May 2010 Articles

JOBS ON THE LINE: SAN MIGUEL FIRE VOTES TO HOLD OFF ON FIREFIGHTER LAYOFFS AMID GROWING BUDGET DEFICIT

 

“The industry standard is one firefighter for every 1,000 in population. San Miguel is currently operating with one firefighter for every 5,400 taxpayers.”  - Alan Laatsch, president,  Firefighters Local 1434
May 27, 2010 (Spring Valley) – Facing a $1.6 million deficit, San Miguel Consolidated Fire Protection District’s Board tonight considered a proposal to lay off three firefighters, eliminate the Administrative Division Chief position and demote several officials.  But after hearing moving testimony from firefighters, fire and accident victims, and others in the community, the Board voted unanimously to reject the recommendation and consider other options.

 

Among the most moving testimony came from Doug de Brauwere, a father with young children. “I’ll be the first firefighter to be laid off,” he testified, his voice choked with emotion. “I spent 10 years serving my country; a year and a half of that was in Iraq.”


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POLITICAL WRANGLING: GREATEST "HITS" OF THE PRIMARY SEASON

 

By Buck Shott

May 28, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – With just 10 days until the June 8 primary, hit pieces are out in droves--like killer bees swarming to finish off hapless victims. As usual, there’s a fair amount of truth-stretching going on. Greatest “hits” of the season include:


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A TALE OF 3 BUDGETS: STATE LEGISLATURE GRAPPLES OVER DUELING PROPOSALS

May 27, 2010 (Sacramento) – Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Senate and Assembly Democratic leaders have proposed three separate budgets with drastically different approaches to closing a $20 billion gap.  Should California completely eliminate safety nets for children, poor families and the elderly? 

 

That's what the Governor has proposed -- and what Republican leaders in both houses support. Or should corporate tax breaks be delayed to help balance the budget, as Senate Democrats propose?  Or should a compromise measure from Senate Assembly leaders, that includes both cuts and a tax on oil companies, plus outsourcing management of bottle bill revenues, be considered?  

 

Those are among the touch choices facing state legislators.  


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TWO REPUBLICANS SQUARE OFF IN 78TH ASSEMBLY PRIMARY RACE; WINNER TO FACE MARTY BLOCK

 

Update: Rick Powell won the Republican primary and will face off against Democratic Assemblyman Marty Block in November.

EDUCATION IS KEY ISSUE IN THE RACE

   

May 27, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – Two military veterans square off in a Republican primary in the 78th Assembly District. Republican Emma Turner, a 27-year Navy veteran, is president of the La Mesa-Spring Valley School Board and says she’s running to fight for more funding forpublic schools, particularly K-12 education.

 

Col. Rick Powell, who also has a distinguished military career, thinks the answer to education is not more money for public schools, but instead providing vouchers and supporting charters that would let parents use public funds to send their children to private schools.

The winner in the GOP primary will run against Assemblyman Marty Block, an educator and former San Diego State University administrator who now chairs the Assembly Higher Education Committee. Block has championed education causes, particularly efforts to help college students and their families.


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EAST COUNTY CREW GEARS UP FOR WORLD’S TOUGHEST BIKE RACE: RACE ACROSS AMERICA SOLOIST SEEKS SPONSORS TO HELP KIDS WITH HEART CONDITIONS


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ARRESTS MADE IN SHOOTINGS OF TEENS IN EL CAJON: 2 MEN CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED MURDER

 

May 26, 2010 (El Cajon)—El Cajon Police have arrested Juan Jose Barba-Hinojosa, 31, and Joshua Gabriel Cordova Sander, 26, for attempted murder. The men are accused of shooting three victims, including a 17-year-old girl and two 18-year-old men last night in El Cajon. Police indicate the crimes may be gang-related.


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SUNRISE POWERLINK FINAL PROJECT MODIFICATION REPORT ISSUED: PUBLIC HAS UNTIL JUNE 1 TO SUBMIT COMMENTS

 

May 24, 2010 - The Final Project Modification Report has been released for Sunrise Powerlink, showing the final route and any changes/modifications made to the project. View the report: http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/environment/info/aspen/sunrise/toc-pmr.htm.

