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1. jim says:

   Tuesday, Dec 13, 2016 at

   Well, well, well. Yes, it’s all about the wells.
   I don’t know what kind of PR crap is being reproduced in the article by my home town station, but this circumstance shouldn’t be both the subject of a news article and an argument in favor of the proposition that the PR is being paid by and for. That’s not reporting, that’s advocating.

   I agree with another commentor that there was very little information regarding the dramatic change in water management taking place presented through the NCWD or CLWA that reached my home or crossed in front of my eyes in the past year or so. I always read about it AFTER the fact either here or over on the other, ahem, local news and home town station. I also note that this the first I’ve seen here of the latest “news event” regarding the proposed “merger”. It would have been nice to have a day or so to at least think about attending. Of course, if I missed an earlier announcement then mea culpa.

   I understand what a merger is in the business world according to the “real” newspapers; I’m not sure I understand this one.

   I also find it interesting that this reporter (or editor at my home town station) chose to use the term “merger” in its presentation of the take-over of SCWD and Valencia Water by the CLWA. Read ALL of the history of these maneuvers and you will find it hard to consider these operations as “mergers”. I’m not just talking about SCOPE and Lynne’s minions’ efforts to get their version out. I’m talking about court documents and legislative shenanigans up in Sacramento as well.

   Somebody (or -bodies) badly wants all of the SCV to be under one Water Lord. Somebody wants to have all water service decisions made in one room under one management. That may not be a bad thing; after all we do get pretty much the same drought and the same rain wherever we live in this valley.

   But this is not something that has been carefully brought out over time to all of the citizens of this valley (and owners/users of it’s watershed). If anything, what’s happened is a series of events that have occurred just far enough apart for the public to forget about the last one before the next shoe drops. In other words, as viewed through my old and no doubt slightly paranoid brain it looks like the fix is in.

   I have no proof or evidence that anyone here is doing anything other than trying to bring the best service and quality of water to all of the SCV. But I tell you this – and I’ll say it as often as you like until I see it verified otherwise – this looks like the kind of behind-the-scenes-behavior of people who don’t want to stir the public up. They don’t seem to want to take the time for a full public understanding of what this means in terms of a single semi-private management and control of what is a relatively scarce and publicly owned resource. And its the only one after breathable air that we really can’t survive without.

   It’s probably too late now for any kind of full review that could let the antiseptic effect of sunlight in to kill anything nasty. But then again it’s always been about “Who watches the guardians?”, paraphrased from the Latin. That’s right. Even the Romans worried about honesty, truth, and trust when confronted about behind the scene actions that could affect them.

   If this is all clean, shiny and above-board then why isn’t it put to a vote before the users (and owners) of the Newhall County Water District?

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