ICWA Weekly News
Radio show links, America is a Free Speech Zone, and Businesses lost due to failed COVID Policies.
by Gerald Braude
In this newsletter:
June 23 Episode of An Informed Life Radio - show links
“The United States Is a Free Speech Zone.”
What About the Permanently Closed Businesses?
June 23 Episode of An Informed Life Radio
Medical Abuse & Scientific Fraud Exposed
Guest hour 1: Dan Watkins
Guest hour 2: Karl Kanthak
Washington state kindergarten enrollment drops 14% as schools close during the pandemic. Where are the children? | The Seattle TimesSB 277 Senate Bill – CHAPTERED (ca.gov)
The American Journal of Public Health: To EHB 1638 or Not to EHB 1638? For Immunization Policymakers, That Is the Question
Hotez’s PLOS paper: The state of the antivaccine movement in the United States: A focused examination of nonmedical exemptions in states and counties
“The United States Is a Free Speech Zone.”
At the Vancouver, Washington Farmer’s Market on the morning of Saturday, June 17, 2023, ICWA volunteer Mike Johnson and his wife, Diane, had just finished setting up their portable pop-up shelter, which provided shade from the direct sun. But as soon as they made available their petition sheets for Referendum 101 to bring SB5599 to a vote by the people on the November ballot, they got hit with a more ominous kind of direct heat.
Two ladies approached them and told them to move their table to what they referred to as a “free speech zone.” Absolutely bewildered, Mike took a step back. He then stuck up his chin and said, “But the United States is a free speech zone.”
As the lady walked away, she shouted back that she intended to call 311, which Mike had figured was for him and his wife to be removed. Mike then placed a call to a civil rights attorney to seek advice on the infringement by a public employee on his rights of free speech to gather petition signatures for Referendum 101. But he was unable to get a call through.
After his unsuccessful attempt at getting a call through to a civil rights attorney, Mike called 911. Before any police officers could arrive at the scene, Sean Douglas from the Parks Department approached Mike and his wife and informed them that the entire park was leased to a group that was to sponsor a Juneteenth event, and that they needed to move to another location. The locations he pointed out were so remote from any foot traffic that Mike felt that setting up in any of those suggested locations would have been a waste of time. Mike believes, although Douglas was polite, he was insistent to the point of intimidation. Mike later wrote to Stacie Donovan of the Vancouver City Parks Department that Douglass stood well in excess of six feet and his body language was borderline threatening. Mike also wrote, “At this point, we offered to pay a fee for the sixty square feet we were occupying but were immediately told by Mr. Douglas, and in no uncertain terms, that we must vacate our location.”
Mike Johnson in his shelter at the Vancouver Farmer’s Market.
Soon after his conversation with Mr. Douglas, two polite police officers arrived and also advised them to move. Mike wrote the following to Donovan:
“I asked one of the officers, in a reserved and measured manner, if I stood up for myself, would I be arrested? He said I probably wouldn't be handcuffed, but that I would most likely be cited and probably need to appear in court to answer to undisclosed charges. At this point, I was under what I would call duress. My wife as well was shaking and upset. We couldn't believe this was happening in America.”
Mike had good reason to be concerned and feel intimidated about exercising his free speech about this LGBQT issue.
The petition needs 200,000 signatures by July 15 in order to get a vote on the ballot for Washington citizens to accept or reject SB5599 and have it repealed.
The Reject SB5599 web site quotes Governor Jay Inslee before making its key rebuttal to the law:
SB 5599 rebrands parents as abusers and hides kids from parents
KOMO News quoted Governor Inslee saying, “If a young person is totally estranged from their parents and has no meaningful relationship we need someone to care for that child and the way the legislation is set up is essentially, the Department of Children Youth and Families will step in to that position to care for that child so you have someone looking out for their benefit,” Inslee said. “In the real world we want these kids to be protected and not homeless and that’s basically the reason for this bill.” https://komonews.com/amp/news/local/senate-bill-5599-transgender-at-risk-youth-gender-affirming-reproductive-care-washington-state-shelters-dcyf-foster-kids-protests-rallies-governor-jay-inslee-olympia-state-capitol-lgbtq-children
✔️ False. Any runaway youth already has access to shelters. What the new law does is rebrand involved parents as abusers so that shelters and host homes can contact DCYF instead of the parents to notify families of their child’s whereabouts.
REJECT 5599 | Stop Legalized Kidnapping
Informed Choice Washington last week sent out e-mails encouraging Washington residents to sign the petition for Referendum 101. The e-mail mentioned the following:
There are plenty of reasons to REJECT SB 5599:
Removes parental rights without due process.
Permits the state to conceal a child's location from parents.
Allows Washington's Department of Child, Youth & Families (DCYF) to facilitate risky, life-altering medical procedures for minors--without parental consent.
Existing law already provides temporary shelter and DCYF services for support of at-risk, "unhomed" youth.
