I’m back after a short hiatus and am doing restaurant reviews again. The promised chicken sandwich review is coming soon. In the meantime, last Thursday I visited a place not too far from my office. The review came about as I was going to visit Freebird’s (it’s a fast casual Chipotle style place) the Monday prior to Thanksgiving.
As I approached the store, a man was standing in front saying they were closed for remodeling and would re-open after Thanksgiving…odd. So I returned, and I noticed not much difference…the sign was gone, replaced by a hanging banner “Gorditos.”
Freebird’s rebranded as Gordito’s
I assumed this was a name change. An “open” neon sign was lit, apparently saying the shop was open for commerce. I entered the business and was shocked, chairs and tables stacked in a corner, and all Freebird’s signage gone. Actually it was somewhat eerie, no music, no signs, no vibe at all. Ambiance 0/5.
I was stunned to know they had been open a week already, there were 2 employees both clad in shirts saying “Gorditos” but you never would have known if they were seasoned employees or folks off the street.
Food: it’s the same as a Chipotle, but on steroids. They have several additional toppings, and at Freebird’s they made everything in house (more on this in a bit). They serve burritos, burrito bowls, nachos, tacos and quesadillas. I pushed my way down the line, and peered into the kitchen…everything is from a can! Literally, everything…from a can. The brand was First Street, a store brand sold by Smart and Final…I won’t knock this but most foodservice is handled by Sysco or US Foods, it just looked/felt forced; like a business whose franchisee walks away and a couple loyal workers were trying hard to keep things going. That being said my nachos were quite tasty, so 3.1/5.
Overall: A few things going on now here and we will kind of grade on a curve. The place had the ambiance of a morgue, and seemed thrown together. The story was the company was bought out and sold to a new investor. Makes sense because the name change seems odd. The prices were absolutely out of whack; $12.50 for a burrito is nuts, my nachos were $9 so it’s on the very high end for a lunch with no drink included. Those prices will not be well received. The place was empty and it’s very much a work in progress. Overall I give it 1.7/5, but I may do a follow up review in a few months.
Well folks Measure B was defeated in 2016, by the slimmest of margins—talking fractions of a percent here people! So, we were spared from a county-wide sales tax increase, which actually resulted in a decrease believe it or not. Sales tax measures here at the Sacramento County level require a 2/3 vote of all voters to go into effect, I believe it may be different for just local governments.
Editor’s note:the percentage needed for passage of sales taxes depends on whether funds are dedicated which needs 2/3 voter approval or just going to the general fund which requires a simple majority. Legislative Analyst’s Office
Politicians hate tax decreases, it’s actually one of few bi-partisan things both parties can agree on. William has explained this better than I ever could but in essence: say there is a fund for a new overpass for 20 million. Money has already been set aside, but the general fund is running low due to lower than expected holiday shopping, so a tax hike is proposed to “pay for road condition improvements.” It passes and the government gets more tax revenue. The voter approved money goes into the transportation fund as promised, but since transportation is now fully funded by dedicated funds, other money that was being spent on transportation, is now freed-up and re-directed into the general fund to pay for pet projects. The net result of the tax hike is often that no additional funding increase—in real dollars—ever happened for transportation; money just got freed-up to be spent for other purposes. This bait and switch is a bi-partisan approach because everyone can find a project in their district to direct monies to, and when it’s completed, the elected can nominate himself for sainthood and give voters a reason to re-elect him/her/it. The City of Sacramento actually just did this saying the funds were needed for additional police/fire but re-directed it saying they had a “surplus.” Cities never have surpluses, trust me, it’s called creative accounting.
But I digress. There is a task force, the Sacramento Transportation Authority, made up of 16 elected members of this county (all 5 supervisors) (5 Sac City Councilmembers) (1 member from Folsom, Citrus Heights, Rancho Cordova, Galt/Isleton) and (2 members from Elk Grove). So, in essence, your tax dollars are funding a committee of your electeds to find ways to tax you even more on a countywide basis. To be clear, I have no problem with the mix of elected officials on a board, as they were elected by us the voters; however, I do have a problem with obvious conflicts of interest. Here is a glaring one: Sacramento’s Regional Transit (RT) is the local bus/light rail service in the county and of these “members” look how many reside on the RT board as well: Kennedy/Serna/Nottoli all Sac County Supervisors, Hume (Elk Grove), Howell (Folsom), Miller (Citrus Heights), Hansen/Harris/Schneier (Sac City).
Nine of 16 members sit on both boards. Thus, the Sacramento Transportation Authority has a vested interest in raising the local sales taxes and directing the money to RT which will be given a large slice of this new tax money. While you cannot do much about the supervisors, I find it hard to believe the other cities couldn’t find other city councilmembers to replace them due to a conflict of interest. RT is slated to receive a very large split of this money, I’ve been told upwards of 30%!!! No wonder Regional Transit took over/bought out Transit in Elk Grove and Citrus Heights last year, now they have a monopoly over the transit monies from this tax!
Henry Li—Regional Transit
City and county leaders in Sacramento are in the midst of debating a sales tax measure for the November 2020 ballot that would fund a long list of projects transportation projects, from freeway interchanges and bridges to sidewalks near schools.
Measure A could raise more than $8 billion through a half-cent sales tax over the next 40 years.
The decision to place a measure on the ballot will be made next year by the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors, if the project list is approved in coming weeks by the Sacramento Transportation Authority board. The STA board is made up of council members from cities around the county as well as members of the county board of supervisors.
There is a whole list of projects this additional money will go towards, and while some of it seems like worthwhile ventures; widening bridges, replacing old ones, repaving roads, it’s also chock full of waste. Expanding bike lanes, creating one way streets downtown, making bus only lanes, making Interstate 5 add carpool lanes (this is occurring already by the way), walking trails, and creating a four lane mini-connector highway from Elk Grove to Folsom! It includes a slew of wasteful transit spending, everything from newer hybrid electric buses to expanding light rail to Elk Grove in the south county and the airport in the north county. Basically, the money is divvied up proportionally and the projects are already in the planning stages. Of course, it’s California so combating climate change even worked its way into the conversation.
