News Articles

Last night I saw a story on the KPCC Website entitled No fun: L.A. county beaches to levy $1,000 fine for throwing footballs and Frisbees. Because KPCC is my local NPR affiliate and a trusted news source I assumed this was true. KCAL which is a less trusted, but trusted site nonetheless ran a similar story.

I trusted these news sources and became agitated. Los Angeles does NOT need to lose any of it’s tourism dollars. We cannot afford this sort of debacle. So I picked up the phone.

Tony Bell who is with the LA County Board of Supervisors assures me that county is not banning football or Frisbee playing on the beach. The real story is that there was an existing law in place that banned all sorts of play on public beaches and that it was recently revised. Essentially this is a modification to an existing law wherein IF you are playing ball or frisbee on the beach and the ball is repeatedly hitting people on the head or presenting danger the Lifeguard can issue you a warning — and then, if you don’t stop, you could receive a fine of up to $100. — NOT $1000!

A local news outlet ran the story without fact checking and the public was led to believe that there would be a thousand dollar fine for kids playing football.

I called the County Offices, less as a blogger and more as a ticked off citizen, starting with “I’m pissed.” and I got the above explanation. Further there will be motions on Tuesday that will eliminate some of the poorly worded language so the public can be assured that the beaches are, in fact, for families.

In reality someone presenting that sort of hazard could probably also be arrested for battery.

It seems that this is much ado about not that nothing, and in the future I will be sure to fact check even when reputable journalists break the story. I cannot over emphasize how disappointing it is to have been the first person to call the city and ask for details.

On Tuesday there will be a motion to reword some of this.

The following is the text of the ordinances that seem to be confusing are below. Out of context they appear to be rather Draconian. In context they appear to be written in legalese, which as we know is not meant to be easily deciphered.

UPDATE: Here’s another blogger who gets it.

Susan G. Komen Foundation reverses decision to end grants to Planned Parenthood

This is the Yahoo Headline. It’s followed by few words, because really the headline IS the story. I don’t like the pinkification of a disease that ravages women, it ravages more than their breasts, though the breasts are what people love to discuss.

The question remains: is the damage done? Is it just too late to get everyone back?

I think it is.

There was never any controversy about the Walther P-22 handgun that benefitted the Susan G Komen marketing machine. Why? Well, because like abortions handguns are legal.

The question I’d like to ask of all of you is how you’ll spend that time. You see the Susan G Komen Foundation didn’t just steal your money and spend it suing other non profits who are actively seeking cures for cancer, they stole your time.

All that time spent walking, training and fundraising. My question to you is this:

How will you use that time to benefit women in your own backyard? It could prove to be quite valuable.

UPDATE: Folks keep asking if this is a real gun. Yes, it is… you know the saying, “Some comedy writes itself.”

UPDATE: The Susan G Komen foundation also stopped funding embryonic stem cell research centers. If you think for a single solitary second that SGK cares about the health of women you are wrong.  

From the Pasadena Star News we find out that  Assemblyman Tim Donnelly spent black Friday bribing constituents with the chance of winning a gift card.

Assemblyman Tim Donnelly, R-Hesperia, tried to make the most of the spend-and-save frenzy on Black Friday – urging “patriots” to sign his petition to repeal the California DREAM Act.

Promising that the effort can “put money back in the taxpayers’ pockets,” Donnelly also plied constituents with the chance to win a $505 gift card from Target or Best Buy.

“To qualify this measure for the ballot, we must engage in `retail politics’ – literally,” Donnelly wrote on his petition campaign website.

AB 131, the meatier part of the California DREAM Act recently signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown, allows some undocumented students to qualify for government funding, after documented students are served.

Donnelly held a Black Friday drive at the Colonies in Rancho Cucamonga to collect signatures and is now urging people to mail their signatures in by midnight on Monday.

Donnelly has until Jan. 6, to submit nearly 505,000 petition signatures to county election officials, according to the Secretary of State.

Read more:http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/news/ci_19413163#ixzz1f24g7EhC

I understand that not everyone likes the Dream Act, but the fact of the matter is that it has been signed into law.

As an FYI the Dream Act allows the children of undocumented migrants to attend college in California. You can protest all you want but the undocumented are here and they are part of the beautiful fabric of my community.

I’m not an attorney, much to my father’s chagrin, I’m a blogger. Are there any attorneys who can confirm that this is an illegal action?

I won’t be camping out at Occupy Los Angeles any time soon, but I appreciate the people who do. I was down there several weeks ago with my camera and I’ve been there a few times since then. It’s an interesting crowd full of thinkers, free spirits, frustrated young adults, politicians and pseudo intellectuals.

Occupy Wall Street is also important because it’s a symbol of both all that is wrong and all that is right in America. Occupy Wall Street exists in large part because we bailed out banks that behaved criminally. We tried to salvage them and their horrible business practices. Now billionaire bankers have been made whole, but my husband’s 401k is reduced by 40%. He worked his ass off to make that money and to secure a nice retirement for himself. Because of thievery there will be less to retire with.