The East County Community Action Coalition has organized an effort among opponents of the project to request that the Sunrise Powerlink CEQA/NEPA process be reopened to address issues that were not covered or not adequately covered in the original Environmental Impact Report (EIR/EIS).


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PAID POLL WORKERS STILL NEEDED IN SOME NEIGHBORHOODS FOR JUNE 8 ELECTION


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SAN DIEGO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JOINS LABOR , CONSUMER & ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS IN OPPOSING PROP 16



Utility company spent $45 million to support measure that would make it harder for cities and counties to provide cheaper power alternatives to consumers



May 26, 2010 (San Diego) – Politics makes strange bedfellows—and in the case of Proposition 16, almost nobody is being swayed by Pacific Gas & Electric's efforts to woo voters. One of the largest coalitions in memory against a ballot proposition has been forged to oppose the utility giant's efforts, uniting business, labor, consumer, seniors, and enviornmental groups opposed to the measure.

 

PG&E has spent over $45 million on its “Yes on 16” campaign. If passed, the initiative on the June ballot would make it almost impossible for local cities or counties to start a Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) program to provide electricity at lower rates--or from cleaner sources--than a utility company.


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EAST COUNTY ROUNDUP: MAY 26, 2010


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4TH SUPERVISORIAL CANDIDATES TO PARTICIPATE IN FORUM MAY 27

 

Mission Valley News is sponsoring a forum for the public to hear from candidates running for the County Board of Supervisors 4th Supervisorial District. The forum will be held Thursday, May 27 from 4-5 p.m. at the Mission Valley Branch Library, 2123 Fenton Parkway, San Diego.


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THE WILL POWER REPORT: HIGH FREQUENCY TRADING

 

Nothing but the Truth!

By Will Power

 

May 25, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – Earlier this month, the U.S. Stock Market burped big-time, sending blue-chips down to pennies a share for several minutes, while computers throughout the world strained to keep up. Within hours, millions of paper losses and gains were recorded, and then the market stabilized. Nobody knows what caused the sudden shock. But the profits and losses were substantial, and in fact many of the trades are now being nullified by the SEC. The trades are being voided because they were outside parameters set up by the SEC. You can hear the howls of pain from brokers in Tierra Del Fuego.


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KNIFE-WIELDING ROBBER HOLDS UP BANK IN EL CAJON

 

May 25, 2010 (El Cajon) Chase Bank at 966 North Johnson in El Cajon was robbed at 9:45 this morning by a man who went behind the bank counter and contronted an employee with a knife, demanding cash.


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FREE! FOLK MUSIC CONCERTS AT COUNTY LIBRARIES

May 25, 2010 (San Diego) -- The new San Diego County Library Acoustic Showcase offers a wonderful variety of some of San Diego's very best singer/songwriters, folk music performers and story tellers.

These concerts are FREE to the community and include locations in East County.  The following are upcoming concerts for June 2010.


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STUDENTS SHOWCASE SUSTAINABLE SKILLS AT SAN DIEGO SCHOOL BOARD MEETING

May 25, 2010 (San Diego) -- Students from the Renewable Energy Leadership Institute (RELI) demonstrated their newly-learned skills to the San Diego Unified School District Board today, unveiling an electric go-cart and solar charging station.

 

The RELI pilot program was conceived under leadership of school board member Shelia Jackson to generate excitement among high school students about career opportunities in the renewable energy industry.


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SDG&E TO BRING 2,500-GALLON FIREFIGHTING HELICOPTER TO SAN DIEGO REGION

 

UTILITY ALSO PRESENTS ITS ENERGY RESOURCE PLAN FOR OUR REGION AT ECEDC COMMUNITY LEADERS SPOTLIGHT

May 25, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) has announced that the company will bring the world’s largest heavy-lifting helicopter in the world to our region to construct Sunrise Powerlink, which SDG&E hopes to begin constructing this summer. “It can also be used for firefighting—and it can bring up to 2,500 gallons of water,” said Michael R. Niggli, president and chief operating officer of SDG&E. By contrast, the largest firefighting helicopter previously in San Diego had a capacity of 300 gallons, he said.

