Hella questions

I didn’t crack the whip, but the writers really got inquisitive this week, anyway:

Longstanding political scribe Bill Bradley, for instance, probably spent too much time at this past weekend's state Republican convention. But he comes away asking a winner: Will Gov. Jerry Brown run unopposed for re-election—because the GOP still hasn't hit bottom? (See page 11 for insight.)

Exploring deeper terrain, former Sacramento Bee writer Dale Maharidge always wondered about the trauma his father experienced during World War II. So he spent a dozen years tracking down his fellow soldiers; you'll be surprised by the discoveries (page 20).

Here in Sacramento, Raheem F. Hosseini heard rumors of changes to the county's affordable-housing ordinance, which mandates that the region's poor get opportunities for roofs over their heads. Turns out, he was on to something (page 10).

And, like most of us, Cosmo Garvin listened last week as Mayor Kevin Johnson proclaimed that Sacramento should keep the Kings because “we've done everything the NBA has ever asked of us. Everything.” But he was one of few to inquire: Is doing everything for the NBA a good thing? (See page 13.)

I laughed at this week's Streetalk question (page 5) on the latest fashion faux pas, and at Josh Archer's 15 Minutes interrogation (page 55) of a street-corner sausage vendor.

There's more: Greg Lucas asks whether the Capitol's spree of gun-control bills will even matter (page 12), Jeff vonKaenel wonders if the tin-foil-hat crowd has lost it when it comes to SMUD's smart meters (page 14), and Melinda Welsh explores whether an attorney in a button-up suit can really make a difference (page 16).

Plus more questions on bike thieves, revolving-door politicians—and those damn Kings.

Shoot us a question at sactoletters@newsreview.com.