Month: September 2013

Analysis: What is Your Vision of Davis For the Next Ten Years?

housing

As we move toward the fall, one of our concerns is that there are many movements afoot without an overall and overarching plan.  In terms of land use, we see four critical issues: residential housing development, economic development of high-tech and university spinoffs, the Davis Downtown, and retail.

We begin by looking at housing.  There are a number of critical questions: how much housing do we need in the next ten years?  What type of housing do we need and where does that housing go?

Special Commentary: In Search of the True Spirit of Labor Day

Food Service Workers

It was December of 2009.  I had been leading the way, pushing for pension reform while speaking out against the local firefighters’ union.  It’s probably not the best idea when your wife is a union organizer and you walk in union circles.

What happened next would be a huge wakeup call, at least for me.  My former boss, when I worked in Sacramento, asked me if I would meet with some representatives from the California Labor Federation, as they had some concerns with my writing.  My policy was and is that I’ll talk to anyone, and so across the street from the Capitol Building, I met with what turned out to be two representatives from the California Labor Federation.

Sunday Commentary: President’s Missed Opportunity, America Remains Divided on Race

racism

One of the big questions for President Barack Obama’s speech would be for him to figure out how to thread the needle – to exalt the progress of the last fifty years while not becoming complacent about the challenges that remain.

How would he honor the spirit of those who fought for civil rights, and yet understand that, while we have come far, we have not come nearly far enough?

A Look at Some Arguments Against Fluoridation

fluoride-waterAs the city of Davis considers whether or not to add fluoride to its water, the Vanguard is going to have a few articles that highlight arguments for and against fluoridation.  We have not taken an official position on fluoridation but have received some material on it and wanted to post some of that to promote further community-based discussion.

The following is a letter from Ambassador Andrew Young, a former ambassador to the U.N., dated March 29, 2011 to the Georgia Senate and House of Representatives.