Valley Solutions

Shooting tragedy in Stockton

LA Times. 4 dead, including 3 children, in shooting at family event in Stockton. 
Synopsis: The city is reeling after a shooting in north Stockton left four dead and 11 wounded. The shooting occurred Saturday night at a birthday party in a newly opened event space. Sheriff Pat Withrow called it a “targeted attack” and said there is no immediate danger to the public. The sheriff would not confirm that the shooting arose from a gang dispute.

Modesto Bee. Hundreds attend vigil following Stockton mass shooting, call to end gun violence.
Synopsis: Less than 24 hours after the shooting that claimed four lives and injured 11 at a children’s party, Faith in the Valley conducted a vigil near the scene. Hundreds attended under gray skies. Among speakers were state Sen. Jerry McNerney and Vice Mayor Jason Lee, who said, “It’s never been gangster to kill kids.” Rev. Al Sheppard asked, “Why do we have to keep going through these senseless killings before people realize that it is guns that is the root of all the killings?”
MAD Note: This is the second-worst mass shooting in Stockton’s history – both involving the murder of children. In 1989, a disturbed former student killed 5 children and 2 teachers while wounding 11 others at Cleveland School. The shooting led to a national ban on semi-automatic assault-style weapons – a ban that was not renewed by the Congress several years later.

Stocktonia. New details emerge in Stockton shooting about victims, suspects, weapons.
Synopsis: Story focuses on Sheriff Pat Withrow’s press briefing in which he said the shooting was targeted and the children were collateral tragedy. The banquet hall has just recently opened for events and contained about 150 guests for a birthday party. Withrow said multiple shooters were involved, but he gave no motive. Deputies found weapons on the building’s roof, but Withrow would not elaborate on their type or how they got there.

KCRA. 5 arrested for weapon, gang charges in Stockton.
Synopsis: Hours after the deadly birthday-party shooting, Stockton police arrested five – four adults, one teen – on gang and weapons charges. Police would not confirm or deny the arrests were associated with the earlier shooting.

Gray gets 2 projects funded

Westside Connect. Gustine Unified secures federal funding for Student Wellness Center.
Synopsis: Gustine Unified School District has been awarded $366,0000 to establish a centralized wellness center. It was one of Rep. Adam Gray’s Community Project Funding requests. The money will be used to set up portable buildings housing school-based mental health programs. “Valley families deserve leaders who work for them, not for the extremes of either political party,” Gray said.
MAD Note: It is not the first time Gray has stepped up to help families. In 2011, Gray and state Sen. Anthony Cannella spearheaded efforts to build the county’s first dedicated classroom building for students with severe learning disabilities. Prior to its creation, former Superintendent Steve Gomes said families had to drive children from Merced County to Stanislaus for services.

Merced Sun Star. Adam Gray secures nearly $1.37 million for two community projects. 
Synopsis: Two projects included in the agriculture funding package have been approved. The first-year Representative got $366,000 to expand mental health services for students in Gustine and $1 million to build connections between Chowchilla Water District and two other districts to provide communities with safe drinking water.

Is salmon plight that dire?

Modesto Bee. CA salmon are endangered. So is the Democrats’ environmentalism. 
Synopsis: Columnist Tom Philp takes on Gov. Gavin Newsom, the Democratic Party and the State Water Board for being insufficiently concerned over the plight of salmon. He writes that salmon are on the “brink of survival and in desperate need of some human help.” His speaks first to trad-Republican strategist Mike Madrid, who calls Democrats environmental concerns “a veneer.” Philp decried SFPUC’s lawsuit over the state’s efforts to dedicate more of the Tuolumne River to environmental flows instead of urban use. As Philp writes: “Democrats have long resisted modernizing a water rights system that has made salmon somebody else’s problem. Protecting their own liberal cities always comes first.”
MAD Take: As always, Philp writes passionately. But why did he ignore the enormous amount of work being done on salmon projects across the north state? It is Philp who outed the fishing industry and state water board for miscalculating the number of salmon on the Sacramento four years ago which enabled catastrophic overfishing that devastated salmon populations. And what does Philp think would happen if Democrats didn’t protect “their own liberal cities” and allowed their taps to go dry? Or grocery store shelves to go empty? The only way to save salmon is to give everyone a stake in saving them. When that happens, it appears from the following articles, that salmon are reappearing – not disappearing.

CA Sportfishing Protection Alliance. Strong 2025 run of fall-run chinook salmon on Russian River.
Synopsis: It is not uncommon to see a carcass or accidentally hook a spawning salmon on the Russian River. But this year is different, and “much more promising.” As of Nov. 18, some 3,800 adult Chinook have come up the fish ladder on the Russian River. That’s exponentially more than normal and totally unexpected.

SF Gate. Chinook salmon are populating farther up a Bay Area creek for first time in decades.
Synopsis: Chinook salmon are being found on the upper Alameda Creek, according to Cal Trout. Observers have photographed at least a dozen fish in lower Niles Canyon – the first time they’ve been seen there since the 1950s.

Palisades News. CA expands salmon restoration efforts with new project, early signs of rebound.
Synopsis: The CA Wildlife Conservation Board approved seven habitat and fish-passage projects totaling $70 million as part of the state’s Healthy Rivers & Landscapes program. The program outlines 71 actions planned by the state to help the species adapt to warming water and drought. After the cancelation of the commercial salmon season for three years, salmon numbers are rebounding.

