Taft Conley School

Independent The Taft

February 22 - 28, 2013

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February 22 - 28, 2013 • Volume 7 Issue 32

“Serving the West Kern County Communities of Taft, South Taft, Ford City, Maricopa, Fellows, McKittrick, Derby Acres, Dustin Acres, and the Cuyama Valley”

Twenty Lincoln Student Essay Winners Receive Free Computers From Taft Correctional Institution

Taft College\ Westec Now Offering Court Reporting Program

Conley School Receives $5,000 Education Grant from Synagro QIK SMOG & TUNE Your Hometown Auto Care Center 500 S. 10th Street (661) 763-4445

See Us About Low Income CAP Program. Up to $500 Available for Smog Related Auto Repairs.

No Matter Where You Failed Smog Test, Come See Us! No Appointment Necesssary.

2 TAFT INDEPENDENT

February 22 - 28, 2013

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Store Hours: Tuesday to Friday 9:30am - 5:00pm Saturday 10:00am - 2:00pm Closed Sunday and Monday

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February 22 - 28, 2013

Inside Community Events.........3 News Briefs......................3 Recreation Report..........4 Westside News.................5 Westside News.................6 Westside News.................7 Movie Review...................8 Classified Ads.................10

Calendar

TAFT INDEPENDENT

Taft California “Home of the Taft Oilworkers Monument” “Gateway to the Carrizo Plain National Monument” Have a community event that you would like to include?

Email us at Publisher@Taftindependent.com

Grandma’s Attic Resumes at Taft Library Grandma’s Attic Storytime resumes at the Taft Branch Library on Saturday, January 19, 2013 and will continue every Saturday morning at 10:30 a.m. through April 20.

Aimed at 5 to 8 year-olds, Grandma’s Attic offers an old trunk full of surprises and stories presented by a different volunteer reader each week.

Children who participate will receive a form to return to their teacher for credit in their school reading program. Parents are always welcome to attend, or may enjoy some library or computer time while their child is occupied.

Also starting on Thursday, January 17 at 11:45 a.m. is Preschool Storytime, for 3 to 5 year-olds. Join us for stories and fun for the younger set.

For more information, call 763-3294 or visit the library at 27 Emmons Park Drive.

News Briefs

Kern County History Day Competition Slated for March 2 February 19, 2013 — Dozens of 4th through 12th grade students will compete at the 30th annual Kern County History Day from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 2 at the Larry E. Reider Educational Center, 2000 K Street in Bakersfield.

History Day, which is free to the public, features students competing as individuals or in groups in one of six categories: exhibits, documentaries, performances, Web sites, historical papers and posters. An awards ceremony follows at 2 p.m. in the Kern CountyBoard of Supervisors Chambers, 1115 Truxtun Ave. History Day encourages students to explore a historical subject related to a yearly theme. This year’s theme is “Turning Points in History.” Students sharpen skills as researchers, writers, artists, documentarians, Web site developers and performers in the preparation of their projects.

Winners in each category are eligible to participate in the History Day state finals, April 26 & 27 in Sacramento. State winners can advance to the National History Day competition held in Maryland in June.

Opinion and Feature....11

Ethics Training Class March 14th

Kern County History Day is presented by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools office.

Shop Taft........................12

The City of Taft will be hosting an Ethics Training Class on Thursday, March 14, 2013, 6:00 p.m., in the Taft City Hall Council Chamber. Ethics Training is required for elected and appointed officials every 2 years. Mr. David Prentice of Cota Cole Law Firm will be the presenter. Any city or district wishing to join us for the training are welcome.

Please RSVP prior to Wednesday, March 6, 2013, so that Mr. Prentice will have sufficient training materials and Certificates of Completion for everyone attending the class.

For more information, contact Christine Goedhart-Humphrey, student events coordinator, at (661) 636-4330.

The Taft Independent 508 Center Street P.O. Box 268 Taft, California 93268 (661) 765-6550 Fax (661) 765-6556

Email: Publisher@taftindependent.com Website: www.TaftIndependent.com Locally and Independently owned since 2006 The Taft Independent is a locally owned community newspaper published weekly on Fridays for your enjoyment and reading pleasure. We publish 3,500 issues and distribute to over 225 locations in the city of Taft and the neighboring communities of Cuyama Valley, McKittrick, Maricopa, Fellows and Western Kern County, California.

The Independent is available free of charge, limited to one copy per reader. Additional copies are $1 each. The contents of the Taft Independent are copyrighted by the Taft Independent, and may not reproduced without specific written permission from the publisher.

ARC Irish Bunco March 2nd The Taft ARC will sponsor and Irish Bunco fundraiser at 204 Van Buren St. on March 2nd. Cost is $25 per person. Dinner is included and begins at 5pm.

There will be a 50 / 50 drawing at halftime. For tickets call 763-1532 ext. 1.

Westside Little League Sign-ups On-line Taft’s Westside Little League is currently offering sign-up for the new season. To register, go to www.taftwestsidelittleleague.org

We welcome contributions and suggestions.

Our purpose is to present news and issues of importance to our readers.

SUBSCRIPTIONS. Subscription home or businessdelivery of the Taft Independent is available for $6.50 per month or $78.00 per year. To subscribe to please call 765-6550.

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LETTERS-TO-THE-EDITOR. Send us your letter to Taft Independent at the above address. Limit it to 300 words and include your name, address, and phone number. Fax: (661) 765-6556. Email your letter to: Publisher@taftindependent.com.