Niggli made the remarks during the East County Economic Development Council’s Community Leaders Spotlight at Cuyamaca College in Rancho San Diego yesterday.  The company's executives also presented business and education leaders with its plans for economic revitalization and sustainable energy that SDG&E indicated will benefit East  County. 


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POLICE SEEK MISSING WOMAN, 79, IN ROLANDO-COLLEGE AREA

 

May 25, 2010 (San Diego) – Police seek help to find Li-Juan Ji, 79, who has been visiting from China and speaks only Mandarin Chinese.  The elderly woman was last seen yesterday morning at 7:30 near 4700 Seminole Drive in the Rolando area (between La Mesa and the College vicinity), near the intersection of Stanley with a bag of recyclables.  She was wearing a tan sweater and grey pants, and often wears a pink sunscreen pulled over her face.

 

She is 4 feet 8 inches tall and weighs 90 pounds, with brown eyes and black hair. She does not wear jewelry.

If you have any information, please call San Diego Police at 531 2000.


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LA MESA TURNS 100: CITY PLANS CENTENNIAL CELEBRATIONS

 

Times have changed since La Mesa became a city in 1912--the year the Titanic sunk, Teddy Roosevelt ran as a Bull Moose, and silent movies were the hot pop culture crazes.

 

May 24, 2010 (La Mesa) – The jewel of the hills will be a century old in 2012—and city leaders are gearing up to celebrate La Mesa’s history and culture through exhibits, education venues, institutional presentations and community events. (Get ready to party hearty!)

 

How much do you know about La Mesa's history and how times have changed in the past 100 years?


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THREE HEADED TO AKRON, OH AFTER WINNING LA MESA SOAP BOX DERBY RACES

by Christopher Mohr

 

May 24, 2010 (La Mesa) - Bryce Taylor, Sam Ferguson and Ellen Blackwell each won their respective divisions at the La Mesa Soap Box Derby Race on Saturday (May 22). The course was set up on a downhill section of Junior High Drive next to the La Mesa Middle School. Competitors faced each other in tournament bracket pairings to determine the division winners. 

 
As a result of winning their respective divisions, Taylor, Ferguson and Blackwell earned the right to participate in the National Soap Box Derby, held in Akron, OH in July. 

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HUNTER PRAISES NOT GUILTY VERDICT FOR SEAL ACCUSED OF ABUSING TERRORIST

May 24, 2010 (Washington D.C.) -  Congressman Duncan Hunter praised a not guilty verdict in the case of Navy SEAL Matthew McCabe, who faced court-martial for allegedly beating Iraqi detainee Ahmed Hashim Abed and lying to investigators.

 

Abed was arrested in September in Iraq for allegedly orchestrating the 2004 murders of four U.S. contractors working for Blackwater USA in Falluja. The contractors' burned bodies were later hung from a bridge, triggering the siege of Falluja.


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LA MESA TO CONSIDER PROGRAM TO TURN IN UNUSED OR EXPIRED PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

 

May 24, 2010 (La Mesa) – Councilmember Ernest Ewin has proposed that La Mesa create a program to encourage residents to turn in unused and expired prescription drugs and also launch a “No Drugs Down the Toilet or Drain” campaign.  The proposal will be considered by Council on Tuesday, May 25 during the Council meeting starting at 6 p.m. at City Hall.

“Prescription drugs have long been recognized as a threat to child health and related criminal activity,” Ewin wrote in a memo to the Mayor and members of the City Council. “Also, drugs in landfills, our streams, bays and ocean are also of concern.”


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JUDGING THE JUDGES: CHRISTIAN RIGHT TAKES AIM AT FOUR ON JUNE BALLOT

 

Conservative group's candidates found not qualified for judicial positions by County Bar

 

May 24, 2010 (San Diego) – Judicial races are rarely headline news. But an organization called “Better Courts Now” founded by the late Don Hamer, an East County pastor, has lined up a slate of right-wing candidates to challenge four incumbent judges.

The group’s website states that judges should be accountable, uphold the law and make fair, impartial decisions—yet does not cite a single instance in which the incumbents failed on any specific point. (Better Courts Now notes that doing so would violate Canon 5 of the California Code of Judicial Ethics, which prohibits judicial candidates from leveling specific criticisms against opponents.) 

