OK, here’s your civics quiz for the week. Who said the following? “It is no limitation upon property rights or freedom of contract to require that when men receive from government the privilege of doing…
Posts published by “Jim Shields”
It's impossible not to recognize the seemingly institutional dysfunction in the governing process of this county. Too many elected officials and “public servants” who are classified as department heads, middle management, and “staff,” go out…
For those of you following my ongoing series on the homeless-mental health services debacle in California and, of course, in this county, know that my primary themes are: To clear up some of the confusion…
I have a question for you. What do you think will happen first: My money is on the aliens; they are already in our midst, especially in Mendoland. Six weeks ago, the Supreme Court ruled…
In the past month I’ve written a couple of pieces on the homeless dilemma looking at what I call the Unholy Trinity, those inextricably intertwined maladies of homelessness, mental health afflictions, and substance abuse. We…
In the past couple of weeks I’ve written columns dealing with the county’s (and the state’s) 50 years of failed mental health practices, programs, and policies. I’ve also shared with you my opinions and analysis…
I’m going to try to keep this piece short. Personally, I don’t care much about what the Supervisors pay themselves (assuming it’s within a reasonable range of reality) but I do care about the job…
Quick Weather Update You don’t need a weatherman to know it’s been hotter than hell for a long spell.In fact, I think we may have set a record for sustained days exceeding 100 degrees.As always,…
Happy Independence Day! I think we're still independent, thanks to a gang of big brain misfits who all had the King's death warrants on their heads. We can hang together or hang separately, as B.…