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ADVERTISING. Display Ads: Rates and special discounts are available. Contact our advertising representative at (661) 765-6550, or email to Publisher@taftindependent.com.

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Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Michael J. Long taftindypublisher@bak.rr.com Advertising Contributing Writers Kent Miller, Wesley Morris, Nicole Frost Columnists Randy Miller Jane McCabe, Dr. Harold Pease Subscriptions\Delivery Tim Webb, Patrick Harget

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by Donna CENTER STREET • 661.763.5451 Sterling Silver Knuckle Rings $5.00 New Arrival of different Clocks.

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Kern’s best junior high and middle school musicians, vocalists ready for annual Honor Music Festival Approximately 400 of the best junior high and middle school musicians and vocalists from dozens of schools will perform in the 66th annual Kern County Honor Music Festival, which is free to the public, Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. at Rabobank Convention Center. Students had to prove themselves in demanding auditions and maintain perfect attendance in three weeks of intense rehearsals.

Guest band conductor will be Gary P. Gilroy, professor of music and director of bands at California State University, Fresno, where he built one of the finest collegiate marching bands on the west coast. Professor of music at California State University, Fullerton Christopher Peterson will lead the choir. The orchestra will be led by cellist, Dr. Dieter Wulfhorst, who teaches orchestra and related courses at Fresno Pacific University.

Each of the three sections will perform a variety of music selections individually, before ending the concert with a collective rendition of the patriotic number “Battle Hymn of the Republic.”

The event is presented by the Kern County Superintendent of Schools (KCSOS) and Kern County Music Educators Association in cooperation with the PanamaBuena Vista Union School District.

Call Christine Goedhart-Humphrey, KCSOS student eventscoordinator, at (661) 636-4330, for more information.

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4

TAFT INDEPENDENT Editorial

The Taft

Independent

Westside Watcher

Restaurant and Entertainment Guide

Your Guide To The Best Restaurants and Entertainment on the Westside Tumbleweed Café Asian Experience and Steakhouse Asian Food and Pizza

Steak, Seafood, Wild Game, Full Bar Monday – Friday 6 am to 2 pm Saturday – Sunday 7 am – 2 pm Dinner Hours Friday and Saturday 6 pm to 9 pm 24870 Highway 33, Derby Acres 768-4655

Paik’s Ranch House Where Everybody Meets Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Open 7 Days Mon. Tues. Wed., Thur. 6 am-8:30 pm Sun. Fri. & Sat. 6 am - 9 pm 765-6915 200 Kern St. Taft Sagebrush Annie’s Restaurant and Wine Tasting Wine Tasting and Lunch Sat. & Sun. 11:30-5 pm 4211 Highway 33, Ventucopa (661) 766-2319

Lunch and Dinner Tuesday - Friday 11 am - 2 pm 4 pm - 9 pm Saturday 4 pm - 9 pm 215 Center Street, Taft 763- 1815

Black Gold Cafe & Deli Pastas - Sandwiches Espresso - Beer - Wine Craft Beers Open Monday to Friday 6:30am to 8pm Saturday 7:30am to 8pm Sunday 10am to 2pm 508 Center Street 765-6556

514 Center Street • (661)765-7469 LIKE us on Facebook: Fox Theatre Taft TAFTFOX.COM Week of Friday, February 22, 2013 through Thursday, February 28, 2013

A Good Day to Die Hard (R) No Passes Allowed Fri & Sat: (5:30), 7:45 Sun: (3:30), (5:30) Mon - Thu: 7:15 PM Identity Thief (R) No Passes Allowed Fri & Sat: (5:15), 7:30 Sun: (3:15), (5:30) Mon - Thu: 7:00 PM Warm Bodies (PG-13) Fri & Sat: (5:00), 7:00, 9:00 Sun: (3:00), (5:00), 7:00 Mon - Thu: 7:15 PM Tue - Thu: 7:00 PM

red at the Westside Recreation a

Time to Clean-up the Westside Last Friday morning, the newly established Greater Taft Economic Development Authority embarked on a tour of Taft and the county areas surrounding the city to get a good look at the blight, unsightly trash, run down buildings and other properties that grace the entrance and neighborhoods of Taft.

To put it bluntly, until now county government has failed the people of Taft and the Westside when it comes to code enforcement and neighborhood health and welfare.

But that is about to change.

Newly elected Fourth District Supervisor David Couch has decided to make the clean-up of the Westside a priority and work with Taft Just Say No to Blight. This bat infested home on D city government Street was recently demolished by county governand the newly ment. 80 more structures may be next. created Greater Taft Area Economic Development Authority to target blight and the awful structures that harm neighborhoods and property values.

This is good news for local residents. Couch, who took office in January this year, is taking code enforcement very seriously and already has identified more than 80 properties that need to be addressed in South Taft, Taft Heights and Ford City.

The Kern County Grand Jury is also getting involved. Last August, the Taft Independent wrote a letter of complaint to the Grand Jury about the lack of code enforcement in South Taft and Ford City and asked for an investigation into why structures were allowed to stand in otherwise nice family neighborhoods, even after they burned down or became havens for criminal activity and drug abuse.

This week the Grand Jury sent a letter to the Independent advising that a report will be prepared and posted on their website in May 2013.

While it’s nice that the Grand Jury has taken up this issue, were convinced that lack of funding and a historical lack of interest by elected officials are the reason that blight has been allowed to exist.

