Happy Birthday Cesar Chavez

Today would have marked Cesar Chavez’ 82nd birthday. As of today, seven other states besides California recognize Cesar Chavez’ birthday. Chavez was a voice for the voiceless, a tireless campaigner for the oppressed farm worker. Through his work, farm workers now have more rights than before, but the work is still not done.

Chavez took on the most powerful corporatists in our society and won for the most part. He used the non-violent means of Ghandi and Martin Luther King Jr. to accomplish his goals. It is on this day we should remember this great man for all he did for working families and particularly the oppressed working class Latino worker. Even today, his protégé’s are working hard to help increase the rights of working families, immigrants rights, and in Dolores Huerta’s case, women’s rights.

I remember in the 11th grade, being introduced to his current grape boycott, just before his death by a fellow classmate who was a Chicano activist. I was proud to have known of him while he was still alive, now it is up to us to ensure his legacy and memory do not die.

His phrase, Si Se Puede, was translated and became the rallying cry for President Barack Obama’s winning presidential campaign inspiring a new generation that crossed every gender and racial line. Thank you Cesar Chavez for setting the stage for this new Civil Rights movement. SI SE PUEDE

Mike Carona, A Blogography Chapter 1

The reaction to the verdict was an audible shock at my work when former OC Sherriff Mike Carona was unjustly acquitted of five out of the six charges. I admit I was bewildered that they could find him GUILTY of witness tampering and yet find him NOT GUILTY of the very crimes he was found guilty of trying to cover up. If he is NOT GUILTY beyond any reasonable doubt of Obstruction of Justice, Corruption and Bribery, why would he try to “cover up” something he is NOT GUILTY of doing. Makes no sense does it.

Like O.J. Simpson, the vast majority of the educated public clearly believes Mike Carona to be guilty of all the crimes he was charged with and conspired with his colleagues to commit them. It was clear that he was guilty to the most casual observer but not to 11 weak minded individuals and 1 career Disney character with an infatuation with Mike Carona’s sex life.

I am proud to say that I am one of the first people to have seen the disgraced Sheriff for what he really was. While others, most in the Republican Party, but also a few Democrats, stuck up for the most corrupt Sheriff in California history, I dedicated my early blogging career to exposing this two faced megalomaniac and his cronies for what they were. I am proud to say I stood up for the right thing to do when it wasn’t politically expedient or popular, even with insiders from my side of the aisle. I was personally attacked, called a tin foil hat wearer, was told that my writings were a pile of manure, was even told that I was being anti-gay by opposing a pro gay-rights Sheriff. What I have yet to hear from those same people was that our side was RIGHT!

I am proud to have stood with Liberals like R. Scott Moxley, Gustavo Arellano and Conservatives like Allen Bartlett , Tim Whitacre, Mike McGill who saw this not as a right vs. left issue but a right vs. wrong issue. I still take issue with those who now admit Carona was corrupt but make excuses for his behavior by claiming it was Jaramillo, Heidl and Cavallo who were influencing him. Last time I checked he was a human being with his own free will and could have spoken out, instead he relished being involved with the corrupt. No one put a gun to his head and made him do all these things that he did. No one put a gun to his head and made him sleep with several women who were not his wife and then dole out political favors to them on the taxpayer dime. No one put a gun to his head and made him chummy with a known mafia figure. Mike Carona committed those actions because he WANTED to, not because someone MADE him do it.

I was a fan of Mike Carona after the murder of Samantha Runnion. I even bought into the America’s Sheriff kool-aid. I admired how he brought down a vicious child murderer and was there for the family in their time of need. Then came the Gregory Heidl case, when Gregory, the out of control son of Don Heidl, and two friends videotaped themselves violently raping an unconscious girl. In the months that followed, Gregory Heidl continued to have run ins with the law, and each time, he seemed to get a free pass. Then came the Catholic Church Priest Abuse scandal.

Gustavo “The Mexican” Arellano from the OC Weekly was doing the work the mainstream media was afraid to do, expose the truth. While the OC Register was Publishing Editorials swift-boating “liberal” Marywood employees, Gays and Liberals and while the LA Times was doing nothing at all, Gustavo Arellano was busy exposing the truth, particularly the sinister involvement of the former OC Republican Party Chairman in covering up child molestation. There were plenty of records to indict CONSERVATIVE Tom Fuentes for his role in assisting former CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICAN Bishop Johnson(may he burn in hell), and former CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICAN Bishop McFarland in hiding pedophiles and other molestors among the priesthood and nunnery. This would have caused a scandal of epic proportions, when the files suddenly “disappeared.” It was early in my blogging career when I was contacted by a victim of abuse by the Catholic Church. Their story moved me, seeing the pain they still felt after all these years. A feeling of deep seeded anger also filled me as I learned even more so that the church I believed in for so many years was nothing more than the largest child molesting operation in the history of the world. Even more anger filled me as I learned the Orange County Republican Party's sinister role in the scandal and an outright effort to mislead Steven Greenhut and others by blaming "liberals." But it was when I learned what happened to the Fuentes files that the anger turned into a loathsome hatred of Mike Carona and other deviants like Don Heidl and Mike Schroeder.

Follow along as I bring part 2 of the series to you in the coming days........

Abel Maldonado Reveals the Truth: Republicans Want California to Fail Too

I really don’t understand how Senator Abel Maldonado can even stay a Republican after this interview with the Santa Barbara Independent. If there was ANY remote chance of Senator Maldonado making peace with his fellow party faithful, this interview ruined any chance of that. Yet I tip my hat to the Senator for making this brave move. I give him credit for confirming what we all suspected, that the GOP hacks in the State Legislature are following Boss Limbaugh’s marching order to make the entire country fail in order to take power back.

In the interview, Abel reveals that GOP legislators were calling him and admitting their goal was to drive the state into bankruptcy in order to frame Democrats as failures. Imagine the unemployment level if this state went into bankruptcy. The entire country would have been dragged into a new GREAT DEPRESSION. Yet that did not matter to the GOP, all that matters is that they want power and they will do it by any means possible.

It appears there are some in the GOP, like Maldonado, where the people matter more than power, but people like him are rare. It is unfortunate Maldonado does not name names, but Senate Republican Leader Dennis Hollingsworth admits he was one of them in this article HERE.

The greater revelation here is an admission from the Republicans that passing a budget with many cuts and some tax increases would save California from fiscal destruction, while continuing to hold up the budget would have send the state off a fiscal cliff. Their tactics reveal they KNOW sometimes taxes must be raised in a fiscal emergency, but they did not care. They cared more about power!

Shame on the GOP, shame on all the conservative hacks who are more interested in power, more interested in shoving their ideology down our throats than trying to save our country and state from a Depression. The entire world needs to know of Abel Maldonado’s interview and know this is the GOP goal, to bankrupt the state and the country in order to make Democrats look bad. Truly a party with no scruples.

U.S. to blame for much of Mexico violence says Clinton

So is Mexico to blame for America's drug problem?

I call bullshit on Hillary's announcement that the USA is to blame for the drug war waging in Mexico. For too long corruption has been the norm in Mexico, what with elected official's in bed with the drug cartels, taking money and gifts in return for silence. US Attorney General Eric Holder has gone so far as to use the Mexican drug war as an excuse to seize American's guns.

America should immediately legalize marijuana, which would take away vast amounts of wealth from Mexico's drug cartels. Next, America should send in elite military teams to seek out and destroy the cartels and their infrastructure. Lastly, secure the border to prevent the flow of guns going South and drugs coming North.

