Dixie Press

ST. GEORGE – The Pine Valley Ranger District is seeking public comment for the proposed Fuelbreaks Improvement Project that encompasses three fire fuelbreaks on the Pine Valley Ranger District adjacent to the towns of Central, New Harmony, and Pine Valley.

The main purpose and need for this project is to design, construct and maintain a total of 3,866 acres from which fire managers can safely apply appropriate actions in an attempt to protect populated areas and natural resources from an approaching fire, even under extreme fire behavior conditions.  A fire line will be constructed within and along the entire length of each of the fuelbreaks.

“This project is focused on the need to have residences and community infrastructure adjacent to Forest Service land less susceptible to impacts from wildland fires,” Pine Valley District Ranger Bevan Killpack said. “There is a need to improve and expand the fuelbreaks to help increase the chances that private lands and developments can be protected from wildfire while providing for firefighter safety.”

The Proposed Action is to widen and feather the edges of the existing fuelbreaks to increase the effectiveness of firefighter tactics near these communities.  The Proposed Action has been designed for consistency with the goals, objectives, standards and guidelines of the Forest Plan.

A variety of treatments are proposed for the Forest Service to utilize on this project including: heavy equipment, mulchers, chippers, chainsaws and herbicides.

Individuals, organizations, federal, state, and local agencies who are interested in or affected by the decision are invited to participate in the scoping process.  Comments will continue to be received and considered throughout the analysis process.

Written comments should be submitted to the Pine Valley Ranger District, as follows:

By mail to:

Pine Valley Ranger District Fuelbreaks Improvement Project Environmental Analysis Coordinator

Attn: Joseph Harris

196 E. Tabernacle, Suite 38,

St. George, UT  84770

By fax to:

Fax number 432-652-3191 –to the attention of Joseph Harris or David Swank, Dixie National Forest

By electronic comment:

email: comments-intermtn-dixie-pine-valley@fs.fed.us.

Electronic comments may be submitted in rich text format (.rtf), or Word (.doc)

 

SALT LAKE CITY – The 3A State softball tournament schedule for today has been revised as the Valley Complex location is not playable today due to rain.

The following changes to games scheduled have been noticed:

Games 23 and 24 (in the one-loss bracket) will play at Salt Lake Community College softball field, 4600 South Redwood Road:

•  Canyon View vs. Wasatch at 3 p.m. today, May 18
•  Stansbury vs Uintah at 5 p.m. today

All remaining games, except Game 30, the Championship Game, will be played on Saturday, May 19 at the Valley Complex:

• Game 21, Cedar City vs. Snow Canyon, will be played at 10 a.m.

• Game 22, Spanish Fork vs. Bear River, will be played at 10 a.m.

• Games 25 and 26 will be played at 12:15 pm

• Games 27 and 28 will be played at 2:30 pm

• Game 29, the semifinal, will be played at 4 p.m.

The 3A state championship game will be held on Monday, May 21, at 2 p.m. at the Salt Lake Community College field, as will the “What if” game if necessary.

 

LITTLEFIELD, Ariz. – Mohave County Sheriff’s deputies arrested two Littlefield residents Monday for cultivating marijuana.

Deputies received a report of a marijuana plant growing behind a bar in the 400 block of Highway 91.  They responded and located a marijuana plant growing near a residence.  Deputies contacted a 55-year-old female subject at the residence.  During conversations with the woman, she said she and her boyfriend, a 64-year-old male, had been taking care of a marijuana plant.

Deputies contacted boyfriend and during conversations with the man, he said they had been tending the plant for over two months.  In further conversations with the man, he said he had a medical marijuana card.

Deputies located twelve more plants.  They advised the plants should be grown in a secure facility and not in public. The man and woman were taken into custody without incident.  They were transported and booked into the Mesquite Jail.  The plants were confiscated.

This press release was provided by the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office.

 

Bryan Hyde is a news commentator and co-host of the Perspectives morning show on Fox News 1450 AM 93.1 FM. The opinions stated in this article are his and not those of St. George News.

OPINION – Talk about irony. Steven Powell has just been convicted of spying on and photographing two innocent neighbor girls for his own unnatural satisfaction. And now we learn that members of federal and local law enforcement are expressing a strange interest in scrutinizing every motorist traveling I-15 through Southwest Utah.

It’s telling that many people openly condemn the acts of Steven Powell as an intolerable violation of personal privacy but will turn a blind eye to the state’s voyeuristic ambitions when they are done under the color of law.

On the surface, the proposal from the Drug Enforcement Administration and two local sheriffs sounds quite reasonable. They are seeking the blessing of the Utah legislature to install permanent stationary scanning devices that can read the license plate of every single passing vehicle traveling the I-15 corridor. The idea is being touted as a means of catching kidnappers, drug traffickers and violent criminals. Most people would agree that getting such individuals off the streets would be a positive thing.

But the drawback to this plan is that every motorist, including those who are not suspected of actual crimes, will be strained through the same technological net created to ensnare criminals. From a crime and drug interdiction standpoint, this is a curious use of technology in the place of actual police work. From a privacy standpoint, this scheme is entirely incompatible with the proper role of government.

Each of us has an inherent natural right to privacy and a right to be left alone by government unless probable cause exists that we are party to a criminal act. By subjecting every motorist to the predatory scrutiny of the scanners and storing that information for up to two years, government is doubling down on the idea that we’re all guilty of something; we just haven’t been caught yet.

This flies in the face of the presumption of innocence that is the bedrock of our criminal justice system.

The claim that this technology will only be used to keep us safe from criminals rings as hollow as the Transportation Security Administration’s claims that only by submitting to being undressed electronically or by having our genitals touched are we safe to travel by air.

Just as TSA checkpoints are beginning to migrate out of the airports and into train stations, bus depots and other public venues, it is a virtual certainty that this license plate scanning technology will eventually be used to track the movements of every person who drives. Those who would dismiss this possibility as mere paranoia fail to recognize that the most paranoid entity in America today is a governing authority that views every citizen as a potential criminal or terrorist until they have submitted to government screening.

It’s bad enough that many municipalities now regularly use license plate scanners to squeeze revenue out of motorists who are delinquent in coughing up their yearly tribute for licensing and registering their vehicles. But now we’re being told that because I-15 is considered a “drug corridor” that the state needs to be able to keep tabs on every vehicle that travels this freeway. Where does it stop?

Thanks to the war on some drugs, police can seize any arbitrary large amount of cash from a motorist without having to prove that the money was associated with any crime. Under anti-meth laws, a grandmother can be arrested for purchasing an extra box of cold medication if she does so within a certain time period. How do these incidents square with the concept of justice?

At least 300 jurisdictions in the U.S. are awaiting Federal Aviation Administration approval to use unmanned aerial drones to keep tabs on the population. The federal government is paving the way so within the next eight to 10 years, the number of drones over America will number around 30,000. Is it unreasonable to question the state’s apparent need to monitor our every movement when it’s clear that crime prevention is becoming secondary to the kind of surveillance that enables total government control?

Is there an effective check on government power any longer? For those who can see beyond rhetoric of the security state, it’s clear that a transformation is taking place in America.

At what point can we safely say, “welcome to our police state” without being accused of exaggeration?

email: thebryanhyde@gmail.com

twitter: @youcancallmebry

Copyright 2012 St. George News.

ST. GEORGE – Books by St. George-area residents are popping up faster than spring flowers, some by veteran authors and others by fresh new literary voices. Many of them will have the opportunity to personally promote their work at the Local Authors Book Fair on May 19.

Reilly Woodhouse, age 14, recently broke into the young adult market through a remarkable turn of events. A Snow Canyon Middle School student diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome at age eleven, Woodhouse has amazed family, friends and teachers alike with her skill for creating fantasy stories. Her debut novel is “The Pirate Heir,” a coming-of-age tale of a girl swept up by dashing pirates who promise both danger and romance. It was published on May 3.

Another such author is Shane D. Williams, who currently has two children’s books published under his own label. The first, entitled “The Endless Achoo,” was released in 2005 and gained a significant following via the Internet, which inspired him to continue writing for a young audience. His second book, “All Mixed Up! A Motley Horde of Funny Poems,” went public one month ago.

Though volumes in the juvenile genre often seek to educate, Williams said he also strives to entertain by pouring his infectious, carefree personality into his work.

“My main goal is to make people laugh; it helps people unwind and brings families (closer),” he said. “(I want) to show both kids and adults that reading and writing can be fun.”

Held concurrently with the Tuacahn Saturday Market in the parking lot of the Tuacahn Amphitheatre from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., the Local Writers Book Fair is hosted in part by the Heritage Writers’ Guild, a division of the Utah League of Writers.

The featured authors and their main genre(s) are:

Ann Kearns – Fiction/Self-Help

Annette Louise – Romance/Western

Beth Shumway Moore – Nonfiction/Historical

David W. Smith – Action-Adventure/Nonfiction

Ginny Sparks – Juvenile

Lin Floyd – Poetry

Linda Weaver Clarke – Historical Fiction/Romance

Lori Viets – Nonfiction/Self-Help

Marleen Bussma – Poetry/Western

Ned Greenwood - Action-Adventure/Historical Fiction

Russell Estlack – Nonfiction/Historical

Shane D. Williams – Juvenile

Tom Baldwin – Fantasy/Action-Adventure

V.S. Grenier – Juvenile

Many other St. George-based scribes, whose works range from romance to self-help, will be attending. From 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., the authors will participate in a meet-and-greet with fans and offer them a chance to preview the first few pages of their respective books.

email: news@stgnews.com

twitter: @STGnews

Copyright 2012 St. George News.

