By Brian Lafferty

Men’s Team Gets a No. 6 seed; Women’s Team Gets No. 12 Seed

By Ryan Schuler

March 13, 2012 (San Diego)--The Aztecs are going dancing. Both the San Diego State men’s and women’s basketball teams received bids to the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

Story by Terry Weiner and Miriam Raftery

Videos by Jim Pelley

March 15, 2012 (Holtville)--Early Wednesday, rooftop solar activists and desert conservationists from Imperial Valley and San Diego County  convened outside the Barbara Worth Resort—site of the Imperial Valley Economic Development Corporation's three-day Renewable Energy Summit and Expo.

Protesters oppose tax credits going to giant energy companies and called for similar incentives to help property owners put solar on their roofs. They also objected to their viewpoint being excluded by conference coordinators. Participants voiced concerns over negative impacts of industrial-scale wind and solar projects. In some cases, wind turbines have been abandoned, left as rusting blights on the landscape. Other concerns include destruction of habitat for wildlife, noise, health impacts, loss of agricultural lands, and destruction of recreational areas on public lands.

  By Bill Crotty

March 13, 2012 (El Cajon) – El Cajon City Council approved Mayor Mark Lewis' motion to appoint a replacement for recently-resigned Mayor Pro Tem Jillian Hanson-Cox at yesterday's council meeting, despite numerous community members who asked to be considered for the slot. 

Incident cost local restaurant money , highlights risk to ratepayers with medical needs

March 14, 2012 (La Mesa) – After ECM received a question from a reader about a power outage that began Friday night, March 2 and extended until Saturday morning, March 3, we contacted SDG&E.  SDG&E spokesperson Alison Zaragosa initially said that all  2800 customers left in the dark were notified via letters mailed February 14 of the planned outage to repair an underground cable.

But after La Mesa Patch ran a story about losses incurred by Riviera Steakhouse, whose owner said he was never informed of the outage, other community members came forward to say that they, too, did not receive notification.  So we called SDG&E again. 

“We did investigate and we did miss 200 to 300,” Zaragosa told ECM.

March 14, 2012 (San Diego’s East County) – Hooley’s Irish Pub & Grille invites you to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at HooleyFest, a party that takes place from 5 p.m. to midnight at Hooley’s locations in Rancho San Diego and La Mesa.

The event includes a variety of live bands performing Irish music and rock and roll. Cost is $15 in advance or $20 day of event.  VIP passes are also available for $30 (in advance only) which include private bar and seating.

Deadline to R.S.V.P. is Friday, March 16

March 14, 2012 (San Diego) – The U.S. Customs and Border Protection Citizen’s Academy is offering classes beginning March 24 to provide the community with information which will familiarize them with CBP’s mission and goals.  CBP is one of the Department of Homeland Security’s largest and most complex components, with a priority mission of keeping terrorists and their weapons out of the U.S.

• State joblessness rate dips to lowest level since ’09 (SF Chronicle)
• U.S. extends its run of strong job growth another month (NY Times)
• Drones over America: What can they see?  (NPR)
• Voters blame Obama for gas prices, but experts say not so fast (Washington Post) 

• Rampage in Afghanistan puts long-term US Presence in peril (Christian Science Monitor)
• Afghans urge US exit after killings; US says timetable unchanged (Reuters)
• Syrian opposition calls for international intervention (CNN)
•  ‘Arab revolts led to Islamization, instability’ (Jerusalem Post)
• Israel and Gaza factions ‘agree on truce’(Al Jazeera)

• Loss of Greenland ice could become irreversible,  scientists say (Los Angeles Times)
• Study: Red meat raises risk of dying; risk higher with processed meats (CBS) 

• Fukushima fallout: fire hazard could be state’s tsunami (UT San Diego)
• Fukushima fallout: lessons not learned by the U.S. government (UT San Diego)
• Nuke quake study on hold over $64 million cost: utility wants ratepayers, not shareholders,  to pay  (Sacramento Bee)
• Whistleblowers, Aguirre sue utility watchdog (Voice of San Diego)
• Water agencies  decry  “secret society”  of agencies (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• La Mesa school shooting plan foiled (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Mary England denies being evicted in family home foreclosure case (La Mesa  Patch)
• Local nonprofit group’s video parks worldwide movement (10 News)
• View the video: Kony 2012, Invisible Children

• Chamber takes no position on Gov. Brown’s tax plan, opposes rivals (Sacramento Bee)
• California revenues 3.2 percent shy in February  (Sacramento Bee)

March 13, 2012 (Jamul) – Nine Girls Ask? is holding its Tee-Off for Ovarian Cancer golf tournament on May 4 at Steele Canyon Golf Club, 3199 Stonefield Drive, Jamul.  The event registration will begin at 11:30 a.m. and the tournament will start at 1:00 p.m.