One on One ~ Nathan Salter Summer 2008
Scot Bergeron talks windsurfing, economics and auto maintenance tips with one of the GLCC’s longtime supporters. Nathan Salter, pictured left, demonstrates his solar hot dog cooker
Scot Bergeron: Nathan, tell us about yourself.
Nathan Salter: I'm a renaissance redneck.
SB: Do you have a personal philosophy that might give our readers a better understanding of your personality?
NS: I believe each one of us should be as resourceful as possible. Waste is the visible face of inefficiency. For every pound of garbage we produce, about 10 pounds of carbon dioxide goes into the atmosphere. We can't see that, but what we are seeing are the effects of it. In addition to waste, population explosion is here. Unfortunately, it didn't go away after we stopped talking about it, so what we are now seeing around the world with the grain situation is the first tangible proof of our finite limits, at least the way our social structures are set up.
things might be spaced far apart for a reason It would be really nice to have another planet to go to but I don't know if the creatures on it would agree. Things might be spaced far apart for a reason. I have a T-shirt that sums it up -'Earth First!, we'll log the rest of the planets later.' It would be to our great advantage to think of the planet as a space ship, like Buckminster Fuller said. However, the people at the helm are intoxicated with power and they are driving us into the ditch. It happens in every currency based society. The extractive class winds up having everything they could possibly want, which should be enough, but if you ask them "what else could you possibly want?" their answer is always "more!!"
fixing carbon the reason to start Rebuild-it Center If we are to survive as a species, we've got to get these people into the brig, and quick. The only thing that will prevent us from going into the ditch is fixing carbon. That was the reason for the Gorge Rebuild-it Center. We need a global Manhattan project in that direction. The planet used to be able to recover due to the relatively slow speed at which societies used their natural resources, but now we're burning 400 years of stored sunlight each day, leveling forests at a blistering pace, and flying around blowing stuff up to get at more oil. It's not like we can open a window and let the smoke out. We're pretty much stuck here until the next big comet comes by.
SB: Thanks for those insights. How long have you lived in Hood River?
NS: 11 years
SB: What brought you to the Gorge originally?
NS: The wind
SB: Tell us about how you teach windsurfing and your style or technique.
NS: I teach by towing. It's called the wind tractor method. I've been teaching windsurfing for about 20 years. I clearly recall the painful learning curve. I was so infuriated after five weeks of trying to teach myself to sail that I vowed never to waste another second on it. That vow lasted until I got a few pointers from a friend. Once I learned, I began teaching others. After teaching the old-fashioned way of show and tell for a number of years, it seemed like there must be a better way. That's when I thought of towing.
the advantages of windsurfing instruction by the Wind Tractor method It's amazing how 20' of rope can change that first experience. I've talked to a boat load of people who have tried it once, gotten rescued, and given up. It's like playing chess once; it's not real fun until you play about 30 games. It's a similar learning curve. The towing technique is so simple that anyone can do it. If you know how to sail and you have two boards, you can teach a friend in about an hour. I usually get people going in about 45 minutes. They are up and sailing, slaloming behind me. In the old school method, I would just about be done with the wind clock explanation. No explanations are needed. They don't mean anything to most people. What gets people up and going is getting that sail into their hands and getting the balance point dialed in between their mass and the force of the wind. With this technique, the instructor controls the direction of the board so all the student has to focus on is the sail. Once they get that down, then you can start explaining things because they are sailing right behind you and you are talking to them about what is going on. By now all they need to know is how to tack and stay up wind. After they start having fun is the time to go into all of the sailing lingo and theory.
So that's it. just tie 20' of rope on the back of your board, tie it on to the one behind you and you're set. The only other thing to make sure of is that your sail is bigger by at least a meter than the person you are teaching. You don't want them to sail by you on their first day. You don't want them to get too cocky.
Mind you, this has its limitations, you can really only do one at a time. But I can usually get three people going in a couple of hours. Then i just buzz around them and hook one on if they drift into a the hole or need some extra help. I can guarantee people will be sailing in an hour or they get their RiverHOURS back.
SB: What attracted you to local currency?