Episode 317 of The Highwire, aired on May 1, 2023, showed three videos of people physically intimidating those trying to publicly voice their opinions in opposition to LGBQT rights.
HAS TRANS MOVEMENT GONE TOO FAR? - The HighWire
At the 7:37 mark in the video, on March 31, 2023 in Vancouver, British Columbia, a man holding a billboard and answering a reporter’s questions had people yelling “fuck you” into his face before physically assaulting him. The police stood by and did nothing.
At the 11:13 mark in the video, on March 24, 2023 in Auckland, New Zealand, Kelly Jay Keen stepped onto the stage displaying a “Let Women Speak” billboard but was harassed by so many in the crowd that she was escorted to a getaway car before she had a chance to speak.
At the 12:50 mark, the video for a speaking event on April 6, 2023 at San Francisco State University shows the campus police hurriedly escorting Riley Gaines to a room, where she was barricaded alongside the police for reportedly three hours.
Despite his duress, Mike again stood up for his rights of free speech and told the officer that he would be willing to be arrested and appear in court. The officer backed off and called in his supervisor. After about forty-five minutes of discussion and searching their books for a reason to cite him, the police officers told Mike that he, his wife, and the few other petition volunteers who would help out later on could stay. The officers then left the scene.
So, how did Mike end up stepping into this infringement of his rights of free speech mess in the first place? It all began when SB 5599 was designed to exercise state government control over parental rights through the following six sponsors of the bill:
Marko Liias from the 21st Legislative District-Everett (Democrat)
Senator Liias was featured in an KUOW article on the bill:
KUOW - Bill would protect runaway youth seeking gender-affirming care
The article showed the following Twitter quote from Liias:
“I've been proud to stand in support of LGBTQ+ kids across Washington for years now, and this session is no different. It's crucial that we allow trans kids to express themselves in safe, supportive communities. #SB5599 is a step towards that goal”
Claire Wilson from the 30th Legislative District-Federal Way (Democrat)
Manka Dhingra from the 45th Legislative District (Democrat)
Liz Lovelett from the 40th Legislative District (Democrat)
Joe Nguyen from the 34th Legislative District (Democrat)
Emily Randall from the 26th Legislative District (Democrat)
Representative Spencer Hutchins is also in the 26th Legislative District, but he spoke eloquently to the speaker of the House in opposition to the bill, in support of parental rights:
“I am rising this evening, Madame Speaker, to urge a no vote. We’ve heard several things this evening. We’ve heard the goal of this bill is to get kids off the street and keep them safe. We’ve heard we are not taking away parental rights. Madame Speaker, if the goal is to get kids off the street and keep them safe, we have statutes, we have laws in place right now to do that. And if the notion is that we’re not taking away parental rights, I’m not sure how that squares with what is very obviously in this bill, Madame Speaker, the inability of a parent to know where their child is. Madame Speaker, this bill says that a parent will be notified of their child’s location unless there is a compelling reason and a compelling reason under this bill, Madame Speaker, if they are seeking protected healthcare, that’s it. If this isn’t undermining parental rights and the connections of families, I really don’t understand how that could be.
“Madame Speaker, we’ve spoken about our families. You know that my kids are my oxygen. I was talking to my three-year-old the other day, and he said something funny and I said, ‘What would I do without you?’ And my three-year-old took me very literally. He said, ‘Daddy, you’d come find me.’ Tonight, Madame Speaker, I say to my kids there is nothing they could do, nothing they could say, nothing they could be or wish to be that would ever stop me from coming to find them. I hope I speak for many parents in Washington tonight. Please vote no.”
Fifty-seven in the house were not moved enough by Hutchins’s speech to vote no. Instead, they voted yes while thirty-nine voted no. Two were excused.
The final passage in the senate occurred on April 19 with twenty-nine voting for the bill and twenty voting against it. Before Governor Inslee could sign the bill, ICWA Vice-President Bob Runnells wrote a letter to him asking him to veto the bill.
In response, before Inslee signed the bill into law on May 9, Governor Inslee’s office wrote the following to Runnells:
“At a time when politicians across the United States are attempting to roll back rights for LGBTQIA+ Americans, Governor Inslee believes it is the responsibility of elected officials to consistently and visibly advocate for the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community. The governor will continue to support transgender youth, especially those who are vulnerable due to unstable housing.”
What About the Permanently Closed Businesses?
Last February, a press release from Washington Governor Inslee stated that state grants were being “invested” to more than 3,700 small businesses and nonprofits in the state “still recovering from the pandemic.”
But this grant or the previous four rounds of state grants are of no use to the over 600 businesses that had to close permanently because of the governor’s mandates and lockdown.
In the healthcare field, an adult family home in Sequim was one of those businesses.
Grace Robinson is a registered nurse who first worked at the Stanford Medical Center in California before moving on to various settings in nursing homes and home health care.
