Opinion
Editorials
Valley Viewpoint: Veterinary services must not be taxed as luxury
Because of the new proposed California sales taxes on so-called “luxuries,” I recently sent the letter below to the governor. It is time to get involved instead of letting legislators continue put the burden on us for their own financial excesses and irresponsibility. I urge everyone to write to the governor (see ‘Contact your representatives’ box below) and protest his going too far.
More of this storyI would like to respond to the scathing letter by John Perry about what he perceived was a biased article about the recent Forest Service HIRA fee accounting meeting. Mr. Perry’s most pressing issue seems to be that I did not mention his comment about green sticker funds. I would like to point out that while I did hear his comment, when Ms. Terrell said that those funds were not included in the Recreation Funds being reported on in that meeting, I thought Mr. Perry’s comment was irrelevant to the article. Had I included every comment, the Sun would have consisted of nothing BUT the Forest Service meeting article.
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Community Voices: Fish Stocking Status Update
After the announcement that the North Fork of the Kern River was on a list of waters that were prohibited from planting hatchery-raised rainbow trout, fishery experts were consulted and documentation reviewed that supported a position that no native fish were threatened. A letter was compiled along with a list of supporting reference material. On Jan 12, letters were sent to the plaintiffs, key personnel at California Department of Fish and Game, and to state and local politicians including Governor Schwarzenegger. The letters to the local and state politicians were a one-page version of the letter sent to the plaintiffs, omitting the technical and reference data. Those letters did include a comment that the more complete version sent to the plaintiffs would be made available on the krvr.org web link.
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Community Voices: Open letter to Sequoia National Forest officials
I was surprised to see that a Porterville Forest Service financial officer was invited to address the Kern Valley Revitalization Committee’s fee advisory Ad Hoc Committee in Kernville last Wednesday, Jan. 21, morning. This was not listed on the agenda they had sent out the previous week, nor was an email update sent with regard to it. I was not able to attend this meeting due to previous plans. If I had known of this presentation, I would have adjusted my plans and attended the meeting. (I had made what I thought were arrangements for a colleague to sit in for me as a participant, but for reasons unknown, at the last minute he was not allowed to do so.)
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Letters
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Float inappropriate for Whiskey Flat Parade
“Be pleasant,” that’s one of the guidelines that the Kernville Chamber of Commerce requires of Whiskey Flat Days parade entries. Well, it seems that the Chamber must have been snow-blind this year as very a negative and unpleasant float managed to slip into the Whiskey Flat Days parade. It seems that some local Republicans, suffering from sore-loser syndrome, decided to get nasty with a banner that read “Republicans Free Slaves - Democrats Free Terrorits.” It’s too bad that this handful of Republicans decided to launch unpleasant attacks instead of standing on the merits of their own position.
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Whiskey Flat Parade not political venue
I really want to believe that the Kernville Chamber of Commerce and the organizers of the Whiskey Flats Days Parade were not aware of the offensive, inappropriate and completely out-of-place banner that made its way through town, plastered to the side of the “Republican” float.
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Build California desalination plants
The Central Valley in California grows most of the country’s fruits and vegetables in normal times, but it is currently in a severe drought and farmers are abandoning their farms. Farmers in Fresno County, CA will only plant half the acreage of lettuce grown in 2005.
More of this storyThis letter is in response to the article entitled “Hospital Chief Clinical Officer Submits Resignation,” (2/11/09 issue.) I expected an article about what happened to this person. What’s the story behind this seemingly sudden resignation? Is there a replacement? How will this loss affect hospital care? I was very disappointed.
More of this storyThe Family of Glaytias Wells would like to express their thanks for the care given to Glaytias during her years in the Kern Valley. She had many, many friends who cared for her, and made her later years happy and enjoyable. She had a wonderful 95th birthday. Thanks so much to all of you, especially her care givers, Butch and Nancy Hanna.
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Glad to be of service
Re: Word of mouth best advertising, Letters, 2/11/09Last week I read a letter from a former Kern Valley resident. In her letter she mentioned the lack of quality service she had received when she requested flowers be sent to our cemetery. She also mentioned she was referred to a different service provider and was pleased to see that friendly service is still alive and well in the Kern River Valley. I am pleased we were able to provide her, from a distance, the service she desired for her loved one. We are a small community and rely on friendly, quality service to keep the Valley in business.
