The above picture has been altered.

If you have been following this blog for sometime you might know that I am a strong defender of The American Bald Eagle.I know what you are thinking...Is the Bald Eagle under attack and does it need to be defended? Well, the sad answer is yes.

The Bald Eagle was threatened with extinction from a variety of factors including DDT until some liberals used the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to further protect it. DDT was banned and the eagles came back. Another successful big government solution. But recently, I kid you not, some so-called conservatives have been arguing to bring DDT back. I thought they were just messing around. But they are deadly serious about it.

I have written about one local blog's attempts at bringing back DDT but they have yet to respond.

Now the same blog is writing about science again. I hope they have seen a movie before they comment on it. I hate when people attack movies they haven't seen. Except Nacho Libre. That was a disaster.

The Daily News had a story about Judy Mikels and the outcome of the election. It was pretty short but had a couple of odd lines...

From City Council Member Glen Becerra...

"Whenever we as a city had an issue with the county, we could always count on Judy to work on the city's behalf.

I would imagine that working on the city's behalf is a part of the job description. I would be pretty surprised to learn anything else about a county supervisor anywhere. That is like saying a pizza guy could be counted on to bring pizza when called upon. I am not attacking Judy Mikels, just the bland quote. I wish Judy Mikels the best in her life post politics. I have spoken to her in the past and she has always been helpful.

How is it that Glen Becerra gets quoted in every story around? Even when his quote gives us almost no information ( Did he agree/disagree with the dump expansion, The Knolls Project, The Arizona charge etc.? )

Just so Glen Becerra doesn't think this is just an attack I appreciate his work with The Simi Valley Education Foundation and with Eminient Domain abuse. Thanks for your work on those important issues.

And for our sign experts. Under the cities new sign regulations would the above sign be in violation? ( I know it hasn't gone into effect yet.) The picture was taken at the corner of Stearns and Los Angeles. The posts seem to be firmly in private property. I am wondering if the new regulations would actually slow the spread of signs.

Rep. Jerry Lewis is toast. Now Republican leaders are turning on him.

My question: Will Elton Gallegly be a leader in ethics reform now that many members of his own party are under investigation, been convicted, plead guilty, or have resigned? I am hoping he won't continue to stay silent on one of the most critical issues undermining his party.

If the Republicans get swept out it will be in part because the voters no longer believe them. So far from California Republican Reps. Pombo, Cunningham, and Lewis are under investigation or have been caught for violating ethics. Their staff members are on the verge of being locked up. Elton Gallegly, please do something. And stop letting these people move up your party's leadership ladder. It will be an issue and you can help defuse it.

Elton Gallegly: I know you aren't a part of this junk.And I know you wouldn't let your staff get away with these abuses. But please stop these criminals from undermining our democracy. Go to this website to see the crimes I am talking about.

In this ongoing series I post pictures of signs left over from the primary season around town as a gentle nudge for candidates and their supporters to take them down.

In this update a Bob Larkin for State Assembly sign is currently up on First Street south of Los Angeles Avenue.

Is there a sign still up that is bothering you? E-mail it to me and I will post it. Include details like the date of the picture and the location.

The above image is from electMichelleFoster.com . The website hasn't been officially released, I found it using google so be easy on the creators. I am sure it wil be amazing come election season.

Council Member Michelle Foster is running for election ( she was appointed to fill out Paul Miller's term when he was promoted to Mayor). I know it isn't a shocker, but I still wanted to be the first with the story. If you know other candidates running, please e-mail them to me.

So, how was Council Member Foster's first term? What was her biggest accomplishment?

The above picture is of Jodell Haws ( Amazing Club President, Brian Levy, and John Strubbe).

On Weds June 21st the Simi Valley Moorpark Democrats had an amazing event. The star studded panel included Dr. Herb Gooch ( Chair CLU Poli Sci and local political consultant), Dr, Jorge Garcia ( Former Dean College of Humanties and Chicano Studies CSUN), Chief Deputy Kathryn Kemp ( Commander Detention Services Division Ventura County Sheriff's Dept.) and Cesar Nava, Esq. ( Immigration Attorney, Oxnard).

In the audience there were members from moveon.org, other local Democratic clubs, people from different towns, and a few people plugging the Clean Money Campaign.

After the event I met a few of the posters from this site, but no worries I won't give away your identities. Thanks to the Simi Valley Moorpark Democrats for putting together another great event. I really wish Peter Foy could of been there as illegal immigration is a central plank to his campaign. The event was not a debate, but rather an exchange of ideas. The sheriff Dept. rep could of shared with him more from a law enforcement perspective.

GS, a frequent poster on this website has his own review of the event. The ideas are his, not mine. If if you agree or disagree, you are agreeing or disagreeing with him. If you would like to write a review or recap of an event around town let me know.

