Orval Osborne

Awesome: my journey from Science to Religion

2011-07-10T15:43:00.000-07:00

The following is the text of the sermon I delivered at the Universalist Unitarian Church of Santa Paula, CA on July 10, 2011.

Title: "Awesome: My Journey from Science to Religion" 7/10/11

You know what’s really awesome? 5 Billion years! That is the age of the Earth, since it cooled into solid rock. For the first Billion years, the planet was lifeless. Then one cell came to life. Scientists agree that all life descends from this single common ancestor, a one-celled organism. Life began one time only, as far as we can tell, 4 Billion years ago. Isn’t that awesome!

When I stare up at the stars, I feel small. There are billions and billions of stars to the edge of the expanding universe, 14 Billion years after the Big Bang.

I feel awe when I study the principles of science. This sermon is inspired by those experiences. It is a sermon about science and religion, the two most powerful forces in human history, according to Alfred North Whitehead.

Science offers a lawful system of matter in motion that human reason can explain without recourse to supernatural agencies. The laws of Nature are beautiful to contemplate. Darwin’s theory of evolution is a great achievement in explaining the natural world. Natural selection has been called “design without a designer.” But how did these laws of nature come to be? Does this beautiful design imply the existence of a designer, that is to say, a God? Approximately half of all scientists in America profess a belief in God. Ben Franklin said: “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.”

The UU’s 1^st Source is “Direct experience of that transcending mystery and wonder, affirmed in all cultures, which moves us to a renewal of the spirit and openness to the forces which create and uphold life.”

Sometimes I feel like a purring cat. I feel such gratitude for all the good things in my life. A beautiful sunset is awesome. Natural beauty overwhelms us and this experience of awe transcends ordinary experience. This is religious experience.

When I first started attending the Unitarian Universalist church, I had a conversation with a fellow who was a militant Humanist. I said, speaking of religion, that there are experiences that cannot be put into words. He said: like what?

Thandeka, a UU minister and professor, put it this way: first we have these feelings. Then we try to put the feelings into words. Then we try to organize these words into a coherent rational system of thought. But the original impulse is a feeling of awe.

What is outside the realm of science? Life’s meaning, purpose, value, ethics, the experience of music, dance, art, beauty, love, awe, wonder, joy. Those are religious issues. The science of love is different from the experience of love. The menu is not the meal. The map is not the territory. We know we will die, so how shall we live?

A friend of mine calls himself a Fallen Agnostic: he used to not know; now he doesn’t care! My kids say my religion is voting and recycling. I believe in the Mystery! I feel all life is one, that all 50 Trillion cells of my body, all the animals, even somehow the earth itself, is alive and therefore connected. I feel I am God and you are too. So is my cat.

I was raised in a fundamentalist church, the Church of Christ. Later I became infatuated with science and I became an atheist. I made science my religion, which is scientism. Scientism is the belief that only what can be demonstrated using the scientific method is true. But that is itself a faith statement; it is not demonstrable.

You know Jesus was a Californian because he wore long hair and sandals and started his own religion. I started a religion with a couple of friends back in the 70's. Gordon did most of the writing so we sometimes called it Gordonianism. It’s all spaghetti sauce, Gordon would say, as he cooked down ripe red tomatoes, green peppers, yellow onions, herbs and spices until it would be transformed into spaghetti sauce, the metaphor of unity. My Gordonian phase was an attempt to find meaning in a world devoid of a transcendent God.

I have had experiences where I felt life was one, that I was part of everything, of all life, of all creation. That is why I don’t believe in a God that is separate, a sky God like the Judeo-Christian-Muslim God. My experience is that I am part of it, not separate from it. It’s all spaghetti sauce.

One day Gordon and I went hiking at Nahoqui Falls. We got separated. I climbed to the top of a ridge, and climbed an oak tree where I had a commanding view. Then I saw this red-tailed hawk coming straight towards me. We made eye contact. Then I saw through the hawk’s eyes. I was the hawk. I flew over ridges and canyons far beyond. I saw the landscape of my life stretching out before me. I chose a direction, and that led me to certain places and not others. We choose from the options we perceive as available, and we are shaped by our choices.

Science and religion are not in conflict. Both use reason and faith. Science is premised on faith statements like there is an objective reality that corresponds to my sensory experiences. When I look in a telescope, I am seeing something out there.

All the early scientists were deeply religious. Science came out of research in Roman Catholic universities that were staffed by members of religious orders who had the education and means to conduct scientific investigation. Examples:

Copernicus in the 16^th Century was the first person to claim that the earth was not the center of the universe, actually the earth revolved around the sun.

Galileo, the first to use a telescope to observe the heavens, discovered the moons of Jupiter. Galileo was a pious Catholic who seriously considered the priesthood before he became a math teacher. Galileo’s case is supposed to prove the antagonism between religion and science. However, an honest look reveals Christians on all sides of this debate.

Isaac Newton in the 17^th Century wrote perhaps the most influential book on science ever. He devoted more time to the study of Scripture than to science. Newton saw a monotheistic God as the masterful creator whose existence could not be denied in the face of the grandeur of all creation. Awesome!

For all of human history until the 16th Century, people thought of themselves as residing in a living world with a Fatherly God or gods tending to his creation. The scientific revolution led by Newton & company led to a transformation in people's world view. A living world was replaced with a mechanical world. It was all billiard balls bouncing off each other. The steam engine became the great metaphor for the world. Our bodies were seen as mechanical. The planet was mechanical. The spirit no longer inhabited and moved everything. Materialism became the new theology of this mechanical age. Nietzsche pronounced God was dead in the 19^th Century.