And the violence that happens in Mexico doesn't stay in Mexico. Phoenix, Arizona is now the kidnapping capital of America with more than 370 kidnappings last year alone.
Phoeniz has had horrific cases of dumped bodies with chopped-off hands, legs and heads when a victim's family doesn't pay up fast enough.And it happens in not only in Arizona, but in Texas, New Mexico, California and many other states.

And judging by the picture below, I'd say Hillary and Bill bear their fair share of any blame when it's comes to America's drug problem

Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor...So We Can Spy On Them

The OC Register is reporting that for the past seven years, the Anaheim Housing Authority and the Anaheim Police Department began a policy of spying on Section 8 recipients. The Anaheim Housing Authority would routinely provide the names of Section 8 recipients to the Anaheim PD to “investigate” them without any cause or motive other than they were a Section 8 recipient. The Police Department of course uses the claim that this was to try and search for potential wanted criminals and was done in the name of “public safety.” Sounds like profiling to me and it also sounds like a violation of the 4th Amendment of the Bill of Rights, which is supposed to keep us safe from unreasonable searches, and this goes for unwarranted and unsubstantiated checks into our background.

When the framers of our Constitution came up with this Amendment, it was to ensure that government and law enforcement did not encroach into our personal lives and our personal belongings and give us the privacy entitled to us. Being poor is not a probable cause to encroach on ones privacy and I am sure framers like George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison would be appalled at what has taken place in Anaheim. A couple of Republicans I have spoken to are taking the position "what do they have to worry about if they have nothing to hide." That ugly rationalization for government intrustion and flipping the bird at our sacred Bill Of Rights once again rears its ugly head.

Most cities have a policy of investigating Section 8 recipients when there is probable cause to doubt whether the person receiving Section 8 is ineligible. Santa Ana hires private investigators to look into claims and complaints of fraud. Apartment managers refer complaints and potential criminal activity on section 8 tenents to the authorities. This is how the system is supposed to work, the authorities investigate when there is REASONABLE CAUSE. This is why the framers created th 4th Amendment, to protect us from being victims of a police state.

Mayor Pringle, will you be like Rudy Giuliani and defend clear violations of people’s constitutional rights by the police or will you stand for the values of the nation you and your party so often tout as the greatest nation on Earth. Pringle has apparently simply fix policy at the next council meeting, but that is not enough. Clear and blatant abuses of authority took place for seven years, Pringle needs to go further and punish the people in the Housing Authority and the Police Department who abused the authority given to them through the social contract. Will Pringle hold the Anaheim PD and the Housing Authority accountable for behaving more like the KGB?

Or is this a message to the working class? Come to Anaheim, where we will spy on your every move if you make under $30,000 a year.

Where should we start so we can fix the stock market?

The Congressional Research Service, a Library of Congress think-tank with a single client: Congress. Here’s how it works; a member of Congress requests a study on a subject of interest, and CRS researchers produce it. The CRS is one of the most respected institutions in Washington, DC, and its reports are universally considered non-partisan, objective, and thorough.

On February 24, 2009, the Congressional Research Service published a 40 page report, “Who Regulates Whom? An Overview of U.S. Financial Supervision” (Mark Jickling, Edward Murphy, CRS, February 24, 2009) as the title suggests, the report is a primer on the parts of the US financial system, and who regulates what part.

The Summary section from that report says this:
“A number of financial markets are unregulated, including some of the largest. No federal agency has jurisdiction over trading in foreign exchange or U.S. Treasury securities; nonbank lenders fall outside the regulatory umbrella; and hedge funds, private equity firms, and venture capital investors are largely unregulated.
(although their transactions in securities and derivatives markets may be)

This report provides an overview of current U.S. financial regulation: which agencies are responsible for which institutions and markets, and what kinds of authority they have….This report does not attempt to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the U.S. regulatory system. Rather, it provides a description of the current system, to aid in the evaluation of reform proposals.”

If you want to know exactly who is responsible for what, this is a great place to start. This report is invaluable to really figure what needs to be changed, along with the real changes that need to be addressed by Congress to make sure that the marketplace can’t be ruined, like it has been in the last few years. We should all be asking our representatives if they have been reading it and if they understand it. They certainly need to, if they want to fix what’s wrong in the system. But there are some glaring holes in the system, one of those being the lack of any regulation or oversight of DTCC that are not addressed in this study.

The DTCC is one of the organizations that are supposed to keep the markets oiled and moving. It facilitates and acts as an intermediary in the transactions of security’s and settles disagreements in those transactions as an unbiased broker. Form their own website:

http://www.dtcc.com/about/business/index.php


“DTCC, through its subsidiaries, provides clearing, settlement and information services for equities, corporate and municipal bonds, government and mortgage-backed securities, money market instruments and over-the-counter derivatives. In addition, DTCC is a leading processor of mutual funds and insurance transactions, linking funds and carriers with their distribution networks.

DTCC's depository provides custody and asset servicing for 3.5 million securities issues from the United States and 110 other countries and territories, valued at $28 trillion. In 2008, DTCC settled more than $1.88 quadrillion in securities transactions.”

One major problem here is that no one seems to regulate them! I urge everyone to ask their Representatives to make this one change in the system first. Why is this so important and how does this play into the collapse of the market? Well, since DTCC brokers the deals, they see the moves in the market. They should be able to tell when someone is cooking the books and when transactions are taking place that are phantoms. It is truly the first place to start the investigative process to figure out where all this money has gone and who has it. Not only do they need regulation but someone needs to be able to audit the transactions they do broker. There are two very good reasons for this request. First “phantom trading” must be stopped. Second someone must be able to hold them accountable for their actions to insure that they are in fact doing their jobs.

Let’s start with this one item for now, since billions of dollars flew out of our pockets and somehow disappeared down a rabbit hole in the last few years. It's a long story and this is just one area that contributed to the demise of our hard earned money.

There will be many more installments on this subject that I will be writing over the course of the next few months, stay tuned!

Cramer, Stewart and Our F*$$ing Money

The Daily Show recently aired a series of shows that attacked the media, CNBC in particular and Jim Cramer, host of Mad Money. While it was a good start to reveal what has been a really incredible orgy of thieves, charlatans and crooks along with one of the most egregious acts of media malaise and insider doping of the markets, it was just an ice pick trying to chip away at an iceberg the size of New Jersey. As Jon Stewart said, “This is not a F*$#ing game.”

If you didn't catch the show you can here:
http://www.thedailyshow.com/full-episodes/index.jhtml?episodeId=220533
It's really a shame that this very real story has only been covered by The Daily Show. It deserves much more!

It’s really a shame the Daily Show staff didn’t do a little more work in preparing Jon Stewart prior to the show. There could have been a much deeper discussion (inquisition) of why the market failed and how we can fix it, rather than simply the interview that took place. As I say all this, I was both entertained and saddened by the show. It was one of the only real floggings of one the financial community’s media moguls on a national program. We need to have a whole boatload more of this type of exposure. At the same time, it was not as in depth or as aggressive, or as pointed as it should have or could have been. Given the limited opportunity to broil someone, who may bear huge responsibility in the market collapse, I wanted the flame up on char not simmer. I wanted Jim Cramer in cuffs and Jon Stewart with a cat-o-nine tails or a 24 volt battery and wet sponges. I want the folks that stole our retirement accounts, our life savings, and our companies to pay the price they deserve.

While the market plunge may have been started by a housing bubble, that burst, it was like a boil on our butts. The collapse of the market was something akin to falling over a cliff while being chased by a bee. The bee being the housing bubble, it alone wasn’t deadly but the fall could be. One of the real culprits in this adventure was the unregulated Hedge Funds and their Naked Short Sells. Along with bogus phantom stocks in circulation from foreign markets that didn’t exist in the real world and are NOT legitimate stocks nor were they ever delivered to their owners.