I call these projects “wasteful” because we as a county have not maintained these assets since they were constructed. I call it the “plug the holes and pretend all is well plan.” I drive a couple roads to get from my house to my job, the roads are horrifically maintained. When a pothole appears, the City tosses some asphalt in it, hammers it down with a shovel and moves on; only for said pothole to reappear a couple days later. When a re-seal or re-pavement should be done, we put it off in the name of saving money. Same goes for our bridges and overpasses, we ignore them entirely. I know this for a fact as a former Cal-Trans engineer told me no one even inspects them anymore, and if they do its more of a drive-by affair. This is not called a needed tax, it’s called fixing a bureaucratic time bomb waiting to blow up. Also what irks me is these planned “traffic easements” are total bunk, that mini-highway on Grant Line is only being proposed and funded because Folsom is building 10,000 new houses not far from there. Ditto with the new highway on ramp at Whitlock Road in Elk Grove. We are adding a casino and about another 8,000 homes there. I have heard rumors of a paid toll road on the 80, I thought toll roads paid for themselves? This wild looking bridge we are replacing at “I” Street seems necessary, but how come West Sacramento isn’t sharing in the cost? The street enhancements for autonomous cars seems very forward thinking but shouldn’t we wait until this becomes a bigger thing in the Bay Area…like you know, where all this tech seems to originate from?
I’m down on the transit funding for a couple reasons. First, I already fund transit whilst filling my vehicle with gasoline. The truth is that the Legislature is diverting money from gas, diesel, and other transportation taxes for use in other areas. Instead of fighting this diversion of funds, local government is trying to establish their own revenue stream to replace money diverted from them at the state level. Second, transit is required to recover so much of their operating costs at the fare box, and it seems like every year they are cutting stops, consolidating routes and raising fares, the business model seems very un-user friendly. Third, public transit just seems to constantly miss the mark. There is rampant fare-evasion, crime (including; violent, sexual, and petty), and in general people do not feel safe.
For example, look at the newly completed light rail extension to CRC junior college in my hometown. If I wanted to ride RT’s light rail to the Kings game, I must drive my car 20 minutes to the RT station, leave my car in a questionable area, and ride the train through quite a few downright rough parts of town on my way to the game and back. RT services are predicated on the expectation of leaving my car at a lot where everyone knows my vehicle will be unattended for many hours. RT just expects me to put my trust in the good citizens lurking in and around their parking lot.
Since I have lived, here everyone has talked about RT going to the airport. (I remember Joe Serna talking about light rail going to the airport back in the 1980’s when I was at Sac State—editor.) At one point they started work on the green line…but due to low ridership it was halted, now they want to use this tax hike to revive the idea yet again. Furthermore, they want to expand RT further south into Elk Grove. That seems all good and well, but land will be at a premium as much of that Bruceville Road route is built up already. This idea just seems like a boatload of waste. In addition, this light rail expansion…. completely skipped over our shiny new upscale mall built out at Delta Shores…just saying.
The task could be tough: Sacramento County transportation officials would have to persuade voters to agree to what would be a third ongoing transportation tax. The county already collects a half-cent sales tax for transportation projects, approved by voters in 2004 and set to last 30 years. Meanwhile, California state officials raised the gas tax in 2018 to provide more money for state and local transportation projects.
Folks, I know I keep harping on Elon Musk and the utopian dream of all electric homes, cars, and life in general but as Clint Eastwood once famously said in one of his many Dirty Harry movies, “A man’s got to know his limitations.”
Now
Tesla has hardly any market penetration in the United States but is gaining in popularity in California but not without consequences. As I keep saying, charging these cars is a big deal. Look at the ridiculous lines over the Thanksgiving vacation just to keep Elon’s fleet on the road. Drivers waited up to an hour to get to a charger and then a decent charge takes 45 minutes.
Footage out of Kettleman City, the location of one of the largest supercharging sites boasting up to 40 chargers, shows drivers queued up back-to-back in a line about a half mile long.
Testy drivers attempting to juice up after Black Friday sounded off on social media, claiming the wait time was anywhere from thirty minutes to well over an hour.
Predictions of the future are worse. If 10 percent of California households owned a Tesla and try to charge them overnight, the resulting electric demand would crash the electric grid and that’s assuming PG&E and Southern Cal Edison are maintaining their gear.
As we have previously documented on this blog, given current rates of worldwide mineral production and demand, Great Britain cannot achieve its goal of an all-electric fleet of vehicles by 2040—this calculation is assuming that nobody else in the world like maybe California is simultaneously trying to do the same thing.
Long-term
Worse yet, another battery (pun intended) of reports has even more dire warnings about our dependence on technology. At current rates of production, six vital minerals used in high tech devices like self-driving cars and smartphones will be gone within 100 years.
Besides the raw waste, mobile devices contain “conflict elements” like gold, toxic elements such as arsenic and rare elements like indium, the Royal Society of Chemistry said. “Natural sources of six of the elements found in mobile phones are set to run out within the next 100 years,” it added.
Another concern over the recycling of unused devices is that they often contain what are known as “conflict elements” such as tin, gold, tungsten and tantalum, which are mined in areas where battles and child labour are often a routine part of their mining.
“There are about 30 different elements just in a smartphone,” said Elisabeth Ratcliffe from the Royal Society of Chemistry, “and many of them are very rare.”
The metal indium, she explained, is used in a unique compound called indium tin oxide, which is vital for touch screens, because it conducts electricity and is transparent. “It’s also used in solar panels, so we’re going to need a lot of it in the future.
“There’s not a lot of it in the Earth and you need a kilo of ore to extract just a few milligrams of indium.”
Most of us will not have heard of tantalum, but it’s a highly corrosion-resistant metal that is “perfect for small electronic devices like our phones”, explained Ms Ratcliffe. “But it’s also perfect for hearing aids and pace-makers,” she told BBC News.
Scientists estimate that indium and tantalum mines, among others, could run out within a century. Meanwhile, our demand for new technology continues to increase.
“Even the copper in all that wire is not endlessly abundant,” added Ms Ratcliffe.
Elements in smart phones that could run out within the next 100 years
Gallium: Used in medical thermometers, LEDs, solar panels, telescopes and has possible anti-cancer properties;
Arsenic: Used in fireworks, as a wood preserver;
Silver: Used in mirrors, reactive lenses that darken in sunlight, antibacterial clothing and gloves for use with touch-screens;
Indium: Used in transistors, microchips, fire-sprinkler systems, as a coating for ball-bearings in Formula One cars and solar panels;
Yttrium: Used in white LED lights, camera lenses and can be used to treat some cancers;
Tantalum: Used in surgical implants, electrodes for neon lights, turbine blades, rocket nozzles and nose caps for supersonic aircraft, hearing aids and pacemakers.