In 1993, she started her own adult family care home in Sequim. She operated the business by herself for the first two years until she attained enough residents to hire a staff. It was a gradual process, as the caregivers needed a required amount of certified training. The maximum capacity for her facility was six residents. Most of the time, she had five residents.
For 28 years, this house on 143 Mariners Drive in Sequim was Grace’s adult care home.
On Christmas Eve of 2020, her caregiver/employee of six years told her to come relieve her immediately because she was suddenly dealing with a panic attack. These attacks continued for several months, and, therefore, the caregiver was not able to return to work at the facility. Grace had three residents in the home at the time for which she suddenly became the primary caregiver 24/7. Grace attempted to find replacement caregivers, but apparently no one wanted to work. She wondered whether this was due to the stimulus checks sent out to many people? It seemed to her that everywhere "we're hiring" signs were being put up from one end of town to the other.
In January of 2021, the resident on hospice passed away, and another resident was admitted to the hospital and did not return. This left Grace with one remaining resident. In her early seventies and as the lone remaining operator of the facility, Grace felt she no longer had the stamina to admit more residents.
During this period, the governor’s mandates starting hitting the scene, where anyone working for DSHS or licensed by them was required to take the COVID-19 shot. Grace refused to take the jab. Her remaining resident's family knew this and was fine with it. But, according to Grace, the local health department reported this to DSHS, which initiated a complaint investigation. That current resident passed away in June of 2021.
Grace agreed to admit the grandma of a former caregiver who had severe dementia and was blind. She had received the jab, as did her husband. Their whole family was fine with Grace not having the shot. Grace asked them to sign a contract regarding that. The resident lived until November 1, 2021.
At this point, Grace realized it was fruitless to continue this business. She could not continue due to the mandates and the current situation of so many caregiver employees unwilling to work. She could not envision herself at her age caregiving 24/7 without consistent relief.
This is when she decided to sell her home, hoping for enough funds from the sale to put toward her retirement. The month she listed the home was a month after the “hot” housing market in Sequim started taking a dive. Over ten months, she gradually lowered the price to $250,000 before anyone showed any interest. After closing, she showed no profit. With nothing to live on other than her social security income and no money to purchase another home, she moved in to her daughter’s family’s home in Port Townsend.
Her adult family home was one of four businesses in Sequim that had to close permanently due to the governor’s lockdown. The other three were Brian’s Sporting Goods, J.C. Penny at Sequim Village, and The Emeral NW Grill & Public House.
In the nearby town of Port Angeles, a very popular French Cuisine restaurant called C’est Si Bon had been operating in the Deer Park area near the Highway 101 rest stop since 1981. But when mass hysteria of COVID-19 hit in early 2020, dinner reservations were cancelled, and too many area residents were too scared to go eat in an indoor restaurant. The COVID-19 shot mandates for customers in Clallam County to dine in an indoor restaurant, set forth Public Health Officer Alison Berry, were enough for the restaurant to permanently close.
In a nearby county where Washington Board of Health Chair Keith Grellner works and resides—Kitsap County—over twenty businesses had to close because of the governor’s mandates and lockdown. Below are examples by town:
Bremerton
Bremerton Bar and Grill
Dave's Loans and Gun Shop
DIY Tobacco
Joey's Hangout
Little Boston Pizza
Manette Daily
Panda Inn Mongolian BBQ (sold to new management)
Pacific Island Mini Mart
Toro Lounge
Port Orchard
Port Orchard Dance Gallery
Just for Kicks Dance Studio
Port Orchard Swimdeck
Port Orchard Swimdeck Gastro Pub
The Grey House Café
Twin Creeks Frozen Yogurt
Port Orchard Victory Coffee, Tees, & More
Westsound Auction & Estate Service
Poulsbo
Poulsbo 2020 Viking Fest
Liberty Bay Gallery
Silverdale
Silverdale Bared Brewing Company
Silverdale Scouts Shop West
In 2018, the Torpedo Town Diner opened in Keyport near the popular US Naval Undersea Museum. The owner, Charles, had a strong navy background, hence the name of the establishment. Like any startup, occasional bumps and bruises occurred. One time, the owner had to renegotiate the lease agreement with his landlord. But, gradually, the restaurant gained a consistent and devoted following of families and young professionals. By the summer of 2019, the restaurant was consistently filled for dinners, and everything looked ever so promising. Then came the governor’s lockdown, and increasingly fewer of the locals were willing to take the chance of eating in an indoor restaurant such as this one, even with the six-foot social distancing. Charles applied for one of the government’s one percent interest PPP loans but was turned down. The restaurant never recovered from the sudden drop in clientele.
Why do we at ICWA continue to look back at the economic and human cost of COVID-19 policies? Because until government and public health officials admit the mistakes of lockdowns, mask-up, inject, and censorship of alternatives, they will turn again to these the next time an “emergency” is declared.