NS: The thought of local currency is not only a good idea, it may become a necessity. Actually, it should be thought of as river coffee, or river work, or river pants. I may be wrong, but I don't think we have seen anything yet of the dollar's demise. I would say we're over the knee but not quite in free fall. The Fed can manipulate the throttle of the economy, as we have seen with interest rate changes, but if that control slips away due to what lurks in the uncharted depths of debt that our anti-American neo-cons have created, then the range of economic scenarios goes from a long haul out of this hole, to a quick drop into the abyss. It would be naive to assume one could predict what that will look like. The more light you shine on this problem, however, the more light you need to illuminate the facets of it.
SB: Sounds like doom and gloom. Haven't we moved beyond major economic disasters as a society?
NS: This notion that humans are improving on a social level everywhere seems overly optimistic. Under what circumstance would Bush be the most powerful man in the world if you removed money from the equation? Is there anyone besides Condi Rice who would follow him thru the wilderness if they had a choice in who would lead them? I think currency in general is affecting our DNA. That's what money can do. It doesn't have to, but if people have enormous amounts of money, they become the deciders for the rest of us. That to me is the most serious threat we face as humans. Instead of being a clever hunter, or a natural leader and innovator, what really creates a chief in today’s society is basically a lack of ethics, good cheating, some stealing skills, and above all the ability to lie through your teeth. Of course there are exceptions, but you won't find many in politics. So no, I don't think we can assume that somehow we'll be able to just walk away from the mess these guys have created. The last real Republican administration was Eisenhower's. Ever since then it's been co-opted by corporations. Keep in mind though that that is just my humble opinion.
SB: What do you purchase with your RiverHOURS?
NS: Coffee, food, beer, and accounting services on occasion. I'd like to be able to buy locally grown meat and dairy products though. Cheese curds would be nice. I really miss them.
SB: You mentioned the Federal Reserve. When did you learn about Federal Reserve?
NS: Certainly not in school. You'd think with an International Relations degree and a minor in Economics from a school like UW-Madison, that I could take you through the creation of it, the track record, who wins-who loses, and so on, but I didn't know anything about it until recently.
how do you phone the Federal Reserve? The Gorge had a visitation by a guy from the Czech Republic who looked at our system from an unconditioned point of view. He was curious about the Fed, but no one, including myself, knew anything about it, let alone where to find the number for it in the phone book. It's not in the government section. So he bought a couple of video tapes and that's how I learned about it. It's really the best kept secret in America. If it weren't for Ron Paul, you wouldn't hear a single candidate mention it. Das ist Verboten! The history of it would make a great movie. The amount of power they have amassed without making a sound is really phenomenal. If there is a future, this era, unless uninterrupted, might be looked upon as the pinnacle of social conditioning - welcome to a real life version of the Matrix. The structure of the system is totally artificial. As long as there's no questioning of it, it will continue to grow. You won't find a single serious discussion of it on any major commercial news program. Maybe this is naive, but if there were an honest look at how it works and for whom, I think people might start thinking about it and possibly snap out of it.
SB: Snap out of what?
NS: It, the matrix. you are not free if you are working 50 hours/ week, 51 weeks/year, going further into plastic debt, and god forbid have a medical situation arise. That's not freedom.
SB: What do you think people can do to better the situation?
NS: That's always the question, isn't it? It always pops up. I don't have a fix-all answer. Actually, RiverHOURS is a great place to start. If we all do a little, we can do a lot. One thing that I've done is program all of my reps numbers into my phone, both state and federal. Then every once in a while I make a call and give 'em my two cents worth for spending 30% of my income into oblivion, while raising the local taxes. Gordon Smith's office only receives about 100 calls per day. I don't even know if that's 1 out of 10,000 people actually voicing their opinion.
politics is like gardening And now that our votes are counted in secret by people like Karl Rove, we can't rely on voting to do all of the work for us. Politics is like gardening; you can't just plant a seed every 4 years and walk away. You have to weed it on a regular basis. Perhaps we should start a pyramid scheme where we charge our friends $10 to program the reps’ phone numbers into their phone, they in turn charge their friends $10, but give you $5 of it. Once those people send your friend the five, your friend sends $1 up the chain to me. By the time I make $1000 off of that down line, we'll have burned out the switchboard in DC. Can I see your phone?