Since last summer I have been investigating what I believed to be the real, behind the scene reasons and who was killing our economy. The parties that I thought were involved are still elusive, but what I did find in this little investigative journey was astounding.

Not only is this a very closed “club” like environment, where they will most often cover each others naked rumps. The brokers, financial media, the hedge fund managers, the banks, the insurance companies, the private and public investigators and regulators all seem to want to either cover it up, or walk away from the growing pile of evidence, like some mountain of dairy farm by-product. Like an ill wind, blowing in from Chino of old on a hot day after a rain, this one really stinks and it’s still hanging in the air.

To see more about what I'm talking about check out this blog:
http://www.deepcapture.com/
Very well done! Very in-depth, very confusing if you don't have a clue how the whole system works, but if you can wade through it you will have a much better idea of what’s been going on and who is behind at least some of it.

Is a rental renaissance what Santa Ana had in mind?

Will the City of Santa Ana ever get around around to unveiling Renaissance Plan 2.0?

And when they do, will it be what you expected, or just a watered down, late to the party type of plan that Santa Ana's "Leadership Team" usually rolls out?

Judging by the Agenda from tonights Planning Commission, it appears Santa Ana has no plan and maybe not even a strategy.

1. AMENDMENT TO DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT NO. 2005-02 AND AMENDMENT TO CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT NOS. 2005-10 AND 2005-15 (Vince Fregoso/Ann Ni)
Filed by NDC Skyline Association, LLC and Integral Communities to amend Development Agreement No. 2005-02 and Conditional Use Permit Nos. 2005-10 and 2005-15 to allow the rental of units at the Skyline Towers and Montage Projects located at MacArthur Place South.

Nothing like taking two 25 story residential towers with 349 units built at a cost of roughly $ 350 Million project, designed to revitalize a portion of Santa Ana and turning it into Orange Counties tallest rental units.

Art Walk- TONIGHT!

Third Saturday of each and every month, the Santiago Street Lofts hosts it monthly Art Walk.

Santiago Art District is a collection of residents who share their love of photography, painting, jewlery, furniture, sculpture, food and fun.

And this little creative corner of Santa Ana has spawned some interesting blogs as well, among them, Life At Santiago Street Lofts, Bandito Style, Jasons Travel & Photography Blog, and the ever popular Pimp My Hood.

Rain or Shine, maybe I'll see you out there.

Sheriff Hutchens snatches CCW of Mike Schroeder

Has she lost her mind?

Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchens notified Mike Schroeder, former chairman of the state Republican Party, that she is terminating his permit to carry a concealed weapon.

He plans to fight the Sheriff, legally if need be. And I suspect that many gun owners, gun rights advocates, and folks who actually support the Constitution will join him.

I know I will.

GOP Legislators Giving up Perks- NO, NOT NOW, NOT EVER

NO, NOT NOW, NOT EVER! This has become the battle cry for the Republican Party in opposition to the six ballot initiatives for the special election this May, Props 1A-1F. The kool-aid they are drinking from many of the GOP Legislators is that they need to turn all these initiatives down together. Yet there is one they especially don’t want passed, one which some Republicans have justifiably expressed interest in voting Yes on, Proposition 1F. If passed, Prop. 1F would ban state legislators from receiving a raise whenever there is a deficit and would withhold pay from them if the budget is not ready on time. Finally some teeth to the “constitutional” deadline to pass a budget. I am sure this explains why most of the GOP legislators don’t want this passed. As to date, only ONE, Abel Maldonado, has called for reducing the amount of perks legislators currently get.

Meanwhile, the rest of the GOP legislative delegation talk of firing more teachers, firing more state employees, cutting our education system, cutting social services, cutting the amount of students who can attend CSU’s or UC’s, raising fees on Community Colleges. They vilify teachers and state employees as being lazy, greedy and selfish. Lets see the average teacher makes around $60,000 a year, which they must use to get a place to live, make a car payment, use for gas to run the car and so on. They only get $60,000 a year to live off of, no more no less. There are part time college instructors, struggling to raise a family on roughly $50,000 a year while still seeking their PH.D. They have $50,000 a year to spend on their family, on their standard of living, no more, no less. These are the people the Republican Assemblymembers and State Senators would have you believe are bad, selfish people who want to raise your taxes and are causing our state’s financial crisis.

Now lets examine what the average State Legislator makes. They make a salary of $116,208 a year unless you are the Minority Leader, then you make $133,639 a year. But that is just their salary alone, the base pay. On top of that, they get $162 a DAY, each day they are in Sacramento “doing work.” Some of this hard work, according to some Sacramento horror stories involved seeing legislators playing solitaire on their computer or simpsonizing themself and posting it on Red County. I am sure all of us would love to make $162 a day playing Solitaire or Simpsonizing pictures of themselves. But that is not all, oh no that is not all.

On top of a six figure salary and $162 a day per diem in which the average legislator makes $30,000 extra a year from, totaling $146,208 so far they get much more. They have an option to get TWO taxpayer funded cars one for Sacramento and one for their district, in which nearly every Republicans has taken, and the total average is $20,000 for a free car. On top of that, they are given a credit card to get gas which is charged to THE TAXPAYER. So on top of a free car, they also get FREE GAS. Considering the average car payment is $400 and gas is $50 a fill up, they are getting an allowance of $9,000 a year for a free car and free gas bringing up the total to $155,208 a year. Then there is the free air travel to and from their district, their full retirement benefits, even though they are only allowed to work 14 years maximum in the state legislature.

The GOP Legislators love to bash teachers and state employees for being able to retire with full benefits at 55 years old after working for 30 years even though they have to retire with full benefits for working for the state less than half that amount of time. Now what job can you do that? I understand why they state employees are so outraged. Damn right I would be outraged to when I am forced to give up two days a month WITHOUT PAY while being vilified by Republican legislators who are making a 1)Six Figure Salary 2)An extra $162 a day extra per diem to cover expenses(I thought that was what a salary was for, to cover expenses) 3) an $20,000 on average car, sometimes 2 4) Free gas for those two cars 5) Full retirement benefits for working a maximum of only 14 years, 6) FREE HEALTH CARE for themselves and their families, 7) Free Airplane tickets to travel around the state and 8)FREE TICKETS sporting events and a myriad of other gifts offered by lobbyists. Not only that, they continue to get all these perks and benefits when a BUDGET IS LATE! If a GOP legislator offered to give most of the perks here and operate on the salary alone, they would have some room to talk.

To date, only one has talked of taking some of these perks away, Abel Maldonado, and he has been vilified by the Republican party for it. The Republican legislators have no room to talk about the “selfishness” of Teachers, College Instructors and Public Employees. They are simply projecting their own selfishness onto these hard working people trying to make ends meet. I agree we all need to give a little during these hard times, but this should start at the top, with our politicians. I believe the entire State Legislature needs to give up many of these perks, and mavericks like Lou Correa, who already refuses to take a paycheck whenever a budget is late, should be looked to as an example. During times like these, the legislators should offer to take only the base salary and their health care. If many of us are forced to live off of $60,000 a year for ALL COSTS, I am sure the legislators, particularly the GOP(half of them were already Millionaires to begin with), can find a way to live within $116,000 a year.

So can we count on the GOP finding a way to “live within their means” of $116,000 a year, NO, NOT NOW, NOT EVER! Can we count on the GOP Legislators giving up their perks and living a little like the rest of us and stop vilifying our teachers, college instructors and state employees, NO, NOT NOW, NOT EVER!

