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By KEVIN McCALLUM
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Property rights activists urged the Santa Rosa City Council Tuesday to cancel its membership in an international group promoting sustainable development.
After protesting in front of City Hall, about a dozen people asked the council to distance itself from the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives.
The group, whose official name is ICLEI — Local Governments for Sustainability, claims 1,220 local governments from 70 nations as members. It was formed in 1990 and is headquartered in Bonn, Germany.
“Please reconsider your allegiance with this globalist UN sponsored NGO,” James Bennett told the council during a discussion of whether the city has enough water to support future growth.
Bennett, a Santa Rosa used car dealer, and others have repeatedly asked the council to explain its membership in the organization, but claim they have not gotten a straight answer.
He and others, some aligned with the Tea Party, view international efforts to limit sprawl and conserve energy as stripping local governments of autonomy and denying people basic property rights.
They held signs that read “Kick ICLEI Out” and “Our City Sold Us Out.” During Tuesday’s council meeting, they stood repeatedly to speak during public comments on several issues before the city.
Some council members have at times expressed concern about regional government initiatives.
Vice Mayor John Sawyer, for example, last year said he was uncomfortable about the OneBayArea plan to direct future development in the nine Bay Area counties, saying it might restrict local control over land-use planning.
But Bennett and others see far deeper conspiracies. Coordinated efforts to reduce greenhouse gases, increase public transportation, cluster future development in cities, or conserve natural resources are viewed as part of a global plot with a true goal of political oppression.
“They would rather let the water run out to the ocean than to let the ranchers and farmers and growers use it to feed the people,” Bennett said. “It’s almost biblical. It’s like you people, through your ICLEI allegiance, aligned us with the Dark Side.”
According to city documents, Santa Rosa has been a member of ICLEI since 2001. It pays $1,750 in annual dues and has sent city leaders to ICLEI-sponsored conferences in Seattle, Wash., Albuquerque, N.M., and Edmonton, Canada.
It has also won ICLEI-sponsored environmental awards worth $26,000 for its work on a project at the city’s wastewater treatment plant that uses algae to clean water and produce energy. The city also works with the group to help track the city’s greenhouse gas emissions.
Activists last month disrupted a local meeting aimed at having a dialogue with the public about long-range transportation and housing plans. The meeting, held at the Finley Community, was hosted by the Association of Bay Area Governments and Metropolitan Transportation Commission. Police were called after activists interrupted speakers and refused to limit their remarks to the allotted times.
City Manager Kathy Millison said the city has turned over to activists numerous documents about the city’s relationship with the international organization.
She said she hasn’t had a conversation with council members about whether to schedule a time to discuss the issue further.
“Right now, our agendas are pretty full,” Millison said.
Editor’s Note: this story was updated on Feb. 23, 2012 to add information that was previously posted in a version on pressdemocrat.com and remove inaccurate information about the Metropolitan Transportation Authority meeting schedule.
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I see the Saul Alinsky technique is alive and well on this site. Well guess what Alinskites, WE THE PEOPLE are on to you.
Anyone with a rational mind and the ability for independent thought processes can go on the internet and learn what Agenda 21/Sustainable Development/ICLEI is up to and that is the elimination of your personal freedoms and property rights.
Thank God for people like Jim Bennett and Kay Tokerud who have had the courage to bang the pots and pans on this and to inform sleeping citizens.
But here come the Alinskites. Having no rational rebuttal they revert to personal attacks and emotional diatribes that contribute nothing to the conversation. Well done Alinskites! But, like I said, we are on to you and your mindless tactics won’t work this time.
Since the subject of getting one’s story straight has come up, I will say the following. There were three versions of this story.
The first ran online the day after the meeting.
The second was updated the next day after I was able to get to City Hall to try to answer some of the questions raised during the meeting.
That made the story a little longer, which I presume is the reason it was trimmed by an editor to fit the Sunday paper.
Ms. Tokerud’s comments about MTC meetings only taking place in Oakland at 7:30 am were taken out of the original story after further reporting the following day showed them to be inaccurate.
OK,I’ve been on here watching Sonoma County for about a year now.
The vindictive horrible tone of this one individual can’t be mistaken, doesn’t matter how many fake names are used.
I know Jim, take dance and yoga classes at his community center.
He’s one of the sweetest most caring people I’ve ever met.
He and another freind (a builder) brought Agenda 21 and all of it’s warm n fuzzy names to our attention. Then I did my own homework, it wasn’t rocket science-there’s a lot of information out there. Read Behind the Green Mask, there are millions of people throughout the world that are figuring out what’s really going on.
