March 19, 2011 (San Diego’s East County) –What could be more inspiring than an afternoon of music and nature? On March 20th at 3 p.m., the Silver Strings Quarter will perform classical, light classical and popular music at a free concert at MissionTrails Regional Park. The free concert will be held inside the theater at the Visitor & Interpretative Center.

By Michelle Mann, Boulevard

“In a time of economic fallout it is nice that there are still jobs for good hard working Americans. That is what these guys are that are out building the power line.”

March 19, 2011 (San Diego’s East County) -- It is amazing to hear all the buzz about this new power line going in. It is astonishing how many people are trying to sabotage this project and oppose it. I would like to see all those people who are making such a stink about this project turn their power off. The only reason why these guys are out here building the power line is to provide power to those that are complaining.

“The most inexpensive way to meet your SQ (seismic qualification) is to lie. The industry does it all the time.”

--Greg Palast, former lead investigator in  government nuclear plant fraud and racketeering investigations

By Miriam Raftery
 

March 17, 2011 (San Diego’s East County) –Catastrophic failures at a half dozen nuclear facilities in Fukushima, Japan has led to questions regarding the safety of nuclear reactors in America-- both existing facilities and new ones proposed—including some designed or operated by the same companies responsible for the nuclear meltdowns in Japan.

By Billie Jo Jannen
For East County Magazine

March 18, 2011 (Jamul) -- Jamul resident Miguel Medina Sanchez, age 32, was arraigned yesterday afternoon in the murder of Maria Irma Palos De Rubio, who is also believed by officials to be a resident of Jamul.  Deputy District Attorney Claudia Grosso, the prosecutor assigned to the case, said  charges include a special circumstances charge of using a knife, which would add a year to Sanchez’ sentence if he is convicted.

Sanchez pleaded not guilty and is being held without bail pending appointment of a public defender, Sanchez said. The charges carry a possible sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

Core damage confirmed at 3 reactors; spent fuel rods a rising concern at 4th;
U.S. urges evacuation within 80 kilometers (50 Miles) around stricken plants

March 16, 2011 (San Diego) – The United Nations has released a forecast indicating a radioactive plume from damaged Japanese nuclear reactors at Fujushima Daiichi cold reach the Aleutian Islands off Alaska on Thursday and Southern California late on Friday, then east to Nevada, Utah, Arizona, and likely points beyond.

The U.N. has not issued a statement on how much radiation the plume could contain, however numerous other experts have indicated that amounts are expected to be small and below levels likely to harm human health. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is setting up additional radiation monitors on the West Coast as a precaution. An existing monitor in San Diego is currently non-operational, according to the EPA’s RadNet real-time radiation monitoring database online.

Murray Jennex, a nuclear expert at San Diego State University, told by ECM of the non-operational monitor locally, called back a short time later to reveal, “We’re going to set up monitoring here and try to get real numbers."

By Jeremy Los & Miriam Raftery

March 17, 2011 (San Diego’s East County)—As Japan’s nuclear crisis worsens, the European Union and some Asian nations are taking steps to protect their food supplies from Japanese imported foods and fish that may be contaminated by radiation.

“FDA will be examining both food products labeled as having originated in Japan or having passed through Japan in transit,” the U.S. Food & Drug  Administration said in the Bloomberg Businessweek article. “The same is true for raw ingredients.”

In a conference call today, Howard Backer, M.D., Associate Secretary of Emergency Preparedness for California Health and Human Services Agency, told ECM that the FDA is "screening all shipments that come from Japan for food products.  This is not new; for anti-terrorism reasons our ports already do screening of radioactivity for all containers."

March 17, 2011 (Flinn Springs) – Alpine Kiwanis invites the public to savor “good food and fine wines” at Vintage Alpine, the “wine experience in the country” set for May 1st from 1-4 p.m. at Summers Past Farms. Tickets are $50 before March 31, $60 after March 31, and $70 at the door. The event includes live music in a garden setting, a silent auction, and opportunities to emet wine and food specialists.

March 16, 2011 (San Diego) – CNN reports that the U.S. military has temporarily blocked access to 13 major sites including YouTube, eBay, Amazon. Sites are blocked across the Department of Defense’s .mil computer system at the request of the Pacific Fleet, which is off the Japan coast aiding in rescue and relief efforts.

The U.S.S. Ronald Reagan, based in San Diego, has been posting photos and updates on Facebook about crews' efforts to assist following the 9.0 earthquake, tsunami, and now, nuclear crisis. 

The blocked sites are:

By Christopher Mohr

March 16, 2011 (San Diego)  - The San Diego State Aztecs men's basketball team continues its storied season as the second seeded team in the Western Regional of the 2011 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship tournament. Winning the Mountain West Conference (MWC) tournament and having a record of 32-2 gave the Aztecs a favorable seed from the NCAA selection committee, which announced on Sunday (3/13) the 68 teams that qualified for the championship tournament. 

March 16, 2011 (San Diego) -- Radiation levels on the the U.S. West Coast and Hawaii are not elevated overall above normal expectations as of early this morning, according to data on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency RadNet site.  Some West Coast cities showed levels below many locations in points farther east.

By Russell Buckley

March 16, 2011 (San Diego’s East County) -- Last month, the Little Hoover Commission issued a report about California's pension system: Public Pensions for Retirement Security. The Report is filled with information about where our pension finances stand, explanations about how we got here, and dire warnings about where we will be without an immediate change of course.

The Little Hoover Commission is an independent government oversight commission created in 1962. By statute, it is a bipartisan board consisting of five members appointed by the Governor and four named by the Legislature, as well four legislators. Here are a couple of examples of the Little Hoover Commission findings:

Radiation levels around the crippled reactors now high enough to cause “immediate harm to human health” Japanese authorities say, adding core containment may be breached.

“I wouldn’t be within 50 km right now. If I was not a Japanese national, I would be making plans to leave.” – Murray Jennex, nuclear expert at San Diego State University, tells ECM in exclusive interview

Updated March 15, 2011 1:40 a.m. - Russia, S. Korea on "high alert" for possible radiation poisoning

By Miriam Raftery

March 14, 2011 (San Diego) – NHK TV in Japan this evening has broadcast the latest grim twists in the nuclear crisis at plants in Fukushima. Radiation levels over 400 milisieverts--that's 1,000 times higher than the microsievert measurements earlier reported (the equivalent of 400,000 microsieverts)-- are now present following a third explosion-- this one at reactor #2 and considered more serious than two prior explosions at reactors #1 and #3.

According to a radiation expert interviewed on NHK, exposure at these levels can cause infertility. “Just in an instance you mean?” a reporter asked. “Yes,” the expert confirmed, adding that at 500 ML, lymphocytes (white cells) in blood will decrease. Anyone without protective clothing is at risk, he emphasized, adding that radiation at these levels “can affect your genes….It is very dangerous.”