Do members of the Ceres City Council actually read the ordinances they are asked to pass?

I don’t think the mayor does.

Mayor Javier Lopez made a comment – veiled as a question – during the agenda item on a new ordinance regulating smoke shops. 

The proposed ordinance to add Chapter 10 to Title 6 of the Health and Sanitation area of the Ceres Municipal Code is mostly to mirror state law that forbids smoke shops from selling flavored tobacco products. Keep in mind that the text of the ordinance was given to the council days in advance.

The mayor: “Chief, quick question. I know that we had talked about this, and it sounds like in this ordinance that will be required to have security.”

Johnson replied: “I don’t think that that is in here. I know it was talked about.”

Lopez would have known had he not glossed over the agenda packet.

After the chief said Modesto may be changing its ordinance to add a security requirement, the mayor said “we should be doing that now.” Admitting he had no proof, the mayor shared rumors that some shops are selling marijuana.

I can understand security at a cannabis dispensary because of the potential for a controlled substance being targeted in a robbery or theft. But why require a security guard at a smoke shop? They aren’t required at liquor stores. Most don’t even carry guns. Besides, what would security do if a smoke shop illegally sold marijuana? They aren’t charged with police duties.

And why doesn’t the mayor and his vice mayor ask the existing smoke shops what the cost of adding a security officer will do to their bottom line?

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I’m convinced that generations from now the Woke segment of our population will look back on this time and say to their selves, “Why did we hate Trump so much?”

Some will be honest with themselves in their maturity and admit, “We were suckers. We fell hook, line and sinkers for the incessant hatred that came from the likes of Stephen Colbert and the babbling buffoons on the View. We watched the network news and really believed what they were telling us because it came from polished, handsome people. We weren’t thinking for ourselves. We let other people brand Trump as evil and we, like stooges, believed them.”

The dread and handwringing over tariffs were all part of the get Trump agenda. It appears now that tariffs are coming into the U.S. Treasury to the point that we should begin the work of reducing taxes for all and paying down the national debt. The media’s fearmongering over the rising costs of goods appears to be a big nothingburger.

The same non-thinkers fall for the polished and good looking slick politicians of today and elect horrible leaders while the rest of us are shaking our heads, wondering how Gavin Newsom beat the 2021 recall election.

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Have you ever been to an event and the presenter is using that ridiculous uptalk way of speaking?

Uptalk is the upward inflection at the end of sentence which makes someone sound like they’re asking a question or unsure of what they’re saying.

Normally I hear young women using it but at times it comes from younger men who do it too and it drives me bonkers. I heard it last week from a young woman representing the local county supervisor who was absent at last week’s regional fire training tower. Her words reflected how unsure she was of what she was speaking into the microphone. Her every sentence was spoken with uptalk, where the sound of her voice went up at the end of the sentence instead of down.

An example of a very public uptalker was Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who was propped up by the Democrats in their failed attempt to smear Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh in 2018. Lots of folks weighed in on her annoying tone when she spoke before Congress.

Some folks think uptalk is perfectly acceptable. They say uptalk signals that someone is not yet done speaking and it helps them maintain a bit of ownership of the communication. Others claim it’s useful to make a point with an invitational and less argumentative sound. Still others say it checks for understanding, support, and to make sure listeners are following along.

Critics say it’s a bad habit that sounds young, insecure, unprofessional and annoying.

A study covered in the dailymail.com showed that 85% of managers thought uptalk would hurt an employee’s chances of receiving a pay raise or promotion. 

In other words, even if we personally believe uptalk is not a problem, it may be hurting credibility with listeners.

Just don’t do it. Uptalk is plain silly.

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A special election is being called in November by Newsom so he can rig legislative districts in favor of Democrats.

It’s a scheme that flies in the face of the fair, nonpartisan commission process which draws lines for the state Assembly, Senate and Congressional districts.

More than 15 years ago the voters called an end to the gerrymandering where self-serving politicians drew boundaries to include more of their supporters and cut out more of them for political advantage. They enacted the California Citizens Redistricting Commission. That panel is not allowed to consider party makeup or how lines may affect any politician. Is it perfect? No. But it’s better than having politicians in charge.

Because the commission is a part of the California Constitution, Newsom wants voters to undo gut the commission by tricking voters and give the redistricting power back in their hands. He wants to do this before the 2026 elections.

Assemblyman Carl DeMaio said the special election could cost taxpayers  $250 million!

Why does Newsom want to make the change? After all, Democrats maintain a super majority in the state Assembly and state Senate. There are 60 Democrats in the state Assembly and only 19 Republicans while the state Senate has 30 Democrats and 10 Republicans. Democrats have had complete control over this state for years – which is why it is in such a mess – so we know that’s not Newsom’s concern.