Well, the wheel of science has turned. Quantum physics has replaced classical physics. Quantum mechanics says that what we think of as the probability that a radioactive atom randomly decays is actually described by it being both decayed and not decayed until observed. The physicist Erwin Schrodinger wrote to Einstein this thought experiment: his cat was in a box with some Uranium. If an atom randomly underwent fission then the Geiger counter would break a flask containing poison and kill the cat. Quantum physics says Schrödinger’s cat is simultaneously alive and dead. The characteristic trait of quantum mechanics is entanglement, where one object cannot be fully described without considering the others. Einstein derided this as spooky action at a distance, because it meant information travels instantaneously, faster than the speed of light.

Quantum mechanics is not just for scientists; it has transformed our economy: 30 percent of the U.S. gross national product is based on inventions made possible by quantum mechanics, from semiconductors in computer chips to lasers in compact-disc players and retail checkout counters, X-rays and magnetic resonance imaging in hospitals, and much more.

The very nature of physical reality has been transformed by science. Our world is built, not on matter, but on information. DNA is the map that uses information to harness dumb matter to its own ends. We don’t think of our bodies as steam engines, but as computers. Materialism is so 19th Century when matter is in a wave-particle duality. Nihilism, the view that nothing matters, is obsolete in a universe where every observer changes what is observed. Science teaches us everything is connected to everything. I therefore pronounce materialism and nihilism dead. The universe is alive again.

In worship we awaken our sense of the sacred, of what is most meaningful. Religion is our vision of the good, of our highest common aspirations. Religion is our answer the universal human quest for meaning and purpose. Let us covenant to affirm and promote the free and responsible search for truth and meaning. Let us lead lives of gratitude, integrity, compassion and love. Let us go now in peace.

Winona LaDuke

2008-02-07T10:44:00.000-08:00

This morning I had the pleasure of seeing Winona LaDuke. Cal Poly invited her. She spoke to issues of sustainability, of culture and religion, and of land. Sacred places is a central aspect of Native American spirituality, and this collides with the modern American ethic of land use.

LaDuke described the dominant American cultural narrative as the frontier, of "the West," a limitless place to be conquered. This narrative is the opposite of sustainability. We must replace the frontier story if we are to survive.

She spoke of responsibility, how this is more important than rights. She acknowledged the complexities of these issues. At the same time, she argues intensely for her values and positions.

She spoke of examples, stories of struggles over sacred lands threatened with being turned into a golf course, or a coal mine. She spoke of naming places, and how "naming big mountains after little men" can frame our relationship with the land. The Arctic Wildlife Refuge is called "the place where life begins" by the people who live there. Amherst, a town in Massachusetts, is named after the British military commander, Baron Jeffrey Amherst, the first advocate of biological warfare: he ordered the distribution of smallpox-contaminated blankets to the native peoples. (Winona LaDuke went to Harvard, which is near Amherst.)

I know her from her campaign as Green Party candidate for Vice President, with the Ralph Nader for President campaigns of 1996 and 2000. I asked her if she is active as a Green. She said she is still a Green, but is active in other arenas, specific land-use issues, and renewable energy in particular. She is optimistic about those kinds of actions, and named many success stories.

PS. After her talk, I bought her new book "Recovering the Sacred - The Power of Naming and Claiming." When I asked her to sign it, she asked what my name means. (As in Spanish, it is associated with gold. "Orval" is the French spelling of "Orville" and can mean "gold town." )

+Orval Osborne

Fix Proposition 13

2008-01-09T13:01:00.000-08:00

Preface: My letter to the Editor of the local paper, the Tribune, followed a story about a redevelopment agency that is trying to prevent the payment of property tax revenue to the school district. I have found that letters commenting on a paper's story are much likelier to be printed. For those outside of CA, our infamous "Proposition 13" was a voter initiative passed in 1978 that limited property reassessments to a 1% annual increase, unless the property is sold.

+Orval Osborne, delegate from sunny California

Fix Proposition 13

Pismo Beach should allow the school district to get its share of property tax revenue because that was the pact they made 20 years ago.

But this points out our huge sleeper issue: The tax system is dysfunctional. How should the schools, local, state and federal governments get their tax revenues? Let's begin with property tax.

Proposition 13 was a necessary step for people, individual homeowners, who were facing unaffordable property tax increases 30 years ago. But an unintended consequence of Proposition 13 has been to shift the tax burden from corporations onto the people. Properties are reassessed at the time of sale. Corporations hold onto their properties much longer than people do. People move every 5 years on average. Corporations can live forever and profit off property that has not been reappraised since 1978.

Proposition 13 was intended for homeowners, especially elderly people, and not for corporations. Therefore, Proposition 13 benefits should be restricted to homeowners. Updating business property assessments would generate more tax revenue from corporations, bring fairness to the property tax and raise much needed revenues for Pismo Beach and Lucia Mar. Let's fix this broken property tax deal.

Orval Osborne

San Luis Obispo

Step It Up 2007

2007-11-04T16:18:00.000-08:00

I just learned about Step It Up 2007 last week when Bill McKibben was on Democracy Now. As a scientist, I am very concerned about global warming, and have been for many years. In recent years it has started to become a mainstream issue. So I was delighted to find that, not only was there a nationwide movement in Step It Up 2007, but someone else started one in my town!

Thank you, Dawn, for starting this event! The weather cooperated: 88 is unusually warm for November. The turnout of 20-30 people was better than I expected. (I brought many of them there through the Green Party network.) She got a good group of speakers, too. Christine Mulholland, SLO City Council Member (and a Green Party member) gave a wonderful talk. Rosemary Wilvert gave out Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs), a simple way to reduce your energy consumption. Lisa Quinn talked about Rideshare, our County's program matching people for carpools. Liz Apfelberg promoted both Green Party issues in general, and spoke against nuclear power, as it does generate a lot of greenhouse gases in mining and refining ore into fuel, plus decommissioning a nuke plant requires huge amounts of fossil fuel energy.

Council Member Mulholland noted the City has many good policies, but they don't implement themselves. It takes an advocate, sometimes a persistent advocate willing to push people out of their comfort zones of “this is how we always do things”(business as usual).

