Yes, I know that in many parts of oh-so-Progressive Petaluma, the Christian practice of celebrating the birth of Jesus is politically incorrect, if not openly frowned upon. To which I say, Merry Christmas. As to whether a cultural construct such Santa will bring Petaluma solutions to it's perennial problems, I [...]
Caveat emptor...like never before. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I just resigned from the Cinnabar School board after more than 12 years as a trustee. No, not from frustration - though there was plenty of that courtesy of the narrow-minded, self-serving, boneheads in Sacramento. The reason was that Colleen and I moved to Cotati and, as a result, I no longer reside in the district - a requirement for trusteeship. I grew up in Los Angeles during the salad days of California, when the Golden State lead the country in education, productivity and imagination. Today, thanks to decades of ever-increasing state-employee entitlements, a ferocious anti-business mindset, and pie-in-the-faith in liberal fantasies, California still leads the country...in population exodus, business relocations, and crushing debt. People get so exercised about the encroachment of Hispanic influence on our culture, when the real threat to California is that it's turning into Greece.
John and Chris tell me downtown merchants report that delivery trucks are shaving their turns with dire consequences to the street corner lights. Yikes. I guess downtown is getting more and more crowded. I don't recall hearing about the possibility of these sorts of consequences in any discussion of the wonderfulness of "urban infill." As a young man I visited Les Halles, the storied produce / meat market once located in the heart of Paris. Not long after I was there, due the noise and impact on the local infrastructure the French - exemplars of all right thinking in the minds of many - moved the market to the outskirts of town. Perhaps they recognized the value of urban "out-fill."
In the spirit of thankfulness, let's praise the kind souls who work, and sometimes even sacrifice, to meet the needs of others. Whether they do so year-round or as just they perceive the need, may God bless them as they bless those they serve.
As an official "senior," I can personally attest to at least a glancing awareness of this phenomenon. Recently, Colleen (who is not yet a senior) and I were looking for a home in Petaluma to rent and we came across this posting on Craigslist for a home in Victoria for $800/month. We thought this was way too low. But we wanted to stay in Petaluma if possible so we e-mailed the poster. However, when the poster replied, saying among other things that he would "mail us the keys" upon receipt of the first and last month's rent, he included a phone number from Nigeria. So, we contacted Timo Rivetti, the listing agent on the sign out front. Timo confirmed that it was indeed a scam. So, I guess we weren't actually scammed, but we sure felt foolish.
The union of chronic protesters (Local #94952) - AKA Occupy Wall Street / Petaluma franchise - were assembled last Saturday at Penry Park. The Argus stated that there were 150 in attendance. From what I saw, that would have meant counting everyone at least twice. The most charming sight was a about 6 people marching in a tight circle carrying protest signs - a sight that was clearly visible to nobody but the six.
After seven years of wooing Petaluma, Lowes threw in the towel. I guess the additional and unnecessary EIR's required by the city in the hopes of forestalling the blackmail, I mean frivolous litigation, threatened by the anti-growth gang finally wore Lowes down. So, who do you think is publicly chortling that Lowe's departure gives us "time to rethink the project?" The same bunch who will obstruct the next iteration of the project, and the one after that. And in the process, these self-righteous bullies continue to cost the city sorely needed tax revenues, and the citizens jobs.
Petaluma's an historic city, but the Adobe may be our last remaining truly historical site that has been preserved to study and enjoy. Given all of the local progressives who seem to passionately worship Petaluma's past over the present, surely some can tear themselves away from blocking anything new to to save something old.
The "jewel" of Petaluma's parks has been covered in bird poop for quite some time. Of late, however, our empoverished town has been forced to cut back in maintenance with the result that Lucchesi Park is beginning to resemble a landfill...with the added nonsense of inappropriate public demonstrations of passion around the edges. I think it's time to cry "fowl!"