Can Pine Flat Dam get taller?

Hanford Sentinel. Plan would raise Pine Flat Dam 12 feet.
Synopsis: The US Army Corps of Engineers is hearing a plan to elevate the dam at Pine Flat Reservoir by 12 feet, allowing for an additional 120,000-acre feet of water storage. It would expand reservoir capacity to 1.12-million-acre feet. Reps. Adam Gray, Vince Fong, Jim Costa and David Valadao have formally requested that study begin, that it be fast-tracked and completed by 2028.

Water deadline extended

Modesto Bee. Water deadline for Stanislaus County resort extended 3 months. Tax sales looms.
Synopsis: Kern County Water Agency has extended its deal with the 600-plus homes in Diablo Grande, in the hills west of Patterson, through March. Those living in the development are currently paying around $700 a month for water. The community has been unable to pay its property tax bills, and its umbrella group – the Western Hills Water District -- has authorized a bankruptcy filing. Western Hills is sitting on $1.9 million in unpaid property taxes and $38 million in Mello-Roos bond debt. Western Hills feels it will need 2,200 occupied homes to support a self-sustaining water system. 
MAD Note: No mention of accounting for all the water Western Hills contracted to buy was billed for but was never delivered by Kern County. Lois Henry of SJV Water brought up that point several months ago, but it has not been addressed in further reporting.

Great Wolf targeted by thieves

SF Chronicle. Smash-and-grab thieves hit nearly 50 cars at Northern CA resort on Thanksgiving.
Synopsis: Manteca police say 48 cars were burglarized before sunrise Thanksgiving morning in the Great Wolf Lodge parking lot. Thieves smashed windows then dumped belongings onto the parking lot before stealing electronics and a handgun. The resort has security, but it was “unclear” if they were patrolling the lot. The resort has not yet turned over surveillance footage to police.

Healthcare will cost more

Merced Sun Star. Merced Conty residents can expect Medi-Cal changes, higher premiums in 2026. 
Synopsis: The One Big Beautiful Bill passed earlier this year by the Republican House will require cuts to Medicaid, meaning a million people in CA will either leave the program or face premiums that could be from 30% to 300% higher. Of those, 18,000 live in Merced County. Also under the bill, hospitals will get lower reimbursements for Medi-Cal patients meaning they’ll either have to cover the uncompensated costs or pass them along to patients. The Legislative Analyst’s Office said it means “more Californians will likely lack overage, be uninsured or face out-of-pocket costs.” The tax-cut bill also freezes enrollment in Medi-Cal, removes undocumented immigrants and will require “asset evaluation” for those requesting benefits. Next year, higher co-pays will rise significantly.

Merced’s favorite coffee shop

Merced Sun Star. Merced County coffee shop poll winner has Mexican flair.
Synopsis: Sun-Star readers voted Hola Cafecito the top coffee shop in the community, beating out Coffee Bandits, Wired Internet Coffee Bar and The Sensory Lab. Hola Cafecito got 26% of all votes. It is the second shop owned by Elizabeth and Oscar Moreno, following their shop in Hanford.

Indian drivers park rigs

LA Times. Why are CA’s Indian truck drivers disappearing during the holiday rush?
Synopsis: Trucking companies are idling their vehicles – at a significant cost to shippers – as the DMV has canceled thousands of commercial licenses held by legal immigrant drivers. The story focuses on companies in the Valley, where thousands of truckers live and work. The CEO of Bakersfield’s Roadies, Avninder Singh, has offered double pay but still can’t find drivers. He’s losing more in a month than he made last year. Outside of tech and medicine, trucking is the largest source of jobs for Indian immigrants. Of the 750,000 Punjabi Sikhs living in the US, 150,000 work in the industry. Among those quoted is Sukhdeep Singh, who owns Cali Brothers Truck Lines in Merced, and is losing thousands each week. The big firms are hurting, too. JB Hunt says English proficiency requirements could remove 400,000 drivers nationwide over the next 3 years. Transportation Sec Sean Duffy isn’t worried, saying American drivers will fill the void. The American Trucking Assn backs the administration, suggesting California has “rubber-stamped” license applications from immigrants and “looks the other way” at drivers who aren’t qualified.

Long walk reaches Merced

Merced Sun Star. Walking America couple make their way to Merced County.
Synopsis: Torin and Paige Rouse have been carrying their message of positive thinking across America since May 2022. As they walk across the nation, they record and post impressions of the communities they visit. The first thing that struck them about Livingston was the horses being ridden in city limits. “It’s so cool.” They are funding their journey through donations while staying in the homes of those they meet. They have had stops in Atwater and Ceres.
video -- https://youtu.be/HDxgSMxiYhY

Not-so-solemn water rites

CA Water Blog. Nine CA Water Rites. 
Synopsis: Water sage and retired UC Davis professor Jay Lund offers a tongue-in-cheek look at some of the “hallowed water rites” practiced by Californians. 1) Claim other water users are engaged in a “water grab” when you grabbed the water first. 2) Insist climate change will require actions you wanted even without climate change. 3) Blame water use by others for your water scarcity. 4) Insist CA’s water rights are unfair because you should get more. By the time Prof Lund finishes, he’s skewered just about everyone involved in water.