John Laird, CA_State Senator_2025-08-08_interviewed on KZSC's Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club
Release Date: 08/20/2025
Susie O'Hara_Santa Cruz City Councilmember_2025-10-31_interview on KZSC's Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club
KZSC Santa Cruz
Elected in March, 2024, installed in December, 2024 - City Council Member for District 5, which includes most of U.C. Santa Cruz; background is Civil Engineering - Water Resources - on Water Supply Advisory Committee, and Public Safety Task Force; if you divide the salary ($20k) by the # of hours per week put in to the job, do you make at least the Santa Cruz County Minimum Wage ($16.50/hour)? "Not a chance!!"; review of Councilmember O'Hara's week, from Housing Matters (elimination of day services) to Public Safety to Radius Gallery to FLOC cameras! She arrived in Santa Cruz in 2006 (her...
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The Fintztones_singer-songwriters, musicians_2025-10-24_on KZSC's Bushwhackers Breakfast Club "The Fintztones" - Golden Voice Gene, Alia & Wade-O interviewed by Dangerous Dan" Orange & "DJ Spark Plug" (Dylan Estevez)
KZSC Santa Cruz
Golden Voice Gene started out with solo shows...later, Alia joined in harmonies, then bass & sax, and Wade showed up with electric guitar and also vocals; "The Fintztones" formed in 2010; Golden Voice Gene put out a CD, and later the "Fintztones" put one out, "Make It Right"; The Money Question? Golden Voice Gene: "day job" with the DMV (which meant all of his friends could end up wtih a drivers license photo they didn't cringe at everytime they saw it) gave him the means to pursue music on his time; Alia has a remote day job that is totally supportive, and she has several musical outlets...
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Karen with a K_A Musical Temper Tantrum_2025-09-12_Live! on KZSC's Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club Karen with a K ensemble, interviewed by "DJ Spark Plug" (Dylan Estevez)
KZSC Santa Cruz
Live in the Studio interview with members of Karen with a K. The interview covered thier beginnings as band, how they write their music, and some live performances! Laura February Strange, who lives in Corralitos (South Santa Cruz County), wrote the "Musical Temper Tantrum" exploring, & poking fun at, the "Karen"-meme. As they describe themselves, it's a "A garage-rock musical, social satire. Titular character Karen (with a K) is a woman stumbling through a very bad day. Wearing her self-serving flaws like a gaudy, costume tiara, her current ordeals are conceived in a dozen or so songs...
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Jimmy Dillon_Guitar player, singer, songwriter_interviewed 2025-10-10 on KZSC's Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club "Dangerous Dan" Orange & "DJ Spark Plug" (Dylan Estevez)
KZSC Santa Cruz
Jimmy's been a pro since he was 12, grew up in LA, then Chicago, the Sausalito since 1970; Jimmy saw Jimi Hendrix & B.B. King in the same week! Impacted him! Jimmy was Clarence Clemmons' musical director for 10 years; writes songs, but more instrumentals these days; the "Money Question" - Jimmy has managed to support himself with music through a diverse set of revenue streams: teaching, recording, touring, jingles, stage shows; he ran "Blue Star", a non-profit kids program, for 15 years; his National Steel guitar is named "Stacy", & was signed by John Lee Hooker; the song "Diamond...
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Gail Pellerin_CA_Assemblymember_2025-10-24_interviewed on KZSC's Bushwhackers Breakfast Club "Dangerous Dan" Orange, "DJ Spark Plug" (Dylan Estevez) & "Golden Voice Gene" Fintz
KZSC Santa Cruz
Gail Pellerin is California's 28th District Assemblymember. AB 679 re: Sempervirens finally passed, & signed by the Governor! Assemblymember Pellerin introduced this bill in 2023 as one of her first bills as a Freshman Assemblymember, which, given the fires & VIP visits, meant it got a lot of visibility; at its first stop in the Water, Parks & Wildlife Committee they wanted to know why wasn't it state side, so Gail amended it but it failed because the cost was too high; in 2024 the concern was still about cost; Gail got public input, and this year put in a pair of bills, one...
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John Laird_California State Senator_2025-10-10_interviewed on KZSC's Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club
KZSC Santa Cruz
California Senator Laird's district extends from San Luis Obispo county to Santa Cruz to southern Silicon Valley; last week staff retreat (n = 26!) - Laird has 3 offices: SLO, Monterey (with a satellite office in Salinas) & Santa Cruz - one of Senator Laird's staff is the longest serving staff member in the legislature: Tim Shelly; there's little going on in Sacramento now other than the Governor signing or vetoing bills - the legislative session ended a month ago....it was supposed to end at midnight, but went until 3am, at which point they put it on hold and came back Saturday - that...