Seriously though, we have to come up with some fun idea that people could do and not feel like they'll be persecuted, another sign of fake freedom. It boils down to people informing other people. Knowledge isn't power, unless it is shared with the other people. Unfortunately, people have to start hurting bad enough just to get curious. Until they feel personally affected, there's not a whole lot we can do to make this information seem attractive. The Internet is helping, but there's a pretty tight grip on the "liberal" media by the energy-defense complex.
SB: Do you think local currencies, like River HOURS will help get us out of the matrix?
NS: Actually, the one really important thing RiverHOURS does is train people to accept the thought of local currency. If we all have faith in it, it will work. It takes a lot of training for people to realize the potential of coming together as individual pieces of an economic jigsaw puzzle, but all of the pieces are right here in the Gorge.
SB: You also advertise auto repair in the trade directory. What do you specialize in?
NS: Toyota vans but I can do tune ups and brakes on quite a range of vehicles. One thing I don't do is electrical stuff. I don't have the diagnostic equipment for that.
easy tips to save gas
SB: Do you have any driving tips that might save gas?
NS: Yeah, let your vehicle warm up for a minute before you drive it. And let it go a few minutes in the winter. You get a lot better mileage when the engine is warmed up. And make sure your tires are filled up. I usually go about five pounds over. Getting an alignment can pay for itself pretty quickly if you have a car that is pulling to one side. Consider using the car pool category more often on the free local classified sites like joeboard.com or gorge.net. You can double your mileage instantly that way. It would be nice to get our local train depot fired up for passengers to Portland or Pendleton with stops along the way in Rufus, Biggs, Rowena, etc. Above all, use our beautiful topography to your advantage by coasting down hills. When I take a motorcycle to The Dalles the scenic way, I coast from the top of 7 mile, all the way down to Chenowith Street.
Nathan Salter can be contacted for auto repair and private windsurfing lessons by phoning
541-806-NATE. You will find his trade directory listings under the business name, Tinkertek
Scot Bergeron talks windsurfing, economics and auto maintenance tips with one of the GLCC’s longtime supporters. Nathan Salter, pictured left, demonstrates his solar hot dog cooker
Scot Bergeron: Nathan, tell us about yourself.
Nathan Salter: I'm a renaissance redneck.
SB: Do you have a personal philosophy that might give our readers a better understanding of your personality?
NS: I believe each one of us should be as resourceful as possible. Waste is the visible face of inefficiency. For every pound of garbage we produce, about 10 pounds of carbon dioxide goes into the atmosphere. We can't see that, but what we are seeing are the effects of it. In addition to waste, population explosion is here. Unfortunately, it didn't go away after we stopped talking about it, so what we are now seeing around the world with the grain situation is the first tangible proof of our finite limits, at least the way our social structures are set up.
things might be spaced far apart for a reason It would be really nice to have another planet to go to but I don't know if the creatures on it would agree. Things might be spaced far apart for a reason. I have a T-shirt that sums it up -'Earth First!, we'll log the rest of the planets later.' It would be to our great advantage to think of the planet as a space ship, like Buckminster Fuller said. However, the people at the helm are intoxicated with power and they are driving us into the ditch. It happens in every currency based society. The extractive class winds up having everything they could possibly want, which should be enough, but if you ask them "what else could you possibly want?" their answer is always "more!!"
fixing carbon the reason to start Rebuild-it Center If we are to survive as a species, we've got to get these people into the brig, and quick. The only thing that will prevent us from going into the ditch is fixing carbon. That was the reason for the Gorge Rebuild-it Center. We need a global Manhattan project in that direction. The planet used to be able to recover due to the relatively slow speed at which societies used their natural resources, but now we're burning 400 years of stored sunlight each day, leveling forests at a blistering pace, and flying around blowing stuff up to get at more oil. It's not like we can open a window and let the smoke out. We're pretty much stuck here until the next big comet comes by.
SB: Thanks for those insights. How long have you lived in Hood River?
NS: 11 years
SB: What brought you to the Gorge originally?
