I have lived around here since the 1970s. Here’s what I learned watching the news and reading the paper.

1. If you cut down the eucalyptus trees “because they are not native” and build houses, the particulates don’t stick to the trees.

2. If you sell the houses to people from southern California (which has air pollution problems), they already have compromised breathing.

3. Write letters and campaign against established recreation facilities, because you can’t breathe.

4. This is not Disneyland. The “happiest place on Earth” is Disneyland, in Anaheim — no matter what Oprah and Sunset Magazine say about San Luis Obispo.

5. Corruption and power go hand in hand. Kelly Gearhart was Atascadero’s Man of the Year.