TheBakersfieldCalifornian.com

Recent Stories

1. If they won't sell the water south, why not say it?

   By Lois Henry

   Wednesday, May 23 2012 04:00 AM

   If there's even a whiff of a possibility that Kern River water will be sold south, we should all sit up and take notice.

   I think there's more than a snootful of exactly that possibility with the proposed McAllister Ranch groundwater bank project.

   Which is why, on Monday, I attended a scoping meeting for the environmental impact report on the project, now officially known as the James Groundwater Storage and Recovery Project.

   The managers of the two water districts that own the project, Buena Vista and Rosedale-Rio Bravo Water Storage District, were at the meeting.

   But, shockingly, I was the only member of the public in attendance.

   Read More

2. 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.

3. County to pay $1 million to family whose child was taken

   Kern County has agreed to pay a Kern River Valley family $1 million for wrongfully taking their son in 2008 when the family was in a dispute with the South Fork Union School District over how school officials were dealing with the boy's food allergies.

4. 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.

5. LOIS HENRY: UC President's visit didn't exactly clear the air

   I feel snubbed.

6. LOIS HENRY: In this boy's case, transparency is on life support

   A 3-year-old boy who nearly drowned on April 28 is unbelievably lucky to be alive after being underwater for more than a minute.

7. Bogus agenda: someting secret is going on here

   I hate to make more work for the District Attorney's office, but someone with much sharper teeth than me really needs to look at why the Board of Supervisors has the job performance of County Administrative Officer John Nilon listed on the agenda for discussion in closed session nearly every single week.

9. Hiker group wants to dictate camping style

   Remember I said a few columns ago that environmental groups are trying to ban horses from public lands? Yup, it's happened.

10. Lois Henry: FAIL: the Lung Association's air quality ratings

    To all you people out there with your hair on fire because the American Lung Association ahhhgain gave our air an "F," please, douse yourselves and think for a minute.

11. Something's cookin' but we don't know what yet

    Hungry Relay for Lifers may get a hot meal courtesy of the Kern County Fire Department after all.

12. Kern County Fire rolls back the chow wagon

    Relay for Life participants may have to brown bag it this year.

13. The fresh air got in. The world hasn't ended

    Open and accessible courts is one of those bedrock American concepts that separate us from two-bit dictatorships and has made us the envy of the world.

14. LOIS HENRY: The great outdoors should be great for everyone

    I'm not a fan of off-highway vehicles. I prefer hiking.