Articles by dweisman

Climate change challenges San Diego farms

Facing the heat of global warming, farmers in San Diego are trying to survive and build resilience through practice—and are pushing policymakers to keep up. At Pauma Valley, a flat stretch of crop- and rangelands at the base of the Palomar Mountains in North San Diego County, July is usually a month of hot weather and raucous growth—with lemons, avocados, blackberries, and peppers all flourishing….


San Marcos council scam dates to 2007

If San Marcos Mayor Rebecca Jones’ attempt to circumvent local voters by appointing a new City Council member next month instead of scheduling a special election sounds familiar, it is. It has happened before and Jones was the beneficiary of the new seat, her first political office, as a result. That happened in 2007 when then-mayor and newly elected San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond…


Let us now praise Bruce Kauffman

Mensch (Yiddish: מענטש‎ mentsh, cognate with the German word Mensch meaning a “human being”) means “a person of integrity and honor”.[1] Highly savvy in the ways of journalism, and a brilliant analyst of the ways of the world, Bruce Kauffman was the very epitome of a mensch. He always was ready to lend an ear to a friend’s tale of joy or woe and help…


Making a holiday difference at San Marcos

It was beginning to look a lot like Christmas on Saturday, Dec. 8 as 160 kids from 38 families along with 110 kids without family members were adopted in the form of gifts and goodies provided by host families at the Boys & Girls Club of San Marcos at 1 Positive Place. “We look for families we know will need support for the holidays,” Boys…


Lake San Marcos: World’s oldest dead ringer

That gruff yet recognizable voice. The trademark cigar. Those corny jokes that may, or may not, be funny but with that rat-a-tat-tat Vaudevillian delivery that never seems to fail. It might be. It could be. It was…. Al Mager? Or was it George Burns? For those who thought George Burns was a permanent fixture in the Las Vegas of the sky, think again. Al Mager…


Joel Anderson turns into political punchline

ALEC’s favorite legislator, previously guilty of campaign finance fraud and most lately known for drunkenly threatening to “bitch slap” a female lobbyist at a Sacramento bar this summer, career Republican politician Joel Anderson finally has been ejected from the body politic. And that’s just Anderson’s political punchline. Anderson was elected to the Senate in 2010 after serving in the Assembly for four years. He termed out…


Hunter poll watchers slow down vote count

Reports from the San Diego Registrar of Voters Saturday said Duncan Hunter poll watchers had begun challenging virtually every ballot with a Spanish-sounding surname being counted, slowing the vote count. Vote “observers” working on behalf of Hunter’s campaign were challenging ballots based on the contention they were not from US citizens and signatures didn’t match registration forms, according to reports. Many of the pro-Hunter “volunteer…


‘Big Mac’ attack: Esco mayor race turns blue; Mac by 1,325 votes (UPDATED 6 p.m. Nov. 23)

Hell just froze over. With Escondido mayoral mail-in and provisional ballots continuing to be counted Wednesday afternoon, Democratic challenger Paul “Mac” McNamara soared to a commanding lead over incumbent Republican “Bad, Bad Abed, Sam.” The hits, or in this case, McNamara votes, keep coming. Big Mac’s lead grew again for the seventh straight day. Abed claimed victory Nov. 7. Now, the only remaining question is when…


Another Florida recount, calling Valley Center

(Editor’s Note: Even as Broward County and Palm Beach County election officials grapple with a razor thin-tight election recount, shades of 2000 reflect on the registrar of voters walls. The road to Florida election recount chaos runs straight through Valley Center where the originally defective voting machines traced to the well-turned home of Dick and Loralee Stephens at 29751 Valley Center Rd. The Stephens were…


Abed’s Esco mayor lead shrinks from 275 to 29 votes (UPDATED 6 P.M. NOV. 13)

Don’t believe EVERY vote matters? One might term it the ‘Big Mac Attack.’ With Escondido mayoral mail-in and provisional ballots continuing to be counted Monday afternoon, Democratic challenger Paul “Mac McNamara pulled within 29 votes of Republican incumbent Sam Abed. Although all 75 Escondido precincts have reported results, the race for Escondido mayor turned into a race for the ages this weekend as McNamara cut into…