If more of us had the conviction to stand up for our deminishing rights, we wouldn’t be at this important, scary crossroad.
You go Jim, we appreciate your efforts.
If America falls to this totalitarian Agenda, what will happen to the rest of the world?
When you read and you’ve been around a while-you realize that history DOES repeat itself.
Guess it’s our turn.
James Bennett, we are proud to know you.
Thanks for the motivation and the plugs Lisa.
I’m proud of myself and fellow citizens for standing up for ourselves, our community, our freedoms and our way of life.
Can’t think of anyone I’d be embarrassed to see at the grocery store, not a customer, not a neighbor, no one.
Feels good.
Hey, I was just wondering where I can get one of those “tin foil hats” I keep reading about??? Because every since I found out about United Nations Agenda 21, I really need one!
I’ve spent hours researching this and I have no doubt that it exists and it is affecting our lives here in Santa Rosa. All you have to do is go to the UN website and search for “Agenda 21″. They tell you exactly what they want to accomplish and how many (trillions) of dollars each goal will cost. Some sections seem benign in their wording, but when you put it all together and you realize what their end goal is…they want a global One World government.
They cannot accomplish their goals unless we (mostly middle class Americans) give up our cars and move out of our rural homes to live in these “sustainable” communities. The rest of the land will be left alone to re-wild. Their agenda is based on three E’s: Economy, Environment, and Equity. Equity means redistributing our wealth to third world counties.
I don’t know about you, but this seems totally “extreme” to me…let’s call it what it is…Environmentalism Extemism. The local implementation of this is called ICLEI “International Council Local Environmental Initiatives”. The city of Santa Rosa is a member, along with most of the other towns in Sonoma County and the County of Sonoma, as well. They provide boiler plate initiatives to put in place to slowly erode business & property rights under the guise of “green”. Just watch the news, you will see these initiatives pop up.
If you google “smart gowth” or “sustainable” or “visioning” anywhere in the world, you will find the same boiler plate initiatives and general plans in cities everywhere (and I mean EVERYWHERE)in the world.
In addition, if you check youtube you can see that architect/design schools everywhere are learning to design using these concepts, as well.
Look, I want to take care of this world of ours, too…but this is just down-right crazy! Peole are more than welcome to go live in these “communities” if they want to, but they don’t have the right to force the rest of us to move there, too!
If you still don’t believe this is happening here and now, just look into the “One Bay Area” plan available online as well as video on youtube. They are in the process of regionalizing our government which takes away power from the local governments and from the taxpayer. There is little or no accountablity and if you want to them address your concerns, you have to go all the way to Oakland by 7:30 am.
Please just look into all this yourself, and come to your own conclusions. But please don’t dismiss it, just because we sound like people who like to wear “tin foil hats”!
Ted, if the likes of Kay Tokerud and Jim Bennett are claiming that you are moderating their comments, then I will have to commend you. I have long maintained the the deliberate strategy of the local Tea Party/Agenda 21 paid operatives to dominate this discussion board has resulted in a long-term decline of the site. I have read so much of the most outlandish, hate-filled invective masquerading as political commentary on this site, that I did not believe that there was anything too bizarre and ugly to get past the moderator.
I am relieved that there actually is a line past which even your highly porous screen draws the line. All I can say, is they must have been particularly outrageous doozies that didn’t make the cut, since so much of what does get through is beyond the pale.
mr moderator ..just wondering why my post comparing occupiers vs tea party was not approved
The last thing I’ll say while this is still on WSC is this.
I know we’re all busy, stretched like we’ve never been before financially and emotionally, with a completely full plate.
Know this.
Whatever you’re spending your time on,
it’s not as important to your future, or the future of our young people.
Nothing more important than learning about this enormous multi-faceted socially engineered oppression and how it will profoundly, adversely effect your life, your freedoms, your choices, your financial abundance.
OneBayArea/MTC people will be pitching our city councils soon, I don’t know how they could possibly spin those ‘visioning’ meetings as enjoying public support-but they’ll try.
If you know the reality of Agenda 21, get involved.
If you’re still rolling your eyes, dismissing it-for whatever reason.
Look, we all took decades to arrive at a certain beleif set. We have invested time and energy deciding that we know why things are screwed up, not like they used to be.
Please allow for the possibility that we are not putting LSD in our OJ.
The stakes simply could not be any bigger.