Before this series of articles, I’d never heard the term “conflict elements.” I guess folks were successful with turning “conflict diamonds” into “blood diamonds” so I guess now we can call things “blood Teslas” or “blood iPhones” or “blood solar panels”, the possibilities are seemingly endless. Oh, and child/slave labor also gets a shout-out in these articles too.
It seems that Liberals are torn between telling you to recycle your old gizmos and guilt tripping folks that love technology. Maybe they’ll try doing both. Folks look for this pending shortage to be a way to raise even more taxes on recycling when you buy new stuff—even if it really ends up in the landfill. And if the predictions start to pan-out as being true, look for Elon Musk to propose mining asteroids, the Moon, or some other astronomical body to keep our stuff in production.
Bottom-line: Government planners and technology manufacturers seem to be on a collision course with reality. Mineral production is far less than long term demand and nothing will change that anytime soon.
Lastly, look for this as a future way to weaponize a movement against technology for the masses.
The number three political party in California, the embattled California Republican Party (CAGOP), has taken a page from Karen England’s playbook and decided to raise money off the efforts of someone else’s ballot initiative. In this case, the recall of Governor Gavin Newsom. The only problem is that California’s Republicans have no interest in supporting either recall effort (there are two measures currently gathering signatures). Just like Capital Resource Institute did during Proposition 8 and other efforts during that era, the GOP is raising money off of the ballot initiative and diverting the money to keep their doors.
Here is CRA expat Steve Frank’s summary of the story. (Emphasis in original)
“Meanwhile: The California Republican Party has sent a fund-raising pitch seemingly embracing an effort to recall Newsom.
GOP Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson said money raised would go to the party, not the recall backers, the Sacramento Bee reported.
A long shot: Qualifying a recall for the ballot could cost $10 million. In its most recent filing, the California Republican Party had $1.6 million in the bank, and many legislative seats to defend.”
You read that right—“GOP Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson said money raised would go to the party, not the recall backers, the Sacramento Bee reported.”
Folks, I left the Republican Party a few years ago but I’m sure they never voted to support the recall of our Governor so how can they pretend differently; even if they are just feigning it. Surely, Chad Mays and those other gutless wonders at the “Bill Mill” would never stand for such a display of speaking truth to power; especially, when they covet the power more than their political or eternal souls.
Folks this recall effort is doomed before it gets started but the fact that the CAGOP is anywhere near it shows how out of touch their leadership really is. Perhaps if Republicans in California advocated answers instead of cheap gimmicks their registration numbers would stabilized. Sadly, they have yet to hit bottom. Charles Munger did a number on these guys and they couldn’t see it at the time or even now.
Lee Ann Harper serves as the manager of the “Office of Youth Protection” for the Knights of Columbus in New Haven, Connecticut. Sounds like a really important job and I guess in some respects it is. This office was created in response to the Catholic PRIEST sex abuse scandals, because… well, let’s ignore the priests and focus on regular married/single churchgoing volunteers. Yes, you read that right. If you sign up to join the Knights of Columbus—a non-profit men’s group whose purpose is to serve the church—you, not clergymen, must undergo a background check and get fingerprinted prior to being able to volunteer on church property. I found this idea somewhat objectionable because who ever heard of a crisis in Catholic Church volunteers and because KOC members hardly ever work with youth. Despite my misgivings about the need for such a review of my past—I had nothing to hide and was an officer in our local council—I complied with the request. This was four years ago.
I later found out that the results of said background check were sent to the local parish office, not the mothership in New Haven, Connecticut. I have major objections to this, as a close friend of mine was recently told by the parish office that he needed to be checked again because they lost his results. These folks in the parish office, are not Knights, we do not serve them, keep in mind the parish office or diocese (governing body of the Roman Catholic Church) have no jurisdiction over us.
This past year I moved into the important “Deputy Grand Knight Role.” In essence, a position comparable to the Vice President (the Grand Knight is the top dog). In this position, I also had to take the title of Family Director. Family Director is a largely symbolic position as we have an older parish. As a result, the Family Director does nothing as far as the church is concerned.
As a young single man with no family, I know my bounds. I NEVER volunteer at youth events nor volunteer my services to drive/chaperone. The parish office knows this… I do this because the optics look bad, and as a brother Knight, I took an oath to never bring scandal on the church, or our Supreme Pontiff (the Pope). I know my lane and I stay in it…it’s a symbolic position.
Given that the Family Director is just a symbolic position on the Knight’s generic org chart, I was surprised to find an email in my spam folder directing me to submit to a background check for this position, and of course I agreed.
This email was where issues began to turn ugly with the Knights. I found this out about 6 weeks later when I got an overnight FedEx letter stuck in my door. I opened said letter and it stated that due to my driving record, keep in mind my criminal record is clean, I was unfit to hold the position of Family Director and to contact this Lee Ann Harper to discuss my volunteering further.
Let me reiterate, the Knights of Columbus is a volunteer group, one which had no issue with my previous background checks. Again, this letter never specified which position I could not hold, and I hold a bunch of positions, as you will read later.
In response to the letter, I called the mothership and low and behold, Lee Ann was not working, so I spoke to her assistant. Said assistant was the definition of a re-moron (they can’t be classified as a retard or moron, so they get their own title) and I was told that my driving record makes me ineligible.
I hung up and sent Lee Ann an email, since she was out of town according to her hired help. She responded within 15 minutes, saying I could beg for my job back and she was so sorry this happened. This is the typical response of an incompetent Jackhole. First of all, her response was from New Haven, Connecticut according to my iPhone and second, I would never beg to keep my job in a volunteer group let alone a real job. Just to remind people, the background check was only required due to a ceremonial title, not a big deal.
Harper took matters as any other incompetent Jackhole would and decided to fire-off, yet another overnight FedEx envelop claiming I was unfit for the position and was removed as Family Director. You dunked on me pretty good sending this letter to our Grand Knight and Financial Secretary both of whom are great friends. I was embarrassed. Questions were asked, and again, I have no criminal record, not expunged or dismissed. I fielded calls from both men, and both were just as confused as I am. Your exact words in your ill-fated letter to my Grand Knight was that he was directly responsible to make sure I did not hold the position I took as Family Director. I could care less about symbolic positions that are in name only, what was interesting is the remark she made later in this letter “feel free to remain as a brother Knight and keep paying your dues.” Keep paying my dues, and remain as a Knight? Weird, kinda goes back to my other blogs here. The letter sent out by Lee Ann, essentially makes me out to be a person with pedophilia in my background, even though the “sins I committed” in their eyes lie in my driving record. Again, just to reiterate, I have no criminal record, and intentionally stay away from any youth events as the optic of an unmarried young man serving as a chaperone would look bad.
