Archive By Section - Local Columns
Time to dismantle Sacramento and rebuild from the ground up
A crisis, they say, brings out the best in people. True leaders rise to the occasion. Dark times call for bold and decisive moves.
Get ready for same old mush from update on SJ General Plan
It's time San Joaquin County stopped lusting for Bay Area paychecks and dropped the same-old, same-old planning for growth that produced predictable template-style policies and zoning.
It’s no sweat to stay cool in valley summer
Sweating is highly underrated. It sounds crazy, but to understand it you have to be a real valley boy. Going for a four-mile jog at 1 o'clock in the 100-degree heat Sunday I worked up a decent sweat. It wasn't until I got home, though, and pulled up a patio chair underneath the crab apple tree and just let it drip that I remembered what I like so much about Central Valley summers. There is ...
Let your neighbors know about your loved one’s service
We bellyache a lot. But when you come down to it how bad do we really have it? Actually, this is a pretty good life most of us are leading even with job losses, a retraction of government services, large class sizes on the way and just about any economic malady you want to cite. Am I crazy? No, just thankful. Even if we're living on the proverbial edge today it's a much better place ...
NOTRE DAME
President Obama's planned commencement address today at Notre Dame has re-opened wounds still festering since last November's presidential elections. There, the Catholic Church split in half (that is, with 70% of registered Catholics voting, 45% chose McCain, 54% voted for Obama.)
Paying the price Tuesday for class size reduction
Manteca Unified – and much of California – took the bite out of the forbidden fruit and are paying for it big time.
It’s ‘hasta la vista’ time, California
Pssst. Wanna buy San Quentin Prison? Perhaps Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger could interest you in the Los Angeles Coliseum. The governor is turning the state's budget crisis into a B-grade horror movie with days to go before Tuesday's special election by proposing to sell off California's landmarks to raise possibly $1 billion to go toward a deficit that is now pushing $23.1 billion. The list includes everything from the Cow Palace and Cal Expo to the ...
Admittedly it was a bad choice of words for a sensitive story
It wasn't one of my finest moments. A reader questioned why we ran a story on the front page of Wednesday's Manteca Bulletin on the beating incident triggered by drinking and a gay-related remark the victim made to the alleged attacker. I have no problem justifying why we ran the story. More about that in a moment. The thing that bothered me was what I saw after I picked up the Bulletin in the morning ...
Is $1M justified for staffing an aerial fire truck?
Does Manteca really need nine firefighters to man the 100-foot aerial platform fire truck 24/7?
It is time to pull the plug on California’s government
Santa Barbara is burning. The water levels behind Oroville are precariously low. The nation's Appalachia Valley of the 21st century in terms of poverty – the Southern San Joaquin – reels under unemployment approaching nearly 20 percent. California – despite all of its potential and wealth both natural and economic – has gotten it all wrong. We haven't altered land development patterns that make conditions ripe for annual wildfires that wipe out thousands of homes ...
I still listen for the pitter-patter of paws
It all started when John Grogran first got the idea to publish his tales about life with a young Labrador that instantly captured the heart of America. And for those of us who grew up with a lab in our house, the pages that Grogan filled in that book became almost a verbatim recount of the things encountered with the wiry but outrageously loyal animals. But there was a darker tinge in that story – ...
This is your Mother’s Day card, mom
Dear readers: My mother, Cynthia, recently visited from Washington State. Having recently completed 81 years, she still surprises me with her energy. Raised Christian Scientist by her parents in the Boston environment, she learned that maintaining good health requires a real balancing act. Loving the outdoors, she became early on a camp counselor. Wanting to promote the health of others, she studied physical therapy and perfected her art on the island of Guam. Knowing what ...
Sweet words: ‘Due to inactivity on your account we are canceling your card’
Shortly after I turned 18 I got my first two credit cards from Mervyn's and Chevron. They were simply for convenience although there were times I stretched my Mervyn's payments over three months. Then came the bank cards that were essential for a photography business I had on the side. They also were perfect when traveling. Then – like most people I suppose – I started using credit cards to purchase items in advance of ...
Did liar home loans also attract criminal element to Manteca?
Has Manteca's crime rate gone down because some of the "right" people are losing their homes?
Weatherford Woods may ultimately help Manteca sewer woes
Weeping willows take on more water than the Titanic. They also create great wildlife habitats for birds and other creatures. If Mayor Willie Weatherford has his druthers, they'd be some 200 acres of willow trees in a floodplain on the southwest part of the city. They would literally drink up treated wastewater while at the same time recharging the water tables allowing nature – via the trees – to remove nitrates and ammonia. "Weatherford Woods" ...
Articles by Section - Local Columns
The Pope and Godless capitalism
"This is called slave labor," said Pope Francis.
Cinco de Mayo is as American as you can get
People need to stop having heart palpations over Cinco de Mayo celebrations.
Meeting your Ripon neighbors at jury duty, plus an unexpected pleasure over lunch
Meeting a couple of Ripon folks, and one from Linden and another from Tracy was an unexpected pleasure in my brief two days of jury duty this week – especially when four of us just happened to go out to lunch together on Thursday.
Kentucky Derby’s horse tie to French Camp
FRENCH CAMP – It's a funny thing, this horse racing business.
Guns: Being judged by 12 instead of being carried by 6
She's a single mom in her early 30s. She lives in an old farmhouse in an almond orchard five miles east of Manteca. The closest neighbor is a quarter mile of a way but the trees make it impossible to see their home.
Want a safe environment for vacation? Then stay out of Yosemite
Yosemite National Park is not Disneyland.
Perhaps Manteca should work with Wal-Mart to create a homeless park
The aging RV was parked under a stately tree providing relief from the 90-degree midday heat.
Count your blessings that disco didn’t survive the ‘70s
Bell bottom pants. Flare-leg pants. Men's rayon tie scarves. Polyester suits.
California makes sure car buyers pay the price twice in taxes
Call it farmer smarts
Beware of sugary drink tax: It might end up killing you
How many calories are in 16 ounces of orange juice? Try 220 calories.
Adam: Big heart & even bigger inspiration
Anthony Alcaraz sat forward in his seat, staring quizzically at the track, convinced someone had made a mistake.
LAFCo’s Subliminal message: SJ County is not business friendly
Is San Joaquin County business friendly?
King George III: Behind the smoke in New York City
I can't stand cigarette smoke.
CARE to know why your power rates are higher?
CARE to know what PG&E and South San Joaquin Irrigation District agree upon?
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