Scientists are predicting a strong El Nino year in 2019, the effort to repeal the gas tax seems to be falling short and who knew that the original diet soda Tab had a cult-like following?

Monday, October 22, 2018

 Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this such a special to live. Send your news tips to rsbeene@yahoo.com.

 * ... GAS TAX REPEAL: It looks like the attempt to repeal the gas tax (Proposition 6) is failing to

win broad support. That's the word from a new USC Dornsife/LA Times poll which revealed that 17 percent of California voters are undecided and nearly half are not familiar with the initiative. With the election just a couple weeks off, 41 percent of likely voters said they support Prop 6 or are leaning toward supporting it, while 42 percent are in opposition.

* ... EL NINO: The west, and California in particular, got some good news this week when the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicted a bearish El Nino is in our future. If the El Nino arrives, we should experience some major storms and snowfall in the Sierra that California needs to replenish our aquifers. Harry Starkey, general manager of the West Kern Water District, said the El Nino effect will be "full blown" in 2019.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "Don’t you wish karma was like pizza and could be delivered in under 30 minutes?"

 * ... MAGGARD VERSUS HEINLE: One of the more interesting local races this year pits Supervisor Mike Maggard against city fireman Jeff Heinle. It started out ugly, things turned civil, and here in the stretch it is getting ugly again. I will be interviewing Heinle on KERN NewsTalk 96.1 FM on Tuesday and Maggard on Friday. Tune it to hear their closing arguments. The Richard Beene show runs from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. daily on weekdays.

 * ... TAB SODA: Who remembers Tab, one of the original diet sodas introduced by Coca-Cola back in 1963. I thought the brand died years ago, but it turns out the soft drink as a cult-like following by people who will drive hundreds of miles to buy a six pack. After a major bottler discontinued it in a 14-state territory, Tab drinkers took to social media to demand that Coke make it available. Coca-Cola said it continues to bottle Tab, but it just isn't available everywhere.

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 * ... MEMORIES: How cute is this? Thanks to the Facebook page Kern County of Old.

Tis the season for political hit pieces to fill our mailboxes, the Dodgers run in the playoffs adds some cheer to a rancorous political climate, and how many sex offenders live in your neighborhood?

Monday, October 15, 2018

 Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this such a special to live. Send your news tips to rsbeene@yahoo.com.

 * ... CAMPAIGN SEASON: If there was any doubt the gloves have come off as we head into the final stretch before the November elections, just open your mailbox. The hit pieces come daily, and

some are hyperbole and some are outright intentionally misleading. Supervisor Mike Maggard's campaign has been throwing big money into direct mailers in his campaign against challenger Jeff Heinle, who is labeled a "liberal Democrat" in one Maggard hit piece. Why that matters in a nonpartisan office is besides the point: hit pieces often work. In the Maggard piece, it lists his supporters as Sheriff Donny Youngblood, Rep. Kevin NcCarthy, former Assemblywoman Shannon Grove and Assemblyman Vince Fong. It lists Heinle's supporters as one person: Supervisor Leticia Perez, and the world knows there is no love lost between Perez and Maggard. And so it goes.

 * ... DODGERS: There's nothing like the LA Dodgers in the playoffs to give us some much needed relief from the acid rain of local and national politics. Put the Kavanaugh hearings and the rancor on the Board of Supervisors behind us, because the Dodgers are making another run for a return to the World Series. If you went anywhere this week - bars, restaurants, the homes of friends - folks were watching Dodger baseball, one of those rare times when we are united in cause, and spirit.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "Since every living being has a soul, does that mean that all of us are haunted?"

 * ... SPOTTED ON FACEBOOK: "You know that nice tingly feeling you get when you’re falling for someone? That’s common sense leaving your body."

 * ... SEX OFFENDERS: So you think you live in a safe neighborhood? Think again. You might be surprised how many felons, and even sex offenders, live close by. I know this because a friend turned me onto a new iPhone app called "Offender Locator." Download the app (it costs 99 cents) and you can zoom into your neighborhood, or anywhere in town or the country for that matter, and see where sex offenders live. I live downtown south of 24th Street and the area is (thankfully) free of offenders, but Oildale and the east side have enough to make you uncomfortable.

 * ... MEMORIES: How about this photo I spotted on the Kern County of Old Facebook page. Its caption: "Comparison photos / SW Corner Chester at Truxtun. When the Kern County seat was moved from Havilah to Bakersfield a new courthouse was constructed in 1876. It soon became inadequate for the growing county. In 1896 it was reconstructed with additions that doubled the size of the original building (Post card photo below). When a more modern courthouse was built across the street in 1912, the county sold the old courthouse to the City of Bakersfield for use as its city hall. Both the old and new courthouses were damaged in a 1952 earthquake and demolished. The 1876 architect was Albert A. Bennett. The 1896 expansion was designed by architect Charles Barnett McDougall. A cement-and-wrought iron fence that enclosed the 1896 courthouse now stands inside the entrance of the Kern County Museum."

Sizing up the weekend Uncensored Town Hall political debate, the daughter of political consultant Cathy Abernathy weds and a promising young man just getting started in life dies too young

Monday, April 30, 2018

Welcome to Bakersfield Observed, now online only. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this such a special place. We value your feedback. Email your news and notes to rsbeene@yahoo.com.

 * ... RIP MASON: I was stunned to learn of the sudden death of Mason Marotta, an accomplished young man who was just getting started with his life. There is no official word on the cause of death but a family friend indicated he may have died in his sleep. Mason is the son of Mike and Lynda Marotta (Mike is a founder of the physical therapy firm Pair and Marotta) and was an accomplished and skilled go-kart racer. He was just 23 and had attended Fresno State University.

 * ... POLITICS: I was honored to serve as a moderator, along with Supervisor Leticia Perez, for the first Uncensored Town Hall debate Friday night at the Bakersfield Music Hall of Fame. Our goal was to bring candidates together for three hours of straight talk, no gotcha questions, in a non-partisan manner. Unfortunately, this being politics, many of the well entrenched incumbents chose to boycott the debate. But here's a big shoutout to Sheriff Donny Youngblood and district attorney candidate Scott Spielman, who both chose to attend while their opponents (Justin Fleeman and Cynthia Zimmer) did not. Also choosing not to attend were Supervisors Mike Maggard (he was at the CSUB Jazz Festival) and David Couch. Maggard's opponent, Jeff Heinle, did show. The sparks of the night came when judge candidates Brandon Martin and Chad Louie squared off. There was no love lost there. The most impressive candidate of the night in my book was Tatiana Matta, an articulate young Democrat running against Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy. She may not unseat McCarthy, but she is a name we will be hearing more of in the future. (file photo of Matta)

* ... AM I A RINO?: Speaking of the debate, if the goal was to search for common ground in a non-partisan manner, it largely succeeded. How do I know? Because it stirred up those who are more comfortable with labels and insults than finding common ground. I was criticized online by a complete stranger named Denice Gary-Pandol,  a pop-up "commentator" with no portfolio who seems to revel in poisonous party politics. She denounced me as a "Rino Republican" (that means Republican In Name Only) which I suppose she meant as an insult. If anyone cares, my politics run the gamut from extreme conservatism on some issues to progressive and centrist positions on others. If slapping a label on me feels good to you, Denice, go for it.

 * ... ABERNATHY NUPTIALS: And finally congratulations to local political consultant Cathy Abernathy whose daughter, Margaret Anne Abernathy, was married this weekend at Stockdale Country Club. In a ceremony officiated by House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Abernathy wed Joshua Gerald Brost. Margaret is a law clerk for Judge Evan J. Wallach on the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington and Brost is the senior director of government business development for the Space Exploration Technologies Corp. in Washington. The bride's late father was Mark Abernathy, a longtime political consultant in Bakersfield.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "How many dates should you wait before you tell a woman that you can’t go near schools?"

 * ... JAZZ FEST: The CSUB Jazz Fest just concluded and the weather could not have been nicer. That said, the attendance was thin, there was no real headline act and it begs the question if the annual event doesn't need a complete makeover.

 * ... NFL DRAFT: Congratulations to D.J. Reed, an Independence High graduate who was selected in the fifth round of the NFL draft by the San Francisco 49ers. A graduate of Kansas State, Reed was the 142nd overall pick in the draft.

City firefighter Jeff Heinle challenges Supervisor Mike Maggard. Will the question of regulating marijuana be enough to elevate Heinle's candidacy? And check this out: there is some good news in the fight against cancer

Friday, January 12, 2018

Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this such a special place. We value your feedback. Email your news and notes (good form, bad form, kids doing well, anniversaries, observations) to rsbeene@yahoo.com.

 * ... MAGGARD VS HEINLE: Hold onto your seats but it looks like we have a doozy of a race coming up when Supervisor Mike Maggard faces off against city firefighter Jeff Heinle in the 3rd District county supervisor's race. Maggard has already come out swinging, implying Heinle will bring "Bay Area values" to more conservative Kern County, and he also accused Heinle as being a front man for pro marijuana interests. And even worse, Maggard claims fellow Supervisor Leticia Perez and her husband, consultant Fernando Jara, may also be conspiring against him. For the record, Heinle was born in the Bay Area but moved here as a teenager and has served 27 years as a city firefighter, hardly a carpet bagger. Heinle also took issue with Maggard on two important issues: he said he would support the regulation and sale of marijuana and he would have supported the Rudnick proposal to build a concert venue off Interstate 5.

 * ... THE POT VOTE: The real question in the Maggard-Heinle race will be this: to what extent did Maggard injure himself by voting against regulating and taxing marijuana when the county faces such a huge budget deficit? I think Maggard and the other supervisors were stunned by the blowback on social media by people of all ages, incomes and races after the Supervisors chose not to regulate cannabis. This much is true: there is a huge number of people (doctors, lawyers, veterans, business people) who support the legalization of marijuana because they recognize is it a relatively benign natural drug and its taxation could greatly help our community. The backlash is real. Will it be enough to elevate Heinle's candidacy? We will see.

 * ... CANCER: Are you ready for some good news on cancer? I posed that query to Dr. Ravi Patel, chief oncologist at the Comprehensive Blood and Cancer Center who appeared on KERN NewsTalk 96.1 FM this week. And indeed there is some good news. It turns out total deaths from cancer have dropped 25 percent since 1991, mostly because more people are giving up smoking. And if you want to reduce your chances of getting cancer, keep your weight down. Patel said it also turns out that 35 percent of all cancers are linked to obesity.

 * ... ECONOMIC WOES: Every year the Milkin Institute surveys the nation's largest metro area and rates them in terms of economic growth. The best performing large metro area? That would be Provo, Utah, which has become a technology hotbed. Following Provo were Raleigh, N.C., and Dallas. The worst performing metro area? You guessed it: Bakersfield. We fell from 59 last year to 101 this year. Said Milkin: "One of the largest oil producing counties was hit by the crude downtown a few years ago and employment still hasn't fully recovered."

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "Optimistic people want to hear the bad news first, while pessimists ask for the good. Realists just start drinking."

 * ... GOOD FORM: Local combat veteran Christopher Quinones believes in karma, so when a cashier accidentally gave him an extra $10 in gas than he paid for, he reminded her of her error. "But I couldn’t let it happen so I had to go back in and tell her what she did because I believe highly in karma. Then she says 'let me find out how God is going to bless you today!'"

 * ... BAD FORM: There are few things worse than bad grammar and misspellings when you are in the communications and marketing business. One repeat offender is the Downtown Business Association whose newsletter regularly contains misspellings and bad grammar. In its latest missive, it confused "your" and "you are." The DBA needs to learn to spell or hire a copy editor.