The Truth Doesn't Hate To Say We Told You So ...

You know how people always say, “I hate to tell you so …”? Why do they say that? When I get to tell that to my husband, I kind of like it. I told him we should wait until spring to plant our yard flowers. He rushed right along. Then the bad weather wiped it out and we have to start again. I told him so!

But that’s not a big deal. The big deal is that the West Park Crows Landing idea has cleared a major hurdle. Here is how the Modesto Bee put it:

The plan to bring short-haul freight trains to Crows Landing got another boost this week with a recommendation for millions of dollars in funding from the California Transportation Commission staff.

The controversial short-haul rail proposal between the Port of Oakland and Crows Landing should get $25 million from the state's $3 billion Trade Corridor Improvement Fund, according to the recommendation.

I guess we can overlook the Journalism 101 cheap shot by the Bee writer who terms the plan “controversial.” Maybe if it wasn’t “controversial” it would have gotten $25 billion?

Anyway, this seems like very good news. Do we need to do a Google search to see if there’s been a lot of other news about Patterson being on the receiving end of $25 million in Trade Corridor Improvement Fund dollars? I don’t think so, because it ain’t been happening.

A good story in the Irrigator also.

Here is a note about this money. My understanding is that this is how the state apportions the dollars from bonds and other projects for transportation. Now California is a big state and our transportation needs are endless. And there is a huge competition for this money. I think Northern California always loses. We’re smaller and more rural that Southern California, and if you line up our representatives in Sacramento against the representatives from down south, we lose most every time.

This is why Becky Campo gets my dander up. I know she’s against it. Everyone knows it. And one of the reasons she is opposed is because she used to say that the project would never qualify for the money. No money, no project. And from that perspective, I have always thought let’s wait and see. If Crows Landing cannot get the money, I say then it looks like it will not happen.

But it now looks like it will get the money! Isn’t that good news? Isn’t that supposed to be a reason to celebrate? Not to Becky. She is as unhappy as ever. Here is a quote that made me the Truth want to scream.

"I still don't think it's a good project," Patterson Mayor Becky Campo said. "We felt we would be able to convince the CTC staff. I'm just disappointed, that's all."

Our esteemed City Attorney did not do much better: “I’m disappointed and surprised,” City Attorney George Logan said shortly after reviewing the recommendations.

Back to Becky. She admits that she lobbied the state NOT to send money to a Patterson project. That’s just swell. She is saying let’s not reform Crows Landing. Let’s just leave it the way it is. Let’s leave it as an eyesore and an embarrassment and covered in graffiti and full of crime. People are being robbed and even killed there. What is she doing about it?

This story of the delivery man robbed of pizza and soda is a topic of conversation in our house. If my son wanted to get a job as a deliveryman at that pizza place, I would tell him no way in this world. And I wonder how many parents would say anything different. I know a lot of jobs like this can be dangerous, and when I waited tables somebody robbed a register where I worked. But Crows Landing is an especially dangerous place. Have we already forgotten the brawling and our town’s first murder since 2004?

I’m getting pretty steamed. I think this is serious. People can choose to live in a lot of different places these days. We should be worried that more and more people will not live around here.

I’m going to end here with a last thought. I do not know if the West Park plan is going to be an amazing thing that makes us all ecstatic and one day brings the Super Bowl to Patterson. We need to hold everyone to their promises. Kamilos says he will get the money, build the project and create new jobs, help air pollution and take cars off the roads. Those are pretty big words. Let’s hold him to his promises, and see if he can deliver. But trying to sabotage the idea is not fair. 

Comments

[Country_Dweller]

" I guess we can overlook the Journalism 101 cheap shot by the Bee writer who terms the plan “controversial.” Maybe if it wasn’t “controversial” it would have gotten $25 billion? "

It is controversial because most of the people on the West Side oppose the giant piece of crap you call West Park. It is three times the size of the original base footprint. Almost every public agency is formally opposed to it. Both Newman and Patterson are opposed to it.
Gustine will probably foramally oppose it next.

" Anyway, this seems like very good news. Do we need to do a Google search to see if there’s been a lot of other news about Patterson being on the receiving end of $25 million in Trade Corridor Improvement Fund dollars? "

Patterson isn't receiving those funds. And the state can keep it.

" I don’t think so, because it ain’t been happening. "

Nice english

Here is a note about this money.

" I think Northern California always loses. We’re smaller and more rural that Southern California, and if you line up our representatives in Sacramento against the representatives from down south, we lose most every time."

We are not in Northern California. This is Central California. You don't even know where you are.

This is why Becky Campo gets my dander up. I know she’s against it. Everyone knows it. And one of the reasons she is opposed is because she used to say that the project would never qualify for the money. No money, no project. And from that perspective, I have always thought let’s wait and see. If Crows Landing cannot get the money, I say then it looks like it will not happen.

" But it now looks like it will get the money! Isn’t that good news? Isn’t that supposed to be a reason to celebrate? Not to Becky. She is as unhappy as ever. Here is a quote that made me the Truth want to scream.

"I still don't think it's a good project," Patterson Mayor Becky Campo said. "We felt we would be able to convince the CTC staff. I'm just disappointed, that's all."

Our esteemed City Attorney did not do much better: “I’m disappointed and surprised,” City Attorney George Logan said shortly after reviewing the recommendations.

Back to Becky. She admits that she lobbied the state NOT to send money to a Patterson project. That’s just swell. She is saying let’s not reform Crows Landing. Let’s just leave it the way it is. Let’s leave it as an eyesore and an embarrassment and covered in graffiti and full of crime. People are being robbed and even killed there. What is she doing about it? "

Full of crime and graffiti? You have no clue what you are talking about. Crows Landing has always been a sleepy country town. The graffiti is going to come from Kamilos big piece of crap when he stores graffiti covered railcars on several thousand acres. That is the eyesore Ms. Worley.

" But Crows Landing is an especially dangerous place. Have we already forgotten the brawling and our town’s first murder since 2004? "

This is just false and shows your ignorance.

" Kamilos says he will get the money, build the project and create new jobs, help air pollution and take cars off the roads."

How dumb are you??? Kamilos own study shows 140,000 trips to the airfield each day. You think that is going to improve air pollution? Livermore's aair quality might improve to the West Side's detriment. The air quality on the west side is going to make it ten times worse. About those jobs? Try minimum wage jobs unloading those freight cars.

Your ignorance steams me.

[Donna Miller]

$25M.--good job. Who gets it? If all the money is spent on the Westside, perhaps this is a worthwhile project, but it will not happen. The County gets the money to dole out and then taxpayers must match it. There is too much secrecy on this project -- no substance, as the Music Man sings his marketing vision of paradise and book work planning numbers that have no meaning in reality. He is in it for the money ONLY and once again everything he does has communities reeling with dissatisfaction. Why should he care, he walks away with millions and doesn't live in the aftermath of health problems and extreme lifestyle changes. I am not sold on this project yet...but it does not matter the Board has decided for us.......again.
As far as Becky Campo and Mr. Logan; it seems to me that haven't changed their opinions. They also seem to be voicing the majority of constituents opinions, that is more than I can say for our other political representatives. We need a project, but this is really dipping into the bottom of the barrel on a quality project for the Westside. This will surely do nothing for property values in the area. Guess Kamilos will have a heyday buying up cheap farm land in the future.

[ur an idiot]

are you finally done speaking your "TRUTH"?!?!?

[Country Dweller]

Great Post Donna!!! I think now that Kamilos got his vote last April, the Truth Teller has gone silent. Maybe if things start going south for Kamilos over the next year the propaganda machine will start up again.