By Miriam Raftery

November 21, 2016 (Casa de Oro) -- Pearl Harbor Day is coming up on December 7^th, a day to recall the worst attack on U.S. soil when the Japanese air force bombed an American air base in Hawaii during World War II.

There are very few survivors of Pearl Harbor left to tell their tales. But on Saturday, November 26^th at 10 a.m., Pearl Harbor survivor Stuart Hedley, a Navy veteran, will give a presentation at the Casa de Oro Library in Spring Valley (9805 Campo Rd., #180).   Hedley was aboard a U.S. ship that was bombed and will share harrowing tales of survival and heroism.

Hear our 2015 radio interview with Dr. Butcher:  http://k003.kiwi6.com/hotlink/9ljhcdy6y7/Newsmaker-RichardButcherMD-heal...

By Miriam Raftery

November 18,  2016 (El  Cajon)—Dr. Richard O.  Butcher,  77, an El Cajon resident and  prominent San Diego physician honored nationally for his dedication to serving patients in poor and minority communities,  died of heart failure Saturday while attending the American Medical Association’s annual meeting in Florida.

Dr. Butcher was  highly respected in San Diego’s medical, philanthropic and sports communities,  as well as at the national  level.   Last year, he received the National Medical Association’s Practitioner of the Year Award.

By Tracy DeFore, County of San Diego Communications Office

November 16, 2016 (San Diego) -- It’s the season to “fall” in love with a warm and fuzzy cat or dog at County Animal Services. It’s offering a “Fall in Love” half-price adoption special on Saturday, November 19 and Sunday, November 20.

As part of a 90-day pilot project, all three of the County’s shelters are open on Sundays, except for holidays. So feel free to stop by between 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on either day and you may possibly meet the unconditional love of your life.

East County News Service

November 16, 2016 (San Diego) — Twitter is taking aim at racism.  In dual actions, the company announced it will suspend accounts of prominent ‘alt-right’ leaders who are promoting white supremacy and bigotry.  Twitter also released new anti-harassment tools that allow users to block offensive tweets containing key words.

East County News Service

November 15, 2016 (La Mesa) – Friends of Angie Andrus are asking for public help to locate her.  According to Esther McElroy Beish, a family friend, Andrus suffers from paranoid schizophrenia, diabetes and high blood pressure. 

She was last seen in the Lake Murray area on October 24, when her vehicle was towed.   She could be living on the streets and confused.  “We have no idea where she is or if she is okay,” says Beish.

Update 8 p.m.:   Todd Perkins has been found safe in Lemon Grove.

East County News Service

November 14, 2016 (Lakeside)—The  Sheriff has issued a be-on-the-lookout bulletin for Todd Randolph Perkins,48.  He has been missing since 2:30 p.m.  His caretaker says he may have walked away from his home on Dorsal Drive in Lakeside.

He suffers from a medical condition that causes him to limp.  He has green tattooso on both arms. He is white with brown hair and brown eyes, 5 feet 6 inches tall, and weighs 130 pounds.  He has told his caretaker that he would like to return to his former home on the 7100 block of Broadway in Lemon Grove,though he does not drive.

By Greg Palast

Reprinted with permission of Greg Palast, award-winning investigative reporter published in Rolling Stone, the Guardian and BBC News. His New York Times bestseller, Billionaires & Ballot Bandits, is now a major motion picture documentary.

Editor’s note: I interviewed Palast before the election, when he warned that Trump operatives were conspiring to steal it by purging 7.2 million minority voters off voting roles in key swing states. Now Palast has evidence that Trump’s winning margin in these states was far less than the number of voters wrongly removed by software called “Crosscheck.” It purported to remove duplicate voters with common minority names, even when middle names were different, denying millions of Latinos, blacks and Asians their right to vote. The mastermind behind Crosscheck is Kris Kobach, now head of Trump’s immigration policies transition team. If you believe this election should be investigated, send this story to your elected officials or party leaders.  You can also Support The Palast Investigative Fund. E

Fund and keep our work alive.

November 12, 2016 -- Before a single vote was cast, the election was fixed by GOP and Trump operatives.

