“Maybe we should conclude that JIT supply chains, when involved on a global basis and with respect to certain types of businesses and service providers, are not the ideal model for medical preparedness.” As someone who’s been working for and around physicians since age 13 — not just through my high school years while working for a local doctor in Newman, but during my years at UCSF School of Dentistry […]
Will Mistletoe Destroy Modesto’s Urban Forest?
Mayor Ted Brandvold wants more money to hire police officers and most agree our police force is understaffed. Nonetheless, many concerned citizens fear Brandvold will divert funds and continue to neglect Modesto’s urban forest, once a symbol of pride that has now become a financial liability. With her typical keen insight and concern for the city, Babette Wagner wonders whether the spread of destructive mistletoe will add even more costs […]
Blowing Leaves is Blowing my Stack!
Earlier this month, as I was driving West on Scenic Boulevard in Modesto during the lunch hour, traffic was backed up by the cemeteries bordering Scenic and Bodem. It was a warm day and many drivers had their windows down, some with freshly washed cars, as we waited for the light at Scenic and Bodem to change. It wasn’t a long wait, but it wasn’t a pleasant one either, given […]
Does Measure L stand for Ludicrous?
We live in the relatively new Village One area, which features underground utilities and lovely smooth, paved streets—or it did until now. So what’s going on now? Those of us who live here are stranded either at home or elsewhere between 7:00 AM and 5:00 PM on various days this week as these still quite serviceable streets are being given a new “slurry coat” for some reason or another which […]
Is the Bee an Endangered Species?
Way back in 2011, the Columbia Journalism Review published an article about Modesto’s dire need for news. This was when the Modesto Bee still had hundreds of employees, slightly down from its peak of almost seven-hundred, but still a respectable number for a local newspaper. Today, Bee employees number in the low dozens. The paper still includes national news, and the local range of coverage still extends throughout the northern […]
“Toujours Babette”: An Open Letter to Ted Howze
Like many former Republicans, Babette “Toujours Babbette” Wagner couldn’t abide the party’s drift away from traditional conservative values toward and into the Trump abyss. Her recent encounter with Republican candidate for Congress Ted Howze prompted the following open letter. ed. Good day, Dr. Howze, As one of the people who helped with the event, I want to thank you for stopping by our neighborhood’s National Night Out (NNO) to introduce […]