Tomorrow @ 3:00 SR City Hall, we will be asking THE QUESTION, we will ask until the most important item to ever appear on the Council’s agenda…is.
Sunday’s article is the third version of the same story. What happened Kevin? You changed the title and removed “Sustainable Development” You had already refused to print Agenda 21 in the first version. What a joke that the PD is journalism. Why don’t you just let your bosses write your stories for you? You removed all references to the MTC in Sunday’s story as well as in the online story.
In fact, Kevin McCallum left the city council meeting before public comments where six speakers spoke on the City’s ICLEI membership. Funny how he can write a story about our requesting cancelling the ICLEI membership when he wasn’t there. Apparently he cares nothing about getting the truth. Fortunately we will be posting the video of our presentations on our websites. And Ted, stop the censorship or we will be protesting in front of the PD again. I can’t wait for the new owners of the PD to arrive.
So the left (media) thinks citizens demanding to be heard at a city council meeting are destructive….yet they support and encouraged and FUNDED with our tax dollars the american DNC parties occupy movement…where radicals shut down OUR parks city halls etc.
Intersting the media demonize the Tea party whose protests were peaceful and NOT ONE person was arrested anywhere and the venue was left spotless by the people participating in it….then compare to the occupiers where the areas where littered with feces,trash and filth…police were assaulted…property destroyed …and hatred was the message
What a strange world we live in
@ They’re Coming To Take Us Away…
you get thumbs down but funny comment.
@ Steve K….I agree.
The full implementation of the UN plan is yet to come. It will change life forever and be horrible. We all should know Obama and the Clinton’s are huge supporters. Hillary Bob also wants to ban guns through the UN.
Kevin McCallum changed his story AGAIN! Now he took out Sustainable Development because some greenies objected. The MTC made him take out the part about the MTC meetings being inaccessible to the public. It’s clear the PD is just a mouthpiece for powerful interests. Then he added a lie about when the City of Santa Rosa officially joined ICLEI. It went like this: In 2001, the City made a pledge to follow an ICLEI program called Cities For Climate Protection but did not become an official member. Then in 2007, when Jane Bender was Mayor, The city officially joined the group. At that time the membership fee was $600.00. At some later date, the membership fee may have gone up but the City of Santa Rosa did not make these changes known to members of the public. The City’s involvement with ICLEI has been kept secret unless you dig for it.
I’m glad that the Press Democrat is undergoing a change of ownership. We can only hope they do some housecleaning and put in some better journalists. This is the second time in a month that a PD story has been changed twice after they were written because some special interest didn’t like how the story was written. The Regional unelected MTC board was involved in both stories. Perhgaps the people that have been objecting to the MTC and ABAG (ONE BAY AREA) plan have a tiger by the tail. I’m proud of the protesters that had the guts to spoeak up.
@ Social Dis-Ease/Jim Bennett—
I want to thank you for pointing this scourge out. Months ago I was thinking ‘ Oh no, another conspiracy thing. Then I read the actual links and investigated on my own. ( I read the Handbooks ).
The Handbooks describe EXCACTLY how a few politicians can take control of society through an Agenda. It describes perfectly how Valerie Brown is not only on the Board of Supes, but also the head of the SMART Board. The handbooks tell them how to set themselves up in other non-elected agencies and boards and commissions.
And the roads crumble. alas
See? Right in front of them and they dismiss it. There is no conspiracy. There is a plan that is open and written and in progress. I am not afraid of it, but it is happening. 97% of all scientists who receive gov’t money to combat global warming agree they can fix it if they get enough of our money. Really? The UN hase been trying for decades to get more of our money to give to the dictators and poorer countries. They are succeeding. People wanted us out of Iraq because it was a money pit. Thank goodness all the troops were pulled out of Iraq, but unfortunately very few people realize they were sent to Afgahnistan. Oh well, poeple don’t realize much past their TV these days. As for the freedom/gun issue, good luck with that too.
A free tin foil hat with every test ride in a black helicopter at Good Stuff Auto, while supplies last. Please arrive unarmed.
This article provides dramatic proof of the woeful lack of mental health facilities in Sonoma County. Patients are now forced to congregate in the audience of Santa Rosa City Council meetings.
While thoroughly disgusted by it, I’m not too worried about Agenda 21 or it’s supporters.
Agenda 21 will ultimately only work in nations with unarmed citizens.
It’s been said ‘the biggest cause of global warming is grant money’.
The globalists know it, e-mail correspondence was intercepted to that effect.
