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April 28, 2006
Never forget Sept. 11
Re: Kathryn Jean Lopez’s April 26 commentary, “We can't wish away the brutality of the war on terror:”
This commentary was superb. In it, Ms. Lopez refers to “United 93,” the new movie “dramatizing the heroism of passengers on the plane that went down in Shanksville, Pa., on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001.”
I would like to suggest an addition where she says, “there are people determined to kill us, and our allies, because of who we are.” The addition would be, “and because of who they are: Islamofascist evil.”
To quote the founder and president of the Center for Security Policy in Washington, D.C., Frank Gaffney, “Islamofascists, Muslim extremists driven by totalitarian political ideology that is determined to destroy freedom and the people who love it."
“United 93” is a reminder to all Americans who have grown complacent since Sept. 11 and still don't get it. I've worn a pin daily that became available soon after Sept. 11 that says, “Remember 9-11” because I get it, and I won't soon forget.
— Helen Torkelsen, Camarillo
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:15 AM
Tapo park needs work
Re: Anna Baer’s April 19 letter, “Tapo Canyon just fine”:
A Tapo Canyon Park run and maintained by Rancho Simi Park District would be a long overdue blessing.
Ms. Baer’s letter is filled with false information obviously fed to her by Supervisor Judy Mikels. I live directly across from the park. While an out-of-town, out-of-district archery club does use the park for a fee, the park has been closed to the public since the fire. Equestrian arenas are burned out and have not been repaired. No hikers and picnickers are seen at the park, unless, of course, transients qualify under that description. Horse enthusiasts and neighbors of the park want it reopened and maintained.
Baer’s letter, and Mikels’ pretentious election-year masquerade to reopen the park as a campsite (further alienating neighbors), is the real political ploy here. When Mikels was called on it by the Rancho Simi Park District chair and park neighbors like myself, she did what she always does: She hid behind closed doors, gave some vague insincere promise to “look into concerns” and postponed any decisions.
Baer’s letter scoffs at accessibility to “sports players, parents and their cars.” Yet, she welcomes Mikels’ ridiculous plan for thousands of RVs and overnight, weekly and monthly stays from strangers. She welcomes a waste dumpsite for trailers. She describes a trip to the park as if it is a journey through mountainous wilderness. It is five minutes from Simi Valley City Hall!
A maintained park and road is not dangerous, but the currently abandoned park and washed-out road definitely is. If Mikels were smart, she would embrace the idea of local jurisdiction. Instead, she is stubborn and vindictive to her constituents who wish for anything other than what she has in mind.
— Ryan Chaleff, Simi Valley
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:59 AM
Put energies elsewhere
"Nothing gringo” is immigrants’ appeal to shoppers for action on Monday. That’s a good date selection — sort of reminiscent of May Day in the Soviet Union — and equally counterproductive, as many of us can still recall.
“The Great American Boycott” is meant to point out to us Americans the importance of the boycotters to the U.S. economy, but it seems to this writer that those who are most vulnerable stand to suffer more by their actions than those being ostracized.
I agree with Larry Rubin of the American Chamber of Commerce in Mexico, who states that “boycotting would [only] hurt corporations that are backing what [some] people want done in the immigration bill.” In place of the boycott, he encouraged those who have relatives in the United States to urge them to write their lawmakers in support of comprehensive immigration support.
It’s sort of mindful of the story of the ancient “foo bird,” who flew around in ever increasingly smaller circles until it simply disappeared up its own derriere.
If these mental giants are looking for favorable results, I doubt they'll find it to their advantage to take the route they espouse so vocally. It seems to me Larry Rubin’s plan could be more productive than biting the hand that feeds you.
— Monroe Karl Deutsch,
Thousand Oaks
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:36 AM
Protest Mexico, not U.S.
My parents were immigrants and came here for the opportunity. Did the Mexican immigrants - legal and not so legal - who will be boycotting on Monday come to the United States from Mexico because of the great weather? I don't think so. For the exceptional Mexican food? Probably not. Could it be because the government of Mexico is so corrupt that there is no opportunity?
I would like to suggest they boycott and march on the Mexican government, but who would do the body count after the protest?
- Jim Barros, Simi Valley
Posted by Andrea Howry at 09:20 AM
Get serious about war
The one theme that stands out in most of the letters about Iraq is the perceived unnecessary deaths the war has brought about.
The problem with this is nobody mentions the deaths that were brought to us for the past many years before the Afghan and Iraq wars. Are we supposed to just let it happen and blame ourselves for it?
It's not that we need to stop the war. It’s that we need to get more serious about it. The current administration needs to stop trying to get the Democrats to love them, as they never will. Despite their professed love of tolerance, they have almost none for those who hold a different opinion than they do.
Just bring the terrorists to justice or eliminate them in the process. It really doesn't matter which, just so long as it's done.
— Joe Haynes, Oxnard
Posted by Andrea Howry at 08:34 AM
April 27, 2006
So, where’s the flood?
Re: your April 26 article, “Flood plain maps spur county letter”:
This is an ongoing issue started recently by our friends at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, intending to double the size of the 100-year flood plain in the city of Camarillo, which would mean that more people would have to buy flood insurance.
This past year, Southern California and Camarillo had more rainfall than any season in more than 100 years, and none of the areas in the redefined flood plain flooded. The redefined flood plain has elevation changes of more than 100 feet from the Calleguas Creek, extends over a quarter mile from the Calleguas Creek, and has drainage ditches and roads to allow any excess water to drain away.
Why is there a new concern about flooding in areas that have not experienced flooding, and have no apparent risks, right after experiencing a major rainy season? Perhaps the Pacific Ocean could rise over 300 feet, which could also impact the revised flood plain area.
Is this just an Enron-type of money grab to increase insurance premiums? Actually, even Enron would have been too embarrassed to try something so blatant.
— Donal White, Camarillo
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:16 PM
Football too expensive
I am writing to comment on the Ventura Packers football team. I personally think it is pathetic to charge a whopping $250 to join, plus the expense of purchasing a practice uniform.
One would think that having a child participate in after-school programs should not put such a financial crunch on parents.
When I was a child, kids participated in after-school programs, including sports, that were free of charge.
The schools of Ventura should put together a program that children can participate in without causing such a strain.
— Dean John, Ventura
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:05 PM
Harbor’s big picture
I've been following the issue of the Boating Instruction Safety Center at Channel Islands Harbor for a long time. East or west is the outward subject of the debate, but I sense there may be numerous other shadowy factors involved besides heron roosting and postulated safety criteria.
Maybe the real debate should be: Do we really want to finance a BISC in the Channel Islands Harbor, no matter where it is positioned? Is this an optimum project for the expenditure of taxpayer dollars to enhance and improve our harbor, stimulate the local business and increase the tax base?
I personally would like to see a financial statement presenting the cost of constructing and operating the BISC, the anticipated return on investment, and a projection of the number of operating staff and the number of individuals expected to use the facility, with recognition of the seasonal effect on the on-water participation.
Put to a vote, I find it difficult to believe that the local population would select the BISC project for spending tax dollars versus doing nothing or versus other activities that could be directed toward stimulation of local business in the Channel Island Harbor area.
Be it east side or west side, without a favorable economic projection, I see no merit in this concept, and I suspect that this is the majority opinion of our local residents.
— Bob Allen, Port Hueneme
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:00 PM
Sentences too lenient
Re: your April 21 article, “2 men face sentencing for narcotics distribution”:
Dr. Michael Huff and pharmacist Richard Ozar made a plea bargain, with Huff expected to receive a trivial three-year sentence in minimum security and Ozar expected to receive house arrest. Is this justice? They were charged on several counts of illegal drug sales that were linked to multiple deaths. This is even more heinous because they used and abused their trusted positions to commit these crimes.
This shows the power of influence and particularly the power of the American Medical Association to protect its own. The AMA allowed these two to continue to practice medicine even after the charges were filed. What about the fact that Dr. Huff was disciplined for overprescribing drugs previously? I would bet that if some poor slob were caught with just a fraction of the drugs these guys were pushing it wouldn’t result in a minimum-security slap on the wrist.
Whereas I am happy they brought these two drug pushers down, I am not so elated that they received the best sentences money could buy.
— Chuck Grace,
Oxnard
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:55 AM
A return to decency
That the president's ratings have slipped to the point where more than two-thirds of the public disapproves of his policies is not surprising. Eventually, good, decent people are able to see past the fear-mongering which has been a substitute for reason in America, even among those who tend to conservatism.
What is disturbing is that almost one-third of the public still backs an administration and policies founded on lies and manipulations.
One can only hope that November finds this element in Congress being sent packing so that reason, honesty and decency can once again be the engine of American policy.
— Ira Cohen, Oak Park
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:44 AM
An immigration solution
The thousands of illegal immigrants (undocumented workers) that we have in this great country, which was founded on immigrants, are not felons. But they have broken the law. When I break the law by driving 75 mph and get cited, I pay a fine. But I am not a felon. We need to treat illegal immigrants the same way. We can do this and legalize these undocumented workers at the same time as follows:
— We create a new “Temporary Residence Status” alongside the “Permanent Residency Status” that we already have, the Green Card.
— The undocumented workers already in the United States can apply for this Temporary Residence Status and pay a $1,000 fine for breaking the law. They would then be eligible for a specially marked Temporary Driver’s License after passing a standard Department of Motor Vehicles test.
— For the next four years, for a total of five, they pay another $1,000 each year and supply proof of paying taxes and Social Security and maintaining a clean record.
— After these five years, they would be eligible for converting to the Permanent Residency Status (Green Card), and, as per current practice, be eligible for citizenship application five years after that.
