Senate leaders vow to block repeal--but a Virginia judge declares mandate to buy health insurance unconstitutional
By: Jeremy Los
January 20, 2011 (San Diego’s East County) -- House Republicans have stuck to their campaign promises and passed a measure to repeal the newly established health care bill. In what was a strictly symbolic vote, since the repeal will most likely die in the Democrat-controlled Senate and would not be signed by President Obama, the House Republicans have sent a strong message to the nation that they mean business.
Local Republican representatives Brian Bilbray, Darrell Issa, and Duncan D. Hunter fell in line with conservative cohorts, as every House Republican voted to pass the repeal. On the other side of the aisle local Democratic representatives Bob Filner and Susan Davis voted against the repeal.
January 20, 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:
January 20, 2011 (La Mesa)-- La Mesa Police responded to a robbery at 11:47 a.m. today at Wells Fargo Bank inside the Vons store at 8011 University Avenue.
County Urges Residents to Use Caution When Cleaning Up Rodent Droppings;
Video Provides Tips for Homeowners
January 20, 2011 (Alpine) -- A wild deer mouse trapped in Alpine during routine monitoring has tested positive for the potentially deadly hantavirus, San Diego County vector control officials said today.
San Diego Police Department Homicide Unit detectives are investigating the death of a nine-year-old girl inside her Mountain View apartment on January 17. On Monday at 10:21 p.m., officers were dispatched to a report of a non-breathing child at a residence in the 300 block of Milbrae Street. Paramedics transported the girl to a trauma center, where she died at 11:56 p.m. The victim has been identified as Elizabeth Holloway.
As is customary in child death cases, detectives from the Child Abuse Unit conducted a preliminary investigation. The Medical Examiner’s Office performed an autopsy yesterday, which revealed the girl died from blunt force trauma.
January 20, 2011 (La Mesa) – Police confiscated an arsenal of weapons from the home of David Schreiner, whose phone call to police about a shooting at Helix High School promoted authorities to secure the campus January 14th. Search warrant records obtained by ECM news partner 10 News indicate that authorities seized 40 rifles, pistols, shotguns and muskets as well as six knives, a dagger, a tomahawk, a hatchet, a machete, a leather sap, and a camouflage ballistic vest.
January 20, 2011 (San Diego) – Three months after suffering a gunshot wound to his head, Monty is back to full duty as a San Diego Police service dog. The canine patrol member was injured by gunfire on October 27, 2010 while he and his handler were trying to locate a suspect wanted for assault with a deadly weapon and robbery charges in a Skyline apartment. The suspect shot and killed San Diego Police Officer Christopher Wilson, then later fatally shot himself.
Donations of cash, food also sought by rescue volunteers
January 19, 2011 (San Diego’s East County) – Nine-year-old Makena Sacks of Blossom Valley volunteers with her mother, Cate Sacks, to train dogs rescued from shelters. Now Makena asks help from ECM readers to save cats slated to be destroyed.
“I am hoping that I can save them but there are so many,” she writes. “The people at the shelter are putting cats down starting today, I need help taking these cats.”
January 19, 2011 (San Diego) – The San Diego Police Department and STAR/PAL invite the public to attend the 2011 Chief’s Challenge Indoor Triathlon on Saturday, January 22nd. Officers from SDPD and other local agencies will put their athletic ability to the test to help raise money to support underserved youth in our community. Proceeds will directly benefit inner-city youth who take part in STAR/PAL programs.
January 19, 2011 (San Diego) -- San Diego River Park Foundation announces a series of events to raise funds for establishing trails, parks, gardens and visitor centers along the 52-mile-long San DIego River. The events include San Diego Days, San Diego RiverFest, and a Healthy River Run.
January 19, 2011 (Alpine)--The proposed 12th high school in Alpine continues to face hurdles as the push for its groundbreaking soldiers on. The latest obstacles facing the potential campus are the potential missed enrollment trigger as well as the prospect that the school will not service all the students in the area.
January 19, 2011 (San Diego's East County) -- Motorists traveling on Mission Gorge Road to southbound State Route 125 in Santee will lose one lane for the next four weeks, Cal-Trans has announced. Southbound traffic will be directed along a shoulder to the future 52/125 southbound onramp starting Thursday morning at 5 a.m.
