Who’s going to be the most impacted by climate change in Santa Barbara County? I’ll give you one guess. It’s not the people who own pieces of the pristine Hollister Ranch area—including filmmaker James Cameron and musician Jackson Browne—who like to keep their private portion of California’s coastline as inaccessible to the general public as […]
Opinion
Posted inOpinion
Let’s trounce voter suppression
With a sense of helplessness, we watch events in Afghanistan unfold and wildfires rage in this great state. Meanwhile, the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act are strongly beckoning us to repeal the greatest threat to voting rights since Reconstruction. Hundreds of new voting restrictions are being enacted in […]
Posted inOpinion
Hey, Jordan Cunningham!
For a guy who likes to talk a big game about supporting the middle class and advocating for the job force, you sure threw nurses under the bus with your letter to the Health and Human Services asking to wipe out our staffing ratios. Nurses have been working the last 18 months with crushingly high-acuity […]
Posted inOpinion
Officials must wear masks too
The Police Department held a public meeting at the Minami Center last Monday evening, Sept. 20. There are signs on both front doors saying that anyone who enters any public building must wear a mask. Everyone in attendance did wear a mask over their nose and mouth, except for Councilperson Etta Waterfield. She sat among […]
Posted inOpinion
PG&E’s increased protection measures, while frustrating at times, are decreasing potential wildfire ignitions
The threat of wildfire in California and other Western states continues to grow. Severe drought conditions, dry fuels, and rising temperatures are driving unprecedented increases in the potential risk for wildfires. To combat this increased risk, PG&E is continuing to evolve our wildfire prevention efforts for the safety of our customers and communities. One of […]
Posted inOpinion
The recent Firefly Alpha rocket explosion shows there must have been a faulty debris analysis before the launch
When either commercial or government missile and space programs are being planned for launch, the team must prepare the rocket for launch, and the military or the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) must approve the launch team’s “flight hazard area analysis.” The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) applies to commercial space programs and specifically says that […]
Posted inOpinion
Wild words
Is the world too touchy-feely these days? Do we need to go back to the days of gunslingers and fights in the street? At least one man in Santa Maria thinks so! And he told everyone who attended what would normally have been a pretty benign meeting about the Santa Maria Police Department’s goals for […]
Posted inOpinion
The sinking of the Santa Maria
Santa Maria High School, and perhaps the city of Santa Maria, will be abandoning its image of Columbus’ flagship, the Santa Maria, as a logo. Duh! Whose idea was it in the first place to adopt that ship as the city’s, and school’s, logo in the first place? I can assure you, it was not […]
Posted inOpinion
Veggies and vegetation
Just in case you guys were wondering, 5th District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino is ardently against Brussels sprouts. “Brussel sprouts, I’m total anti-Brussel sprout. I’ll come out right now on that one. Anyone that orders it around me has got a problem, because I will tell you to please move it away from me. It smells,” […]
Posted inOpinion
To the anti-vax community
The COVID-19 pandemic rages on, and there are still tens of thousands who have yet to get vaccinated, even though the shots are free and readily available. There is no doubt this mindset is prolonging the pandemic. Back in the early ’50s, a polio epidemic swept through this country with a vengeance. I was in […]
Posted inOpinion
Our nation’s president has turned his back on those who’ve helped us in Afghanistan
The Afghan man was one of thousands in Kabul attempting to escape Taliban and ISIS fighters who had conquered the country. He actually evaded the Taliban checkpoints and was even able to show his papers to the U.S. officials that granted him permission to be evacuated. They agreed to allow him to enter the sanctuary […]
Posted inOpinion
Lompoc police and the people they serve are victims of incompetent state-level politicians
There have been more than 50 incidents this year in Lompoc involving misguided people shooting a gun who have no regard for the safety of others. Both their targets and innocent bystanders have been hit and either injured or killed in these incidents. Some were gang related, others were committed by thoughtless people with no […]
