Faced with a certain $27.3 million projected shortfall locally and possibly/probably at least $145 million in cuts and delayed payments from the state, the county decided to start the belt tightening early.

About time, I say. It’s not like we can’t all see this train wreck coming.

That’s why I found it aggravating last week when the Board of Supervisors decided it was best (for whom?) to make their sausage behind closed doors.

County Administrative Officer Ron Errea hustled up a report detailing the budget gap and recommended a 10 percent mid-year cut.

The board could have done a lot of things, including what they should have done, which was to start the discussion and publicly hammer out what to cut now and make a contingency plan for the likelihood of a greater hit from the state later.

It would have been a long, messy meeting probably leading to a need for more meetings.

But it would have given the public the opportunity to see how their money was being handled in these uncertain times and allowed us what’s known as “input,” meaning we might actually have a say in how our money is spent.

Instead, supervisors got all squirmy and delayed the discussion for a week because they “needed more information.”

Supervisors Ray Watson and Jon McQuiston, though, gave a glimpse of the real reason for the delay.

“...they expect much of the budget debate to be addressed during internal county discussions before...Feb. 3,” they told reporter James Burger.

Uh-huh.

Yeah, why would you have a public discussion about how to spend the public’s money when you can have department heads, unions and staffers (everyone but us!) lobbying supervisors behind closed doors?

Deciding everything beforehand will make for a much tidier meeting, I’m sure.

Burger, sly dog that he is, has requested Supervisors’ calendars and emails regarding the budget, so we’ll at least know who was making the rounds on the 5th floor of the county building.

And, so sorry to the Supervisors who hoped to weasel out of it, but this is PUBLIC information, so cough it up.

In other lamo local government news, I would normally applaud the City of Bakersfield for scrapping over every nickel, especially in these tight times.

But they can’t be serious taking Richard Jennings to small claims court over an outrageous bill to fix 8 1/2 blocks of a city-owned wall broken by a limb from Jennings’ tree.

Jennings offered to get the wall fixed, but nooooo.

The city instead had its regular block-wall-fixing company, Gonzalez Multi-Masonry, do the job — and then billed Jennings more than $4,000!

Some of that, $622, was “administrative costs” by the city, which was reduced (after our stories) to $276 for “actual costs.”

The bigger deal here, of course, is that the city would contract with a company that  charges $3,437 for a simple repair job.

I was told there’s more to it than just the cost of the bricks ($1.50 each at Home Depot), such as the city assessing the damage and finding a contractor who knows what he’s doing, etc.

Yes, yes, yes. And unless the Pentagon negotiated this contract, such repairs should still cost no more than $700.

Jennings said his homeowners insurance would cover the bill, but he asked them to hold off in the false hope the city would charge something more reasonable.

No such luck.

Tomorrow morning, Risk Manager Ralph Korn — at a cost of $46.52 an hour, by the way — will head to small claims court and go toe-to-toe with Jennings over the wall.

“Don’t you think we should protect the taxpayers’ money?” Assistant City Manager John Stinson asked me when I called to gig him about “wall-gate.”

Absolutely!

NOT binding taxpayers to absurdly inflated contracts would be a good start.

In other double talk news, we were tut-tutted during last summer’s gas price run up (mostly by people who sell gas) when we wondered why Bakersfield, with all its oil production and refining, seemed to pay higher prices instead of lower at the pump.

The experts (mostly people who sell gas) told us it was a market thing, that Kern doesn’t make enough fuel to dent our cost.

Now that Big West of California’s refinery on Rosedale Highway is on the verge of collapse, however, we’re being told (mostly by people who sell gas) that our price per gallon could jump by 20 cents.

Many years ago, I covered the oil industry and would periodically do stories on why Bakersfield’s gas was higher than in other areas. I got a lot of answers but here’s what I finally came to understand about why oil companies charge more here:

Because they can.

Opinions expressed in this column are those of Lois Henry, not The Bakersfield Californian. Her  column appears Wednesdays and Sundays. Comment at people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/noholdsbarred, call her at 395-7373 or e-mail lhenry@bakersfield.com

GRAND JURY CLARIFICATION

For those interested in applying to the Kern County grand jury, I listed a web address for the application forms in my column last week.

It’s the right address, but as with any government process, you have to go through the right hoops to get there!

First go here:
http://www.co.kern.ca.us/gr...

Then look on the right-hand side of the page in the first blue box and click on the item that says “FY08-09 Recruitment now open” and it will take you to another page where you can download the form.

Here’s your perfect opportunity to be, um, well, me (kind of).

Peeking under the covers of government finances, asking questions no one wants to answer, holding officials’ feet to the fire and telling agencies how to run their shops.

If that sounds like fun to you  — it does to me — then you’re the perfect candidate for the 2009-2010 Kern County grand jury.

Sorry to those folks out there who thought I was leaving. No such luck.

You have until April 10 to get your application in, so don’t say I didn’t give you fair warning.

People tell me all the time they think this county needs fixin’ and they want to get involved but don’t know how. Well, this is a great way to do both.

You don’t need to be a financial wizard or a former Supreme Court justice.

All you need is a strong sense of curiosity and fair play and an open mind. A bulldog personality doesn’t hurt either.

OK, a few other things: You must be a U.S. citizen; have a proficient grasp of written and spoken English; NOT be a felon; and NOT be currently serving in an elected office (for you Blagojeviches out there, those last two are not either/or requirements!).

I know some of you out there are rolling your eyes thinking the grand jury is just something for old fogies and what have they done lately, anyhow?

Grand jury foreman pro-tem Larry Walker allowed as to the accuracy of the old fogie part of that statement.

“We’ve had people in their 40s occasionally, but the youngest we’ll usually get is in their 30s,” he said.

That’s mostly because of the time commitment — a minimum 20 hours a week — which is tough on those of us who aren’t retired or independently wealthy.

But when I asked about the relevance of the grand jury, Walker would have none of that.

“You remember the person who died in the downtown jail a few years ago and there were no cameras?” he asked in reference to the death of James Moore in August 2005 allegedly at the hands of 3 detentions deputies (still pending trial, by the way).

“They said there was no money for cameras, well, two years ago our jury went in and found the money in the inmate welfare fund. That happened through the grand jury’s actions.”

One report currently creating a stir was released last fall asserting that the Sheriff’s dispatch unit was slower than national standards in answering 911 calls due to severe understaffing.

The report showed up as a blip in the news but really rankled the Sheriff’s department, which fired back a multi-page response saying  911 calls absolutely are answered in a timely manner, per national standards.

Unconvinced, Walker and his fellow jurors are gearing up to delve deeper into this important issue.

The truth lies somewhere in the statistics, which, as we all know, can tell different stories depending on the narrator.

OK, so not all investigations are as “sexy” as that, Walker acknowledged.

In fact a number of the reports released under this grand jury had no recommendations.

“Some are just, ‘You’re doing a good job,’” Walker said.

He argued, though that even the “atta boys” can make a difference, saying the Delano police chief shows the reports to his council to get more money for his programs.

“With state government and everyone else going broke, it’s more important than ever to hold people accountable,” Walker said. “Even if we find nothing wrong, maybe it’s because they know we’re looking.

“Especially in small cities, some officials just don’t care and think they can get away with murder. But if we beat them up enough, maybe they’ll straighten up their act.”

Hey! That sounds like something I’d say.

Hurry and get your applications in. Many are called, but only 19 are chosen.

These are Lois Henry’s opinions, not necessarily The Californian’s. Her column appears Wednesday and Sunday. Call her at 395-7373 or write lhenry@bakersfield.com.

How to apply to be a Kern County grand juror
1.  Obtain an Application for Nomination:
• Online: www.co.kern.ca. us/helpfiles/priv_printedform.asp
• By phone: call (661) 868-4797 or (661) 868-4916 to request an application
• In-person: pick up an application at:
Grand Jury Offices
1415 Truxtun Ave., Suite 600, Bakersfield CA 93301-5222

2. Fill out the application

3. Print the filled out application (if downloaded)

4. Sign the application

5. Mail or deliver the application to:
Superior Court Administration, 1415 Truxtun Ave., Room 212, Bakersfield CA 93301-5222

(There is a background check and oral interview)

I just got a call from a very very frustrated mom of a "gorgeous, talented, intelligent, professional" 27 year old woman who canNOT find a husband in Bakersfield.

Sure, plenty of guys want romance, but they aren't sticking around, she told me.

And her daughter's girlfriends say they're finding the same thing.

Where are all the true blue young men with decent jobs and no criminal record????

She wants me to do a column on it!

Not sure about that but it is an interesting question.

I asked around and lots of my single gal friends say they're in the same boat. Even some male friends (now married) say it was pretty easy for them to find quality women to date here.

Is Bakersfield really low on good men of the youngish marryable type? (being an old married lady myself, I haven't noticed.)

Or is this a two way street and the fact is we just don't have ANY young, quality, marryables of either gender?

For the record, this column is not a slam against former Assemblywoman Nicole Parra for her effortless and undeserved, butter-side-up landing into the arms of a newly created $128,000-a-year government job to assist in the “economic development of underserved areas.”

No, this column is a slam against what has become the industry of economic development, which seems mostly to develop the economies of the individuals running the overabundance of “programs,” “initiatives,” and “partnerships” that are supposed to bring more jobs to us schmos whose tax dollars are paying their salaries.

To be fair, I do think some economic development efforts are worthwhile. But those are the boots-on-the-ground groups such as the Kern Economic Development Corporation, which concentrates solely on marketing Kern to corporations and developers and we can watch exactly how it’s spending our money.

I’m not nearly as secure with other economic development “initiatives,” such as the one run by the California Partnership for the San Joaquin Valley (which Parra helped create, by the by).

The partnership is a kind of overarching structure that pulls together disparate groups in the eight counties that make up the San Joaquin Valley to combine forces on issues such as the economy, air quality and education.

Mostly, from what I can see, it generates a lot of papers, reports and action plans — but not a lot of jobs.

Helping existing groups get together and define common goals, crib off of each other’s successes and speak in one voice for added political clout is all well and good.

But is playing host worth $5 million in taxpayer dollars? Plus another $5 million in private and other public funds?

Absolutely not.

We already had the Great Valley Center, a privately funded clearinghouse for all things valley, which could have served as den mother to bring these groups together.

The one thing the partnership has that the Great Valley Center doesn’t, but could have if the governor had been so inclined, is automatic political entree.
The secretaries of Environmental Protection, Health and Human Services, Housing, Food and Agriculture, Consumer Services, Higher Education and Workforce, Business, Transportation and Housing and Education are all mandated partnership board members.

Those are big political ears to bend.

What’s it gotten us so far?

Not much, really.

Just some of the “early wins” touted on the partnership’s website are getting the councils of governments working together on growth blueprints (mandated by law in SB 375); getting school superintendents together to share concerns; and creating a regional jobs website.

Mike Dozier, the partnership’s new executive director, did tell me the partnership helped get substantial federal money to fix up Highway 99, but that was in the works before the partnership got involved.

When I asked about jobs that had been created or companies brought here directly due to the partnership’s work, Dozier told me that’s not a real measure of success.

“I’ve been in economic development for 24 years and jobs is a poor way of gauging how successful you are,” he said. “Many other indicators are better, such as per capita income and unemployment.”

Before I even asked how those had fared, Dozier reminded me of the stinky economy.

OK.

Richard Chapman, head of the Kern Economic Development Corporation, told me his performance absolutely is measured by how many jobs he creates. That or the amount of capital investment he secures or the number of square feet that are filled because of his work.

“Our job is recruitment and retention,” he said. “We do not sit around writing papers and action plans.”

A 2007-2008 report gauging how well the Kern EDC met its goals says that Chapman’s group helped bring in 930 new jobs at an average annual salary of about $37,000 and assisted 100 local companies with retention or expansion that brought about an additional 875 jobs.

I asked Dozier whether there was a need for the partnership at all given how many groups are already working on economic development.

“Overloaded?” he said. “No, no, no. All those things you mention — the EDCs, the SBDCs (small business development corporations) the business incubators — they’re all working toward a common purpose. The purpose of the partnership is to include all those groups. I think it’s underfunded, if anything.”
Besides, he reminded me, the partnership has all that political clout.

“That gives us a very good connection to the governor.”
Ahhh, that. Which brings me back to Parra (OK, I lied when I said I wouldn’t take any swipes at her. Sue me.)

If the partnership has the political muscle it needs, exactly what is Parra’s job going to be?

I had a long conversation with someone in the Governor’s office about that and came away no clearer. So he sent me an email (posted below in full).

Here’s part of it:

“The Department of Business Transportation and Housing has been developing a series of urban and rural economic development and job growth programs (Me: Ummmm, how many of these do we need?) and this position has grown out of the need for a director to coordinate and implement these initiatives in economically underserved areas across California. 

“Assemblywomen Parra has been a dedicated public servant whose experience in maximizing public dollars (Me again: Oh yes, she knows how to maximize a public buck — $128,000 of them to be exact.) to address the needs of Californians has uniquely prepared her for this position.”
Sigh.

The valley can’t afford all this “help.”

Opinions expressed in this column are those of Lois Henry, not The Bakersfield Californian. Her  column appears Wednesdays and Sundays. Comment at people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/noholdsbarred, call her at 395-7373 or e-mail lhenry@bakersfield.com

EMAIL FROM THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE RE PARRA'S JOB DESCRIPTION
The Governor’s Regional Development Initiatives director is responsible for the following and assisting to:
• Direct the implementation of the Governor’s regional development initiatives such as the San Joaquin Valley Strategic Action Proposal approved by the Governor and other rural and urban economic development and growth programs in economically underserved areas.

• Increase the number of public-private partnerships in these areas to stimulate job growth.

• Assist these initiatives in convening region wide summits and meetings to engage government officials, civic leaders and the public to develop action plans for job growth.

• Identify projects and programs that will best utilize public dollars and most quickly improve the economic vitality of these regions, especially those that leverage federal, state, local and private sector resources in a coordinated effort to address critical needs.
Increase use of public and private work force development dollars in coordination with the Economic Strategies Panel.

In addition:
The Governor has been drastically reducing the size of state government in response to our budget crisis.  In the context of the state’s economy, the Governor is also focused on creating economic stimulus and job growth throughout the state. 

The Department of Business Transportation and Housing has been developing a series of urban and rural economic development and job growth programs and this position has grown out of the need for a director to coordinate and implement these initiatives in economically underserved areas across California. 

Assemblywomen Parra has been a dedicated public servant whose experience in maximizing public dollars to address the needs of Californians has uniquely prepared her for this position.   
 

Dr. Dunn asked that I post this as he was having techinical difficulties adding it to the comments section of my column.

He also sent a PDF attachement of public comments about the report the California Air Resources Board (CARB) on PM2.5 and the need to limit diesel emissions. As soon as I figure out how to put that on the blog, I'll post it too.

Below is Dr. Dunn's letter to me about my column:

Ms. Henry,
 
I was one of the scientists that submitted criticism of the California Air Resources Board proposal on diesel on October 24, 2008.  I am a physician and a public health researcher with particular interest in population toxicological epidemiology research. I asserted in my criticism of CARB that they had no basis for claiming thousands of Californians die from the current levels of air pollution in the state.  I also believe their policy making is damaging to the California economy.
 
All the research cited by CARB in its position papers on diesel fails to meet the basic rules for proof in such studies.  They are involved in putting up studies that dredge data for small effects that don't mean anything, certainly not that thousands die from small particles.  Air in California continues to improve and is not toxic.  People need to stop being so gullible when government agencies promote themselves as saviors.  The claim of thousands of deaths is not supported by the research, but the CARB knew that.  They continue their campaign knowing that their research shows small effects that don't pass the smell (pardon the pun) test, in fact according to the rules of evidence in Federal Courts, their research couldn't be admitted because observational population studies must show a Relative Risk (health effect) of 2 or more.  All the CARB studies show effects well below 1.5. 
 
Ms. Henry, you are quite right when you say that air quality in America and in California is no longer toxic and doesn't kill anyone.  I am an emergency physician and have never seen anyone, ever die of air pollution.  However CARB officials would be out of jobs were it not for panicky and anxious people like the ones who have commented on your blog.  They believe that air is a toxic killer, but air in California doesn't kill anyone.  In fact it has been more than 50 years since ambient air quality occurred in America that caused serious health effects.
 
The study you cited by Enstrom also creates a real problem for good scientists, including those at CARB.  Enstrom, following the data and with a large cohort of Californians, showed no air pollution death effect and public commenters to CARB properly pointed out that the second half of the Arden Pope American Cancer Society study and the Krewski map from the from the Health Effects Institute Study both confirm the Enstrom analysis.  Three studies refute the CARB assertion of death effects. In a fair and legitimate scientific debate that would mean CARB must take down its claims. 
 
As snide and sneering as some of the comments were on your blog, they were also not based on any real understanding of the research.  Sometimes science is inconvenient to fanatics or people with political agendas, but your writing captures the nature of this debate and the importance of rational adults maintaining a scientific mind--which means prove up the theory and don't ignore evidence that proves you wrong. 
 
The CARB is also ignoring the uncertainties of global warming computer modeling in favor of another bout of scaremongering that will justify more economic damage.  Both of these CARB agendas are easy targets for serious writers and scientists since there is plenty of evidence in both debates to show the CARB is wrong.  When proven wrong honest scientists start over and abandon their mistakes. 
 
Enstrom is a 35 year distinguished epidemiologist specializing in lifestyle makes for long life research.  He has a Ph.D. from Stanford in nuclear physics and a Masters in Public Health by Post Doctoral Studies at UCLA.  Not bad, and Enstrom is also courageous to follow his data even when he knows the political power of the CARB will be arrayed against his results.  Enstrom follows the data and ignores the politics, given that the politicians always vilify and condemn any dissent when money and power are at stake. 

As for Joel Schwartz, his portfolio and his education, including Cal Tech, are impeccable.  Both Enstrom and Schwartz rely on the data and the analysis.  Too often they endure silly personal attacks by people who don't understand epidemiology and public health toxicology studies or mendacity from agency apparatchiks who are energized by funding and power motives.  What do regulatory agencies do--they regulate, that gives them funding and fulfills their need to portray themselves as saviors.
 
Ms. Henry, Keep up the good work.  I attach here the CARB October 24, 2008 public comments, including those by Schwartz, Enstrom, Lipfert, and me.
 
You will note the short laudatory notes from various enviro groups, who enjoy very friendly relations with CARB.  The serious and lengthy critiques are from the dissenters.
 
Lucky for Bakersfield, Ms. Henry, you keep your skeptical mindset and your analytic skills sharp.  The mob who assume that air pollution is a serious danger should take a deep breath and reassess, like you have. 
 
John Dale Dunn MD JD
401 Rocky Hill Road
Brownwood, Texas 76801

I don’t know squat about engineering or historic preservation.

So I wouldn’t presume to say whether the old brick building at California Avenue and Q Streets, now in the way of the South Mill Creek redevelopment project, is worth saving.

But do I know a dodge when I read one.

And that’s exactly what I read in the city’s letter sent last month to the State Office of Historic Preservation asserting its right to tear the building down despite some late-breaking information that it was designed in 1927 by highly noted California architect Clarence Cullimore Sr.

After the state got wind of the Cullimore connection last summer — through local history buffs, not the city, by the way — it demanded that the city look more deeply into the building’s history.

The city’s Dec. 9, 2008 letter in response says the following (deep breath first):
The city didn’t find any historic significance when it did its first evaluation and, since it already completed its evaluation, which showed no significance, the building therefore isn’t historically significant.

Classic government-speak for: We’re doing what we want.

The progression up to that letter is also interesting.

Before the Cullimore connection was known, the city stuck by its “historically insignificant” mantra.

As late as July 2008 Bakersfield Economic Development Director Donna Kunz was talking about the possibility of finding a tenant to fix it up and maybe run a microbrewery there.

The Cullimore connection came out the next month and a funny thing happened.
Suddenly, the building would require millions, $5 million to $9 million, to retrofit, according to Building Director Phil Burns.

(Ironic twist No. 1: Cullimore was very well known for designing his buildings to withstand earthquakes, one of the reasons this one rode out the 1952 quake intact.)

But talk of retrofitting was back in August when Old Spaghetti Factory, known for rehabbing nifty old buildings, had shown some interest.

By November, Old Spaghetti Factory was out and CVS Pharmacy was sniffing around that corner, according to a Nov. 25 memo from Kunz to City Manager Alan Tandy.
CVS was just interested in the location, however, not the building nor the controversy brewing with it.

The building then went from needing retrofitting to “structurally unsound,” as Kunz told me a few weeks back. This assessment was based on a walk-through by Burns back in June.
Structural soundness is not a factor when determining if a building should be preserved, according to Milford Wayne Donaldson, State Historic Preservation Officer, and an East High grad.

One more troubling thing I found — a Dec. 4 memo from Kunz to Tandy outlines the controversy and has a tidbit stating that a 1985 survey of historic buildings doesn’t include the Cullimore building. What the tidbit doesn’t mention is the side of the street on which the Cullimore building sits wasn’t included in that survey.

That kind of fast and loose handling of the facts, along with serious questions about the building’s true historic significance begs that the city do a full environmental impact report (as required under the California Environmental Quality Act and National Environmental Protection Act).

That’s unfortunate because it would be expensive and likely hold up at least parts of the redevelopment project, an economic shot in the arm we desperately need.

(Ironic twist No. 2: In 1933, Cullimore did structural retrofitting work on adobe buildings in Long Beach as a way to help boost the economy there during the Great Depression.)

But given the city’s “damn the facts” behavior and the distrust it has sown with residents interested in preserving what little architectural history Bakersfield has left, an EIR may be inevitable. Oh yes, I’ve already heard whisperings of a lawsuit.

Ahh, the wrecking ball is nowhere close to that time-honored Bakersfield tradition.

Opinions expressed in this column are those of Lois Henry, not The Bakersfield Californian. Her  column appears Wednesdays and Sundays. Comment at people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/noholdsbarred, call her at 395-7373 or e-mail lhenry@bakersfield.com

I have no idea how to say this, so I’m just going to say it:

Claims about air pollution’s devastating effects on public health are, um, hooey. Or at least largely hooey.

You have no idea how it pains me to say that having many times, and publicly so, taken officials and politicians to task for not doing more to clean our “filthy air.”

Ewww, this crow tastes nothing like chicken!

Please don’t take this to mean we shouldn’t continue to try and make our air as clean as possible. We should.

But it should be done using a reasoned approach based on solid scientific evidence without the wild claims and near hysteria some environmental groups have beaten us over the heads with to keep us in fear of our next breath without more and more and MORE regulation.

Here’s what I’ve concluded after reading a number of studies, talking to scientists and physicians and looking at some common sense trend data:

A) Our air is cleaner than it’s been in 30 years. And our air pollution isn’t nearly as bad as we’ve been led to believe.

B) The pollution we do have is not killing us.

Just recently (November) we were told by Cal State Fullerton researchers that bad air costs the San Joaquin Valley $6 billion a year, most of that due to the “premature” deaths of more than 800 people allegedly cut down by crummy air.

There was some discussion in news stories, including this paper, about how researchers arrived at that figure. Turns out it’s not an actual cost, as if those 800 people were pumping  billions of dollars into the economy when they were suddenly felled by a whiff of ozone. It’s a statistical value the researchers placed on human life, and, in my mind, it’s misleading at best.

Other than that, the media reported that more than 800 people actually kicked the bucket last year because of pollution. (Editors in this newsroom were skeptical about that assertion and our story did quote a researcher who said the number of deaths was inflated, but we could have dug deeper.)

Money aside, I think the real question on whether air pollution is killing people in droves ought to be, really?

I’m convinced the answer is a resounding NOT REALLY.

A 2005 study by James Enstrom, a 35-year lifestyle epidemiologist at University of California, Los Angeles, found California did not have a death rate out of whack with our population. That means we don’t have a lot of premature deaths at all, much less from air pollution.

In fact, California has the fourth lowest total age-adjusted death rate in the country, according to Enstrom.

“The irony is, people are living longer in this state than ever before,” he said.

A Johns-Hopkins study using Medicare data released last month, backs up Enstrom’s death rate findings specifically for exposure to PM2.5 (very small particulate matter, such as soot, which is what’s keeping us from being able to use our fireplaces, by the by), at least in the west from Washington state to Southern California.

“For the 32 western U.S. locations, there is little evidence of an association between chronic PM2.5 and mortality,” the study states.

Enstrom is one of a handful of scientists and researchers fed up with groups using small inconclusive studies to draw extreme conclusions that are then used to create stringent regulations.

“The claims have just gotten out of sight,” Enstrom told me. “Unfortunately, this has become an agenda for a lot of organizations that used to be more interested in research on diseases and now want to be advocates for ways to deal with them and they aren’t focused on real research anymore.”

I know the enviros out there are madly Googling Enstrom for any hint of association with “evil industry.” So to save you some time, he did one study funded by the Electric Power Research Institute and beyond that has no ties to corporations that might benefit from him saying we’ve been bamboozled on air pollution.

I also spoke with Joel Schwartz, a Sacramento-based environmental consultant who used to work for the conservatively bent Reason Foundation but who started out working for an environmental group in Los Angeles and didn’t like the kind of “science” he saw being perpetrated on the public.

Most of the studies being used by regulators are epidemiological or meta-analysis, Schwartz said.

The first looks at groups of people and ties them together by common factors, such as people who had heart attacks and whether they were exposed to high levels of PM2.5 in a certain time frame before the attack.

The second type of study, meta-analysis, aggregates the results of a bunch of other previous studies that looked at similar hypotheses. I’d never heard of such a thing and, frankly, it kinda sounds like cheating to me.

“Activists and regulators are in the business of finding dragons to slay,” Schwartz said. “The air is so much cleaner now but they keep tightening the standards and finding ways to make false claims that lower and lower pollution levels are more and more harmful.

“They stay in business as long as the public has the perception that there’s a problem to solve.”

Take asthma, he said.

We’ve been told for years that pollution and asthma go hand in hand. If that’s true how can it also be true that asthma rates continue to climb  — even on the central coast, which has virtually no air quality problems — while our pollution continues to drop?

I had no answer for that, other than, “DOH!”

Some months ago, I was hot after a story tip about elderly people who’d lived here all their lives and never smoked reportedly coming up with terrible lung diseases, of course, because of our air.

I spoke with Dr. Augustine Munoz, a pulmonary specialist at Kern Medical Center, and was deflated when he told me, essentially, nah, ain’t happening. Air pollution, he said, doesn’t hurt healthy lungs.

“The most rapidly growing lung problem we have in Kern County is sleep apnea due to obesity,” he said.

His answers didn’t fit my theory. I tucked the interview away and only revisited it when I started wondering about those 800 alleged air pollution deaths. Go figure!

When I asked San Joaquin Air Pollution Control District Executive Director Seyed Sadredin about what I’d learned, he wasn’t surprised.

He said the Federal Environmental Protection Agency sets the standards for how much of each pollutant can be in the air at a healthy concentration based on “what we have to assume is proper scientific study.”

Even as we’ve reduced pollution in the valley by 80 percent from industrial sources and 60 percent overall since 1980 (despite a massive population increase) the feds have continued to ratchet down our pollution standards, claiming new science shows even smaller concentrations are unheathful, particularly for sensitive groups such as the elderly, children and people with respiratory problems.

Even with all that, it’s not enough for some environmental groups.

Earth Justice recently sued because the feds found the valley in compliance on the old standard for PM10 (airborne particles, like PM2.5, only bigger) as we hadn’t exceeded that old standard in five years.

There’s a new standard being adopted, but Earth Justice sued over the old one.

Clearly, this is not about Earth Justice fighting for our health. If the valley is found in “attainment” it takes away their legal hammer to demand even greater regulation based on what appears to be dubious science, and collect legal fees, of course.

The real danger is that people won’t put up with being lied to, at least not for long, and a serious backlash could undo the decades of good work that have given us cleaner air.

“If you don’t objectively and honestly portray the problem, you do lose credibility,” Sadredin acknowledged.

Ya think?

Opinions expressed in this column are those of Lois Henry, not The Bakersfield Californian. Her  column appears Wednesdays and Sundays. Comment at people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/noholdsbarred, call her at 395-7373 or e-mail lhenry@bakersfield.com

The headline last week was familiar, depressingly so.

“STRIKING BACK,” blared the front page about a pre-dawn gang raid in southeast Bakersfield. (Three people were arrested, by the by.)

It was a near-carbon copy of a story a month earlier when 46 alleged gangbangers were nabbed and another raid in November when 11 people were arrested in McFarland.

Even the quotes by a debonairely flak-jacketed District Attorney Ed Jagels were nearly word for word at all three raids:

“We want them to worry about what we are going to do to them rather than the other way around,” he said at raid No. 1 and, again much the same at raids 2 and 3.

While I appreciate law enforcement’s attempt to make a dent in gang activity, I suspect most gang members aren’t forward thinking enough to look at these raids and decide to pick a less dead-end (literally in many cases) career path.

Before you get all “back the BADGE!” on me, I’m not faulting law enforcement. They’re always on the clean-up end of this mess and can only do so much.

Even Sheriff Donny Youngblood agreed gang raids are like “stepping on mercury. It goes in every direction.” He believes the raids are necessary, though, to keep the bad guys from getting too comfy. Fair enough.

But he’s said for years, and I agree with him, that we can’t arrest our way out of the gang problem.

The solution lies in “early gang prevention.”

I know, I know. It sounds like program jargon. But don’t glaze over because this isn’t about government programs and overused catch phrases.

This is about YOU, and me, our neighbors, bosses, employees and friends.

We do a ton of market research at this newspaper so I know a lot about most of you reading this column right now.

You’re just like me. You don’t live in a gang-infested area, you have a pretty good livelihood and your biggest worry these days is how much your 401(k) lost last year. You pay your taxes and read about the shootings and drive-bys in other neighborhoods and wonder “Why can’t they do something about these terrible gangs?”

Then it happens at Valley Plaza and you shake your fist and demand, “Do something about these terrible gangs!”

Yes, let’s.

But realize that “doing something” about gangs will take actual effort from all of us  — mentoring, volunteering at schools, providing job training, donating money, publicizing successes instead of just dropping in to cover raids — to let the children in our community know we give a rip about them.

If we don’t, we will continue to reap the harvest of our own neglect.

I’m not being overly dramatic.

While the ingredients that make up human behavior are complex, most people who work with gang issues put their fingers squarely on family instability (I call it the absent father syndrome) as the main culprit leading children to gangs.

And we also know that once they’re immersed in the life, getting them out is next to impossible. All of which means we have to get to these kids early on — preschool even — and create long-term relationships.

There are no quick fixes.

Two years ago the county took that wisdom to heart and embarked on a three-pronged attack (suppression, intervention and prevention) that, for the first time, gave considerable weight, and money, to the prevention prong.

Was there a measurable impact? Time will tell.

“If we do nothing, we know things are going to get much, much worse,” said Rev. David Goh, founder of Garden Pathways, which has used nearly $400,000 in county funds to expand family mentoring and create after-school programs. “I think we have to be honest in that we’re not doing everything we can. But we’re at least doing an informed SOMETHING.”

Garden Pathways and the other non-profits will likely be able to do much less in the future as the state budget mess crimps the county’s ability to continue funding at the same levels.

Already, the Probation Department, which also expanded its prevention services under the county’s plan, is planning for cuts.

“Everything’s up in the air,” said David Kuge, deputy chief of field services. “Our plan is to keep the units in tact but cut back on the number of programs.”

Probation puts on several intensive classes for children and adults to teach better communiation and parenting skills. They even provide transportation and child care at not cost, so the programs aren’t cheap to run.

Yes, the county money helps, Goh said. Without it, Garden Pathways may have to cut back, but they’ll still be here slogging it out.

More volunteers would help — immensely. (Not-so-subtle hint, in case you missed it.)

I can’t blame you for wondering why you should pick up the slack for some loser parent who can’t raise his, most often her, own kids. I asked the same question.

Bringing it down to a cost-benefit analysis, the answer is simple. We either pay relatively little early on or we pay a lot more later. It’s our choice.