Recently, the Kern County Board of Supervisors, at the request of Supervisor Couch, took action on two homes on D Street in Taft Heights. The cost to take down the two houses and clean-up the properties, which has already occurred, cost the county nearly $40,000.

The bill for the clean-up will stick with the property, and will be paid eventually by the property owner upon sale, if that ever happens.

This is the way government is suppose to work, and it is only the beginning.

Supervisor Couch has committed to cleaning up these neighborhoods and giving hope to those neighbors who have had to live by these structures. We applaud Couch’s determination to help Westside residents and hope that the rest of the board of supervisors take blight on the Westside seriously and funds the clean-up and demolition of these structures that so badly effect the community.

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Ranch House Restaurant “Where Everybody Meets” Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Open 7 Days

Mon, Tues, Wed., Thurs - 6 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Fri. Sat. and Sun. 6 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.

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200 Kern Street, Taft, Ca.

February 22 - 28, 2013

Health Care Foundation, District to Hold Community Meeting Feb. 28th The West Side Health Care Foundation, a 501c-3 non-profit foundation, was formed inNovember of 2011. Our goal is to work with the West Side Health Care District to improve our health care services here in Taft and the surrounding communities.

To kick things off, we have scheduled a Community Meeting for Thursday, February 28, 2013, at 6:00 p.rn., at the Historic Fort on io” Street. Hor d’oeuvers will be served beginning at 5:30p.m., no reservation is needed.

We will hear from the West Side Health Care District on their plans to improve our health care services on the Westside and how we can all help. We know from past projects that when the West Side community gets together on important projects, good things happen!

We would like to extend an invitation to you to come and hear what exciting things are underway and explore how we can all help the District improve health care on the Westside.

Feel free to call any of the Officers with questions or ideas.

Bob J. Hampton President

Senator Fuller Speaks Out On California Parks Invstigation

Criminal Investigation, First Declined by Attorney General’s Office, Now Underway SACRAMENTO – Senator Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield) released the following statement after today’s Joint Oversight Hearing by the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Water, and the Assembly Committee on Water, Parks and Wildlife.

“The most revealing thing from today’s hearing is that the Attorney General’s office is, in fact, pursuing an investigation that could bring criminal charges against officials who hid more than $50 million from both the Legislature and the Governor’s Office.”

The Attorney General’s Office earlier completed a civil review of the matter, finding the hiding of millions of dollars at the Department of Parks and Recreation “deliberate”, but stated in a January 24, 2013 letter to the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office that it would not initiate a criminal investigation.

“California taxpayers deserve a thorough review and understanding of how these funds could go missing, but as important is the assurance that those who may have committed illegal acts, like fraud, be prosecuted to the full extent of the law,” said Senator Fuller.

Senator Fuller is a member of the Standing Committee of Natural Resources and Water.

State Senator Fuller represents the 18thSenate District, which includes Bakersfield, Barstow, Big Bear City, Bishop, California City, Exeter, Frazier Mountain, Lone Pine, Mojave, Needles, Porterville, Ridgecrest, Rosamond, Taft, Tehachapi, Twentynine Palms, Tulare, Visalia and other areas in the Kern River Valley and in Inyo and San Bernardino counties.

Visit Us Online taftindependent.com

February 22 - 28, 2013

TAFT INDEPENDENT

Greater Taft Area Economic Development Authority, City of Taft Tour Westside to Identify Blight at City Entrances and Neighborhoods Taft’s new economic development organization, the Greater Taft Area Economic Development Authority and representatives from the city of Taft took a a tour of blighted areas inside and outside the city last Friday to identify areas and buildings for clean-up.

Taft City Manager Craig Jones and Taft Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Kathy Orrin were accompanied by City Councilman Orchel Krier, GTAEDA Chairman Michael Long, and retired Taft Businessman Bill Black on the tour to examine what areas of the city and county should be cleaned up and targeted for removal.

Westside Tour of Blight

“Taft has a blight problem,” said Long. “Our group (the economic development association) is determined to clean-up those areas of the city and county that harm the image of Taft and act as dangerous attractive nuisances that hurt property values and family neighborhoods.”

Krier, who is also a board member of the GTAEDA said that his goal was to help neighborhoods with problem houses that have burned down and left where they burned for many years.

“I am concerned with property owners who have no regard for their community, “ Krier said. “It’s time we went out and made these people cleanup their mess and have respect for those of us who live here.”

Fourth District Supervisor David Couch has also voiced support for cleanup efforts on the Westside. Recently, the Kern County Board of Supervisors, at Couch’s request, approved nearly $40,000 for the demolition and removal of two homes on D Street in Taft Heights.

While the cost of destruction and removal of the homes are paid for by the county of Kern, the property owners are liable for repayment of the costs.

Couch’s district aide Mark Salvaggio said that Couch was committed to the clean up effort.

“Supervisor David Couch is very serious about helping the

greater Taft area in removing blight and cleaning up properties that present public safety and health problems for the community,” Salvaggio said. “He will be making a major announcement next month and again in April about the removal of several hazardous buildings.”

Salvaggio aid that his office was looking at more than 80 code enforcement cases and that Supervisor Couch would be addressing them in the next few months.

GTAEDA is a joint powers agency created by the city of Taft and Kern County to promote economic development in the city and county areas of the westside of Kern County.

Community leaders went on a tour of the Westside last Friday morning and identfied several homes and areas for cleanup. These pictures are just a few of the structures identified by the group for removal.