Starting in 2013 – just as the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act – a coterie of Trump operatives, under the direction of Kris Kobach, Kansas Secretary of State, created a system to purge 1.1 million Americans of color from the voter rolls of GOP–controlled states.

Meeting Nov. 12 planned for communities of color concerned about the election outcome

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Estela de los Rios, past victim of a hate crime in El Cajon

November 11, 2016 (San Diego) – Maria, a maid and legal U.S. resident who has raised her daughter here,  tearfully put her elderly,  frail mother on a plane Wednesday night and said goodbye,  perhaps forever.  “She is going back to Mexico, before Donald Trump can deport her,” Maria told East Magazine.

President-Elect Trump has vowed to deport all 11 million undocumented immigrants in America—including those brought here as children and the parents of U.S. citizens.  Even children who were brought here as babies, who have never known any other home.  Even ill and elderly parents such as Maria’s mother,  who has survived cancer and suffers from  diabetes.  Maria fears she is too ill to survive long on her own in Mexico—but the prospect of her mother languishing in a detention camp was even more frightening.

East County News Service

November 9, 2016 (Jamul) --  This Friday, November 11th on Veteran’s Day Hollywood Casino Jamul is kicking off a military appreciation program that will honor veterans 52 weeks out of the year.  Each week on Thank You Thursdays all who served our great country will receive a 20% discount on their meal in any of the eight restaurants at the Hollywood Casino Jamul property as well as 15% off at the gift shop. 

Source: Caltrans

November 7, 2016 (El Cajon) -- Lane and ramp closures are taking place along Interstate 8 (I-8) in El Cajon between Johnson Avenue and Lake Jennings Park Road Sundays through Thursdays from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. until mid-December. According to Caltrans, the pavement rehabilitation project will also include lane closures on some adjacent surface streets.

Photos: Palm tree (right) heavily damaged by South American palm weevil (left); photos courtesy of the Center for Invasive Species Research at UC Riverside

By Gig Conaughton, County of San Diego Communications Office

November 6, 2016 (San Diego) -- They’re 1 ½ to 2 inches long, jet black, with long snouts and a deadly appetite for one of Southern California’s biggest icons — palm trees.

In September, South American palm weevils were determined to have killed palm trees in San Ysidro.

By Miriam Raftery

November 4, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) – The future of the San Miguel Fire District hangs in the balance.  Should San Miguel keep its contract with Cal-Fire or return to being a stand-alone district, as the current board recently voted by a slim margin?  We interviewed a representative from  each of the two slates running for our East County Magazine Radio Show on KNSJ. Listen now by clicking the orange audio link.

 In this heated session,  incumbent Bill  Kiel, a retired engineer, makes the case for staying with Cal-Fire, while retired fire chief Kim Raddatz argues for giving Cal-Fire the boot and returning to an independent district.  Each side claims their position will be best for taxpayers and public safety.  One side is backed by Cal-Fire firefighters, the other by leaders of the former San Miguel firefighters.

By James Kecskes, County of San Diego Communications Office

November 2, 2016 (El Cajon)--County officials and community members broke ground on Gillespie Field Airport’s new Cajon Air Center on October 31st.

The groundbreaking kicked off the first phase of a multi-phase redevelopment project in unincorporated El Cajon.

By Miriam Raftery

November 2, 2016 (El Cajon) — The father of Alfred Olango, a Ugandan immigrant who was fatally shot last month by an El Cajon Police Officer Richard Gonsalves, has announced plans to establish the Alfred Olango Justice and Unity Foundation for police reform. In addition, Olango’s sister has filed a claim against the City of El Cajon alleging negligence in her brother’s death.

Source: Caltrans

November 1, 2016 (San Diego's East County) - Phased lane closures will occur on Interstate 8 (I-8) just east of Interstate 15 (I-15) starting at 8 p.m. Sunday and continuing through the following week. The closures are needed so that maintenance crews can repair and reinforce the roadway from the effects of a small sinkhole on the shoulder.

The closures will occur on I-8 from just west of Mission Gorge Road/Fairmount Avenue to just west of I-15, as follows: