Alex Chadwick, a founder of the new Sonoma Speaker Series, worked for NPR for more than 30 years. He was co-creator and host of Morning Edition, hosted All Things Considered and won an Investigative Reporting Award from the Society of Professional Journalists in 2001 for exposing the story of illegal mining in Congo. In short, if he hasn’t seen it all, he interviewed someone who did. Now retired and living in Sonoma, what does he think of our own life-or-death issues, like leaf blowers? His answer, or perhaps diplomatic non-answer, “It’s all news.”… Chadwick fell for Sonoma while visiting his NPR colleague, and partner in the speaker series, John McChesney, who lives on Sonoma Mountain. Chadwick likes the sense of community and safety here. “America is lost? It is not lost. It’s in places like this.”
The head of the California Growers Association – as in marijuana – is against Proposition 64, which would make pot legal in Cali. Say what? Indeed, Humboldt County voted against marijuana legalization last time it was on the ballot, in 2010, reports the Lost Coast Outpost. Now, Hezekiah Allen, a prominent voice in the state’s new cannabis industry, says the grass is greener on his side of the fence. Ensuring the marketplace is dominated by as many independent businesses as possible (not co-opted by Big Ag) provides opportunity for more business owners, both established and startups. “I don’t want to replace a criminal injustice with an economic injustice,” he told national reporters… Meanwhile, the price for a bag of pre-trademarked Mendo Blue Dream or Ghost Train Haze remain illegal-farmer friendly. Thanks Obama!
The Sun has come out swinging against Measure U, which would maintain a ‘temporary’ half-cent sales tax within Sonoma City limits. One tired old argument for it: it only adds two cents to the cost of your latte. Thanks for asking – my latte is already too damned expensive.
Encouraging budget cuts is one thing, but this is ridiculous. A 53-year-old man was arrested at Sonoma City Hall after brandishing a pair scissors, then returning to harass city staff. Police eventually subdued the unruly miscreant, who was jailed for resisting arrest… Bill Dodd came through the Valley on a campaign swing last week, including dropping by a civics class for fourth and fifth graders at Dunbar School. Did his chat about how government works, wonders Anna Pier, include how it is possible to switch from Republican to Democrat?
–Val Robichaud
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