Homeless outreach worker Randy Limburg came across Alan Davis a couple of weeks ago. Davis was frequenting downtown Modesto in an area roughly from the old Modesto Bee building, at 1325 H Street, to five points at J Street and Downey Avenue, near Ralston Towers. Davis said he was fifty-four years old and had been on the streets for a few months after waking up from surgery at Memorial Hospital. […]
Search Results for: Water, Water, Everywhere
On the Public Record is just too Good
Sometimes it’s easy to forget how little most of us really know about water in the San Joaquin Valley. And even when we do know just a little, it’s even easier for what little we know to be submerged in the flood of mis- and disinformation that fills most of our media most of the time. For those reasons and more, insiders who follow western water news closely rely on […]
A New Tyranny of the Minority Threatens Wildlife and Nature
But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee: and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee. Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this? In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind. […]
Modesto: A City under Siege
“They all ran on the premise that government is the problem, and every one of them has managed to help prove it.” Whenever Modesto appears on those, “Worst Places to Live,” lists—which is often—city leaders object vociferously. “Modesto is a great place to live,” they say, “the people are great people, they’re wonderful.” Visitors get a different impression, especially those who enter the city via I Street and the famed […]
David Lambert on Homelessness in the Valley
David Lambert’s popular Facebook page, “Homelessness and Poverty in Stanislaus,” has over 1200 members and is growing every day. Lambert gets lots of on-the-ground experience in the Valley as a Guardian Angel, and he is one of the best listeners anywhere to people experiencing homeless. He realized we’re facing a national crisis long ago, and is increasingly frustrated by the failure to offer practical solutions to a national emergency. Look […]
Republicans in the Valley: The Red Menace
“Yet, hear me, people, we have now to deal with another race – small and feeble when our fathers first met them but now great and overbearing. Strangely enough they have a mind to till the soil and the love of possession is a disease with them. These people have made many rules that the rich may break but the poor may not. They take their tithes from the poor […]
CEQA Gauntlet Tossed at OID Board Meeting
Tuesday’s meeting of the Oakdale Irrigation District’s Board of Directors was only predictable until attorney Howard Wilkins strode to the public speaker’s podium. Prior to that, the presence of new directors Gail Altieri and Linda Santos had already resulted in several 3 to 2 votes on issues ranging from staff salary increases to appropriate recognition for outgoing board members Al Bairos and Frank Clark. No one was surprised at the […]
All You Need to Know for Yes on X, Part II
In Part I, we argued that anti-government and anti-tax hysteria promoted by the likes of Grover Norquist have resulted in failures to provide the very services governments were formed to deliver, especially public safety. Ultimately, the Norquist arguments have resulted in the kind of madness that has shut down the federal government and threatens democracy altogether. Here, we address much more serious arguments against Measure X. While these arguments are […]
Green is the Color of Money: Stanislaus County’s New Gold Rush
In California, the dream of endless riches that started with the gold rush has never stopped resonating— nor has the inevitable disappointment when the dream turns to a nightmare. The latest rush is occurring right here in the San Joaquin Valley, where money really does grow on trees. A boom in almond and pistachio prices has resulted in what may yet be another harrowing bust in California’s long history of […]
Around the Region Box
Lodi grapevines removed as glut lowers prices Lodi is one of the premier grape-growing regions in the world. Less renowned than Napa/Sonoma producers, Lodi winemakers are nonetheless famous worldwide for voluminous production and niche wines like Zinfandel. Recently, however, Lodi grape-growers have been pulling out vineyards as falling demand for wine has made grape production a losing proposition. Read More 82-year-old driving instructor from Modesto in NYT story 82-year-old Gil […]