Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Standoff at Standing Rock as we await court ruling

Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Standoff at Standing Rock as we await court ruling:

Standoff at Standing Rock as we await court ruling

With Defenders of Water School principal Elena and teacher Theresa.

I finally found my calling after all these years. I want to come back here and be the basketball coach at the Defenders of Water School at the Standing Rock Sioux encampment. Susan and I showed up early at the school yesterday, to see if we could help out. Susan spent the morning trying to salvage school supplies that were washed out in Wednesday's downpour, putting remaining usable materials in plastic bins.

I played hoops -- a no-rules 3-on-3 pick-up game with 9-year-olds with players shuffling in an out. An Australian photog took pictures (with permission) and promised to send me some as soon as he could find some a wi-fi connection. I'm still waiting.

Early yesterday morning, a group of activists out on the front line set out to block the Dakota Access bulldozers. But the confrontation never materialized because the 'dozers were inoperable. The torrential rainstorm the day before had left them in a sea of mud. The rest of the day turned into an eerie peace. A standoff with company spotters up on the ridge watching the protesters and taking pictures while activists watched back. "We watch them watching us," said a guy camping at the front line. He had come from Arkansas to be part of this. "They watch us watching them watch us." There's a song lyric in there somewhere.

Approaching the roadblock on 1806.

Today, a federal judge is scheduled to rule on the Standing Rock Sioux lawsuit, a ruling that could stop the pipeline in its tracks or give a green light to DAPL The tribe’s lawsuit contends that the Dakota Access pipeline violates several federal laws, including the National Historic Preservation Act, and threatens the region’s water supply and sacred ancient sites outside of the 2.3 million-acre reservation.

Yesterday came word that Gov. Dalrymple had activated the National Guard in anticipation of the ruling. Dalrymple is avid Trump supporter, solidly behind Dakota Access and the pipeline Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: Standoff at Standing Rock as we await court ruling: