Home ownership rates slide in the United States post recession, and Elon Musk kicks off the CSUB speaker series in grand style

 * … REAL ESTATE: An interesting statistic came out this week noting that home ownership in the United States is at its lowest level in more than 20 years. The home ownership rate is now sitting at

65.1 percent, down from almost 70 percent in 2004. Experts say this points to the activity of investors buying up property when the market tanked, but apparently investor activity is now leveling off as prices rise. The cash offers from investors also squeeze first time buyers out of the market, and make it more difficult for those who are underwater on their mortgages to refinance.

 * … MUSK: Cal State Bakersfield could not have found a better speaker to kick off its Distinguished Speaker Series than Elon Musk, the South African-born entrepreneur and founder of PayPal who spoke at the Dore Theater Wednesday evening.  Musk, who also founded SpaceX and Tesla Motors electric car company, challenged the audience to think more broadly and was refreshingly honest in his opinions on things like High Speed Rail. (He called it an embarrassment based on 40-year-old technology.) Hats off to CSUB President Horace Mitchell for kicking off an important speaker series that will certainly enrich our community.

* … FOUNDRY: I was sad to learn that one of our downtown art galleries is shutting its doors. Opened in 2010, The Foundry Art Gallery has been a staple of the downtown scene, particularly on First Fridays. Christina and Ty Sweet, the owners, struggled to keep the gallery afloat but eventually were forced to close it. Christina Sweet told me she will go back to painting and will work with Don Martin, who owns The Metro Galleries next door, on an annual Foundry exhibit. (file photo of Christina Sweet)

 * ... DIAPERS: This comes from my friend Esther, a resident of La Cresta. She was walking her dog on the Panorama Bluffs last week when a car pulled up and five young people piled out. "There were two women and one had a baby in a stroller. They put the baby in the stroller and walked off. When I went to cross Panorama, I saw they left a fresh diaper right there on the curb. I was so mad. Then I saw they left their sun roof open so I tossed the diaper inside."

 * … HIGHWAY: Reader Sam Rodriguez poses this question: "I would like to know who is the brains behind eliminating the left turn lane heading east on Highway 178 to turn on to Masterson. Now you have to literally come to a stop on 178 to turn left onto Masterson. Needless to say this is very unsafe.  My daughter takes my grandson to school at St. Francis every morning and she says after dropping him off and coming home she has almost been rear ended twice. Just a very unsafe thing having to stop on a busy highway to make a left turn in front of westbound travelers on 178.

* … GOOD FORM: Hats off to Kerry Ryan and the crew at Action Sports for taking the time to conduct a bike maintenance class to Boy Scout Troop 147. Said Tom Saba, father of one of the Scouts: "This is the second time this past year that he has volunteered his time and resources in this manner. This helps the boys complete their cycling merit badge course."

More on the hysteria over hydraulic tracking and Cal State Bakersfield brings Tesla founder Elon Musk to campus for a presentation

 * ... GASLAND: One of the themes coming out of last week's West Kern Petroleum Summit was the need for the oil and gas industry to do a better job of debunking the hysteria over hydraulic fracking. As noted by columnist Lois Henry, one of the most inflammatory anti-fracking "documentaries" is called "Gasland," produced by environmental activist Josh Fox. In it, he shows someone lighting their faucet on fire, which he blamed on fracking. The truth is, however, that in some parts of the country with large deposits of coal and minerals, methane is routinely leaked into the water supply, with or without

fracking, allowing the water to be lit into a flame. Rivers and ponds in these areas have been set afire for years and it has nothing to do with fracking, but that didn't stop Fox from presenting it that way. Speaking on First Look with Scott Cox Tuesday, Henry noted that Fox is now making Gasland 2 and has a deal with HBO for more anti-fracking documentaries. Her view: she is not opposed to regulating fracking, but base your decisions on science, not emotions. If you want a more balanced view of fracking, rent the movie "Fracknation."

 * ... APPROVAL: Not surprisingly, a new polls shows widespread frustration with both Congress and the president. Conducted by CNN, the survey "indicates that the approval rating for Congress remains near an all-time low. Only 12 percent of those questioned say they approve of the job Congress is doing, just two points higher than the historic low in CNN polling. And 86 percent give federal lawmakers a thumbs-down, also near the all-time high. Forty-four percent say they approve of the job the President is doing with 52% saying they disapprove."

 * ... MUSK: I was excited to hear that Elon Musk is coming to Cal State Bakersfield as part of its distinguished speaker series. The South African-born Musk is a true entrepreneur and one of his latest projects has been the electric Tesla car. He also has been involved in projects as diverse as space launch vehicles to the online payment system PayPal. He will appear on campus on Wednesday, Nov. 6.

 * ... ART: Ever want to see your own painting on the cover of BakersfieldLife magazine? The magazine is soliciting art for its cover in December. The cover must represent the holiday season in Kern County and can be no larger than 16 X 20. Entries are due on Tuesday, Nov. 12, between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. ALl of the artwork will be displayed at Metro Galleries on First Friday, December 6. It  will then be judged by a panel of community members. The winning artwork will be on the magazine cover in December.

* ... SPOTTED: Texas Rangers pitcher Colby Lewis was spotted at a local gym working out the other day. The North High School graduate is recuperating after foot surgery.