Jeff Solsby

OC/DC: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Must See TV

By Jeff Solsby | 01/09/09

If you want some perspective on what the rest of American is worried about amidst these turbulent times, consider these pressing issues: "convenient" television service and slow food in the White House.I blogged on both, prompted by two separate items in this morning's New York Times, over at FlashReport.  Here is a link.Have a great weekend! read more »

OC/DC: Hugh's Take on POTUS in Politico

By Jeff Solsby | 01/06/09

OC-based national talk show host Hugh Hewitt has a column on President Bush and the impact of the September 11 attacks on his legacy, here, in today's Politico.Between his own blog, show and law firm work, Hugh may be the hardest working man in talk radio! read more »

A New Year, a New Stack of Books

By Jeff Solsby | 01/05/09

A serious bout with bronchitis over the Christmas-to-New Year's break gave me five days in bed to catch up on some long-overdue reading.  Atop the list was a vintage book I received as a gift and it's worth your time both for its readability as well as the appeal of its subject: Kennedy family patriarch Joseph Kennedy.A link to the book is here at Amazon and here at Alibris.Written by Richard J. Whalan, the book quickly moves through... read more »

Spotting a Little Word Bias in Reporting at the Times

By Jeff Solsby | 11/21/08

Leave it to our friends at the LA Times to weave in some media bias on the issue of personal watercraft in certain water areas off Central / Northern California.In a story published today about new rules defining how personal watercraft can be used in protected waterways, the Times writes the following:"These noisy, polluting vehicles will be banned at popular spots such as Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz....Exceptions will be made for lifeguards and... read more »

LA Times Ad Insert Recasts Checkers Speech

By Jeff Solsby | 11/03/08

Some brilliant PR person someplace has landed a write-up and photo history of presidential cars in newspapers everywhere.  I noticed it first in the Sunday New York Times in the sports section where they have a half-page about cars, or sailing or something else interesting.  Today the LA Times website links to it, here, and a quick Google turned up a link to it (presumably at another Tribune paper, here).The best part is where it is... read more »

OC/DC: Toll Road Foe Wipes Out

By Jeff Solsby | 10/30/08

"Am I hallucenating here, just what in the hell do you think you're doing?""Learning about Cuba and having come food." -- Mr. Hand and Jeff Spicoli, "Fast Times at Ridgemont High"Well Jeff Spicoli isn't the only surf bum who needs to learn about history by reexamining the globe.   OC gadfly "Surfbumnate" needs a quick refresher course too. Today, over at the OCRegister website (website motto: "not quite all the news that fits the... read more »

Caveat Emptor for Voters

By Jeff Solsby | 10/06/08

Dear Attorney General Brown:On behalf of the 94 percent of homeowners nationwide currently making our mortgage payments on-time, and the .004 percent of residents in California aided by your recently announced mortgage work-around plan, I'd like to thank you for setting a record-setting precedent.  It's likely other states will join your recent settlement bandwagon and the trend will continue nationally.  Devaluing an asset or writing... read more »

OC/DC: What Stanton and ANWR Drilling Have in Common

By Jeff Solsby | 10/02/08

We shouldn't be affraid as policy advocates to run away from a debate because some in our party--or in the other party disagree.  It's true on many issues, but especially true on the question of drilling for oil inside the Arctic National Wildlfe Refuge.This hit me earlier as I was reading about the discovery of explorer Steve Fossett's plane in Inyo National Forest.  The forest is two million acres; ANWR is twenty million acres. ... read more »

OC/DC: Northeast by Southwest, According to the Post

By Jeff Solsby | 10/02/08

In an era of GPS many people have simply abandoned the mental caluclation elements of navigation--taking what the box says at face value.   In the case of reporting about the wreckage discovery of the plane assumed to belong to explorer Steve Fossett, you can also see how reporters who are not on-site can get tripped up by geographical realities.Today's Washington Post story of the episode notes, (graph nine) "The apparent site of the... read more »

Support an OC Charity, Watch A Movie--What Could be More Fun

By Jeff Solsby | 10/01/08

A love of sailing may be the only thing Sen. Edward Kennedy and I have in common.One of competitive sailing's big races is the "Transpac", the trans-pacific yacht race from Los Angeles to Honolulu held every other year.  Southern California has a special place in this race not just for its location is the start, but because this is the one race that brings together everyone from the richest, hoitiest of the hoity-toity on down to literally... read more »