 

Sports Commentator Patrick Blake is host of Blake’s Take, airing weekdays from 5-6 p.m. on KZNU Sports Radio Southern Utah Sports Network – 93.1 FM 1450 AM – with live stream online at http://www.KZNUsports.com.

UPDATE 1:15 p.m. There have been scheduling changes due to rain. For details here.

ST. GEORGE - The Snow Canyon Lady Warriors beat Grantsville 10-0 to advance to the 3A state softball quarterfinals.

The Lady Warriors advance to take on the Cedar Lady Reds, who beat Tooele 14-2.

There are still three Region 9 teams alive in the state playoffs. The Canyon View Lady Falcons are in the consolation bracket and beat Juab 19-9, to advance to take on Wasatch today at noon.

The Lady Warriors also take on the Lady Reds at noon at the Valley Complex.

On the bottom half of the winners bracket, Spanish Fork beat Juan Diego to advance to play Bear River –  who beat the Lady Falcons earlier in the day.

The winners of the Lady Warriors vs. the Lady Reds will play the winner of the Spanish Fork vs. Bear River game today at 4:30 p.m. The winner will advance to the state championship game on Saturday at noon at Salt Lake Community College.

For more STATE TOURNAMENT talk, tune into Blake’s Take weekdays from 5-6 p.m. on KZNU Sports Radio – 93.1 FM 1450 AM – or online streaming live on KZNU Sports website: www.kznusports.com

email: sports@stgnews.com

Twitter:  @BlakesTake

Copyright 2012 St. George News.

Sports Commentator Patrick Blake is host of Blake’s Take, airing weekdays from 5-6 p.m. on KZNU Sports Radio Southern Utah Sports Network – 93.1 FM 1450 AM – with live stream online at http://www.KZNUsports.com.

ST. GEORGE – The Snow Canyon Warriors beat their Region 9 foe, the Canyon View Falcons, yesterday 6-4 to advance to the state semifinals in baseball.

The Warriors advance to take on the No. 1 team in the state in all classifications, Spanish Fork. Spanish Fork beat Carbon 8-4 yesterday to advance to the semifinals.

The Warriors and Spanish Fork are set to throw out the first pitch at 4:30 p.m. today at Kearns High School.

Spanish Fork is the defending 4A state champion but moved down to 3A this year, like the four St. George schools did.

The winner of the Warriors vs. Spanish Fork game advances to the state championship game at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday. The winner would have to get beat twice on Saturday to get eliminated.

The loser of the game drops down to the consolation bracket.

In the consolation bracket, Grantsville beat Park City and then lost to Juan Diego – who beat Wasatch earlier in the morning. Juan Diego advances to take on the Falcons today at 11:30 a.m.

Delta beat Stansbury and the Payson, advancing to take on Carbon at 1:30 p.m. today.

The winners of the Falcons vs. Juan Diego and Carbon vs. Delta games will meet at 7 p.m. today to advance to the semifinals against the loser of the Warriors vs. Spanish Fork. All games are at Kearns High School.

For more STATE TOURNAMENT talk, tune into Blake’s Take weekdays from 5-6 p.m. on KZNU Sports Radio – 93.1 FM 1450 AM – or online streaming live on KZNU Sports website: www.kznusports.com.

email: sports@stgnews.com

Twitter:  @BlakesTake

Copyright 2012 St. George News.

 

 

 

ST. GEORGE – Bureau of Land Management fire managers are planning to conduct a small, prescribed burn in Paria Canyon between mile 12 and 13 starting May 18, which will continue until May 20.

In order to restore natural conditions in Paria Canyon, the BLM in partnership with the Grand Canyon Trust have conducted a project to eradicate non-native shrubs and trees including tamarisk and Russian olive to protect the wilderness and wild and scenic river character of the canyon, as well as enhance habitat for riparian-dependent wildlife species.

An eight person fire crew will conduct the prescribed fire to burn which includes three to four acres, or 36 piles, of tamarisk and non-native shrubs and trees that remain from the eradication project.

Prescribed fires must meet certain weather-related and environmental factors prior to ignition. BLM fire staff will manage and monitor the prescribed fire activity. Public access will not be restricted or disrupt hiking/camping activities and signs have been posted to notify visitors. Those who have already obtained overnight permits have been notified of the prescribed fire activity.

Smoke will not be visible to the public other than to those who are hiking the canyon.

Smoke emissions will be managed in accordance with the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality regulations.

For more information, please contact BLM Arizona Strip District Fire Management Officer Mark Rosenthal at 435-688-3350.

 

ST. GEORGE – A former high school teacher faces up to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to multiple sex offenses.