Why I Support Tom Daly For Supervisor

Today at McCormack and Schmitz in Anaheim, Tom Daly will be celebrating his Irish roots with many of those from the political establishment of Orange County. It will be a gathering across the political spectrum. Why? Because even Republicans have to admit that Tom Daly is the best person for the job to succeed Towlie AKA Chris Norby on the Board of Supervisors.

Knowing Tom Daly personally, I can attest that this is a man of great character and great determination and I know he would stand up for the working family on the Board of Supervisors. Obviously those who now attack him are the enemies of working families and the enemies of a good quality of life, which I will explain later.

When Tom Daly became mayor, a gang problem was developing in Anaheim. During the 80’s, many Latinos moved to the city of Anaheim and unfortunately, some of them turned to gangs. The recession of the early 90’s also hit Anaheim particularly hard with the loss of places like Anaheim Plaza and the area around Disneyland was a dismal array of ugly motels. Crime was on the rise in the City of Anaheim, especially in neighborhoods like Jeffrey-Lynne and Downtown. Instead of hiding his head in the sand or in the happiest place on Earth, Daly sought out to solve the city’s problems facing them head on through getting tough on tagging and crime, working with the school districts to offer gang prevention measures.

Then he and his allies on the City Council worked with Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez to get finding to revitalize crime ridden neighborhoods such as Jeffrey-Lynne. Working with residents, the police and other community interests, he succeeded in taking back that neighborhood from the criminals who ruled it.

Of course there were some downsides to the war on crime. Some Anaheim police officers decided to abuse the authority they had been entrusted with and engaged in brutality. They went beyond going after gangs and engaged in racial profiling and the beating handcuffed suspects, sometimes they were just innocent day laborers. Yet unlike REPUBLICAN former New York Mayor Giuliani, who would excuse and justify such behavior and worse by the NYPD, Daly had no tolerance for such an abuse of authority. He and his allies on the Council demanded accountability for such abuse and the officers were fired and the chief was replaced with someone who went on to build trust among the overwhelmingly law a biding Latino community and focused on targeting the real criminal thugs roaming the streets.

Of course one key component in turning around crime ridden streets is responsible economic development, and Daly oversaw some of the best economic growth Anaheim saw in years. It was under Daly that Disney finally began to expand out of its shell with California Adventure and Downtown Disney. The master plan for the Disney District were begun and the prostitution ridden Harbor Blvd in Anaheim was cleaned up. Anaheim Plaza saw new businesses built. Although I wish they would have chosen something different than Wal Mart for the new Plaza, it has otherwise been a success. Taking advantage of the growing Latino community in central Anaheim, Daly and his allies welcomed in supermarkets that catered to Latino residents instead of trying to keep them out because it did not fit with a certain “vision.” Daly knew with economic growth and prosperity also lead to less crime and less people in gangs.

Daly, like my good friend Jordan Brandman, started off on the AUHSD Board. As Mayor, he continued to work with the Board in providing education opportunities to those in working class areas. During his tenure, Oxford Academy was developed, which was a public school that was meant for some of the best and brightest throughout the school district. He also worked with the Anaheim City School District to develop programs for children in Spanish speaking homes with an intensive programs to develop their English proficiency as well as to help them keep their Spanish language, recognizing the importance bilingual speakers will play in tomorrow’s global economy. A program for gifted bilingual students was developed by the Democratic majority on the Anaheim City School Board. Keep in mind this was not the same “Bilingual Education” that was pushed by Nativo Lopez but was a program to ensure children did not lose their Spanish and became proficient in English. He worked with Amin David in taking on Harald Martin’s hate filled stunts on the AUHSD Board when he tried to blame Latinos for all the district’s problems.

Of course there were those on the Council and those in the community who did not like everything Daly and his allies were doing and sought through character assassination and trumped up charges to derail the work and his allies were doing. Lou Lopez and Bob Zemel, who were Republicans and believed to be allies of Harald Martin bore false witness against Daly. So much so that even the GOP establishment refused to go along with this kangaroo court they created. They appointed their own special counsel when the City Attorney, DA and Attorney General refused to press trumped up charges. Instead of offering solutions to Anaheim's problems, they sought to create more problems.

Overall, Tom Daly was a success as Anaheim Mayor, he has been successful in streamlining the bureaucracy at the Clerk/Recorder’s office and I am positive he would make a successful County Supervisor. I support people based on character, experience and past record. Daly has proven himself on all three areas and is so far the only candidate for the 4th District, rumored or confirmed, who has done so. I am proud to be supporting Daly for Supervisor and look forward to helping him any way I can in 2010.

Obama's Attempt to Save Art

In a time marked by trillion dollar deficits, foreign war, and rampant unemployment, it would seem that the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA) would be regarded as insignificant. Fortunately, Congress and President Obama have recognized the vital contributions that art makes to both the economy and to society. In the comprehensive stimulus package passed last month, Congress allocated the NEA fifty million dollars in federal assistance. Congress’s decision to apportion funding to the NEA not only creates and saves thousands of jobs, but also enables America to enhance its renowned artistic reputation. The preservation of artistic values is essential for a society that birthed concepts of free thought and expression.

The current economic downturn has raised unemployment to staggering heights. This widespread job-loss has particularly affected the art world in the United States, a field that employs 5.7 million Americans or 1.4 percent of the total workforce. Arts play an essential role in the nations economy. The arts generate 166.2 billion dollars in national economic activity and earn thirty billion dollars annually for the government. Expanding NEA funding is an exceptionally efficient way of spurring job creation. For every one billion dollars that is distributed to the NEA and other art based non-profits, 70,000 jobs are produced.

A recent study by the National Governors Association stated, "Arts and culture are important to state economies. †Arts and culture-related industries, also known as 'creative industries,' provide direct economic benefits to states and communities: †They create jobs, attract investments, generate tax revenues, and stimulate local economies through tourism and consumer purchase."

Additionally, many projects that the NEA is pursuing are "shovel ready," meaning they can begin to break ground immediately. The expansion in NEA funding will enable thousands of currently unemployed artists to find work, thus stopping the crippling unemployment trend. During the Great Depression, President Roosevelt created the Federal Arts Project (FAP) as a subunit of the Works Progress Administration. The FAP employed thousands of artists to construct massive public murals and statues. Roosevelt’s FAP would employ over 5,000 artists, who would construct over 225,000 pieces of art nationally. The Roosevelt Administration’s investment in art would additionally enable such renowned artists as Ansel Adams and Dorothea Lange to begin their illustrious careers.

The current economy’s influence on national arts can even be viewed within Los Angeles itself. The Los Angeles Opera has recently been compelled to lay off seventeen percent of its staff and implement a pay cut ranging from six to eight percent. The Los Angeles Art Museum was also forced to accept a 30 million dollar bailout this past December. The global economic downturn has threatened to limit the accessibility of art to millions of Americans.

The United States government has a responsibility to provide its citizen with adequate resources to create art. This nation has freedom of expression inherently engrained in its history through the First Amendment. It is extremely hypocritical that economic factors prevent a free society from developing art.

Art has historically been an indicator of phenomenal societies and governments. Ancient Greece, the birthplace of democracy, would not only entrust its citizenry with significant political responsibility, but also would create timeless architectural structures. The strength of the Roman Republic was embodied by it artisan population, and the prevalence of art in Roman culture. The Italian Renaissance witnessed the formation of city-states and the writings of Machiavelli, and was graced with such artistic titans as Da Vinci and Raphael. John Locke and other philosophers of the Enlightenment would have the popularity of their works only exceeded by William Shakespeare. Throughout history, memorable societies have also been recognized for by their remarkable art.