— For Mexican citizens still in Mexico and wanting to work here, the same five-year “Temporary Residence Status” would apply, except there would be no fine, maybe just a one-time initial “process fee.” They would have to be invited to work in the United States through some employment agency or directly by an employer.
We need these people in our society. We could not afford to pay for our strawberries or Big Macs, much less our maid service or landscape workers, without them.
Their children would be full Americans and be a full part of our diverse, dynamic society. They are an essential part of America’s population growth, which is essential for a sound economy, not to mention funding our Social Security for future generations.
Let’s do the right thing and legitimize these valuable people.
— Martin Jansen, Agoura Hills
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:40 AM
It’s really a strip mall
Re: your April 14 article, “Developer to seek voter approval for project”:
What we’re now going to witness is an onslaught of lies that Westlake Village residents have a pent-up need for Lowe’s and its version of “upscale” restaurants.
The marketing group’s rendering of the “town center” will show Lowe’s hardly visible. Is this to make it look like we will all go there for a “stroll?” Doesn’t it already seem suspect they keep referring to El Torito as an “upscale” restaurant? And they think putting a fountain in the strip mall — excuse me, “town center” — will make the massive amount of pavement the size of Catalina Island and its oversized shopping cart mazes disappear?
What the City Council should do right now — but they’ve tabled it — is create an ad-hoc committee of Westlake Village residents and council members to better define the best use of that space, perhaps a combination of office and retail. That means listening to the community and coming up with a plan that both satisfies the generation of tax revenue and the needs and desires of the residents. We’ve seen this work in neighboring communities, so it can be done.
Developer Chuck Rotkin doesn’t live here but in another highly prized demographic area, Newport Beach. Ever wonder why Newport Beach hasn’t clamored for this project?
This is the last prime parcel left in Westlake Village. Why should we allow Lowe’s to force-feed its plan to us? Why should we prepare for the argument that it’s either the Lowe’s plan or the office complex? That’s simply not true. Westlake deserves better!
Do we really want another big box and a couple of franchise restaurants with plastic menus? Is everyone happy with the massive explosion of development: Four Seasons, Marriott Suites, more office complexes, etc., north of Highway 101?
— J.L. Edwards, Westlake Village
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:30 AM
Campaigns need Clean Money
To paraphrase an expression: Money tends to corrupt, and lots of money corrupts absolutely.
The California Clean Money Campaign has a different idea. Clean Money is a voluntary system of publicly funded political campaigns for elected statewide and legislative offices. The bill sets up a system for cleanly financed state elections and, if passed, would place a measure on the ballot to adopt public financing for all statewide and legislative races in California. It is patterned after the successful Clean Money systems now working in Arizona and Maine.
For a trivial amount of money - compared with the overall state budget - the people of California can ensure that elected officials are beholden to the voters only. It is time for the people of California to act before the only voices in government are millionaires and corporations.
- Steve Kane, Thousand Oaks
(The writer is co-chair of California Clean Money Campaign Ventura County. - Editor)
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:17 AM
Leave ecosystem alone
BHP Billiton’s proposal of the offshore liquefied natural gas terminal will create an acceptable amount of pollution, which will most likely affect the whole county of Ventura. This is unacceptable.
The Santa Barbara Channel’s ecosystem is on a path to recovery after the devastation it suffered as a result of the oil spill of Platform A off of Summerland in 1969. I want to make sure I do my part in the preservation of our beautiful park and marine sanctuary of the Channel Islands.
I ask The Star to continue to cover this important issue for the sake of the health of residents in Ventura County, as well as our well-being as a result of our thriving tourism industry which creates jobs and prosperity in the region.
— Maria Ornelas, Newbury Park
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:13 AM
Mikels’ comments inappropriate
I normally don’t get caught up in all of the political rhetoric going on at election time, and I try to sort through all the mudslinging and rumors. I don’t know whether Judy Mikels lives here, or in Arizona. I don’t know how many meetings she misses.
What I do remember is this: She attended the vigil for the seven people killed in a car crash back in August of 2005. Her statements made were so unbelievable that I wouldn’t vote for her just based on her total insensitivity toward the family and also the young driver involved, who was also in attendance. Her statements of “We’ve all forgotten how to drive” and “I’m so sorry for this accident, but we cannot legislate stupidity” were totally inappropriate. If she didn’t even have the common sense or courtesy in this particular instance to keep her mouth shut, one has to wonder what she says when the press is not there.
I don’t want a representative speaking for me who shows such lack of judgment or compassion.
— Kyle Letwinch, Simi Valley
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:07 AM
Mikels is always there
What a sad statement on our community if Supervisor Judy Mikels has to invite the press to her Simi Valley home to dispel lies that her challengers are conveying out in our neighborhoods.
Everyone is sick of political campaigns today, and the tactics that Judy Mikels has to deal with – lies by challengers to avoid real issues, most likely because there are none – are a prime example of why.
Supervisor Judy Mikels has done a great job representing us as the 4th District supervisor. Public safety services are as strong as ever, the county is very healthy fiscally, and county services are reaching the needy families it needs to reach.
Supervisor Mikels has played a great role in the county’s successes, and even beyond her direct work with the county, she’s always out and about in our community — for example, working Friday nights at nonprofit organization events, or on Saturdays throwing out the first ball at youth baseball opening days, or even Sundays when local groups ask. She also attends chamber mixers and donates time to the Moorpark College Foundation, helping to raise money for scholarships.
It’s a thankless job. But her challengers would not know that, because they have no idea what the job commands. It’s not just about sitting on your rear end in meetings every day of the week.
Judy Mikels has worked hard to make the County of Ventura stronger and safer, and for that she deserves our support for re-election.
— Jodi Bagwell, Moorpark
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:02 AM
Mikels serves well
I would personally like to lend my endorsement to incumbent Ventura County Supervisor Judy Mikels in her campaign for re-election. Recently, there have been a considerable number of unsubstantiated attacks and negative comments from her opponents.
As a community volunteer in the City of Moorpark, I have observed Judy Mikels in action at the Moorpark Kiwanis Club-sponsored “Breakfast for Santa. Supervisor Mikels was in attendance and actively participating in the event last December. She is a consistent participant at other annual community events in which I am involved. When approached at these functions, Judy is more than happy to discuss the issues facing Moorpark and Ventura County in an objective fashion.
Shortly after arriving in Ventura County and taking up residence in Moorpark in December 1998, I was shocked to find the county was operating in the red. Today, however, county government is as strong as ever, offering much-needed public services without emptying our pocketbooks, a considerable achievement on its own. Law enforcement and fire agencies are well funded and getting stronger. Ventura County remains an extremely desirable place to live, and county officials have been successful in preventing closure of our military base, so essential to the continued strength of Ventura County’s economy.
Judy Mikels has contributed greatly to these achievements. Judy’s opposition has offered next to nothing in terms of improvements for county government. All we keep seeing are attacks and negative campaigning and claims rarely backed up by facts.
Judy Mikels is a down-to-earth, sensible supervisor who has earned my respect and deserves our support in the upcoming election.
— Eric Dee, Moorpark
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:57 AM
Clippers are for real
Re: your April 25 article, “Clippers in control”:
Wow! A cover headline and photo of the Los Angeles Clippers! The Star finally gets it that the Clippers are for real a team! Is The Star stuck in the Lakers and the NBA’s media hype? The Clippers won Game 1 of the NBA Playoffs, and The Star didn’t even mention it in Sunday’s edition.
The Clippers have a true team, which, according to Charles Barkley, has a chance to make it to the finals. Clipper Nation is even growing in Los Angeles and Ventura, which are welcoming Lakers fans to the Clippers home court. The Staples Center is colored in the red, white and blue. Let’s see The Star get in the spirit.
— Larry Brisley, Moorpark
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:52 AM
Conservation critical
I do not have an answer to high gasoline prices, but the facts are clear: We are running out of oil.
I just finished reading a Department of Energy-sponsored report from 2005 titled “Peaking of World Oil Production.” It states, “As world oil peaking is approached and demand for conventional oil begins to exceed supply, oil prices will rise steeply.”
Average gasoline prices have doubled in the past five years.
We've seen oil prices rise before, only to fall as a temporary crisis was overcome. The oil embargo of the 1970s is a good example of that scenario. However, according to this report, we're in quite a different situation today.
The report states, “The problems associated with world oil production peaking will not be temporary, and past 'energy crisis' experience will provide relatively little guidance.”
The answers will come from all of us. It will depend on how willing we are to sacrifice today so that our children and future generations have an opportunity to transition to a post-oil world. Concern only for the short-term issues of expensive gas and oil company profits will not help us. Only a clear understanding of the facts and a cooperative effort of all people will help our children inherit a sustainable world.
Please get a copy of this report and read it. Our lives and the future for our children depend on it.
- Erik Zink, Thousand Oaks
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:35 AM
Boycott gasoline
The nation’s gasoline consumers should take advantage of the immigration boycott of U.S. goods on May 1 by not purchasing gasoline on that day and every Monday thereafter in protest of the oil companies’ price gouging at the pumps.
— George Galgas, Oak View
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:33 AM
Tax the other fuel, too
This morning, I stopped to fuel my car and body. I paid $3.12 per gallon for gas and $1.70 for a 16-oz. coffee, equal to $13.60 per gallon.
Coffee costs more than four times as much as gasoline! I find that perplexing, since I have to believe the investment and risk to find, produce, transport, and refine oil have to be greater than for coffee beans.
Why aren’t our legislators and the media clamoring for an excess profit tax on the big coffee companies?
— Tom McNeilan, Ventura
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:32 AM
‘Profityranny’ in America
I’d like to coin a new word to describe the blatant, illegal gouging of America’s drivers by greedy oil companies: “profityranny.”