John Robert James Cody, 42, of Washington City, was sentenced Tuesday in 5th District Court for one court of forcible sexual abuse, three counts of sexual abuse of a child – all 2nd degree felonies – and one count of sexual battery, a class A misdemeanor.

Deputy County Attorney Ryan Shaum said Judge Eric Ludlow sentenced Cody to serve four to 30 years in prison.

Shaum added that 2nd degree felonies carry a mandatory sentencing period of one to 15 years.  However, Utah law prohibits an individual from being imprisoned for more than 30 years unless serving a life sentence.

Cody once a taught at Pine View High School, though none of his students were involved in reported incidents reaching back to 2008.

email: news@stgnews.com

twitter: @STGnews

Copyright 2012 St. George News.

 

OPINION – Making sense of the organic and inorganic approaches to gardening is inevitably a subjective matter. I grew up on a farm, and have been a gardener for many years, which impacts my viewpoint. There are many theories and practices being applied to gardening these days. But nearly everyone employs some practices from a variety of the approaches to gardening discussed in this article.

“Organic gardening,” like many terms today, is a bit deceitful in its characterization because it assumes that only it (organic gardening) employs the principles espoused. In fact, all gardening, agriculture in general, employs elements of the organic and inorganic.

Organic horticulture is the science and art of growing fruits, vegetables, and ornamental plants by following the essential principles of organic agriculture in soil building and conservation, pest management, and heirloom variety preservation.

Organic gardening has been oversold and under-delivered. And commercial agriculture has been unfairly demonized. Many false claims and accusations have been made with regard to this debate. I will touch on a few of the issues.

First, organic purists now declare that in order to be an “organic gardener,” you cannot use pesticides, herbicides, commercial fertilizer, or human waste.

Second, without commercial fertilizer, worldwide food production would be cut nearly in half; the ensuing result would be mass starvation.

Third, if you also eliminate chemical pesticides and herbicides, worldwide food production would fall by another 50 percent, relegating most of the world’s population to perpetual starvation.

Fourth, commercial fertilizer is not “synthetic” nor is it composed of “poisons” and “harmful” stuff; some argue otherwise.

Pesticides: If you don’t use some pesticides, peaches, pears, cherries, and apples will all be worm-filled. Dormant oil and other oils are effective pesticides, and they are not poison or harmful to humans or the environment.

Pesticides are designed with just enough poison to kill a tiny bug. Labels show the percentages of active ingredients, they are miniscule; meaning, you could likely drink the entire bottle and it would have no effect on a human being.

In the home garden, little if any pesticides are necessary, except on some fruit. No cool weather crops need pesticides (broccoli, onions, beets, carrots, lettuce, tomatoes, etc). Melons and all cucurbits can be managed without pesticides. Corn can be protected with a little oil on the silk or a mild pesticide. With a little labor to keep your garden weed free, you can eliminate herbicides.

Fertilizer: Nitrogen is nitrogen, and it really does not matter where you get it. If you “religiously” refuse to use commercial fertilizer, then you must get it from some other source or accept small, spindly plant growth with reduced production.

Where it rains a lot, nitrogen is not an issue because the rain pulls nitrogen out of the air and provides adequate amounts.

The next best source of nitrogen is manure, cow, horse, chicken, turkey or any other animal manure. But most home gardeners do not have enough animals to provide enough nitrogen via manure for their own gardens, so it must be obtained elsewhere. Throughout most of Asia, human waste is the primary source of crop fertilizer.

Commercial fertilizer is often called “synthetic” fertilizer, but that is also a false characterization. There is nothing synthetic about commercial fertilizer. Nitrogen and phosphorus are organic. Nitrogen is everywhere. Potash is mined; it’s a naturally occurring mineral. Phosphate is mined; it is a naturally occurring element. And steer manure is loaded with both.

According to Chris Molnar in his article, The Dirt on Fertilizer – Organic vs. Synthetics, “Chemically, these nutrients are identical to nutrients derived from an organic source.”

Commercial fertilizer is also demonized by environmentalists because they say it leaches into the ground water, rivers and lakes, and poisons or contaminates them. It is true that all fertilizer leaches; but what is the difference between nitrogen leaching into them and rain dropping tons of nitrogen into them? Nitrogen is not a poison, and neither is phosphorous or potash, they are everywhere in the earth and they end up in the water whether man has anything to do with it or not.

Environmentalists are now attempting to demonize carbon. Carbon is essential to life; it is not a poison or a pollutant. Increase the amount of carbon in the air and all plants will have more growth, food crops will have greater production. Raise the overall temperature of the earth, and food production goes up, disease goes down, and people are healthier and happier.

Not too much goes to waste in today’s world: Almond hulls are made into feed for animals; cottonseed is processed for feed for dairy cattle; and the contents of sewer sludge is used in a variety of ways, including making commercial fertilizer: all, organic stuff.