Two houses (photo left, and bottom left column) were targetd for demolition by the Kern County Board of Supervisors. The board alocated nearly $40,000 to demolish and removed these two homes.

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6 TAFT INDEPENDENT

February 22 - 28, 2013

Westside News & Business Briefs Lincoln School Student Essay Winners Get Free Computers from Taft Correctional Institute

Twenty lucky Lincoln School students have received a free computer from the federal Taft correctional institution as a prize for winning an essay contest.

Associate Warden Norris Hogans of TCI presented the computers to the students last Thursday on behalf of the institute. The 20 computers were fully reconditioned.

Seen here at the Taft City Schools District board meeting room are the winning students.

The winning students pictured here are Shane McConville, Tisel Martinez, Natalie Bavinez, Mason Davis, Susanna Gibson, Cherisne McLeran, Cora Wood, Yadira Astorga-Leon, Elizabeth Huizar, Karen Aranda Garcia, Sarah Dawn Green, Elizabeth Santillian Morales, Chloe Schwerdetfager, Felicity Reich, Emily Yoakum, Alyssa Reevesn, Orion Gilmore, Omar Uribe, Dylan Johnston. Hogans is pictured in the center of the back row.

Lincoln School Student Cora Wood (photo left) claimed her new computer with John Roland. Shane McConville (photo right) claims her computer with mom Nicole. The computers were donated to Lincoln School by Taft Correctional Institute.

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661.763.1819 Lunch Hours: Tues-Fri 11am-2pm Dinner Hours: Tues-Sat 4-9pm Closed: Sunday and Monday www.otcookhouse.com find us on facebook 205 N. 10th Street 661.763.1819

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Ben’s Books The Largest, Cheapest and Only Used Book Store in Taft

Fiction • Non Fiction • Paperback Hard Covers • SciFi • Biography • Religion Childrens • Cookbooks and More!

SALE!!!

Saturday, March 2nd EVERY book in the store - .10cents That’s right - .10 cents

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Taft Union High School will host Orientation Night for eighth graders at 6 p.m. Monday, Feb. 25, in the Mullen gymnasium.

The event will showcase the activities at the school from sports and clubs to electives and academics.

The incoming freshmen and their parents will get an initial exposure to the high school and will be able to schedule counselor appointments so they will be able to sign up early for popular classes and summer school classes. Staff will be on hand to answer questions. The new students will receive free Class of 2017 T-shirts, popcorn and prizes.

Taft High band will be playing music.

HAYDENS HOPE THRIFT STORE

“We can keep our Teens off the streets!”

New School Hours Mon. & Tues.

9am - 2pm Closed Wednesday Thur. & Fri. 9am - 5pm Saturday 10am - 2pm Closed Every 2nd Sat. of the Month

All Dishes 1/2 Off!

God Bless!

428 Center Street • TAFT

745-4963

Closed Feb. 9th thru the 11th.

February 22 - 28, 2013

Four Taft College\WESTEC Students Prepare for Court Reporting School

On February 9 and February 10, 2013, four students from the Taft College at WESTEC court reporting school participated in an online “webinar” conducted through an outside educational source. The four, Aubrey Mesa, Katie Johnson, Alyson Duclos and Ashley Keene, spent several hours in the school lab studying and preparing for the English portion of the California Court Reporters Board licensing examination process.

In order to receive a Certified Shorthand Reporters license in the state of California, students must pass a 200 word per minute dictation test, along with two written exams, one being the afore-mentioned English test as well as a Professional Practices exam.

The four students utilized the new laptops provided by a Perkins Fund grant and reported that the training was very helpful in preparing them for the upcoming state test.

Westside Oaxacan Community Turns out for Highway Clean-Up Nearly 20 members of the Westside Oaxacan Community turned out last Sunday morning to clean up Highway’s 119 and Midway Road.

The group is an official participant of the Califonria Adopta-Highway cleanup program.

Conley School Receives $5,000 From SYNAGRO for Education Programs

TAFT INDEPENDENT

Conley Elementary School received a $5,000 donation from biosolids management company Synagro Technologies Inc.’s South Kern Compost Manufacturing Facility.

The school will put the money to a variety of good uses, including the purchase of Accelerated Reader Books and Tests for kindergarten through third-graders, according Lisa Kindred, the schools’ principal.

“We also want to purchase one to two Samsung Chromebooks per classroom for the ability to take Accelerated Reader tests in the classroom due to aging technology that we currently have,” Kindred said.

Synagro’s local plant, the South Kern Compost Manufacturing Facility, has given financial support to several not-forprofit organizations including the Taft College Foundation, the Taft Chamber of Commerce, the West Side Parks and Recreation District, and the Kern Tree Foundation.

“Synagro firmly believes in supporting the communities we operate in,” said Clyde Harris, Plant Manager at the Taft facility. Synagro, whose corporate headquarters are in Houston, Texas, operates Conley School Principal Lisa Kindred (left), and 3rd grade teacher Leticia in 36 states.

Krier receive a $5,000 check from SYNAGRO plant manager Clyde Harris Kindred said the school would develop last Thursday in front of the school with the 3rd Grade Class in the background. a recycling program plan that would include creating a curriculum tied to state standards in third-grade science and Synagro employees have volunteered to assist in recycling-based lessons.

The principal said the school also hoped to visit local businesses that recycle their products and teach children what is done with recycled products such as aluminum, glass, cardboard, tires, and waste.