NS: The wind
SB: Tell us about how you teach windsurfing and your style or technique.
NS: I teach by towing. It's called the wind tractor method. I've been teaching windsurfing for about 20 years. I clearly recall the painful learning curve. I was so infuriated after five weeks of trying to teach myself to sail that I vowed never to waste another second on it. That vow lasted until I got a few pointers from a friend. Once I learned, I began teaching others. After teaching the old-fashioned way of show and tell for a number of years, it seemed like there must be a better way. That's when I thought of towing.
the advantages of windsurfing instruction by the Wind Tractor method It's amazing how 20' of rope can change that first experience. I've talked to a boat load of people who have tried it once, gotten rescued, and given up. It's like playing chess once; it's not real fun until you play about 30 games. It's a similar learning curve. The towing technique is so simple that anyone can do it. If you know how to sail and you have two boards, you can teach a friend in about an hour. I usually get people going in about 45 minutes. They are up and sailing, slaloming behind me. In the old school method, I would just about be done with the wind clock explanation. No explanations are needed. They don't mean anything to most people. What gets people up and going is getting that sail into their hands and getting the balance point dialed in between their mass and the force of the wind. With this technique, the instructor controls the direction of the board so all the student has to focus on is the sail. Once they get that down, then you can start explaining things because they are sailing right behind you and you are talking to them about what is going on. By now all they need to know is how to tack and stay up wind. After they start having fun is the time to go into all of the sailing lingo and theory.
So that's it. just tie 20' of rope on the back of your board, tie it on to the one behind you and you're set. The only other thing to make sure of is that your sail is bigger by at least a meter than the person you are teaching. You don't want them to sail by you on their first day. You don't want them to get too cocky.
Mind you, this has its limitations, you can really only do one at a time. But I can usually get three people going in a couple of hours. Then i just buzz around them and hook one on if they drift into a the hole or need some extra help. I can guarantee people will be sailing in an hour or they get their RiverHOURS back.
SB: What attracted you to local currency?
NS: The thought of local currency is not only a good idea, it may become a necessity. Actually, it should be thought of as river coffee, or river work, or river pants. I may be wrong, but I don't think we have seen anything yet of the dollar's demise. I would say we're over the knee but not quite in free fall. The Fed can manipulate the throttle of the economy, as we have seen with interest rate changes, but if that control slips away due to what lurks in the uncharted depths of debt that our anti-American neo-cons have created, then the range of economic scenarios goes from a long haul out of this hole, to a quick drop into the abyss. It would be naive to assume one could predict what that will look like. The more light you shine on this problem, however, the more light you need to illuminate the facets of it.
SB: Sounds like doom and gloom. Haven't we moved beyond major economic disasters as a society?
NS: This notion that humans are improving on a social level everywhere seems overly optimistic. Under what circumstance would Bush be the most powerful man in the world if you removed money from the equation? Is there anyone besides Condi Rice who would follow him thru the wilderness if they had a choice in who would lead them? I think currency in general is affecting our DNA. That's what money can do. It doesn't have to, but if people have enormous amounts of money, they become the deciders for the rest of us. That to me is the most serious threat we face as humans. Instead of being a clever hunter, or a natural leader and innovator, what really creates a chief in today’s society is basically a lack of ethics, good cheating, some stealing skills, and above all the ability to lie through your teeth. Of course there are exceptions, but you won't find many in politics. So no, I don't think we can assume that somehow we'll be able to just walk away from the mess these guys have created. The last real Republican administration was Eisenhower's. Ever since then it's been co-opted by corporations. Keep in mind though that that is just my humble opinion.
SB: What do you purchase with your RiverHOURS?
NS: Coffee, food, beer, and accounting services on occasion. I'd like to be able to buy locally grown meat and dairy products though. Cheese curds would be nice. I really miss them.
SB: You mentioned the Federal Reserve. When did you learn about Federal Reserve?
