REMEMBERING OUR HEROES … whoever was responsible for Monday’s moving Memorial Day program at the Davis Cemetery is to be congratulated … in reality, there were dozens of folks responsible, including those who first dreamed of putting this annual tribute together years ago … the speakers were superb and the Davis High Madrigals — some of them performing as Mads for the last time — were in fine form … Mother Nature cooperated with a brisk breeze that kept the hundreds of flags on the grounds unfurled in full glory for the entirety of the ceremony …

When master of ceremonies Ted Puntillo read the long list of war dead from our town dating all the way back to World War I, there wasn’t a dry eye in the audience … we were all well served by those who died and were remembered yesterday, and we were also well served by the many Davis veterans in attendance … we thank them all and we’ll never forget their service …

WATER WOES … although there have been discussions about our beloved city switching to water from the Sacramento River, I don’t think the average citizen truly believes that a tripling of water rates is just around the corner … my friend Bill at gmail.com certainly didn’t think so until recently …

“Thus far, I have seen no discussion of why this is necessary or advisable,” Bill writes, echoing a sentiment I’m hearing consistently these days … yes, there has been talk, but most folks think the case has not been made … adds Bill: “My knee-jerk reaction is to write a letter of declamation objecting, not so much because of the cost, but rather because there is no explanation of the necessity, and no debate on the merits of the proposal.

“What it would take to convince me would be a cogent argument, backed up by the appropriate professors at the university, explaining why this is the best course of action. There also deserves to be a public investigation, by your paper, of who would directly and indirectly enjoy a financial benefit from the proposed arrangements. It deserves to be a public debate.” … game on, my friend …

EVEN MORE WATER WOES … Anne on Arroyo says that “Reading Crystal Lee’s article about the proposed water rate increases caused me concern.” … you and a whole bunch of other folks, Anne (see “Bill” above) … “I have several neighbors who are barely hanging onto their houses now. A steep increase in water bills could force these neighbors to have to sell their homes.” …

As preposterous as that sounds, that’s exactly how close some folks are … with the cost of gas, the new schools tax, furloughs and layoffs, plus Jerry Brown’s plan to increase taxes even more, ends no longer meet for some people, even in supposedly insulated Davis …

Notes Anne: “Crystal goes on to say if there is a ‘majority protest’ of ratepayers, the city cannot proceed with the increases. But the requirements to be a protester are steep indeed.” … steep isn’t even the word here … not only will a majority or ratepayers have to file a written protest, they’ll have to do so in a meticulous and time-consuming process … it’s simply not going to happen …

“The protest must be written and mailed or hand-delivered by Sept. 6 and must include the property address, written evidence showing the signers are the current property owners and the name and signature of the property owner submitting the protest.” … the magic number of protesters is 8,202, which is a virtual impossibility …

Then again, the city could dramatically simplify the protesting process without violating the letter of Proposition 218 … at this point, however, don’t count on it …

SAVE OUR STORE … big meeting tomorrow night in Stonegate about how to save Delano’s Westgate IGA grocery … and if you think Trader Joe’s doesn’t have something to do with Delano’s woes, think again …

— Reach Bob Dunning at davisenterprise.net. Comment on this column at www.davisenterprise.com

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