There is nothing more pleasing to mine ear than the music of children at play, and yet that gladdening music is scarce today, as mortgages and rents push potential parents away from our mountain redoubt. Why not let AI take over the humdrum jobs, and free folks to create art, make music, author books, make babies, because at bottom that’s what we all want to do.
And why stop at eliminating humdrum jobs when AI could just as easily run legislatures, allowing our public servants to repair to the groggery to talk about their campaigns for reelection, and what a guttersnipe their opponent is, without the offensive intrusion of governing.
And while we’re at it, let’s replace the twelve-person jury with AI to decide a case in minutes rather than days or weeks. As Mark Twain opined away back in 1862, “When the peremptory challenges were all exhausted, a jury of twelve men was impaneled -a jury who swore they had neither heard, read, talked about, nor expressed an opinion concerning a murder which the Indians in the sagebrush, the very cattle in the corrals, and the stones in the streets were cognizant of!”
Unless they have crawled out from under a rock, think how difficult it is today to find twelve jurors who have not already made up their minds on a case before peremptory challenges. And too, AI would not have to worry about being doxed following the verdict, as we live in an age when application of justice is oftentimes met with retaliation of injustice.
For someone who has lived much of the past 40 years in the 19th century, I am more than a little apprehensive of AI. I would rather ask a librarian than ask AI, and I will most likely go to my grave carrying this archaic preference.
Mark Twain had the ability to characterize social inadequacies such as our American justice system in one sentence. “I have but one definite purpose in view: that is, to make enough money to insure me a fair trial, and then to go and kill Colonel Evans.”
Or take this little Twain snipe from Nevada: “Our ranches here are very scattered, as scattered perhaps as lawyers in heaven.”
Much as I fear AI, I do admire the art, as illustrated here by Twain scholar Barb Schmidt…
Finally, as is our custom, we shall leave the last word to our mutual friend, Mark Twain…
“What we need now, is not laws against crime, but a law against insanity. That is where the true evil lies. We have an insanity plea that would have saved Cain….Do you know why Cain has been branded as a murderer so heartily and unanimously in this country? Because he was neither a Republican nor a Democrat. No, the way it is now, the asylums can hold the sane people, but if we tried to shut-up the insane, we should run out of building materials.”
Submitted from UNR at Lake Tahoe’s Summer Newsletter
There are many upcoming events at UNR at Lake Tahoe. The events are primarily focused on the arts, including the Summer Arts Workshops and June Saraceno’s Faculty Showcase talk coming up in June. UNR at Lake Tahoe has a pretty neat chemical ecology talk coming up: all of that info is included below.
Summer Arts Workshops: Expand your creative skillset this summer with Summer Arts Workshops at the University of Nevada, Reno at Lake Tahoe! The Holman Arts and Media Center’s Summer Arts Workshops at Lake Tahoe is celebrating its 40-year anniversary in 2024 with nine exceptional creative experiences across mediums, including painting, ceramics, photography and sculpture. The five-day workshops run June 24 through July 26, 2024. These workshops make the perfect gift for anyone special in your life!
Situated amidst miles of hiking and walking trails in the Sierra Nevada, you’ll find yourself inspired by the natural landscape. To enroll, visit out Summer Arts Workshops page, and find a workshop you are interested in! Then, click on the registration button for that class, and you’ll find more details about the workshop and a registration link. Don’t wait – these courses fill up quickly!
The Promise of Chemical Ecology: Dr. Paul Alan Cox has lived for years in remote island villages searching for new medicines. He was named one of TIME magazine’s eleven “Heroes of Medicine” for his discovery of a new HIV/AIDS drug candidate. In his talk, Cox will discuss the importance of chemical ecology research in promoting the development of major medical treatments and addressing the most pressing technological and social needs of humanity. Sign up to attend the event. Thursday, May 30, 2024. 5:30 p.m. talk | social at 6:30 p.m.