NS: Certainly not in school. You'd think with an International Relations degree and a minor in Economics from a school like UW-Madison, that I could take you through the creation of it, the track record, who wins-who loses, and so on, but I didn't know anything about it until recently.
how do you phone the Federal Reserve? The Gorge had a visitation by a guy from the Czech Republic who looked at our system from an unconditioned point of view. He was curious about the Fed, but no one, including myself, knew anything about it, let alone where to find the number for it in the phone book. It's not in the government section. So he bought a couple of video tapes and that's how I learned about it. It's really the best kept secret in America. If it weren't for Ron Paul, you wouldn't hear a single candidate mention it. Das ist Verboten! The history of it would make a great movie. The amount of power they have amassed without making a sound is really phenomenal. If there is a future, this era, unless uninterrupted, might be looked upon as the pinnacle of social conditioning - welcome to a real life version of the Matrix. The structure of the system is totally artificial. As long as there's no questioning of it, it will continue to grow. You won't find a single serious discussion of it on any major commercial news program. Maybe this is naive, but if there were an honest look at how it works and for whom, I think people might start thinking about it and possibly snap out of it.
SB: Snap out of what?
NS: It, the matrix. you are not free if you are working 50 hours/ week, 51 weeks/year, going further into plastic debt, and god forbid have a medical situation arise. That's not freedom.
SB: What do you think people can do to better the situation?
NS: That's always the question, isn't it? It always pops up. I don't have a fix-all answer. Actually, RiverHOURS is a great place to start. If we all do a little, we can do a lot. One thing that I've done is program all of my reps numbers into my phone, both state and federal. Then every once in a while I make a call and give 'em my two cents worth for spending 30% of my income into oblivion, while raising the local taxes. Gordon Smith's office only receives about 100 calls per day. I don't even know if that's 1 out of 10,000 people actually voicing their opinion.
politics is like gardening And now that our votes are counted in secret by people like Karl Rove, we can't rely on voting to do all of the work for us. Politics is like gardening; you can't just plant a seed every 4 years and walk away. You have to weed it on a regular basis. Perhaps we should start a pyramid scheme where we charge our friends $10 to program the reps’ phone numbers into their phone, they in turn charge their friends $10, but give you $5 of it. Once those people send your friend the five, your friend sends $1 up the chain to me. By the time I make $1000 off of that down line, we'll have burned out the switchboard in DC. Can I see your phone?
Seriously though, we have to come up with some fun idea that people could do and not feel like they'll be persecuted, another sign of fake freedom. It boils down to people informing other people. Knowledge isn't power, unless it is shared with the other people. Unfortunately, people have to start hurting bad enough just to get curious. Until they feel personally affected, there's not a whole lot we can do to make this information seem attractive. The Internet is helping, but there's a pretty tight grip on the "liberal" media by the energy-defense complex.
SB: Do you think local currencies, like River HOURS will help get us out of the matrix?
NS: Actually, the one really important thing RiverHOURS does is train people to accept the thought of local currency. If we all have faith in it, it will work. It takes a lot of training for people to realize the potential of coming together as individual pieces of an economic jigsaw puzzle, but all of the pieces are right here in the Gorge.
SB: You also advertise auto repair in the trade directory. What do you specialize in?
NS: Toyota vans but I can do tune ups and brakes on quite a range of vehicles. One thing I don't do is electrical stuff. I don't have the diagnostic equipment for that.
easy tips to save gas
SB: Do you have any driving tips that might save gas?
NS: Yeah, let your vehicle warm up for a minute before you drive it. And let it go a few minutes in the winter. You get a lot better mileage when the engine is warmed up. And make sure your tires are filled up. I usually go about five pounds over. Getting an alignment can pay for itself pretty quickly if you have a car that is pulling to one side. Consider using the car pool category more often on the free local classified sites like joeboard.com or gorge.net. You can double your mileage instantly that way. It would be nice to get our local train depot fired up for passengers to Portland or Pendleton with stops along the way in Rufus, Biggs, Rowena, etc. Above all, use our beautiful topography to your advantage by coasting down hills. When I take a motorcycle to The Dalles the scenic way, I coast from the top of 7 mile, all the way down to Chenowith Street.
Nathan Salter can be contacted for auto repair and private windsurfing lessons by phoning
541-806-NATE. You will find his trade directory listings under the business name, Tinkertek