Chico Taxpayers Association

I’m sorry to hear about the death of Adam Andrzejewski, head of Open the Books. He’s been quoted as saying, “In God we trust, politicians we must audit…”

You can quote me here – if you voted for them, it’s up to you to hold a candle to their ass, or take what you get. And if you don’t vote, don’t complain. And crapssake – educate yourself, don’t be a sucker!

Don’t take my word for it – look at different sources. This week my husband and I saw total bias – in both directions – in the news regarding the Kamala Harris interview. Various news sites were divided down the middle between those who claimed Harris had done a great job and those who said she didn’t. And then there’s the polls, which are coming in wildly different, depending on which source.

I saw an interview with a guy who does surveys and I’ll never pay attention to another survey as long as I live. What a scam – surveys are used to sway opinion, not to gauge it. Jimmy Stewart and Jane Wyman did a movie back in the 1940’s – when surveys were new – that explains how surveys are done and how they are used – Magic Town. You can find it on Youtube. It’s funny and educational.

I know the issues that are important to me and first among them is my personal economy. It’s not just the grocery store, look at your utility bills – the cost of living has skyrocketed just the last few years. I heard Donald Trump say he would “lower” our utility bills, I’m interested in hearing HOW. I do know that Kamala Harris, who, as state Attorney General, was given the opportunity to clean up the California Public Utilities Commission by bringing CPUC President Michael Peevey up on bribery charges. She had the goods on him, but told us, tough luck Kids, I let the Statute of Limitations expire…

Yes, google Michael Peevey – he was taking bribes from the heads of various utility companies, including PG&E. He was meeting with them in a luxury hotels all over Europe.

Peevey not only approved their constant rate increases but helped them hide information about their blatant and horrific acts of negligence in the San Bruno gas explosions and ratepayers forced to shoulder the enormous cost of mistakes made at San Onofre nuclear power plant. When this all became public, he was forced out of his job – with a pension and a fancy party – but never prosecuted. I found a lot of articles about frustration with Harris’ “malpractice” and “inaction”. This story details what she did, should have done, and didn’t do. Critics accuse her of “Democratic Party loyalty” instead of loyalty to the citizens of California. I believe so too.

https://www.kqed.org/news/10928651/critics-unhappy-with-kamala-harris-approach-to-san-onofre-probe

This article from 2020 says she set the stage for the wildfires that have become commonplace.

https://thefederalist.com/2020/10/12/consumer-watchdogs-say-kamala-harris-looked-the-other-way-while-utilities-set-stage-for-wildfires/

Yes I believe they are right, our Democratic leaders here in California are so beholden to PG&E – look at this article about PG&E campaign donations.

https://www.abc10.com/article/news/politics/california-politicians-campaigns-2-million-pge/103-4161feb9-1591-4ffc-9fda-d9c49d7173b8

When I was a kid, “Good Old Boy” was a common liberal label for conservatives. Meaning, you scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours. Well, how times have changed – now we have liberal Good Old Girls!

One final thing I’ll say is that if our local leaders want to lower the cost of housing they need to remember that part of the cost of housing is utilities. But they add a Utility Users tax of 5% to our water and PG&E bills and franchise fees on PG&E and Comcast. They also refuse to stand up to Cal Water or PG&E when they make their constant bids for rate hikes. The city can file a formal protest and that would go a long way, but they won’t because they make a lot of money off our utility rate increases.

I’m old, and I don’t know how much longer I can stand here waving my middle finger at The Good Old Boys and Girls, you people need to stand up and start making some noise.

Chico citizens are worried about the shigella outbreak, but as usual, city management pooh-poohs their concerns.

I have heard from a man who has had a positive test for shigella. He says it’s horrible, non-stop diarrhea, dehydration, and it’s easy to keep catching it when you have no place to wash your hands. The county health department has confirmed 44 cases so far. But staff has tested the water at One Mile, and denies any contamination? When we have people living in the park and using the creek as a toilet, the rest of us are supposed to believe we’re safe from catching it?

Shigella is a bacteria that spreads with contact, and according to this article, while it can be spread through public swimming areas like creeks and streams, it is hard to test the water for it. While it only takes one bacillus to catch this illness, it is hard to test streams, because the bacteria live in pods that float in the water. Experts say to be sure to collect a lot of samples, especially at “entry areas,” like the steps at Sycamore Pool. We don’t know how city employees conduct these tests. I do know, that in past, city officials have released test results, and they have accepted the lowest levels considered “safe” by health officials.

