Columns

Recurring Columns

ON THE SILVER SCREEN: "MISSION" ACCOMPLISHED

 

By Brian Lafferty

December 21, 2011 (San Diego) – Many people I know would be hard-pressed to name their favorite TV show. For me, it’s easy. Mission: Impossible is my all-time favorite TV show. There’s something about the creativity in each mission’s execution. Even though everybody knows that the team will succeed, that doesn’t mean it lacks suspense.


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THE WILL POWER REPORT: ABOLISH THE EPA?

Nothing but the Truth!
 
By Will Power
 
December 21, 2011 (San Diego) -- Newt Gingrich, the current Republican presidential frontrunner wants to "abolish the EPA".  Gingrich characterizes the EPA as a "jobkiller".

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FROM THE REAL ESTATE TRENCHES

By Charlotte Reed



December 12, 2011 (San Diego’s East County)From the Real Estate Trenches is a weekly column focused on real estate news that impacts East County’s real estate market. This week’s local and national real estate highlights include:

 

 

  • Fannie and Freddie suspend evictions for the holidays
  • Prudential Financial sells its real estate brokerage for $110 million
  • Counting my blessings
  • Military Home Loans open house


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LIFE ON THE AUTISM SPECTRUM: GOOD GRIEF

By Brian Lafferty

 

This is the last of a four-part series on loss and grief from an Autistic person’s point of view.

 


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EAST COUNTY EATER: ZEYTOON SERVES UP ZESTY PERSIAN AND MEDITERRANEAN DELIGHTS

Zeytoon Restaurant at VineRipe Market

Persian and Mediterranean cuisine

8191 Fletcher Parlway
La Mesa, CA 91942    (next to CostCo)
(619) 462-7809        

By Megan McGlamery

Nestled in La Mesa next to the VineRipe Market is Zeytoon, a delicious Persian and Mediterranean restaurant now under new ownership. Zeytoon, which translates to olive, serves a wide variety of flavorful appetizers, salads, entrees and sandwiches, all of which are reasonably priced and generously sized. The market is also a treasure-trove of specialty foods from around the world.

Scroll down for coupons and details.


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TIPS FROM THE PURPLE MOUNTAIN SAGE: PLAN ON IT!

 By Sharon Cormousis

 
December 2, 2011 (Boulevard) -- There are only a few weeks until we roll into 2012; we are going into the hibernating time of year. The leaves have mostly fallen, the air is crisp and often nearly thirty degrees lower at night and we drag out our flannel sheets, boots and long-sleeve shirts.
 
For me, this is one of the best times of the year. From the aspect of nature, there are several mountain plants that only produce during this season. Despite long periods of little rain, the hills are very green with the more subdued colors of sage and Manzanita. Hiking is especially enjoyable because we are able to concentrate on something else beside rattlers.

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THE DOG BLOG: LOST OR FOUND DOG? WHAT DO YOU DO?

 
New Technologies, local and national databases help reunite lost dogs and their owners

 
By Dawn Celapino
 
November 29, 2011 (San Diego’s East County)--Have you ever experienced any doggy parent’s worst nightmare--losing your dog? Have you ever found a dog and didn't know what to do? 

 


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MEDIA WATCHDOG: UNION TRIBUTE SALE RAISES MEDIA ETHICS CONCERNS


By Miriam Raftery
 
November 20, 2011 (San Diego) –Media reform and citizens’ groups have voiced concern over purchase of the San Diego Union-Tribune, a self-proclaimed “watchdog”, by a team led by real estate developer and political activist Doug Manchester. His major pending development projects are the very sorts of deals an independent media outlet would ordinarily report on and investigate.
 


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BIRD TALK: WILD TURKEYS AND TURKEY VULTURES

By Greg Dunne                               

November 16, 2011 (Harbison Canyon) -- It’s November, the month when we all enjoy turkey at Thanksgiving. So this edition of Bird Talk is on the wild turkey and the other turkey namesake bird, the turkey vulture.

