1. Funeral Notices

   Funeral services for May 23

   TO OUR READERS The Californian provides free death listings using information supplied by local mortuaries. The in-depth notices that follow are paid obituaries and remembrances. These listings must be purchased by 2 p.m. To place an Obituary or In Loving Memory, call 395-7302. Full obituaries are posted at...

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2. Local News

   Barks settles sex harassment claims with former employer

   A settlement has been reached in radio talk show host Inga Barks' sexual harassment lawsuit against former co-host Scott Cox and American General Media. Contacted by phone Tuesday night, Barks said she could not discuss the terms of the settlement. Kern County Superior Court records show Barks' attorney filed a notice...

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3. Local News

   Council committee votes to retain emails longer

   Members of the Bakersfield City Council recommended Tuesday to increase the length of time city emails are automatically kept and to have employees retrained on the retention policy. During a meeting of the council's Legislative and Litigation Committee, City Attorney Virginia Gennaro presented a script that would be...

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1. Local Politics
   

   President: CSUB's future hinges on tax measure vote

   He was short on specifics -- unlike in the past -- but Cal State Bakersfield President Horace Mitchell warned Tuesday the campus would have to cut $5.3 million from its budget if the governor's tax hike measure fails in November. That would force the university to rethink how it operates, he said during one of his...

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2. Local News

   Heading out for Memorial Day weekend? Expect traffic, busy campsites

   Despite the cost of fuel, Californians will do more driving then flying this Memorial Day weekend. That's according to the American Automobile Association, which found that typically, the Pacific coast region has a large percentage of travelers who expect to fly to their destinations. But compared to last year, air...

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3. Local News
   

   Amtrak suing Kern County truck driver over 2010 crash

   Amtrak is suing a Kern County truck driver for more than half a million dollars in connection with a 2010 train crash in Shafter that injured about 20 people. The lawsuit filed May 10 in U.S. District Court in Fresno alleges Luis Camargo ignored flashing lights, crossing gates and the train's horn and drove his truck...

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1. Business

   33 jobs up in air during Meadows Field transition

   Skywest Airlines has lost its contract to perform baggage handling and other services at Meadows Field and 15 other regional airports, a change that could affect 33 jobs in the Bakersfield area. United Airlines said it decided to go with a yet-unidentified replacement service after a review of its ground handling...

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2. Business

   Growers concerned about proposed water regulations

   Growers and their allies are gearing up for a fight against efforts to broaden protections for surface and groundwater that could potentially hike agricultural production costs. Under proposed new regulations, growers would have to join water quality coalitions at a cost of $29 to $176 per acre per year, develop farm...

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3. Business
   

   Young's Marketplace on Brundage to close this week

   Young's Marketplace, an independent grocery store that's a Bakersfield institution, will close at the end of the week. Owner Brent Cruz is shutting down the business and will lease the 37,500-square-foot building at 3030 Brundage Lane to Dollar General Corp., a Goodlettsville, Tenn., discount retailer. Dollar...

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1. Business

   State regulators plan new rules after sinkhole death

   Conditions that created a fatal sinkhole near Taft last summer "have the potential" to occur again, state oil regulators acknowledged Monday as they pointed to industry work on new rules to prevent a similar accident. Although the sinkhole that killed a Chevron Corp. supervisor in the Midway-Sunset oil field June 21...

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2. Business

   Kern Economic Journal: Businesses, consumers optimistic

   The Kern Economic Journal's latest quarterly report finds both businesses and consumers are feeling optimistic, but the feeling is tempered by continued uncertainty about the economy. Researchers from Cal State Bakersfield use telephone survey findings to produce a Business Outlook Index and a Bakersfield Consumer...

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3. Strictly Business

   Market Intelligence: Amgen tour draws upscale, active audience

   In addition to larger California markets such as San Francisco, San Jose, Fresno and Los Angeles, the 2012 Amgen Tour of California will once again include Fresno/Clovis and Bakersfield, drawing an upscale, active audience of event-goers. Based on the characteristics of event attendees in 2011, many Bakersfield...

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1. Local Business
   

   HERB BENHAM: Always a sad day when last Pioneer leaves

   My last purchase: One glass rain gauge (a man can dream, can't he?), a 12-ounce sugar pourer, a green garden rake, a pair of extra-grippy ThermaFit gloves and two pairs of premium grain goatskin work gloves (one a gift for my son, because every man should have a soft pair of work gloves). Pioneer Mercantile closed...