Classical Tahoe returns to the University of Nevada, Reno at Lake Tahoe: This summer, music enthusiasts, dreamers and nature lovers are invited to Classical Tahoe – a four-week music festival of jazz, orchestra and classical concerts at the University of Nevada, Reno at Lake Tahoe – to revel in music surrounded by towering pines. Subscriptions to the series, renewals and individual tickets are on sale now. Explore the full lineup of artists, programming and reserve tickets on the Classical Tahoe website.
Mark your calendars for public arts events!
June 25 | 6 p.m. | Tuesday Night Art Lecture Series Phyllis Shafer and Giselle Hicks
July 8 | 6 p.m. | Tahoe Gallery Collaborative exhibition with musician Jean-Paul Perrotte and Artist Justin Quinn opening reception
July 9 | 6 p.m. | Tuesday Night Art Lecture Series Lorna Meaden
July 16 | 6 p.m. | Tuesday Night Art Lecture Series Melissa Melero-Moose, Randy Brodnax and Don Ellis
July 23 | 6 p.m. | Tuesday Night Art Lecture Series with Mary Kenny, Randy Brodnax and Don Ellis
Convergence Zone Exhibition on Wildfire in the Prim Library: Scott Hinton with the Department of Art, Art History and Design is organizing the Convergence Zone Exhibition on Wildfire, a show of photographs or other 2D Art from fire science researchers documenting research sites, methods, post-fire landscapes and more from current faculty research. Be sure to check out the exhibit on the third floor of the Prim Library from May 8 through August 30, 2024!
Incline Village (January 30, 2024) –Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino, a spacious resort nestled in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and on the shore of Lake Tahoe, will host a Valentine’s Day meal at Lone Eagle Grille.
“We are excited to announce an incredible Valentine’s Day meal at Lone Eagle Grille,” said Istvan Erdos, executive sous chef of Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe. “Our team has crafted a unique menu that promises an unforgettable dining experience. We look forward to welcoming guests and local residents in creating lasting memories on this special holiday.”
The Valentine’s Day specials feature a selection of thoughtfully crafted dishes including a choice of cherry wood smoked beef tartar or ahi tuna tartar, lobster and butternut squash bisque, a Valentines Surf & Turf, which includes an angus beef filet and poached jumbo shrimp, and a raspberry rose petal cremeux for dessert.
The holiday menu will be available on Valentine’s Day, Wednesday, February 14. Reservations are encouraged and can be made by visiting https://www.loneeaglegrille.com/
For more information or to book a getaway to Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe, please visit Hyattregencylaketahoe.com, or call (775) 832-1234.
About Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino
Ideally situated on the pristine shores of North Lake Tahoe, Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino, a AAA Four Diamond Award winning resort, offers majestic lake and mountain views from its 422 guestrooms, including 32 suites and 24 lakeside cottages. The resort’s design evokes modern alpine luxury with exposed wood beams, rich leathers, and granite features throughout the property. Premium amenities include 500 feet of private beach featuring a 275-foot floating pier, a year-round heated lagoon-style pool and two hot tubs, a 25,000 square foot Grand Lodge Casino, and 50,000 square feet of indoor/outdoor flexible meeting and event space including the picturesque Lakeside Ballroom, Tahoe’s premier lakeside ballroom just steps away from the beach. Additional amenities include a 20,000 square-foot Stillwater Spa with 16 treatment rooms, multiple restaurants and bars, pet-friendly accommodations, a fully-equipped Hyatt StayFit gym, and an on-site Adventure program which provides guided activities led by the resort’s team of adventure specialists. Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino has received numerous awards and recognitions including Travel + Leisure’s 500 Best Hotels in the World, Travel + Leisure’s World’s Best Awards, Smart Meetings Smart Stars Awards, U.S. News & World Report’s Best Hotel Awards, and more.
Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino is located on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe, at 111 Country Club Drive, Incline Village, NV, 89451. For more information, visit HyattRegencyLakeTahoe.com or follow the resort on Facebook or Instagram.