Next week I will discuss the use of animal manure in gardening.

email: news@stgnews.com

twitter: @STGnews

Copyright 2012 St. George News.

CEDAR CITY – Utah Department of Transportation will provide dirt road access through a landslide area on state Route 14 ahead of schedule improving mobility over the Memorial Day weekend for travelers between Iron, Kane and Garfield counties.

Utah state Route 14, landslide repair looking east, Cedar Canyon, Utah | Photo courtesy of Civil Air Patrol via UDOT Region Four

Workers plan to open construction safety gates Thursday, May 24, at 3 p.m. allowing the first public passage through Cedar Canyon since an October 2011 landslide destroyed nearly a half-mile of the scenic byway which connects Interstate 15 to U.S. Highway 89 between Cedar City and Kane County.

The dirt road will remain open all hours through the Memorial Day Holiday.  Construction crews plan to resume work on state Route 14 Tuesday, May 29, at 7 a.m., at which time the route will again close during the daytime.  However, motorists will be able to use the dirt road during the night from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, with access open all hours through the weekends beginning on Fridays at 5 p.m.

The Restore 14 project team cut time and cost by using massive mining excavation equipment and by designing a roadway plan that reduced the amount of earth and debris to be moved from one-point-one million cubic yards of material to 400-thousand cubic yards.

The $14 million project also addresses the repair and stabilization of other trouble spots between Cedar City and Cedar Breaks National monument where slides and erosion have damaged the road.

Earthwork and structural repairs at these locations are anticipated to continue throughout the summer.

UDOT’s Restore14 website is devoted to the project.

 

SANTA CLARA – The Bureau of Land Management is responding to vandalism at rock art sites located on public lands, including the archaeological and historic site of Land Hill in Southern Utah.

Land Hill is part of the Santa Clara River Reserve – a 6,500-acre area of public land collaboratively managed by BLM and the cities of Ivins and Santa Clara, in part to protect the many prehistoric sites found there, including a high concentration of rock art sites that are preserved on those lands.  The BLM’s St. George Field Office has increased its monitoring efforts, is educating the public about these fragile cultural resource sites, and is pointing out the legal consequences of vandalism activities.

The many petroglyph panels of the Land Hill site reflect the stories and beliefs of the Native Americans who inhabited the area along the Santa Clara River as long as 5,000 years ago.  Preservation of this and other archaeological sites gives future generations a glimpse of cultures that thrived in the past.

Land HIll rock art, Santa Clara, Utah | Photo courtesy of BLM Color Country District, Public Affairs

A few months ago, archaeologist William Banek and law enforcement officer Scott Lowrey of the St. George Field Office began noticing increased instances of scratched graffiti near these ancient petroglyphs.

“This is probably the work of juveniles who don’t understand the value and significance of these resources,” Banek said, who will be stepping up education outreach to local schools and youth organizations to address this issue.

Banek, Lowrey and BLM volunteer site stewards are routinely monitoring the sites. Anyone caught vandalizing rock art or other types of archeological sites may be charged with a misdemeanor or felony, pay fines and restitution costs, and face community service or jail time.

If members of the public have information about this vandalism, they are requested to contact BLM law enforcement rangers at 435-688-3260 or 435-688-3341.

Submitted by BLM Color Country District

Follow BLM on Twitter @BLMUtah

 

ST. GEORGE - Dan Liljenquist, running against Orrin Hatch in Utah’s Republican Primary, hoping to be the Republican nominee for the Senate seat, will be visiting Southern Utah on Thursday and Friday. While here, Liljenquist will be making three public appearances to allow everyone a chance to get to know him better and at each event there will be hot dogs, chips and drinks for everyone that comes. The three events are:

Thursday, May 17:   J.C. Snow Park, 300 East 900 South, in St. George, starting at noon.

Friday, May 18:   Cedar City Main Street Park, 200 North Main, in Cedar City, starting at noon.

Friday, May 18: Hurricane Community Center, 63 S 100 W, in Hurricane,  7 p.m.

email: news@stgnews.com

twitter: @STGnews

Copyright 2012 St. George News.

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Sen. Mike Lee delivered a speech on the Senator floor regarding his budget resolution, Saving the American Dream. The proposal is scheduled for a vote this afternoon along with resolutions offered by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Penn., Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and President Obama.

A portion of the speech is below, and the full text is available here. Below is a video of the speech here.

“Mr. President, The true greatness of our nation lies in the power and promise of the American dream.  Unfortunately for many individuals and families this dream has become a national nightmare.

“Without the clear priorities and accountability of a budget we continue to careen toward the economic cliff with our massive debt and trillion dollar deficits threatening the prosperity of Americans from every walk of life.  To put it simply, we must change course!

“Restoring the American dream will require more than clever bumper-sticker slogans.  While optimism is an important part of the American dream, hope simply is not a strategy for the kind of course correction our country needs.