More of this storyAs a young man in the Reagan White House, Chief Justice Roberts wrote, “Saying God bless America, and God bless our troops is not proper.” His reasoning was that, “God had a much larger agenda than our particular country or troops.”
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Nothing is impossible
Re: Mountain lion killed in Kernville neighborhood, 1/14/09San Pedro, Calif. is equipped with a bird sanctuary and a sanctuary for seals, sea lions, etc. This donation-funded place is for injured and or sick wildlife. They are treated until healthy and set free, some aren’t so lucky.
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Do banks deserve a piece of the stimulus pie?
Did anyone see where our tax dollars are going now? Bank of America is getting forty five billion dollars of our money. Already one of the largest banks in the world, they are now getting our tax money. Week after week, its seem that it has the most capitol of all national banks. Its always on top. I need a stimulus loan too. Chances of me getting a government loan is less than zero. But yet the (expletive deleted) way Bank of America treats their customers with their strict laws and regulation continues. They make millions of dollars every year by fining their customers. Where is justice now?
More of this storyCongress and the Administration are touting alternative energy sources to replace power production derived from foreign oil. They want to generate 10% to 20% of the U.S. energy needs from alternative sources.
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'Chance' movie speaks for itself
This letter is directed to everyone, including the super liberals and anti-military. On Saturday, Feb. 21, I ask you to tune your TV to HBO at 8:00 p.m. and watch a movie entitled ‘Taking Chance.’ This movie will speak for itself. Semper fi.
More of this storyA (freelance) reporter for a newspaper has a duty to report facts. They should not allow their personal biases and agendas to influence their reporting. I attended the HIRA meeting that Valerie Cassity reported on (HIRA fees debated, 2/4/09.)
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Fast, reliable high speed internet lackinng
Will the Valley ever (and I mean ever) have a high speed Internet provider that actually provides a system with speed, consistency and stable service?
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Word of mouth best advertising
Please remind your business owners that good customer service extends far beyond the physical boundaries of the valley. Word of mouth advertising goes a lot farther and carries a stronger credibility. Monday was the 15th anniversary of the death of someone I will never stop loving, and I wanted to send roses to his grave. I called a florist that I had used for over 30 years (since I now live in Pennsylvania) to order the flowers and immediately she began to give me all the reasons she could not deliver them, citing that it was impossible to find the graves there. I told her to ask Randy Kyt because he would know, and she had excuses for why she could never reach him. It was obvious she did not want to take this order. I hung up and called the cemetery office and spoke to a nice lady named Laura who was very helpful, and suggested I use another florist. Of course Randy knew immediately where my friend’s grave was located! The florist was terrific and didn’t even have a minimum order amount. The flowers were delivered and I now have a new florist I will refer to in the future. Friends, don’t assume because I don’t live there anymore that I don’t use KV businesses, I do still have friends and family there. And now some new friends, thanks to word of mouth advertising!
More of this storyWe are very upset by an incident that occurred in the Isabella Super Market parking lot on Tuesday, Feb. 3 at about 10:30 a.m. A grayish-haired woman driving a white pick up pushed her emptied shopping cart into the door of our new red jeep. Upon seeing two prominent scratches and a dent, she rushed to her pick up and sped away.
More of this storyI kept one string of lights out when I put the Christmas things away. Well o.k., I confess two strings. One is on my fence and one is woven into a plant in my living room. They warm my heart and remind me of the joy of giving. Sometimes I need to remind myself that people in this valley go hungry every day, not just Christmas day. The Compassion Caravan has put large, red barrels in our stores and in the fire stations. Our hope is that we won’t forget that some of our citizens need help, especially now with the economic downturn. Two of my neighbors have lost their jobs.
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The real story on the mountain lion in Kernville
The mountain lion showed up in my yard around 10:00am. Next to my house is a vacant burned house where six stray cats live. The lion was sitting in the yard trying to get an easy meal since its leg was shot and rotting away (actually rotting you can smell it). My great Dane Dallas found it and chased it out of my yard. That's when I saw it and called 911. When I called, no one could respond, or would answer the call. I called two times total. Finally a CHP showed up and said he can do nothing about it. We waited like 20 minutes and no one showed up but a Kern County Parks Ranger, he couldn't do anything. So we tried to corner it in someone's fenced in back yard but it jumped that seven-foot fence, no worries! Then Animal Control showed up 50 minutes later and checked it out. Then another CHP showed up and when they walked in to check the situation, the cat came at them. They had no choice but to shoot it. And I agree with their decision.