Her most important example, in my opinion, concerns the upcoming remodeling of City Hall. When I was on the Planning Commission, the staff's first draft update of the Conservation and Energy Element of the General Plan was totally inadequate, as if we hadn't just gone through an electricity crisis in this state. I used all my political capital to fight for much more ambitious policies. Thanks to the support of many on the Commission, in the community and on the City Council, I am proud of the resulting policies the City adopted. But, as Christine reminds, policies on the books aren't enough. So she is pushing for the building to incorporate as many energy-saving design elements as possible. (See the Architecture 2030 Challenge http://www.architecture2030.org/ below).

Christine ended her short speech with an observation that really rings true for me: she would be tempted to slump into despair over our many overwhelming problems, were it not for the contagious enthusiasm of other people touting solutions to those problems.

Later in the program, I grabbed the mike briefly to echo the importance of designing buildings for energy efficiency, which is what the Architecture 2030 Challenge is all about. * This is the most important thing we as a society can do to fight global warming. * Seventy-six percent (76%) of the energy produced by the new coal plants planned will go to operate buildings. We can now design buildings to consume HALF of the energy of the average building. Let's do it!

SLO City Council pleases

2007-10-24T19:42:00.000-07:00

I love San Luis Obispo! While I don't expect to always agree with the City Council, or anyone, I agreed with them last night when they rejected a proposal to build a bunch of millionaire homes way up on the steep hillsides overlooking Johnson Avenue. So here's a big, sloppy kiss to all the City Council members, who voted 5-0 against the projects. Thank you!

The Council must have known there was going to be a big public turnout. They moved from the City Council chambers to the Vet's Hall. Good thing! 300 people turned out. Everyone was opposed to the project, except the landowners and the people they hired to promote it. Congratulations to Deborah Cleere, for a great job in organizing the opposition. Deborah, for you I got my butt out to the meeting.

Sure, those houses would have had killer views. But that would have come at the expense of everyone else who had to look at the roads gashing the hillsides. Plus the folks living downhill would suffer more mudslides. Fire danger was very much on the minds of the public. (As I write this, half a million people, an historic event, have been evacuated due to fires ravaging the entire coast south of here.) Neighbors recounted stories of fires they lived through, sometimes barely.

Another aspect of the City Council meeting was the small-town, personal side. Council member Paul Brown reacted angrily to threats of taking development to the County with "This is a really bad time to threaten me." His back story includes an ongoing messy divorce, replete with ugly accusations from the ex, which have been splashed across the front pages of the local newspaper.

Council member Christine Mulholland predictably blasted the project. She provided fireworks as she really spoke her mind. She recalled her history fighting past "really stupid projects." The whole time people were split between embarrassment at her harsh criticism of the people wanting to build on their property, who were present in the audience, and lustily cheering her condemnation of the evildoers.

I waited towards the end before I took my turn to speak at the meeting. When I spoke, against the project on general planning principles, I accidentally said I was on the City Council, when I was on the Planning Commission. In my attempt at recovering my narrative, I said, well, I tried for the Council (in 2004, when I started this blog.)

Council member Andrew Carter picked up on that in his comments explaining his vote, saying if I kept trying I could have got on the Council. I am grateful to Council member Carter for the kind words he spoke of my accomplishments on the Planning Commission. I will say that the people who most wanted to get elected to the City Council, did. Congratulations to Andrew Carter for persevering, and ultimately winning. In his explanation of his vote, he started with naming people in the audience who he knew through PTA or some other adult support circle for kid things. He was in his element, and he was shining.

Professor Allen Settle was true to form, running through all his reasons for voting no. He reminded us of his history, certainly including his term as Mayor. Right you are, Allen.

Mayor Dave Romero surprised me with his no vote. As a politician he had to recognize the fact that 300 people turned out, and no one spoke in favor of the project. He did admit his inclination was as an engineer who wanted to rise to an engineering challenge: how to build a really difficult project. Yes, it could be done, but the cost would be high; even he had to admit that.

So we had a great conclusion: 5-0 against a "stupid" project. Too bad the public's energies once again had to be mobilized in a defensive action. How can we mobilize people FOR something? The challenges facing us are so great. Surely we will find those moments in our future.

SLO-town Chinatown

2007-09-24T20:29:00.000-07:00

I salute the Copelands for downsizing their planned Chinatown development. They surely knew they could get a majority vote on the City Council, but they would alienate a large portion of the community with their original, very tall plans. By revising their plans to a substantially reduced height, they have satisfied one of the major objections to their plans. This demonstrates wisdom and political acumen.

The Copelands have done a lot of good for the City of San Luis Obispo. I remember when the City had a (literal) gaping hole in its center. The Copelands stepped forward and offered a plan to fill this hole. I wish they had a greater vision then, in particular they should have gone to two stories instead of a single floor. But this is quibbling. Their contribution was fantastic.

I was on the Planning Commission when they submitted plans for the Court Street project. I wished they added housing, but I voted in support anyway. In retrospect, I would say the City should have built the parking garage on Palm Street before they demolished the parking on Court Street.

Transit Funds

2007-07-31T21:07:00.000-07:00

Gasoline prices are higher and only going higher still in the future. When gas costs $5 and then $8 a gallon, we'll have to change our practices. California has spent trillions on car-oriented, low density suburbs. We will have to spend much to rebuild cities that allow for people to get around without a car.

One thing we can do now is use available funds for mass transit: the TDA money is routinely raided for car expenses by every jurisdiction in this county except SLO and Morro Bay. The State Transit Assistance (STA) fund can be used for either capital or operating needs. The governor is proposing to raid 1.3 billion from the STA, funding for transit operations not subject to the rigorous findings of the "unmet needs process" in which the "reasonable to meet" criteria disqualify many crying needs based on speculation that required farebox ratios will not be met.

Regional Sunday service would cease to exist if support from the STA were gone. On Route 9 we would lose 3 daily weekday round trips currently STA funded. How would drivers feel if the Cuesta Grade were shut down all day Sunday and from 5:33 pm until the next morning every day?

Summer Solstice

2007-06-21T21:14:00.000-07:00

peak of the circle in length of day that annual cycle that gives us seasons another pattern of time wrapped in a circular rhythm
I stopped in at my friend's house to return her binder she invites me to stay for dinner her husband is a wonderful cook especially with baking bread this family is a model of the good life intentionally lived educated methodically discussed what was important made a family moved to San Luis Obispo because it ranked high on all their parameters so when I drop off her binder and he says want to stay? I stayed.
I went to Men's Group a little late last night in the Fellowship homeless volunteers said they went somewhere else I found them at my first choice Cabo San Luis next Men's Group we'll meet somewhere else no more Fellowship at 232 Foothill Boulevard i am really feeling tghe sad boodbye I have all those memories of experiences in this building its a fetish to associate the experience of community in a physical structure but thats the way we think.

wildlife in my backyard

2007-06-16T18:14:00.000-07:00

Kandi and I go for a hike most mornings. There is a hill nearby that
is too steep to develop. Cows graze on the lower, flatter areas. This
is interconnected with other wild areas. So even though it is in town,
it is good wildlife habitat. It is all grassland and rock. There are
no trees since it is serpentine soil, is windy and gets little rain.

There are lots of birds of prey around there: red-tailed hawks, turkey
vultures, kites, and others I can't name. I saw an owl once. I saw a
buck deer. We smell skunks sometimes. Last winter one morning before
the sun rose, we saw coyotes on the hill.

A couple weeks ago, I saw a fox family, apparently a mother and father
and a juvenile. Their tails are so fluffy. I was walking our 2 dogs
(they aren't MY dogs, but that's another story), so I tried to get my
dogs out of there so as to not disturb the foxes. Over the next few
days, I saw the juvenile repeatedly. It makes a strange sound, which I
first thought was a bird, perhaps a bird in distress. But then I saw
the fox making the sound. The fox seemed to be luring my dogs to it,
maybe to play. I thought my dog would get eaten, but nothing happened.

I am so fortunate that there is a wild place within easy walking
distance from my house.

SLO needs Instant Runoff Voting

2007-05-23T21:14:00.000-07:00

San Luis Obispo City needs Instant Runoff Voting for the Mayoral election. With more than two candidates in the race, someone can win with 40% or even less. Then we'd have to ask, "Was that winner really preferred by most voters?"
Our County Supervisors have a second-round runoff if no one gets a majority the first round. We could achieve the same goal in one election with Instant Runoff Voting (IRV).
IRV is simple: Voters would rank each candidate 1st choice, 2nd choice, third if they wish. If no candidate gets a majority of first-choice votes, we drop the last-place candidate and count their second-choices. (See www.fairvote.org)
This system is used in the Academy Awards, the Utah Republican primaries, and in San Francisco's Mayor and Supervisor races. Now LA is considering it.
We should elect the Mayor of San Luis Obispo using Instant Runoff Voting.

LA City Council proposes Instant Runoff Voting

2007-05-22T19:39:00.000-07:00

http://www.newamerica.net/blogs/2007/05/five_million_for_six_percent

LOS ANGELES, CA – With barely six percent of voters coming to the polls on Election Day, Tuesday May 15, 2007 for an election that cost taxpayers $5 million to administer, the New America Foundation proposes eliminating the runoff election and instead using Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) to elect majority winners in a single election.

Lynne Serpe, deputy director of the New America Foundation's political reform program based in Los Angeles, says: “Los Angeles taxpayers just spent $5 million -- $40 per voter -- on an election where almost nobody bothered to show up. We CAN do better than this.”

As a solution, the New America Foundation is proposing an electoral method known as IRV. IRV allows voters to rank a first, second and third choice candidate, and the runoff rankings are used to elect a majority winner in a single election. This saves the cost and inconvenience of holding a second election. With IRV, Los Angeles could combine the primary and runoff into a single consolidated election.

Los Angeles City Council members Jose Huizar and Eric Garcetti recently introduced a motion requesting that the Chief Legislative Analyst and City Clerk report to the City Council with an analysis of Instant Runoff Voting. The motion will be considered at the June 13^th meeting of the Rules & Elections Committee.

“Instant Runoff Voting is a win-win proposition for our democracy," said Councilmember Huizar. "This approach is much fairer to voters, who will only have to go to the polls once to have every vote count. At the same time, our City would save millions of dollars needlessly spent on runoff elections."

IRV is currently used in San Francisco, and in November 2007 69% of voters in Oakland passed a measure to adopt IRV. Voters in Davis and Minneapolis also recently passed IRV ballot measures. Student governments at UCLA, California Institute of Technology, Stanford, UC-Berkeley and others are using such electoral methods.

New America recently released a report on runoff elections in Los Angeles may be found on the web at www.newamerica.net/irv_la. The report found that:

* Cost to taxpayers. The City of Los Angeles, Los Angeles Unified School District and the Community College District have spent over $30.9 million administering runoff elections since 1993. From 2001 to 2005 the City of Los Angeles spent $9.2 million to administer runoff elections, $4.7 million in 2005 alone as costs have escalated in recent years.

* Voter turnout. Despite the high costs, hardly anyone is bothering to vote. In addition to only 6 percent turnout for Tuesday’s election, the March 6, 2007 election had a voter turnout of barely 10% overall, with single digit turnout for LA Unified School District and LA Community College District races. Since 1997, voter turnout has declined in more than half the runoff elections for the city of Los Angeles.

