Why I opposed Eckert
Unfortunately, Hollister’s botched first round in its search for a new city manager has become a political football. I believe that it’s vital for our residents to know the facts so they can be confident that the majority are making decisions in the best...
Goodbye to former columnist
Marty Richman gave readers a window into his mind and life for nearly seven years as a columnist for the Hollister Free Lance.
Those who read his regular column from December 2007 until October 2014 knew he was brutally honest, immensely analytical and unabashedly bold...
Letter: Yes on N: Separating fact from fiction
These lies are nothing new from Measure N’s opponents, who have a long track record of spreading fear and inaccurate information to keep San Benito County from making meaningful progress.
Hindsight 2019
Nov. 22
A lose-lose situation
The biggest losers of the two-week soap opera are the citizens of Hollister, who deserve better from their elected and appointed representatives. The opportunities for redemption for all five council members are narrowing, and their remaining abilities to agree on another...
Slower high-speed rail?
It sounds crazy, but a presidential rant on Twitter may have forced Gov. Gavin Newsom to “clarify”—actually, backtrack—his position on California’s high-speed rail.
“The project, as currently planned, would cost too much and take too long,” the governor said of the state’s high-speed rail plan...
Rivas for Assembly
Five candidates are running for California Assembly District 30, and two have emerged as serious contenders to represent the region’s half million residents. The district includes south Santa Clara County and San Benito County and is currently represented by Anna Caballero, who is running...
Mayor Ignacio Velazquez: State of the city
Every year we have the opportunity to make a change in our community, but 2019 is special in that there are four new council members with a willingness to actually make change.
This is the year we can make positive changes. I would like to...
A lose-lose situation
Consultants advise policy makers to seek win-win situations, where each side or multiple sides of an issue or a dispute walks away with a smile.
Greek philosophers called this phenomenon synthesis, German philosophers refined this concept and called it the dialectic and modern parliamentary democracies...
Police should stop carotid restraints
Two months after the death of Steven Juarez while in the custody of Gilroy police, the investigation of the exact cause of his death continues. While the police and the district attorney’s office are investigating whether police were responsible, they have said little about...
Democracy takes a bow
There were cheers last week about the record or near-record turnout levels in the midterm elections in California, and across the U.S. While the numbers were relatively high—approaching 60 percent in some California counties— they were properly qualified by adjectives such as “midterm,” “off-year”...