On Tuesday, September 18, 2018, the Sacramento chapter of the League of Women Voters held a forum for the candidates for District 2 and 4 of the Elk Grove City Council.

Catholic school education ended for the Schmitt kids with 8th-grade promotion. There were only two choices for high school in my small Wisconsin town, Catholic or public. My parents, being blessed or saddled, depending upon the day or event, with seven kids but little money opted for the public school.

Attending public high school did not end our Catholic obligations, however. Mom and Dad would march the family to church every Sunday, and we were still expected to confess our sins, but now only one Saturday a month.

At the Wednesday, September 12 Elk Grove City council meeting Council member Pat Hume announced the city at this time would not explore placing a, quote, ‘IN God we trust’ plaque in the council chambers.

Part I

I attended catholic grade school in the 1950s. To be a young Catholic in those days was to live in a perpetual state of fear. At least, that was the intent. The nuns and the priests constantly reminded us that we had to live a righteous life, or we would end up in hell. And I’m not talking about the modern-day metaphorical hell people so flippantly talk about, the one you create for yourself while still on earth if you stray too far from the good life. I’m talking the real McCoy: the abode of Satan, where one could spend an eternity down there baking in flames.

The three candidates for Elk Grove Mayor, Steve Ly, Tracie Stafford, and Darren Suen, met for a forum on Saturday, September 8, 2018. This recording captures all questions given to the candidates and their answers.

The forum was hosted by Paula Lee of the Sacramento, California chapter Leauge of Women Voters.

In this year’s Elk Grove mayoral election, Steve Ly and Darren Suen have more cash than the third candidate, Tracie Stafford. Nonetheless, Stafford has some money so she should not be written off.

This race, we suspect, will turn on who best emotionally connects with voters on some level.

As I watched Senator John McCain’s National Cathedral memorial service, I couldn’t help think about his lifelong, selfless contributions to our nation.

California legislators wrapped up their session with their usual flurry of activity. Among the bills approved this week and sent to Governor Brown is Senate Bill 1416.

Authored by California State Senator Mike McGuire (D - Healdsburg), the bill establishes a procedure to use nuisance abatement liens or a special assessment to collect abatement costs and administrative costs related problem dwellings.

by Dan Schmitt

For most of my adult life, I’ve been a strong supporter of the death penalty. I believed that there were certain actions so heinous, like the murdering of another person, that those who commit such actions did not deserve to be a member of the human race, PERIOD.

Then, a couple years ago, I opened my beliefs about capital punishment up to examination.

Elk Grove Police remind the public when selling merchandise online, when meeting the buyer take extra precautions.