'Proper place in history' not the only thing endangered 

Julie Kay Smithson

April 15, 2007

Pat Bushey's April 15th editorial, "Bucket needs proper place in history..." http://www.heraldandnews.com/articles/2007/04/15/viewpoints/viewpoints/view.txt falls short of accuracy, grammar wise. "Events of the summer of 2001 deserve better than the bucket, big as it is, give." Properly structured and worded, the above sentence should read: "Events that took place during the summer of 2001 deserve better than the Bucket, big as it is, can give."  

Readers may be entertained by: " ... away from the area where its location can taint the perception of even-handed justice ... " but such a statement hints at a connection between government, the judicial system and the Klamath Bucket. This is inaccurate and tarnishes the real purpose of the Klamath Bucket and its placement.  

The Klamath Bucket, like the Klamath Bucket Brigade, was born of necessity. Good people, promised water forever from the Klamath Project, saw that promise broken by contentious agency and organization actions. That, in and of itself, was not history-making, in the sense that the word "Klamath" now evokes nationwide.  

The "A" Canal , Klamath Falls , Oregon .

What catapulted "Klamath" into America 's focus was partly water, partly farming/irrigation, partly government and organizational shenanigans -- but it was something more.  

The war veterans and their families, guilty only of naivete in their promise to the government to make the Klamath Project a verdant and bountiful reality, did nothing wrong. They had been doing everything right for almost a hundred years before that fateful summer of 2001. Their presence and efforts had not starved either their families or the many diverse families of the Klamath Basin . To the contrary, the men, women and children whose blood, sweat and tears equity made the Klamath Project an inveterate part of the Pacific Northwest , played a vital role in making hunger and privation become endangered.  

Families of the tribes, wildlife, migratory birds, fish, and livestock all became part of a win-win situation. The dams on the Klamath River and irrigation water did not kill the salmon or suckers. Both fish continued their life cycles, becoming dependent upon year-round water supplies from both damming and irrigating. Reports of meth labs on the Klamath River go largely unpublished, though their validity as killers of fish is true. The multiple use of water enhanced the quality of life for countless lives, both in the Klamath Project and Basin and far flung places beyond.  

Suddenly, opportunity arose for some desirous of taking from those that had made the Klamath Project a miracle of agriculture and grind it into dust. Those hatching this plan do not care about wildlife, fish, birds, tribes, farmers, or feeding anything. They apparently only seek to gain Control of the Klamath Basin and all its wealth, including the water, upon which most of that wealth depends. No matter how little water the Klamath Project utilizes, the demand for give more will not cease until the Klamath Project is no more. No matter how fish-friendly the dams are or their usefulness in protecting those downstream from occasional catastrophic flooding, the cacophony for their removal will not abate until they are demolished, assigned a few words in a history book.  

Bushey failed to mention the true significance of the Klamath Bucket, which is twin: Neighbors and water. It does not matter Neighbors traveled from as far distant as Maryland , and Ohio , to stand with their neighbors and publicly support the importance of water to human life.  

The editorial may represent " ... the view of the Herald and News editorial board," but such a view withers on the vine when viewed by the builders, transporters and supporters of the Klamath Bucket and the Klamath Bucket Brigade. Both the Bucket and the Bucket Brigade became part of my life in August 2001. They will forevermore hold a place of honor in my memory and property rights efforts, for they are truly the stuff of which heroes are made.  

Certainly, events that took place during the summer of 2001 deserve a special place. The Klamath Bucket must stay where it was delivered. Big as it is, the Bucket cannot contain the events of the summer of 2001, something it was never meant to do. The events of that summer have a special place: in the hearts of us all. It is a place that could have inspired this: "Memory is the only paradise from which we cannot be driven." - Jean Paul (1763 - 1825)  

Let's honor that memorable summer by keeping the Klamath Bucket where it stands, overlooking the street where so many gathered almost six years ago, bringing with them offerings of hay, grain, water, food, donations, and hope. Let's keep hope alive in the Klamath Project and Klamath Basin , keeping firmly in place the symbol of what holds water to a place whose future depends on water.  

From Ohio For Freedom, Julie's bucket, August 2001.

Julie Kay Smithson is a property rights researcher in rural west-central Ohio . In August 2001 she and her canine companion, Wiggles, journeyed to Klamath Falls , bringing their own bucket, there to learn about and stand with the people of this resource-rich region. Smithson's efforts and website http://www.propertyrightsresearch.org still stand strong with her western neighbors.

(Permission to post from the author.)