* Campaign finance. Runoff elections are having a negative impact on campaign finance reform, leading to huge increases in independent expenditures. Since 1993, $7.5 million have been spent by independent expenditure committees in runoff elections, over $3 million in the 2005 mayoral race alone as political fundraising has escalated in recent years. Since 1993, $27.8 million have been donated to local candidates for their runoff campaigns, over six million dollars in 2005 alone. And the City’s partial public financing program has dispensed $8.9 million to candidates engaged in runoffs, in addition to money given to a full field of candidates in the first (primary) election.

* Environmental costs. Runoff elections also waste huge amounts of paper. For the 2005 runoff, the Voters Information Pamphlet was mailed to 1.5 million voters, a total of 20.7 million pieces of paper, and sample ballots were made available at 1,599 polling sites. A blizzard of multiple campaign mailers sent out by candidates and organizations wasted additional amounts of paper.

“The costs of running elections and political fundraising have escalated in recent years,” said Steven Hill, director of New America’s Political Reform Program. “Los Angeles could combine the primary and general election into one instant runoff election, and improve democracy as they save tax dollars. It’s a win-win solution.”

About the New America Foundation

The New America Foundation is a nonprofit, post-partisan public policy institute whose purpose is to bring exceptionally promising new voices and new ideas to the fore of our nation’s public discourse. Relying on a venture capital approach, the Foundation invests in outstanding individuals and policy solutions that transcend the conventional political spectrum. Headquartered in our nation’s capital, New America also has offices in California and New York.

For more information on New America, please visit: web site.

SLOw Transit

2007-05-19T20:56:00.000-07:00

Americans don't have a love affair with the automobile. We just don't have a comparable alternative.

How long does it take to travel across town or across the county by bus? Say, to church on Sunday morning? From my house, to the new, temporary Unitarian Universalist meeting place on Laurel Lane: 60 minutes by bus. Compare that to a 15 minute bike ride, or 5 minutes by car. The bus trip home takes 90 minutes.

How long on County routes?

RTA Route 10
Inbound from Santa Maria (Town Center Mall) at 7:21 AM (!!!)
Arroyo Grande City Hall at 8:03
SLO Downtown at 8:55
City Route 3 10:25 to 10:35

Outbound City Route 3 12:35 to 12:57.
RTA Route 10 1:18 to
Arroyo Grande at 2:04
Santa Maria at 2:40

RTA Route 9
Inbound from Atascadero City Hall 8:03 AM to
SLO Downtown at 8:52
City Route 3 10:25 to 10:35

Outbound City Route 3 12:35 to 12:57.
RTA Route 9 1:10 to
Atascadero 1:59

RTA Route 12
Inbound from Cambria (Main & Burton) at 7:30
Los Osos (10th & LOVR) 8:19
Morro Bay (Harbor & Piney) 8:31
SLO Downtown at 8:58
City Route 3 10:25 to 10:35

Outbound City Route 3 12:35 to 12:57.
RTA Route 12 1:10 to
Morro Bay 1:46
Los Osos 2:01
Cambria 2:24

There are 3 County bus trips a day on Sundays. So one must catch the early one inbound, and the middle trip outbound. That results in an unavoidable 90 minute layover in Downtown SLO inbound in the morning. For a Cambria resident, for instance, the bus trip means leaving at 7:30 (or earlier to get to the bus stop), versus a car trip leaving home at 10:15.

"green" design becomes more mainstream - finally!!!

2007-05-14T11:16:00.000-07:00

Nice article in the local newspaper, on a local architectural design firm, RRM, is finding that "green" design is becoming more mainstream.
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/102/story/36747.html

Finally, the mainstream is waking up!!! Polly Cooper and Ken Haggard, of SLO Sustainability Group http://www.slosustainability.com/ have been doing "green" design for 30 years. My church, the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of SLO County, http://www.uufsloc.org/
selected them to design our new sanctuary; we are going for LEED certification. Ken Haggard has long been preaching the virtues of efficiency through superior design. But for so long, most property owners and business people turned a deaf ear.

I am proud of the SLO City Planning Commission, on which I led the effort in 2003 to update the Conservation Element of the General Plan. Now it has strong policies supporting "green" building and other energy conservation measures. Plus, the policies were worked out in collaboration with business leaders, property owners, architects, as well as environmentalists. (Let us recognize that these categories can be overlapping!). It was clear to me that the mainstream had come around.

However, RRM Design is also involved in some terrible projects. Comments on the Tribune's web site blast them for designing the sprawling, ag land-eating San Miguel "Ranch." Ditto for Dalidio's "Ranch." (The "Ranch" names remind me of the fashion of chopping down all the trees to make way for suburbs, then naming the streets after the former trees, birds, etc, who once lived there.) So, citizens cannot simplistically put a "good" or "bad" sticker on a company like RRM. We must consider each project for its own merits. The mainstream still has a ways to go!

Tribune lies about Chavez

2006-12-03T11:44:00.000-08:00

The Tribune editorial "Congress should take on real issues" (Nov. 12) contained an intentional misstatement, ie a lie. You alleged Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is a "ruthless dictator." In fact, he was elected several times. In the 1998 election he won 56% of the votes. 2000 reelection: 60%. 2004: 59% no to recal. A Chavez-backed Constitutional Referendum 1999: 72% yes. These elections were deemed free and fair by international observers. The Carter Center concluded that the presidential election legitimately expressed the will of the people. The press in Venezuela is free; this in a country where Chavez faced down a U.S.-backed military coup attempt in 2002.

Of course you can disagree with the policies of Hugo Chavez. But it is propaganda to call him a dictator after President Chavez was fairly elected and reelected. Considering the problems we've had with our elections (Florida in 2000, Ohio in 2004), you should be more careful with your accusations.

Measure J winning is disappointing but not surprising

2006-11-08T14:28:00.000-08:00

I had predicted Measure J (the Dalidio "Ranch") would pass, using the logic that their side did polling and other research after the City's rejection in 2004. If that research showed they would lose in the County, then they would not have run the initiative.