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2. Local Lifestyle

   VALERIE SCHULTZ: Film documents battle for women to be priests

   There are things we Catholics are not supposed to consider. Sometimes those things may take up residence in our souls, however, and we feel nudged by the Spirit to ponder them. Such is the issue of the ordination of women to the Catholic priesthood. A patriarchal wind has long blown from Rome, engulfing both women and...

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3. Richard Beene

   RICHARD BEENE: Bakersfield Observed, a blog about life, media, politics and people

   BC athletics Hard to beat the spring-like weather we enjoyed this weekend, and it proved to be a perfect setting for the annual fundraiser for Bakersfield College athletics at the beautiful home of Joe and Jana Campbell near Bakersfield Country Club. Gino Valpredo and his crew from Luigi's provided the steak dinner...

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1. Sound Off

   Sound Off -- Reader: "If I had a hammer, I'd smack someone"

   Reader: Regarding the headline on Wednesday's letter from former council member [Conni] Brunni... Bad job. The editor who did that ["Salvaggio is a tool who gets his facts wrong"] should be suspended... or smacked with a tool. Glen Davis Bakersfield Editorial Page Editor Robert Price responds: Headlines on letters...

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2. Lois Henry

   D.A. investigating supervisors' secret meetings

   Here's a bit of news that I didn't expect. The Kern County District Attorney's office has launched an investigation into whether the Board of Supervisors' practice of routinely placing the job performance of County Administrative Officer John Nilon on the "closed session" portion of its agenda is legal. I say no, it...

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3. Hot Topics
   

   Last standing anti-Romney still plugs away

   When Newsweek called Barack Obama America's "first gay president" last week for his embrace of same-sex marriage, Fred Karger had to have had mixed feelings. Karger wanted to be America's first gay president, and not simply in the sense that Newsweek's Andrew Sullivan meant it. Karger is seeking the Republican...

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1. Preps
   

   Rams rally in 7th, edge Lemoore in semifinal

   Hail Mary is a football term, but it's also a Catholic term, so maybe it's fitting that Garces pulled off the baseball version Tuesday. The Rams scored five seventh-inning runs to stun Lemoore 6-5 at home in the Central Section Division III semifinals. "Never seen anything like it," Garces shortstop Nick Vehlewald...

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2. Preps
   

   Heideman, Bloomquist power BCHS past Fowler, into D-4 final

   At the plate and on the mound, Andrew Heideman and Casey Bloomquist provided quite the 1-2 punch for the Bakersfield Christian High School baseball team on Tuesday. Powered by the pair's multi-faceted exploits, the seconded-seeded Eagles earned a third straight section championship game appearance by beating visiting...

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3. College
   

   Messmore finds his groove as 'Runners rout Northridge

   Cal State Bakersfield pitcher Spenser Messmore was on his game Tuesday night. And it helped that Cal State Northridge's pitching had a nightmare game. Northridge's five pitchers allowed 11 hits, hit seven batters and walked five to help the Roadrunners pull away in a 10-1 win at Hardt Field. "They gave us some...

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1. Sports

   Jam's Higdon honored as Executive of Year

   David Higdon, managing partner of the Jam, has been named Executive of the Year for the NBA D-League. Higdon, 43, oversees the day-to-day operations of Bakersfield's D-League franchise. "This came out of nowhere. It's a nice surprise," Higdon said. "He deserves it," said Jam owner Stan Ellis. "He worked hard for it....

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2. Preps

   Local report: Varner to wrestle for US in exhibition vs. Russia at Times Square

   Bakersfield's Jake Varner will be among a group of U.S. Olympian wrestlers who will take on Russian wrestlers in New York's Times Square next month. It's a repeat of "The Grapple in the Big Apple" from last year, when the U.S. defeated Russia 5-2 in a world-class freestyle dual meet. This year's event is scheduled...

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3. Preps

   May 22 high school roundup

   Baseball Central Section semifinals DIVISION I: No. 8 Clovis 12, No. 4 Clovis East 3; No. 2 Fresno-Bullard 4, No. 3 Clovis-Buchanan 3 DIVISION II: No. 8 Visalia-Mt. Whitney 3, No. 5 Tulare Western 0; No. 6 Fresno-Edison 14, No. 7 Tulare 6 Division III No. 2 Garces 6, No. 3 Lemoore 5 W: Lopez (8-1). L: Farrar...

