Archive - Nov 2012 - Opinion

The Chamber

November 30, 2012

The Mammoth Lakes Chamber of Commerce is about to lose its leader.

We know that this is not exactly Front Page news, but it ought to be.

In other towns and cities, the Chamber is a big-time player in a variety of ways, and not just for the promotion of big and small business interests.

Strong chambers of commerce provide leadership in areas that stretch across the political and economic landscapes. There is hardly a government entity in the United States that does not take into account “what the Chamber has to say.”

Whitmore Pool is a dump

November 16, 2012

In the frantic effort to keep the Whitmore Pool open for next summer, it has been easy to ignore the fact that the pool itself is a dump.

The best thing it has going for it is the 360-degree view, but that really doesn’t have anything to do with the pool itself. The view will stay there, and might even be improved once the unsightly tangle of the antiquated pool is removed.

No new taxes

November 9, 2012

We do not like taxes.

We can live with taxes that make sense, but to raise Mammoth’s taxes to help the town raise money to alleviate its $29.5 million, 23-year MLLA judgment is a nonsense tax—a kneejerk tax, as it were.

There is a lot of talk among the citizenry about taxing ourselves. You can hear it from the Town Council Chambers to the beer aisle at Vons. The council itself rightly has the yips over any proposal to put a tax-raising measure before the voters, knowing as it does that Mammoth already is at a breaking point.

Being a veteran

November 2, 2012

Editor’s note: All Veterans and their friends and families are welcome at the Second annual Veterans Day Celebration at the Fire Station on Main Street, Monday, Nov. 12 at 9 a.m. with breakfast provided. A graduate of Mammoth High School—and a veteran—offers the following comments.

It’s a strange feeling to think of one’s self as a veteran at the age of 23.  

Doing what's best for our kids

November 2, 2012

Thank you for running your recent article “Four candidates aim for two Eastern Sierra Unified board seats.”

I appreciate the information and coverage you’ve provided for voters and communities of the Eastern Sierra Unified School District. We have some important decisions to make regarding the ESUSD Board of Trustees in this election.

Strong support for Ted Schade our local air pollution control officer

November 2, 2012

I, for one, refuse to stand by and not support Ted Schade, our Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control officer, and my friend, who is currently under attack by the City of Los Angeles.

Ted is tirelessly working to ensure public health in the Eastern Sierra and to enforce the laws of our country.

All of us who live here must oppose the strong interests who seek to once again divide and conquer the “Owens Valley folk.” Wolves hunt in that fashion.

Thank you Whiskey Creek

November 2, 2012

The Senior Class of Mammoth High School 2013 would like to extend our thanks to Whiskey Creek for hosting our fall senior dinners.

Our senior dinners pay for the end of the year senior trip where we get to enjoy the last bits of high school.

Urging a yes vote on Prop. 36

November 2, 2012

I urge a yes vote on Proposition 36 on the November ballot. It would change the “Three Strikes” law to permit consideration of the seriousness of the third strike.

As it now stands, a third felony mandates a sentence of 25 years to life regardless of the nature of the offense. It has been imposed for such things as theft of a pair of shoes, a golf club, and a package of bubble gum. Authorities need the flexibility to consider whether the third crime threatens the safety of the public.

Greg Norby

November 2, 2012

We’re going to miss Greg Norby around here.

As the manager of the Mammoth Community Water District for four years, he ran the utility with aplomb, efficiency, and a sense of humor that hardly anyone ever got to see.

We were reminded of a Planning Commission meeting more than a year ago, when Norby gave the commissioners the bad news about the then-upcoming litigation with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

It was a sobering presentation, at a time when Mammoth really did not seem ready for another load of lawsuits.

Greg Norby

November 2, 2012

We’re going to miss Greg Norby around here.

As the manager of the Mammoth Community Water District for four years, he ran the utility with aplomb, efficiency, and a sense of humor that hardly anyone ever got to see.

We were reminded of a Planning Commission meeting more than a year ago, when Norby gave the commissioners the bad news about the then-upcoming litigation with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

It was a sobering presentation, at a time when Mammoth really did not seem ready for another load of lawsuits.