Here is a draft of my current letter to Brown. Just as so you can see the angle I took, not to say it will change a darn thing.
But would be nice to get our foot in back in the door with the current issue of priority, the economy,
just as the greenies kicked us out and slammed the door with the issue of the enviroment and sold it to the public with the decline of salmon.
The talk in the governor office is "economy" so I will try anything at this point, worth a shot.
Here it is:
Governor Brown,
Congratulations on your recent win for the position of California Governor. It will be a hard job with challenging objectives due to the state that our economy is in and with the budget shortfalls.
Here I wish to offer a suggestion of how you might be able to ease the economical situation. I believe as humans we learn from our mistakes as well as from our accomplishments and we can find the many answers in our own past history.
During the Great Depression of the 1930’s California shined and in this troubled time lead the nation to a renewed level economical security. This was all achieved through the promotion of our nature resources, specifically the mineral gold. It was the vision of California’s own newly elected governor, James “Sunny Jim” Rolph, when he started his term in January, 1931. In these tough times he had seen the need for renewing gold mining and with the help of the California State Mineralogist, Walter W. Bradley; they set a course for California’s government officials, not knowing the full extent of their actions and all the benefits that later were realized. He had not only helped many of the common people that were out of work and effected by the depression but also helped the states economics and his idea had spread through our country helping not only California but the nation as well.
I invite you to research the accomplishments of Governor James Rolph as his ideas could once again be incorporated as part of your future economic plans for California, allowing California to once again shine upon this great nation as a leader through this recession.
Below are some ideas that support this sort of reasoning.
The current method of choice by many modern miners and which is the least ecologically harmful is suction dredge mining, as there are many studies and reports that have been completed that confirm this. In contradiction to this, suction dredge mining has been under pressure from extreme environmentalist with no specifics of it being of any impact to the environment or the wildlife as it is currently regulated. As I am sure you are knowledgeable on this topic, I don’t wish to go into great depth of this whole controversy but more so to bring to light the benefits of this said mining method, not the environmental benefits but rather the economical benefits which as our new governor would find to be a great interest for consideration.
This type of mining activity brings substantial tourism from out of state. They come and spend money on equipment, supplies and services within California and they also pay the taxes on most of these items. The local businesses see increased sales which helps the local economy of these rural areas that are associated with mining activity. If the state government could promote and aide mining through legislation and ease of regulation, it would bring in much more tourism and in turn added revenue. Let’s not forget the local miners that would invest more towards this than has been seen in the past, also contributing to this revenue as well.
Federal mining claims generate revenue for local governments through county taxes that are paid on these Federal mining claims. The more claims filed and the increased interest in mining, the more revenue it generates.
There are many people out of work with unemployment benefits that have run out and there are many more just barely making it with little work to be had. Mining for gold could promise hope to those less fortunate and even though the chances of getting rich are very slim, they might very well prove to make enough to survive in these times. If mining was to become popular enough it in itself would create jobs through sales and services.
Another interesting fact to ponder is that gold is a natural resource and when it is recovered by a miner it is ultimately introduced into the state’s economy through sales and purchases. It is like boosting the economy by flooding it with freshly printed money as is done by the Federal Reserve Bank but as you know States can’t print their own money so this would be the next best thing, utilizing our states natural resources for this purpose.
Lastly, which isn’t all that much added revenue, would be the State’s Dredge Permit Program which is controlled through the California Department of Fish and Game. Each miner that chooses to operate a suction dredge within the state must pay a fee for a permit this may not be a huge amount of money but it does bring in hundreds of thousands when it was in place prior to the moratorium and could certainly become more if the legislation, to aide and promote this method of mining, was supportive.
Thank you for your time and as you go forward in trying to plan your strategies for a successful balanced government, consider our natural resources and mining opportunities that this great “golden” state offers and let us learn an important lesson from our rich history. Not as a sole solution, but as part of the resolution as a whole. What is needed now is the legislation that would consent to and possibly encourage this progress.
I truly hope that you can remain open for all possibilities to lead California out of this time of hardship. I look forward to seeing what you have to offer and what can be accomplished to aid in our economic relief.
Sincerely,
The Hog (hhahahah) this isn't my real name of course.
John
