As you answer yourself, this isn't a story, it's a column. Columns invite opinion rather than impartial story reporting. Profession does not exclude a person from opinionating like any resident living in any place.

Calling something "simply leftist" as you say, says so little. It seems you're trying to prove why being associated with anything the left does is bad. Yet I, the non-participating Internet compadre, have no clue why I should believe you. Why is turning Left bad? Do you have evidence, proof, arguments, or just emotion?

I love how you state only pesticides tracking as the only environmentally good thing cali is doing. It's as if you don't believe working in tandem with cali and learning from each other's environmental protection policies is a good thing. It's as if you believe environmentalism is a matter of left vs right, and not simply a matter of humans stewarding the only home we have.

I would love to learn more about the root of your conclusions.