© 2023 Concerned Citizens of Western Montana

I’d like to begin this post by thanking each and every objector to the CSKT Compact.  In a time where so many folks choose to take the path of least resistance, it’s awesome to know that so many folks have stepped up to try to protect themselves and others from massive government overreach, and to help right a horrible wrong.

As you gear up for the mediation informational session this week, we want to remind you that the compacting parties are highly motivated to get you to withdraw, or to “settle” your objection. 

We ask you to not lose sight of the fact that billions, perhaps trillions of dollars are at stake with this compact, as is our private property and the rights and that go along with such ownership.

The Flathead Water Compact is a massive transfer of wealth away from the people of Montana and into the hands of the U.S. under the guise of  a tribal water rights settlement.

The compacting parties are also motivated by their commitment to mutually defend their compact against all challenges, including your objections. 

They are so close to the finish line they can almost taste it.  

Your objections are pretty much the only obstacles standing between the people, and the theft of untold wealth and the tyranny of having complete and utter control over our water. The compact proposes to shift the property rights paradigm in such a way that we will all become users of the tribal water right, not a user of water that comes out of our own personal property rights.

We are telling you this, because as you prepare to go to battle, we ask you to mentally prepare yourself for what could be a difficult road.  After having been in this battle for going on twelve long years, we’ve seen every dirty trick in the book. 

There is nothing about this water compact that has come out of good faith, from the decades long negotiation propaganda and lies, to the questionable methods used to ratify it, and also its current implementation and adjudication process.

We recently wrote an article about the US / CSKT 10,000 claims that pointed out that in a case before the water court, the state attorney wielded these claims as a threat that could be construed to have put the court on notice that if the Flathead Compact is not ratified, the 10,000 claims will be “decreed as claimed”.

See; Have the Tribe’s 10,000 Claims Come Home to Roost? 

If the state was willing to wield that threat to the Water Court, why wouldn’t they also try to do the same to you in the Mediation process as well?   The 10,000 claims were meant to be a coercive tactic to be used all the way through the compacting process, up to and including the Water Court proceedings.

Prepare for them to be dirty.  The parties to the compact have nothing to lose and everything to gain by eliminating as many objectors as possible.

As much as it pains me to say this, please remember that when it comes to this compact, Montana is a compacting party and is not to be trusted.

We ask you to continue to stand firm in your conviction and knowledge as to just how bad this compact really is and stand firm in your resolve.  This is the only way you will be able to get through the mediation process and move to the hearing track of the negotiations.

If you haven’t already done so, we ask you to check out some of our other mediation articles, posted at the bottom of this post.

A Word About Confidentiality

We also want to caution you that THE MEDIATION PROCEEDING IS CONFIDENTIAL. 

We urge every objector to remember to be guarded in their communications, and to not fall into the trap of divulging confidential information that could very well jeopardize your objection.

We have no way to know what resources the parties to the compact or the water court may use to try to keep tabs on this. 

To protect yourself, please seek to “err on the side of caution”. 

We would love to see every one of you move into the hearing phase of the proceedings. 

Check out these articles about the mediation process:

Mediation 101: A Primer on How the Mediation Process Works

Mediation:  Some Considerations for Objectors

Get Ready to Put on Your Mediation Armor

Attention Objectors:  Notification of Informational Mediation Meetings

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