Still, the voting margin was wider than I expected: 65% Yes to 35% No. I want to study the voting patterns, to see where all the Yes votes came from. I would expect the City of SLO to repeat the narrow defeat from last time around.

Its too soon to say how the Dalidio backers will negotiate with the City, County CalTrans, etc. I hope the City refuses to allow annexation because that would deny them the sewer treatment plant. I don't think the developers could afford to build their own sewer treatment plant that would pass the standards of the Regional Water Quality Control Board. (Ask folks in Los Osos how that's going for them!) However, Dave Romero, reelected Mayor, and Andrew Carter, elected to the City Council, will probably let Dalidio connect to our sewer treatment plant, and thus allow the project that they have supported all along. (The Tribune endorsements have only gone to Dalidio supporters).

Bad news for me because it will bring 30,000 cars trips a day to within a mile of my house. Bad news for everyone because of the precedent-setting effect (a.k.a. "the domino theory"): now developers with enough money can use an initiative to bypass the planning process, and avoid having to pay to remediate their impacts (ie help fix their mess).

So us citizens will have to fight such battles in coming years. We'd best learn how to get along with each other, treat each other nicely, cut each other slack for minor differences, and practice coalition-building skills. We will need them.

Measure J is bad planning

2006-10-24T13:52:00.000-07:00

“J is Bad Planning”

The Tribune’s editorial got it wrong on Measure J. 2004’s referendum on the City Council approval of “The Marketplace” is very different from Measure J “The Ranch.”

In 2004, “The Marketplace” went through the planning process. Traffic and other impacts were evaluated and the developers had to accept their share of required improvements. The City Council approved the plan. Then the citizens exercised their right to referendum, and overturned this decision. That is democracy at its finest!

Measure J, however, is different because the developers have decided what they will pay for traffic and other mitigation. Objective evaluations have concluded that the actual costs will be millions of dollars more expensive than what Measure J provides. 30,000 car trips a day, and they only pay $20,000 to improve the intersection of LOVR and Madonna Road! This massive shortfall in funding is only possible due to the nature of Measure J: it skipped over the normal planning process.

Please vote No on Measure J. It is a special deal for the developers and a bad deal for the taxpayers.

+Orval Osborne

PS How did a lettuce farm become "The Ranch"? They aren't planning on running any cattle there.

Eco-designs on future Cities

2006-05-15T09:43:00.000-07:00

Visualize a safe, healthy, just world, with clean air, soil and power, that is elegantly arranged. Check out this web site:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4682011.stm

Election Results and commentary

2004-11-04T10:54:00.000-08:00

Election Results (top 2 vote-getters win):
# votes candidate
7847 Paul Brown
6462 Christine Mulholland

4340 Andrew Carter
3251 Orval Osborne (me)
2403 Lauren LaJoie
1964 Philip Hannifin
1439 Shane Kramer
47 write-in

Commentary:
I am proud of my campaign, and I think I did it with class and dignity. I do admit to being disappointed that I didn't win, as that was my goal. However, after a little time for reflecting on the results, I have concluded I could not have won even if I spent a lot more on my campaign.

Everyone is telling me I should run again, and that it often takes two campaigns to get one's name out. I did enjoy campaigning, and I do think I would make an excellent Councilmember. But it is too early to make any commitments. I will certainly consider it. For now, I am trying to cope with having unscheduled free time once again.

Thanks again to all who helped with my campaign, whether you gave your money and/or your time. I appreciate all the support I got. I am grateful to live in such a wonderful community.

Thanks for your support!

2004-10-29T17:13:00.000-07:00

Thank you to all of you who have, and still are, supporting my campaign for City Council. I am greatly encouraged by the many hundreds of absentee ballot voters who have told me they already voted for me. There are no polls for our race. I do know I am widely supported. I just don't know if it is enough to win.

If you haven't decided yet, I hope you will vote for me after reading my statements on my blog. Tell your friends and neighbors to vote for me. I will certainly appreciate your vote.

Send money now!

2004-10-21T13:48:00.000-07:00

Dear supporters,
Now is the last minute to send contributions to my campaign. Any amount is helpful: $5, or $20, any amount up to $100.

Make checks payable to "Orval Osborne for Council"
Address:
141 Suburban Road, Suite C-5
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401

Also, feel free to call me at 235-8178, or email to oosborne@fix.net.
Please get your friends to vote for me. I'll see you at the polls!

Orval on TV

2004-10-19T18:15:00.000-07:00

I will be on local cable access TV, Charter Cable 2, on Friday, Oct 22 at 8:00 AM,
also Saturday at 10:00 AM and Monday, Oct 25 at 12:30 PM.
I was interviewed by Gail Lightfoot for her 30 minute program called "Why Liberty Matters."

Our City's biggest challenge

2004-10-19T13:22:00.000-07:00

San Luis Obispo has a huge jobs-housing imbalance, which causes our traffic problems. Our nightime population is 44,000; our daytime population swells to 100,000. We need more affordable housing, and fewer low-wage jobs. Our City needs to grow up, not out, with high-density designs that are beautiful, desirable places to live. We need quality designed infill housing, especially apartments, condos and mobile home parks, especially apartments over shops that working people can afford. Gasoline prices will go up sharply in the future. People living in the City drive less, and can easier walk, bike or ride the bus to their many destinations. We need to plan for that now.

What the City should do about Mardi Gras

2004-10-19T13:08:00.000-07:00

The problem is not the parade, nor is it women flashing their breasts. The problem is too many drunks. We should ban alcohol sales for the weekend, which would have to be voluntary by the bars and stores. This would send the message loud and clear that there is no party here. Also the police should secure the streets by 4 PM, not wait until after 9 PM. I agree with the City trying to get the word out that there is no more party. However, the City needs to dialog with the students, to listen and not just lecture and threaten them. The City leaders can get the cooperation of the majority of Cal Poly students with a sincere effort to jointly work out a plan.