The slogan of the NEA describes it perfectly when it states: " A great nation deserves great art." Not only does the United States have an obligation to provide its populous with the opportunities to create art, but the expansion in art funding will have a positive affect on the waning national economy. While President Obama continues to bailout financial institutions, he must confirm his campaign pledge of sponsoring the development of the national culture through arts funding.

The Terrorist Many Conservatives Want You To Forget About

In the 1990’s there were three major terrorist attacks on U.S. soil. Of course everyone remembers the first World Trade Center attack carried out by Al Queda and the Oklahoma City bombing carried out by anti-government extremist Timothy McVeigh. And I am sure most people remember the event in Atlanta on a hot summers night, July 27, 1996 when, for the second time in modern Olympic history, a terrorist attack was carried out on the Games that killed two people and wounded over 100 when a bomb exploded shortly before midnight.

Most people remember that event happened, most people remember that former Attorney General Janet Reno originally fingered the wrong person, Richard Jewell. Who could forget the hilarious skit on SNL when the actual Richard Jewell came and punched Will Farrell playing Janet Reno in the stomach which was part of the settlement with the government. What most people don’t remember was the motive for the attack, which is something people like Moorlach and Campbell hope stays that way. Everyone remembers the motive and the perpetrators of the first two attacks, but this one seems to be forgotten and it should be the one attack from the 90’s we remember the most.

In 1998, the FBI finally did finger the right person, a former Army Explosives Specialist named Eric Robert Rudolph. Unfortunately, the two extra years he began a reign of terror on the choice and gay community. He bombed two clinics that provided abortions, one of them resulted in the death of a Police Officer and a gay nightclub in Atlanta. Being a survivalist, he hid out in the Appalachians, possibly with help from activists in the anti-choice movement until an unsuspecting police officer chanced upon him digging for food in 2003. In the end, he struck a deal with the anti-choice Bush Administration to spare his life, probably because of the views he shared with them on social issues. In fact below is his stated motive for the Atlanta Olympic Games attack:

“the purpose of the attack on July 27 was to confound, anger and embarrass the Washington government in the eyes of the world for its abominable sanctioning of abortion on demand.”

There you have it. Moorlach and the worst serial terrorist in the U.S. during the 90’s have something in common. This receives very little attention and in fact most don’t know that the attack was inspired by the same anti-choice rhetoric that Moorlach spewed at the Board of Supervisors meeting. This explains a lot. I think we can surmise that many conservatives would rather we forget this little episode in U.S. History.

When the attack first happened, their was a rush by many conservatives to blame Islamic Fundamentalists and joined all Americans in condemning the attack. Even many conservatives joined the Richard Jewell lynch mob when Janet Reno wrongfully went after him. Yet when it came out that the person was an anti-choice extremist in the mold of Pat Robertson, Rush Limbaugh and other conservative leaders, suddenly there was silence from their end of the aisle. No condemnation for the attack, an stale response when he was caught. Were people like Moorlach secretly wanting to high five Rudolph for what they view as “standing up for the unborn” by killing two innocent people who probably have nothing to do with the abortion debate? You have to wonder why our conservative government caved in to a terrorist and made a plea bargain with him. They claim it was to find out where the explosives he hid were at, but considering the rhetoric that came out of the Bush Administration on a woman's right to choose, was there a bit of sympathy from extremists like John Ashcroft that made them go soft on Rudolph. The man deserved to be put to death he is a terrorist pure and simple.

Not to generalize, but when you have ideologues, such as Moorlach, who are very extreme on the issue, one has to wonder if they don’t feel a sense of support for this terrorist. One has to wonder if they were actually rooting for Rudolph to not get caught. One has to wonder if they were actually rooting for him to strike again. I am not a mind reader, so I don’t know for sure if Moorlach and other extremists like him feel this way for sure, but it is food for thought. Why do they not like to mention the real motive for this attack.

Why would they prefer that people forget the real reason for this attack? Why? I can tell you this much for sure because a devout Catholic told me this. Because they know he was inspired by the slanderous rhetoric they constantly spew. Because they know their rhetoric created the worst serial terrorist on U.S. soil in the 1990’s. This is not just a post, this is a service to the public, to make sure they don’t forget this shameful event in U.S. history, when Christian extremism caused an act of terrorism on the XXVI Olympiad Games. When an event meant to promote world unity and peace was shattered by extremists intending on violating a woman’s right to choose. The terrorist attack heard round the world, the one extremists like John Moorlach would wish to be forgotten. Of course I do invite Moorlach and other prominent OC conservatives to comment on here with a wholesale condemnation of this attack and I will happily post it. Or you can attack me which tells everyone all we need to know where your sympathies lie. The picture below is from an anti-choice conservative website which you can view HERE.

Ideology First; Screw Public Health

Today the Board of Supervisors did not just vote for more STI’s and Teen Pregnancy, today they voted for a McCarthey like witch hunt of our health care professionals. I know some of the Board will spin it as a compromise from what Moorlach was demanding, but if anything, it is much worse.

So Planned Parenthood will not “immediately” lose the funding. Instead the Board has decided to flip the bird at patient privacy and demanded any clinic or hospital turn over patient records to see if they perform abortions that the county is possibly funding. This was Pat Bates’ idea. WHAT PART OF NONE OF THE FUNDING GOES TO ABORTIONS DO THEY NOT UNDERSTAND!!

The five Board of Supervisors chose to listen to Wiley Drake, a nutcase who has prayed for people to die. Shame on them for cowtowing to extremists in their party rather than serving the constituents who elected them. They went even further in admitting they plan to pull funding in June for Planned Parenthood WIC to track immunizations. So not only did they vote to allow STI’s, they admitted they would rather allow dangerous diseases to ravage Orange County than work with an organization that only has 7% of their revenue go towards abortion services.

It is apparent that three of the five Supervisors are clearly ideologues on the issue. Moorlach, by reading his statement on Red County, is clearly of the Wiley Drake school of thinking while Bill Campbell was an open shill for child molestors in the Orange Diocese. Pat Bates is probably the worst of the bunch. What rock has she been living under? So-called “partial birth abortion” has been illegal in this country for nearly two years thanks to her conservative friends on the Supreme Court. What her supposed “compromise” amounts to is a witch hunt of nearly all Health Care providers in Orange County who get money from the county. Instead of health care experts, five politicians who are either extremist religious fanatics like Moorlach or trying to suck up to extreme religious fanatics will be deciding who gets funded and who doesn’t based on whether they provide abortion or even give a referral on abortion. The only who will likely be left standing is St. Joseph’s Health Care System.

I dare the Supervisors to conduct this witch hunt. I dare them to run out groups like United Way or Girls INC. I dare this all GOP Board of Supervisors to force a financial crisis at UCI or Western Medical Center. I dare them to squeeze local community clinics of their funding to provide much needed health care to working class residents. If they conduct this witch hunt, there will be an outcry against the Republican Party like there has never been before. People will be switching party's in record numbers knowing that they conducted a witch hunt in their effort to force their religious views down people's throats. This will blow up in their face like the Terry Schiavo issue did.

So what is the Board going to do when the report finds that Planned Parenthood is not alone in groups they give money to that either provide or refer on abortion. Will they cut all that funding? Will they allow all those clinics and hospitals to fail? Where will pregnant mothers be able to go for proper health care? The Pro-Birth camp would rather burn the village in order to save it and the GOP has proven they are nothing more than slaves to the Pro-Birthers. Keep digging your hole deeper GOP, within four years the word Republican will be a four letter word, even in Orange County.