Better Courts Now’s candidates were not found qualified for the positions they seek by the County Bar Association.  In response, Better Courts Now has accused the Bar of "blatant political bias" and noted that Larry Stanwood Johnson, chair of the Bar's Certified Family Law Specialists Committee, has solicited donations from Committee members for the incumbent judges.  


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DECEPTIVE SLATE MAILER TARGETS DEMOCRATIC VOTERS

May 25, 2010 (San Diego) – Voters, be wary. A slate mailer titled “Election Education Guide” claims to list official endorsements of the California Democratic Party for statewide candidates and propositions. But the deceptive paid political flyer is not affiliated with the Democrats. While some positions listed accurately reflect the Party’s endorsements, others falsely misrepresent the Democratic Party’s position.

For the Democratic Party’s official list of endorsements, click here.

The “Election Education Guide” slate mailer contains the following misrepresentations:


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MAN SHOT IN CHEST DURING COLLEGE-AREA HOME INVASION

 

Police seek 2 suspects in a black SUV

 

May 24, 2010 (San Diego) – A 25-year-old man was shot in a home invasion robbery last night at 6937 Saranac Street in a college-area neighborhood east of San Diego State University. According to San Diego Police Department, the man heard knocking or banging on his front door. He opened to find a robber armed with a gun. The thief and at least one accomplice pushed the victim to the ground and fired one round into his chest, then robbed the victim and two roommates of wallets and cash.


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BURNED BODY FOUND BY HIKERS ON MT. LAGUNA

 

May 24, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – A group of hikers found a severely burned human body yesterday at 11:15 a.m. while hiking approximately two miles west of Sunrise Highway (State Route 1) west of mile marker 18. The San Diego Sheriff's homicide unit is investigating and the identity of the victim is unknown.


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PIRATE LEADS PUB CRAWL THROUGH EAST COUNTY

 

Next on tap:  A Pirates of the Caribbean Party for Haitian earthquake relief

May 23, 2010 (San Diego’s East County) – Yo, ho, it was a pirate’s night on the town last night as “Sam the Pirate” Mejia led a group of revelers on a pub crawl through East County in celebration of his birthday.

 

Best known for his uncanny resemblance to Johnny Depp and the Captain Jack Sparrow character popularized by Depp in the Pirates of the Caribbean movie, Mejia started the evening off at his favorite place for grog and grubb: Hooley’s Irish Pub & Grill in Rancho San Diego.


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PEDESTRIAN KILLED IN ESCONDIDO

May 23, 2010 (Escondido) -- Wesley Askins III, 29, was walking across Center City Parkway near Brotherton Road in Escondido with friends Friday night when he was struck by an oncoming vehicle. 

Paramedics confirmed death at the scene, the County Medical Examiner reports.  Askins, who was single, resided in San Diego. 


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CHILD DROWNS IN DESCANSO

 

May 23, 2010 (Descanso) – Three-year-old Noah Hale was found by his mother floating face-down and unresponsive in the family’s backyard pool on Friday. Following a 9-1-1 call, the toddler was air-lifted to Rady Children’s Hospital, but emergency room medical personnel were unable to save him.


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OFF-ROAD MOTORCYCLIST FROM SAN DIEGO KILLED IN BORREGO ACCIDENT

May 23, 2010 (Borrego Springs) – A 24-year-old San Diego man was killed Friday night while riding off-road motorcycles with a friend in the Ocotillo Wells State Vehicle Recreation Area. The victim lost control of his motorcycle and was ejected at Shell Reef Expressway at Fault Wash in Borrego Springs.


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SCOUTS PITCH IN TO HELP CLEAN UP COMMUNITY & TOUR WATER RECYCLING FACILITY

 

May 22, 2010 (Rancho San Diego)—Cub Scouts from the Wolf Den of Pack 391 donned gloves and helped pick up trash around Steele Canyon Bridge earlier this month—all as part of their recycling requirement to earn Wolf badges.

The Pack includes students at local elementary schools in first through fifth grade. Second graders from the wolf Den picked up three bags of trash as well as some items to be recycled.


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