Why I oppose the Marketplace project

2004-10-19T13:06:00.000-07:00

I oppose the Marketplace project on the Dalidio farmland because it is out of character with the San Luis Obispo we know and love. The traffic burden would be intense, with at least 20,000 car trips a day. The Kotin report says existing stores would lose $40 Million a year. This is a typical "pave paradise and put up a parking lot" development. They plan to sprawl over this rich farmland with surface parking lots instead of building parking garages and multistory shops. The City has room for a Target and much more next to Home Depot and the already approved CostCo.

Candidate's Forum Oct 26 by LWV & ASI Cal Poly

2004-10-14T11:53:00.000-07:00

Dear Citizens of the wonderful town of San Luis Obispo,
I am pleased to tell you about a Community Forum for City Council and Mayoral candidates. It is sponsored by the Associated Students, Inc, the student government at Cal Poly. The Forum will be moderated by the League of Women Voters.

The Forum will take place on Tuesday, October 26 from 6:30 - 9:00 PM in Chumash Auditorium on the Cal Poly campus. I hope to see you there!

+Orval Osborne for City Council - Experience, Dedication and Vision.
Quality of Life - Let's build on what we love most about our town.

Council Candidates Forum October 20, noon at Madonna Inn

2004-10-13T13:17:00.000-07:00

Dear San Luis Obispo City Council Candidates,

Thank you for agreeing to participate in the San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce/Rotary de Tolosa sponsored Council Candidates Forum on Wednesday, October 20, noon at the Madonna Inn. The agenda for the day is below. Could you each please provide me with a bio to use as a basis for your introduction.

I'll ask you to draw numbers when you arrive that day to determine the order in which you will present. Jeff Buckingham, the Chamber's Vice-Chair for Legislative/Economic Affairs, will serve as emcee. Ralph Hoskins is president of the Rotary club. Please plan to be our guest for lunch. You will be seated at the head table with Ralph and Jeff. You may bring campaign materials, if you wish. There will be a table at the entry to the room where they can be displayed.

12:20. Rotary welcome, etc., President Ralph

12:25. Ralph intros Buckingham as emcee

12:25-12:32. Buckingham intros the seven candidates

12:32-1:00. Four minutes presentation each candidate

1:00-1:20. Q & A

1:20-1:27. One minute wrap-up, each candidate.

1:27. Closing, President Ralph

Please let me know if you need anything further.

Sincerely,

Patricia Wilmore

Director of Governmental Affairs

San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce

Campaign Dates

2004-10-12T16:55:00.000-07:00

Greetings fans! Last night I attended a public forum hosted by GALA, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance. People thought I should put on my blog upcoming dates, so I will. But I won't list the house parties. Wednesdays, Oct 13th and 27th I will be at my Planning Commission meeting, so no campaign events.

Thursday, Oct 14, from about 6:00 to 8:00 PM I will be at Farmers Market, at 740 Higuera, in front of the Gold Concept.

Friday, Oct 15 from 4:00 to 5:00 PM I will be on the Dave Congalton radio show, KVEC at 920 on the AM dial.

Sunday evening, Oct 17 I will be attending the RQN dionner, Residents for Quality Neighborhoods.

Tuesday, Oct 19 from 11:00 to 12:00 I will be at Cal Poly at the University Union.

IRV needed for Mayor race

2004-09-30T11:58:00.000-07:00

We need Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) for the Mayoral election. With three candidates in the race, someone can win with less than a majority of the votes. But the question always arises: was that winning candidate really preferred by most voters? Our County Supervisor race has a second round runoff election if no candidate gets over 50% of the vote on the first round. We could achieve the same goal in a single election by using Instant Runoff Voting (IRV).

Instant Runoff Voting is better than plurality elections because:
* It ensures the election of the candidate preferred by most voters.
* It eliminates the problem of spoiler candidates knocking off major candidates.
* It frees communities of voters from splitting their vote among their own candidates.
* It promotes coalition-building and more positive campaigning.
* IRV is better than "two-round" runoff elections because taxpayers don't have to foot the bill for a second election. Also candidates don't have to raise money for two races.

How IRV Works: Each voter has one vote, and ranks candidates in order of choice (1, 2, 3). Counting of ballots is like a series of run-off elections. All first choices are counted, and if no candidate wins a majority of first choices, then the last place candidate (candidate with the least first-choices) is eliminated. Ballots of voters who ranked the eliminated candidate first then are redistributed to their next-choice candidates, as indicated on each voter's ballot. Last place candidates are successively eliminated and ballots are redistributed to next choices until one candidate remains or a candidate gains over 50% of votes.

Voters have the option to rank as many or as few candidates as they wish--their favorite candidate first, their next favorite second and so on. Voters have every incentive to vote for their favorite candidate rather than the "lesser of two evils" because their ballot can still count toward a winner if their first choice loses. There also is every reason for a voter to rank as many candidates as they want, since a voter's lower choice will never help defeat one of their higher choices.

For example, Ms. Blue gets 38% of the vote, Ms. Red gets 37% and Ms. Orange gets 25%. Let's say most people voting for Ms. Orange pick Ms. Red as their second choice. So the runoff election results would be Ms. Blue 40% and Ms. Red 60%. With IRV, the winner represents the majority of voters' first or second choices.

IRV is used to determine the Academy Awards winners, the Utah Republican Primary, the Parliament in Australia and the President of Ireland. San Francisco voters will use IRV for their Mayor and Supervisors. We should elect the Mayor of San Luis Obispo using Instant Runoff Voting.

Chamber of Commerce - 2 minute "soapbox"

2004-07-22T14:31:00.000-07:00

(I had them play the first several seconds of James Brown's "I Feel Good" as I walk to the podium.)

It's OK to feel good this early in the morning. I feel good because I live in San Luis Obispo, the City that I love.

I bought this soapbox this morning because I want to ask you to vote for me, Orval Osborne, for City Council.

