More charges of political intrigue in the local pot debate, the Washington Post looks into Kevin O's Deli and both Inga Barks and Jaz McKay are out at KNZR radio

Wednesday, January 24, 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 (good form, bad form, kids doing well, anniversaries, observations) to rsbeene@yahoo.com. 

* ... CALIFORNIA POLITICS: California has some of the highest utility rates in the nation, so why are we selling excess power to neighboring states for less than we charge state residents? That's right, this is one of those 'only in California' stories that will drive you nuts. Over the past 20 years,

the number of power plants and green energy farms fueled by cheap natural gas and renewable energy in California have soared, bringing the state a windfall in excess capacity power. But instead of lowering our rates - what a concept - California has instead chosen to sell the excess power to neighboring states at rates cheaper than they charge us who live here. Why? Because the environmental lobby, which rules the day in Sacramento, believes only higher rates will lead to reduced consumption to battle global warming. And the green lobby hates natural gas, even though it is cheap and much cleaner than coal, because it's a fossil fuel. And so it goes.

 * ... POT DEBATE: Just when you think the local debate over marijuana can't get any whackier, it does. At the Board of Supervisors meeting this week David Abbasi, president of the Central Valley Cannabis Association, unleashed a broadside against Supervisor Mike Maggard, accusing him of being part of a criminal conspiracy to design regulations to approve a limited number of dispensaries associated with his friends. It's a serious charge, perhaps a reckless one, in that Abbasi is accusing a sitting supervisor of criminal wrongdoing. "What I am putting on the record today is Maggard's connection to a notorious, criminal drug trafficking organization in the cannabis business," he said. "I asked for help from federal investigators to end the real 'fraud being foisted on Kern County' by Kim Schaefer, Jimmy Lee, Mike Maggard and their high powered dispensary owners that paid them in exchange for a monopoly on cannabis in Kern County. Abbasi argues that Maggard is favoring dispensaries under the loose organization Kern Citizens For Patient Rights, a group Schaefer works with as a consultant. (Schaefer also is a consultant on Maggard's reelection campaign). Maggard denies any such connection, as does Schaefer by the way. Stay tuned because this debate is just heating up.

 * ... KEVIN MCCARTHY: And check this out: it turns out the Washington Post is investigating Rep. Kevin McCarthy's background to fact check his personal story. And what is the big story the Post wants to expose? It is McCarthy's well known story of how he started a deli as a young man back in the 1980s. I spotted this on Californian food critic Pete Titll's Facebook page: "Yesterday's weirdness: contacted by a Washington Post fact checker who was trying to get the details on exactly what kind of business Congressman Kevin McCarthy operated back in 1986 when I reviewed Kevin O's Deli. He said someone had complained that McCarthy was exaggerating the scope of his operation, which he set up in a family yogurt shop while I believe he was studying at CSUB. Oddly, they attached a pdf of the review and I mentioned McCarthy by name as he took my order and waited on us. Not sure what they're going to do with it." I am not sure what the point here is; there are plenty of people (including Tittl) who remember with fondness the old Kevin O's Deli.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "Everything can be taken as an insult. You've just got to want it."

 * ... SPOTTED ON FACEBOOK: "If you had to choose between eating tacos the rest of your life or being skinny, would you choose hard or soft tacos?"

 * ... INGA BARKS: There has been a total house cleaning at local talk show station KNZR, the Alpha Media owned local station. First, they cut ties with longtime radio host Inga Barks, and now comes word that afternoon host Jaz McKay has been fired because if his fondness for racist slurs, insults and vulgarities. Alpha Media is not talking but both Barks and McKay confirmed their dismissals on social media.

  * ... MAURY WILLS: If you were at Luigi's recently you may have spotted former Dodger great Maury Wills. The legendary Dodger shortstop and former manager was in town for the Taft College Triple Play dinner and was seen at Luigi's with Michael Bowers and Traco Mathews.

San Bernardino shooting renews calls for gun control, and the issue of global warming breaks down on political lines

 * ... SAN BERNARDINO: The horrific shootings in San Bernardino have triggered renewed calls for gun control, but the practical reality is something entirely different. There are approximately 300 million handguns, rifles and shotguns in private homes throughout the country, and our desire for personal

protection seems to know no bounds. Did you know that 37 percent of Americans own at least one weapon? And frankly, that statistic seems low to me. On Black Friday, for example, the government reported a record 185,000 background checks were conducted on firearm sales. And with the rise of domestic and Islamic terrorism on U.S. soil, you can bet that trend will continue.

 * ... CLIMATE CHANGE: This should come as no surprise but the extent to which people believe in climate change breaks down along political lines. According to a recent poll of by the Public Policy Institute of California, "while 79 percent of California Democrats say global climate change is a very serious problem, fewer independents (55 percent) share this view and just 21 percent of Republicans agree. Indeed, 35 percent of Republicans say global climate change is not a problem. At least half of residents across regions say global climate change is a very serious problem. Across racial/ethnic groups, blacks (71 percent), Asians (66 percent), and Latinos (63 percent) are more likely than whites (51 percent) to say so."

 * ... GUARDIAN SERIES: If you haven't read the series by the London newspaper The Guardian on officer-involved shootings, you should. It found, among other things, that Kern County leads the nation in fatal officer-involved shootings on a per capita basis. Other counties in the top 10 - San Bernardino, Riverside, Clark County, Nevada and Oklahoma County - share a lot in common with Kern: high crime rates, rampant methamphetamine use, poverty and high unemployment. Does that excuse law enforcement in the use of excessive force? Certainly not, but it does point out that our street officers often patrol in bad neighborhoods where bad things happen. The Guardian series is rolling out over the next month, and is recommended reading.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "What if dogs bring the ball back because they think you enjoy throwing it?"

 * ... BAD FORM: Shame on whoever unceremoniously dumped a filthy mattress in a downtown alley the other day. The city offers bulk items pick up, and the dump is a short drive away, but some folks prefer to let someone else deal with their mess.

 * ... FIRST FRIDAY: The December First Friday has a lot in store for tonight, including several new art exhibits. Over at Metro Galleries, artist Alberto Herrera has a new show of 48 paintings. Herrera is know for his colorful almost Picasso like paintings. At the  Ice House Framing and Gifts, Aliza McCracken will be signing her new book or inspirational art and poetry. The 19th and Eye ArtWalk continues to grow each month, this time over 50 local artists will be showing their works. It all happens in the downtown Arts District from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.