As a combination of “profiteer,” which means “to seek an excessive or unfair profit,” and “tyranny,” which means “cruel, unreasonable or arbitrary use of power or control,” the word perfectly describes both our government and the oil giants to whom the Republican Party, Inc., is beholden.
President Bush’s recent rearranging of the Titanic’s deck chairs will do nothing in the face of 25 years of ignoring our oil dependency and five years of giving ExxonMobil and their ilk free rein to pillage, cheat and dictate policy. It’s a publicity stunt to elevate abysmal poll numbers, nothing more.
I urge all Americans to do whatever they can to save fuel, boycott the “oligarchs” and buy gas from more responsible companies like Citgo and BP, and, come November, remember that the GOP has had nearly six years of total control in Washington and done nothing to head off this crisis.
Vote today at the pump, this fall at the polling place.
— Tim Vandehey, Ventura
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:29 AM
April 24, 2006
Thank you, volunteers
National Volunteer Week, April 23-30, is a time to pause and thank and cheer the thousands of volunteers in Ventura County who give of their precious time and talent to improve our community and to help our most vulnerable residents: the hungry, the homeless, the elderly, youth and the disabled.
At FOOD Share, the regional food bank serving Ventura County, our hats are off to our own incredible corps of hundreds of volunteers, who provide more than 40,000 hours of amazing volunteer service every year.
You know who you are, you amazing folks who glean the fields, drive the trucks, sort and distribute the food, run the warehouse, and respond to whatever emergency or needs that arise. You are people of amazing talent and spirit.
We thank you in the name of all the people you touch with your kindness. Together, you help make Ventura County the wonderful place that we cherish. You inspire us by your examples of unselfish caring.
Shalom and blessings to all of our wonderful volunteers.
Jim Mangis, Oxnard
(The writer is president and chief executive officer of FOOD Share, the food bank that serves Ventura County. — Editor)
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:55 PM
Thank you, volunteers
National Volunteer Week, April 23-30, is a time to pause and thank and cheer the thousands of volunteers in Ventura County who give of their precious time and talent to improve our community and to help our most vulnerable residents: the hungry, the homeless, the elderly, youth and the disabled.
At FOOD Share, the regional food bank serving Ventura County, our hats are off to our own incredible corps of hundreds of volunteers, who provide more than 40,000 hours of amazing volunteer service every year.
You know who you are, you amazing folks who glean the fields, drive the trucks, sort and distribute the food, run the warehouse, and respond to whatever emergency or needs that arise. You are people of amazing talent and spirit.
We thank you in the name of all the people you touch with your kindness. Together, you help make Ventura County the wonderful place that we cherish. You inspire us by your examples of unselfish caring.
Shalom and blessings to all of our wonderful volunteers.
Jim Mangis, Oxnard
(The writer is president and chief executive officer of FOOD Share, the food bank that serves Ventura County. — Editor)
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:55 PM
Natural gas alternative
Re: Mary Haffner’s April 24 letter, “Say no to LNG”:
Ms. Haffner states, “LNG production relies on the burning of fossil fuels.” That’s not necessarily so. In the case of BHP Billiton, I would expect them to burn natural gas to operate their liquefied natural gas facility and also to power their ships. And, of course, we the consumer will pay for that.
— William Wolny, Oxnard
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:51 PM
Capitol PUNishment?
Re: your April 21 article, “Bush, Hu smile and pledge cooperation”:
You missed a great headline opportunity for this article on the Chinese president’s visit to Washington, D.C.: Commander-in-chief meets Mandarin chief.
— Raul Kottler, Oak View
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:46 PM
Too many unknowns
Re: your April 20 article, “Criticism dominates as LNG hearings wrap up”:
Thanks to The Star for its continuing coverage of the effort by BHP Billiton to build a polluting liquefied natural gas terminal off our coast. As someone who went to the April 18 hearing in Malibu, I found it remarkable how few people in attendance supported this dangerous plan.
Of the nearly 500 people in attendance, the overwhelming majority agreed with Sierra Club, the Malibu and Oxnard city councils, Oxnard School District, the Oxnard Council PTA, CAUSE, LULAC, El Concilio del Condado de Ventura and the Saviers Road Design Team. We believe, as did most speakers and the vast majority of those at the hearing, that the pollution, risks to the Ormond Beach Wetlands, threats to shipping lanes and ocean animals and the health and safety of our communities are too great to allow this untested offshore LNG terminal.
As reported in The Star, only one local Malibu resident spoke in favor of this polluting and unnecessary liquefied natural gas terminal. Fortunately for that one person, more than 400 of his neighbors are looking out for the community’s health and safety.
— Alan Sanders, Port Hueneme
(The writer is the conservation chair for the Los Padres Chapter of the Sierra Club. — Editor)
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:30 PM
LNG pollution an issue
Passed off as insignificant in the revised Draft Environmental Impact Report of BHP Billiton’s proposed Cabrillo Port is that the liquefied natural gas facility will emit up to 270 tons of smog-producing contaminants per year, according to the Environmental Defense Center’s estimate. These pollutants will be blown ashore by the prevailing winds in both Ventura and Los Angeles counties. Nevertheless, the Environmental Protection Agency has exempted Cabrillo Port from any pollution standards.
The Los Angeles and Orange County air basins are second only to New York’s as the most smog-polluted in our country. Any air pollutants that come into Ventura County, after affecting our air, will eventually drift into the Los Angeles air basin.
Regardless, the energy needed to regasify LNG is not addressed at all in the Revised DEIR. It takes energy — lots of energy — to turn liquid natural gas back to a useable gas. Up to 30 percent of the delivered LNG would be needed for that purpose. The burning of natural gas produces 117,000 pounds of carbon dioxide (CO2) per billion BTUs ( British thermal units) of consumed gas. CO2 is a powerful greenhouse gas. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has just released its numbers for CO2 in our atmosphere. The current level is “381 parts per million” and rising “at an alarming rate.” Last year, 2005, saw the largest rise in CO2 on record.
This must not be allowed to continue. Although Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has called for a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2020, it is too little, too late. We need to start now. James Hansen, NASA’s world leading scientist on global warming, warns that if the rising trend in greenhouse gases is not reversed in the next 10 years, we will reach a “tipping point” — that is, a point of not being able to stop the global warming. Is it not obvious that we do not want to burn an additional 30 percent more natural gas than will actually be used in California, especially off our coast?
The federal government is trying to ram the Cabrillo Port facility down California’s throat, with no concern for the consequences.
— Eugene D. & Marcia Cummings Hubbard, Oxnard
(The writers are members of Safe Air For Everyone. — Editor)
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:11 PM
Gas prices vary wildly
As a person who travels up and down the state, I see a huge variation in the price of regular gas. As I go from Simi Valley to the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles, there is a 10-cent or so drop in prices. In Garden Grove, the price was about 20 cents a gallon less. Traveling to outer areas you pay more, up to 50 cents a gallon more. In Washington state, it was 30 or so cents less. That's a huge gap.
Now it's my understanding that the oil companies and not the station owners set the prices. Perhaps it's time to re-evaluate the profits the oil companies make and set a state or nationwide price for gasoline, since we have to pay more than most of the country. They are selling us a natural resource. So let's level the field and make going to buy gas the same for all. The anti-pollution additive ethanol cannot add so much to the cost of gas. Even OPEC says it's too expensive.
— Stuart Tapper, Simi Valley
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:54 AM
Letter describes 1906 horrors
Re: your April 18 article, “The Great Quake”:
I have just finished reading this story and I am now, for the umpteenth time, gazing at a letter dated May 13, 1906, written by my great-grandmother, who lived in San Francisco at the time of the earthquake. It is somewhat difficult to read, as she was an immigrant from Germany and her English skills were still being developed. Also, the copy I have must have been made in the very early days of copying machines.
Nevertheless, it is a heart-wrenching letter, telling of the tremendous hardships being endured at that time. She mentions a very cold rain falling shortly after the quake and that there were people with no shelter for their babies and themselves. She relates how many people moved their stoves out onto the street so they could cook — there was no electricity and therefore no lights, and so many homes were in complete ruin.
They were allowed to light candles but only until 8 p.m. There were few shelters, or shanties as she called them; people were wrapped in blankets. There were no shops, markets, or stores open, and if you needed to buy anything, you had to go to nearby towns. But the banks were closed and there were no funds to be found, and it would be such a long time before anyone would be able to collect any insurance.
There was no work for anybody, and most of the men had been put to work cleaning up the debris and the bricks, She exclaims how terrible the ruins are and relates how people were using anything that had wheels on it to move things from one place to another. She did say that tents were slowly being made available but were very limited.
“It is dreadful to see this prosperous city in ruins ... it looks as flat as a desert,” she said.
The letter goes on in a painful manner, much of which is difficult for me to read. I have had this copy for a long time, and I frequently attempt to decipher a little more of it, and the pain and sorrow is evident in almost every word. The letter had been written to her family in Connecticut and was the first communication they had received from her since before the earthquake.
Having been very close to the Sylmar and Northridge quakes in the San Fernando Valley, I can only imagine the terrible hardships they had to endure. Now I will attempt to read the letter some more, and sooner or later I hope to be able to reproduce the text in its original form.
— Dave Wallace, Westlake Village
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:47 AM
Anyone have an answer?
When listening to the news and hearing that oil has gone to more than $71 per barrel, I didn’t really think much about it. After all, what can I do? Then I stopped at my local gas station and paid more than $30 to put 10 gallons of gasoline into my fuel-efficient car that gets 25 to 30 miles per gallon.
Then I realized that even if I drive a fuel-efficient car it’s still costing a fortune for fuel. And the oil and gas companies are making a bundle because I have no choice. I need to use my car.
