September 2018

Lobbyists and Members of Congress

 
Lobbying at the US Capitol1.
In 2017, there were 535 US senators and representatives and 11,542 lobbyists registered to influence them.
In other words, there were 21.5 lobbyists for each lawmaker in 2017, and these lobbyists spent $6,219,065 per lawmaker (not evenly distributed).
 
NOTE:
9-7-18
OpenSecrets.org
Lobbying Database
https://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/index.php

"SOME AREAS ARE SINKING 2 inches A MONTH"

 
The San Joaquin Valley's natural water supply, always suibject to flood/drought fluctuations, has been plundered for a century by reckless and unaccountable agriculture that treats land, after the paradigm of the cotton industry, as a sterile medium to which one adds fertilizer and water to make money, until it all runs out. South of the Tehachapis, they add houses to what was once the richest agricultural county in the state, and beyond that county, they add houses to the desert.

Visionary developers and the public safety

While we were somewhat surprised that President Trump did not rename Hurricane Florence, Hurricane Feinstein, in the wake of the latest revelations about his Supreme Court nomination, we knew it was only an oversight. Perhaps no one in the White House realized the hurricane was an f-word. The White House spelling problem continutes. 1.
Nonetheless, there is plenty more evidence that our president, called in these pages Don T. Culo with respect for his criminal associations, is in the words of Bob Woodward, "detached from reality,"

A week in American agriculture

The 2014 Farm Bill expires at the end of the month. Farm income is plummeting, Trump's tariffs are playing hell with export markets, the Canadians don't seem to be budging on dairy protections, the Honey bee population continues to decline. Farm groups are crying for more of the same kind of insurance on crops and income inaugurated as the basis of the 2014 Farm Bill.

British Honey Bee Day

 
8-3-18
The Independent (UK)
National Honey Bee Day 2018:
What's being done to save the species in Britain
Pollinators may be in decline, but there’s plenty of new ideas, and time, to turn the tide. Ahead of the day on August 18, Jo Lamiri finds the new buzz around bees
Jo Lamiri
 

The Luck of the Denham

 Denham, R-Calif., and his wiry 32-year-old Democratic opponent are locked in one of America’s most competitive congressional races, playing out here in this almond-picking, culturally conservative swath of California’s Central Valley. And yes, Josh Harder was until last year a venture capitalist. -- Schleifer, Recode, Sept. 20, 2018

McClatchy Chain to Stanislaus County on water: Let them eat pablum

 
We have some questions about the McClatchy Chain Modesto outlet's coverage of the state water plan crouched in the shade of the famous Water Wealth Contentment Health arch on I and Ninth streets.
We doubt that every citizen of Stanislaus County needs to know what the article below is telling them.