A proposal from the federal government to industrialize the ocean along the Central Coast and Humboldt coastlines with hundreds of 700-foot-tall floating wind turbines would set a precedent that ocean industrialization is acceptable, destroy the character of the Central Coast, and kill ocean wildlife. The Pacific Ocean is home to mammals, birds, and countless varieties […]
Sun Staff
Posted inNews
Political Watch: January 16, 2025
• The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians received a $1.4 million grant through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help with the planning and community engagement efforts for an 8.7-mile path that would connect the Santa Ynez Reservation with Buellton, Solvang, and other parts of the valley. “Our tribe is thankful for receiving this grant […]
Posted inOpinion
Folk music shaped an important time in history
I recently saw Don’t Look Back at the Palm Theatre in San Luis Obispo and felt like I had time traveled to my youth. While a college student at Columbia University, I hung out in Greenwich Village at coffee houses, jazz and folk music clubs, and at bars where Dylan Thomas, the Welsh poet, was […]
Posted inOpinion
We prefer to be entertained rather than learn from history
The movie Gladiator II entertains hugely. However, it does not educate people about how vengeance came to be the ruling principle of civic and international life in ancient Rome. That rogue philosophy resulted from the drying up of Rome’s system of civics education and from the unregulated accumulation of money and power. Yes, characters in […]
Posted inNews
Political Watch: January 9, 2025
• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) was sworn into his fifth term in Congress representing the 24th District on Jan. 3. “As someone who grew up, got his first job and a great education, and started a family on the Central Coast, I am deeply grateful to continue working on its behalf in Congress,” […]
Posted inSpecial Issues
Volunteers 2025
With 2025 just getting started, some people are choosing to do what they do best: volunteer. The work that volunteers do in their spare time accomplishes so much in the region, from dishing out food that serves houseless residents a meal to making sure students can cross the street safely before and after school, the […]
Posted inNews
Political Watch: January 2, 2025
• On Dec. 19, 2024, the U.S. Senate approved U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal’s (D-Santa Barbara) bill to rename the post office on E. Battles Road in Santa Maria in honor of Larry Lavagnino, the city’s former mayor and City Council member. “Every community should be so lucky to have a Larry Lavagnino,” Carbajal said in […]
Posted inOpinion
Paulding needs to prioritize the environment before it’s too late
Jimmy Paulding is a legacy politician with legacy ideas about the environment (“Environmental groups are threatening South SLO County’s water security,” Dec. 19). Stuck in the past, oblivious to the world around him. It would be interesting to know the last time he left his desk and took a walk outside to feel an actual […]
Posted inOpinion
The smell of Musk
Elon Musk. It sounds like the name of a fine Italian fragrance. But don’t be fooled, as it really reeks of roadkill skunk. This gazillionaire, who just bought a presidency, is not interested in the welfare of “the people,” rather in furthering his own enormous wealth and ego. Constitution be damned, the combination of Trump […]
Posted inOpinion
Murder endorsed by Americans is dangerous
Recently, certain segments of our society have elevated two murderers to the status of champions of their causes. Daniel Penny killed a homeless, mentally ill man with a choke hold, and Luigi Mangione killed an executive of a health insurance company. This occurs in the context of polls taken over the last few years finding […]
Posted inOpinion
Biden has one last month to ensure climate protections
With just one month left before Donald Trump returns to the White House, we are running out of time to lock in protections for our climate and communities. One critical action President Biden can take right now is to permanently shut down the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). The pipeline is currently operating illegally, even as […]
Posted inOpinion
Lompoc lost its best mayor in years
Lompoc has taken a bad turn after good years of reconstruction. Third District Supervisor Joan Hartmann encouraged Lydia Perez to run to unseat Mayor Jenelle Osborne, a decline-to-state candidate (“The election is over, now can we all just get along?” Nov. 14). But at the same time, Jim Mosby, a longtime Lompoc activist on the […]