About Hyatt Regency hotels
The Hyatt Regency brand is a global collection of hotels and resorts found in more than 200 locations in over 40 countries around the world. The depth and breadth of this diverse portfolio, from expansive resorts to urban city centers, is a testament to the brand’s evolutionary spirit. For more than 50 years, the Hyatt Regency brand has championed fresh perspectives and enriching experiences, while its forward-thinking philosophy provides guests with inviting spaces that bring people together and foster a spirit of community. As a hospitality original, Hyatt Regency hotels and resorts are founded on openness—our colleagues consistently serve with open minds and open hearts to deliver unforgettable celebrations, effortless relaxation and notable culinary experiences alongside expert meetings and technology-enabled collaboration. The brand prides itself on an everlasting reputation for insightful care—one that welcomes all people across all countries and cultures, generation after generation. For more information, please visit hyatt.com
Clean Up The Lake Opens a New Environmental Dive Center in Incline Village
January 8, 2024 | Kayla Anderson
Originally Published in the IVCBA Live.Work.Play Publication, Written by Kayla Anderson
In 2017, filmmaker and Tahoe resident Colin West visited The Cayes in Belize and noticed an alarming amount of trash on the beaches. He felt like he needed to do something about it and learned about volunteerism. He came back to Tahoe and started hosting beach cleanups on Big Blue’s shores with money to go back into the Clean Up The Cayes conservation efforts.
It was during these sessions that West noticed that not only were the waters of Belize full of trash but there was a fair amount of it in Lake Tahoe, too. He soon launched Clean Up The Lake and found a group of volunteer divers to go out with him to see what kind of invasive materials were under the surface. He started doing pilot research dives in 2019 and the group cleaned up 600 pounds of trash by Bonsai Rock in Sand Harbor in one day. West then formed a plan to do a 72-mile circumnavigation dive around Lake Tahoe.
The covid pandemic delayed the Lake Tahoe dive a bit, but that didn’t stop Clean Up The Lake (CUTL) from continuing its research. In 2020, volunteers did a test dive one day at Donner Lake and pulled out 263 pounds of trash in just a couple of hours. The circumnavigated Donner Lake that summer in subsequent dives and learned a lot in the process.
“We had to think about so many logistics, like how to get our divers in the water (CUTL didn’t own a boat at that time and kayaks are not that conducive to carrying scuba equipment), where to put the trash, and how to separate the trash,” says CUTL Director of Operations Brad Flora. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, there are 83 categories of trash, 26 of them regarding just plastic.
They were diving three days a week, doing three dives a day, all a volunteer effort.
“We learned a lot [from the Donner Lake cleanup]. We realized we needed a wind protocol, a smoke protocol…a lot of days got cancelled,” Flora says.
“We got into a pattern of having super windy weekdays and then calm, nice weekends,” CUTL Director of Programs Sadye Easler adds. That 2021/22 winter was a big one, too- the CUTL crew had to bring thermoses of hot water to melt the dock lines.
Flash forward two years later, and the Clean Up The Lake effort has come a long way. CUTL completed its 72-mile cleanup of Lake Tahoe, removed more than 25,00 pounds of trash from Big Blue and its shoreline. It also got a new boat, a truck donated to them from Four Wheel Campers, and is now teaching others how to dive.
“We realized that we needed a lot of volunteers to do what we do and thought about how to train people to become conservation divers,” Easler says. CUTL then turned its Incline Village office space into a dive center to give people the opportunity to get PADI-certified while including an educational/voluntourism component to it. The Environmental Dive Center officially launched on August 17, 2023, and its first course was with the Washo tribe, where they were able to incorporate some of their rituals into the cleanup.
Programs such as the open water session includes a half-day in the classroom, two days of diving in a swimming pool (they have a partnership with the Truckee Community Pool), and two days of open water diving at Sand Harbor State Park.
“People can get their open water certification here but also learn about conservation diving,” Easler says. “Our mission is to ‘create an army of conservation divers,’ as Colin always says.”
For more information about the new Clean Up The Lake Environmental Dive Center in Incline Village, visit https://cleanupthelake.org/.
Donations Needed for Winter Warmth & Wellness Clothing and Giveaway 2023 Drive is till 10/14/23
Distribution 10/21/2023 from 2 to 5 P.M :
Winter Warmth and wellness was created in 1978 by 2 local Pastors Father Shaheen and Chip Larson when they noticed that service workers needed help preparing for winter. Over the Life of the project it has been coordinated by various churches, synagogues, social service agencies (such as Rotary), real estate offices etc. We give away a variety of items depending upon what was donated; from coats, jackets, hats, scarfs, gloves, pants, to Diapers. So bring your clothes to the Rotary meeting or to a local church and even the Rec Center and help a community member stay warm this winter.