Other ideas include creating art with the collected recycled items, an essay contest, and a poster contest sponsored and judged by Synagro employees.

Kindred said they hope to tie the ideas into the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) program at Taft College.

The Taft location is Synagro’s largest biosolids-composting facility. Last month it earned the Silver Level Recognition for its Biosolids Management Program from the Water Environment Federation’s National Biosolids Partnership.

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8 TAFT INDEPENDENT

Liberty Under Fire

Miller Time

If only the President would read,and follow, George Washington’s Farewell Address

Where’s All The Ammo?

Dr. Harold Pease It is the normal course of things to read in both houses of Congress every February, somewhere near his birthday of February 22, President George Washington’s Farewell Address. Until the last two decades it has always been seen as a guidepost for the future, and reverenced as such. It was given, in fact, for this very purpose just prior to his leaving the presidency. In it he warned posterity of possible pitfalls that could undermine or destroy this great experiment in liberty. His warnings may be more timely 217 years later as we near his birthday February 22. Although read, we have not adhered to it for at least the last four presidents.

In strong terms Washington asked that we avoid debt. He said: “As a very important source of strength and security cherish public credit… use it as sparingly as possible, avoiding occasion of expense… [Use the] time of peace, to discharge the debts which unavoidable wars may have occasioned, not ungenerously throwing upon posterity the burden which we ourselves ought to bear.”

Today our national debt sits at over $16.5 trillion—the highest in our history—increased by about four billion a day. To put this in perspective if we laid dollar bills on top of each other a trillion dollars would take us upward 68,000 miles into the sky—a third of the way to the moon. Three trillion would take us all the way. Sixteen and a half trillion dollars stacked on top of one another would take us to the moon and back twice, then to the moon and half the way back. Obviously today neither party has taken Washington’s advice. Presently the debt per taxpayer is $146,193. We are spending our way into oblivion (See USDebtClock.org).

Washington pleaded with the nation to keep religion and morality strong. He said: “Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable su ports…. Let it simply be asked, where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths which are the instruments of investigation in courts of justice? Reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle.”

The Founding Fathers never supported the notion of separation of religion and government—only the separation of an organization of religion from government. What would Washington say of the immorality that prevails today?

Our first president also had advice with respect to how we should deal with foreign nations. He advised that our commercial policy “should hold an equal and impartial hand; neither seeking nor granting exclusive favors or preferences…diffusing and diversifying by gentle means the streams of commerce but forcing nothing.” This is a far cry from the bullying tactics we’ve too often employed the last 100 years. Today we have troops in 32 nations in over 1200 military bases.

But the warning about foreign aid was especially good. He basically told us that gift giving in foreign affairs is a good way to be universally hated. He said it placed us “in the condition of having given equivalents for nominal favors, and yet of being reproached with ingratitude for not giving more.” Today there is hardly a nation in the world that does not have its hand out and when, after once giving, the amount is reduce or terminated we are hated all the more for it. Even potential enemies line up for favors. The Muslim Brotherhood state of Egypt received 1.8 billion dollars last year in foreign aid and is to receive, in addition, sixteen F-16 fighter jets and 200 Abrams tanks this year. Israel is their only likely target.

He warned against the origin of “combinations and associations” whose intent was to suppress the desires of the majority in favor of the minority. He called them artificial power factions.

We call them special interest groups. What would he say upon learning that a third of the cabinet of every president since Herbert Hoover belonged to the semi-secret Council on Foreign Relations as does either the President or Vice President of every administration including Barack Obama’s?

Such factions, he said, “May answer popular ends and become potent engines by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government….” The antidote for

Hi Everyone, Just coming down from a winter cold, not the flu, but a plain old stinking cold that settled in my chest and I’m fighting it all the way. I had already gotten through this column about half way when something happened and I lost my work. First time in three years, so now in the shroud of my feeble mind I will remember to title, date my piece first, and then start, geese. I’m trying all the remedies everyone has suggested, but in the big picture you just have to see it through.

This one isn’t near as bad as what I had last May, but it is best to avoid people as much as possible. But what do you do ?? You just can’t avoid people and objects and I guess you can carry around wipes all the time. It is not always convenient to wash your hands right after you shake someone’s had, how do you think they’d feel your running off to the bathroom. It is just one of those societal issues you face, do the best you can to keep sterile, but if you get sick stay home until it’s over. Hope you make it through.

There is an amazing phenomenon going on since the Newtown and Taft shootings. The outright scarcity of ammo for most makes of firearms but especially the popular AR15 type brand. Last November you could buy a twenty round box on sale for about 8 bucks. Now if there is any available at all, you going way north of 30 bucks a box. What happened; hoarders. American ammo manufacturers produce somewhere around 1 billion rounds of ammo a week, they can’t keep up.

The military gets priority as with law enforcement, then the rest of us. I haven’t heard this but I would guess even cops are hoarding every round they can get. Why, because there is a quinine fear that the governments, state or federal, are going to stop or restrict the sale or possession of ammo or they will tax it to death. Then if that doesn’t happen they’ll go after the ammo manufacturers to close them down or limit their output. This is how you address gun control; take the ammo out of the good law abiding citizens hands.

Then you can use those rifles as sledgehammers instead.