The letters I received saddened me in several ways. First being I never wanted to join this group. I have always believed there is an ugly under belly in every church group and I wanted no part of “seeing how the sausage is made.” I worked a shift as a volunteer with my father who is a Knight, at the fireworks booth, and I met a good Catholic gentleman who I consider one of my closest mentors and friends. When I call, he answers and is always supportive. I still didn’t want to join; however, my father got a bad cancer diagnosis and told me it would mean a lot if I joined…so I did. My father is okay now, and my mother had two bouts with cancer and as a result I strongly believe in the power of prayer. I joined and was viewed at first as an ugly duckling; a young person who wants to volunteer when its mostly an older person’s group. It was a struggle breaking in at first, but eventually I was welcomed. I took time off work to help set up for our events, and while I was always viewed as wet behind the ears, I did my darndest to help out. The turning point was at a crab feed five years ago. I signed up to help in the kitchen and they had too much help. As a result, I was sent home but on my way out the door, I was told to “give this tray of pasta to the youth group.” They were the servers, and this was their dinner prior to the event. I did as I was instructed and was ready to head to the parking lot when a wife of a Knight told me they needed another bartender for the event…I said I would stick around and help. I was a little disappointed about not being needed in the kitchen, but I cannot blame them, and a motto I live by is “a setback is a set up for a comeback” so I helped-out. I wasn’t great. I was pouring for tips and was reminded, we aren’t at a Friday’s or Chili’s, it’s a fundraiser. The head bartender took me under his wing and my volunteerism skyrocketed. While most of my staff is deceased, I have been the bar manager for 3 years. It’s a tough job, but I am good at it now. I would even say really good, as I have been asked to bartend weddings and other events by other brother Knights.
3 years ago, our Grand Knight personally asked me to be his number 4 in command, a great honor. I chaired the Recruiting Committee last year as the number 3 and while the job is not easy, I did my job and again I was good at it. Now as the second in command I have the respect of almost everyone. I hold positions as head bar manager, Deputy Grand Knight, Chancellor of the Admission (new member ceremony) team, and the Warden (formation degree team). Most would say, if you need a guy to run an event ask Jake. In addition, I even raised over two grand for Special Olympics last year at an event I bar tended.
Yet despite my track record of service, incompetent Jackhole Lee Ann Harper wants to end all of this in a dispute over a position in name only, that does literally nothing. It’s funny that Lee Ann wants me gone so badly. In my real-world job, I’m required to undergo a background check annually and they have no issues with my record…oh, and they require that my driving record needs to be clear. In addition, I coach high school football, and both schools for which I volunteer ran my driving and criminal record yet have no issue with me coaching or even driving the players. The owner of this blog has no issue with my driving or background…yet you do?
Despite all this Lee Ann, you want me gone yet you ignore the other Knights who have never completed this type of background check upon joining. What about the leader of our youth group who has a lengthy criminal history… and is also a Knight? I even sent you his criminal record, yet he is permitted to remain and work with children. The owner of this blog knows my history better than you and he keeps me around. Furthermore, I would say he considers me a close friend.
Lee Ann take my advice, resign! I have previously written about your superiors screwing up and you’re irresponsible and arbitrary actions have made you my current target to write about. I have been in contact with our master who claims he has gotten people in your office terminated. You are an incompetent Jackhole and I’m coming for you. No one likes you. I’ve overcome more adversity that you can possibly throw at me. I was born despite my mother’s umbilical cord wrapped around my neck more times than I can count. I accomplish what I set my mind to perform. During the time that I played on my high school football team, we never lost; I have a ring to prove it, you Jackhole! I’m coming for you. Start checking the want ads, I heard your skillset works at Burger King.
Jake the Snake
Oh, I heard Lee Ann approved a member with pedophilia in his background…. stay tuned for my next blog.
My son, Really Right Jr, is taking American Sign Language (ASL) in school. As part of the class, he is expected to attend a number of outside deaf events each grading period. With a few weeks remaining in the grading period, he wanted to get his outside event completed during his Thanksgiving break.
ASL sign for Jesus
We looked at a few options and decided to “stay within the lines” as they say here in Elk Grove and opted to attend the second service at Creekside Christian Church—the former First Baptist Church of Elk Grove.
FBC changed their name a few years ago and rebranded—this seems to be the fad in many Baptist churches. I spent over a decade of my life in and around Baptist churches so I thought I knew what I was in for but wow!
I have been on the campus of the church for various reasons in the past but never attended a service there before.
We arrived and took the first parking spot that we found which was far from the door. Parking is at a premium at this venue. We headed for the main building which was labeled as “Auditorium”. This is your first clue that this will not be a traditional worship experience. Why not a traditional name like church or sanctuary? Or even the more modern term worship center? Nope just auditorium.
Entering the auditorium building takes you into an outer room about the size of a large house. It was filled with a myriad of people. Near the entrance was a Christmas tree over 20 feet tall. Further in on the left was a generic Starbucks with gallons of various types of coffee and an assortment of donuts. The donuts were apparently for sale and not just given to members. I couldn’t tell if the coffee was complementary or for sale also. Many information tables were setup in the middle of the room. Of course the restrooms were located in this area also.
After navigating thru the chaos we finally made our way to the entrance of the auditorium proper. As expected, ushers were handing out bulletins to people as they entered. We let the usher know that our son was there to experience the deaf interpretation as a school assignment. He left his station and walked us to the area in the front where deaf and hearing impaired people were seated. Our son took a seat amongst the deaf folks and we found some open seats a few rows back.
The seats themselves were the kind that I really hate. They were padded but have interlocking hooks so all chairs in the row are linked together so you really get friendly with your neighbors whether you are comfortable doing that or not. I hate being cramped like a sardine. These seats make me feel like I’m in the lap of the person next to me. Think the stereotype of a Southwest Airlines flight.
After getting seated, we noted that there were no Bibles or hymnals available. We opened the bulletin and it was devoid of any information on the service order for that day. There was no kind of information on worship order or welcome to visitors or anything like that. It was devoid of song order, what we believe or similar doctrinal statement, and never even told us who would be preaching that morning. However, the back listed an extensive array of names that seemed to be mostly paid staff.
