The bureau is not your friend

Why not hassle the locals? It’s been a while since the last time, and it seems we need a lame excuse to get back at the people for welcoming us here.

Sound familiar? It should, if you have lived in the Grand Coulee Dam area for any length of time, you’ll recall some of the more memorable acts by this capricious organization.

There have been many arbitrary moves by the Bureau, but I want to select a few as a reminder as to how those in control could give a rip about the people who live here.

First, going back to the 1960s, in order to raise the lake, the Bureau inundated what we called the North Marina, south of the dam, which was the finest swimming area for many miles around.

At the time, we were assured that this would be replaced. It’s gone, but the memory isn’t.

Second, people used to be able to sell their cars off the highway near The Star. The bureau felt someone might make a profit from selling their car (an impossibility if you know anything about selling your used car). Of course, they condemned this and decided to build a $5,000 to $10,000 parking area that people could rent for an exorbitant fee designed to make sure no car with a for-sale sign would ever be parked there.

In 9/11 times, the Bureau stopped all fishing from the rocks on the northeast side of the dam. The reason? Those fishing boxes could be used to carry weapons or high explosives with the obvious intent of taking down the Northwest Power Grid.

Fast forward, in order to build a fire station not far from the highway, the Bureau decided to restrict traffic speed due to obvious danger; the danger is only obvious to whomever made the decision.

Faster forward to now: the bureau makes sure that the elderly and handicapped can’t fish at Geezer Beach because their cars might roll into the water or be inundated with the quick rise of Lake Roosevelt.

Give a big wink when you tell people this, as you know the truth. You have the power and really don’t care what the people who live here think. Besides that, I’m sure you feel the elderly and handicapped need to get in shape.

I would hope that each of you reading this send letters to your congressmen, or even our president, to let them know how the bureau deals with its communities.

Michael Palanuk

Liberty Lake