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1. Dining

   THE DISH: How will tomorrow taste?

   Contributing writer No one can deny that tastes in food change over the decades, and many powerful forces from people to politics can influence that. Would Americans still be eating mostly pot roast if Julia Child and James Beard had not nudged us in new directions? So what will we be eating in upcoming decades?...

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2. Dining

   PETE TITTL: Can a chain claim to be truly local? Applebee's does

   BY PETE TITTL Contributing columnist pftittl@gmail.com The mid-priced chain restaurants of America are hurting. Sales are down nationwide. Though the reasons are varied, I think part of the cause could be the increasing sales of frozen versions of several restaurants' food in grocery stores. Wolfgang Puck got on...

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3. Breaking News Blog

   Donna Summer, Queen of Disco, dies at 63

   NEW YORK -- Disco queen Donna Summer, whose pulsing anthems such as "Last Dance," "Love to Love You Baby" and "Bad Girls" became the soundtrack for a glittery age of sex, drugs, dance and flashy clothes, has died. She was 63. Her family released a statement saying Summer died Thursday morning and that they "are at...

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1. Community

   Fitness can be fun, or so Third Thursday assures us

   With bikes racing into town today for the Amgen Tour, it's only natural that other events, like Third Thursday, celebrate health and fitness. Bakersfield Museum of Art will host a special screening of the new HBO documentary, "The Weight of the Nation." The screening and subsequent panel discussion, sponsored by...

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2. Art

   CAMILLE GAVIN: Open for discussion: 'h#sht#g'

   Visual artists are known for their creativity, so the unusual title of the students' senior thesis show at CSUB should come as no surprise. It's called "h#sht#g,"-- pronounced "hashtag"-- and it opens with a reception this evening on campus at the Todd Madigan Gallery. Anyone familiar with Twitter and other social...

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3. Theater
   

   Puppets for grown-ups on stage at The Empty Space

   "Avenue Q," said director Jason Monroe, is hilarious, relevant and fast-paced, zipping along at just over two hours, including intermission. "No one's attention will get drained," he predicted. "A lot of people are gigantic fans of the show because it's funny and delivers a message without browbeating." The Tony...

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1. Our View

   DA right to take closer look at closed sessions

   Kern County District Attorney Lisa Green is to be commended for acknowledging that her duties go beyond the prosecution of crime, violent and otherwise. The DA's office also has a responsibility to make sure local government agencies are fulfilling their obligations under state law. And, in the case of the Kern County...

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2. Our View

   It's about time America took aim at Alzheimer's

   Today, 5 million Americans have Alzheimer's. As the U.S. population ages, that number is only likely to grow. It is welcome news, therefore, that the Obama administration has announced plans to devote $130 million in federal funds to Alzheimer's research over the next year and a half. The goal is to find a cure or an...

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3. Hot Topics
   

   ANOTHER VIEW: Can we hate 'hate' campaigns without being labeled haters?

   Are we ever going to be able to hope for civility in our society when everyone is yelling, interrupting and shouting "Hate!" to whoever disagrees with them? Our society is a recipe for disaster now that we are refusing to have civil dialogue. I have to laugh at Shepard Smith on Fox News when he says, "Now it's time...

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1. Hot Topics
   

   Teamwork made success of Amgen Tour possible

   I could almost hear the "pop, pop, pop" of buttons bursting off the shirts of many proud Bakersfieldians as we staged the social milieu for America's Greatest Race -- the 2012 Amgen Tour of California. AEG Sports, presenter of the Amgen Tour, for the second time in two years chose the picturesque bluffs, elevation...

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2. National Voices

   Obama is doing his best to alienate Catholic voters

   In a blowout presidential election, a few large issues dominate. In a tight election, a range of smaller concerns -- important to strategic constituencies in battleground states -- can end up being crucial. President Obama may have hoped for a decisive re-election victory styled on Ronald Reagan's in 1984. At best, he...

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3. Letters to the Editor

   Green is wrong: Addicts need treatment, not jail

   I disagree with Lisa Green's May 3 op-ed article, "Reducing drug penalties isn't worth the risk to public safety," which criticized The Californian's April 29 editorial "Prison reforms require smart choices." The same day Green's article appeared, The Californian published a news story titled "Former Mexican president...