“Doing nothing is no longer an option! – Although this President and this Congress have attempted, by not having a budget, to convince the American people that doing nothing is the only option.

“Ignoring our broken entitlement programs, maintaining our complex tax code, and pretending we don’t have a spending problem ensures that our economy will never truly recover and the American dream will not be restored.

“The good news for Americans is that many of us do have solutions to confront and correct the country’s most pressing challenges.  In today’s debate and discussion the nation has seen that changing course and balancing our budget doesn’t take 30 years, nor does it require the kind of drastic cuts that could devastate America’s our most vulnerable citizens.

“As we approach this debate I remind my colleagues of the old adage, “You can make excuses or you can make progress, but you cannot make both.””

Submitted by the offices of Mike Lee

ST. GEORGE – This Saturday, May 19, Dan Murphy, host of Last Call on Fox News FM 96.7 and 1450 AM welcomes Therapist Garth Lasater and several resident students from Cross Creek Programs in LaVerkin.

According to My Last Call Radio, Cross Creek is one of the finest adolescent treatment programs available in the country, and has helped thousands of young people suffering from behavioral or substance abuse problems regain their direction as positive responsible forces in society.

Helping kids in crises, is a term generally associated with Cross Creek Programs.

In addition, an integral component of the ongoing success of Cross Creek Programs is acceptance of the fact that family members are often victimized and suffer at the expense of the addict. The entire family must be treated to achieve this success.

Listen to the heart wrenching stories from family members of studio guests who will be calling in from various parts of the country Saturday. Phone lines will be open.

Studio Lines: 435-673-1450 and 888-673-1450 during program hours.

Tune in, call in, Last Call Saturdays, 5-7 p.m. PM, ox News 1450 AM & 96.7 FM, for invigorating and challenging discussions about some of the most perplexing issues we face today.

LAST CALL IS NOW HEARD ON THE INTERNET:  My Last Call with Dan Murphy, and Canyon Media Broadcasting.

Sports Commentator Patrick Blake is host of Blake’s Take, airing weekdays from 5-6 p.m. on KZNU Sports Radio Southern Utah Sports Network – 93.1 FM 1450 AM – with live stream online at http://www.KZNUsports.com.

ST. GEORGE – The 3A state softball tournament is a little different from the baseball state tournament. In baseball you play two games the first day of the state tournament, in softball if you win your first game, you’re done for the day and advance to Thursday. But if you lose you have to play the opening round of the consolation bracket that day.

Of the four Region 9 teams that made it to the 3A state softball tournament three still remain. All three are still in the winners’ bracket.

The Cedar Lady Reds won their first round game in dominating fashion 16-0 over Union. The Lady Reds advance to take on Tooele who beat Juab 7-0 in the first round. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Valley Complex in Salt Lake.

The Snow Canyon Lady Warriors advanced to the second round after a first round upset of Region 10 No. 1 seed Wasatch 13-6. The Lady Warriors play Grantsville who beat Payson 12-4 in the first round. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. at the Valley Complex in Salt Lake City.

The final Region 9 team remaining in the state tournament is the Canyon View Lady Falcons, who beat Uintah 8-7 in the first round. The Lady Falcons take on the top seed out of Region 11, Bear River, who beat North Sanpete 2-0 in the first round. Bear River and the Lady Falcons take the field at the Valley Complex in Salt Lake City; first pitch is also at 2 p.m.

The other quarterfinal matchup in the winners’ bracket has Juan Diego taking on Spanish Fork. Juan Diego beat Pine View in the first round 5-4 while Spanish Fork crushed Stansbury 9-0. The Juan Diego vs. Spanish Fork game is also at the Valley Complex in Salt Lake City and will start at 2 p.m.

The Pine View Lady Panthers, who lost to Juan Diego, went down to the consolation bracket where Stansbury sent the team packing 11-1. The Lady Panthers end their season at 12-12 on the season.

Again different from the baseball tournament, softball winners’ bracket teams that lose the 2 p.m. games will have to play again at 4 p.m. against teams in the consolation bracket.

So, the winner of the Lady Reds vs. Tooele will advance to play the winner of the Lady Warriors vs. Grantsville. The loser from the Lady Reds vs. Tooele will play Uintah in the consolation bracket second round at 4 p.m. at the Valley Complex in Salt Lake City.

The loser of the Lady Warriors vs. Grantsville game will play Stansbury in the consolation bracket second round at 4 p.m. at the Valley Complex in Salt Lake City.

Wasatch awaits the loser of the Juan Diego vs. Spanish Fork game while Juab will play the loser of the Lady Falcons vs. Bear River game. Both consolation games will be at 4 p.m. at the Valley Complex in Salt Lake.

The semifinals in the winner’s bracket and third round of the consolation bracket start Friday at noon.

