JH Underground – news, sports and music blog from Jackson Hole, Wyoming news, sports and music blog from Jackson Hole, Wyoming

In a small victory for the poorest Jackson Hole residents, Lower Valley Energy has dropped a plan to impose a significantly higher electricity rate in winter.

Instead, all residential users will pay 1 percent more year round, according to a News&Guide report.

Lower Valley’s board of directors had voted in June to create a new pricing system, in which residents would pay a higher rate for power during winter, when demand is greatest. The board opted not to charge more to the heaviest consumers of electricity, who drive up costs for the cooperative as a whole.

The decision sparked a sharp backlash. Among the hardest hit would have been low-income renters, who are more likely to be living in older, poorly insulated homes heated by electricity.

According to the News&Guide, Lower Valley reversed course because of continued uncertainty over how Bonneville Power Administration will price electricity it supplies to the cooperative. The board plans to revisit the rate structure next summer.

Mark your calendars once the date of Lower Valley‘s annual meeting is set next spring, and be sure to make your voices heard.

Posted under Economy, Environment, Politics

Tags: conservation, fat cats, skids

Teton County emergency officials reported two fires today near residential areas.

The most recent blaze, near Highway 22 and Coyote Canyon Road, forced evacuation of the Teton Science Schools Jackson campus. Students and staff are safe, officials said.

The fire continues to burn on the south end of West Gros Ventre Butte, fanned by winds of 30 to 40 mph. Heavy smoke can be seen above Spring Gulch. A blown transformer may have sparked the flames.

Earlier, the county reported another fire in the vicinity of Crescent H and Butler Creek south of Wilson. Nine fires are burning on wild lands surrounding Jackson Hole. For updates, visit Teton Fires.

Update 7 p.m.: Crews are close to controlling the Science Schools blaze. Two helicopters are dropping water on the flames. The campus will remain evacuated tonight as a precaution. The fire swept up the ridge east of the campus.

Posted under Environment, Weather

Tags: national forest

And maybe you and your friends can mingle with the stars.

Courtney Balaker, a writer and director from Los Angeles, is seeking to shoot her first full-length film in Jackson Hole this fall. She not only is seeking funding for the project but also a title and other creative input, such as extras.

At the now-defunct Jackson Hole Film Festival, Balaker won the 2008 Audience Choice Award for best short film for her debut, Cute Couple. She has teamed with the festival’s ex-artistic director, Melanie Miller, who is serving as producer of the untitled Jackson Hole film.

The two have turned to Kickstarter to raise money. They set out to raise $50,000 in 50 days, and so far have netted $12,140. The deadline is 1:53 p.m. Thursday.

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Posted under Art, Entertainment

Tags: films, Media

As luck would have it, I was supposed to be on the East Coast this weekend, first for the nuptials of dynamo blogger, radio reporter and former Jackson resident Lauren Whaley, and then a quick family visit, the highlight of which was a fishing trip off Long Island on Sunday. I pulled the plug once the scope of the storm and associated travel woes became apparent.

For a few days, culminating yesterday, it seemed there was a crazy convergence in the cosmos: smoke from the Red Rock Fire filling Jackson, the prospect of a major cyclone blasting New York, new moon, high tide, Mercury in retrograde. After I returned from cancelling my flight at Jackson Hole Airport, a friend and I were having coffee on the deck at Shades when power lines began to crackle and explode above us at the back of Snake River Grill.

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Posted under Economy, Environment, Weather

Tags: climate change, new york, travel

After a summer of jam bands, bluegrass, funk, rock and even a hippie circus, it’s time for a night of hip-hop.

Courtesy of Teton Artlab, we’re giving away two pairs of tickets to Aesop Rock and Kimya Dawson on Friday at Q Roadhouse. In the comments below, say you’re in or any variation thereof, and at 3 p.m. Friday two winners will be chosen by random drawing. Each winner will receive two tickets ($44 value). Valid email address or full name must be provided.

Aesop Rock rhymed to prominence in the late 1990s and scored a big hit with the song “Daylight” from the 2001 album Labor Days. The Long Island native is known for cryptic lyrics; in the video above, the title track to his 2007 album None Shall Pass, he references the Snake River Canyon (probably in Idaho).

Kimya Dawson is a freak folkie best known as half of the duo The Moldy Peaches. The show will feature an acoustic set by her, an acoustic set by her and Aesop Rock, and a full rap set by Aesop Rock with Rob Sonic and DJ Big Wiz. The three play in the band Hail Mary Mallon and also have been collaborating with Dawson. Expect to see all four together at some point.

Tickets are available at Q and online via Teton Artlab.

Posted under Music

Tags: hip-hop

He sought to bomb Syria in 2007.

He refuses to apologize for lying about Iraqi WMD.

He took over the government on 9/11, and, spookiest of all, he dreams of haunting an Italian villa.

The New York Times has obtained an advance copy of Dick Cheney‘s forthcoming memoir, and the initial review seethes with contempt for the creep ex-veep.

Blood pressure needs lifting? Haven’t had a fit of road rage lately? This review will get your thermostat rising.

Here’s an excerpt, pertaining to Cheney’s wish to bomb a suspected Syrian reactor:

“I again made the case for U.S. military action against the reactor,” Mr. Cheney wrote about a meeting on the issue. “But I was a lone voice. After I finished, the president asked, ‘Does anyone here agree with the vice president?’ Not a single hand went up around the room.”

Tonight is the Teton Dems’ friend-raiser at Snow King, featuring hot dogs, live music and a dunk tank. If only Cheney could be coaxed out of his bunker at Teton Pines and onto the tank, the line would stretch from here to Teton Pass.

(Illustration by Mario Piperni, via Gawker)

Posted under Media, Politics, Republican Party

Tags: dick cheney, Iraq war