The other thing that you notice when you gaze around the room was the stage. It looked like a Hollywood stage for American Idol or some other television show with a little bit of a Christmas flavor added just to have an excuse for even more lights. There were two complete drum sets on the back left side of the stage which were both played simultaneously during the music, several singers, and guys playing electric guitars. A piano was on the right side but clearly missing was any semblance of a pulpit. On the back wall were large projection screens.
Creekside Concert
A few minutes after we were seated, the show began. The band cranked it up and started belting out songs that I had never heard anywhere before. Apparently if you go there a lot or happen to listen to “The Fish” radio station, you might know them.
Given the volume of the music, I can see why the church has hearing impaired people in the crowd. I thought the music was entertainment and not worshipful. By the second song, I was wondering if I had missed the popcorn line at the entrance. Maybe it was on the opposite side from the coffee. Anyway, as I watched the show, I was in the mood for a salty snack and cold ice tea. After a few more tunes, they took an offering and did another song.
Partway thru the show, a guy steps up to the microphone and starts talking. He made an announcement about the importance of a charity called Compassion International. And then he kept talking about Compassion. About 40 minutes later he finished talking about the charity. This was the sermon or done in place of it. I felt that I was at a live telethon and didn’t even know it.
Please understand that I like Compassion International and I’m happy whoever this guy is, does too, but typically I’ve seen stuff like this done at Sunday school or other non-worship time. Dare I say, even at concerts.
The program then continued and things really went strange… oh yes, there was more. Shortly after the presentation on Compassion International was finished yet another incongruity occurred. People were then invited to do Communion. Folks, I had a boatload of theological problems with how this was done.
First, the elements—bread and wine (or grape juice, not sure which)—were never blessed. There was no Scripture recited, no pray of thanksgiving, no “Do this in remembrance of me”, nothing. I’ve seen some fast and loose ways of doing Communion and felt a lack of reverence before but this one was just not there at all.
Second, the table was not fenced either verbally or in actuality. Folks this is a really big deal.
Communion was literally self-service and at a number of locations. I think Scripture makes it clear that there was one table where Jesus broke bread and said “Do this in remembrance of me.” Every Christian church service that I have heretofore attended has always had one table where Scripture and a prayer are said and then elements are distributed from there to the congregation. Jesus is The Bread and The Life. He is The Bread broken for you… This important symbolism of a foundational truth claim of the Bible was completely absent.
Also, Jesus’ body and blood were given for us. The symbolism of taking the elements out of unattended dishes where you literally help yourself instead of it being given to you by an ordained servant of Christ is just wrong. Yes I’ve seen unordained folks help in distribution but only after the bread and wine were consecrated.
Next, Scripture instructs us as to when to come to the table. We are told not to come unworthily. We come as sinners clothed with the righteousness of Christ but we are commanded to examine our hearts and be right with our brother before coming. No announcement (or even note in the bulletin) was made that you need to be baptized and not under church discipline to partake in Communion. Folks the biggest reason for someone to be ordained is to administer the Sacraments and these folks completely reneged on their responsibility. As I said before, no effort to fence the table at all.
Given the casual nature with which these guys approach the Sacraments, is it any wonder they dropped “Baptist” from their name. Baptists are well known not just for demanding that a person be baptized to receive Communion but also the method of baptism be immersion or it is not a valid one. “Believer’s baptism” is a real and unique theological term. The fact that it was never mentioned was frankly troubling given what I was expecting. Bread in a tray like Chick-fil-A mints and shot glasses of juice in unattended trays was deeply disturbing and irreverent. We didn’t go because we weren’t invited to and the elements were never blessed (consecrated). It was a mockery or parody of the Sacrament.
Chick-fil-A self-serve mint dispenser
As I left the service, I was left wondering whether they held to anything other than good works as their “Christian” duty. Other than the pronouns used, what I witnesses could have passed for Methodist or any other group. Was this a clubhouse or a church? I couldn’t tell.
To recap:
You have money changers in the lobby hawking coffee and donuts
A “worship band” that drowns-out congregational singing instead of leading them
A sermon that wasn’t (I like Compassion International so I can’t complain too much plus they prefaced the presentation by saying it was out of format)
Self-serve Communion with absolutely zero clergy involvement
Folks I love most Christian rock music and listen to it often but I also feel that congregational worship is not an appropriate venue for this type of music. Rock is entertainment and I don’t go to church to be entertained. Entertainment is a musician saying look at me, while worship should be look at God. Confusing who is truly worthy is not helpful. I think of Christian rock as outreach not an up-reach.
But the real deal killer for me was the Communion service. I do believe that a Biblical alter call is going forward for Communion with God not visitors doing the sinner’s prayer and walking the aisle but the way Creekside did it was outside of the practices of the historic church.
Sorry, but I have zero interest in returning—except maybe if they actually have a good concert. I can honestly say that the sound system rocks and there’s plenty of free parking too.
McClatchy Corporation, parent of our local rag the Sacramento Bee, is teetering on the brink of insolvency, so I figured I would explain to their employees and writers how this occurred. Basically, McClatchy is headquartered downtown and is, in a sense, a newspaper conglomerate. It grew over the years from a small family owned (McClatchy family) paper into a large publicly traded company.
Over the years, they bought a few other daily papers and in 2006 they purchased a company far larger than them; Knight-Ridder–owners of about 20 daily papers; thus, forming a company with 30 daily newspapers. McClatchy is now the second largest newspaper chain in the US. However, the deal was ill fated; so much so that many analysts called it akin to a dolphin swallowing a whale. We entered a large recession soon after the purchase and by 2008 the company had lost 98% of its value. McClatchy’s stock was trading for less than a dollar! The executives did some financial engineering, stock splits, private investment, and sold some assets (the headquarters building) and stemmed a little of the bleeding. The company had layoffs and buyouts offered to employees every year, they even tried to grow digital (currently $129.99 yearly), but it’s been a slow climb. Finally, these past couple weeks, the company has finally realized the fate lies in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring.
Suddenly, it seems, everyone is talking about McClatchy’s future. A week ago the Sacramento-based company, the nation’s second-largest newspaper chain, said it’s facing a potential cash shortage. The news touched off speculation about the publisher’s future, including a potential sale of the company.
And, for the first time since its finances began deteriorating more than a decade ago, the company is publicly contemplating the possibility of filing for Chapter 11 reorganization.