No, lame duck Newsom’s concern is about reducing the Republicans that Californians send to Congress should he – God forbid – ever become president. Currently there are 219 Republicans in the House and 212 are Democrats. He wants lines drawn so that the Adam Grays of California can hold onto their seats.

Some are concerned that Democrats are also contemplating rolling into the special election a mechanism to raise property taxes by weakening or repealing Proposition 13, which was passed in 1978 to save California homeowners from exorbitant property taxes.

Watch what the snakes are planning to do and fight back with a vengence.

* * * * *

Business Insider reports that 11 more companies have fled Gavin Newsom’s rule of California in recent years. They are collectively worth $550 billion.

According to the magazine, California has lost over 265 corporate headquarters since 2018, with Fortune 500 firms under growing pressure to follow. Texas is gaining at nearly 10 times California’s pace. 

While California remains the headquarters for In-N-Out, this year the company began building a new office in Franklin, Tenn., with restaurants opening in 2026. Owner Lynsi Snyder said Tennessee offers a better environment for families and business. No kidding.

In what is the largest corporate exit in U.S. history, these companies say California’s progressive policies have made the state too expensive to operate and are going to red states (over half to Texas).

According to the California Chamber of Commerce, new climate disclosure laws alone are forcing companies earning over $1 billion to spend more than $1 million per year on emissions reporting.

High taxes and strict rules continue to strain operations.

Companies in the exodus include: 

• McKesson, a major pharmaceutical distributor, moved from San Francisco to Irving, Texas in 2019. Around 1,600 jobs followed, marking a big blow to California’s pharmaceutical industry. 

• Chevron traded San Ramon for Houston in 2024, pointing out strict policies and heavy regulations as key reasons

• Tesla left in 2021.

• Oracle left in 2021 for Austin.

• Charles Schwab took its 7,000 workers to Westlake, Texas in 2021.

• Hewlett Packard Enterprise left San Jose for Spring, Texas in 2020, officially opening its new HQ in 2022.

• Palantir traded Palo Alto for Denver in August 2020. CEO Alex Karp said Silicon Valley had become too intolerant and one-sided. 

• CBRE moved its global headquarters from LA to Dallas in 2020, citing Dallas’s deep talent pool and Texas’ pro-business climate as key factors.

• AECOM officially moved its headquarters from LA to Dallas in 2021. CEO Troy Rudd joined over 1,200 employees already in Texas. 

• FICO, the credit score company, shifted its headquarters to Bozeman, Montana in 2016. 

* * * * *

Gov. Gavin Newsom has ordered state agencies to expand access to mental health support, along with educational and workforce opportunities, in response to what some professionals say is a growing crisis of loneliness and depression among boys and young men.

Newsom aims to address rising rates of suicide, unemployment and gaps in educational achievement for men in their 20s and early 30s in California.

Has the governor ever thought that young men are depressed, not doing anything in life and lonely because they are playing those damned video games all day and all night? I’d be depressed too. It’s called a lack of balance. It’s called a lack of exercise, a lack of proper perspective.

I know from experience seeing how young men have their ambition robbed by video gaming as they dwell under their mama’s roof. Check in your man cards, dudes.

While it’s not always the case, the immature gamers also deal with anger issues. Who could forget Matthew Nicholson, the 32-year-old Ceres man who was living with his parents when he shot and killed his 68-year-old mother during a 2018 altercation stemming from his excessive video gaming? He snapped and also tried to kill his father, Loren Nicholson, 81.

Labor force participation for men without college degrees is at an all-time low: one in nine men between 25 and 54 are neither employed nor looking for work. According to Dirty Job’s Mike Rowe, 6.8 million young men are not looking for work because they sit at home playing video games or scrolling through social media all day.

But we can’t totally blame video games. How about AWOL dads?

The facts seem pretty clear:

• 63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes – five times the average. 

• 90% of all homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes – 32 times the average.

• 85% of all children who show behavior disorders come from fatherless homes – 20 times the average.

• 80% of rapists with anger problems come from fatherless homes – 14 times the average.

• 71% of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes – nine times the average.

• 43% of American children live without their father.

Hollywood may preach to us that dads are buffoons and unimportant when they are keys to the success of children.

American society needs to revert back to traditional values.

We’ve headed the wrong way with our values relating to drugs, alcohol, music and how we spend our time.

Instead of the state spending billions treating males who become messed up, why aren’t families doing what they need to raise their kids in a wholesome environment to prevent them from becoming so messed up? What’s wrong with attending church and instilling values that God values? Values like when you get married, you stay married and not chase after something else that floats your boat. Values like kindness and love, selflessness and serving others.

Each family has the power to its part but will they? Sadly, I doubt it.

This column is the opinion of Jeff Benziger, and does not necessarily represent the opinion of The Ceres Courier or 209 Multimedia Corporation.  How do you feel about this? Let Jeff know at jeffb@cerescourier.com