Read something not sposored by the UN or one of it’s agencies or NGOs.
When you have an extra week, search: global warming hoax, or Climategate
or Global Warming Petition Project;
almost 32,000 scientists signed.
Look;
http://www.petitionproject.org/
So we’re going to turn the entire world into their oppressive ‘ism’ over a lie?
This ideology that our local government took the liberty (literally) of ‘signing us up for’, aligning us with, without our knowledge is FUNDAMENTALLY opposed to our Constitution and Bill of Rights!
The American system is rooted in the philosophy that our unalienable individual rights are inherently ours, from the Creator.
In a world of global governance as ‘visioned’ by the United Nations and demonstrated in their text and policys;
GOVERNMENT is the source of our rights and may deny or extend same as it sees fit, often under the guise of the ‘greater good’ or the ‘collective’.
Reconciled through government for the commu-nity.
There’s a lot more goin’ on, a lot more at stake than a preoccupation with bikes
‘n trains.
If you love what we had, you may want to ask THE QUESTION too.
Why do we belong to ICLEI, and why weren’t we asked?
We have a question mark sign(?)with your name on it for the next council meeting.
For anyone who would like some more context to the ICLEI / Agenda 21 debate raging here in Sonoma County and across the United States, here are a two additional references:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/02/16/DDHO1N828V.DTL
http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/02/is-the-un-using-bike-paths-to-achieve-world-domination/252572/
It seems the logic goes Glenn Beck –> Bicycle Improvements –> Global U.N. Control. Hmmmm…. Sad, really.
At least this helps add some understanding to the opposition against the Humboldt Street bicycle boulevard by this same, small group of neighborhood discontents.
After re-reading all of the comments associated with this story, all I can do is express compassion for those individuals that live their lives in such fear, anxiety, and complete terror on progressive efforts.
For the sake of all of us who are working hard to make this world a better place for our children and grandchildren, and their children and grandchildren after them, please consider carefully the future Sonoma County that your self-centered actions will leave to future generations.
Signed,
Proud Member of the Shock Troop Bicyclists for Global Domination
@Tom – “Global warming has been dedunked and anybody that still belives it is stuck in 2005.”
.
Funny…how come 97% of scientists agree that global warming is man made?
.
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/sciencefair/post/2010/06/scientists-overwhelmingly-believe-in-man-made-climate-change/1#.Tz7yPYePUsc
.
For those of us “stuck in 2005,” developing sustainable practices world wide make sense. But to put your fears to rest, success towards Agenda 21 or ICLEI has been spotty at best so far:
.
http://www.un.org/esa/dsd/dsd_sd21st/21_pdf/SD21_Study1_Synthesis.pdf
Our granted rights are being marginalized every day.
the people graze away
This is happening all over.
I have a freind in Mississippi, their own city is sabotaging the downtown merchants too.
The town ‘doesn’t have money’, so what do they do?
Build an overpass that bypasses the whole downtown, the old hwy. has gone through forever.
THEN, played games with/reduced the parking down on Main St. with bike lanes bigger than the old parking (not used).
Locals are pissed, they’re learning about ICLEI-big riff-not among citizens-
between the city hall and the citizens.
They want ICLEI out!
Other people I know around the country are telling me simular stories.
Then I started doing some homework on line about 5 mos. ago, oh my god!
It’s like we’re in a UN takeover!
Then I come to Sonoma Co. to visit for a week and they’re telling me about the same exact stuff!
Last I heard, my buddys lil town in the south is ready to tar ‘n feather their public servants, I think they are gonna let their membership expire.
It’s good to see some folks standing up to this treason!
They are not alone, folks are waking up-in a bad mood.
just what we need, we got the Fed and the banksters bringing us down, then the same influence trying to crash Main St. too!
Haven’t they screwed our world enough?
Well, enough is enough.
To Tom re. ‘climate change’:
yes, and the thing that is so insane is that the biggest oppression of the 21st century is based on a lie.
An instrument of oppression orchestrated/contrived by the globalists at the UN as an instrument of our oppression.
It would be entertaining if our well being wasn’t at stake.
What a bunch of loutish bullies, jumping up and shouting down other speakers in a public meeting.
I agree, this social engineering; this intensive downtown development is misguided and I don’t want to subsidize it with my tax dollars. Won’t be wanting to go downtown either. But you sound like a bunch of half crazed Nazis when you behave this way and most rational people will dismiss you as such.