I am aware of the fact that we are lucky that retirement is a word we can even consider, but we are far from the 1%. There have been no big raises, there were two years of sleepless nights during wave after wave of layoffs. Our neighbors have lost their homes and our home has lost significant value.

I am not complaining about my lifestyle. It’s nice, and I’m content. But when I look at the 401k and how it’s been bludgeoned I want to scream and pick up a sign. When I look at college costs soaring I feel terribly for young adults but at the same time I want to shake them and say “I went to a Community College it was excellent. The teachers were devoted and you can afford it.” My brother went to Santa Monica Community College and then to UCLA, guess which one had better professors? If you guessed Santa Monica you’d be correct.

But this is neither here nor there. Everyone deserves an education. We provide free school through high school with varying degrees of quality. California used to have some of the best schools in the nation. That’s just not the case any longer. Our state schools are also getting more expensive every day.

The kids at Occupy Cal joined hands and were protesting rate hikes and their bleak economic future. As empowered citizens they were exercising their right to free speech.

Today, on Veteran’s Day, we honor those who gave their time, their health and sometimes their lives so that Americans could speak freely and congregate peaceably. Today, on Veteran’s Day, I wanted to feel like I lived in the greatest country in the world. The country that would allow my children to chase their dreams.

Instead today I saw this.

You can see part two here (it is MUCH more objectionable).

When we see footage like this in other countries we scream POLICE STATE and send in the troops. I challenge you all to rethink what is happening in America. I challenge you all to post videos like these and to support the Freedoms that our Veterans fought so hard to protect.

This is a horrendous video, it’s one of the worst things I’ve seen online.

I think it’s also important that we see it. The description reads:

2004: Aransas County Court-At-Law Judge William Adams took a belt to his own teenage daughter as punishment for using the internet to acquire music and games that were unavailable for legal purchase at the time. She has had ataxic cerebral palsy from birth that led her to a passion for technology, which was strictly forbidden by her father’s backwards views. The judge’s wife was emotionally abused herself and was severely manipulated into assisting the beating and should not be blamed for any content in this video. The judge’s wife has since left the marriage due to the abuse, which continues to this day, and has sincerely apologized and repented for her part and for allowing such a thing, long before this video was even revealed to exist. Judge William Adams is not fit to be anywhere near the law system if he can’t even exercise fit judgement as a parent himself. Do not allow this man to ever be re-elected again. His “judgement” is a giant farce. Signed, Hillary Adams, his daughter.

I’m putting it behind the fold. If you know someone who is being abused don’t stay silent.

In the US and Canada you can call 1-800-4-A-CHILD if you are being abused or know a child who is. You don’t have to be an adult to make the call. Someone will listen.

To reiterate, this is a shocking and disturbing video, but some of us need to be shocked and disturbed to be willing to take action.

Act.

(more…)

Well that went well. Dr. Ari Brown spat out the words Mommy Blogger a few times with a little more disdain that Sister Susan uses for syphilis or satan. James Steyer was magnificent at promoting his website and chastised me more than once for arguing the science.

Because ya know I’m like Michelle Bachman if I argue the quality of the science. Yet I do question the quality of the science.

We talked about how low income kids watch more TV and it might not be children’s programming. Perhaps because it’s less safe to play outside? I’m thinking that’s true in the cities, but not every low income home is urban. I strongly suspect that with NPR talking about less screen time for children (particularly in the San Francisco Bay Area) it’s preaching to the choir.

There was great concern at the top of the hour about apps, smart phones and computers, but that wasn’t discussed. Lesli Rotenberg joined us as a representative of Sesame Street and everyone fell head over heels. She might as well have been Grover. Who doesn’t love Sesame Street?

The discussion on KQED’s own site centered around the fact that these families had screen free homes. Irony anyone?

I’m tired of of women like Dr. Ari Brown who have an agenda that is dismissive of real life. It’s exhausting to me that folks think that because you’re a blogger you’re uneducated. It’s tiring to hear from the “experts”, as new media has evolved I’ve seen the curtain pulled back and much like the Wizard of Oz there are often tiny men with big megaphones.

Your infants and TV? The AAP’s recommendations are sound. Limit media.

Okay, got it? Limit media. Houses with TVs on all day? You suck, the AAP says so and I totally agree with them.

Don’t give your one year old your iPhone… well odds are are 1 in 6 that there’s fecal matter on it already.

The recommendations suggest nesting cups or wooden spoons. You should totally use these toys for your kids while you’re milking the cows and churning your butter.

I understand that people worry about too much media. There was a time that lawmakers were concerned about radios in cars.

I also know that there is a richness in new media. Good content should not be ignored and Bugs Bunny won’t make your child violent, he simply will not. If a Baby Einstein video introduces your infant to Mozart and a Brainy Baby DVD teaches them colors go for it. Also if you think your child doesn’t have to be learning every single second of their day, you might be right too.

UPDATE: Here is the podcast.