The wild turkey is not native to California, although it is native to North America. Numerous attempts tointroduce the turkey to California failed. Then in the early 1990s a second attempt was successful.  Today, wild turkeys can be seen throughout the back hills of East San Diego County. 


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THE WILL POWER REPORT: FRACKING UP?

 
Nothing but the Truth!
By Will Power

 
November 16, 2011 (San Diego)--Recent unexpected earthquakes in Virginia, Oklahoma and England have been linked by some geologists to "fracking"- injecting liquids and sands into underground faults to increase natural gas production.
  

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DREAM DOGS LOOKING FOR FOREVER HOMES

By Cate Sacks

November 12, 2011 (Blossom Valley) -- News from Facebook, Therapy dog Howard has passed all the training to become a therapy or service dog. This boy is simply awesome. He is gentle, submissive and kind. I have never heard him bark, and he is happy just "being"..whether than means with the other dogs, people, children or just by himself. He is a young boy who has been rounded off to a year old. His body is that of a boxer but his look is that of a chesapeake bay retriever...an amazing combination that is hard to find. He sleeps quietly in his crate and learns quickly.  

 


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THE DOG BLOG: DANGERS OF RETRACTABLE LEASHES

By Dawn Celapino
 
November 12, 2011 (San Diego) -- You see it all of the time at a very busy dog event, farmers market, or walking event; people are using retractable leashes on their dog.  The person’s dog is roaming all over the place, the leash is at full length, and it trips somebody or worst cuts their leg.
 
Retractable leashes are dangerous and should never be used at a busy event.  If the dog starts running and somebody grabs the leash, a dangerous cut or worse a finger amputation could happen and it has, many times.
 

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ON THE SILVER SCREEN: IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT

By Brian Lafferty

November 11, 2011 (San Diego) – Apparently every generation brings a disaster movie in which an asteroid, meteor, or comet is about to strike the Earth. There was Meteor in 1979. My generation had not one but two such movies in 1998. They were Michael Bay’s Armageddon and Mimi Leder’s Deep Impact. I don’t think I need to tell you which was more popular among my classmates.

 


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DOLLAR-WISE DIVA: SAVE MONEY ON DO-IT-YOURSELF PROJECTS

 By Nancy Clement

November 11, 2011 (La Mesa) - Fall is a good time of year to work on do-it-yourself project, as the weather is cooler.  Many repairs you can do yourself for the cost of items for repairs.   If you have more time than money trade a home repair project with a friend, you work together on their project and they work with you to complete your project.  You could start with a small project and as your skills increase, take on more
advanced projects. 

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ON THE SILVER SCREEN: UNCONSCIENTIOUS DIRECTOR

By Brian Lafferty

 

November 11, 2011 (San Diego) – As a critic it’s easy to look at a film and say something like, “It would have been better if they did this.” The flaw of such logic is that there’s no guarantee that the replacements or additions would be any better than what made it onto the screen. Nor would excising a scene or plot necessarily benefit the movie.

 


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LIFE ON THE AUTISM SPECTRUM: GOODBYE, FAREWELL, AND AMEN

By Brian Lafferty

 

Last year I lost my mother to breast cancer. This column is the third of a four-part series about loss and grief from an Autistic’s perspective.

 


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HOME VIDEO HERALD: ATTACK THE BLOCK (BLU-RAY)


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HOME VIDEO HERALD: THE GREEN LANTERN (BLU-RAY)

By Brian Lafferty



November 7, 2011 (San Diego) – The comic book superhero genre won’t be going away anytime soon and that’s all right with me. Thanks to Warner Bros., The Dark Knight and Watchmen rank among my most favorite theater experiences. There have been many other comic book movies that left me excited for the next installment, eager to discuss them with friends.