Then I wondered what it really costs the oil companies for their oil. As I drive up the coast to Santa Barbara, I see oil wells pumping oil. I drive along the coast near Huntington Beach and Signal Hill and see oil wells pumping oil. There are oil wells in Bakersfield. There are oil tankers from Alaska bringing crude to Los Angeles to be refined. I see stories about the hundreds of oil rigs along the Gulf Coast and how they are being repaired and are almost back to full production. Where does that oil go? Don’t we use it within the United States? And that oil doesn’t cost the oil companies $71 per barrel. But the prices at the pump sure reflect the latest news about oil prices.
Every time the gas prices get higher and there is a public outcry and members of Congress start looking into it, the prices seem to drop. But then the public outcry stops and we hear that there was no great conspiracy to raise prices. But the prices never drop below where they were before the last price hike started. And you know that the next time they go up again, they’ll be just a little higher. Again.
Boycotting gasoline doesn’t work. We just fill our cars before the boycott and the oil companies sell even more gasoline. I’m not smart enough to know what the answer is, but there has to be one out there.
— John C. Agasse, Simi Valley
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:39 AM
Phoenix of Santa Paula
We were saddened to learn of the recent fire at the venerable old Glen Tavern Inn, the historic, Craftsman-style landmark in downtown Santa Paula, which has also resulted in the untimely closing of the newest gourmet restaurant in Ventura County, Avenue X, located on the inn's ground floor.
The owner and chef, Richard Hyman, whom my wife considers the finest chef in Ventura County, poured his heart and soul, not to mention a tidy sum of hard-earned greenback dollar bills, into making his restaurant a destination landmark based on merit alone. The cognoscenti were electrified, and his establishment's reputation spread like wildfire, to use an unfortunately apropos turn of phrase.
Our hearts go out to owner Richard Hyman and the entire staff at Avenue X, all of whom are a businessman's dream come to life. We are pleased to know that both the owner of the inn and the beloved new restaurant are committed to reopening as soon as the 95-year-old building is ready for occupancy again.
We pledge to be there to celebrate the reopening at the first seating when Avenue X opens its doors to the hungry hordes waiting to support this deserving business on opening day.
— Don Leonard, Westlake Village
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:28 AM
Mysteries of Two Winds
Let’s examine the history of our “public equestrian center.”
First, Andy Fox had plans for the site that Two Winds Ranch is on, but the community demanded a public equestrian center. Then, in order to keep the site for whatever development he had planned, he arranged for the Thousand Oaks City Council to approve a public equestrian center to be built by the city of Thousand Oaks but on a different site, which was the Olympia Farms site.
Next, the community insisted that this was too expensive and demanded that Two Winds Ranch remain at its current site with the same operator. After this, Andy Fox responded by conducting a “search” for a new operator, wouldn’t even consider the bid from Alvin Caddin, the current operator, and is about to install his friend, David Murdock, the billionaire sponsor of Ride On, as the beneficiary of all the efforts of the community.
How does our City Council have the power to ignore the will and needs of the community, and take a business like Two Winds that has been owned and operated successfully by one man for more than 30 years and give it away to their friends? How did Thousand Oaks come to be run by a dictatorship?
— Patti Chiarelli, Thousand Oaks
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:24 AM
God's love explained
Re: Don M. Johnson's April 23 commentary, “Mysterious statement awakens dear memories”:
Don mentions the warm feelings he gets when he remembers a framed “God is love” picture from his childhood. He indicates that he's never understood the meaning of the statement, and continues: “And at church, if God is love, I wondered why ministers emphasized hell and the wrath of God.”
From more than 40 years of going to church and studying the Bible, I have learned that God is love, but he is also holy. As a holy God, he must be just and punish sin. As a loving God, he sent his Son to take the punishment that each of us who have committed sin deserves.
Though I've rarely heard ministers emphasize hell and the wrath of God, when it is done, it is only to point people to the mercy of our loving God. Though we deserve justice, he offers mercy. That is love.
- Charleen Hodge, Westlake Village
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:20 AM
Naturalization works
I don’t understand.
The employers are saying that illegals are necessary for their business to survive. Do they pay differently if the person is a legal, naturalized citizen? If they don’t, why not just require a naturalization certificate for employment That’s what I had to do when I worked in the aerospace industry in the ‘60s and ‘70s. I got paid the same, it’s just that they knew I was legal and had pledged allegiance to the United States.
Do the illegals pay taxes? I did and still do. Do the illegals pay for all hospital emergency services? I did and I will. Do the illegals pay for their children’s schooling with taxes? I did and do even though I have no children. Do the illegals buy auto insurance? I did and do.
According to your April 23 article, “Shift in service demands,” the jail population would fall if all illegal immigrants disappeared, and the jails would become manageable.
Naturalized citizens earned the right to vote. They learned English. They showed up to vote. They participate in the workings of their community as volunteers. Their patriotism sometimes exceeds that of a native-born American because they had to work for their citizenship, and they can compare their life here with what they had in their native-born country and are grateful.
To the illegals out there: If you can read my American-word writings here, come into this country legally and show how much you value what we have here. Study to become a legal citizen. Stop grabbing and running with any free goods you can get from this generous country. Stop sending your money back to your home country. Join us, don’t fight us as if we owe you something. I’m tired of your Mexican flag-waving when America is the one changing your lifestyle. If you think so much of your country and want to wave its flag, then go home and do it.
I’m proud to be a naturalized United States citizen. Try it, you may like it.
— Nan Mills, Simi Valley
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:08 AM
Earth Day's long reach
Re: your April 23 article, “County Earth Day events celebrate renewed interest”:
Please have Alan Sanders, chairman of the local chapter of Sierra Club, take a look from a different perspective when he talks about Earth Day not having the public draw it had when first organized in 1970.
The one day, April 22, may not be as well attended now, and I believe there is a reason: Member of the public, instead of showing their support for Mother Earth on just one day, have now broadened their perspectives and actions, possibly because of education disseminated during Earth Day.
Here in Simi Valley, we have Clean the Arroyo day; all public transportation is now using non-polluting gas to run their vehicles, as does Waste Management’s trash pickup trucks; each home has three cans for trash now, including one for recycling yard products and another for recycling plastic, paper, cans and bottles; our local landfill uses the air-polluting methane formed at the landfill to create electricity for their use and that of 2,500 homes; there are many more solar panels on roofs than there had ever been thought of in 1970; Home Depot voluntarily gives away reams of paper printed on one side for interested citizens to use in their computers; your weekly yard waste is composted by Agromin and bagged as soil amendment; and the list goes on and on and on — and all because of the awareness started by that 1970 Earth Day.
These actions divert the attention from one day, Earth Day, and funnel it into many ways that individuals, cities and corporations are protecting our earth. Earth Day was a trigger for multifaceted earth-friendly protections to start and happily continue to multiply.
Mr. Sandler should consider Earth Day a total success every year, even though the attendance on April 22 may have changed.
— Judy Dwyer, Simi Valley
(The writer is a member of the Sierra Club. — Editor)
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:02 AM
U.S. wasting gasoline
I think it’s ludicrous to somehow explain away the exorbitant gas prices on short supply of ethanol or the Nigerian civil war.
The truth is that people who drive vehicles that get 14 miles per gallon are still driving 90 mph on the freeway, and I witness this every day. They are consuming more than their fair share of this resource, and it is immoral that our soldiers are fighting a war to secure this country's energy resources while selfish and self-absorbed people continue to waste gasoline.
President Bush and Vice President Cheney are perfectly happy to see their puppet masters get fat off our discretionary income. If they were so concerned with the high prices, which Bush stated would cause “a tough summer” they would ration gas like President Nixon did in 1973.
Sure China and India are consuming more energy than before, but wouldn’t an intelligent president immediately implement conservation measures? After all, wasn't Dick Cheney the guy who said after we invaded Iraq we would all be getting oil for $8 a barrel? The truth is that at $75 a barrel, the oil traders have been charging their customers what is known as the “fear factor,” which is a premium that accounts for 30 percent to 40 percent of the price per barrel. And guess who is at the bottom of the “fear factor”? If you guessed it is our short-sighted, incompetent and possibly malevolent president and vice president, you would be correct. If we had never stirred up the hornet’s nest we could still be paying less than $40 per barrel.
People will probably still be indifferent until the economy begins to plummet, but fortunately, that should begin to occur just as the fall elections arrive. Only then will we as a democracy really have a chance to send a strong message to the oil companies by kicking out the do-nothing Republican Congress.
— Richard Reiss, Thousand Oaks
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:50 AM
Lower gas tax isn’t answer
Re: John J. Bardgette’s April 21 letter, “Abolish gasoline tax”:
Mr. Bardgette says that we need to reduce or eliminate the gas tax to bring down gas prices. I’m guessing that he drives a gas guzzler, has stock in the oil companies and no offspring to care about.
I hate to say it, but the taxes should be raised, if anything. Lower gas prices will only encourage consumption of a dwindling, polluting resource. Higher fuel taxes would encourage automotive efficiency — smaller cars and decreased driving — and could fund badly needed progress toward a move to sustainable and less polluting energy sources.
If money is all that matters, then our country has a valuable opportunity: If we embrace the fact that the world needs newer, cleaner, more efficient fuels and technologies, there’s one heck of a lot of money to be made. If money is not the main issue, guess what? It’s still the right thing to do. Sounds like a win-win situation to me.
In the past, this country has been willing to stand up and put long-range goals and the greater good first. Sadly, in our great country with such amazing potential, greed seems to have become the only driving force.
— Steve Phillips, Newbury Park
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:41 AM
Skip Target, build condos
Rather than having another Target in Simi Valley, how about building some affordable housing? The corner where Kmart currently sits would be an excellent site for townhomes, condos or apartments. With the current cost of housing in Simi Valley, many of our young people are moving out of Simi to places like the Inland Empire. It’s vital to the health of our community to make sure everyone has a chance to live here, work here and contribute to our wonderful city.