From the Safe Drinking Water Foundation – https://www.safewater.org/fact-sheets-1/2017/1/23/shigella

Shigellae may be more prevalent in surface waters, such as rivers, lakes and shallow wells, than in groundwater sources. Surface waters can be easily contaminated by sewage. Water treatment plants can remove Shigellae with the use of chlorine, so the bacteria are more prevalent in raw, untreated water. Shigellosis occurs more in the summer than in the winter. Communities that effectively treat sewage and keep water supplies safe drastically reduce the number of cases of shigellosis.

My advice is, don’t swim in untreated water. While City of Chico claims to empty and hose out Sycamore Pool once a month, it’s not chlorinated.* Here’s an article from Santa Cruz, California public health department

https://www.santacruzsalud.org/HSAHome/HSADivisions/PublicHealth/CommunicableDiseaseControl/Shigella.aspx

Creeks, rivers, lagoons, and ocean water may be contaminated with bacteria that can result in gastrointestinal illness. Protect yourself and your pets by not swimming or bathing in creeks, rivers, lagoons, and ocean water known or suspected of being contaminated.

In past, old timers have always told me, don’t swim in local creeks after July, some say June. Here’s a simple reason – there are cattle in the hills above Chico, all along Chico Creek. When my family camped at a campground off Hwy 32, there were cow pies in every direction, all over the creekside. Cattle carry giardia, a parasite that gets into water and infects humans and other animals such as your dog. It’s a real problem with children because they tend to swallow more water.

Now we have an aggressive bacteria that has been reported in Shasta and then Butte County – it spreads quickly by way of the unhoused population, through feces that is deposited along our waterways. The city takes a blind eye on the water quality in the park. Why aren’t they announcing the actual numbers on their tests? How about dates? These tests need to be done regularly as long as the county health department is reporting an increasing number of cases.

And it’s not just water – it’s drinking fountains, park fixtures such as picnic tables and benches, public doors and doorknobs, restaurant fixtures – don’t be afraid to ask your server when was the last time they washed their hands! Ask them how often the tables and chairs are sanitized. When there was a Hepatitis virus outbreak up the entire west coast, tourists in San Diego got it from eating in a restaurant’s sidewalk dining area.

Stay safe. Since the city of Chico takes such a laissez-faire attitude toward this outbreak, I’d avoid Downtown, especially outside dining areas. It’s so funny to look back on how the city of Chico reacted toward the COVID hoax, but learned nothing.

* BT asked me about how often the city actually cleans Sycamore Pool at One Mile. The website says every Thursday, but when I went over there last Thursday morning, I didn’t see anything. But this morning about 9am I saw crews emptying the pool, so I’m not sure what their schedule is. I know they’ve had a lot of concern over elevated levels of bacteria. But like I told BC, how does this weekly washing of one area in lower park guarantee there’s no bacteria in the water? Maybe if they’d just answer the question – how is Shigella spreading around town?

As more details emerged about the origin of the Park Fire, I wondered what kind of staffing goes into maintaining the park. I mean, where were the rangers when all this was happening?

Click to access webcityemployeesbydepartment_4.pdf

I was shocked – only two sworn park rangers? One is listed with the police department, the other with parks. A former ranger has been moved up to “Asst Parks Manager”.

Was this the reason for the slow response to the scene? The man was witnessed behaving erratically and driving his car in a dangerous and destructive manner. Calls were made, but by the time emergency responders arrived, the fire was out of control and on its way to destroying whole communities miles from Chico.

Here’s a scenario from a parallel universe – two rangers in the Upper Park, every day, seven days a week. These sworn officers would patrol the park road and all the swimming holes and parking lots from between the golf course/shooting ranger area and the end of the road. I believe this man would have been arrested if we had two rangers on duty every day and they worked the road and various parking lots diligently. Like Ranger Bob – he would have caught the guy, let’s face it you couldn’t get anything over on Ranger Bob.

How to pay for it? They just raised our sales tax promising us better and safer parks and instituted a $2 a day charge for bringing a car into the upper park. They said they would be hiring more sworn rangers – when? Crime has been a problem for years, when do we get more law enforcement in the park? Is it some kind of no man’s land?

I will just have to wonder what Ranger Bob would say.