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The Starting Line – California Education Issues Come Front and Center

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By Doug Porter

There’s a lull between big electoral periods right now (except for Los Angeles) and, fortunately this means there’s space available for bytes or ink with articles discussing education without the overlay of various campaigns.

The Big Issue in education since the “A Nation at Risk” study released during the Reagan administration has been reform. The changing needs of the nation’s workplaces, spurred by the revolution in technology, ran smack dab into the rising credo that argued for a smaller role for the public sector.

The word ‘reform’ has become tainted, laden with expectations or fears that private enterprise would alter the educational landscape. Three decades of interventions (and, yes, the ‘reformers’ have had many opportunities to try out their ideas) have left us only incrementally better off than we were when this entire hubbub started.

Along the way, programs not central to the theology of ‘teach to the test’ have been downgraded or discarded. Playing clarinet will not enhance your abilities to fill in bubbles on test sheets.  And earlier attempts at ‘scientifically’ updating instructional methods were conveniently forgotten. (Anybody remember the ‘New Math’?)

So it’s interesting that so many angles on the quest for a better education are in the news this week.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – GOP’s Lincoln Club Smear Campaign Suggests The “R” in Republican Stands for Racism

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By Doug Porter

Voters for the upcoming City Council runoff elections got a familiar sounding piece of mail this week. They’re getting campaign literature crafted by and credited to the Lincoln Club of San Diego, making many of the same claims made in the primary by the shadowy PAC calling itself San Diego County Voters for Progress and Reform.

Never mind that these claims have been debunked. Never mind that the group behind the original mailer tried (and failed) to fool voters into thinking the propaganda was somehow from the City of San Diego by putting an official looking logo at the top.   [Read more…]

Parts of Barrio Logan Have No Sidewalks – Does Anyone Care?

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Voice of San Diego doesn’t want to make judgment calls on that issue

By John Anderson

Voice of San Diego (VOSD) has been operating a Tumblr site featuring the damaged state of sidewalks across San Diego coined The Stumblr.  San Diegans are encouraged to send in photos from their neighborhood and the images are added to the site.  It’s a great idea to bring a public issue to light and has even received some love nationally including a nod from The Atlantic.

In preparation for our SDFP focus on Barrio Logan, fellow writer Brent Beltran noted the poor (read: non-existent) status of sidewalks in parts of the neighborhood, specifically along Harbor Drive.  Brent has a young son and mentioned he, and other Barrio residents, would like to be able to walk up to Seaport Village, the bayfront, Convention Center, and other destinations in the south-western part of Downtown.  No surprise – that area of Downtown is popular with locals and visitors alike and is a great place for a stroll, picnic, or throwing a frisbee.

I was already familiar with the area, but am usually on my bicycle and not paying particular attention to sidewalks.  I went out to specifically check out the area and take some photos.  There are large distances with nary a bit of cement sidewalk.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Koch Brothers’ Coachella Failure-fest Set for this Weekend

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By Doug Porter

This weekend (Apr 28-29) hundreds of business executives and wealthy conservative donors will descend upon the Coachella Valley, hoping to forge a strategy to turn last fall’s drubbing of conservative candidates into future victories. I imagine the crowd will be considerably different from what locals have seen over the past two weeks.

Since 2003 billionaire industrialists David and Charles Koch have been hosting regular retreats at luxury resorts seeking to focus the resources and energy of wealthy and politically ambitious conservatives in the US.

Their latest invitation-only gathering, originally scheduled for January, was postponed.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Politicians Pandering to Prejudice in Boston Marathon Bombing Case

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By Doug Porter

Now that one Boston Marathon bombing suspect is dead and another has been captured the debate on the right seems to have swung around to arguing over whether or not a trial is even needed before execution takes place.

After all, this is “terrorism” by baby-killing “Muslims”. Be afraid, they say. Be very afraid. And the only rational “fight or flight” response in the conservative mindset is more violence.

Some public officials have called for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to be tried as a military combatant rather than in civilian courts. Others have urged that torture be used, although waterboarding might not be as effective as they dream it might be, given that Tsarnaev has a hole in his throat from a failed suicide attempt.

INSIDE: Was Boston bombing Terrorism?, Koch Bid to Buy LA Times Update, Issa Takes Border Crossing Hostage, The “Other” News in Texas Last Week   [Read more…]

Boston Bombing Suspects Echo Home-Grown Terrorists in Madrid, London Attacks

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By Sebastian Rotella / ProPublica

As an eighth-grader in a Cambridge public school, suspected Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was quiet, friendly, spoke good English and seemed at home in his adopted country.

While hundreds of police officers pursued the 19-year-old during a nationally-televised rampage across Boston Friday, a former classmate recounted memories of the refugee who, according to counterterror officials, became a U.S. citizen on an ironic date: Sept. 11, 2012.

The story of the Boston bombers, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and his 26-year-old brother, Tamerlan, is still unfolding at high speed. Many aspects of the case, including the brothers’ motivations, are not yet clear.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Boston Bombing Evidence Blocked by NRA Lobbying Efforts

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By Doug Porter

Investigators pursuing forensic evidence in the Boston Marathon Bombing case have already determined that the devices used consisted of gunpowder packed into at least one pressure cooker along with pieces of metal, nails and ball bearings.