 


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HOME VIDEO HERALD: DRESSED TO KILL (BLU-RAY)


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ON THE SILVER SCREEN: NOTHIN' BUT A GOOD "TIME"

By Brian Lafferty

 

November 4, 2011 (San Diego) – I love surprises. I drove into the parking lot where the In Time screening too place thinking that it was going to be a dime a dozen action film with incoherent stunts and poor camerawork held together by a gimmick. Over two hours later, I went home with a smile on my face.

 


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GOOD MONEY: SHAREHOLDER ACTIVISM – “NO FRACKING WAY”

A column written for the East County Magazine
“Your guide to financial planning & socially responsible investing”

By: Judith L. Seid, CFP ®
President, Blue Summit Wealth Management

November 4, 2011 (La Mesa) -- Last week, I attended the “No Fracking Way” fundraiser for non-profit shareholder advocacy organization “As You Sow” Foundation.
http://asyousow.org/ .
 
 

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DREAM DOGS LOOKING FOR FOREVER HOMES


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BIRD TALK: THE GREEN HERON

By Greg Dunne

                                                
November 2, 2011 (Lake Murray) --This is one of my favorite birds. It’s also John Vanderpoel’s  #183 bird on his 2011 “Big Year” bird list. More on that later.
 
The Green Heron is an odd sort of bird, short and stocky; it reminds me of a cartoon caricature from the 1960’s.  It is smart, tough, and intolerant of other birds--even other herons!  

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ADVICE FROM THE PURPLE MOUNTAIN SAGE: JUST OPEN YOUR EYES

 By Sharon Courmousis Sacred Rocks Reserve


Increase your enjoyment of living!


October 30, 2011 (Boulevard) -- At 6:20 am I walked into the sun. Tormented by drama in my mind, it took a while to sink in. It was a cool morning, about 64 degrees. I was walking up a sweat. And then I saw. I saw the beginnings of color of the sunrise. The clouds were gently dancing across the sky that was bluing before my eyes. The underside of the clouds became tinged with yellow with the shining of the sun.  

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DEANE’S LIST: EDUCATION NEWS AND NOTES

By Doug Deane

October 29, 2011 (San Diego’s East County) -- The following local, state and national education news items are excerpted from a very informative e-newsletter published by Doug Deane, chair of the Business Education Committee at the San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce.

Our picks for Deane’s top education stories from the latest issue include:


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WILL POWER REPORT: PRIVATE PRISONS?

Nothing but the Truth!

By Will Power

 
October 27 , 2011 (San Diego)--The USA now has more people in prison than China and Russia combined. Sentencing enhancements and Three Strikes law can put an unemployed drug user into prison for life in a heartbeat. Many State prisons are so overcrowded that private prisons are used to house out-of-state prisoners who get no judicial review when they are shipped from one state to another.

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LIFE ON THE AUTISM SPECTRUM: THE LONG, COLD AUTUMN

By Brian Lafferty

 

Last year I lost my mother to breast cancer. This column is the second of a four-part series about loss and grief from an Autistic’s perspective.

 


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POLITICAL WRANGLING: WITH THE WAR OVER, NOW CAN WE CREATE JOBS?

By Buck Shott

October 25, 2011 (San Diego’s East County)—While the President announced the end of the Iraq War (bringing all troops home for the holidays—permanently) and rolled out a jobs bill to put Americans back to work, Republican candidates announced plans to cut off student aid, deregulate Wall Street robber barons, and jack up taxes on the poor and middle class. No, I’m not making this up.

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MEDIA WATCH: 2 WARS END, UNION-TRIBUNE DOESN’T THINK YOU NEED TO KNOW

By Miriam Raftery

October 25, 2011 (San Diego) – On the morning of October 21, President Barack Obama announced that he is ending the Iraq War and bringing home all of our troops by year’s end. That afternoon, NATO announced an end to operations in Libya, ending two wars in one day in which the U.S. led military efforts.

So why wasn’t this headline news at the San Diego Union-Tribune’s online edition?
 
 

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ON THE SILVER SCREEN: TALE OF THE "MIXTAPE"


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