Editorial

Thanksgiving is the great gathering day. The trouble and expense we undertake in order to be together on Thanksgiving is remarkable.

Firefighters need a new name but the word lifesavers is already

The editorial on DUI priorities mentioned many positive results

We weren’t at the Dallas Black Lives Matter march last week where a rogue sniper killed five police officers. We were home with our families, maybe sharing conversations with our neighbors after another work day. We were with our kind.

The once-outlandish, now conceivable spectacle that Donald Trump could be our next U.S. president is forcing us to reconsider how we choose our leaders. Have we lost track of what it takes to be a good leader? Do we agree on the necessary qualities of leadership? Forget about voting for Trump, Hillary or some other politician, can we even figure out how to pick a new mayor, sports team captain, PTA president or county supervisor anymore?

I had written a response to Sam Naujokas letter “Death of a small town” thinking that Mr. Naujokas was an older man who had grown up in Healdsburg. When I found out that Sam is a 15 year old high school student I was a little stunned. First of all I would like to say that Sam is an excellent writer way beyond his years. If all fifteen-year olds could write like this we wouldn’t be having the debates about how schools are failing our students. That said, since Sam entered this debate about Healdsburg’s future growth writing and thinking like an adult he deserves an adult response.

Despite recent rains, the cumulative average rainfall for the water year to date (July 1, 2013 – March 9, 2014) is still well below average. The Santa Rosa basin currently, as of March 14, has 14.1” compared to an average of 25.2”. The Ukiah basin has 11.45” compared to the average of 30”. While the drought status in much of the county was updated from “extreme” to “severe,” water storage levels in Lake Mendocino and Lake Sonoma continue to be well below average. Lake Mendocino’s water supply storage capacity was at 50 percent and Lake Sonoma’s water supply capacity was at 73 percent (as of March 14).  

Once again, the residents of Healdsburg have demonstrated support for our children! Thank you to the thousands of voters who helped to pass Measure E to modernize schools in Healdsburg.

Some pretty amazing things have been happening over at Healdsburg’s Hop Kiln Winery on Westside Road. It’s the kind of stuff that may give us a clearer picture of where Wine Country is headed.

There is a grassroots movement afoot in Sonoma County to join our neighbors to the north and south in creating a Coastal GMO Free Zone.