McClatchy stock for Oct 23 – Nov 22, 2019 Current share value 36 cents
How bad did things get at McClatchy? They haven’t made a pension payment since 2009, and to remain compliant they must pay in 124 million by next year…more cash than the company has on hand. So, the answer is to foist this payment on the taxpayers!
… (McClatchy) has approached the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. about taking over its pension plan — a move that, if successful, would alleviate the need to contribute $124 million into the plan next year.
McClatchy said it approached the government about the pension plan after the Internal Revenue Service rejected McClatchy’s request for a three-year waiver on its required pension contributions. Without the waiver, McClatchy is due to pay $124 million into the plan next year, a sum that “greatly exceeds the company’s anticipated cash balances and cash flow,” McClatchy said in a prepared statement.
McClatchy also needs to work out a deal with their largest creditor Chatham Asset Management. McClatchy currently owes 708 million in debt and they have no means by which to even cover the interest anymore. Essentially, they need Trump impeached and Obama re-instated in the White House and to hope for an automaker-esque government bailout. Because as two Standard & Poor’s (S&P) analysts on Wall Street say, McClatchy will run out of cash by September next year. If you are wondering, the company will likely file Chapter 11 early next year after the Pension Guarantee Corporation declines the request to take over their pensions. To further their arrogance, McClatchy approached the Tribune, a larger company, about a merger to, in a sense, continue to delay the inevitable. Just adding more debt and more cash flow to service the debt into the future…sound familiar?
… a deal with Tribune would make a lot of sense for McClatchy because it could spread its debt over “a much larger cash flow. The (combined) company would be in much better shape than McClatchy is.”
Those talks fell apart.
This company is toast and they did it all to themselves.
Allow me to explain. They bought Knight-Ridder, which was a mistake. The family (McClatchy) owns 80% of the voting rights so what they want/say goes and no one can object. Currently, papers are dying and real journalism is going down with it. To say not a soul foresaw this should be criminal. To be fair Warren Buffett was buying papers and everyone likes to mimic the Oracle of Omaha. The debt pile was manageable for a while, but circulations decreased every year, the gig economy took away the need for classified ads, the wanted ads were replaced by Craigslist and the like. Worse yet, the papers decided to go on a war path criticizing any politician on the right, and openly rooting for any left-wing loon…hence the rise of Obama. This caused a huge readership decline, yet they doubled down on their arrogance. So, they helped push Obama over the finish line to a second term while denigrating Mitt Romney and his supporters. This caused another decline in readership. The rise of the smartphone and smart technology was never dealt with, people stopped needing a daily reader, as most updates on a third-party news app would make the paper pointless. None of this mattered. McClatchy continued doubling down on an ever-shrinking audience, Trump won, and the paper changed its tune, saying now they would hold all politicians accountable…. that’s laughable and everyone saw through it. Recently having pushed false narratives such as; Russian collusion, Ukraine quid pro quo, and a slew of other garbage not fit for print.
Now a closer examination of the leftist rag in McClatchy’s own backyard the Sacramento Bee. This paper hasn’t been worth anything in years, several scandals involving Democrat elected officials in our capital (literally blocks from the paper) went unreported (by the way they have an entire Capital Bureau mind you). Hard news became unchecked opinion pushed as fact. They no longer have a beat writer for the NBA team (again they play just down the street) and all the columns are now Associated Press as opposed to local journalists. They attack our elected sheriff yet ignore our Legislature and District Attorney when they decline to prosecute criminals or release them early . They criticize a super minority of Republicans in the Legislature, yet they have ignored the rampant malfeasance of Democrats in the Legislature and elected office such as our Insurance Commissioner’s scandalous pay-to-play policy. They employ Marcos Breton and allow local sewer rat, Bruce Maimon, to spew their stink daily; yet told Dan Walters, their last good reporter, to take a hike. Rumor has it, Walters does a periodic column, but he is happily retired, and I am happy for him! The local section disappeared; the food critic changes over more frequently than The Troll stalks Hope Hicks. Memo to the Bee, there is an app called Yelp; look it up. Your food critic is dead weight, and no one cares. Your sports section stinks, very little local coverage, not many people care about high school football. Recently the Bee announced that the Saturday paper will cease and be replaced with an expanded Friday and Sunday editions.
To support these shifts, starting on Feb. 22, we will no longer produce a printed newspaper on Saturday and will launch with a Weekend Edition that includes expanded newspapers on Fridays and Sundays. Many of the features that you enjoy on Saturday such as comics, puzzles, TV listings, real estate, home and garden and local sports coverage will now appear in expanded editions in print on Friday and Sunday. On Saturdays, we will continue to publish breaking local news to our website and social media platforms and we invite you to visit our website or eEdition, which replicates the experience of a printed newspaper online.
The Friday edition no one reads and the Sunday version you finish after your 8th cup of coffee all while ignoring the Saturday folks who read the comics or the puzzles, I’m sure the circulation won’t drop farther. When you get a papercut, chopping off entire limbs is not how I learned how to take care of myself.
Folks I feel compelled to make this point as well, McClatchy has been cooking the books on their circulation numbers for years. Papers like the Bee have two numbers that they use in order to sell advertising; namely, weekly circulation and the Sunday paper. Did you know that as a loss leader, the Sunday paper is given out to subscribers of other newspapers not owner by McClatchy? For the better part of a decade, here in Elk Grove, subscribers to the Laguna and Elk Grove Citizen are given the Sunday Bee for free? Its not just the paper that’s free but McClatchy pays for deliver to these homes too. As mentioned in the delivery article, AB-5 affects newspaper carriers too.
We also have an additional challenge in California. With the recent passage of AB 5, delivery costs for the printed newspaper will increase dramatically by 2021.
Fear not, leader of the slugs who operate and work for this corporation, Gary Wortel, had this to say after Sheriff Scott Jones lit into McClatchy, “What Sheriff Jones and the Deputy Sheriff’s Association say about our watchdog journalism is wrong. The Bee has been a leading independent local news organization and credible news source since 1857 and will continue to serve this community for decades to come.” Ah yes, Gary, “independent” is not a word I would use to describe your paper. The only chance you have of being around for a decade is if bankruptcy buys you more time.
Concerning the 20,000 people currently drawing a pension from McClatchy, Eliane Lintecum, the CFO and another leader of the slug brigade is banking on a Federal bailout of the pension plan. She had this to say about the company’s pension plans “we don’t believe their … pension benefits will be adversely affected” … if they get the bailout. Folks, would such a hope make you feel more secure in your retirement? What slugs!!!