— Arleigh Kidd, Simi Valley
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:36 AM
Too much time in Tucson
Re: your April 21 article, “Mikels says stories of Tucson home not true”:
OK, so let’s give Ventura County Supervisor Judy Mikels the benefit of the doubt and assume that maybe our supervisor doesn’t live in Tucson half her life. Then what is her excuse for missing 70 percent of the meetings she's getting paid to attend?
Is Mikels spending too much time on all these “regional” committees that just happen to meet weekends in Tucson and Phoenix? Is too much of her time taken up freelancing as an Arizona-based housing developer? Or is it simply that the Queen Bee of the Board of Supervisors is too lazy to do her job?
Whatever the excuse, the good people of this wonderful county have no patience for a part-time supervisor who takes our hard-earned money and spends it in Tucson. If you or I missed half as much time at work as our supervisor, we'd be fired after the first week. Apparently our Queen Bee doesn't need to worry about her job.
I hope the supervisor still feels that way after June 6, when we all vote to remove that condescending smile and send her packing to Tucson.
— Gary Selvaggio, Simi Valley
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:33 AM
April 21, 2006
Move on, Pinnacle
Re: your April 20 editorial, “Adams worth another shot”:
OK, one more time on Santa Paula’s Adams Canyon thing: Pinnacle threatened to sue, they got their do-over vote, and they had the glossy brochures and a near-million-dollar public campaign to crush those opposed to their collective iron will. They dangled dollars like stink bait as if we all were bottom feeders. It was deplorable.
To answer the editorial by The Star, which stated that Santa Paula missed a golden opportunity, the last time I woke up, which was this morning, we were a democracy. The people voted. The people won. Now Pinnacle can take its toys off my front yard and go home, or at least helicopter to its next “venue.” Oh, and don't forget your brochures!
— John Koman, Santa Paula
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:10 AM
Santa Paula on right track
The Adams Canyon development proposal by the Pinnacle Group was not worthy of Santa Paula. Our community may need growth as an economic stimulus, but it does not need a 10-square-mile McMansion plan. It was a bad plan, and the community was right in turning it down.
This victory comes despite the Arizona developer's “Easter Surprise” special election and million-dollar campaign aimed at 4,200 voters. Santa Paulans should be given credit for seeing through Pinnacle's campaign of deception and for seeing the proposal for what even The Star admits was a bad plan.
The reality is Santa Paula is considering more carefully these major land-use decisions - and the Santa Paula Chamber of Commerce “vote no” endorsement is an excellent example. When the chamber stated in its No on Y Endorsement that “support for land use proposals have been established by rigorous land-use planning process performed by other developers” and “we will hold these same standards when asked to evaluate all large-scale development proposals,” a new standard was affirmed.
Santa Paula has become more critical of major development proposals, and this election bears this out. It's a direction that a number of other Ventura County communities could stand to emulate. Instead of condemnation, Santa Paula should be congratulated.
And we should be thankful for the countywide Save our Open-space and Agricultural Resources for helping a little community defeat an ill-conceived proposal. Were it not for S.O.A.R., Santa Paula would have sprawled into Adams Canyon long ago, and Ventura County would have lost tens of thousands of acres of open space and agricultural land to these poorly planned sprawl developments.
Today, as a result of S.O.A.R.'s inherent leveraging of better proposals, and thanks to the community's participation in more rigorous planning processes, Santa Paula is considering vastly superior development proposals.
Finally, we owe much to the local volunteers who gave hours of their time walking and calling against Measure Y. We would not have won without them. And a special thank you should go to the many Ventura County and Santa Paula seniors who volunteered!
- Mike Miller, Santa Paula
- The writer is with Santa Paula S.O.A.R.
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:01 AM
Course correction?
Save Open-space and Agricultural Resources is right up there with Greenpeace and the Sierra Club, so their opposition to Measure Y was expected. However, there were two groups in Santa Paula that were instrumental in the defeat of this measure: the Board of Directors of the Santa Paula Chamber of Commerce and the members of the Santa Paula City Council. In my opinion, both of these groups should have seen through everything and done what was right for the long-term economic health of Santa Paula. It will take a long time for the chamber to recover from its major faux pas .
By publicly taking a position against Measure Y, Councilmembers Gabino Aguirre and John Procter were derelict in their duties as councilmembers by neglecting the general welfare of the citizens of Santa Paula. As private citizens, they have every right to oppose any measure, but as councilmembers, they have an obligation to make decisions that benefit the community as a whole.
I feel that Mayor Richard Cook and Councilman Ray Luna were equally responsible for the failure of Measure Y by privately supporting the measure but not taking a public stance in its support.
As for Councilmember Mary Ann Krause? She is guilty by association.
The projects that would have been presented for development in Adams Canyon could have been the turning point for the economic survival of Santa Paula.
There is not much the citizens can do about S.O.A.R. Like a pit bull terrier, they have latched on to no-growth, and by nature, they can't let go. The chamber members will have to deal with their Board of Directors accordingly.
The City Council is another matter. Krause, Aguirre and Cook all have terms that expire in November of this year. The citizens of Santa Paula need to take a good look at the quality of representation from their elected officials and decide if a course correction is in order.
- Steve Brown, Santa Paula
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:52 AM
S.O.A.R. is consistent
Re: your April 20 editorial, “Adams worth another shot”:
The Star's assertion that S.O.A.R.'s opposition to the development of Santa Paula's Adams Canyon but not Fagan Canyon is based on who stands to make a profit is both preposterous and irresponsible. It is the most blatant of the many misrepresentations The Star makes about S.O.A.R.
Regarding S.O.A.R.'s opposition to development of Adams Canyon but not Fagan Canyon, The Star states, “It just goes to show how S.O.A.R. 'principles' can be manipulated or even perverted, based on who stands to make a profit.”
This statement flies in the face of the following facts.
1. S.O.A.R. has repeatedly and publicly stated its policy that cities should first make good-faith, comprehensive efforts to infill and revitalize their existing urban footprint before expanding their growth boundary outward.
2. S.O.A.R. has opposed the major expansion/development proposals outside of a city's growth boundary such as the Adams Canyon project.
3. S.O.A.R. has not opposed any of the development proposals inside of a city's growth boundary.
S.O.A.R. did not oppose the 2,000-plus-home development of RiverPark inside of Oxnard, the 700-plus-home Heritage project inside of Fillmore, the thousands of home approvals inside of Moorpark's growth boundary or the large projects inside of Camarillo's growth boundaries.
S.O.A.R. has publicly stated it will not oppose the proposed infill projects of the city of Ventura or the Fagan Canyon project inside of Santa Paula. Adams Canyon is outside Santa Paula's growth boundary, Fagan Canyon is not.
S.O.A.R. has been consistent in opposing urban sprawl outside of city growth boundaries and has not opposed any projects inside. This has been S.O.A.R.'s guiding principle. It is consistent with the principles of smart growth. S.O.A.R. is about where development should take place, not if it should take place.
There is no logical way that The Star can characterize this as a “no-growth” position. Much more egregiously, The Star's attempt to assert that S.O.A.R. principles are being manipulated based on who stands to profit is both illogical and irresponsible.
Sadly, it is The Star's principles that suffer from such a blatant misrepresentation.
- Karen Schmidt, Ojai
The writer is the executive director of S.O.A.R.
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:42 AM
S.O.A.R. works well
Re: your April 20 editorial, “Adams worth another shot”:
The Star is way off the mark with this ridiculous editorial.
Save Open-space and Agricultural Resources was not intended to stop all growth, but to allow some controlled growth while preventing conversion of large tracts of open space or agricultural land. And that’s the way S.O.A.R. has been working. Certain smaller projects have been approved, and certain larger ones have not.
The folks of Santa Paula were wise to reject the upscale Adams Canyon project. It would have converted 6,578 acres to homesites on large lots that only the super-wealthy could ever afford — just the kind of low-density sprawl that should be avoided.
On the other hand, it would make more sense to approve the Fagan Canyon project, which is inside the urban area already. Fagan Canyon would bring 2,155 homes priced from $380,000 to $750,000, fees and improvements for the school district, 60 acres of parks, 1,110 acres of open space, 325 units of affordable housing, and a program to hire local workers.
I thank the voters of Ventura County for giving us the S.O.A.R. program. And I thank the voters of Santa Paula for making good land-use choices.
— Michael Sullivan, Ventura
Posted by Andrea Howry at 10:32 AM
Listen to the people
Two Winds captures the headlines, again, letters to the editor follow suit, and dialogue between the factions has begun.
On April 27, there will be another rubber-stamp meeting confirming Ride On as the recommended recipient of the contract for management, for review, by the Thousand Oaks City Council. It sounds like, pretty much, a done deal. Of course, city staff will incorporate community feedback from the meeting into their recommendation. What will be very interesting is to see what weight the community feedback will carry.
The paying customers who use the facility now should be the best source for recommendations, followed by those who live with the operation in their neighborhood. The next concern should be from the public equestrian enthusiasts who feel they have a need for the services. Has city staff already interviewed these people to help arrive at their decision?
One thing I find sorely missing is what Bully Caddin has to say about all this. Many of us want to express our gratitude — Thanks, Bully! — for his almost 40 years of service to the horse-loving community. We have great respect for what he has had to endure to continue running his operation: moving his operation twice because of development, short leases that culminated into only month-to-month leases, the high cost of feed and vet services. It’s miraculous that he kept going. On a shoestring, he served many disadvantaged children, as well as the community. There were those who chose to dish out negative comments, but he still persevered. We have but a few operations around that have survived so long — Lupe’s Restaurant, Newbury Park Feed and Equestrian Trails Inc., a horse club here since 1957. Thanks for being part of our heritage.