One On One: My Journey with Hall Of Famers, Fan Favorites and Rising Stars, By Jane Mitchell (Sweet Dreams Publishing Of Massachusetts, Bridgewater, Massachusetts, 2010, 638 Pages.)
Book Review by Dennis Moore
January 19, 2011 (San Diego)--The foreword to Jane Mitchell's book, One on One: My Journey with Hall of Famers, Fan Favorites and Rising Stars, by San Diego native and broadcast legend Dick Enberg and San Diego Padres' Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn, speaks volumes about fellow San Diego native Mitchell and her book. While giving homage to her hometown, Mitchell explores the lives of some of our most celebrated personalities.
On Friday, March 4, the cities of La Mesa and Santee will hold the Miss La Mesa and Miss Santee Pageants. Pageant organizers are currently seeking outgoing women ages 13-26 to participate in a program that has been a tradition in the cities since the late 1960’s and is an outstanding mentoring program for young women. The pageants are sponsored by the local Chambers of Commerce and focus on community service. There is no swimsuit competition--and is no entry fee to participate.
Miss La Mesa and Miss Santee 2011 will each receive at $1,000.00 scholarship while Miss La Mesa Teen and Miss Santee Teen 2011 will each receive a $500.00 scholarship.
January 19, 2012 (San Diego)--The constituents of the 52nd Congressional district are pleased that the majority party in the House has pledged to be open and fair in dealing with the crucial issues facing our nation today. We are also pleased to learn that cutting waste, fraud and abuse in the budget is your top concern. Therefore we ask the following questions to see if you, as our representative, are firmly behind these pledges and will vote to fulfill these promises. We thank you for sharing your answers with us.
January 18, 2011 (Palomar) --If you see smoke, don't panic. The United States Forest service will be conducting a controlled burn today and tomorrow near the intersections of Palomar Divide Truck Trail and Halfway Road placing it on a North East / East aspect of Palomar Mountain.
January 18, 2011 (San Diego) – The Green Hornet is beset with many problems. The first glaring issue involves the casting. I could not buy Seth Rogen as either Britt Reid or his alter ego the Green Hornet. I can understand why he was cast; Rogen co-wrote the screenplay with his longtime writing partner Evan Goldberg. Having been an established actor and a bankable writer (he also co-wrote Superbad and Pineapple Express) I don’t doubt he had his heart set on playing such an enduring and somewhat iconic character.
But Rogen has miscalculated this time around. He should have let someone else play the hero this time. Someone who would have brought a smooth, sly personality to both characters.
January 17, 2011 (Rancho Penasquitos) – Vandals spray-painted swastikas and “666” (numbers symbolizing the devil) on at least 14 vehicles early this morning, also defacing property at Hilltop Community Park, Black Mountain Middle School, and Sunset Hills Elementary School. A witness reports seeing two white teens spray painting in the area around 1 a.m., the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. Another source indicates they were driving a green car.
“It’s disturbing and shameful,” said Kevin Keenan, San Diego director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
"Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity. Hate destroys a man's sense of values and his objectivity." -- Martin Luther King, Jr., 1963
January 17, 2011 (Ramona) – Ron Selkovitch and Dave Patterson of the Ramona Forum demonstrated in Ramona over Martin Luther King Day weekend. According to a press release issued by the group, the purpose was to call for “civility and courage in the face of the recent shooting and political rancor.”
January 17, 2011 (Sacramento)--California Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom issued the following statement commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, urging all Californians to participate in local communities through public service. To find a service project in your community, visit: www.californiavolunteers.org.
“Our nation has made great progress, guided by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s vision of advancing social justice and opportunity for all," said Newsom, "but I recognize that there is still work to be done."
Egyptian proprietor also serves up coffee, snacks, and free classes to help Arabic-speaking residents
By Miriam Raftery
January 17, 2011 (El Cajon) --
On Saturday, throngs of well-wishers stopped by on Saturday to bid welcome (ahlan wa sahaln, أهلا وسهلا) to Zohny Hanna at his new business, Serenity House in downtown El Cajon. The store/coffee shop offers Christian books, art, and music in Arabic. Located on Main Street just east of Magnolia, Serenity House also offers free classes in English and community orientations for East County’s growing population of Arabic-speaking immigrants, asylees, and refugees.