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Playing house in the White House
It’s tough being cynical about the Bush daughters’ recent sweet letter of advice and remembrances to the Obama daughters, but I’ll try. Their first piece of advice, “Surround yourself with loyal friends” sounds strangely adult, since loyalty is an unlikely prime concern to children 7 and 10. Instead, it sounds like a page from their dad’s playbook of unapologetic cronyism that our Congress had to waste countless hours investigating and rectifying. Something like “Make friends, have fun with them, and learn from them” would seem more appropriate advice to children moving into a strange new environment.
More of this storyI am writing to ask Valley residents to attend a Forest Service (FS) Fees meeting, Monday, Feb. 2, 6:30 p.m. at the Kernville Oddfellows Hall. The FS proposals presented there could result in separating local residents from their money. Are fee increases warranted? Many of us made accounting requests to the Forest Service at local meetings in June and July 2008, trying to find out if new fees are justified. As of drafting this letter, an accurate accounting for fees collected over the last four years has not been provided. On Jan. 21, Mary Cole of the Forest Service stated that a grant has been distributed to the Porterville FS office to develop signs that state that a ten dollar ($10) Day Use “Recreation Pass” is required when parked at sites like Camp Nine and numerous sites near the dam. This recreation parking pass is a completely separate fee from the overnight camping fees and it already costs seventeen dollars ($17) to overnight at Camp Nine. The Forest Service says that they can charge this new $10 parking fee because local residents said it was ok to call those areas a “HIRA.” This is especially troubling because maps presented at 2008 meetings showed that the FS hopes to encompass all of Lake Isabella and the Upper Kern River in a “HIRA.” District Ranger Rick Larson will not go on record stating that a valley wide “HIRA” is forever off the table. Do you want to have to pay for a sticker to park your car anywhere in the watershed that is adjacent to Sequoia Forest land? I don’t. To me, this is equivalent to an “entrance fee” and it is my understanding that those kind of “entrance” fees are only allowed by law in State and National Parks. Please pass the word and make your voices heard. Attend the meeting and say “No more HIRA’s.”
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Dissent, criticism American tradition
In this age of euphoria and a call for unity, the history of the United States has proven that this collective optimism won’t last...and that is a good thing. Our Constitution and other founding documents are based on liberty and individual rights, especially thought. There have been few presidents that have truly defended and followed the Constituion and if the current President indicated that he would start a new trend, I’m not convinced. An American president should seal the borders, reduce the size of government, eliminate the income tax and do not surrender our sovereignty to the United Nations. It doesn’t look like any of this will happen soon. Yes, dissent and criticism of the government and presidents is an American tradition. The day that our liberties to criticize are being attempted to be defined as anti-American, or not coming together in unity, is when the eve of a long dark night of oppression and censorship is upon the American landscape.
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Angels, prayers, people work wonders
To the kind folks of Lake Isabella, Station 71, Lake Patrol, Medi-Vac, and God. On December 30, 2008 you were working in the morning hours. Thank God. What was probably was another day on the job for you was a blessing to us. Our mother, Shirley Venegas, was in critical condition after her vehicle veered off of Hwy 178 and rolled down 275 feet of boulders, coming to a halt barely a few feet from the lake’s edge. Station 71 hiked down rugged terrain, stabilized and extricated her from the vehicle. Lake Patrol took her to a place where Medi-Vac could land to take her to the only major trauma hospital in Bakersfield, Kern Medical Center. From there, she has received superior, lifesaving care that has been tendered with kindness and compassion that has been extended to us as well, her family, in these difficult days. Without all of these kind, skilled, dedicated professionals, our mother would not be alive today. The only part of the vehicle that wasn’t totally destroyed by boulders and offered possible survival in this horrendous accident was the driver’s side, her side. Without Angels, she would not be alive today. Without all of your prayers, she would not be alive today. Although she has a long road ahead of her, she is healing day by day. We would you like to thank you all from the bottom of our hearts. Know that we will always be grateful.
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