By Sylvia Hampton
 
August 2009 (San Diego) -- I was born in Chicago and grew up in St. Louis Missouri. Back in “the day” I thought California was the coolest state with the best of everything---youth, sun, beauty, film making, innovation, and good government. It had the best schools and led the way on bright ideas. Then along came the anti-tax, anti-environmental protection, anti-public schools, anti-gay, anti-evolution, pro-assault weapon, pro-three strikes, flat earth society crowd to change all that. They took great advantage of their minority status to make demands on the majority because their votes were needed to get that pesky two thirds super majority vote to pass the budget. Now we are cutting education funding, environmental protections and social services and to hell with the consequences.

California is no longer the “golden” state, but the state of chaos.

An Editorial By Miriam Raftery
Editor, East County Magazine

June 3, 2009 (San Diego’s East County)—If California ever needed an action hero at the helm, it’s now. Instead, Arnold has taken the “girlie man” way out –balancing the budget on the backs of the poor by proposing to eliminate healthcare for children and welfare-to-work programs. He also wants to close 80% of state parks, release prisoners, and slash school spending.

Granted, a grid-locked Legislature, Republicans who pale at the words “raise revenues,” Democrats who were split on ballot initiatives and fed-up voters who failed to pass the measures have left him few easy choices. But Arnold has one ace left in the hole: star power. Here’s how he can use it to debut the most important road show of his career: “Save Kaleefornia.”