Recent Comments:



  • "Thanks CCN for the continuing coverage of this serious issue. It's noteworthy that Tribune's followup was an asinine "will I still be able to buy my pot?" story. Really! They've got the resources for serious reporting, and that's the best they can do?"

    Ricky2 commented in:
    A twisted tale of corruption in SLO County on 2021-08-02 13:48:51
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  • "Ridiculous. It is a matter of fact that Helios' actions squeezed out other companies to become the monopoly holder in the area. This is essentially saying it's fine to build the empire on blood and lies as long as once you're on the top, you play nice and pass over the company to your girlfriend, still massively benefitting from your highly illegal and immoral actions that got you there in the first place."

    Yavnexe commented in:
    Secrets to SLO County marijuana mogul’s success, video on 2021-08-02 10:52:32
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  • "For most locals, those are the days they aren't working and could enjoy the beach. It kind of sucks how the cost of living here is so inflated yet if we wanna go to Pismo on a Saturday, it's filled with Fresno/Bakersfield license plate frames who act like total... well, your negative word of choice."

    Yavnexe commented in:
    Teen arrested after shooting into the sand at Pismo Beach on 2021-08-02 10:49:46
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  • "It's sad that he started the business through such dishonest means.. it will be a loss for the community, not a win, if NHC, for example, has to close down. I don't know what the working relationship is between that business and its employees, but from the customer perspective, it is a good service. If main issue is this 'pay to play' thing and his basically paying under the table to fast-track his various businesses into operation and squeeze out honest competitors then maybe we can offer those competitors that are willing to do things the proper way the chance to seek ownership of it? Basically apply that to all of Helios' different holdings (any that aren't violating any, say, environmental impact issues that may have been ignored due to bribes) so that they just get divvied up amongst those that will operate them according to acceptable market practices instead of tearing everything down into vacant lots."

    ghostpepper commented in:
    Secrets to SLO County marijuana mogul’s success, video on 2021-08-02 10:18:36
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  • "Great reporting Karen, I am looking forward to the fall of Jeff Lee, John Shoals and Miriam Shah. Miriam Shah recently sold a modest home in Grover Beach to buy a Arroyo Grande house for well over two Million Dollars??? Where did that money come from? It has been well known that the Mayor and several City Counsel members requested bribes for various permits IE: New Construction, Business licenses etc... not just cannabis. If you needed a permit, the understanding was all you had to do was meet them at a local coffee shop with an envelope full of money. This is no joke! How many people met them in coffee shops. Has anyone ever seen them in the local coffee shops meeting with people??? I certainly have. Then City Counsel member and former mayor Debbie Petersen resigned publicly because of the wide spread corruption in the Grover Beach local government. She received death threats and was attacked while parked in her car. These people are scum bag criminals that need to be exposed for who they really are and do some real time. Lavish Vacations, Big New homes, just follow the money."

    seeking truth commented in:
    A twisted tale of corruption in SLO County on 2021-08-02 10:02:42
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  • "Wow.....drunk in public at 11:00am at 18 years old. And he's from Hanford. What in the hell is going on here? I almost wish we could close our beaches to locals only, and you'd have to live in certain zip codes (Central Coast only) to enjoy them. Maybe that would keep some of the riff raff out. I've not heard of a local resident doing any of this type nonsense. I guess that's why we all know not to go to the beaches on Friday/Saturday/Sunday. Steer clear and leave it to the out-of-towners."

    exWGemployee commented in:
    Teen arrested after shooting into the sand at Pismo Beach on 2021-08-02 09:29:19
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  • "Lets not overlook who the receivers of bribe money are....elected politicians...they don't take the money and put it into their savings account...they put it in their so called campaign funds account...another reason for taking money out of campaigns...public funding of campaigns only....no private money and no donors....and donated time on TV networks for debates.....and for Gods sake....term limits.....we need terms limited to four years maximum for elected officials and staff...."

    Rambunctious commented in:
    Secrets to SLO County marijuana mogul’s success, video on 2021-08-02 09:17:33
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  • "One of the most despicable aspects of Adam Hill was his use of faith as a campaign tool. Only when it was politically advantageous would he become an observant Jew. I found his highly touted visits to the Hanukkah Celebrations (only during election years) on the front lawn of the Old Mission to be especially repugnant. What a truly loathsome individual."

    Buchon commented in:
    Marijuana mogul charged with bribing SLO County supervisor on 2021-08-01 19:45:19
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  • "I say screw the Tribune, New Times, and any other liberal rag and never use then for anything except lining the bottom of cages. Let them catch what they're full of along with any that are employed with them. The blatant hypocrisy and failure to cover news stories fairly is nothing new for the left-leaning media. Look no further than the failures of their comrades in the national media during the last election cycle. Helios Dayspring is nothing more than a worthless scum bag that preyed on people and businesses for ill gains. He is ruthless, uncaring, arrogant, corrupt and deserving of life in prison. The Tribune and New Times along with those that run them and work for them are right there with him in the corruption and their worthlessness. They must be held accountable for their lack of ethics and fairness as failed news sources. What a complete embarrassment they all are to human decency. And that's being nice!"

    commonsenseguy commented in:
    Secrets to SLO County marijuana mogul’s success, video on 2021-08-01 17:55:43
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  • "Well some things I'll say about this. New Times has ALWAYS consistently had NHC ads as well, although perhaps The Tribune's ads were larger and on pages closer to the front more frequently. I, along with everyone else at this point, is completely dumbfounded by the fact that looking back, this is basically the only publication that has covered this over the past 3 years, but I will say that it seems in the newest article about Helios, The Tribune pressed a bit, calling them and trying to get them to comment on the situation until one of their staff members hung up. Of course, this isn't much and it is too little too late. Basically all of the publications aside from this one are at a major crossroads right now - do they finally do the right thing, do some actual investigative journaling and report on this huge scandal (I am not embellishing, this whole situation is nothing less than an unprecedented scandal), and all the other blatant corruption surrounding this case, or do they continue forward by only lightly covering the stuff they HAVE to cover on the situation?"