Board of Supervisors: Ideology Before The People

One can imagine my surprise when I get an e-mail on Friday informing me that uber right wing nutcase Supervisor John Moorlach has decided to put ideology in front of public health and safety and go after Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino Counties regarding funding from the Tobacco Settlement that goes to Health Education programs. Before I go further, I will give full disclosure. From April, 2005 until March, 2008, I was employed by PPOSBC as their Political Coordinator. I rarely blogged on this when I was a part of Orange Juice, but now I am free to blog on this issue.

I can attest that the Health Education Department is filled with some of the best and most dedicated people I have seen. They work day and night to help educate young people on how to keep themselves safe from STI’s, and Unplanned Pregnancies, which includes ABSTINENCE along with information on how to properly use contraceptives.

Of course, based on the comment by Moorlach’s personal shill, they have a problem with teenagers even being told about Birth Control. I guess Moorlach takes the head in the sand approach that if you don’t tell teens about condoms, they will not do it. I think right wing goddess Sarah Palin’s own daughter would beg to differ, and in fact did differ with Moorlach’s erroneous worldview on Fox News(Good for you Bristol!).

I have witnessed the effects of ignorance when it comes to sex education in the community. I grew up in an area and went to a high school that was disproportionately effected by the problem of teen pregnancy and STI’s. Many of them were Catholic, but obviously were disregarding the doctrine of “don’t do it.” Instead, the ignorance caused many teens to engage in risky behavior. I have also seen the difference when those who are informed to make the right decisions when it comes to sex, actually do.

Polling has shown that an overwhelming 78% of parents support comprehensive and medically accurate sex education, yet Moorlach has decided to listen to ONE “constituent” who has way too much time on their hands simply because this is one fellow nutcase who shares the same pathetic worldview. No matter what the other four Supervisors feel on the issue of Choice, this is not the issue at hand and I do hope they see through Moorlach’s grandstanding and vote to continue the contract.

I have talked to some Republican insiders who admit they know the difference between the abortion issue and sex education, but don’t want to “rock the boat” with the Central Committee. I must ask, who do you represent, the people who elected you who have stated they are for the services Planned Parenthood’s health educators provide or a bunch of crusty conservatives whose highlight of their life is to attend a meeting on the third Monday of the month and discuss for three hours how Liberals, Mexican immigrants, and Gays are destroying the US and Christianity.

As a Santa Ana resident and voter, I would like to issue a direct appeal to my Supervisor, Janet Nguyen, I ask that you really think about what is being proposed here. If there was a time to think of your constituents first rather than the ideology, now is that time. In the largest city in your district, nearly 10% of every 1,000 births is to a women younger than 19. One in ten births are to a teenager. Every study has shown that comprehensive and medically accurate sex education lowers teen pregnancy. Janet Nguyen, please think about this. This is a moment where you can be remembered as a maverick for putting constituency before party hacks, like Lynn Daucher had often done, or listening to whatever party orthodoxy tells you to.

HISTORY OF WHY THEY WANT OBAMA TO FAIL

The common message that seems to be coming from the Republican Party is “We hope Obama fails.” It comes from Limbaugh’s now infamous comment. So is this all the GOP has come to stand for? Would they rather drive this country further into the ground to get power back? Well lets take a look at the shell shock conservatives and Republicans must be feeling. Now Matt Cunningham has joined in the Partisanship before Country battle cry .

Just four years ago, many pundits were predicting the Democratic Party would become the permanent minority party for at least the next 30 years. The religious right was salivating over the fact that they seemed to control the nation. Within four years, that control has completely fallen apart. The party is in disarray, the religious right’s control over all Christianity is slipping away by the day. Their attempt to revise and redefine American is now in the hands of President Barack Obama. All you have to do is listen to the rhetoric of the GOP and conservatives the last 30 years and their attempts to brainwash the people into believing a lie of history and the answer becomes crystal clear why they want Obama to fail.

You see, if Obama succeeds, if the US economy turns around and we become stronger than ever before, the American people will see once and for all that the history the conservative camp has been trying to feed them has been nothing more than a lie in order for them to seek power and shove their worldview down the throats of the American people. You see for the past 30 years, their ideology has been based on one historical inaccuracy, that Franklin D. Roosevelt prolonged the Depression, that the New Deal was a failure and he brought our nation to the brink of Communism.

Instead of hailing him as one of the greatest leaders of our time, they have sought to turn FDR into one of the greatest boogie men of our time. In that time, they sought to make Ronald Reagan into their demagogue, worshiping him at an almost god like status. They claim he saved America, that he won the Cold War(a notion a Polish immigrant I know who LIVED under Communism laughs at). As a result they spent the last 28 years destroying all the reforms that had been made since the Gilded Age of the late 1800’s that were meant to stop companies from becoming “TOO BIG TO FAIL.” This has been the American tradition since the Trust Buster Theodore Roosevelt began this practice. The lack of corporate responsibility returned in the 20’s under the most corrupt President in our history, Republican Warren Harding which would lead to the Great Depression.

During the early years of the Depression, even Herbert Hoover knew that the so-called free market, what I call lack of corporate responsibility, but did not have the courage to do what truly needed to be done. Franklin Roosevelt did, and in the process put America back to work, built up our nations infrastructure and created grand building projects that are the pride of America with his Works Progress Administration. In the end he also had the courage to face down the worse tyrants in human history, Adolf Hitler and Hediki Tojo and lead a hodge podge group of allies to victory against the well organized military machines of Hitler and Tojo.

Yet what he did in the New Deal was to expose the veil of corruption when corporate America is allowed to run free with no accountability and no rules. A new tradition of abiding by new rules was created and Corporate America still flourished long after Roosevelt was gone. But it wasn’t good enough for them. It is said Power Corrupts and Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely. Such is the case of Corporate America. They wanted absolute power, and they began the long road of re-establishing that. They found a political party, REPUBLICANS, to take their ideas as their own. They found a boogie man, COMMUNISM, and began to put anyone who disagreed with them into this category. They found a coalition of other folks who could dispense their kool-aid to the populace at large and at the same time hijacked an entire religion- CHRISTIANITY. Then they found their champion, someone who was likeable enough and charismatic enough to sell their garbage to the American people at large, RONALD REAGAN. Last of all they sought to re-create history and turn one of the greatest American hero’s FDR, into an American villain.

They created a propaganda machine, they even got FDR’s old party, the Democratic Party, to cowtow to some of their goals. Yet how does an oligarchy survive in a 1st world nation. Eventually, when only 2% of the nation is getting 98% of the nations wealth, something has to give. Through the last 28 years, corporate America used conservatives to overturn all the safeguards put in place during the New Deal, all except one, the FDIC. They build a house of cards, but they controlled things again, much like they did in the Gilded Age of the late 1800’s and the Roaring 20’s. In 2005, it seemed nothing could stop them now, they would have control for the foreseeable future. Yet in their attempts to revise and redefine history, they forgot history themselves and forgot just how the previous Corporate ages came crashing down. Finally last year, it all came crashing down.

Enter President Barack Hussein Obama. He is a President who knows what needs to be done. He knows that the damage the conservatives and corporate America did over the past 28 years needs to be undone. He knows we need to correct ourselves and is a visionary like the Trust Busting Presidents of the early 20th Century(Teddy Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson and the New Deal Reformers(FDR and Truman). This is why they want him to fail, because when his policies work, the American people see that they have been fed lies for 28 years, they will hand progressives a majority without end, or at least until the next generation forgets the past and the truth of history.