I suppose I should list a few information sources again:
http://www.democratsagainstunagenda21.com/
http://www.freedomadvocates.org/http://ww
w.newswithviews.com/Coffman/mike.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVTGK1uYqJo
OK, the second version of the piece that went into print cut up the message.
It’s no longer a passing grade in terms of what the demonstration was about.
The definig quote; “anything that so profoundly effects our civil and fiscal landscape, the people have a right to know about”-was omitted from the print version that tens of thousands read.
I’m not surprized, just disappointed.
It did morph into a biased hit piece.
Look, here are the facts:
ICLEI is the local implementation arm of UN Agenda 21 Sustainable Development.
Santa Rosa is a member.
It’s ideology infects almost all of our policy, land use, hardscape, general plan-everything.
Agenda 21′s stated goal is to de-industrialize America (crash us $).
Another goal is the elimination of private property.
Private automobiles are also the antithesis of this socially engineered oppression.
Planning that provides for our containment is part of the ‘Plan’.
The goal is the elimination of our sovereignty. Locally and nationally
(that’s what OneBayArea is about).
All we want is for our public officials to adhere to the oath and promise they made to the People.
Stand up for us and the Constitution.
Stand with us, not globalists.
Some citizens that have studied the subject for years want to inform our city leaders what they have signed us up for/aligned us with, without the public’s knowledge.
THAT’S WHY WE’RE ASKING THE QUESTION.
Important. Simple.
This whole thread is ridiculous. There is NO “conspiracy” and the PD should sopt giving these sad people a soapbox for foolishness. The ideas of ICLEI and Agenda 21 are nothing more sinister than those of planning, housing and transit policy that contribute to healthier and greener communities and neighborhoods. What’s next an accusation that the Surgeon Generals plan on smoking and healthy eating is a plan to “make us all into cookie cutter physical specimens”?? These are guidelines for healthier ways to plan our communities so that people can walk, bike and ride safely and we can make the most of our precious resources and keep the North Bay as lovely and beautiful as it is now. Why the Press Democrat insists on letting these folks rant and insinuate and conjure up conspiracies is beyond me. A real newspaper would give readers the facts and stop encouraging inflammatory hyperbole from anonymous and rabid Tea Party stooges.
There a lot of hyprocrites on this board, who consistantly accuse others of name calling and then turn around and call those who disagree with them names (i.e. nut/deranged). They also appear to make alot of assumptions about individual motivations (all who oppose One Bay Area must be tea party members who wear tin foil hats.)
Well, I don’t belong to any party (tea or otherwise) and I don’t much care for any type of hat (tin foil or even the panda hat, although he is my favorite Giant), but I have alot of questions about the need for our community to be involved in an UN program that appears to be geared towards creating cookie cutter communities around the globe. And, one doesn’t have to dispute the motivation or end goal to dispute the methods used.
I have researched both the UN program and the One Bay Area program. It appears that neither is being transparent about money and where it is going or coming from. There does appear to be lack of communication between those in government and the community who support these memberships and its goals and those with questions. I for one don’t want to end up living in little boxes on top of other people in little boxes and yes, I understand the need to conserve land and open space, but there is a middle ground that can be obtained without going to either extreme and movements like the UN ICLEI and One Bay Area in my humble opinion are extreme in many ways.
Why all the uninformed, head in the sand comments? Are some wingnuts? Yes. Even a wingnut can be based on a fact. I saw Agenda 21 mentioned so many times, I went to the Uninted Nations website and read it. Whew.. If any of you have ever the Kyoto agreement, you would have recognized Agenda 21. It is just another program within the UN to create change, globally. It is what they do. Their plan calls for helping developing nations, paying for infrastructure, strict laws on development in developed countries and adjusting local laws to control population. The basic theme is that they will build up poor countries by imposing fees on rich countries and the rich countries will have no choice in the matter and will pay the trillions needed to bring all countries onto an even playing field, someonewhere around 2nd world countries. They lay it out in black and white. They are not hiding it, they are planning on changing all local political arenas to their end. They use ICLEI because Agenda 21 got a bad rapp, just like they dropped Kyoto by name and adopted Climate Change. A rose by any other name. They are not hiding, they are walking in the front door with a printed agenda. You don’t have to pay attention or educate yourself. However, you will have to live with the consequences of inaction. “All evil needs to succeed is for good people to do nothing”. Interesting quote. I guess I am a wingnut now because I read the UN article. Sorry for peeking behind the curtain.