For more STATE TOURNAMENT talk, tune into Blake’s Take weekdays from 5-6 p.m. on KZNU Sports Radio – 93.1 FM 1450 AM – or online streaming live on KZNU Sports website: www.kznusports.com

sports@stgnews.com

Twitter:  @BlakesTake

Sports Commentator Patrick Blake is host of Blake’s Take, airing weekdays from 5-6 p.m. on KZNU Sports Radio Southern Utah Sports Network – 93.1 FM 1450 AM – with live stream online at http://www.KZNUsports.com.

ST. GEORGE – The Snow Canyon Warriors and the Canyon View Falcons are the only two Region 9 teams left in the 3A state baseball tournament. Both teams are still in the winners bracket going 2-0 last Saturday. They play each other on Thursday in the winners bracket semi finals.

The Warriors beat defending state champions Juan Diego 3-1 in the first round and beat Payson 3-0 in the second round. Both games were at Juan Diego.

The Falcons go to host their games, routing Union 18-0 in round one and smashing Delta 10-1 in the second round.

The other two Region 9 teams did not fair so well. Cedar and Dixie both went 0-2 and are out of the tournament.

Cedar was shutout of both tournament games. Losing to Wasatch 1-0 in the first round and then losing to Morgan 7-0 in the opening round of the consolation bracket.

While only four teams remain in the winners bracket, there are still eight teams in the consolation bracket that have a chance to win it all. Consolation bracket games also start on Thursday morning. Park City takes on Grantsville while Wasatch plays Juan Diego. The winners of those games will play each other while the losers are out. The bottom half of the consolation bracket pits Payson against Morgan and Delta against Stansbury. The winners of those games will also play each other and the losers will be out of the state tournament. The winners of the games will meet at 4:30 p.m. at Kearns High School.

The winner’s bracket has the Warriors playing the Falcons at 11:00 a.m., and No. 1 ranked Spanish Fork taking on Carbon at 1:30 p.m. The winners will meet on Friday at 4:30 p.m. while the losers will drop to the consolation bracket and will play at either 11 a.m. or 1:30 p.m.

For more STATE TOURNAMENT talk, tune into Blake’s Take weekdays from 5-6 p.m. on KZNU Sports Radio – 93.1 FM 1450 AM – or online streaming live on KZNU Sports website: www.kznusports.com

sports@stgnews.com

Twitter:  @BlakesTake

ST GEORGE – A group of 30 road cyclists, making their way through Utah as part of a multi-faceted educational program, “Road Respect: Car & Bike Rules to Live By,” will visit St. George on Monday, June 4, to help raise awareness about car and bicycle safety.

The Road Respect visit in St. George includes an opportunity for local cyclists to ride along with the core cycling group, followed by a “Road Respect Rally” aimed at informing drivers and cyclists about safety on the road. The goal of the program is to increase awareness about the rules of the road pertaining to bicycling and to build respect between the two groups.

The Road Respect events in St. George begin at 5:30 p.m., on Monday, June 4, with a bicycle ride. Local cyclists are invited to meet at Town Square at 5:30 p.m., for a ride-along with the Road Respect core cycling group. The group will then meet up with families and individuals at the Riverside Trail head at 5:45 p.m., to ride on the Virgin River trail to the newly remolded Crosby Family Confluence Park.

The ride will conclude at Crosby Confluence Family Park with a Road Respect Rally starting at 6:00 p.m., featuring a Road Respect Proclamation from Mayor Dan McArthur, youth bike rodeo, bike theme games for youth and adults, bike education and bike event information sponsored by local bicycle shops.

The event is free of charge, and the entire community is invited to attend.

The Road Respect program was developed by the Utah Department of Transportation and the Utah Department of Public Safety in response to concerns from both bicyclists and drivers about safety and the behaviors of each group on the road. It features the Road Respect Bike Tour with 30 cyclists, law enforcement, public safety, transportation and bicycle advocacy groups biking through the state.

By demonstrating proper cycling behaviors on the road, the Road Respect Tour cyclists serve as positive examples for other cyclists and drivers with the aim of increasing respect among both groups.

The Tour begins in Beaver City on Monday, June 4, at 7:30 a.m. Later that day an official campaign kickoff will take place in St. George. The Road Respect Tour route passes through Cedar City, St. George, Panguitch, Richfield, Moab, Vernal, Park City, Orem, Draper, Salt Lake City, Bountiful, Riverdale, Unitah, Ogden, Harrisville, Brigham City and Logan with ride-alongs and Road Respect Rallies or Stops planned in each location.

To learn more about the Road Respect program, or to find out how you can join in the ride-along or Road Respect Rally in St. George contact Monty Thurber at 627-4060 or visit the Road Respect website.