So my encouragement, study history, unbiased history written by true Historians, and learn the truth and the puzzle will come together as to why they want Obama to fail. I believe America’s best days are ahead and I believe Obama will succeed and the conservatives must be exposed for what they are. When they only are out to help 2% of America and screw over the remaining 98% of America, to me that is unpatriotic and un-American to have a platform that believes in screwing over 98% of the American people. GOD BLESS AMERICA!

What if there were guards in OC Jail instead of Sheriff's Deputies?

Should Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchins replace the deputy sheriffs in the OC Jail, with professional prison guards?

Your take?

Deborah Carona AWOL from OC Fair Board

Looks like Deborah Carona might not be getting all those free concert tickets or lobster dinners down at the OC Fair this summer.

The Orange County Register's Tony Saavedra has blown the lid off on the missing Mrs. Carona, and reveals that she missed 10 of the last 15 monthly meetings, including the last 5 in a row! State law says that any appointee who misses three consecutive meetings without permission has in effect resigned.

The OC Register last year revealed that Deborah Carona took the most free Pacfic Amphitheatre concert tickets of any board member. She grabbed up 1,227 free tickets valued at nearly $51,000.

Welcome Emily Freyer and Mark Johnston

I am proud to announce the two latest editions to the Sunny D Blogpen, Mark Johnston and Emily Freyer. These two talented young Democrats hail from Chapman University and are members of the YD organization.

They are also part of the Chapman Democrat Debate team, and participate in a debate once a semester with the Chapman Republicans. When I decided to form Sunny D, I wanted to find the best and brightest among the YD's to add to the Progressive Team and they were the first two who came to mind. They have intelligence beyond their years and I know they will make terrific editions to the Sunny D team.

Once again a warm welcome to Mark Johnston and Emily Freyer!

Congratulations Antonio Villaraigosa

Last night the City of Los Angeles re-elected Antonio Villaraigosa to four more years as LA Mayor. Whether or not he will run for Governor is still to be determined. Words cannot express how overjoyed I am to see such an accomplished Mayor get re-elected by such a mandate. He truly has turned the City of Los Angeles around and has gotten major projects moving.

Rail projects such as light rail to the airport, a subway to the sea and a rail to East Los Angeles are all seeing the light of day. The Green Line will no longer be the railway to nowhere, it will finally end at two major destinations. The stupid ban on subways to the Westside has been lifted. This mayor has delivered on his promises.

The city is safer than ever before. Unlike certain elected officials in Santa Ana, Villaraigosa was not afraid to admit LA had a gang problem. He admitted it, and then, working with Chief Bratton, he tackled it head on, hiring more police, cracking down on the thugs running the streets. There are still some thugs roaming the streets, but now they are facing a police force, a mayor and now an inspired populace out to take back those streets.

I have noticed more libraries than ever before. When I worked in LA, I would sometimes go to Happy Hour at a restaurant called Taix in Echo Park. Next door to it was an old, run down building. In 2007, after many years of not visiting that restaurant, that run down building was now a LIBRARY. In Panorama City, where my in-laws live, there was an abandoned bank building, that building is now a LIBRARY. In four years, Villaraigosa saw the opening of Libraries in inner-city communities, giving children a place to go to educate themselves and get respite from the mean streets of LA.

Villaraigosa has also worked to improve the education system of Los Angeles and has sought to create a workable LAUSD. Of course the status quo fought back, but did he back down, no not him. He worked to ensure he got control of some of the schools, and as a result, those schools perform higher than other LAUSD schools, they have more parental involvement and are considered safer. The schools he chose to change were in the neediest of areas, not on the periphery of the city among the most privileged of residents. The Charter Schools he helped create, they were in areas like WATTS , meant to bring in the students in the inner city. He refused to strong arm the school board to approve Charter schools formed to segregate his friends’ kids from the community at large, much like another inner city has done. Villaraigosa has tried to influence the LAUSD in order to better the lives of all Angelinos, not just the lives of his affluent neighbors and contractor buddies.

When communities did have spikes in crime, caused by gangs trying to hang on to their dwindling power, Villaraigosa did not hide in LA’s most affluent neighborhood or Tennis Center. Instead he went to those communities, he faced angry residents and sought to resolve their concerns. He is more than a Mayor, he is a fine example of a Public Servant.

Just yesterday I found an article (Which you can read HERE) on the amount of change that has come to the community of Wilmington, including a major 30 acre park for this once underserved community. I remember horror stories that would come out of a section of Wilmington called Ghost Town. Now the gangs are on the run. This is what happens when you have a Mayor and a Councilwoman (Janice Hahn) who work together and are on the same page to turn a community around. Wilmington is not unlike Santa Ana, yet the future looks bright for Wilmington and they did it by listening to the residents, by encouraging home grown businesses from its many young residents. They worked with the residents to create a vision and then implement it instead of listening to a few people in an inner clique and bureaucrats who think they know what is best for all the peones and treat the city like their personal hacienda.

Last of all, I challenge anyone to take a look at Downtown LA. If anyone remembers the 80’s, Downtown LA became a graveyard after 5:00 P.M. Now it is a vibrant and active place, and has become a major nightlife destination. All this under Villaraigosa’s watch. But the best is yet to come.

I look forward to the world class zoo finally reaching completion with the new Elephant Exhibit. I look forward to the new rail projects reaching completion, making LA a much more convenient place to get around. Villaraigosa may have his faults when it comes to his marriage, but the City of LA elected him to turn their city around, not to be their husband. He has delivered on what he was elected to do and will continue to deliver. More Mayors need to look to Villaraigosa as an example of what a mayor should be and what a mayor should do. He has shown that it does not take decades to get things done, like certain mayors claim, he managed to do so much in less than half a decade and has accomplished more in 4 years than some have in 14.

Congratulations Mayor Villaraigosa, keep up the good work!

Santa Ana's Renaissance Specific Plan

It's coming back.

And if it's done right it could bring jobs and a badly needed tax base to Santa Ana.

But will they do it right?

Will they invite residents, business owners and other interested parties to the table BEFORE they roll it out again?

Will they listen?

If done right, the plan could create jobs and housing and business opportunities for local residents. Local small businesses might get sorely needed work from the design and construction of the new housing and retail spaces.

If done right Santa Ana could reap huge sums of tax dollars from businesses looking to get in early and make some money.

Or it could be done all wrong and blow a huge chance for Santa Ana to revitalize our tax base, create jobs and expand opportunities for all.

What do you see as the best bet for it to succeed or where do you see Santa Ana making mistakes.

How can we make it work, and what will it take for you to support it?

Secretary of Health, Human Services and Prison Rape

What kind of sick world do we live in where President Barack Obama's Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebelius, has a son who sell's a board game called "Dont drop the soap" about prison rape?



Where is the outrage from those who wanted Change and Hope?

And Now..... THOMAS GORDON

I am pleased to announce our first addition to the Sunny D Blog Team, the legendary Thomas Gordon. Thomas was a fellow co-blogger with me over at Orange Juice. He presently blogs with Red County/OC Blog and will cross post with us and them. He will also post here focusing on issues related to Santa Ana.

Thomas will bring a Conservative point of view to this blog, but also a reformist mind when it comes to Santa Ana politics. I met Thomas about three and a half years ago and although we both disagree on a host of political issues, we both have worked together to improve the city we call home- Santa Ana. Lets give a warm welcome to Thomas Gordon.

A Message for My Fellow Prop 8 Opponents Part 2

So this week the opponents of Proposition 8 will go to court in order to get the Yes vote thrown out. Their argument is understandable, as there are some issues and rights the voters should not have the choice in taking away. Imagine if someone put together a ballot initiative in 1948 after the State Supreme Court struck down a law that banned inter-racial marriage. What if it had passed and a ban on inter-racial marriage was re-instituted? Are the conservatives willing to go on record and say it was a vote of the people that should be respected? Are they willing to say it to President Obama’s face? Heck, when I pose that question, they constantly deflect the answer.