We will, and always should, question when big money backs a development, especially when they don’t honor one’s dedication to service.
— Marilee Ullmann, Thousand Oaks
— The writer, a Thousand Oaks resident since 1962 and the historian for Equestrian Trails Inc., states that that the opinion expressed in this letter is hers and is not a reflection of ETI.
Posted by Andrea Howry at 09:19 AM
Listen to the people
Two Winds captures the headlines, again, letters to the editor follow suit, and dialogue between the factions has begun.
On April 27, there will be another rubber-stamp meeting confirming Ride On as the recommended recipient of the contract for management, for review, by the Thousand Oaks City Council. It sounds like, pretty much, a done deal. Of course, city staff will incorporate community feedback from the meeting into their recommendation. What will be very interesting is to see what weight the community feedback will carry.
The paying customers who use the facility now should be the best source for recommendations, followed by those who live with the operation in their neighborhood. The next concern should be from the public equestrian enthusiasts who feel they have a need for the services. Has city staff already interviewed these people to help arrive at their decision?
One thing I find sorely missing is what Bully Caddin has to say about all this. Many of us want to express our gratitude — Thanks, Bully! — for his almost 40 years of service to the horse-loving community. We have great respect for what he has had to endure to continue running his operation: moving his operation twice because of development, short leases that culminated into only month-to-month leases, the high cost of feed and vet services. It’s miraculous that he kept going. On a shoestring, he served many disadvantaged children, as well as the community. There were those who chose to dish out negative comments, but he still persevered. We have but a few operations around that have survived so long — Lupe’s Restaurant, Newbury Park Feed and Equestrian Trails Inc., a horse club here since 1957. Thanks for being part of our heritage.
We will, and always should, question when big money backs a development, especially when they don’t honor one’s dedication to service.
— Marilee Ullmann, Thousand Oaks
— The writer, a Thousand Oaks resident since 1962 and the historian for Equestrian Trails Inc., states that that the opinion expressed in this letter is hers and is not a reflection of ETI.
Posted by Andrea Howry at 09:19 AM
April 20, 2006
Conejo schools on right track
Re: Merle Duckett’s April 17 letter, “Union needs better focus”:
It was disappointing to read Merle Duckett’s letter, which was aimed at continuing the controversy regarding the winter vacation and other Conejo Valley Unified School District issues.
The scheduling concerns arose when a few parents revealed that they would like more time prior to Christmas for the 2006 winter vacation. The board requested that the unions revisit the schedule to see if adjustments could be made. District staff and the unions worked long and hard to arrive at a compromise solution that provided three days prior to Christmas. This was another example of this district and its employee groups collaborating on finding a win-win solution to challenging issues.
As was mentioned at the March 14 board meeting, the surrounding districts of Las Virgenes, Simi Valley, Oak Park, Moorpark and Oaks Christian have similar winter vacation schedules to accommodate all parents in the East County. Even Oxnard elementary School District, where school board member Mike Dunn’s wife works as a teacher, has a winter vacation schedule that begins on December 25.
Conejo Valley Unified School District is one of California’s finest, with a cadre of teachers, administrators and support staff that is second to none. The 2005-06 standardized test results reveal a mean district API score of 846, which puts CVUSD in the top 10 percent of districts in the state. Further, this district is spending more than $130 million to modernize our schools, not to mention the new construction that has occurred in the recent past. So when Mr. Duckett uses words such as “cattling” of students and “ghetto portables,” it does a disservice to all the hard-working employees of this district.
As an ending note, the school board’s 5 percent raise that Mr. Duckett referred to amounted to $23 per month for each member.
Now, please allow the district staff and board to continue the task of delivering quality education to all our students.
— Tim Stephens, Westlake Village
— The writer is a member of the Conejo Valley Unified School District board, and this letter was also signed by board members Pat Phelps, Dorothy Beaubein and Dolores Didio. — Editor.
Posted by Andrea Howry at 01:09 PM
Democracy in action
Re: your April 20 editorial, “Adams worth another shot”:
I find it interesting that The Star would be pro-development for mini mansions above Santa Paula.
Discounting the fact that the modification to Save Open-space and Agricultural Resources lost by only 119 votes does not tell the whole story. Simply driving through the town showed that most of the homes that would have been near the mini-mansions — and the increased traffic — had anti-development signs.
S.O.A.R. does not stop development, but it provides for a democratic process to force proposed developments to at least provide something positive for the majority of the residents. The Adams development obviously did not, and I am sure the developer will present a better plan next time to make sure he gets those additional 119 votes.
It’s democracy in action, even if The Star does like it!
— Jim Wismar, Moorpark
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:56 PM
Abolish gasoline tax
The rising price of gasoline has been much in the news for several weeks.
I know that there is very little that we as individual citizens can do to affect the price charged by the companies that refine and sell gasoline, but there is one thing that we can do: A large portion of the price we pay is for taxes on each gallon, and, to a fair extent, on the taxes that the service stations pay on their property. Everyone should write or call their representatives in Congress and the state Legislature to reduce or totally eliminate the tax per gallon, and write or call their county officials to reduce the property tax on service stations and require the stations to make a proportionate reduction in the price they charge for gasoline.
— John J. Bardgette, Thousand Oaks
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:42 PM
Last straw for Dunn
Re: your April 19 article, “E-mail from wife of school trustee creates a furor”:
I'm originally from the South, where a good conservative Republican man doesn't hide behind his wife's skirt to do his political dirty work.
Mike Dunn is an embarrassment to himself and this community. It seems like every time I pick up the newspaper, he's in trouble again. It's time for a change.
- David Adams, Thousand Oaks
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:36 PM
Protests are useless
Re: Patricia Green's April 16 letter, “Protest illegal immigration”:
No offense to Ms. Green, but, I can't see how staying home from work and not buying anything for one day is going to get the attention of our politicians. The only thing it would do is cause everyone to lose a day's pay, burn more fuel - because you know everyone isn't going to just stay at home - and possibly overburden our law enforcement and emergency service personnel. And no morning coffee? Yeah, right.
I hope people went to work. And maybe after work, I hope they took just 10 or 15 minutes to write a letter to our politicians and tell them how we feel. If they don't listen, vote them out. That is the only voice and the only pressure that will get their attention.
Also, Ms. Green couldn't be more wrong in saying we are all immigrants. If you look up the word “immigrant,” you will find that it means, “A person who leaves one country to settle permanently in another.” I was born in this country, my father and mother were born in this country, and my grandfather and great-grandfather were both born in this country. I've lived my entire 44 years right here in Ventura, just one block from the hospital where I was born. I am not an immigrant, nor am I a Native American Indian. I am Caucasian, and I am a native citizen of the United States of America, and I am proud of it!
- Paul Cook, Ventura
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:29 PM
Remember the Alamo — accurately
Re: Earl Jonnson’s April 19 letter, “Balanced cartooning”:
Mr. Jonnson’s idea that The Star should publish a cartoon showing Gen. Santa Ana's Latino immigration officers killing all those defenders at the Alamo of European heritage should be done to be fair and balanced, but it seems Mr. Jonnson omitted or maybe did not know that more Tejanos (Texans of Mexican descent) lost their lives defending the Alamo than those of European heritage.
— John L. Thawley, Santa Paula
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:14 PM
Isolationism doesn’t pay
Re: Alicia Reynolds’ April 16 commentary, “Are we disciples of Jesus Christ or Judas Iscariot?”:
There is always a plethora of magazine covers, news articles, movies and sudden archeological finds that tend to crop up every year just in time for Easter. By using a biblical framework for her argument, Ms. Reynolds has jumped rather cleverly right onto the bandwagon with them.
Jesus was concerned about the Kingdom of Heaven and the rescue of humankind, period. Judas missed what Jesus was all about and paid for it.
As far as the United States being an imperialistic nation, such as the Roman Empire, I point to the countries of Japan and Germany. These two countries were conquered, and the rebuilding process largely began by the might (and money) of the United States, which neither acquired nor held these one-time enemies, but befriended them to the good of all. There is no other nation in history that has that type of track record.
If the United States adopts a policy of isolationism, and if we lack in our commitment to use force when necessary, we will be hanging ourselves on a tree just as surely as Judas did.
— Bryan White, Ventura
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:09 PM
Heritage comes second
Re: your April 17 editorial cartoon, “Immigration”:
I can’t tell you how upset I was with this cartoon. As a descendant of European immigrants, I really resented the quote, “The American Dream isn’t for your kind.”
The dream is for anyone who waits their turn in line and enters the country legally, learns the language and is willing to assimilate into their new country instead of trying to still be Hispanic, and who wants more than anything to be American and is willing to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to obtain that goal.
We are all proud of our heritage, but first of all, we are Americans.
I think The Star is creating more resentment of illegal immigrants by publishing this kind of trash!
— Jean Edwards Saari, Camarillo
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:44 AM
God is love
On a winter day in Minnesota in the 1930s, my parents took me to see my paternal grandparents who lived on a small farm. I was 4 years old and was greeted with smiles, hugs and: “My, how you have grown!” Grandpa smelled of cows and hay. I knew, because I had played in the barn.
The warm kitchen smelled of coffee, cinnamon rolls and an oily smell tinged with wood smoke. Some neighbors were there who had come from Finland, as had my grandparents and my father. We all sat around a table near the warm wood stove. Squeezed between the adults, I tried to copy how they drank steaming coffee. I carefully sipped the hot coffee from a saucer and through a cube of white sugar dissolving between my front teeth. After the sugar melted, I bit into the cinnamon roll.
