The World

Take a good look — it’s US Constitution Day

Today is Constitution Day. Thousands of middle and high school students across San Diego County will better understand the wisdom, complexity and enduring relevance of the United States Constitution thanks to a special ACLU program pairing volunteer speakers with host teachers in celebration of Constitution Day. Since 2007, the ACLU of San Diego & Imperial Counties (ACLU-SDIC) has recruited attorneys, civic leaders, community advocates and others…


Climate change and wildfires, is there a link?

Once again, the summer of 2018 in the Northern Hemisphere has brought us an epidemic of major wildfires. These burn forests, houses and other structures, displace thousands of people and animals, and cause major disruptions in people’s lives. The huge burden of simply firefighting has become a year-round task costing billions of dollars, let alone the cost of the destruction. The smoke veil can extend…


Deported Army vet Barajas gets citizenship

Deported U.S. Army veteran Hector Barajas, who has been living in Mexico the last eight years, today received word from the Department of Homeland Security on March 29 that he was being granted U.S. citizenship. He is scheduled to be sworn in as a citizen in a few weeks in San Diego. Barajas, a decorated vet who received an honorable discharge after serving nearly six…


Pub stunt? Stone cold MillerCoors lawsuit

Stone Brewing Co. of Escondido is suing Molson Coors’ MillerCoors in a California court, claiming the company’s marketing of Keystone beer — specifically referring to the product as ‘Stone — is confusing. In a video announcing the lawsuit, Stone Brewing founder Greg Kochexplained why he’s suing the company (NYSE: TAP) and what MillerCoors could do to end the kerfuffle. “We believe that MillerCoors is intentionally…


San Onofre Nuclear Plant ticking time bomb

What to do with the 3.6 million pounds of highly radioactive waste at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station by Camp Pendleton remains an epic problem, pitting concerned citizens against Southern California Edison, the California Coastal Commission and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).  San Onofre’s seaside nuclear reactors were permanently shut down in 2013, following steam generator malfunction. Edison operates San Onofre while the Coastal Commission…


Plastic ocean pollution and climate change

Although burning fossil fuels is the primary cause of global warming, fossil fuels could also be driving climate change via a completely different mechanism involving ocean plastic debris and tiny, bioluminescent fish living hundreds of meters beneath the ocean’s surface. Lanternfish (aka myctophids) are only a few inches long typically but so ubiquitous that they account for over half the ocean’s total fish-mass. They are…


LION Publishers: Net Neutrality repeal could damage local news startups

(Editor’s Note: The Escondido Grapevine is a proud member of LION — Local Independent Online News — Publishers. This article written by LION executive director Matt DeRienzo, appeared today at http://www.lionpublishers.com.) Information must flow freely for democracy to flourish Repealing Net Neutrality would allow giant chain media to work in concert with internet conglomerates to limit access to independent, alternative, and local news sites, according to…



Collective action will solve climate crisis

I fancy myself an environmentalist.  I recycle, backyard compost, have rooftop solar, rarely use AC or heat, drive a hybrid, don’t have a lawn and eat vegetarian. Yet the truth is I am as responsible for climate change as the next guy. Here’s why. Doing those things makes me feel good about myself, but they don’t move the world measurably closer to solving the climate…


Analyzing Trump for sanity’s sake

Analyzing Trump for sanity’s sake is a product of innewsource, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization based at San Diego State University providing readers with the most authoritative and in-depth stories. Used by permission. For more, visit innewsource.org It’s no secret Donald Trump is an unusual president, one whose late night tweets, comments and vitriol have prompted some to question his sanity. All that noise has led…