I wish the opponents luck, but they should never have had their day in court. They should have won on November 4th, there is no excuse in the world. Of course I see a day in the near future where this state will be willing to vote to legalize same sex marriage. Give it 6 to 8 more years. I know it seems like a long time, but you should have fought harder in 2008 to make sure the right didn’t go away. In 2010, the issue will still be a little too fresh in people’s minds. In 8 years you went from having 61% of the voters opposing your right to 52%, even though it should have been under 50%. Fact is, the trend is clearly going your way.

But you need to learn from your mistakes. Hire consultants and field organizers FROM California , do not import them from Arkansas . I will never forget when I heard the field organizer put together a walk in South Orange County and brought precincts from GARDEN GROVE. The best organizers are people who know the lay of the land, who know where the swing areas are that can be turned. It is what myself and my colleagues did at Planned Parenthood with Proposition 85. I knew the coastal areas were ripe to bring over to the NO side on Parental Notification. Yes they were Republican, yes they elected people like Chuck DeVore, but they were not religious fanatics. In the end, cities like Huntington Beach and Newport Beach voted to reject the efforts of the religious right and voted to uphold a woman’s right to choose.

Yet the No on 8 people virtually ignored these areas, based on the fact that they were Republican. They did not cast their net far enough, trying only to reach affluent, liberal, Democratic areas. Folks, that mindset was what harmed the Democratic party in California earlier this decade, to the point where we had a plurality in only 20 counties in the state.

Then my biggest criticism. After Prop 8 passed, when all the protests and marches began, I wanted to ask many of those marching, where were you on the campaign trail. The vast majority of them never called a voter nor did they knock on a door, they took for granted the rights they had not knowing how badly the religious right wanted to seize those rights in their effort to control the lives of all Americans, kind of like the Ayatollah’s like to control the lives of all Iranians because they think God is telling them to do it.

I wish you all luck in court, I hope the court does the right thing and does not disregard the constitution over the threat of recall from the religious right bullies. But take this as a learning experience, and if you have to face the voters again, do things right, learn from your mistakes, and never take the religious right for granted again.

Steve Rocco: Most Dangerous Man in the OC?

Matt Cunningham over at Red COunty has a great post HERE on Tony Rackauckas' relentless pursuit of former OUSD Trustee Steve Rocco for the heinous crime of stealing Ketchup from Chapman University.

Matt is right that Tony is wasting his time and our money pursuing a crazy guy. This is once again an example of overreaction to a crazy person. First was the attempt by the OUSD to change how the agenda is set, then it was the redistricting of the OUSD and now this court case. Ignoring Steve Rocco is the best way to make him go away.

What this all reminds me of is the Bugs Bunny episode where Elmer Fudd uses a nuclear weapon to try and catch one Rabbit. We all laughed at what overkill it was, yet we are watching this same overkill before our very eyes. The DA failed to focus on real political crimes happening before our very eyes, such as former Orange County GOP Chairman Tom Fuentes advising the Bishop to hide child molestors, or Mike Carona's overt corruption. If prosecuting a crazy man who used to be a school board member for stealing a ketchup bottle is his idea of justice over prosecuting a man who hid child molestors, than Tony Rack has a sick sense of justice.

A MESSAGE FOR MY FELLOW PROP 8 OPPONENTS PART 1

I missed the sparring that went on regarding Proposition 8 while on my little blogging vacation. Sorry I missed the fun, but with the State Supreme Court about to hear arguments regarding the validity of the proposition, it looks like I will be able to get my thoughts in, but I don’t think the Proposition 8 opponents are going to like what I have to say.

First off, I was a fierce opponent of Proposition 8 and was offended that in the year we elected Obama, the so-called values voters decided to take rights away from people because a book that says to kill people if they eat shell fish also told them being gay is an abomination. In a state that has turned down Parental Notification three times, in a state that voted to spend money on clean high speed rail, in a state that gave freedom to chickens and pregnant pigs, there was no reason in the world why Proposition 8 should have passed. Basically the NO on 8 camp lost this election, they have no one to blame but themselves.

First and foremost, the No camp under-estimated the enemy. I don’t know if they assumed that the religious conservatives would put up the same mediocre effort they had for the two previous parental notification initiatives or assumed the first polling that showed them winning big time made them complacent or both. Yet one reason the opponents of PNI have managed to fend off this initiative is they go in with the mindset that the religious right is going to put up one hell of a fight. They fundraise as if doomsday is on the way, and each time they came out on top. I noticed early the religious right in California seemed to be taking greater umbrage at gay marriage than a woman’s right to choose and I knew THIS time they were going to put up one hell of a fight.

To understand their thinking, one has to look at the concept of “Separation of Church and State.” The religious right is all about dismantling this wall and dissolving the rocks that built it. In other words, imagine Iran, that’s the vision these folks have for this country, only the religion is their vision of Christianity. Essentially what the State Supreme Court did was separate religious marriage from secular governmental marriage i.e. marriage licenses. The Court basically left it up to the churches to decide who they wanted to marry, the state could not make that discrimination. Of course the religious conservatives lied during their campaign and said they could lose their tax exempt status if they denied gay couples. Completely not true. All the Supreme Court did was state that the county clerks could not discriminate, much like they did in 1948 when they got rid of bans on inter-racial marriage.

Essentially, the religious right was like a cornered pack of rabid Wolves yet the NO camp treated them more like a cornered Chihuahua. From the start, I saw a campaign that did not have a clear message. They tried the same empathetic message from the Parental Notification campaigns, which was a critical error. Even though the Reproductive Choice movement and the Gay Rights movement have a common enemy, different approaches need to be taken when trying to “take the hill.” A good message on the issue of Choice doesn’t always translate into a good message for Same Sex Marriage.

Of course most people I encountered said they also never anticipated the Mormons coming on so strong. Yes they are a relatively new opponent in the California Culture War, but again the No side should have been ready to fight back. There is no reason in the world they should have lost, yet they did. In Part 2 I will examine more on the passage of 8, why there is no excuse to be having a court date this week and how to get the right back in six years if things don’t go as planned at the Supreme Court.

WELCOME TO SUNNY D

GOOD MORNING ORANGE COUNTY!!

After a year long and much needed sabbatical from the blogosphere, it is a pleasure to return. This time I have decided to strike it out on my own with a new blog in the Orange County blogosphere, SUNNY D. The name is a tribute to my blogosphere roots. In Orange County, I am very impressed how people on both sides of the political spectrum have really developed the political blogosphere. Whether Liberal or Conservative, we are looked to as an example from political bloggers from throughout the nation, and I am proud to have been a pioneer in this effort along with many of the great bloggers in the many political blogs in Orange County.

I am excited to introduce this effort, and set out to do what I did in my original run- get political discourse going, be edgy, raise eyebrows and all at the same time, be credible. Of course all great blogs have a great team behind them and I will not be doing this alone. Along with me, the first addition is Alex Coe, who will be blogging from a Libertarian/Conservative perspective. Over the next week I will be announcing other additions to the Sunny D Team from all ends of the political spectrum, some will be new faces to the blogosphere and some will be familiar names.

As for me, I have many great posts lined up. Some will focus on the many issues facing Orange County, some will focus on the direction that this nation and the so-called values movement is taking and all will raise eyebrows, make a point and hopefully reach a person or two. So sit back enjoy the ride and let the games begin!