The adults were very happy to be together. Sometimes they all talked at once and in Finnish, which I could not understand. And although the women's faces reminded me of bowls of peeled potatoes I'd seen in Mom's kitchen, their smiles made me feel that I was special.
Squinting against the amber glow of a kerosene lantern, I focused on a small, framed picture. Words made with colored threads stated: “God is love,” and I wondered what that meant. Later, while growing up, whenever I saw a similar, obviously revered picture in other homes, I still didn't understand. And at church, if God is love, I wondered why ministers emphasized hell and the wrath of God. Being puzzled about God didn't seem to be limited to me.
The mysterious statement “God is love” still awakens precious memories, like joyfully sharing coffee and cinnamon rolls with family and kindred souls in winter, in Minnesota, in a warm farmhouse kitchen, 70 years ago.
- Don M. Johnson, Ventura
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:34 AM
Credibility in question
Re: Martin Kaplan’s April 20 commentary, “Freedom is necessary for truth”:
Mr. Kaplan’s reply to my criticism of his faculty should not be taken at face value. He is rightly defending his turf and his faculty, Bill Garlington. However, the obfuscation in his letter would bear Karl Rove proud. The basic fact is that the portrayal of Nelson Mandela as an advocate for peaceful change is not only wrong, but corrupt. Comparison of Mandela to Martin Luther King, Jr., and Mahatma Gandhi is an abomination.
The “vague actions” on our part that Mr. Kaplan refers to was a contemplated demonstration. This did not take place.
The fact is that controversial political topics have no place in the Osher Learning Institute’s lectures. The topic of Nelson Mandela’s violence is not a personal belief, but is documented history. Glib authorization of topics such as this will only lessen the credibility and status of the new California State University, Channel Islands. I stand by all my previous statements.
— Godfrey Smythe, Ventura
— The writer is director of Global True Voice. — Editor.
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:29 AM
Pay inequality abounds
Tuesday, April 25, is Equal Pay Day.
To match men's earnings for 2005, women have to work from January 2005 to April 2006 — an extra four months. Equal Pay Day takes place each year on a Tuesday in April, symbolizing the point in the next week and year to which a woman must work to achieve pay equity. Her male counterpart must work five days a week for 12 months, whereas she will work seven days a week for 16 months to earn equivalent wages.
Women continue to earn only 77 cents on the dollar to their male counterparts.
Inequity in pay is not limited to one career or demographic. Pay disparities affect women of all ages, races and education levels — regardless of their family decisions.
I encourage all employers to hire and advance employees based solely on skills. Pay needs to be based only on performance.
Among issues identified as priorities for women, 90 percent say that equal pay for equal work is a priority. I hope our elected officials remember this as we approach the fall elections.
— Diane Venable, Thousand Oaks
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:20 AM
Editorial an insult
Re: your April 20 editorial, “Adams worth another shot”:
No one who reads The Star regularly can miss its biases, among which is a strong pro-development streak. But this editorial went beyond bias to another level of smear and insult.
Yes, the Santa Paula voters went in a different direction than The Star recommended, and some disgruntlement on The Star’s part might be expected. But “an easy message to sell to the masses” is an insulting mischaracterization of those Santa Paula voters who took the trouble to vote Tuesday.
None of those I sat with in Santa Paula to watch returns fit the description of misled masses. Indeed, their level of education is probably as great as any on The Star’s editorial staff, and their level of understanding of environmental limits is manifestly better. "Knee jerk reaction at the ballot box" is the last thing that would describe this group.
Finally the suggestion that Save Open-space and Agricultural Resources has some nefarious ulterior motive other than the public good is bizarre, as in “It just goes to show how S.O.A.R principles can be manipulated or even perverted, based on who stands to make a profit."
S.O.A.R. members sacrificed their time and money in an effort to bring about something of benefit to the public. They might be wrong. To err is human, and development issues usually involve balancing one value against the other by the people who have to live with the results. (And how nice that because of S.O.A.R., those people had the choice.) But nobody from SOAR stood to gain anything financially.
Interestingly, the discussion of this election result on The Star’s online commentary was notably intelligent and civil, an unusual occurrence in my experience. Only on the editorial pages did commentary fail in both ways.
— Margaret Morris, Ventura
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:10 AM
April 19, 2006
Stand up to developers
Re: your April 16 editorial, “Adams: Part of SP future”:
Regardless of Tuesday’s vote, the end result in Santa Paula’s Adams Canyon must be a real preserve of substantial size, not just a park of 100 acres or so. Full community involvement should be mandatory. This looks like an under-the-table intrusion of “by the super rich and for the super rich only” from a strong-arm group way outside of this area with no interest in the residents here.
The city should take a stronger stand on this and other measures, as stated in the editorial. Those behind Save Open-space and Agricultural Resources and the City Council should team up and stand up for the community and not succumb to the enticement of private Arizona trips and strong-arm tactics put forth by the developer. The same goes for Ventura County.
— John Williams, Thousand Oaks
Posted by Andrea Howry at 01:44 PM
Time for Gallegly to go
The GOP is a party of ideas, not a party of incumbents.
The entrenched Republican activists in the 24th Congressional District should not be excused for having short memories. Elton Gallegly's last-minute decision to retire caused havoc in the ranks and exposed his lack of knowledge of election law. Yet he apparently retains the support of those to whom he failed to give advance notice of his desire to retire. How considerate of him.
Gallegly's career has run its course. Even he knows it. Why have a lame duck when there is a much better alternative? Is there a commandment that one must always vote for the incumbent even if the incumbent is incompetent or incapacitated?
Michael Tenenbaum will provide a much needed infusion of energetic action, expertise in legislative, constitutional and international law and the intelligence to understand and dissect complex issues. Tenenbaum has the ability to make good decisions that will benefit the 24th Congressional District, our state and our great country. He has a history of success, and there is every reason to believe that it will continue. Gallegly may shy away from "press conferences" and send someone else to sing his praises. Tenenbaum will not shy away from challenges.
Michael Tenenbaum stands tall, strong and confident in his commitment to give our community the effective representation we deserve in Congress.
— Clarence DeVoe, Newbury Park
Posted by Andrea Howry at 01:32 PM
Mexico's hypocrisy
Re: Frank Moraga's April 14 essay, “Counting every ballot”:
I read Mr. Moraga's commentary in the Ventura County Star and must take issue.
A bill is needed that makes English the official language of all business, commerce and politics in the United States. Every citizen involved in the political process should be able to speak and read English well enough to understand the issues presented on any ballot; otherwise, they should not be voting.
I support free English classes to anyone who wishes to attend so that they can fully participate in this democracy, rather than allowing a Balkanization of the United States. Unity is achieved by the use of a common language for politics, law and commerce, and in the United States, that language is English. It is fine to maintain one's native language for personal correspondence, family ties and culture, and this is something that should always be respected.
It is very easy to solve the immigration problem: Simply enforce the current laws on the books. The 1986 Reagan Amnesty bill contains federal penalties for hiring illegal aliens. Because of the Bush administration's traitorous decision to ignore the current laws, no company has been charged with these statutes in almost six years - not that Bill Clinton or George Bush Sr. were any better. All of them have allowed special interests wanting cheap labor to define the agenda.
The United States does not need more uneducated, unskilled workers. If the United States does decide to have a guest worker program, then Mexico needs to also respond in kind with an equal program for U.S. citizens, allowing them access to jobs in medicine, high technology, business and other areas that Mexico is lacking.
The hypocrites in Mexico crying about enforcement and mistreatment of their citizens have no problem repatriating Guatamalans, Nicaraugans, Chinese and, most importantly, American citizens. Any citizen in Mexico can do a citizen's arrest and have any alien deported, without any due process. In addition, aliens in Mexico have no rights to involve themselves in the political process, to protest or ever run for political office. If illegal immigrants protested in Mexico City the same way the illegal immigrants protested in the United States, they would have been arrested and immediately deported, without due process. Alien children born in Mexico are not automatically granted citizenship, nor are they entitled to free education and healthcare paid by taxpayers.
Until Mexico corrects this hypocrisy, the United States should not provide the relief valve needed to maintain the current rule of the rich and selfish families of Mexico. If Mexico modernized its economy, they could easily provide a good living for all of its citizens.
Vicente Fox has no business lecturing the United States about its treatment of Mexican citizens when it treats the alien residents in Mexico - as well as its own citizens - so poorly.
- Dan Shapiro,
Thousand Oaks
Posted by Andrea Howry at 01:18 PM
Immigrants need screening
I think The Star is "slanting the news" to appeal to the large Hispanic population in Ventura County.
Warm and fuzzy articles about illegal alien successes and cartoons aimed at making persons opposed to the current massive illegal invasion of the country look bigoted doesn't help an educated and informed public.
People like me who are upset about the recent demonstrations — which, in less than a week, miraculously changed from Mexican flags and the burning of the American flag to substantially American-only flags and “We want to say the Pledge of Allegiance” — are not anti-immigration as The Star would have the public believe.
The problem is the universal substitution by the media and the politicians of the inappropriate word "undocumented" (a neutral word indeed) for the word "illegal."
My ilk object to the presence in this country of illegal aliens and especially illegal aliens who demand to be legitimized and to receive the benefits of citizenship as a "reward" for their being so clever as to disregard our laws and customs.
At one time, I was a Foreign Service officer of the United States, a vice consul, stationed in Genoa, Italy. My job was issuing visas. The laws underlying the issuing of visas are designed to screen out immigrants with insufficient skill or substance to assure that they do not become a burden on the city, state or county where they decide to reside. They also are designed to screen out criminals and persons with infectious diseases.
At the time I was a visa-issuing officer, the system also limited the number of immigrants to the proportion of immigrants of the past from any given country of birth. I can assure you that Mexican citizens can pass these tests and can receive visas. However, the vast number of illegal aliens in this country, Mexican and otherwise, has not been screened, and most probably do not meet these standards. They should not be here.
