Mirella

Mirella is a 10-month-old tabby who is quite beautiful. She likes other cats, and especially likes dogs.

Mirella needs a special home. She has a birth defect which has left her with odd eyes. She may go blind as she gets older, but right now she is quite active and loves to play.

Mirella is spayed, microchipped, and vaccinated. She is at the El Dorado County Animal Services shelter in Meyers, along with many other cats who are waiting for their new homes.

Go online or the Tahoe animal shelter’s Facebook page to see photos and descriptions of all pets at the shelter.

Call (530) 573.7925 for directions, hours, and other information on adopting a pet.

For spay-neuter assistance for South Lake Tahoe residents, go online.

— Karen Kuentz

Publisher’s note: This editorial is from the Feb. 26, 2014, Miami Herald.

The rights of same-sex couples got another boost last week when U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder Jr. offered a carefully worded piece of advice to his state counterparts on when they can choose not to defend gay-marriage bans. Holder didn’t suggest that state attorneys general can just disavow these laws based on politics or personal objections, but rather that, when these state laws relate to basic Constitutional issues such as the equal-protection clause, attorneys general should apply the highest level of scrutiny before deciding not to defend them on the grounds that they are discriminatory.

A finely calibrated distinction, to be sure. As an example of what he meant, Holder cited Brown v. Board of Education, which ordered public schools to integrate. “If I were attorney general in Kansas in 1953, I would not have defended a Kansas statute that put in place separate-but-equal facilities,” Holder said. The U.S. attorney general has quite rightly likened the quest for gay rights today as an extension of the era of the civil-rights movement. And there are plenty of people today who back him up.

Wednesday, a federal judge in Texas — Texas, y’all! — struck down that state’s gay-marriage ban, though it will not go into effect pending Attorney General Greg Abbott’s intent to appeal. Also last week, Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed joined others in opening the Southerners for the Freedom to Marry campaign, a $1 million effort to overturn bans in 14 Southern states that have statutory or constitutional laws defining a legal marriage as between a man and a woman, period. This includes Florida, of course, where voters in 2008 approved a state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage.

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By Niraj Chokshi, Washington Post

The recession was hard on California’s rainy-day fund.

By the end of the 2006 fiscal year, California’s reserves ranked 25th among states —- enough saved up to keep the state running for 43 days. Today, it’s ranked 48th, with enough to fund just over three days, according to the Pew Charitable Trusts.

But in November, voters will have the opportunity to upgrade the Golden State’s system for saving—a move that could light the path for other states looking to develop similar cushions.

Under the measure, any taxes collected above and beyond the 20-year trend would be funneled to the reserve fund. But, in January, Gov. Jerry Brown came up with an alternative plan, one which leaders of both state houses back. If two thirds of lawmakers go along, it would supplant the ballot measure.

Brown’s plan draws from the excess revenue collected from just one tax—the highly volatile capital gains tax—and that could also help reduce some of the perverse incentives in budgeting. Capital gains fluctuate a lot with the stock market and when that revenue spikes, it’s hard to tell whether it’s a lasting rise or just a blip. So sometimes budgeters see the bump and assume it’s there to stay, according to Pew.

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By Tony Bizjak, Sacramento Bee

Drones, once known as weapons of war, are undergoing a dramatic makeover as a hot new business tool in the sky. But, as with unmanned military craft, domestic drones are prompting concerns over safety and privacy.

No agency tracks how many drones are now buzzing overhead. But it’s likely hundreds a day hit the skies nationally on commercial missions, equipped with video cameras and launched by entrepreneurs looking for faster, cheaper and easier ways to provide services. In Northern California, lightweight drones, some hardly bigger than a Frisbee, shoot dramatic bird’s-eye videos of ski races in Tahoe and outdoor weddings in the foothills. They provide aerial footage for car commercials in Roseville and real estate promotions in West Sacramento.

The new breed of small domestic drones – known more formally as “unmanned aviation systems” or “remotely piloted aircraft” – can sell for $1,000 to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on size and sophistication. Users say operating the remote-controlled, spider-like craft costs far less than hiring a helicopter or plane, and allows users to fly into tight spaces, including indoors.