Here is the event from GS's perspective.

Click on continue Reading for GS's recap.

What is going on with Ferial Masry? Has anyone seen her out campaigning lately? If you have been reading this blog for some time you will know she is one of my favorite candidates. Not much would show the world the stength of our democracy more than electing a Muslim woman who was born in Mecca. Too bad the districts are are drawn so lopsided that this election is such an uphill battle. Ferial, if you are out there, post your next event.

This picture was taken on Tapo and Township across from the ball fields ( Sad, considering that Jim Dantona started Bad.) the day of the June election.

Anyone else see signs altered like this? This can't be the only one. Negative campaigning works. It might be a sad fact, but it is true. Anyone that tells you otherwise is either naive or planning a hit piece mailer about you right now. Judy Mikels got hit the hardest ( Foy coming from the right and Dantona from the left) and came in third. Jim Dantona took some hits and came in second. Peter Foy escaped the mudbath and won. That isn't to say Peter Foy was not giving out hits too ( Jim Dantona is a liberal Democrat read one of his mail pieces), but that he escaped attention.

If you see signs still laying around from the primary e-mail them to me and I will post them as a gentle reminder for candidates and their supporters to pick them up. Please include date and location.

The Democrats should use this as their motto for 2006...

When we say convictions, we don't mean jail terms.

Former White House employee going to jail in the Republican Lobbyist scandal. Who is next?

Okay, no corruption here just a bit of Schadenfreude. The new congressman from Orange County has a myspace.com problem. His 19 year old daughter appears to drink and posts pictures of it. The media has the url and is starting to ask questions. Should candidates families be off limits, even if they are breaking the law? The question goes back beyond the Bush daughters, beyond Bill Clinton's brother and back to at least Jimmy Carter.

So, a conservative congressman authorizes a bill to place the Ten Commandments in court buildings. When asked about a better building to place them in, he can't think of one.

It gets worse/funnier. Steven Colbert then asks him to name the Ten Commandments. The hypocrite then names only three. It should go without saying that if you think the Ten Commandments are vital to keeping our society together you should be able to name a majority of them.

Click on this link and tell me if he broke number three by using God as a political wedge issue when he obviously doesn't really care.

Click here for the whole video.

The new documentary about global warming " An Inconvenient truth" is now playing in Simi Valley. All my readers that see it have my respect.

Barbra, Samson, Bubba, Areligh, Tim Keaney, Donna Prenta, Jim Dantona, Peter Foy etc. are you going to see it?

This picture was taken on the mean streets of Simi Valley.

What is up with all the gloating? I admit George W. Bush won. But why do people still have W 04 stickers on their cars? Makes me want to go get a Clinton '96 sticker and say " In your face!, Dole/Kemp got smashed!"

And it gets worse. Today In the Acorn ( The Paper that prints press releases word for word. If you are running for office, make it look like a story and they might print it.) someone has a letter published attacking Michael Tenenbaum. The guy lost 80 to 20. The only thing attacking a losing candidate does is further depress the chances of more people getting involved. Attacking someone that loses in a landslide is not going to get you that coveted entry in "Profiles in Courage".

Michael Tenenbaum, thank you for taking your time, energy, and money to give voters a chance. That is a real admirable trait.

Simi Valley/Moorpark Democrats will be meeting to discuss immigration next Weds., June 21st @ 7PM in the Simi Valley Library community room.

I have seen Jim Dantona at past meetings. Jim Dantona has reached out to both Democratic and Republican voters. I would hope that Peter Foy would stop by since immigration is a key plank of his platform.

With the primary election over it is time to focus on the two remaining candidates: Peter Foy and Jim Dantona. I think most people would agree that the focus was on Dantona and Mikels in the primary. Now we have time to find out what Peter Foy offers to the voters.

Peter Foy is an unknown to local politics, and that isn't a bad thing in many ways. But that being said, I don't know enough about him and I think voters don't either. We know how he stands on some issues for example illegal immigration ( against it), high taxes ( also against), safe communities ( for), criminials ( against), traffic (against), term limits ( He said he will pass them) but I want more specifics and I know you folks do too.

So, this post is devoted to Peter Foy. Please explore, ask questions, and let us all know what you think or know about him.

I will start out. I have heard he runs an insurance company, runs an avocado ranch, and is a member/leader of a few conservative groups. He is really friendly ( I met him at the street fair), and is Married with Children. He is friends with Bob Brooks the sheriff, and has the endorsement of The Stricklands INC.He has the support of the conservative wing of The Republican Party. I also know he has his own charity ( How cool is that? Running your own charity?)

But first ground rules. This isn't about Jim Dantona. There will be another post about him. So, do all of us a favor and focus on Peter Foy. In fact, don't even mention his opponents if you can.