— Dick Hawley, Thousand Oaks
Posted by Andrea Howry at 01:01 PM
Say no to more big boxes
Re: your April 14 article, “Developer to seek voter approval for project”:
I was saddened to see this article, but not surprised. It was too good to be true that Rotkin Real Estate Group would accept the fact that they are not needed nor wanted in Westlake Village.
What I find interesting is that Westlake Village United wanted it to go to ballot and Rotkin Real Estate Group was adamantly opposed. What do they have up their sleeves now?
First, let’s get the facts straight. The Star claims Rotkin wanted approval for the development of a restaurant and retail center featuring a Lowe’s home improvement store. The only thing presented before the council was the development of a 168,700-square-foot retail center. There was nothing that indicated the builder was required to build the other “restaurant and retail center.” It was just a ploy to get the zoning changed and nothing more. Thank God two of the council people had the common sense to see through the smoke and mirrors.
Then Chuck Rotkin says he has had people stop him on the street to voice their approval. Chuck lives in Newport Beach! Does he come to Westlake Village on weekends to walk his dog and have conversations with the residents?
This is the wrong place to put a big box. The small businesses that will be put under by another corporate conglomerate is yet another matter. They don’t care about our fair city other than wanting more money for themselves. The City of Westlake says it needs the tax dollars — what, so they can spend more money on expensive copper boats on stack stone entrances? Remember, greed and gluttony are two of the seven deadly sins.
How many can honestly look at the north side of the freeway and say they’re happy with all the development and traffic? It’s already a nightmare, and all of the new buildings haven’t even opened. Please join me in voting against this bloated bureaucratic bunch.
— Cheryl Tabbi, Westlake Village
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:53 PM
Incomplete boycott
May 1 is the planned "Day Without an Immigrant" boycott by illegal immigrants here in the United States. They plan to boycott work, thus showing how many menial jobs they provide cheap labor for. They plan to boycott our stores, thus showing how much money they provide for the economy. I am fine with this tactic.
I have one suggestion: Please boycott our hospitals, schools, jails and highways.
Let us see what our healthcare system would be like without an overcrowded emergency room full of illegal immigrants using it as a free clinic to treat non-emergency ailments. Let us see what it would be like to have people whom the hospital actually expects to pay for treatment. I wonder if the costs for health insurance would drop.
Let us see what it would be like to reduce the size of our classrooms. Let us see what it would be like to have to spend taxpayer dollars to teach in English only. Let us see if our schools’ test score averages increase.
Let us see what it would be like to not be victimized by an illegal immigrant and then have to pay for the incarceration of that illegal immigrant. The Los Angeles County jail system would be alleviated of thousands of inmates. Those incarcerated might actually do 100 percent of their sentences rather than the 10 percent they have been doing.
Let us see what our highways would be like. Let us see if traffic is reduced without their presence. Let us see if the number of unlicensed, uninsured, unqualified motorists drops and the number of traffic collisions also drops proportionately. Maybe our car insurance rates would see a decrease as a result.
Maybe the May 1 "Day Without an Immigrant" boycott should be encouraged so the rest of the citizens can fully appreciate what benefits and burdens illegal immigration creates.
— Stephen T. Rotella, Agoura Hills
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:42 PM
April 17, 2006
Just say no to the GOP
Over the past few months, we’ve read editorials and heard talking heads on TV and radio complaining that the administration seems not to have an “exit strategy” for our troops in Iraq. It is clear to me, and has been for some time, that there is a good reason for this: the administration doesn’t ever intend to exit Iraq.
We are building permanent bases in Iraq that will house our troops for decades. We are building the world’s largest embassy complex in Baghdad, one which is hundreds of times larger than necessary to house an ambassador and his entire entourage, both military and civilian.
And make no mistake, before the election of 2008, if not that of 2006, this administration will engage us in another preemptive war, possibly in Iran. By doing so, and by playing on our fears, they hope to keep the Republicans in power indefinitely.
We have only one way out of this madness. Unless you really like what has gone on over the past four years — ordering the United Nations inspectors out so that we could invade Iraq on trumped-up charges, sanctioning torture of human beings at the highest levels of the administration, warrantless wiretapping of who knows who, massive federal deficits, character assassination of any and all who disagree with administration policy, leaking of classified information by the president himself, corruption at the highest levels — regardless of your political affiliation, I hope you will join me in voting to put every Republican politician out of office in November.
Vote out every Republican in the state of California, including Audra Strickland, all the way up to and including the governator, and each and every Republican senator and representative in Washington. It is the only way to stop this madness.
— Patrick S. O’Malley, Oxnard
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:26 PM
Junk food for the soul
It was recently stated that we have 10 years to fix the global warming problem or we reach a point of no return. Our society is preoccupied with the effect of pollution on the body, but how much thought is given to the pollution that affects the human soul?
Plato and Aristotle argue that the young in society are most effectively molded towards virtue or vice through the music to which they listen. Music imitates human emotions. Good music which may imitate emotions of anger and despair always ends by resolving these emotions tranquilly. Bad music imitates these same emotions but provides no resolution, kindling anger, lust and despair beyond measure.
We regulate the auto industry on the amount of emission permissible, but in the name of free speech, we place no restrictions on the productions of the music industry. We are fastidious in making sure we don’t smoke in someone else’s airspace, but we play our music at work and at home as loud as we please without regard to those we force to tolerate it. I find it particularly offensive that music — and bad music — is played everywhere: in the grocery store, at the mall, at restaurants, in the schools, at doctor’s offices and now at the new Ventura Aquatic Center. The type of music played is something our society wouldn't have tolerated 50 years ago. I haven't even mentioned the lyrics that insinuate themselves into the hearts of our youth as a medicine to soothe their ever-changing emotions.
Our modern society is fixated on the optimal health of the body and pays virtually no attention to the health of the soul. I wonder if there may also be a point of no return for a society. By continually neglecting the food we daily feed to our souls, we may one day lose the blessings of civilized life and become barbaric.
— Edward Wassell, Fillmore
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:16 PM
Board did right thing
Re: your April 14 article, “County board OKs charter school plan”:
Congratulations to the founding teachers and parents of the School of Arts and Global Education on the unanimous approval of their charter petition by the Ventura County Board of Education.
As a parent of a current Open Classroom and future SAGE student, I am delighted. Dealing with Superintendent Charles Weis and the county board members was such a pleasant experience. They treated all of us with respect, listened carefully to what we had to say, and gave the petition the thoughtful consideration it deserved.
Finally, there will be a choice in public education.
— Lonna Radford, Ventura
Posted by Andrea Howry at 12:03 PM
Deficit figures don’t add up
Re: your April 13 article, “U.S trade deficit improves”:
Wow! Some great economic news, or is it? On closer examination, if one does a little math, the figures come out quite different.
For starters, January has three more days than February. If you divide January’s trade deficit of $68.7 billion by 31, you come out with $2.216 billion in trade deficit a day. If you divide February’s trade deficit of $65.7 billion by 28, you come out with $2.346 billion in trade deficit a day. So, in reality, the trade deficit increased 5.8 percent in February.
To top that off, I have a hard time understanding how adding $65.7 billion to a credit card is an improvement. It makes one wonder why the press and federal government are throwing smoke and mirrors on these economic figures instead of dealing with reality.
— Dan Whelan, Ventura
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:49 AM
What mess are we leaving?
The fact that many of the residents of Ventura County and of our country are illegal immigrants comes as no surprise to many. What is surprising is that people are acting as if they are surprised. We have never had regulations with any enforcement, and to close the gate after the cow is gone seems pretty silly.
What people don’t seem to know about unbridled population growth is that it makes the land less hospitable for wildlife. We need laws that take into account the carrying capacity of the land.
Take the water supply, for instance. As it is, fertilizer, nitrogen and phosphorus runoff is leaching to our oceans and resulting in algal blooms. These are blooming a deadly neurotoxin that is killing sea mammals and, most recently, endangered brown pelicans. What we don't know can hurt us and the native wildlife.
I have lived in Ventura since 1979 and, as our population goes up, the quality of life goes down. People who can are leaving the area, but what about the animals? My grandmother came here legally, learned the language and became a citizen through a process.
What is right about Canada’s immigration policies? They require a lot of education and an in-demand occupation. Not to sound mean or Republican, though they seem to be the same to some, but what about Mexicans helping their country evolve and grow into a place like the United States, where there are unions and environmental protections? Or are those ideals a thing of the past? Try buying land in Mexico if you are not a citizen.
Are we educating our children properly or just dumbing up about the real issues? What kind of mess are we leaving them?
— Maryanne deGoede, La Conchita
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:36 AM
Common sense needed
Immigration reform is finally getting the attention it needs. Unfortunately, as is often typical with elected “politicians,” their focus is on avoidance of alienating one voting bloc or another. Seldom do we ever get a comprehensive solution to complex problems. Instead, in real life, we make slight course corrections to determine a cause and effect. That is what we need here: a bit of common sense.
The first thing we need, and one I think a majority of Americans supports, is border security. If you came home after a weekend away and found that a water pipe had burst, what would your first action be? I don’t think it would be to try to clean up the mess with the water still pouring out from the burst pipe; instead, you would go to the water source and shut it off. That is what we need. Let’s turn the spigot off first. Secure our borders, north and south. Control who comes into the country from this day forward. Control how they may enter the country. Control how long they may stay.
Once we have experienced success at controlling what is now unfettered access into our country, we can focus on the dilemma of what to do about those present in our country who entered in violation of our country’s laws.
— David Tennessen, Camarillo
Posted by Andrea Howry at 11:35 AM
Rethink Surfers Point
Re: your April