Lastly chew on this trash which is conveniently listed atop each article of the Bee online:
Local news is more important than ever. Reporters are out in our communities each day, bringing you the latest news and holding leaders accountable. Subscribe — and encourage others to support local journalists with a digital subscription to The Sacramento Bee by using this link.
Thank you. And #ReadLocal
Hey McClatchy, you have hardly any reporters, you write very little about the local community, you hold no one accountable, and what the hell is the hash tag read local about? I guess it makes sense when you see a photo of McClatchy CEO Craig Forman, who may need a thicker pair of glasses to see through the mess he created.
The company is toast. The readers have either assumed room temperature, can no longer eat solid foods, live in assisted living, or don’t know which pro-noun to refer to themselves as. You were too late to digital, advertising is dropping, and the end is in sight. The best hope you have is that many still major in state sponsored journalism at the local university and don’t know any better. The last part being key, you control a group of slugs, they keep doing as told unaware they are trudging through a field of salt, watching their friends lose jobs and hoping for a turnaround…. No chance!
Hence the reason we here at Really Right refer to these journalists as “those with an IQ of a piece of meat” …as you leave them out too long, they spoil.
The Democrat’s moral elevator appears not to have a bottom floor. As you may be aware, a coup to replace Donald Trump is taking place as we speak; a coup so terribly thought-out it makes third world opposition parties (and the CRA) jealous. While congressperson (don’t want to assume gender here) Adam Schiff has done a great job to damage his own brand, this Earl Blumenauer fellow did him one better.
Democrat’s Elevator to Hell
Earl’s Stunt
You see, Ambassador Gordon Sondland initially refused to testify at the impeachment circus. Sondland was ordered by the State Department not to cooperation with the Democrat’s subpoena. As a result, Earl Blumenauer (I)—for registered Idiot—made this statement, “Anyone who cares about America should not do any business or stay at any of Gordon Sondland’s hotels.” Blumenauer’s news release then continued, “Not until he fulfills his duty as a citizen to testify and turn over all relevant documents to the House of Representatives.”
Subsequently, and no thanks to Congressman Earl, the Ambassador changed his mind.
“Notwithstanding the State Department’s current direction to not testify, Ambassador Sondland will honor the Committees’ subpoena, and he looks forward to testifying next Thursday,” Robert Luskin, Sondland’s attorney, said in a statement.
Even after Ambassador Sondland testified, Blumenauer has not withdrawn his call for a boycott.
FYI: Sondland did testify, and essentially buried Schiff today by the way.
Another Boycott
Blumenauer called for a boycott, which seems to be a play the Democrats continue to run from their failed playbook. How many times have we seen it now? Chick-fil-A, Ivanka Trump‘s brand, and now Sondland’s hotel brand, conveniently located in Portland, Oregon Blumenauer’s district. Problem is? Sondland stepped down as chairman and an executive of this chain when he entered into public service a year ago. This is a factual matter that Blumenauer knows full well. Sadly whether due to all his years in public service or living in the Swamp, Earl Blumenauer decided to join the chorus chanting, “Who needs rules when hearsay is more important than truth?” Does Blumenauer even have the slightest idea who gets hurt the most under his boycott idea? Hint it ain’t the millionaires up top.
Earl Blumenauer–honored as one of the most pot friendly guys in Congress
The bottom line is, the Sondland hotel workers in his district get hit the hardest. It’s similar to when a corporation does not perform well, the layoffs start at the bottom not the top. The folks being directly impacted work in the hotel industry meaning they are likely low wage jobs, in essence the people who need the work and money the most. Doesn’t that sound like the people the millionaires in the Democrat Party claim to represent and fight for?
These boycotts never go well or have unintended consequences. While Chick-fil-A may have caved slightly on LBGTQ issues, they saw a huge uptick in sales. Ivanka Trump’s line is doing outstanding, and from what I can see, business is booming at Trump properties! We here at reallyright.com don’t believe in boycotts and are happy to see this one implode.
Blumenauer and his ilk are the worst kind of humans. These guys get elected and try to influence everything and legislate things they hate out of existence. What exactly was the purpose of this call for a boycott? Because Sondland wouldn’t testify at the circus? Last I checked, you have a 5th Amendment right…maybe I should send Blumenauer a copy of our rights as citizens. On the other hand, maybe Earl Blumenauer could exercise his right to remain silent instead of opening his mouth and removing all doubt.
Blumenauer is the perfect example of a lemming. Pelosi or Schiff tell him to jump and he will gladly comply…for our county’s sake I hope it’s off a long pier!
Just remember, boycotts hurt those at the bottom not the top…and yeah, that impeachment trial is going just great for the Democrats! Not!
Troll
PS Hope Hicks I am truly sorry you have to watch your former boss go through this. I’m available by phone if you ever need to chat, a consultation, or just get something off your chest; just reach out to the owner of this blog.
Editor’s Note: With all due respect to Troll, whatever Sonderland did to Schiff, he managed to bury himself as well.
The disparity between accounts comes as Sondland’s spotty recollection of events related to the Ukraine matter came into question in other ways during Wednesday’s hearing. At one point, he blamed part of his difficulty in reconstructing events on the fact that he is “not a note-taker or a memo-writer.” Republican counsel Steve Castor later critiqued the witness’ lack of notes, records, and recollection as a “the trifecta of unreliability.” Sondland responded that his recollections had been “refreshed by subsequent testimony, by some texts and emails that I’ve now had access to.”
Three stories that make a difference that were buried in the last few days.
California is fulfilling their role as a take no prisoners, authoritarian regime. In the latest moves to ban the internal combustion engine and anything else that uses fossil fuels, California has created another list of politically incorrect people that are to be avoided. This time the list includes automakers that will not be allowed to sell to the State. First on the list are GM, Chrysler, Nissan, and Toyota.
Mary Nichols-California Air Resources Board
California issued a statement late Monday saying that as of January the state would only buy vehicles from automakers that recognize the California Air Resources Board’s authority to set tough greenhouse gas emissions standards for vehicles. California also pledged only to do business with automakers that committed to stringent emissions reduction goals.
Separately, the state also said it will no longer buy sedans that are powered only by internal combustion engines, no matter who manufactures the car. It will buy only plug-in electric or hybrid sedans, although California would make an exception for certain public safety vehicles. That rule does not apply to SUV or truck purchases.
This list is in addition to the ones that prohibit State employees and athletic teams from California State Universities from traveling to other States because the States are pro-life or pro-marriage; both of which are outlawed in California. I’m sure a similar list banning travel to places based on gun ownership is also in the works.