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1. Breaking News Blog

   Several arrests made in Hookah Lounge shooting

   Several arrests have been made in connection with an April shooting at the Hookah Lounge on California Avenue. Following tips from the public, the following were arrested: Thomas Mojica Palenzuela, 20; Frankie Baltierra, 30; Walter Sterling Robinson Jr., 29; Kari Elena Rodriguez, 24; Jennifer Reyes, 21; and James...

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2. Breaking News Blog

   Hundreds without power in southwest Bakersfield

   A power outage affecting 772 southwest Bakersfield PG&E customers Tuesday was caused by "third-party damage" at a construction site, PG&E spokeswoman Katie Harlan Allen said. The outage occurred at 10:45 a.m. and impacted areas south of Brimhall Road to Kroll Way, west of Mondavi Way and east of Ashe road, Allen said....

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3. Quirks of the County Blog

   Supervisors could face Measure G supporters, other challenges

   The Kern County Board of Supervisors is likely to hear, again, from opponents of Measure G, a ballot-item which would severely limit development of medical marijuana dispensaries in the unincorporated areas of the county. Also on the plate for the morning and afternoon sessions of the board are cash control issues at...

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1. The Grade Blog

   Seth's Law discussion to be held at CSUB

   In July, a law will kick in requiring all California school districts to institute anti-harassment policies with shorter timelines for investigating bullying claims. Schools for months have been gearing up for Seth's Law, named after Seth Walsh, a 13-year-old Tehachapi boy who hanged himself in 2010 after being...

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2. Breaking News Blog

   Fire destroys garage, car

   A fire gutted a detached garage and charred a car Monday night in Oildale. Kern County Fire Department spokesman Capt. Derek Tisinger said firefighters were called to the blaze in the 700 block of Ray Street just after 7 p.m. when a passerby reported the fire. About 18 Kern County and Bakersfield firefighters were sent...

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3. Breaking News Blog
   

   Police identify suspect in child's murder

   Police have identified a suspect in the killing of a toddler last month and are asking for help finding him. Investigators believe Anthony Ralph Valenzuela Chacon, 28, is responsible for murdering 2-year-old Ka-mya Robinson, according to a Bakersfield Police Department news release. A Ramey warrant has been issued...

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Editors' picks from the last week

1. Richard Beene

   RICHARD BEENE: Bakersfield Observed, a blog about life, media, politics and people

   BC athletics Hard to beat the spring-like weather we enjoyed this weekend, and it proved to be a perfect setting for the annual fundraiser for Bakersfield College athletics at the beautiful home of Joe and Jana Campbell near Bakersfield Country Club. Gino Valpredo and his crew from Luigi's provided the steak dinner...

   Read More
2. Local News
   

   UFW pioneers get to share their stories

   The lines on his face are a map of his life's history. Guadalupe Martinez, 82, sat in front of a laptop computer at the United Farm Workers' 50th anniversary convention in Bakersfield on Saturday and shared some of his memories to be archived on video. Later he spoke of his birth in the Mexican state of Michoacan in...

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3. Local News

   Ask The Californian: Who paid for the Amgen-area roadwork?

   Q: I was driving west on Panorama Drive and noticed the resurfacing of the street and a very long stretch of chain link fence, which seemed to be preparation for the Amgen race. Likely there have been similar "improvements" along the route and other places in the city. Who is paying for all these Amgen Race...

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1. Lois Henry

   D.A. investigating supervisors' secret meetings

   Here's a bit of news that I didn't expect. The Kern County District Attorney's office has launched an investigation into whether the Board of Supervisors' practice of routinely placing the job performance of County Administrative Officer John Nilon on the "closed session" portion of its agenda is legal. I say no, it...

   Read More
2. Local News

   Arvin police chief keeps job after meeting

   Arvin Chief of Police Tommy Tunson appeared to be in the crosshairs of two items on the Arvin City Council's agenda at a special meeting Friday night, but emerged from the meeting with his job intact. While "Performance evaluation: Police Chief" and "Discipline/Dismissal/Release" were on the agenda for the closed...

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3. Health

   Just what the doctor ordered, but why so slow?

   When there's a problem, just say so and fix it.If that were the county's regular M.O., perhaps it wouldn't have taken so long to make some painfully obvious corrections in how medications are doled out to children at the A. Miriam Jamison Center for abused and neglected kids. Unfortunately, the county's standard...

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