 

ST. GEORGE – In the hours before sunset on May 20, the Earth’s moon will cross in front of the sun, creating a relatively uncommon annular solar eclipse, last seen in the continental U.S. in 1994. St. George is located just south of the central path of the eclipse and will be a prime viewing area, allowing observers to witness a rare “ring of fire” as the moon covers 95 percent of the sun.

Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument, in partnership with Dixie State College and the Virgin River Program, will be providing astronomer and ranger assisted viewing opportunities and programs during the eclipse. You are invited to safely enjoy viewing the rare eclipse from the balconies of the Washington County Water Conservation District building located off Red Hills Parkway at 533 E. Waterworks Drive, next to Pioneer Park in St. George.

The gates will open at 5:30 p.m. and free solar eclipse viewing glasses will be provided to the first 250 visitors. You may bring your own telescopes, if they have a solar filter and you are welcome to bring a lawn chair for seating. Please allow some extra time to maneuver through the road construction project on Red Hills Parkway.

DSC Astronomy Professor Samuel Tobler will set up solar telescopes for safe public viewing and be available to answer any questions. Astronomical displays and programs will also be conducted during the eclipse.

The partial solar eclipse begins at 5:58 p.m. and peak annular eclipse viewing will begin at 7:32 p.m., lasting less than five minutes. At the peak, the eclipse will resemble a bull’s eye with just a thin ring of sun visible around the moon. The eclipse event will end at sunset.

You can also watch the eclipse on your own from any area with clear views of the western horizon, but remember you should never look directly at the sun with the naked eye or through sunglasses, camera viewfinder, or any form of unfiltered magnification. Indirect viewing methods using a simple “pinhole camera” to project an image of the sun onto a piece of paper will also work well.

Remember to keep the solar glasses and use them again to see the transit of Venus across the sun on June 5. The transit will be visible from anywhere in North America and will not occur again until 2117.

Please visit www.nature.nps.gov/features/eclipse for the latest eclipse information, which includes safety tips, maps of the eclipse path, a complete list of national parks where the eclipse will be visible, and national parks that will feature public programs about the eclipse.

Where and when recap:

• Washington County Water Conservation District building
• 533 E. Waterworks Drive, St. George
• 5:30 p.m., Sunday, May 20

Related Links:

• Viewing the eclipse in Kanarraville
• Solar viewing glasses; dates with the sun eclipse your vision
• National Parks Service information on the annular solar eclipse (pdf)

ST. GEORGE – For the first time in 18 years people in the United States will be able to view an annular solar eclipse on Sunday, May 20.  Again on June 5 eyes will turn upward as Venus will make its pathway across the sun for the last North American viewing opportunity until 2117.  Both are compelling reasons to get your solar viewing glasses now.

Looking at the sun, even briefly, with the naked eye, through sunglasses, through unfiltered camera, telescope and other magnification lenses can cause irreparable damage to your eyes.

“The temptation is to think, oh I can look at it with my sunglasses because my lenses are dark,” said Dr. Paul Gooch of SouthWest Vision in St. George. “That’s the precisely wrong thing to do.”

Gooch explained that looking at the sun burns the macula; the sun’s power is so concentrated, like a laser.

“The center part of your vision, the macula, is the most sensitive part of your vision, (it delivers) your ability to see detail; and your focus when you look straight at something comes from the macula,” Gooch said, “it has a high concentration of photo receptors, everything is finely ordered. As a matter of fact, to stare at the sun leaves a central blank spot in your vision. So in the most severe cases of this, similar to macular degeneration, if they view (the sun) wrong they wouldn’t be able to see faces, read fine print.”

Left: Solar damaged macula; Right: Normal macula | Photos courtesy of Dr. Paul Gooch, SouthWest Vision

Solar viewing glasses have lenses that are actually a metallic; Gooch said it’s almost like looking through tin foil.

Solar viewing glasses are a must to avoid irreparable damage to the eye.

SouthWest Vision, at 965 E 700 S in St. George has 500 glasses on hand today and will have another 2500 on hand tomorrow. The cost is $2 per pair.

SouthWest Vision will also offer the glasses at their booth at the What Women Want Expo at the Dixie Center Friday and Saturday, this weekend.

In St. George, astronomer and ranger assisted viewing opportunities for Sunday’s eclipse are offered at the Washington County Water Conservation District building located off Red Hills Parkway at 533 E. Waterworks Drive, next to Pioneer Park. The gates will open at 5:30 p.m. and free solar eclipse viewing glasses will be provided to the first 250 visitors.

Cedar City/Brian Head Tourism Bureau is providing viewing glasses at its Solar Eclipse Party.

Greater detail on the damage that can occur to the eyes and safe viewing techniques can be found at the transitofvenus.org website.

 

email: jkuzmanic@stgnews.com

twitter: @JoyceKuzmanic

Copyright 2012 St. George News.