The “Good Trouble, Necessary Trouble” National Day of Action is being held on July 17th, the anniversary of Congressman John Lewis’s passing, to honor his legacy of nonviolent protest and defend democracy. 

Thursday, July 17: Good Trouble Live Special  – Online 4:30 PT, 5:30 MT, 6:30 CT, 7:30 ET

Norman Eisen is joined by special guests, including Jim Acosta, Katie Phang & Rep. Jamie Raskin to cover the national day of protest, share personal stories about John Lewis, and revive and inspire the threatened, ongoing battle for democracy.

GOOD TROUBLE LIVES ON:

Thu, Jul 17

12:00 PM — 1:30 PM PDT

East Village Cambria

Cambria, CA 93428

For an event near you, see: https://goodtroubleliveson.org/

The Big Sur Fund in Memory of Weston Call provides sustainable, impactful and supplemental funding to nonprofit organizations benefiting the residents of Big Sur and builds resources for disaster relief. Each year, the Big Sur Fund Advisory Council (made up of community volunteers) determines where to award grants for greatest impact based on their communities’ highest priority needs. The Big Sur Fund is currently accepting 2025 Grant Applications, due by August 1, 2025by 5:00 PM or earlier. Details and to apply: cfmco.org/bigsurgrants

This  opportunity supports organizations working within Big Sur, with a focus on Health, Safety, Education, Arts, Culture and Community Stewardship. The Big Sur Fund granted $21,000 in 2024 and more than $134,000 since 2019. For more details, please visit: cfmco.org/BigSur The Big Sur Fund in Memory of Weston Call is a special purpose fund of the Community Foundation for Monterey County.

I’m reaching out on behalf of the Monterey Chapter of the Forest Fire Lookout Association to share a press release about our new fundraising campaign to support urgent maintenance and preservation work at the historic Chews Ridge Fire Lookout on Tassajara Road.

As one of the last active fire detection towers on California’s Central Coast—and a beloved part of local wildfire history—we believe this is a story that will resonate with your audience.

We’d be grateful if you could help us spread the word by sharing the campaign through your networks, newsletters, or social media. Every bit of visibility helps us protect and preserve this important resource. You can view and share the fundraising page here: https://crlo.betterworld.org/campaigns/restore-chews-ridge

Please let me know if you’d like more information, photos, or to speak with a member of our team—we’re happy to provide whatever you need.

With appreciation,
Martha
Monterey Chapter, Forest Fire Lookout Association

I know I’ve used this one before, but it bears repeating now more than ever. While we saved our public lands from sale, we did not save them from being raped by taking their trees, their minerals, and their oil and gas reserves. We need to continue our fight to prevent their destruction. We need to support and protect our public lands for our children and grandchildren by electing people to Congress that CARE about our forests, our immigrants, our poor, our children, our veterans, our disabled, who care about US, ALL of us.

The top artwork is by: That artist is my friend Robert Bissell whose work is just extraordinary.  Thanks!! https://robertbissell.com/ (from Ali Van Zee)

Here are some organizations one can donate to that are local and care about our public lands:

Big Sur Land Trust: https://bigsurlandtrust.org/

Keep Big Sur Wild: https://www.keepbigsurwild.org/

Los Padres Forest Watch: https://forestwatch.org/

Ventana Wilderness Alliance: https://www.ventanawild.org/

Don’t give up. It takes US — all of us to fight this attack on our public lands and to our democracy. Don’t despair. We have hope and we are not done!

This map was created a month ago, and some changes have manifested since then. First, Rock Creek is now open in both directions, BUT there is still work going on there, so there may be flagging and delays.

On the South Coast, work at Shale Point is complete, but there is work going on at Mud Creek, including the bringing in of large boulders, presumably for shoring up the hillside. There may be flagging and delays in this area.

For those of you who will inevitably ask, no, there is no anticipated opening date for Regent’s Slide. It is still moving and Caltrans is still working. They are not even hazarding a guess at the moment.

Jennifer Rubin of The Contrarians on SubStack had this to say about today:

“Nearly 250 years ago, after listing the offenses against the colonies, the signers of the Declaration felt compelled to declare their break from Britain as the only means to unshackle themselves. We must not (as Trump has) resort to insurrection and/or violence. Thanks to the handiwork of the Constitution ratified 12 years after the Declaration, we have all the tools (e.g., elections, free speech) necessary to maintain our status as a “Free and Independent” people.
We all can use this Independence Day to rouse our fellow Americans from their stupor, recall for them the offenses of our modern tyrant, and summon them to embrace the spirit of the Declaration (“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”).

”We can remind them that generations of Americans have pledged their Lives, Fortunes and sacred Honor for the right to live as free citizens, not helpless subjects of a mad king. And we might then enlist them in the immense task of peacefully recapturing our democracy and reforming all branches of government. Then we might be worthy of the greatest inheritance one might receive: the privilege of being a free people in a country capable of transcending its faults.
I hope you have a meaningful, inspiring, and joyful Fourth of July!”

Even now, especially now, there is something sacred about choosing hope in the face of despair.

This is still our country. Our fight. Our Fourth of July. And we’re not done yet.