Above and beyond money, however, there’s this to consider:
 

“We’re talking about families — kids — caught in desperate situations,”  Goh told me. “We should all care about our fellow human beings.”

“We’re talking about families — kids — caught in desperate situations,”  Goh told me. “We should all care about our fellow human beings.”

Opinions expressed in this column are those of Lois Henry, not The Bakersfield Californian. Her column appears Wednesdays and Sundays. Comment at people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/noholdsbarred, call her at 395-7373 or e-mail lhenry@bakersfield.com

HOW TO VOLUNTEER

There’s plenty you can do to help stem the gang tide in our community. Just pick up the phone and call one of these organizations.
As Kern County Probation Deputy Chief of field operations David Kuge told me:
“You don’t have to be wealthy. You just have to care and want something better for our community.”

If you have access to a computer this website has a ton of information on where to get help and how to help. Scroll down to "resources" on the left hand side and click there for phone numbers.
http://www.kernproject180.o...

Kern County Sheriff’s Department, Sheriff’s Activities League
(661) 391-7771 Main office
(760) 549-2100 Kern Valley, Deputy Joe Garcia
(661) 868-5750 Lamont, Sr. Deputy John Money
(661) 868-1519 East Bakersfield, Sgt. Jim Craig
(661) 758-7266 Wasco, Deputy Martin Barron

Bakersfield Police Department, Police Activities League
(661) 283-8880

Kern County Superintendent of Schools
1300 17th Street
Bakersfield, CA 93301
(661) 636-4757
(661) 636-4329 FAX
Http://www.kernparentproject.org

Kern County Department of Human Services
100 E. California Ave.
P.O. Box 511
Bakersfield, CA 93302
(661) 633-7257
(661) 633-7077 fax

Ebony Counseling Center
1311 California Avenue
Bakersfield, CA 93304
(661) 324-4756
(661) 324-1652 fax

Garden Pathways
900 22nd Street
Bakersfield, CA 93301
(661) 633-9133 family-to-family mentoring
(661) 323-8311 performing arts
(661) 633-9134 fax
Http://www.gardenpathways.org

Stop the Violence
P.O. Box 40303
Bakersfield, CA 93384
(661) 742-2637
(661) 477-4661
(661) 717-8053
(661) 836-0902 fax

New Life Recovery & Training Center
3501 Edison Hwy.
P.O. Box  70187
Bakersfield, CA 93387
(661) 366-8003
(661) 246-9720
(661) 343-8919

Stay Focused
1225 California Ave.
Bakersfield, CA 93304
(661) 322-HOPE (4673)
(661) 322-4622 fax
http://222.stayfocused.org

I believe I’ve stumbled onto the real reason those clowns we call legislators can’t get their act together and solve our budget problems.

(What’s so hard about it anyway? Don’t we all do “budgeting” when we decide whether we have enough for Starbucks versus McDonalds coffee on the way to work — you know, where we’re expected to do our JOBS — every single day?)

But I digress, bitterly so.

A story in Thursday’s Californian showed that California has cut spending on higher education by 40 percent over the last 30 years.

We rank 49th in the country for the number of adults with at least a high school diploma, 46th for the number of 19-year-olds enrolled in college and 31st for college enrollment among students in low-income families.

If our legislators are a product of a California-style “education” — and many, if not most are — they may be too dumb to work out a budget.

So while they’re up there sucking their thumbs and whining about how the other party is being too “political,” we’re looking down the barrel of IOUs instead of actual money in our tax refunds if they can’t resolve the budget by Feb. 1.

And every government entity from school districts to county governments has no idea how to plan for the future.

I mean how ludicrous is it that the behemoth 30,000-plus student Kern High School District is still waiting to find out whether it’s going to take a $28 million hit (or an even larger one) on its $343 million budget?

And even when we make a tiny baby step forward toward solving our own problems, the state is there, blocking the road like an evil troll.

Such is the case with the new jail we so desperately need.

Sheriff Donny Youngblood was successful in winning a $100 million grant some time ago to help build a new jail, as long as the county matched it with $40 million.

But staffing and operations would have cost us an extra $20 million a year that the county just doesn’t have right now. Add to that the need to demolish and rebuild Lerdo’s minimum security barracks and Kern was stuck.

Youngblood, though, successfully got the state to agree earlier this month that he could move his minimum security inmates and staffing to the new jail (assuming it’s built in the next five years) on an interim basis while he rebuilds the minimum barracks (another five after that).

That means at least 10 years of breathing room for the county while, hopefully, the economy rebounds — so by the time the minimum folks can move back to Lerdo, we can afford that extra $20 million a year to run the new facility.

Great!

Whoops, except for that troll in the road.

Yup, the $100 million state grant is on hold, waiting for our legislators to figure out how to tie their shoes and FIX THE BUDGET!

The Sacramento Bee interviewed Senate leader Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, late last week and I was struck by one part of what he had to say:
Real negotiations with legislative Republicans, Steinberg said, can only begin once they agree to “taking a piece of paper — maybe two pieces — and writing down a list of conditions that they would need in order to vote for revenue,” according to the article.

Ummmm....“begin” to negotiate?

Hoooh boy.

Wonder if Best Buy will take my state IOU tax refund?

Meanwhile, if you chose to write or call your legislators, and I encourage you to do so, just remember to use small words and speak very, very slowly.

Opinions expressed in this column are those of Lois Henry, not The Bakersfield Californian. Her  column appears Wednesdays and Sundays. Comment at people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/noholdsbarred, call her at 395-7373 or e-mail lhenry@bakersfield.com

Holler at your legislators!

