Letters for April 1, 2004

Always a tribe
My thanks to Robert Speer for clarifying (Letters, March 4) that the late President John F. Kennedy was not responsible for signing the legislation pursuant to which my tribe’s trust lands, in Feather Falls, were terminated.

As a citizen of the Mooretown Rancheria, I believe it is equally important for the public to understand that the one and only Mooretown Tribe has never been “disbanded” or “reorganized.”

The federal government has no power to disband an Indian tribe. And the 1958 California Rancheria Termination Act only terminated the Mooretown Rancheria and Reservation lands from trusts status, while removing the federal status as Indians from any Indians and the dependent members of their families who requested and received a share of the terminated lands.

In a 1935 referendum conducted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the voters of the Mooretown Rancheria voted 34-0 to reject the Indian Reorganization Act and to retain their traditional Indian government. Therefore the Mooretown Tribe is not a reorganized tribe, nor can we become such a tribe.

Thank you for this opportunity to further correct your Feb. 19, 2004, partial account of the history of my tribe ["High-Stakes Showdown,” cover story].

Danny Lee Williams
Oroville

We will survive
KZFR’s new prosperity is a result of increased listener support [“KZFR: The good, the bad and the ugly,” cover story, March 18]. The station continues to mature and is better now than ever before—with the business that goes on inside the pink Waterland-Breslauer building as well as what goes out over the air waves.

In recent years, the Board of Directors redefined internal policies and procedures and refined the station’s structural documents. During the same period, the Program Council developed new guidelines for the training, certification and evaluation of KZFR programmers.

The addition of Jill Paydon as general manager will make KZFR a better radio station. Beyond a radio station, KZFR has the potential to become a responsible and respected nonprofit corporation and a major player in local events and civic affairs.

However, the station’s new prosperity is relative. KZFR is prosperous only when measured against its previous all-volunteer structure. Realistically, the station will be challenged in coming months to generate the additional revenue necessary to retain the professional staff essential for its continued evolution.

If you listen to KZFR, please do your part to support the station. KZFR is an important public resource that shapes the identity and character of this little corner of the world. If you feel you could have done more during the last pledge drive, don’t wait for the next one. Make a contribution to KZFR today.

Steve Scarborough
Paradise

Spin the dial
Being a former KZFR board member (1997-2001) and one of the station’s biggest fans, I read your cover story on KZFR with a discriminating eye, disturbed by the negative slant of your grabber headline, “Will success kill the soul of Chico’s community radio station?” I would like this opportunity to offer readers a more positive direction for their community radio station.

Having served my BOD term when the concept of a general manager was a dream but not a financial possibility, forcing the board to micro-manage the station to the best of its collective volunteer ability, I experienced the “turmoil” first-hand. Was it stressful? Of course. At times, downright painful. Would I do it again? In a heartbeat.

I feel strongly about the heart and soul of KZFR—its mission of community education and involvement and, more important, its role in preserving our crucial and currently threatened rights to freedom of speech and information. In a time when American airwaves are owned and run by corporate conglomerates and the Bush administration censors mainstream media in their depiction of the Iraq War, we need to support entities like KZFR in every way possible to ensure their survival and our rights.

I especially love KZFR for exposing me to music and musicians I could not hear anywhere else and for giving me refreshing alternatives to mainstream news and talk shows. My hope is that we can all find ways to contribute to, rather than criticize, this rare and great community treasure.

Nicki Reynolds
Chico

Radio Oroville
I must say that, for an article covering KZFR, its history and the broad range of community radio, I was disappointed that Chico’s own neighbor, Oroville’s KRBS 107.1 FM, was not mentioned even once.

So, F.Y.I. as a community member, you can enjoy the mature blossom of Chico’s KZFR, and you can also tune into the budding rose of Oroville’s KRBS for a wonderful variety of programming and DJs whenever you are passing through its low-power-frequency range. For more info on KRBS you can call 530-534-1200 or go to www.radiobirdstreet.org.

Kathleen Brazil
Oroville

Question of motivation
I applaud “retired” Lt. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski for coming forward with her new-found morality, but I condemn Karen Kwiatkowski for waiting so long to do so [“New Pentagon Papers,” CN&R editorial, March 11].

This makes me wonder where Kwiatkowski has been these past 20-plus years. It is obvious to me that Kwiatkowski and others like her are more interested in protecting their “pensions” than in doing the right things. This makes me wonder in which direction Kwiatkowski’s moral compass has been pointing for these past 20-plus years.

Last but not least, let us not forget that for 20-plus years Kwiatkowski was a big part of the system that has been suppressing us all. Kwiatkowski would probably say, “Better late than never,” but what she should admit to is that, “You don’t bite the hand that feeds you.”

Tyrone Olds
Redding

Land of the lard
Fat America is certainly throwing its weight around.

Stephen T. Davis
Chico