In The News – Invasive New Zealand Mudsnails Discovered & News Briefs from MoonShine Ink
September 22, 2023 | Member Submitted
Originally Published by MoonShine Ink 9/22 -9/28/2023, Written by MoonShine Ink Staff
LAKE TAHOE: Divers monitoring Lake Tahoe have discovered invasive New Zealand mudsnails in areas off the South Shore, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) and Tahoe Resource Conservation District (Tahoe RCD) announced on Sept. 21. This is the first time the species has been detected in the Tahoe Basin.
The Lake Tahoe Aquatic Invasive Species Program includes comprehensive monitoring of Lake Tahoe for aquatic invaders. Contract divers with Marine Taxonomic Services surveying invasive weeds on the South Shore discovered tiny snails on the bottom of the lake nearly a half mile offshore from the mouth of the Upper Truckee River. Consultation with experts and a DNA lab analysis confirmed the species is New Zealand mudsnail, an aquatic invasive species (AIS) that has been detected in nearby waterways including the Lower Truckee River downstream from Lake Tahoe near Reno. No other AIS, such as the destructive quagga and zebra mussel, have been detected, according to the agencies.
In The News – 19th Annual Boarding for Breast Cancer: Skate The Lake
August 2, 2023 | Member Submitted
Originally published in the South Lake Now 07/27/2023, Staff Reporting
TAHOE CITY, Calif. – Participants of all ages and abilities on wheels are welcome to join Boarding for Breast Cancer (B4BC) as they ride 8 or 28 miles to raise funds for its breast cancer education, prevention, and survivorship programs. While raising funds participants promote the B4BC mission of staying healthy and being active.
Participants can also join in on the fun virtually by cruising down their local trail or path and posting to social media if they can’t make it in person.
To kick off the event, there will be a Community Celebration on August 5 from 12-7 p.m. at Commons Beach in Tahoe City with live music from local Tahoe talents such as Honey Vixen and Bear Whiskey as well as food and drinks, live yoga and one of B4BC’s biggest raffles yet.
Join us for the remarkable 3-day Incline Village Crystal Bay Local Heroes 4th of July Celebration, where we proudly honor and express our gratitude to our local veterans and active military service personnel.
Kicking off the festivities on Sunday, July 2, the Local Heroes Parade will be led by our esteemed Parade Grand Marshal, MacAvoy Layne. Making a stunning appearance in his 1930 Ford Model A Woodie Wagon will be Jim Nowlin, a past parade Grand Marshal representing the IVCB Veterans Club.
On Monday, July 3rd, we extend a warm invitation to our local Veterans for a special Veterans Recognition luncheon at Aspen Grove, generously sponsored by Cornerstone Church. Tickets will be available at the door, and all Veterans will be admitted free of charge.
As the sun begins to set on the 3rd of July, the Vet Club will host their annual Flag Retirement Ceremony, weather permitting. We invite everyone to participate by bringing their old and worn flags, which will be retired in the traditional manner, providing a ceremonial opportunity to pay tribute to our nation’s symbol.
On the much-anticipated 4th of July, the festivities commence with the IVCB Veterans Club Pancake Breakfast at Aspen Grove, open to all. This breakfast serves as the Club’s largest annual fundraiser and offers a fantastic opportunity to meet and express appreciation to our local heroes. Enjoy a scrumptious meal of pancakes, bacon, sausage, and blueberries, and for those who wish, optional Mimosas and Bloody Marys will be available. Admission prices are $10 for adults, and $5 for individuals aged 12 and above, while children aged 5 and younger can indulge for free.
Join us in honoring and celebrating our local heroes throughout this incredible 3-day Incline Village Crystal Bay Local Heroes 4th of July Celebration. Let’s come together as a community to show our heartfelt appreciation and respect for those who have served our nation so selflessly.