I spoke with Donna Prenta for some length tonight about her campaign. She is just getting started but already has much support from across the community. I don't want to steal her thunder so I will let Donna announce more when she is ready.

If you or a candidate you support is running for local office, please e-mail me updates and I will post them.

If you are interested in helping her campaign or attending an event click on continue reading.

So, now the NSA is spying on teenagers to find out the latest in fashion and music. For the record I support spying on members of Al Queda who use myspace.

Jeb Bush was asked if he planned to see "An Inconvenient Truth." and here is his reply:

"No, I'm not going to be doing that," he said, before offering a thumbnail review of "X-Men: The Last Stand," which he called "excellent."

Later in the same article :

One thing Bush is concerned about is the possibility of more hurricanes this year. During last week's Cabinet meeting, Bush made note of the prayer beads he carries in his pocket.

So, to recap, the governor of a state that is set to have a devastating hurricane season doesn't want to think about global warming. Instead he saw X-Men ( Which I admit was pretty good). He doesn't include science into his planning or thoughts, but he does include prayer.

Maybe he should run for President. His brother grew faith based poverty programs. Jeb can expand it to take over FEMA. I guess he couldn't do a worse job than what his brother was doing as the hurricane was hitting.

Do any of my readers plan to see the movie? Leave your thoughts of it as a comment if you have seen it, or let me know if you plan on seing it.

By the way, it appears Thousand Oaks has ratified The Kyoto Protocol.

Wow, this election cycle is really shaping up to be a Democratic Year. First George W. Bush loses a whole city. Then that nasty Republican Lobbyist scandal. The Ports Deal. Out of control spending. Iraq.Hookers. A great new environmental movie . Now, Republicans are pretending to be Democrats. At this rate I expect to see Elton Gallegly at a MeCHA meeting.

I recently saw a copy of a " Democratic Voter Guide" with endorsements ranging from Governor all the way down to County Clerk. But somewhere in between there was an endorsement for County Supervisor. You would think they'd endorse the only Democrat in the race, but the part you missed is the magic asterisk that shows which candidates bought placement on the mailer. But why would a Democratic organization endorse a Republican? Because it is just a money making organization.

Some of these slate mailers are pretty sleazy. For example, the one Judy paid to have her name on also claims there is no election for State Assembly in my area ( CA- Assembly 38) which is a complete lie. Can a company really tell voters there is no election? If any reader knows if this breaks a state law please let me know. It sounds like Smyth and Alger didn't want to pay up so the company claimed there is no election. Classy.

I would not of brought this mailer up at the last minute, but I recieved it at the last minute. If anyone else has seen last minute mailers they want to discuss, please share them.

So, some direct questions for Judy Mikels:
1. What would it take to get you to join The Democratic Party? I have a spare registration form.
2. Do you agree it is pretty messed up to claim there is no election?
3. You are obviously not a far right Republican. What faction of the Republican Party do you come from?

Judy Mikels, thanks for talking to me at the street fair. I appreciate your time. You cleared up several issues for me. I have asked your staff for press releases and I will always post them if you start sending them in.

The picture of the sign above doesn't do justice to the size of that thing. The guys are starting basketball players at UCLA and both are over 6'8!

The picture was sent in by Team Tenenbaum. If you have pictures to share to show you are running an active campaign, send them in. Team Tenenbaum can you add details to the sign story? Where was it? What was it for?

Leave your predictions or last minute events for Gallegly Vs. Tenenbaum here by clicking on continue reading.

Any predictions about the outcome of Tuesday's election for county supervisor? There are three candidates ( Dantona, Foy, Mikels) and if nobody gets 50% plus 1 the election goes on for another fun filled 5 months!

I predict the following:

The election will not be over.
Dantona and Mikels will win the the right to continue attacking each other.
Peter Foy will be the tie breaker. If Jim Dantona can earn his endorsement, it is all over for Judy Mikels. If Judy Mikels earns Peter Foy's endorsement, it will be a huge blow to the Jim Dantona mantra of change. On Monday night I will put up my percentages.

Update:

My off the wall guess:

Judy mikels will join in the nationwide anger against office holders.
Jim Dantona 35
Judy Mikels 33
Peter Foy 32

I also was directed to a press release about The possilble expansion of the Simi Valley landfill. Read through it and tell me what you think.

In the last minutes of news before voting begins I recieved a forwarded e-mail from Abel Maldonado alleging more corruption from the Stricklands. Click on continue reading for more details. After the primary is over will the loser still endorse the winner after all the nasty charges?

So, any predictions precentage wise on what will happen between Tony Strickland and Abel Maldonado on Tuesday? If so, leave your predicitons.

Another day, another Republican House leader under investigation for corruption. Tenenbaum and Gallegly should both be asked if they would vote for this guy for any leadership positions in their new minority.