Dec 26, 2024 – Jan 5, 2025

Dec 26, 2024 - Jan 5, 2025 / Vol. 25 / No. 44
Even though we’re always moving forward, it’s sometimes good to take a look back at everything that’s happened to bring us to the place we’re standing today. And the end of the year is always conducive to that sort of gander—hindsight is always 20/20 or whatever “they” say. In our annual Year in Review issue, […]

Cover Stories

Turn around: A peek back at 2024 in northern Santa Barbara County

In a year overshadowed by a contentious presidential election full of surprises, northern Santa Barbara County still managed to make its fair share of headlines. Local elections had their own drama in places like Lompoc and Santa Maria, where some incumbents held their own while others were voted out. The Lake Fire broke out near…

Hopes and dreams

This past year was a bit of a rough one. Starting in Guadalupe—the littlest city that could, but only if the deadline is tomorrow and staff has to overnight something to a state agency after City Council approves it tonight.  Talk about last minute! That city is flying by the seat of its pantaloons.  The…

Protecting endangered steelhead and our region’s water future can go hand in hand

As organizations committed to both the health of our region’s ecosystems and the well-being of our communities, we feel compelled to respond to San Luis Obispo County 4th District Supervisor Jimmy Paulding’s recent editorial regarding the Lopez Dam lawsuit (“‘Environmental groups are threatening South SLO County’s water security,” Dec. 19). While we respect the supervisor’s…

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…

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…

Our Little Secret is a cookie cutter Christmas rom-com

Our Little Secret What’s it rated? TV-14 What’s it worth, Anna? Stream it What’s it worth, Glen? Stream it Where’s it showing? Netflix Stephen Herek (Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure, Mr. Holland’s Opus) directs Hailey DeDominicis’ script about old flames Avery (Lindsay Lohan) and Logan (Ian Harding) whose relationship ended a decade ago but who…

BINGEABLE: Tracker

Tracker What’s it rated? TV-14 When? 2024 Where’s it showing? Hulu, Paramount Plus Created by Ben H. Winters, this series debuted on CBS earlier this year and is now streaming. It follows the exploits of Colter Shaw (Justin Hartley), a “rewardist” who uses his tracking skills to find missing people and collect the reward. It’s…

NEW FLICKS: Boy Kills World

Boy Kills World What’s it rated? R When? 2023 Where’s it showing? Hulu Moritz Mohr, in his feature-length debut, directs this script he co-wrote with Tyler Burton Smith and Arend Remmers about “Boy” (Cameron and Nicholas Crovetti when young, Bill Skarsgård as an adult), whose mother and sister are murdered during “The Culling,” an annual…

Political Watch: December 26, 2024

• U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara) called out House Republicans for “dragging their feet” on finalizing government funding for the current fiscal year, leaving more than $14 million in funding specifically designated for Central Coast projects in limbo, according to a Dec. 18 statement from Carbajal’s office. “Republican leadership in Congress has spent months…


Recent

Gift this article