In the mail yesterday, I received one of my all-time favorite pieces of correspondence: one of our annual car registration bills from the State of California. Paying the state $222 for a brightly colored sticker isn’t what annoys me most (although truth be told, If I had my druthers, they’d re-route this revenue stream to …
Monthly Archive: March 2010
Mar 24
Paso school board didn’t even give its voters a chance
So the Paso Robles school board last night rejected on a 3-2 vote the idea of a parcel tax to mitigate the pain of a large budget discrepancy, effectively deciding that they’ll close their $7.4 million gap by executing further cuts … “executing” being the key word here. Nice job, Paso. I don’t know who …
Mar 23
Five dumb arguments against a parcel tax for public schools
Last week’s post on the state of our public schools has generated a good bit of interest. Of course, it helped to get it published in the paper and then reposted on sanluisobispo.com, which opened the audience way beyond this little corner of the Internet. I thought it might be fun to address some of …
Mar 17
It’s time we took responsibility for our local public schools
Today, in our public schools, we are witnessing nothing less than the crumbling of American society. The point was made ever more clear this week as San Luis Obispo County districts once again sent out pink slips notifying teachers and staff that their jobs were hanging in the balance. It’s a simple abomination, what’s going …
Mar 16
How Kevin P. Rice could improve his Oceano Dunes strategy
I had the pleasure yesterday of chatting for a bit with Kevin P. Rice, who gave me a ring following the post about the Oceano Dunes fight getting too personal. Now before you start reading into that phrasing and think I’m being sarcastic, I’m not. It was a good conversation, and Kevin is a perfectly …
Mar 15
Rice and Langford’s battle over the Oceano Dunes is getting too personal
If you haven’t already, I urge you to read Bob Cuddy’s excellent column on the behind-the-scenes (and not-so-behind-the-scenes) battle between Oceano Dunes adversaries Kevin P. Rice and Nell Langford. This is the kind of perspective that only comes from a seasoned journalist who knows the players and issues on his beat and can provide us …
Mar 10
What ‘revegetating’ would really mean for the Oceano Dunes
I appreciate the county Health Commission jumping on the cause of Nipomo Mesa folks who get to breathe sand particles thanks to off-roaders on the Oceano Dunes. But the panel’s action smacks a bit of unhelpful bandwagoning, the kind of recommendation that lets them be on the record without really offering much in the way …
Mar 09
Free food and an easy A in Orfalea’s Cal Poly business class
Here’s the weird thing about the account of that business class at Cal Poly taught by Kinko’s founder and mega-donor Paul Orfalea, besides the catering and the hand-picked class roster and the back-room dealing and the Geography 101 quizzes and the catering … Did I mention the catering? Oh yeah. The weird — or weirdest …
Mar 07
Did you know the Cabo San Luis fire was a government conspiracy?
I don’t know whether to write about this next subject or simply shake my head in disbelief. Check out this post at craiglist. I hesitate because this could just be someone’s inane idea of a joke. But let’s assume it’s not, because it’s more fun that way. If it is a joke, it’s just dumb. …
Mar 04
How and when NOT to hold a debate about religion
Religious zealots need to chill, part I: Is it just me, or did the story about the Arizona pair who got jail time for beating up a SLO man leave you puzzled? First off, I don’t know how the victim, Philip Hauser, goes from just walking home from a party at 4 a.m. to engaging …
