UCSB gets last word on oil seeps
Scientists at the University of California, Santa Barbara, have documented something we’ve suspected for years. Those nasty seeps off the Channel coast are worse polluters than the Exxon Valdez — by a factor of 10 or more. Preliminary research from UCSB and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has determined that the oil seeps have leaked Read More →
Give us a ballot that will really save the budget
The May 19 election offers California voters a couple of bad options in a terrible time. On one hand, we can follow the lead of several chambers of commerce and other organizations and vote for ballot measures 1A to 1F. That may or may not mean the end of the state’s budget crisis and buy Read More →
Fire proves peaker
In a decision that has not received wide publicity, the California Coastal Commission has approved Southern California Edison’s proposed Oxnard peaker plant. The wisdom of this decision, made in mid-April, was borne out on May 5 when the Jesusita Fire above Santa Barbara threatened to cut power across a wide swath of South Santa Barbara Read More →
What did Mozilo know? When did he know it?
Countrywide Financial Corp.’s name is headed into the sunset, signaling that the once-formidable mortgage giant is now safely tucked into the Bank of America family of product lines. But there’s still plenty of reason to believe that Countrywide and its once high-flying founder-CEO Angelo Mozilo will remain in the headlines. For one thing, it’s clear Read More →
Togetherness, Ventura-style
Ventura County has taken a bold step in addressing the dire financial straits facing thousands of families in our region. The county’s United Way organization, its Community Foundation and others have founded “Ventura County Together,” a relief effort focused on food, shelter and access to health care. In just one example provided by Dave Smith Read More →
Salary hikes highlight exactly what
Perhaps the greatest symbol of what’s wrong about California is what author Joel Kotkin calls the entitled bureaucracy. That’s why it really sticks in our craw that assembly leaders of both parties felt absolutely no remorse about handing out $551,000 in pay increases to the assembly staff at a time when they are literally begging Read More →
Youth more resourceful than ever
A new generation of students is getting ready to graduate from our colleges and universities. The job outlook is grim. The global economy is uncertain. House prices are in a free fall. But it’s also true that this is an incredibly resourceful and tech-savvy generation and that it will be steeled in the furnace of Read More →