Assemblywoman Jean Fuller
http://arc.asm.ca.gov/membe...
Bakersfield Office
4900 California Avenue, Suite 100-B
Bakersfield, CA 93309
(661) 395-2995
(661) 395-3883 fax
State Capitol
(916) 319-2032
(916) 319-2132 fax


Assemblyman Danny Gilmore
http://republican.assembly....
No district office yet!
State Capitol
(916) 319-2030
(916) 319-2130 fax


Senator Roy Ashburn
http://cssrc.us/web/18/
Bakersfield Office
5001 California Ave., Room 105
Bakersfield, CA  93309
(661) 323-0443
(661) 323-0446 fax
State Capitol
(916) 651-4018
(916) 322-3304 fax

Senator Dean Florez
http://dist16.casen.govoffi...
Bakersfield Office
1800 30th Street, Suite 350
Bakersfield,  CA  93301
(661) 395-2620
(661) 395-2622 fax
State Capitol
(916) 651-4016
(916) 327-5989 fax
Fresno Office
2550 Mariposa Mall, Suite 2016
Fresno,  CA  93721
(559) 264-3070
(559) 445-6506 fax

   
 

It’s a brand new year!

Ahhhh, the fresh smell of “promise.”

It’s like looking at a blank sheet of paper that surely contains your great American novel, if only you could get the words to appear on the page.

Right now, 2009 is deliciously unfathomable. Which makes it the perfect time for wild, unrealistic predictions, Jeane Dixon style.

Editor’s note: If your sense of humor isn’t fully engaged, stop reading here!

Former Assemblywoman Nicole Parra

Having failed to secure a lucrative lobbying job, Parra decides to dive back into politics. 

She knows she can’t take on entrenched Congressman Jim Costa, particularly since she cut ties with the Democratic Party for endorsing a Republican for her Assembly seat and, frankly, the GOP doesn’t much trust her either.

So, she decides to reclaim the seat once held by her father, Pete Parra, on the KernCounty Board of Supervisors when upstart Michael Rubio launches his campaign for termed-out Dean Florez’s seat in the California Senate.

Without party money, she decides to capitalize on those legendary (per Maxim magazine) looks to generate campaign cash by working for tips at the Tilted Kilt.

Eh, it’s not that far off from her political career thus far — all show and no action.

Big West of California refinery on Rosedale Highway

Three words: Industrial theme park.

Bakersfield City Councilman Harold Hanson

Working on a tip, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) agents nab Hanson during the middle of a council meeting and deport him for “irregularities” in his citizenship papers.

Turns out he isn’t Canadian at all — he’s French! That explains it!

Bakersfield City Councilman Zack Scrivner

After eating some bad pizza — a la “Jerry Maguire” — Scrivner has a dream that convinces him public employees aren’t the enemy of city finances.

He resigns his council seat and goes to work as a hard-charging union organizer. As the months go by, he becomes enraged by former compadre Ken Weir’s proposal to strip public employees of all health benefits because “We will not become another Vallejo on my watch,” according to Weir.

Scrivner moves to the Ward 3 and runs against Weir in 2010 in a highly charged battle.

On Election Day, Weir is confused by the bubble-in ballots and accidentally votes for the third candidate — Russell Johnson — who wins the seat by a single vote.

Former real estate magnate David Crisp

I foresee a resurgence for the young Mr. Crisp. But far from his high-powered “greed is good” lifestyle, the former real estate Oz will work with the poor, drug-addicted and downright bedraggled on the mean streets of Oildale.

He’ll give everything he has left  — or whatever he can get his hands on — to staunch the gaping wound of poverty (minus a 10 percent cut, of course.) No more Armani suits for

Crisp, who becomes known as the “‘Dale-ian Saint.” Still, The Saint always keeps his store-brand buttondowns perfectly pressed.

Bakersfield Mayor Harvey Hall

His friendship with the Sikhs warms considerably and he renounces his American citizenship, moves to India and converts to Sikhism.

Ever the entrepreneur, he starts up an ambulance service in the poorest section of Calcutta, using rickshaws loaded with oxygen, bandages and a few donated defibrilators as motorized vehicles are too big for the narrow, crowded streets.

He is beloved and eventually runs for mayor.

Bakersfield City Manager Alan Tandy

Ensconced in his palatial new office on the 5th floor of the Borton Petrini building, Tandy attends fewer and fewer council meetings, finally refusing to go in person at all.

He has a personal express elevator installed and only “attends” meetings via closed circuit television connection which projects an image of him seated in a wing-backed chair next to his fireplace, clad in a green sweater and cozy slippers.

Editor’s note: OK, enough picking on the city.

Kern High School District trustee Ken Mettler

With the economy still in the tank and no one building houses, the home builder starts a new career — cage match fighter.

Kern County Clerk/Auditor Controller Ann Barnett

The California Supreme Court overturns Proposition 8, which denied gay couples the right to marry.

Barnett, who famously refused to conduct any weddings after the first time the court allowed gays to marry, begins a “marrying” frenzy.

Women, men, inanimate objects, in couples or groups, Barnett fires off marriage licenses left and right, whether they were requested or not.

Finally, in a Board of Supervisors meeting, she “marries” all present.

When Chair Mike Rubio tells her she’s out of order, Barnett snaps back that he is out of order and the state of California is out of order.

“I’m RETIRED!” she screams as she dons a burqa and demands her checks be sent to Kansas, forthwith.

Like we all didn’t see THAT one coming.

Happy new year!