Inga Barks
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INGA BARKS: Long-gun ban only threatens our free speech rights
I don't mean to brag, but my boys are awesome with a shotgun. When the twins were old enough, we took an NRA-sponsored women and children shotgun class out at Five Dogs Shooting Range.
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INGA BARKS: Rubio earns my respect and prayers in new role
I recently asked a friend why he got out of politics. He said, "because politics makes nice people mean." Boy, he's not kidding! In the 20 years that I've paid attention, I've seen friendships destroyed, loyalties violated and careers hurt by the ego, ambition and power that come with politics. There's nothing wrong with ambition and ego in politics. In fact, they're almost necessary for success.
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INGA BARKS: Our statement of loyalty should only be made in English
Usually when I disagree with Californian Opinion Editor Robert Price, I chalk his "wrongness" up to the trauma he experienced during the two soccer seasons that the poor man coached my twin boys.
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INGA BARKS: State pay raises reek of hypocrisy
Let me guess, this Thanksgiving at dinner tables everywhere, the conversation went a little like this:
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INGA BARKS: Some new laws read like a nightmare, not dream
First, a very sincere and heartfelt disclaimer:I acknowledge that many laws are written by well-meaning lawmakers, inspired by a tale of woe. Many bills that hope to become California laws begin with personal experience in which someone fell through a legal crack, and the new laws seek to remedy those loopholes.
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INGA BARKS: Air board members don't walk the walk
It all started when I caught sight of a billboard asking me to make a difference. I'd heard and seen the commercials by the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District about cleaning our air. I'd also heard warnings that the valley will continue to face steep federal fines if we don't curb our greenhouse emissions.
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INGA BARKS: High-speed rail 'great idea!' -- for some
I've been wracking my brain, trying to understand why no matter what anyone says about California high-speed rail, supporters come back with a stepford wife-like response about how great it is. How they trust in a government project, by the very government that's been working on variations of this train since the 1990s, only to come up with 190 miles of an 800-mile route, and local civic leaders who admitted this week that they can't run a dog pound!
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INGA BARKS: There are enough Cesar Chavez namesakes already
George Foreman seems like a good guy, with a distinguished boxing career and a grill known round the world. He also named all of his children George. Now I guess with the first child it's cute. With the second and third and fifth and even the girls, it starts getting a little weird if not obnoxious.
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INGA BARKS: Why 'The Donald' got under Obama's skin
President Obama might have called him a "carnival barker" this week on national television, but when he did it he was giving credence and publicity to said carnival barker, Donald Trump, who had been demanding that Obama release his birth certificate. Which he did.
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INGA BARKS: Don't give Sacramento more money to squander
God forbid your stockbroker ever calls you to report that he lost all your money investing in a car called the Edsel II. But if he did, would you give him more of your nest egg? What if your precious child came to you and told you that she spent her lunch money on gummy bears? Would you break out the wallet and replenish her account? If you're sane you'd fire the broker, and show your precious child where you keep the lunch sacks!
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INGA BARKS: Protesters and seat-fillers have much in common
If you catch the Academy Awards Sunday night, watch for a behind-the-scenes trick: the seat filler. The seat filler patiently stands for hours in formal wear, waiting for the winner to collect his or her Oscar or for someone famous to run to the bathroom -- at which time the seat filler makes a mad dash to the empty seat before the camera pans the room.
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INGA BARKS: Don't trick drivers into breaking law
You're driving down the road, minding your own business, when suddenly a Bakersfield Police officer flags you down. You pull over, wondering to yourself, "Was I speeding? Did I make an illegal turn or run a light?" Your answer to yourself is, "No, no, and no."
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INGA BARKS: Some of these new laws are just absurd
Despite being called the "Party of No," Republicans (conservatives) aren't opposed to law and governance. Just ridiculous and unnecessary law and governance.
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INGA BARKS: High-speed rail a 'Simpsons'-like scam
Former Gov. Gray Davis once dismissed California high-speed rail as something out of "Buck Rogers," but I prefer to liken it to a season four episode of "The Simpsons" in which a music man-like shyster complete with straw hat, bow tie and suspenders sings and dances his way into the city coffers by convincing the good people of Springfield that what they really need to invest in is a train system that is quiet, fast and will create jobs.
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INGA BARKS: Teen's suicide shouldn't just be blamed on others
When I was 18 years old, my friend Mark committed suicide and I think it's safe to say that to that point, nothing so awful had ever happened in my young life.
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INGA BARKS: The case against burning Qurans
It's been well more than two decades since I joined fellow teens in burning all of my rock albums because a local pastor said they had messages from the devil. Barring protests of the Dixie Chicks in 2003 for saying they were ashamed the then-president was a fellow Texan, I assumed we had all grown out of the "I don't understand it but it makes me scared, which makes me lash out" phase.
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INGA BARKS: Dr. Laura was hurtful, but she shouldn't have quit
What do Dr. Laura, a controversial Manhattan mosque and lying about being a medal of honor recipient have in common? In the U.S. you are free to do things that offend and hurt people, but that doesn't mean you should.
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INGA BARKS: We're more like Bell than you might think
Bell, California. Population 40,000. Median income $30, 000 -- unless you're the city council, police chief or city manager. When first reported by the Los Angeles Times that Bell's city manager alone made nearly $800,000 (if you include paid leave and bennies, about $1.5 million annually), folks were stunned. When further discoveries showed the council made $100,000 a year and the police chief made more than his peers, Bell took to the streets.
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INGA BARKS: I don't buy all this minimum wage crying
When phones light up on my radio show it means one of two things: We're giving away a prize to the 10th caller or talking about state employees and another year of budget battles that leave us in the private sector at odds with our neighbors who serve the public. This week was no different as we waited for a judge's ruling on whether state employees should be paid federal minimum wage or their regular salary until a budget is passed. It's become an annual ritual, with one side demanding tax increases, and the other drastic cuts.
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INGA BARKS: You can't change the rules for out-of-district Rubio
Kern County Supervisor Michael Rubio has lived and voted in the 16th Senate District for years, never knowing that the county elections office mistakenly recorded the home he now owns as in that district a decade ago.