    Yavnexe commented in:
    Secrets to SLO County marijuana mogul’s success, video on 2021-08-01 15:54:24
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  • "The Tribune, with Helios' businesses as the paper's main advertiser, is claiming the business is now in Dayspring's girlfriend's name, so go ahead and shop there. What? It is time for the Tribune to consider the community and not the money they are receiving from organized crime. Every time CCN wrote about the corruption, the Tribune did a story about how great Helios was. When will it end?"

    Cindy commented in:
    Secrets to SLO County marijuana mogul’s success, video on 2021-08-01 14:34:45
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  • "The really disappointing thing about this whole thing is that the commenters on this site have known about Helios' corruption for over 3 years and have been calling it out regularly. Take a look at the comment here by TheRealTruth in February 2019 https://calcoastnews.com/2019/02/are-slo-officials-skirting-laws-to-protect-marijuana-kingpin/comment-page-1/#comments What needs to be done so this becomes more mainstream knowledge? Why does it seem like this won't even make a dent in his business, that despite all the bold face corruption, he will get away with just handing off the business to his girlfriend, so he will essentially still benefit? Also seems like only a dead person will be condemned when it's clear many more in government were involved. Does some big youtuber need to make a youtube video exposing all this information or something? I really don't know, but sadly we cannot count on a single other publication in the county to report on it and the rest of them seem to be fine with being perceived as incredibly shady for ignoring Helios' corrupt dealings for years and years."

    Yavnexe commented in:
    Secrets to SLO County marijuana mogul’s success, video on 2021-08-01 13:19:23
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  • "I think saying this is industry wide works to this guys benefit. He is particularly corrupt. To say ALL people involved in this industry are as corrupt as Helios Dayspring vastly, vastly undersells how corrupt he is. You can downvote this, but it's true. If you make this an anti-cannabis thing instead of an anti-this particular corrupt asshole thing, you are only benefiting him to be honest."

    Yavnexe commented in:
    Secrets to SLO County marijuana mogul’s success, video on 2021-08-01 13:12:37
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  • "We shouldn’t be the least bit surprised by the lack of ethics shown by those involved in this industry. Remember, most of these “business” people were operating illegally prior to paying a few fees to suddenly become legit. Are we really to believe these leopards suddenly change their spots? I think NOT."

    horse_soldier commented in:
    Secrets to SLO County marijuana mogul’s success, video on 2021-08-01 12:20:15
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  • "It sounds like he knew the FBI was looking into him and quietly transferred his interest in his pot busineses to friends and others, all legal like I'm sure, but agree any permits he got to start these businesses should be revoked and the now new owners should be made to start their own application process."

    kayaknut commented in:
    Secrets to SLO County marijuana mogul’s success, video on 2021-08-01 12:16:15
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  • "The homeless primarily need drug rehab and mental health. If our laws do not enable our citizens to enforce treatment or enforce loitering, then we must change our laws. I am tired of seeing fires set by homeless, filth and garbage in our parks. If you feel extremely compassionate about this problem, invite them into YOUR home."

    metoo commented in:
    Proposal to end the lawlessness in Los Osos, help the homeless on 2021-08-01 09:50:08
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  • "Natural Healing Center will not escape government scrutiny and if it is determined they benefitted from these bribes they will face sanctions. Ultimately in 2024 when big corporate interests are allowed in the cannabis industry the entire landscape will change. NHC will not be a player and will probably have to rebrand just to wash the stink off from this affair so that they can be bought out by a corporation or SPAC. The businesses that Helios transferred ownership of, like his Ranch Road enterprise will also be closely examined by the Feds, as will everyone connected, including the attorneys involved. I hope Paul Ready has the number for a good attorney.. As for the county, my guess is this will chill the air for new licensing and a careful reexamination of every licensed operation that Helios was connected with, especially since the entire licensing operation has been put under the control of the sheriff’s office."

    Gordo commented in:
    A twisted tale of corruption in SLO County on 2021-08-01 08:46:47
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  • "The real sad part about all of this is that the people who voted these Dems in and all the other elected Dems in the state will vote them in again no matter what they do. Ever Dem run state and districts have the highest tax's ,crime and corruption and just can't understand why the voters put up with it. Shamefull"

    mullyman commented in:
    A twisted tale of corruption in SLO County on 2021-07-31 21:34:28
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  • "Many have long believed in the reporting of Velie and Cal Coast News. Thanks to Karen we are finally learning the truth about Hill, a greedy, devious, malicious and criminal elected official (who received heavy praise from nearly all media) that managed to have his way, all the while enriching himself personally. The biggest existential threat to SLO County is the deep corruption within the local Democrat party, those who willingly choose to play in their nasty litter box with them, and the media who won’t report the news because it will upset the narrative they push."

    shishkabob141 commented in:
    A twisted tale of corruption in SLO County on 2021-07-31 17:00:55
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