This is not a time for false modesty. I am the best, most highly qualified challenger in the race.

I have served on the City Planning Commission for the past four years. Last year, when I was the Chair of the Planning Commission, we overhauled the Housing Element. Many people, from diverse backgrounds, said I was a highly effective Chair, and I got broader and deeper participation than they ever expected. We strengthened affordable housing policiesand provided more certainty to builders.

I am a leader. I was recently voted President of my church's Board of Trustees.

This may be a difficult time to be in City government. Revenues are limited, and costs are increasing. What better time to have a City Council member with solid business experience? I started my own business, Creek Environmental Laboratories, 10 years ago so I could keep my family in San Luis Obispo. Now I am proud to tell you I employ twelve full time people, and my company's sales are over a Million Dollars a year.

My goal is to enhance the quality of life for all. I am for smart growth, not dumb growth and not no growth.We need to build on what makes San Luis Obispo special. I won't promise to please everyone every time. I will promise to bring my experience, my dedication and my vision to the job. You need someone who knows the system and knows the players.Someone who knows how to work with others and get things done. I do.Please vote for me, Orval Osborne, for City Council.

Referendum needed on the Dalidio-San Luis Marketplace project

2004-07-02T15:12:00.000-07:00

Dear Honorable Mayor and City Council,

I am writing to you today to request that you place the San Luis Marketplace project on the November ballot as a referendum.

Rather than speculate about how many people support or oppose it, with a referendum we would know the will of the voters with absolute clarity.

The County would not dare to approve it in their jurisdiction if the voters rejected it. Only a referendum could remove this huge cloud over the City's decision-making ability. I am of the view that this project developing in County jurisdiction, if that were possible, would be the worst of all possible worlds: the City would get all the costs, while the County would get the benefit. If the City voters say no, the County Supervisors would have to obey the will of the voters or commit political suicide. If the City voters approve it, then there would be no argument, and the project would be allowed to develop in the City.

The referendum should be worded to allow a different decision in the future on the same or a similar project. (One of the objections to the San Luis Marketplace is it is "too much too soon." The City's business environment will change with time. Or the project proponents may want to come back with a scaled-down or phased project.)

A referendum on the November ballot would be timely. A decision in four months is a short time compared to the many years this project has been discussed.

A campaign would be an opportunity for all the facts and arguments to be laid out. However, I must admit the project proponents would have an advantage in having much more money to spend for their side than the opponents. Hopefully a vigorous public discussion will overcome the financial imbalance.

Please do not reject the concept of a referendum. You may think that you have to decide everything yourself, but this is one of those issues that would best be decided by all citizens. The biggest advantage of a referendum is the public "buy-in" or acceptance of the decision. A referendum would settle the question with a clarity that a City Council vote never could.

Finally, if you reject the referendum and vote on the project yourselves, citizens may mount a signature drive to put it on the ballot anyway. The community would likely maintain unity better if they got a referendum without having to override a Council vote.

Please, in the interest of democracy and fairness, use your power to initiate a referendum on the San Luis Marketplace proposal.

Sincerely,
Orval Osborne

Osborne for Council - 4th of July

2004-07-01T09:30:00.000-07:00

PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release July 1, 2004
Contact: Orval Osborne oosborne@fix.net 235-8178

Orval Osborne for City Council

On the 4th of July, Orval Osborne will start his campaign for City Council of San Luis Obispo. Osborne declares: "I am choosing Independence Day to announce my candidacy because I want to honor the founding principles of our country: democratic representation and individual liberty. The people should choose their leaders, and the leaders must be accountable to the people."

Experience, Dedication and Vision are Osborne's main qualifications for Council. He has four years experience on the Planning Commission. Orval founded and manages a local business, Creek Environmental Laboratories, which currently employs twelve people. Osborne was voted President of his church Board of Trustees. He is a dedicated family man.

"Quality of Life for All" is his campaign theme. "We need to build on what is best about SLO. Our downtown is the envy of the nation. Small, locally-owned businesses provide the most benefit to the community and the economy." Osborne led the effort to increase affordable housing as Chair of the Planning Commission during the City's recent Housing Element update. He wants to improve the town-gown relationship. Osborne wants to maintain and expand the City's greenbelt and open space protection. "Much of our business relies on tourism. Maintaining our natural beauty serves our tourist trade as well as benefiting everyone who lives here."

Osborne waxes eloquent about the City he loves: "San Luis Obispo is a great place to live. I am grateful for the wisdom and courage of the City leaders who have gone before me. My goal as a Council Member is to honor their legacy by growing San Luis Obispo's quality of life as we move into the future."

The SLO Life is Good!

2004-05-17T14:37:00.000-07:00

In these turbulent times, we should remember the many good things in our lives. I feel very fortunate that I can live in SLO, and raise my children in this wonderful environment. We have very little crime, much less traffic than most Californians experience, the schools are good, the air is clean and we are surrounded by beautiful lands and the ocean. Life is good!

Cal Poly adds tremendously to the City's cultural environment. Many of my friends are professors there, a most interesting lot. I have hired many Cal Poly graduates for my business, and have found their education to be excellent. Cal Poly is a huge, and fairly constant benefit to the local economy.

Our City government is well run, staffed with talented, hard-working people. In my work as an environmental scientist, I've been impressed with the quality and efficiency of John Moss's Utilities Department. In particular, the City's sewer treatment plant staff runs a lean, high-quality operation. Through my Planning Commission experience, I have developed great respect for the Planning Department's knowledge and dedication to quality planning, led by Director John Mandeville. And Ken Hampian, the Big Chief of the City staff, is infamous for his penny-pinching. He recently led the effort to cut millions from the annual budget, while maintaining much of the high level of services we citizens expect.

While we in SLO-town have our problems and our differences, we usually are able to disagree without being disagreeable. I am fortunate to be part of this wonderful community.

+Orval Osborne