http://blogs.venturacountystar.com/therdt/

He has been relentless in the attention towards Julia Brownley. It seems he believes his only way to make the top two is to reduce her favorables. He doesn't seem to pay attention to the other candidates nor does he really discuss policy differences with Julia Brownley.

Why is his campaign so negative towards only one candidate?

When I checked tonight it said "coming soon". Is he waiting to see who his general election opponent is going to be before he posts his issues?

Ventura County Star reporter Timm Herdt posted that a Democratic Super Pac made a huge purchase for this new ad supporting Julia Brownley. With only a few weeks to go before voters choose the top two candidates I expect more outside interest groups to help her.

This ad is designed to rally the base of the Democratic Party. What do you think? With only one registered Republican running I expect Tony Strickland will get first place. The real contest is between Julia Brownley and Linda Parks to make the top two. Have you seen this ad or others on television?

Because of that I believe Judge Harry Walsh will easily be re-elected. If you know of anything to support an argument otherwise let me know. I don't plan on blogging much on this race unless it becomes a more serious contest. Should it be?

Click here to see his endorsements.

Here is a guest blog entry from Carmen Rivera:

America: The Global Capital of Crime, Forensics and Religious Resilience

Violent crimes are a notable problem within the United States, and figuring out how to reduce the amount of violent crime that takes place is a hotly debated topic. Forensic psychology schools and crime based TV shows litter American culture and though crime has gone down, it is still markedly high by global standards. Despite a 7% drop of the murder rate, there were still 7,586 incidents in 2008.

According to the FBI's official statistics, an estimated 1,246,248 violent crimes took place throughout the nation in 2010. This number actually represents a decrease of 6.0% from the 2009 statistics, however. Most of the violent crimes occurring in 2010 -- about 62.5% -- consisted of aggravated assaults, followed by robbery at 29.5%, forcible rape at 6.8%, and murder at 1.2%. Firearms were used in 67.5% of U.S. murders in 2010. They were also used in 41.4% of robberies and 20.6% of aggravated assaults.

Various churches and religious organizations are among the groups committed to the reduction of violent crime. Many of these church groups aim to minimize violent crime by changing the cultural mindset that promotes it, and some have already set up structures dedicated to thwarting the spread of violence within their communities.

Church groups that aim to help further reduce these rates typically do so by promoting a culture of peace over one of violence, while actively seeking out opportunities to help ease the spiritual and economic needs of community residents. For instance, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America specifically lists "enabling people to reclaim their violence-plagued communities, especially through community economic development" and "assisting those affected by poverty, racism, family instability, domestic violence, and unemployment as they seek to deal with these challenges" among their goals. Additionally, the ELCA seeks to educate children and adults about constructive ways to handle anger, provide counseling and similar services to those affected by violence, and minister to former criminals in a manner that allows them to to resume status as productive members of a peaceful, law abiding society.

The concern that church groups have about violent crime goes beyond mere goal-setting. Many churches have actually put programs and structures in place to actively help reduce violence within their own communities. A Pastoral Message from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops describes several Catholic anti-violence initiatives that have existed since the mid-1990s.

Among them is the Los Angeles "Hope in Youth" initiative that "works with others to combat gang violence with youth opportunities and economic development." Similarly, the diocese of Pittsburgh has worked alongside a community program for at risk youth that provides educational, recreational, and employment alternatives to gangs. Allthewhile, the Diocese of Cleveland has helped coordinate interfaith gun turn-in programs to help reduce the number of illegal firearms on the streets. And the "Building a Sacred Bridge of Reconciliation" program set up in the dioceses of Palm Beach and Billings addressed some of the attitudes and ideas responsible for domestic abuse.

Church programs like these may not fully eliminate violent crime in the United States, but they do help staunch some of violence on a community-by-community level. Moreover, they also provide a good model for how the rate of violent crime can be further reduced. Initiatives aimed at educating kids about the effects of violence can, in theory, stop some members of future generations from becoming perpetrators of violent crimes.

Programs designed to help individuals in economic distress can help reduce armed robberies and other related crimes. When these programs are aimed directly at getting former convicts back on their feet and stopping recidivism, they can also help reduce the number of individuals returning to prison. Lastly, efforts to bring faith into at risk communities can help decrease the sense of hopelessness that many members of those communities may feel, thereby encouraging them to press forward even in spite of the hardships they face that might otherwise prompt them to turn to lives of crime.

David Cruz Thayne sent out his introduction video. I like his lines that he took a dip and he got crunched. Watch it and post what you think. You don't need to register to comment but keep it classy.

I sent an email asking if this is playing on television. His campaign manager said it is a web ad for now. Have you seen any congressional ads on television? All of the congressional campaigns seem very quiet.

Because the other candidates haven't been mentioning him much he has the luxury to leave his issues page blank.

http://www.tonystrickland.com/tony-strickland-on-the-issues.php

The top Democrat Julia Brownley hasn't filled in her page either. It also says "coming soon". These campaign has seemed much less energetic than I expected.

I understand Tony Strickland has the luxury of spending most of his time raising money. But I am surprised Julia Brownley has not updated that section of her page.

This is a really powerful ad. Please share it with others.

But has he not heard of State Senator Tony Strickland's new fearmongering bill?

I don't have strong opinions if it will be Julia Brownley or Linda Parks in the top two. What are your thoughts?

I like Linda Parks. I think she has been a decent County Supervisor. I don't like her new ad. I know she is trying to introduce herself to more voters but I want her to discuss other issues besides her new independence from a political party.

Her Campaign for Congress has been devoid of issues beyond claiming to be a moderate and an independent. I want to know where she stands on issues. I understand she isn't a member of a party anymore but I don't know how she would vote in Congress.

But she could be running a brilliant strategy for this new top two primary where Democrats have been dividing their support behind multiple candidates.

I don't like her new ad.

Is she really not going to caucus with a party? If she doesn't join a party caucus she won't be on any committees. How effective of a legislator can someone be if they aren't on a committee?

Her new ad is on television which is something I haven't seen much of from other candidates. This add had 12,409 when I checked. That is massive for a Ventura County online ad. She is attracting far more attention than the other candidates.

Check out where many of the online views are coming from:

Democrats have been paying attention to her but I am not convinced they have a plan to stop her.

If Democrats want a candidate in the top two then Julia Brownley is going to need to run a great campaign.