As a result of this utopian B.S., Elon Musk looks to be the beneficiary of more taxpayer money that he didn’t really earn. Of course this will be in addition to the money being directed to him as a result of the solar panel mandate that begins in January. Elon, by far, is the most heavily subsidized fellow in the history of the planet. Elon gets more corporate welfare from the government than any defense contractor ever dreamed.
Elon Musk has tax money to burn
Next up is California oil production, a story which is told via two news accounts.
But since taking office in January, Newsom’s own department of energy management has approved 33 percent more new oil and gas drilling permits than were approved under Newsom’s predecessor Jerry Brown over the same period in 2018—a median of 174 permits to drill new oil, gas, and cyclic steam wells approved a month, based on Geologic Energy Management Division (CALGEM) reports analyzed by CityLab.
The rate of fracking permits approved also soared at the start of the year, up 109 percent through June.
The fact that fracking approvals in California had spiked in the new year was first reported in July by the FracTracker Alliance and Consumer Watchdog. Newsom responded quickly to the news, firing the head of the approving agency for employing regulators who owned stock in oil companies, and directing the department to stop approving fracking permits. Since June 28, California hasn’t cleared any new hydraulic fracturing projects. After publication of this story on Monday, the Los Angeles Times reported that Newsom announced he was fully stopping the permitting of new hydraulic fracturing pending independent scientific review. He also said he’d issue a moratorium on “new permits for steam-injected oil drilling.”
The lesson is, if you support jobs and energy then you won’t last long holding an appointed government office in California.
I think Chevron should move its headquarters from San Francisco to Texas ASAP and close all their California refineries when they go. If California wants to ban fossil fuels then I think the private sector should cooperate. Let’s give politicians a world without gasoline and diesel now. Why wait until 2040? After all, there’s no time like the present. Give fossil fuel users the same treatment that PG&E is giving their electrical customers. Clearly the environmentalist message is, if you hate the planet so much that you use fossil fuels, then you deserve some payback. You can’t break addiction without pain.
Oh and speaking of pain, our illustrious leaders also want to ban the last reliable fuel used to generate electricity, natural gas. (FYI nuclear is banned in California and hydroelectric is not considered renewable energy.)
Maybe we could shut natural gas off for a week or so in February just to show people what that’s really like. Maybe such a move right before the Primary Elections in March would cause voters to make more sensible choices on the ballot.
Recently I received my CA driver’s license renewal notice in the mail, and to put it bluntly, it was one of the most confusing forms I have ever laid my eyes on. Since mine expires in December, I am classified as a “wobbler” in that any state issued ID card/driver’s license will allow me to board an airplane until October of next year, but a REAL ID will be required after that. I could either fill out the forms mailed to me, or “complete online,” I chose the latter. In CA, your driver’s license is usually good for about 4 years, so I had a choice to make as far as the REAL ID goes.
The forms mailed out are confusing because it states pay $38 and we will renew your driver license. Here in lies the problem. Renewing this way only gets you a state issued license, not a REAL ID. Which is fine if you do not plan on traveling or already have a passport. Here is the key, if you want a REAL ID, you MUST VISIT a DMV location in person! Also filling out the form online gives you a head start on the others also getting a REAL ID.
I completed the process online and was given a control number (you want to write this down) and was directed to make an appointment with a DMV location…I declined. This is a personal choice, but I would rather show up and get in line before they open and be out within an hours’ time, too often I have had appointments run way late or still take forever. I decided to go to the Lodi location, about 30 minutes south of my residence on a Saturday morning. I prefer this one to the South Sacramento location because I always feel like I need a shower after visiting the South Sac office due to the people; both workers and customers.
Lodi’s DMV location opens at 7 am, so I got there at 6:30 and was about 50th in line. About 10 minutes before the doors opened, a lady with a cart came by asking what we needed and assigned a number based on the service you needed. The doors opened and you had to stand in line to approach the non-appointment window. What I like about this location is this is kind of a failsafe system they use, they checked over my documents and told me they would text me when it was my turn at the counter. When I was called, the lady asked who I was, and I was aghast…I said, “Johnnie Does…big time food critic…reallyright.com?” She shot me a blank stare. I gave her my control number and my documents. She typed a few things in the keyboard, scanned in my documents (more on this later), asked for a thumb print, I was asked to pay the $38 (debit only no credit cards accepted), did a vision test, and was told to go to another window to have my photo taken. I went to said window, was thumb printed again, a photo was taken, and after issuing me a fancy schmancy paper driver’s license, I was off, with a promise the REAL ID would arrive in about 3 weeks.
Whole process took 50 minutes, I was actually impressed. The people in Lodi were very efficient, friendly and even joked a little bit, what a total contrast to any other DMV I have been to. Let’s face it, no one likes going to the DMV, usually it’s the dregs of the earth you are dealing with. But this process was very quick and efficient, especially because technically it’s a federal program to have a compliant ID to travel now. I actually got my ID 10 days later. Be prepared to be unimpressed. Here I thought I would be getting a Homeland Security like ID and instead it’s just like your old driver’s license with just a couple of modifications.
Real ID from DMV website
Closing thoughts: It was very fast and efficient, and I actually felt like this government agency took care of business. That being said, here are my tips for when you get your REAL ID. Don’t take the documentation process lightly. You need your original birth certificate (not a copy), your Social Security Card or a W-2 with your Social Security Number on it (you will have to go back 3 years on that one), and 2 bills with your full name and address on it (not a PO Box). I showed up with the completed application, my control number from the DMV, paperwork I did on the website, my birth certificate, Social Security Card, my mortgage statement, and county property tax bill. I ran into no problems at all; however, the man at the counter next to me ran into a bunch. He had a worn-out birth certificate, and his personal documents had a PO Box listed, sorry no dice for him. Some tips I have are make sure 2 utility bills have your name and/or your spouses on it, as some households I know only have 1 listed, and don’t take this lightly, they will turn you away or send you back to get the correct info.
That being said, I do have a slight concern about this process; they scan in all of your personal documentation, and I’m sure it is “stored” somewhere and will eventually be hacked in a gigantic data breach. Now the state will have a database of your birth certificate, Social Security Number, your mortgage statement* and county tax bill* knowing the types of databases the state uses in other departments like the Controller’s office, I would be very scared.
Johnnie Does
*Denotes if you choose to use these documents to get the ID