Were it not for the repeated efforts of the National Rifle Association, authorities could trace the manufacturer and possibly even the chain of custody of the gunpowder used to kill three people and injure more than 170 on Sunday.

Thanks to lobbying efforts by the NRA, explosive makers are not required to place tracing elements called taggants in gunpowder. Plastic explosives and non-gunpowder detonators are all required by law to contain these tracing elements.

On two occasions over the past five decades lawmakers attempting to mandate the use of identification taggants have run into a buzz saw of disinformation distributed by gun lobby supporters falsely claiming the  microscopic color-coded particles would somehow impair performance.

INSIDE: Pauma Organizing Drive Underway, Retribution Filner Style, Issa’s Big Campaign Stash, Gabby Giffords, Diane Feinstein & More…   [Read more…]

It’s Spring and the McKinley School Garden is the Best Kind of Green

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A Trip to the Octopus’ Garden

By Karen Kenyon

It’s a sunny day and McKinley Elementary School has a little paradise in its back lot.

No Adam and Eve — but trees and plants that bring knowledge of the earth and its abundance.

And organic, as well! Here is a garden with edible plants and seasonal flowers (lettuce, carrots, radishes, artichokes, fava beans — daisies, sweet peas, California poppies – and even a lemon tree with gorgeous lemons) all surrounded by a sea-themed mural created from broken tiles, pottery, and mirrors. Words that define the International Baccelaureate School’s values weave their way into the patterns of the mural —Respect, Tolerance, Creativity, Imagination, Curiosity….

This area, called “The Octopus’ Garden” is watched over by a large mosaic octopus whose tentacles seem to reach out to enclose visitors with a kindly hug as they enter this magical space.   [Read more…]

The Elephant in the Room: Militarism

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It’s arguably our country’s biggest problem — and the mainstream media won’t acknowledge it exists.

By Jeff Cohen / Alternet

I spent years as a political pundit on mainstream TV – at CNN, Fox News and MSNBC. I was outnumbered, outshouted, red-baited and finally terminated. Inside mainstream media, I saw that major issues were not only dodged, but sometimes not even acknowledged to exist.

Today there’s an elephant in the room: a huge, yet ignored, issue that largely explains why Social Security is now on the chopping block. And why other industrialized countries have free college education and universal healthcare, but we don’t. It’s arguably our country’s biggest problem – a problem that Martin Luther King Jr. focused on before he was assassinated 45 years ago, and has only worsened since then (which was the height of the Vietnam War).

That problem is U.S. militarism and perpetual war.   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Republicans Reject ‘Civil Rights Issue of Our Time’, Affirm Anti-Gay Marriage Stance

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By Doug Porter

At least nobody’s been arrested with hookers yet.

That’s the good news coming out of the national GOP quarterly confab going on in Hollywood, Taxifornia this weekend.

The bad news is that it appears as though the Party faithful are going to reaffirm the party’s official position that marriage should be solely between one man and one woman.

It is expected to pass overwhelmingly, proving that evangelicals and social conservatives are still a force to be reckoned with, despite pleas from establishment leaders to focus on party mechanics and stay away from social issues likely to generate negative impressions for the party.

INSIDE: More GOP #Fail, UT-SD Gets National Shout Out, Rhee Gets Unwanted Exposure, GITMO Hunger Strike, Anti-Exxon Video   [Read more…]

The Starting Line – Death by Street Planning on El Cajon Boulevard

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By Doug Porter

It was late Wednesday night on the 2800 block of El Cajon Boulevard. A 53 year old man jaywalked as he walked out from a Wendy’s fast food restaurant and was struck by a white Nissan sedan. Despite attempts by EMTs called to the scene, the man died. Police say alcohol was not a factor in the accident and that charges are unlikely to be filed against the driver of the vehicle.

This might seem like a straightforward argument against jaywalking, but it is actually indicative of a much larger problem. El Cajon Boulevard is one of the most pedestrian-unfriendly streets in San Diego.

The place where the jaywalker died lacks pedestrian crossings at nearby intersections. It’s unsafe at any speed for pedestrians and, at 40 miles per hour (the speed most people, including me, drive on EC Blvd), a pedestrian has only a 15% chance of surviving an accident.

Inside: Cindy Marten’s Laptop Stolen, Burning Down Kansas, Gun Control and Hollyweirdness   [Read more…]

Pacific Beach Planning Group and Local Residents Fight Bar Expansions

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By Sub-committee

Wednesday, April 10, Bill Allen – owner of the Crystal Pier Motel – and other residents called a press conference at the pier to help expose a simmering problem in Pacific Beach to the larger community. Allen and many other concerned residents have over the last while voiced their complaints about Scott Slaga – owner of the 710 Club (ex-Blind Melons) near the Crystal Pier – in his efforts to obtain a sidewalk encroachment variance for his establishment.

Allen and the complaining residents have issues caused, they contend, by encroachments for bars, problems such as the high crime stats and high noise impact, to lowered property values to no room on the sidewalks for people to walk to the beach.

This is all in preparation for the city council vote today, April 11, on whether or not to allow Slaga to obtain his sidewalk encroachment variance.
  [Read more…]

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