“This is my land now. America is my new home,” says Hanna, who came here on a tourist vista back in 1997 with his wife and children, then received asylum status due to persecution of Coptic Christians in his native Egypt.
January 18, 2012 (San Diego's East County) -- Here are a few of our favorite shots from January--early signs that spring is on the way.
Please send us your best images for publication in a future issue! E-mail your top shots taken in East County or San Diego's inland regions to editor@eastcountymagazine.org.
January 17, 2010 (Poway) – Ramona resident Cynthia Clay, founder of Clay’s Canine Sidekicks and Leashes for Leaving, died Christmas night, December 25th, one day before her 58th birthday.
“Cyndy, while seriously disabled herself, created and managed over the years two service dog training groups,” said Hope Goodwin, a client who owns a service dog obtained through Clay. “I believe that Cyndy's training group is the only one in the U.S. that teaches the disabled how to train their own Service Dogs,” she said of the two-year program.
January 17, 2011 (San Diego) – San Diego Police report that a resident at 3000 Central Avenue became angered when a transient parked his pushcart on the property at 7:24 a.m. According to Officer J. Jacobsen, the resident hit the homeless man in the face with a 2 x 4 board.
January 17, 2011 (La Mesa)--Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD) is continuing its support of Communities Against Substance Abuse (CASA), East County's oldest, community-based, non-profit organization dedicated solely to substance abuse prevention. The GHD board of directors recently voted unanimously to approve a grant of $49,000 to help fund CASA’s Students Together Against Alcohol ‘N Drugs (STAAND), a youth advocacy program.
Options include a Valentine’s Day cooking class and tips on everything from growing vegetables to replacing water-thirsty lawns
Artist’s reception for Abigail Kurtz Migala on February 6
San Diego Police Department Homicide Unit detectives are investigating the death of a nine-year-old girl inside her Mountain View apartment on January 17. On Monday at 10:21 p.m., officers were dispatched to a report of a non-breathing child at a residence in the 300 block of Milbrae Street. Paramedics transported the girl to a trauma center, where she died at 11:56 p.m. The victim has been identified as Elizabeth Holloway.
By: Jeremy Los
One On One: My Journey with Hall Of Famers, Fan Favorites and Rising Stars, By Jane Mitchell (Sweet Dreams Publishing Of Massachusetts, Bridgewater, Massachusetts, 2010, 638 Pages.)
On Friday, March 4, the cities of La Mesa and Santee will hold the Miss La Mesa and Miss Santee Pageants. Pageant organizers are currently seeking outgoing women ages 13-26 to participate in a program that has been a tradition in the cities since the late 1960’s and is an outstanding mentoring program for young women. The pageants are sponsored by the local Chambers of Commerce and focus on community service. There is no swimsuit competition--and is no entry fee to participate.
By Sylvia Hampton
January 18, 2011 (Palomar) --If you see smoke, don't panic. The United States Forest service will be conducting a controlled burn today and tomorrow near the intersections of Palomar Divide Truck Trail and Halfway Road placing it on a North East / East aspect of Palomar Mountain. 
By Brian Lafferty
January 17, 2011 (Rancho Penasquitos) – Vandals spray-painted swastikas and “666” (numbers symbolizing the devil) on at least 14 vehicles early this morning, also defacing property at Hilltop Community Park, Black Mountain Middle School, and Sunset Hills Elementary School. A witness reports seeing two white teens spray painting in the area around 1 a.m., the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. Another source indicates they were driving a green car.
"Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity. Hate destroys a man's sense of values and his objectivity." -- 
January 17, 2011 (Sacramento)--California Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom issued the following statement commemorating Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, urging all Californians to participate in local communities through public service. To find a service project in your community, visit: 
By Miriam Raftery
January 17, 2010 (Poway) – Ramona resident Cynthia Clay, founder of Clay’s Canine Sidekicks and Leashes for Leaving, died Christmas night, December 25th, one day before her 58th birthday.
January 17, 2011 (La Mesa)--Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD) is continuing its support of Communities Against Substance Abuse (CASA), East County's oldest, community-based, non-profit organization dedicated solely to substance abuse prevention. The GHD board of directors recently voted unanimously to approve a grant of $49,000 to help fund CASA’s Students Together Against Alcohol ‘N Drugs (STAAND), a youth advocacy program.
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