Archive for big issues

Want more arts & culture in Visalia? Tell the city yourself.

{ November 11, 2007 @ 1:36 am } · { big issues, community & culture, events, visalia }
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I saw this in the paper the other day and just about salivated.

Then I got past the promise of free food at a public meeting in Brewbakers and began to salivate for a different reason.

Here’s what it says:

“Want more music in Visalia? Better music? Want film festivals, plays or poetry readings on something interesting? Want something different that you never thought you would see in Visalia? Think no one really cares about what you think and things will never change in Visalia?”

This is quoted from a newspaper which quoted an email forward from city deputy manager Leslie Caviglia (which is the kind of quality first-hand information you’ve come to expect from the *snark). And to those 5 questions, I respond 1) yes, 2) yes, 3) yes, 4) yes, and 5) I hope that what you’re about to tell me will change my answer.

Turns out, Leslie and the city staff actually want to hear what us, the people of Visalia, think about the arts and culture scene in Visalia. Imagine! A cultural plan that actually involves the young adults that participate in said culture!

Unfortunately, that means you’re going to actually have to get off your ass and show up at Brewbakers on Tuesday, 6-8 pm.

Then again, free food.

  • Arts groups: Noon to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Visalia Convention Center, 303 E. Acequia Ave., Visalia (food provided).
  • Young adults (18 and older): 6-8 p.m. Tuesday, Brewbakers, 219 E. Main St., Visalia (food provided).
  • Local artists: Noon to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Visalia Convention Center (food provided).
  • General public: 7-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Visalia Convention Center. This forum is for all ages, including children.
    Information: 713-4314.

Google also tells me that this Leslie Cavigla enigma that has never bothered to talk to us before and therefore never existed before this moment also has an email address: lcaviglia@ci.visalia.ca.us. So for those of you who have something to say about the state of the (lack of) culture but are too lazy/busy with soccer practice/resistant to be bribed with free food to come Tuesday or Wednesday, email her your ideas.

But to those of us too unlazy/not busy with soccer practice/too cheap to buy our own damn groceries: Freeeeeee fooooooood!

Valley oaks are falling down, my fair lady

{ October 16, 2007 @ 5:14 pm } · { big issues }
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I am out of snark today, so good thing someone else in the Visalia vicinity gathered it up from its deathbed in the gutter and splattered it across the Internet for me. I thought I’d repost it here as a token of my appreciation.

Back story: the city of Visalia does not let people remove oak trees from their property. But some trees have been collapsing lately and causinga bit of damage, making some residents pretty pissed at the ordinance. And naturally, when residents are pissed, they go to the Internet to tell everyone they’re pissed.

Some guy named Nate responded to these people on the Visalia Times-Delta boards:

“It’s obvious that these oak trees are the newest criminal street gang in town. We must take action! We need to hire more police to crack down on this limb dropping that is terrorizing our community. They probably will need some more substations and expensive electronics as well. Arnie must be petitioned to build more prisons to house these vicious creatures. But that is just the beginning; we need to outlaw all trees! Clearly they are dangerous, they interfere with parking lots, and worst of all, liberals like them. Once we have the tree problem under control, we’ll get rid of grass and flowers. Then Visalia will be a paradise, filled with nothing but asphalt, dust and cows. Ghostrider, organize your Klan buddies, cleanfreak, gather the Daughters of the Confederacy, we need a good old-fashioned posse to teach these trees about Visalia justice!”

Hells yes. Thanks Nate for rescuing me from a sarcastic-less existence today.

Candidates who dare step foot on the north side? Oh it is ON!

{ October 10, 2007 @ 8:04 pm } · { big issues, events, music, politics }
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I don’t know if this whole thing was sparked by an off-hand comment by Tim Fosberg, a city council candidate who asked at the forum a few weeks ago why there were no council meetings or forums on the north side (represent!).

But guess what, beeeyatches, there WILL BE ONE!

Oct. 28, 2-7 pm, the world-famous Oval Park. (There will also be music, so hopefully the candidates will bring their dancing shoes, and the city as a whole will laugh at them.)

One of the event coordinators contacted me and said they have half the candidates lined up already (and apparently — I’m not making this up — Tim Fosberg is nowhere to be found.)

I am so excited to have these people face the reality of the other, less-pretty, historical downtown and answer their questions, like “why don’t you give a shit about us” and “why are you all white.” And I will pay one of them to say “birth right” to both questions. And it will be awesome.

I will also be asking my homegirl Mary Wheeler if she is a true O.G. She’ll probably deny it, ask what an O.G. is, and then her magical answer win the hearts and minds of the universe. My plans to make her President of the World will work, and we will live in harmony for the rest of our lives.

[EDIT: My apologies to candidate Roland Lee Soltesz, who may or may not be white. I just… um….. this is embarrasing… I…. can’t… tell….. :/…. can you?]

The Visalia Fox — Vicente, that is

{ October 7, 2007 @ 7:37 pm } · { big issues, events, politics }
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It’s true. The former president of our neighbor nation to the south — that’s Mexico for all you who flunked geography — comes to Visalia for no particular reason whatsoever. (Come on, an event named BizTalk? How about PoliticoTalk, ImmigTalk or LetMyPeopleGo-Talk?)