For me the cat is already out of the bag, with 300 million weapons out there in the USA. Ninety nine percent of those weapons are being used correctly, legally, and with care. Of the rest that are in the hands of the bad guys how do we identify them ?? How do we take away these illegal guns without violating their rights before they come to kill us ?? How many of the recent shooters have had mental issues that came up publicly before they committed their heinous crimes ?? In most cases no one said anything to the authorities and we can’t do anything anyway because they have rights. The shooter is the issue and the debate should be about the shooter, whether it is person with mental issues or the criminal. National debate should be about how we can preserve rights for all especially the victim and how harsh do we come down on the criminal.

You don’t solve this issue by attacking the object. 300 million guns this, Washington explained, was “to resist with care the spirit of innovation” upon basic constitutional principles or premises no matter how flowery, appealing or “specious the pretext.”

Washington worried about posterity not holding their elected officials strictly to the limits imposed by the Constitution. He knew many would seek to undermine that document by twisting it to gain power they could not acquire without the distortion.

Sound familiar? He said: “But let there be no change by usurpation; for though this, in one instance, may be the instrument of good, it is the customary weapon by which free governments are destroyed.” Today much of what the federal government does is not even mentioned in the Constitution and therefore, as interpreted for most of 200 years, unconstitutional.

But freedom fighters are not likely to be popular, he said: “Real patriots, who may resist the intrigues of the favorite, are liable to become suspected and odious; while its tools and dupes usurp the applause and confidence of the people, to surrender their interests.”

One need not look far for the “tools and dupes,” they seem to be everywhere and in both major political parties.

Dr. Harold Pease is an expert on the United States Constitution. He has dedicated his career to studying the writings of the Founding Fathers and applying that knowledge to current events.

He has taught history and political science from this perspective for over 25 years at Taft College. To read more of his weekly articles, please visit www.LibertyUnderFire.org

February 22 - 28, 2013 are never coming back peacefully to the government, because when that happens you’ll have a government you’d rather not want. Serious debate, not knee jerk reactions should prevail. Of course, the other end of the tail is the media and our rights to know.

Do we really need to see the shooters picture ?? Is it really necessary; I could care less. Don’t give them the notoriety they eventually are looking for. If you really need to see their ugly mug, go to some obscure web site to find it, don’t make it easy. Stay tuned because this just isn’t going to die down especially in California where our legislature feel they can solve all our problems by becoming dependent on them.

Sad news to report !! For the 34 years, I have been in Taft Kiwanis, there has always been a Kiwanis pancake breakfast in April in support of the Westside Little League. Their board recently announced that they are ending the breakfast because why, I’m not entirely certain. The trouble I assume is ticket sales by individual team members. Kiwanis only takes out the supplies cost while donating everything else. The kids in the past, to have players buy into the program and help with costs, were assigned to sell 10 tickets at $5 each. When is the last time they have been around to your door selling tickets ?? What happened ?? Well I suspect that parents are complaining about buying the tickets when in fact they were supposed to be teaching, showing, encouraging their kids part of life is doing difficult things to get what you want, you have to sell the tickets. Certainly, for Kiwanis, it is bitter disappointment. Now I suppose the board is going to visit various businesses and corporations with their hand out. Good luck with that. What are we teaching our children ??

In tune with Little League issue, I found a quote from a judge dealing with troubled kids back east saying there is nothing to do and nowhere to go that I paraphrase here; “go home, mow the lawn, wash the windows, clean up, learn to cook, get a job, study, read a book. Your town doesn’t owe you anything. The world doesn’t owe you a living, you owe the world. You owe it your time, energy, and talent so that no one will be sick, or lonely again. In other words, look around, grow up, stop being a cry baby and whiner, get out of your dream world, get a back bone not a wish bone. Start behaving like a responsible person. You are important and needed. There is not time to sit around and wait for somebody to do something someday. Someday is now and somebody is you”.

Sell L/L tickets.

See you around town, Randy Miller Proud Resident of Taft

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February 22 - 28, 2013

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First Baptist Church

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Gateway Temple

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Sunday Morning Worship 9:45 Sunday Evening Worship 5:00 Monday Evening Mens Prayer 7:00 Wednesday Evening Worship 6:30 For a ride: Call Dorine Horn 427-9722 Pastors Charle (Tommy) and Mary A. McWhorter

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Peace Lutheran Church- LCMS Taft- A caring community under Christ We welcome you to worship with us at peace lutheran church, 26 Emmons Park Drive (across from the College). Worship service begins at 10:00 a.m.

Communion will be offered 1st and 3rd Sundays Sunday School for all ages at 9:00 a.m.

The Pregnancy crisis center is now open and available for support and assistance.

For information, call 763-4791 If you have a prayer request please call (661)765-2488.

Leave a message if the pastor or secretary is not available

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City of Taft Wednesday

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ITEMS NOT ACCEPTED Construction/Demolition Waste/Used Oil/ Hazardous Waste/Tires Westside Waste Management Co., Inc.

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Classifieds

Classified Adsare are$3.00 $2.00per perissue line. for Phone, fax, maillines, or drop off Classified Ads up to three $5 per issue ad for to upthe to Taft 5 lines, and $7 per issue for up to 10 lines. Yard your Independent.

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Boxed ads are $5 additional. E-mail us (or bring to our Boxed\outlined\bolded classified ads start at $12.00 for 8 office) a for photo of your home, car, truck motorcycle and lines, $16 12 lines, $20 for 15 lines, $25 for 20orlines. we’ll do the rest.

Photo Ads. Car, truck or house for sale ads are $5 per week, Yard Sale ads are $2 for 3 lines, lines $2 each. or $10 with a photo.