“SMART” trains,Bike bridges,bike lanes,redevelopment,transit villages,high density housing,”ONE BAY AREA and the abandonment of roads are all examples of how the ICLEI agenda is affecting us.
I personally do not think the UN wants to take over Sonoma County. I do see that almost every move in local planing does fallow ICLEI’s agenda 21.
Perhaps this is just a coincidence.
I say lets get this out in the open
and let people know what Sonoma County
has in mind for our future. If we don’t like it we can just leave or vote in less progressives.
It never hurts to be more educated about an issue.
Its very strange the city counsel is not answering questions.
Those politicians who support or accept ICLEI need to be turned out of office. Their silence is approval. Those citizens who oppose ICLEI are not paranoids, tin hat people. They understand the true meaning of ICLEI.
The ICLEI group purpose is to put in place laws and regulations that will control the way we live, work and live of lives.
Many of us want those decisions left for the citizens of our state and nation to decide, not the government.
Educate yourself about ICLEI. Check it out on Google. Support the efforts to remove it from our local communities.
The problem is this anti-U.N. group isn’t about public forums. They are about disrupting public forums by shouting, interrupting, and more. I’ve witnessed it many times. Their feverish rhetoric isn’t enough, though I loved the time one of theme accused this plan of being a result of a Hegelian dialectic. Reminded of college english class back in the 60s.
Disgruntled car dealer revealed……
I used to just skip over Social Dis-ease….
Now I understand he has an axe to grind.
I hope SR City Council continues to look out for the common good of the thousands of residents and doesn’t let this disgruntled individual deter them from thinking thoughtfully about the common good.
Wow, what a bunch of nuts! What do you want — more unsustainable development? Do you really not give a damn about what kind of world you leave your kids and grandkids? Would you like them to have clean air to breathe and healthy food to eat? How about clean water to drink? How about some space to move around? Seriously, what Is wrong with you?
Well the ICLEI ranters have finally been semi-smoked out. Anyone who wishes to see their disruptive and rude behavior at the ABAG Sonoma meeting need only go on You Tube and type in “Rose Koire” She is one of the deranged demagogues leading this pack of rogue tea partiers. Rose and Kay Tokerud love to pose as “Democrats Against Agenda 21″ because they believe it gives them more credibility even though they share a lot of time and ideology with the Tea Party. Frankly, the reporter did them a favor in attempting to take them seriously. No one else in Sonoma politics does, they are well known as cranks who attack, call names and disrupt anything and anyone who doesn’t agree with their conspiracy theories. I know because I was there when Kay and Rose were kicked out of the the Neighborhood Association for the same ridiculous shenanigans. You can see how they turned on this reporter and call names as soon as his article was posted. That’s why I post under a fake name. I had enough of these two (and that’s about the sum of their “organization” too) years ago.
“Tokerud and like-minded activists last month disrupted a meeting last month aimed at having a dialogue with the public about long-range transportation and housing plans.”
The above statement is a gross misrepresentation of what occurred at the One Bay Area “Visioning” Workshop and represents a completely uncalled for slander of Ms. Tokerud.
I attended the subject meeting and can state unequivocally that the reason the meeting became rowdy was because the AGAG and MTC people and their planted shills REFUSED to answer the questions posed by the public. They simple either filibustered or stated that they would “get back to the public later.” This type of side step had already occurred at several previous meetings and the public was prepared.
Also, the police were called largely because one of the MTC/AGAG shills repeatedly touched a woman in an inappropriate manner as he attempted to get her to sit down and shut up!
The group at last night’s counsel meeting have a legitimate question. Why is Santa Rosa a member of a United Nations Organization that seeks to impose a one size, fits all world wide planning scheme on every city in the western world? It is a legitimate question and if the answer is innocent and productive than why doesn’t Council simply answer The Question?
Clarification;
there were only a dozen folks willing to ruin their Valentines Day plans sitting at a Council meeting.
There were many more earlier in the afternoon.
The Council’s policy has citizens waiting until the end of the evening for public comments.
Thank you to all that came, we will be at all Council meetings until there is a public forum to dicuss this important issue.
I can’t think of anything more important than asking THE QUESTION.
I was at Finley Center. First the PD headline was “Protesters disrupt Regional Planning Meeting”, then in the weekly summary they had it titled “Tea Party Disrupts Regional Planning Meeting”, now its “Tokerud and other like-minded people disrupted the meeting”. Which is it, or were you even at the meeting? The PD stinks and is just an instrument to discredit the good people who actually care about their government. In fact, Ms. Tokerud was only one of about 50 or so people in attendance that were opposed to the One Bay Area Plan. She is a fine lady and was not asked to leave by anyone. Mr. McCallum took a cheap shot accusing her of causing any disruption. He should apologize and get his story straight!