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Gail Pellerin_CA_Assemblymember_interviewed 2025-09-19 on KZSC's "Bushwhackers Breakfast Club" by "DJ Spark Plug"
KZSC Santa Cruz
Call in interview with California State Assembly District 28 Assemblymember Gail Pellerin reguarding the legislative session formally ended on September 12, but it ended up going over onto Saturday, September 13th. Assemblymember Pellerin provided a report on the session's final days, including what passed, what didn’t, the reasons for the extension, and what we are now waiting for the governor to sign or veto. An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "DJ Spark Plug", airing Friday mornings on 88.1 FM KZSC Santa Cruz, California.
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Grant Wilson_local activist, art therapist, puppeteer_intervivewed 2024-11-22 on KZSC's Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club by "Dangerous Dan" Orange
KZSC Santa Cruz
arrived in Santa Cruz in 1976 for undergrad, after growing up as a foreign kid (Scotland) in New York...who didn't wear jeans; psychology & art therapy major; later, used art to help found and run the Gorilla Drive-In, with free outdoor movies...screened 178 movies over 12 years; how to maintain activism / optimisim without getting exhausted: use creative approach, allowing vision, and find other creative types; deep dive into large puppets and the "Art & Revolution" group in Santa Cruz; discussion of taking art and activism to digital channels. Pronounces his first name as...
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John Laird_California State Senator_2025-09-05_interviewed on KZSC's Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club by "Dangerous Dan" Orange & "DJ Spark Plug" (Dylan Estevez)
KZSC Santa Cruz
Overturned gasoline tanker truck yesterday on Highway 17, & discussion of things we'll have to explain to our grandchildren; One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) & Watsonville Community Hospital - do we need to worry? Yes! OBBBA guts federal support for rural health care; 70-80% of Watsonville's patients have their care paid for: if you cut federal support, cuts the federal $$ that would've supported the hospital; ironic, as 2025 is the first year in 6 years that they've broken even; "Gut & Amend", with OBBBA, most changes start on Jan. 1, but the cuts to Planned Parenthood kick in...
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Dmitri Gascon, Accordianist, & Matthew Stein, fiddler, with Baymele_Eastern European Folk Music & Klezmer_2025-08-29_interview on KZSC's Bushwhacker's by "Dangerous Dan" Orange & "DJ Spark Plug" (Dylan Estevez)
KZSC Santa Cruz
Dmitri (accorion) & Matthew (fiddle) are part of a 5-piece Klezmer band, Baymele, that also includes 2 more fiddle powerhouses, Zoe & Rebecca, and Misha on cello - they met & started playing together 10 years ago; all live in the Bay Area, so the band name is both Yiddish (for sapling) and a play on the Bay Area; all have backgrounds in classical music, + a passion for Eastern European music, espeically Klezmer (Jewish) music; klezmer didn't always have titles, and the song we played they dug up in the Kiev, Ukraine, archives; "The Money Question" Not good, but there's...
info_outlineJohn Laird is California State Senator - 17th District
Senator Laird's Q for "Sassy Cassy": "What's the biggest challenge ou're facing that Policy might be able to address?" A: Literacy & (mis)information; Senator Laird: "Your father & I grew up with fact checkers and trusted sources. Now it's so crazy" ...with everything available everywhere all the time with few (if any) fact checkers or trusted sources; deep dive into Pain & Suffering bill which, when introduced, resulted in Senator Laird being "ambushed" with disinformation-fueled backlash; Senator Laird spoke with every member of the committee and got it passed, & then spoke with every Democrat in the Senate (30) to get it passed out of its House of Origin; recent British Colombia recycling information-gathering trip, learning about "extended producer responsibility", including carpets and lithium recovery; Senator Laird's interest in recycling is, in part, related to his postion on the Natural Resources Committee, but also historic as, when he was on the Santa Cruz City Council with Mayor Jane Weed, they got the city's first curbside recycling program approved (the Santa Cruz landfill, Dimeo Lane, had a projected 20 year life back then, and now has a 30 year projected life; California's Redemption Value (bottle bill) is a mess (after Dangerous Dan's pitch for bottle redemption wherever you pay a deposit); legislature back in session a week from Monday, with California Redistricting on the table due to an existential threat - possible initiative for a November special election for a re-districting out of the commission's hands that would be in effect to 2030 only.
An interview on "The Bushwhacker's Breakfast Club" with "Dangerous Dan" & "Sassie Cassie", airing Friday mornings on KZSC Santa Cruz, California.