There is no doubt that the weather we have had this year has been weird, culminating in rare June rain. Can we attribute these record highs and lows, droughts and floods to a newly unstable climate? Might that be because a century of greenhouse gas emissions has trapped solar heat, magnified the shifts of the […]
Opinion
Posted inOpinion
The Supreme Court needs ethics police
The recent news about Clarence Thomas’ financial entanglements with GOP megadonor Harlan Crow should be alarming to every American. This is what happens when the highest court in the land is given free rein to police itself. Clarence Thomas isn’t the first justice to engage in unethical behavior. And if Congress continues to ignore the […]
Posted inOpinion
Bud Light’s ad campaign and subsequent backpeddling was explosive on the front lines of the culture wars
As an aficionado of both beer and the culture wars, the recent Bud Light marketing fiasco has been real catnip for me, and I just couldn’t resist jumping in. To recap: Bud Light employed “influencer” Dylan Mulvaney, a transgendered woman, as a spokesperson to promote their beer and even created a special can depicting Mulvaney […]
Posted inOpinion
Pipeline problems
Can the county oppose a business ownership change? It seems pretty standard: One business buys another business’s property and becomes the new owner of said property. But I guess if you’re an oil corporation buying a pipeline that spilled oil all over a beloved piece of the Santa Barbara County coastline, things become a little […]
Posted inOpinion
The commercial space industry is poised to continue flourishing at Vandenberg Space Force Base
Vandenberg Space Force Base just outside Lompoc has been in the missile launching business for more than six decades. Initially there were scores of launch attempts before a successful mission was completed. Why? Because in the early days several test attempts were required to prove that the design would work. It’s no different with commercial […]
Posted inOpinion
If you build it
The Santa Maria Planning Commission just greenlit a proverbial field of dreams for the Central Coast. As of June 7, the Blosser Ranch apartment development is a go, and its plans call for 301 apartments and more than 301 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. You heard that right: If the city builds it, they will […]
Posted inOpinion
The legislative process exists for a reason, and the governor shouldn’t introduce exceptions at the eleventh hour
In mid-May, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that he was submitting a package of bills to the Legislature and declaring an executive order establishing an “Infrastructure Strike Team,” both with the same goal: to “streamline” permitting and judicial review for infrastructure projects under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). CEQA is a vital process that provides […]
Posted inOpinion
My memories of the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area
This month the court will decide if the California Coastal Commission has the right to ban driving on the Oceano beach and dunes. I raised my son in Oceano, and I have no memories of us on the Oceano beach because we never went there: I didn’t want to risk our lives dodging cars, trucks, […]
Posted inOpinion
Eat dirt
Is it better to know or is ignorance bliss? According to Lars Seifert with Santa Barbara County Environmental Health Services: “It’s good for people to be aware of what they are eating, drinking, and what they’re exposed to. … It gives people the power to make choices and reduce their risk if they are concerned.” […]
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County supervisors need to experience the stench surrounding cannabis operations before ruling on permit appeals
Anyone living near a cannabis operation is familiar with the horrendous stink that lingers in the air 24 hours a day for months at a time. Some of these operations are close to Lompoc, and being someone who lives in the odor path, I can tell you that these operations have a serious impact on […]
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What’s really behind the Richards Ranch annexation proposal?
I wonder if we have been asking the wrong questions regarding Richards Ranch LLC and its application to annex county key site 26 into the city of Santa Maria. The two questions we might consider: 1) Who are the members of the Richards Ranch LLC, and 2) What is their goal? Over a year ago, […]
Posted inOpinion
A right to visibility
As Pride Month raises its fantastic colors on the Central Coast, it feels extra prescient. History feels omnipresent, rather than in the not-too-distant past, when it comes to discrimination—both outright and under-the-radar—against the LGBTQ-plus community. The outrage against what rainbow flags symbolize for some people isn’t unique to the Santa Ynez Valley. And the irony […]