OK, time to ‘come out’.
Kevin McCallum: thank you for running a story, many in the group thought the PD would write a ‘hit piece’ on us.
Having Kay take a ‘hit’, portrayed as a ring leader is less than accurate.
Frankly, you get a B-, however I am still very appreciative for having this subject brought to light.
I take responsibility for being the individual that prompted the police being called at the Finley OneBayArea meeting.
I led the dissent more than anybody-
NOT KAY TOKERUD who was never asked to leave.
Why would a local businessman who’s never been rude to anyone act out, complete with bull horn and big sign saying ‘HOW DARE THEY’?
If you were all notified and had knowledge of the Plan’s true intention, what that meeting REALLY represented to your property rights (even if you rent), the way it would reconfigure the ENTIRE LANDSCAPE and your choices…
Wells Fargo Center with security wouldn’t contain you.
The nature of these ‘visioning’ meetings and the synthetic manner in which the Delphi Technique they utilize manufactures consensus prompted about 60 of us to see to it that in no way could it be remotely construed that this ‘Plan’ enjoyed public support.
Besides, the ‘facilitators’ engaged in BALD FACED LIES, central to the whole ‘Plan’.
THE QUESTION movement:
people across the country are waking up to how this UN sponsored globalist NGO incideously permeates our local government and profoundly effects our lives with it’s anti property rights, anti small business ideology.
Utilizing the subversive template ICLEI provides through it’s ‘charter’ membership; they work their black magic. The community’s ideology, policy, priorities, EVERYTHING CHANGES under the ‘green guise’.
Misappropriations, privatizations, restructuring funding mechanisms, empowering planners, non-elected boards, installed NGOs, all manner of public utility shenanigans work to gether from the inside out.
Suddenly the Free Market and real estate speculation are undermined with over reaching regulation and clandestine zoning changes, manipulations that pick winners and losers, often favoring ‘stakeholders’ and insiders over average citizens.
Now the city officials are incentivized through reward outside the accepted, familiar dynamic. It becomes in THEIR interest to install ‘Smart Growth’ hardscape to morph OUR COMMUNITY into a a bankrupt model of the globalist Agenda.
So in a nutshell.
The way the globalists that ARE Agenda 21 Sustainable Development implement on a local level is through ICLEI.
The Constitution provides for dissent under exactly these circumstances.
If a bull horn worked in a blog…
I’d use it too.
@Skippy
Government IS interference in your infantile personal life, get used to it. If your anarchist revolution does take place, I’ve got an idea to buy your neighbor’s house and turn it into a 24 hour muffler shop.
Another PD hit job. They didn’t mention that ICLEI is connected to UN Agenda 21 Sustainable Development. People are concerned that our city is ceding its authority to regional, national and international power structures that are implementing a plan that is affecting all Americans. These are legitimate concerns that need to be addressed. If our City Council is a member of an international organization that lobbies for legislation and sets policies, then there needs to be complete transparency about that affiliation. We want them to put ICLEI on the City Council agenda.
Knowledge about UN Agenda 21 Sustainable Development is spreading fast across America. It’s about time since they will be having their 20th anniversary this year in Rio de Janeiro. It’s called” Rio+20″. Google that and you will quickly understand what their agenda is. ICLEI is joined at the hip with the UN and was instrumental in the drafting of the UN Agenda 21 document from 1992. The United States is signed onto the plan.
Regarding the MTC and ABAG One Bay Area, although the police were unnecessarily summoned to the Finley Center at their meeting, no one was cited by the police for disruption, or asked to leave the meeting. The meeting was not disrupted by anyone. I was merely holding up signs, not disrupting the meeting. The PD should not accuse anyone of committing an offense and should make a retraction. Shame on the PD.
@Stephen Anthony
Anytime big government gets involved to control people’s behavior, it should concern everyone who is not part of the problem or on their payroll.
However, not owning a tin foil hat, my take on this is that it’s just plain stupid to shove this kind of community planning or behavior modification – whatever you want to call it – down people’s throats, and masquerade it as a “green” agenda. People don’t necessarily agree that it’s best to live near a train station or in urban areas.
For example, sensible people can disagree about the SMART train because some see it as a waste of precious taxpayer dollars, another government boondoggle, while some consider it as a way to reduce reliance on cars and oil (although the current abridged version of the train really solves nothing).