Email us (oradditional bring to our office) a photo of your home, car, truck or motorcycle and we’ll do the rest.

Classified ad deadline is Wednesday at 12 p.m. (noon) Classified ads deadline is now Wednesdays at 2 p.m.

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Taft Independent210 508 CA 93268 YARD SALES Advertise your yard sale ad. 3 lines for $2, additional lines after that $2 each. Fax your ad to 765-6556 or call and leave message at 765-6550 by 12 p.m.

Wednesday.

First Baptist Church located at 220 North St. from 9:00am—3:00pm.

BUSINESS FOR SALE Establshed electronics and shipping store.

Includes equipment, inventory. Former Radio Shack. $19,500. (661) 805-8722. 3-10.

HELP WANTED

318 Easter Ave. in home. 8am - ?

25010 First St. Derby Acres. Sat. and Sun. Lot’s of tools. and Misch.

ANNOUNCEMENTS New AA meeting just started in Taft at the Chevron Valley Credit Union Community Room. 7:30 am every Saturday morning. We read a topic from As Bill Sees It. 9-19.

Grief Support Group, offered as a community service by Optimal Hospice Care. Meetings held Thursdays 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. At Chevron Valley Credit Union, Community Room, 1092 W. Kern St., Taft. Enter by outside entrance – Albertson’s Shopping Center. Free and open to the public.

Info call 716-4000. 3-27.

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Respite Care is available every Thursday At the

B License 442018

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Meter Reader ($3,025 - $4,751 per month) If you are looking for a career, come and check out what we have in store for you! West Kern Water District is seeking an energetic and dependable individual to join our team who has the ability to work independently and read water meters with a high degree of accuracy. Apply immediately at 800 Kern Street, P.O. Box 1105, Taft, CA 93268.

Deadline for submitting application is 4:30 pm on Wednesday, February 27, 2013.

Resume will not be accepted in lieu of District application. The successful applicant will be subject to a

pre-employment drug screen, physical and thorough background check. E.O.E.

CHILD CARE SERVICES WANTED Junk Cars Wanted.

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FOR SALE Convection range andmicrowave. Stainless steel. Both $550 or best offer. Will sell sep.

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Upright like new GE freezer. 1 year old. $250. Also have a lot more household items for sale. Call 7633586.2-30.

Firewood. $1 to $2 each. 313 Kern St.

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411 Shattuck. $600.

3bd. 1ba $750.

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FOR LEASE. 4\2 Big fenced yard. 2 car garage. Avail 3-1. $1,100 mo. $1,100 dep. 500 Eastern Ave. (661) 765-4333. DO NOT DISTURB TENANTS. 2-30.

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February 22 - 28, 2013

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Opinion and Features

Texas Senator Ted Cruz Deserves Cheers, Not Jeers

By Jim Demint

Imagine a new senator who ran a campaign of “no more business as usual.” No more special interest politics, no more backroom deals — and he won. He came to Washington, and he delivered. He didn’t stay quiet, he spoke passionately for what he believed in, and he made it clear he planned to shake up the status quo.

How would the media react to a senator like that? Nothing but praise for standing his ground, right? Surely editorials lauding his boldness, his vision, his courage would be his reward. He would be held up as an example for others.

Finally, a true leader who keeps his promises!

Unless, of course, your name is Ted Cruz, and you have the audacity to defend the Constitution and buck inside the Beltway politics, all while espousing a perfectly reasonable and sane governing philosophy usually absent from partisan political debate. Then it’s a different matter entirely. Then your only duty — according to the media and their parrots inside Congress — is to sit down and shut up.

Is such bald-faced hypocrisy possible? It’s not only possible, it’s happening. Cruz has become a lightning rod, and all because he’s daring to do what he promised during his campaign for the Senate. That simple act of integrity has set him apart from the pack. Most politicians know what to say to get elected but then arrive in Washington with no real spine — or in many cases, no intention of ever doing what they promised.

Not Cruz. He’s proved himself an effective advocate for the founding principles that made our nation great: personal freedom and responsibility, local control and adherence to the law as it is written, not the way some politicians wish it was written.

The Washington establishment opposed him when he was a candidate because he lacked big money or name recognition. But once groups such as the Senate Conservatives Fund helped to shine a spotlight on him, support poured in from grass-roots activists within Texas and all over the country.

Voters expect more of politicians than simply keeping a seat warm in Congress, so Cruz has been quick out of the blocks. For example, when it was time to question former Sen. Chuck Hagel during his confirmation hearing to be secretary of defense, Cruz didn’t shrink from making pointed queries about the nominee’s views on Israel and personal income Hagel has refused to disclose since leaving public service in January 2009.

For that, Cruz was extolled for taking his responsibilities seriously, correct? No, he was labeled an upstart, tagged as a bully — and worse. But why even hold confirmation hearings at all if senators are expected to lob nothing but softballs at nominees who are there merely to be rubberstamped? Was Hagel expecting, as a former senator himself, to get a free ride? Judging from the furor over Cruz’s line of questioning, it would appear so.

Cruz has even been willing to speak frankly about an issue that has many in his party running scared: immigration. When the “Gang of Eight” senators released their four principles to guide immigration reform, he praised them for vowing to better secure our “porous border” but questioned their proposed path to citizenship.

“To allow those who came here illegally to be placed on such a path is both inconsistent with rule of law and profoundly unfair to the millions of legal immigrants who waited years, if not decades, to come to America legally,” he said.

To Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post’s “Right Turn” blog, this amounts to “shooting from the hip.” In fact, Cruz is voicing a serious concern shared by millions of Americans.

And now’s the best time to express serious concerns, before a specific piece of legislation based on flawed principles is rushed out for a vote. Yet, Cruz, the son of a Cuban immigrant who fled oppression, is ludicrously accused in liberal

Texas Senator Ted Cruz: True Conservative In 2012, Ted Cruz was elected as the 34th U.S. Senator from Texas. A passionate fighter for limited government, economic growth, and the Constitution, Ted won a decisive victory in both the Republican primary and the general election, despite having never before been elected to office.

Propelled by tens of thousands of grassroots activists across Texas, Ted’s election has been described by the Washington Post as “the biggest upset of 2012 . . . a true grassroots victory against very long odds.”

National Review has described Ted as “a great Reaganite hope,” columnist George Will has described him as “as good as it gets,” and the National Federation of Independent Business characterized his election as “critical to the small-business owners in [Texas, and], also to protecting free enterprise across America,” Ted’s calling to public service is inspired largely by his first-hand observation of the pursuit of freedom and opportunity in America. Ted’s mother was born in Delaware to an Irish and Italian working-class family; she became the first in her family to go to college, graduated from Rice University with a degree in mathematics, and became a pioneering computer programmer in the 1950s.

Ted’s father was born in Cuba, fought in the revolution, and was imprisoned and tortured. He fled to Texas in 1957, penniless and not speaking a word of English. He washed dishes for 50 cents an hour, paid his way through the University of Texas, and started a small business in the oil and gas industry. Today, Ted’s father is a pastor in Dallas.

In the Senate, Ted serves on the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation; the Committee on Armed Services; the Committee on the Judiciary; the Special Committee on Aging; and the Committee on Rules and Administration.

Before being elected, Ted received national acclaim as the Solicitor General of Texas, the State’s chief lawyer before the U.S. Supreme Court. Serving under Attorney General Greg Abbott, Ted was the nation’s youngest Solicitor General, the longest serving Solicitor General in Texas, and the first Hispanic Solicitor General of Texas.

In private practice in Houston, Ted spent five years as a partner at one of the nation’s largest law firms, where he led the firm’s U.S. Supreme Court and national Appellate Litigation practice.

Ted has authored more than 80 U.S. Supreme Court briefs and argued 43 oral arguments, including nine before the U.S. Supreme Court.

From 2004-09, he taught U.S. Supreme Court Litigation as an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Texas School of Law. Prior to becoming Solicitor General, he served as the Director of the Office of Policy Planning at the Federal Trade Commission, as Associate Deputy Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice, and as Domestic Policy Advisor on the 2000 Bush-Cheney campaign.

Ted graduated with honors from Princeton University and with high honors from Harvard Law School. He served as a law clerk to Chief Justice William Rehnquist on the U.S. Supreme Court. He was the first Hispanic ever to clerk for the Chief Justice of the United States.

Ted and his wife Heidi live in his hometown of Houston, Texas, with their two young daughters Caroline and Catherine.

quarters as being anti-immigration. All Americans can be grateful that Cruz doesn’t just sit down and shut up and pretend this isn’t the same cleverly disguised amnesty legislation that has failed in the past.

Cruz has also shown the courage to tackle other difficult issues that many have been content just to talk about. He has been pushing to end corporate welfare, expand workplace freedom and promote school choice. These bold policies frighten Washington special interests but give American working families reason for hope.

“I made promises to the people of Texas,” Cruz has said, “… to lead a concerted and meaningful effort to end the unsustainable spending, deficits and debt that have been propa-

gated, unfortunately, by members of both parties.” Hardly a radical position, and yet the senator has been slammed as an opportunist who doesn’t seem to know his place.

If Cruz has ruffled feathers in Congress, that means he’s doing his job. Voters want Washington to be shaken out of its complacency. The last thing we need is another status quo senator or a congressman who goes along to get along. That’s how we got into the mess we’re in in the first place. Cruz’s honest and common-sense leadership should be commended, not criticized.

Former Sen. Jim DeMint is the president-elect of The Heritage Foundation.

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• 661-763-4445 • 500 S. 10th Street

408 Main Street • (661)765-4337

Randy’s Trucking Cart-Away Concrete Mix Trailer • Hydraulic Rotation and Tilt for Mixing and Dumping • Mixes Concrete While Traveling • • Large Internal Blades • • Rear Operator Control Panel •

(661) 763-4773 1050 Wood Street

western shop & PET Wash Chicks are here!

Full Grooming Salon Americana.

Red Sex Link

Let us wash and Brush out those wooley dogs

3/13 Sikies and Sebrights Silver Laced Wyanodottes $3.99 each - pullets

Nails 12.00 2nd Dog $9.00 Birds - nails and Wings $9.00 with beak $14.00

www.shawswesternshop.com

Monday-Friday 9-5:30, Saturday 9-3

419 Harrison St. Taft, CA 93268 (661) 765-2987

The Tumbleweed Bar and Restaurant

Located in the Heart of Oil Country On the Petroleum Highway We Cater Your Place or Ours Full Bar Available For Your Special Event

Come and Join Us at The Tumbleweed The Tumbleweed Cafe 24870 Highway 33 in Derby Acres • (661) 768-4655

Owner Orchel Krier Welcomes You and Your Family - Dinner Reservations

FULL BAR