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Risks rise as San Diego's painted curbs fade
Let us know when/if it gets painted. Inquiring minds want to know.— February 23, 2019 4:37 p.m.
Clairemont still waits for Trader Joe's
Clairemont don't get no respect. Nothing new to report on that front. Maybe the parking in that center is too plentiful and convenient. (Ever notice how nasty the parking lots are at Trader Joe's? Whether it is Oceanside or Escondido or La Jolla Village or Encinitas, the lot always is small, cramped, and hard-to-access. I don't even try to get into and out of the lot at the store in Carlsbad--Bressi Ranch. Parking on the street behind the store is far easier.)— February 23, 2019 4:24 p.m.
Balboa Park garage – after all the money – seems dead
Look up "empty suit politician" in the dictionary, and his picture is the illustration. The guy is just a gasbag. Neither he nor Sanders made use of the Strong Mayor concept. But you see, it takes a strong personality to make that work, and neither had one. It might have been interesting to see what Filner could have done; he was taken down before he had any chance to show what he could do. Faulconer goes with the blow of the wind, and it changes direction periodically. Politically he's toast at this time. The logical step up would be to file for one of the vacated county supervisor slots, but he's not going to stand a chance in East County, and he could never sell in the seat now held by Kristin Gaspar. No, Kevin needs to head back to his real profession, public relations, aka spinning, weaving, and making black look like white.— February 21, 2019 8:18 p.m.
Risks rise as San Diego's painted curbs fade
I'm in agreement. I haven't lived in San Diego in almost 35 years, and yet little about that city's operational shortfalls surprises me. In fact, if it had some particular part of the operation that was standout good, or at least claimed to be, I'd doubt that. I don't know just when it went wrong, or how it went wrong, or who was in charge, but it hasn't been truly functional for decades. The city was never flush, but it seemed to find funding for all sorts of boondoggles and city council pet projects. (The biggest boondoggle was the stadium and the Chargers lease.) All the while the infrastructure and its upkeep languished. Massive water main breaks, sewer leaks, and crumbled streets are everyday features of life in the slobberin' city.— February 19, 2019 7:30 a.m.
Escondido's most expensive gas
Businesses are sometimes set up for the purpose of providing a cover for cash deposits that are not exactly legitimate. With all this battling about cannabis sales and locations that can be allowed, well, could there be another product being sold there? No rational business owner should ever position his offerings at a price that nobody will pay, unless he's using the place for another purpose. So, either this one is irrational or up to no good.— February 16, 2019 5:40 p.m.
Harper Canyon: home to ironwood trees, dramatic geology and desert bighorn sheep
While I know this is about a hike, the directions are cautionary about accessing the area by 4wd vehicle. I've had a 4X4 pickup (on my third one now) for thirty years, there are times and places where I decide to stop short and start walking. Anza-Borrego is one of those. Getting stuck or stranded up a lonely wash isn't anything you want to experience. And while a 4X4 is good at getting through soft sand, if the sand is deep enough, you can get mired up to the axles anyway. Take the caution seriously. A good way to handle it would be to go with another off-roader. If one should get stranded, the other can drive back out and get help. The National Park Service refers to certain 4wd areas as "technical", a mild term for very hard to negotiate, and this one sounds technical to me. Just be careful and not foolhardy.— February 6, 2019 9:14 a.m.
Sheppard Mullin lobbies SDSU’s city deal
Unlikely as it seems, Moores may not be motivated by money in this deal. His motivation may be ego, and a desire to be remembered as the guy who made it all possible. I'd much prefer to see nothing of Moores again, but we won't get off that easily. It is clear that the fix is in for this land grab by SDSU, even though the university right now has to take a weird sort of hands-off approach. There are so many other options for the property, including doing little or nothing to it, that were never considered. Act in haste, and repent at leisure may be the outcome for the city and its overtaxed and under-served citizens.— February 2, 2019 1:53 p.m.
Breakfast at Tiffany's Turns 50!
I can't make this up. In 1967 at Fort Lewis, Washington there was a military review, meaning a whole lot of troops dressed up and paraded for a general. That called for an Army band, and while the general cruised past the troops in a jeep the band played a piece chosen by the general. And what did he have the band play? Why, Moon River of course. Can you imagine that tune played in a marching tempo by an Army brass (mostly) band? Hard to picture or think about, but I was there, I heard it, and it still jars my mind.— January 30, 2019 9:17 p.m.
Cory Briggs runs for mayor of San Diego
True, so true. There was a reason that local elections were made non-partisan in California, and that was to keep local matters local, and not to drag them along in state and federal controversies. But today the parties do definitely intrude into the local elections. I don't know which is worse: pretending that local elections are totally non-partisan, or just letting the parties intrude into local matters at and and all levels. (BTW, I still find it jarring, when visiting New Mexico, to see election posters for local judges showing them running as Democrats, or occasionally, Republicans. There was a practice in most places to at least pretend that judges were not partisan. But then, when there's only one party in the county or state, does that matter?) Final point: I think that the term is "toe the party line", as in placing ones toes on the line drawn in the sand by the party bosses. But, hey, towing the line, if it drags things along may make sense too.— January 30, 2019 8:54 p.m.
Patrick Soon-Shiong as a “pharmaceutical magnet”
Matt's use of the term "magnate" becoming "magnet" could have been due to a spell checker/corrector. If he spelled it correctly except for omitting the final "e", that would surely have been the result. I noticed that typo, but didn't comment on it. Better editing of these blogs, and especially better headline writing, would boost the credibility of Reader articles.— January 30, 2019 1:41 p.m.