So attacking everyone as paranoid who sees government interference as less than valuable is closed minded and biased.
Plus Fox is the most trusted news organization today because people have compared and realized how biased the blatant liars at other so-called mainstream “news” outlets have become.
Global warming has been dedunked and anybody that still belives it is stuck in 2005.
I know zero details of ICELI.
That said, any time Big Govt has a big idea that will have a big impact on our lives, it is time to be afraid in a big way.
The bigger Big Govt gets, the smaller the citizen becomes.
That is true 100% of the time.
We have reached the critical crossroad in America, and all must choose sides.
I choose freedom and liberty, not the soft surrender to our betters who always have a great idea to implement at our expense.
Every confiscated or borrowed tax dollar spent on these types of “helpful” controls diminishes the individual and expands Big Govt’s micromanagement of our lives.
Decentralize; defund; resist.
Start with this and dissolve Planning Boards next.
The New American Revolution has started.
Time to choose sides.
Do we own the Govt or do they own us?
It is past time that the Santa Rosa City Council had a dialogue with the residents here and told us straight out why it wants to continue an alliance with ICLEI. And then the council members need to listen very carefully to the reasons why Santa Rosa should cut its ties with ICLEI. This idea that the council can act for “us” without proper accountability and without being willing to discuss the issue in a public forum is unacceptable. Other cities, counties, etc. around the U.S. have recently ended their association with ICLEI (http://communitysolutionsmn.wordpress.com/2011/07/06/communites-are-fighting-agenda-21-and-they-are-like-charlie-sheen-says-winning/) for the fundamental reason that that association was interfering with the cities’ rightful self-determination. The regional “government” being pushed by ICLEI is not directly elected by the people as are the city councils and the county boards of supervisors. And although some in local government will argue that city isn’t obligated to adopt the “guidelines” and “plans” of ICLEI, the fact is that not doing so leads to loss of funding by such regional agencies as SCTA and MTC. It is time for Santa Rosa’s city council to understand the loss of freedom that comes with membership in ICLEI. It is time the council have a full discussion with the public and then recognize the importance to us all of ending Santa Rosa’s association with ICLEI.
As a concerned citizen I attended the City Council Meeting last night in Santa Rosa. I wanted to see what the council had to say about aligning themselves with group ICLEI? Though I have never been politcally active, I have to say that when the council completely ignored the question, I felt like I was in a scary movie. I noticed lots of patting on the back of the speakers that they approved of. As citizens we want to know why the council has done this? Now that this is my radar, my husband and I are going to look into this…in my heart of hearts I know that something is wrong.
I am proud of the City of Santa Rosa’s support for ICLEI. Their Cities for Climate Protection (CCP) program is a tremendous model for local communities to use to both lower carbon emissions (climate mitigation) and to prepare for the inevitable impacts of climate change (climate adaptation).
Sonoma County is expected to become both warmer and drier over the next century. Even if overall rainfall levels increase in the long term, these storms are expected to be more intense and more sporadic. These flashier storms, along with higher evapotranspiration rates due to warming temperatures, will leave less available water for local communities and farmers, and less groundwater recharge for the natural habitat to rely upon. Unless these changes are taken into account soon, our quality of life in Sonoma County will diminish rapidly over the next few decades.
We need groups like ICLEI to assist with developing strategies at the international scale down to the local level. Any implication that ICLEI is part of some Orwellian-plot to control our lives is ludicrous. On the contrary, they are working to help us protect our local communities and build a more resilient future for all of us.
“A Dozen people”? Well now we finally know how many Tea Partiers hang out on the Watch Sonoma Crazy page.(I noticed a startling lack of paranoia and incoherence on these boards last night-must have been because they all took their tin foil hats to the City Council meeting)
When is the Press Democrat going to act like a responsible news organization and inform it’s readers about the reality of the so-called “Agenda 21″ that these poor, sick people keep filling these boards with? It’s truly bizarre to have you covering mass psychosis as if it were real news. What’s next reporting on Charlie Sheen’s “Tiger Blood” Chronicles? Just because the Tea Party has decided that Sustainable Development is a Communist Plot doesn’t mean you have to report it as if it were true. Even Fox News finally laid off on the “President’s Birth Certificate” story…Is this how low journalism has fallen. For Shame, Press Democrat. If you can’t take the time to investigate a story and report the facts as news, then don’t report made-up stories and paranoid ideations as news.