Whatever. If you’re pro-loosening of the borders, Mr. Fox (not to be confused with my beloved Kopi of Fox 26) would have seemed a hero. If you’re pro-tightening the borders, you may have seen his very presence in the country as evidence that the border patrol is not doing their job. If you’re a racist bastard, who cares what you think. Stop taking up space on the Times-Delta boards and shut up already.

In any case, the visit should be marked in Visalia’s historical books as “The Day That President Guy Came to Sell His Book.”

And that should be appreciated by any Visalian, whatever side of the fence you stand on.

(Ha ha ha ha ha haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.)

Mary Wheeler for President!!

{ September 30, 2007 @ 5:21 pm } · { big issues, politics }
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Before I begin, I have to say that my hatred for KSEE 24 is compounded by the fact that 1) they don’t have a Comcast On Demand section while 4 other local networks do, 2) I can’t tell Stefani Booroojian and Alex Delgado apart (not their fault, but whoever does the hiring needs to rethink their strategies), and 3) the serious lack of Kopi Sotiropulous does damage to my serotonin levels.

Anyway, after struggling to download the stupid, stupid KSEE 24 video and having finally seen the Visalia City Council forum via other, more illicit means, I have come to this simple conclusion: Mary Wheeler is severely shortcoming herself with this meager run for Podunk City Council.

She needs to run for President of the World.

Not only does this magnificant woman with the southern drawl NOT know what Trader Joe’s is, housing density is, or that Visalia even had a historical district, her last name is Wheeler and she is in a wheelchair, and that makes her absolutely ROCK.

This amazing woman has to be seen to be believed, and boy do I wish I could recommend the KSEE 24 link to all y’all. But nooooooo.

[EDIT: More local election information is here.]

The candidates forum will be televised

{ September 20, 2007 @ 9:34 pm } · { big issues, community & culture, get involved, politics }
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Apparently, there will be a forum of Visalia city council candidates at at El Diamante High School from 7-9 p.m. Sept. 24 (that’s this Monday). And the good news is that it will be televised on KSEE 24, or Comcast channel 195, or www.ksee24.com, depending on who you believe. I’m quite stoked about the webcast, I don’t think that’s ever been done in Visalia before. (Has it?) However, I also hear a rumor that for some stupid reason, you have to click on the “Weather” section of ksee24.com to view it. I guess because this candidate forum will come at you like a hurricane or something. :/

Anyway, all 7 candidates said they will be attending:

Bob Link (the incumbent)
Timothy Fosberg
Mike Lane
Rusty Barker
Amy Shuklian
Roland Lee Soltesz
Mary Wheeler

(if anyone knows of any candidate websites I’m missing, please email me at visaliasnark at yahoo daught calm.)

It’s interesting to note that the only thing I remember from any of these candidates is this article. Basically, Mike Lane lashed out at the parents of a group of kids arrested for having a brawl at school, saying the parents should be the ones held responsible. Candidates reacted. This will probably be hot topic #1 at the forum, since it seems like there’s not much else to talk about these candidates. Hopefully this debate will reveal more differences and make the choice a little more clear for us voters.

Download a list of all this year’s candidates in the area for any position, ever.

(Side note: The next candidate forum will be for the school board of trustees: 7-9 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 8, at the Mill Creek Conference Center, also known as the Elks Club Lodge. I think it’s still the same deal, with KSEE covering it on television and such.)

Queer Visalia

{ September 18, 2007 @ 5:07 am } · { big issues }
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I just stumbled upon two Visalian-based gay websites, and perhaps you can make of it what you will, but here they are:

www.OutVisalia.org
www.QueerVisalia.com

I’m not gay but respect people who have the courage to come out of the closet. I also see no problem with their right to marry — it doesn’t infringe on my own right to marry, so why the bother? But that’s just me.

Anyway, it’s good to see there’s a local gay community not afraid to speak out. However, the Queer Visalia blog doesn’t really speak out, nor do they have much to do with Visalia. So I’m not quite sure what to make of them, other than it’s a great start.

I do have to say this: that one picture of that one guy, um, needs to be, erm, hidden or obscured or… something. Because people who genuinely want to read what the gay community has to say will have to be sure there is no one looking over their shoulder and asking, “What the HELL website are you looking at?”

But then again, who am I to tell anybody what to do?

Our Valley. Our Choice.

{ September 10, 2007 @ 10:59 pm } · { big issues, politics }
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So I sat my poor ass down in Borders and read all evening over a cup of coffee. The only place cheaper is the library, and they don’t allow drinks in there, out of fear they would spill it on their only copy of WordPerfect for Dummies 1990.

I spent some decent time perusing the usual piles of paperbacks they have by the register, and after coming face to face with supposedly the world’s worst dog yet again, I came across this book:

Our Valley. Our Choice.

I thought it was going to be another sort of local-author-finds-vanity-press sort of book. I was mistaken. It’s actually quite good. And informative. And visually appealing.

It’s published by the Great Valley Center, which is a nonprofit “supporting the economic, social and environmental well-being of California’s Great Central Valley.” Good enough for me.

If you don’t like reading (like many other Visalians — admit it, it’s true) this is still a great book. Lots of charts and pictures and blurbs and really great, stylish graphics throughout. It’s like “An Inconvenient Truth” for the Central Valley. And if I had any money on me, I would totally go out and buy it.

However, full disclosure, if you buy it through the Amazon link I posted, perhaps one day I will.