Happy Anniversary” letter in the Gazette this weekend hadn’t thanked the council and city staff for their hard work on this issue. Either my sarcasm was too veiled, or hers was, and she wished I had been more appreciative of all the city’s hard work. I was a little startled by the public reprimand, but more by the almost determined misunderstanding with which it was offered.

I suggested she write her own letter in response so she could give credit where she thought it was due. What I should have answered, in retrospect, was obviously that Janet was right. We hadn’t thanked the city enough, and Janet in particular.

This is a woman who has said publicly on more than one occasion that if she had been at the November 7th city council meeting she would have voted to get rid of the beavers and end the issue once and for all. So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you, Janet, for going to China.

Appropriate thanks will no doubt take time to carefully offer for each member’s role in this, so I will work on that gratitude over time, but for now lets learn from the Rotary club and apply the 4-way test to the city’s concerns about the beavers so far.

Is it the truth?

No. The original hydrology report by Phillip Williams and Associates discussed a 7 foot dam as if it were a concrete weir, meaning a fixed permanent threat. The dam was never seven feet and was always made of mud and sticks. Any time we have a rainfall of more than a half inch in 24 hours there is a washout. An accurate report would have reflected the effect of high flow on the dam itself.

Is it fair to all concerned?

No. It was not fair to invest nearly half a million in sheetpile installation for the benefit of one property owner when there are so many properties upstream that have eroding creekbanks that need help too. Moreover, any hydrologist could have named a half dozen places on Alhambra Creek where that money could have been better spent to benefit the broader good.

Does it Promote good will and better friendship?

Sort of. The city’s attempt to exterminate and/or relocate the beavers did not make friends, but keeping the beavers has. You might thank the beaver supporters for that. Still, if the council woman were my guest I don’t think I would ever hijack her speech to publicly ask why she hasn’t thanked us for the “second hand” overflow of our good will. It’s true I don’t know very much about service clubs in general, so maybe that’s typical of how they work.

Will it be beneficial to all concerned?

That’s a hard one, and I’m honestly not sure it ever gets met without some telescoping perspective and “big picture” or “in the long run” reasoning. It is mostly better for Martinez if the beavers stay and do their mascot-ambassador-environmental engineer work. It is better for the heron and the fish and the mink and the otter, but it probably isn’t better for the councilwoman’s blood pressure or my popularity with the council in general. There are a few trees that would not describe it as beneficial, and the other beavers waiting to move in are probably not happy about it either.

A very interesting ethical test, thank you Rotary for hosting me. All in all, a day full of lessons and morning well spent.

Pretend

heidi08 Beaver News, City Reports November 3, 2008

Based on the Gazette’s failure to mention this photo that shows the $400,000 bank stabilization project was unnecessary, it is clear that we are supposed to pretend this massive lie doesn’t matter to the city that funded it. News headlines emphasize the ends justifying the means and everyone wants us to move forward into our new metalic destiny. The wall’s been built and the beavers are sort of okay, and the civic thing to do now is pretend that it was an investment in Martinez’ future, (or at least a downpayment on Martinez’ past). We are supposed to pretend that sworn testimony of imminent danger was unrelated to actual danger of any kind, and that this is the way things get done in small towns.

While we’re clapping our hands for Tinkerbell to come, the Gazette allows Mr. Parker to remind us that we should also pretend that this obscene amount of money was spent “because of the beavers” and that in addition to chewing through a 10 million dollar flood project, the beavers hungrily devoured Mark Ross’ finacial backing for re-election. After they chomped their way through concrete, our pretend beavers obviously set their teeth on the veracity and self-respect of the entire council. Will they stop at nothing?

The need for make-believe requires flexibility, credulity and in this case the dexterity to keep up with the speedy sucession of stories. First we were asked to believe that this was for the good of the town, and not for the benefit of one property owner. Then while some of us were still busy pretending the critical patient was Bertola’s wall, we were told by Ross that it was actually the bank near the elections building that was in danger. This was a little harder to pretend because there were all those pesky engineering reports contradicting this argument. So that make-believe didn’t last long.

Its primary function was to move us to the next mythology, which was pretending that this sheetpile was destined all along for that part of the creek and the city was merely keeping a promise. Keeping promises is important. Who can object to that? It is true that some work was intended for that bank section, and that it was ultimately left undone, but I highly doubt the plan was a block of sheetpile, intended to save a bank that was never in danger.

Never mind. We were asked to pretend that it was life-saving, then pretend that it was face-saving, and along the way pretend that the reasons for pretending hadn’t changed.

Finally, we are told two days before an election with two incumbents asking for our vote, to pretend that it didn’t matter.

While you’re working on your imaginations, you might try pretending that the siphoning of funds into a lumbering Redevopment Agency would be good for the city, and that a council who keeps its promise to one person by taking the money from thousands has your best interests at heart.

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=DXY_8cJlGMc]

News of the day

heidi08 City Reports October 28, 2008

There were several developments today on beaver watch. First, a large beaver (probably a yearling) emerged twice during the work, downstream of the dam with a crabby tail slap when the pile driving resumed. Hopefully he went to sleep somewhere else.

Second, Skip Lisle is back through tomorrow, and was on site for the work. There are approximately three sheets remaining to install.

Third: tonight Jon met a very enthusiastic beaver supporter at the bridge who oohed and ahhed about the four kits. Why is this news you can use? She was Bradly Jackson’s wife. Worth A Dam has had consistently good contact with Jackson, and we support his replacement of Janet Kennedy on the council. Last night let’s just say we got the definite impression that things will be uncomfortable in the Jackson home if he doesn’t do right by the beavers.

Frogard Butler, the woman who is chronicling our beavers with painting, spent the day on the bridge sketching the old lodge site. We are happy for her support, and for the other faithfuls on the bridge who keep an eye out.