On the first day of high school physics, our teacher chalked T.A.N.S.T.A.A.F.L. onto the blackboard. He then turned to us, pointed at what was obviously an acronym, and asked if anyone knew what the letters stood for. We were all clearly stumped, so he offered a hint. “It’s the first rule of physics.” When this […]
The San Joaquin Valley has suffered for years from over-regulation and a resulting man-made drought. With the U.S. Senate having blocked a comprehensive water solution, the lack of surface water is creating excessive demand on the aquifer, threatening even worse water problems in the future. These policies – imposed by big-government adherents and environmental extremists […]
‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the manse not a creature was stirring, not even the ants. Instructions were spread on the floor in Chinese, in hopes that assembly would happen with ease. The presents were piled by the tree in a heap, each one to be wrapped while the kids were asleep. […]
In the circular firing squad that is today’s Republican Party, Speaker of the House John Boehner has finally unveiled his outrage at the myopic short-term tactics of fractious far-right interest groups — tactics that have not furthered the party, but ironically ensured that, in some races at least, a republican cannot even be elected. Here’s […]
From the Monterey shale under our very feet to the Bakken formation beneath the Great Plains, the United States is riding high on an almost incalculably huge pool of oil that new technologies and methods of extraction now make accessible. In fact, recent reports indicate that these vast reserves might outstrip those of the rest […]
Zoning classifications and property descriptions are meant to organize and clarify, but they often just confuse. Land use in Tulare County is divided into thirty-one zone classifications. All zoning designated with an “R” is residential. For example, “R-1” is zoned for single-family residential and “R-2” is zoned for single-family residential or two-family dwellings (like duplexes). […]
We are in the holiday season and many of us think of what we might do to help others. There are many, many persons throughout the United States who are in medical need of a stem cell transplant after other cancer therapies have failed. Modern technology has made donating stem cells much like donating blood. […]
Last winter, I dedicated a column to an explanation of the new Common Core State Standards. In fact, I started with, “A big change is on the horizon for California schools: the implementation of Common Core State Standards.” In September, I read about a recent Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the public’s attitudes toward the […]
Now that the Tea Party has taken its ball and gone home, leaving the government of the United States in shutdown, we sadly must all admit that, while awful, this closure is far from the worst thing to befall us. OK–perhaps “befall” is inaccurate, in that it implies something happening to us, when in reality […]
I and no other good minded and non criminal record person have a single reason to use the park currently because we have no reason to: Hang out there Be seen there Walk there Visit there Play there Party there Drink or do drugs there Sleep there Sell drugs there Seek prostitutes there Panhandle or […]