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By Molly K. Hooper and Jasmine Sachar, The Hill

Republican lawmakers in Congress are lukewarm on a conservative-backed proposal to split California into six states.

Republicans from the Golden State say they are watching conservative venture capitalist Tim Draper’s effort with “great interest.” But few are endorsing it.

In a recent survey of the California congressional delegation, The Hill found that Democrats oppose the proposition, while Republicans are generally divided. While California GOP lawmakers agree that the most populous state in the U.S. is “ungovernable” as is, they would prefer to consider a more conservative division of the state.

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To the community,

Big thanks to the Science Club of our own Lake Tahoe Community College for sending three of its young, energetic members to my kindergarten classroom. Mike Mancillas, William Chen and John Serenio taught a science lesson on the water cycle and states of matter to my kindergarten class at Bijou Community School on Thursday.

Not only did they impart their science knowledge to my students well, they did it using very age-appropriate methods. All three young men were wonderful role models for my students by generating excitement about science while setting high academic and behavioral expectations.

They are looking forward to presenting in any other classroom in this school district, and if you are a teacher I would highly recommend this experience for your own classroom.

Laura Chappel, kindergarten teacher Bijou Community School

By Duane D. Stanford, Bloomberg

Joe Six-Pack is getting some love again.

MillerCoors LLC and Anheuser-Busch InBev NV, after years of focusing on craft ales, ciders and imports, are paying more attention to the working man’s drink of choice: cheap beer. The two brewers, which account for three-quarters of the U.S. beer industry, will boost marketing this year for economy brands such as Keystone Light and Busch Light.

During the televised Nascar race on March 2, MillerCoors will begin airing the first national advertising for Keystone Light since 2011. A similar campaign for Miller High Life, which calls itself the “champagne of beers,” starts in April. AB InBev will expand its marketing for Busch to year-round and has introduced a fuller flavored version called Busch Signature Copper Lager.

As persistent unemployment after the recession left blue-collar workers with less money for beer, brewers shifted resources to higher-margin brands such as MillerCoors’s Blue Moon and Leuven, Belgium-based AB InBev’s Bud Light Lime. As the economy rebounds, companies are racing to win with a crowd that is among the most loyal and thirsty of beer drinkers.

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Tahoe Donner’s inaugural Taste of Truckee on-snow gourmet food and wine event at the Tahoe Donner Cross Country Ski Center is March 23.

Cross country skiers and snowshoers can work up an appetite by hitting the trails and then indulging in a variety of food samples from local restaurants, along with a selection of delicious wines. Beginners may rent skis or snowshoes and get a few free pointers from experienced instructors before heading out on the trails.

The tour will take place from 12:30-2:30om, with après events 4:30pm.

The cost, including trail pass, is $35 for adults and $20 for 18 and under if purchased in advance or $45 for adults and $30 for 18 and under the day of the event. Tickets can be purchased by calling (530) 587.9484.

A percentage of proceeds will be donated to our local Tahoe Food Hub, and to Far West Nordic Ski Education Association.

By Aidan Lewis, BBC News

Slopestyle skiers made a successful debut at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, eliciting gasps with their stunts and jumps. Many miles away in northern parts of the U.S., a growing number of skiers use city settings to perform and film similar tricks.

They scope out urban landscapes to find rails to skid down and walls to slam their skis against. They wait for schools and libraries to close, sometimes emerging only under cover of darkness. They play cat and mouse with the police.

The skiers say that cities allow them to be more creative, and offer greater variety than resorts.

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• South Tahoe High School student Brianna Rettig received the Golden Key award from National Scholastics at UOP where her photography portfolio is on display in the main gallery.

• The Lake Valley Fire Protection District board on March 13 at 7pm will review and consider revising development fees for fire protection services. The meeting is at 2211 Keetak St. in Meyers.

• Sierra Nevada College was recently ranked one of the “100 Best U.S. Colleges and Universities by State” by thebestschools.org.

• The 38,000 Burning Man tickets that went on sale last week sold out in 44 minutes.