Feinstein Knows Best… As for the much ballyhooed Dianne Feinstein “hearing” in San Diego on Tuesday, during which she lectured local officials on how to properly prepare for and ultimately fight fires …you know, she may be right about some of her charges, but mostly for the wrong reasons.
Anyone actually believing that having the title of U.S. Senator means one knows more about firefighting than local officials (or firefighters), I sure would like to hear your position on all firefighting services being administered at the Federal level. Now, there’s a proposal that would ensure more efficient delivery of public safety services.
Before anyone follows Di-Fi’s lead and raises taxes for more firefighting capabilities, please do tell where all our Prop 172 funds are currently going.
Additionally, the phrase often missing in these post wildfire debates is “defensible space.” Once again, just as in 2003, a direct link exists between defensible space around a home and whether the structure survived. It’s not perfect, of course, but there is a significant correlation. Just ask a firefighter. Senator Feinstein, please show us some more policies allowing removal of dry brush and undergrowth on both public and private lands, and then – maybe – you’ll be respected enough as a firefighting leader to dole out advice to my local representatives. In the meantime, if wacked-out enviro-emotionalism continues to control your policy-making decisions in this regard, then keep your beak out.
Of course, the irony of ironies in all this, once again, is that the enviro-extremists demand that we don’t touch anything, so as to protect the ecosystem, and – surprise, surprise – just look at the ecosystem now. Don’t worry, in time it will grow back.
SB 777 Lawsuit and Local Ties… The gender-whatever "let’s take our confusion from the bedroom to the locker room" bill is the basis of a federal lawsuit filed in San Diego this week against Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jerry Brown, and Jack O’Connell. The complaint was filed by Advocates for Faith & Freedom and the Alliance Defense Fund. Part of the press release:
In direct response to California Senate Bill 777, Advocates for Faith and Freedom filed a lawsuit today (11/27/07) with the Federal District Court, San Diego, on behalf of the California Education Committee, LLC, a project of California Family Council. The lawsuit challenges SB 777 on the basis that it is unconstitutionally vague and violates the privacy of all students, teachers, and other persons present on school campuses.
In October, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed SB 777 into law, which will become effective January 11, 2008. SB 777 changed the definition of “gender” under the California Education Code. "Gender" now means “sex,” and includes a person’s gender identity and gender related appearance and behavior whether or not stereotypically associated with the person’s assigned sex at birth. In short, you are what you think you are regardless of your anatomical make-up.
Priscilla Schreiber, president of the Grossmont Union High School District (right here in East SD County), is also a plaintiff. Parties listed in the complaint additionally include Grossmont trustees Jim Kelly, Rob Shield and Larry Urdahl. That’s four out of the five trustees…a slight digression, but given the animosity between some of these folks in recent years, it’s good to see them all on the same page here.
At any rate, Robert Tyler, General Counsel for Advocates for Faith and Freedom, responded to me that the filing at the Federal level over State legislation with State Ed Code references is appropriate, given the constitutional issues, specifically the Fourteenth Amendment.
We will watch this with interest, as well as the ongoing attempt to qualify a referendum on SB 777.
More:
SB 777
Press Release
Complaint
Advocates for Faith & Freedom
Alliance Defense Fund
California Family Council
Grossmont Union High School District – School Board
Children’s Pool Has its Fate Sealed… The ongoing debate as to whether seals should have exclusive swimming rights in La Jolla’s famed "Childrens Pool" was decided this past week by the California Supreme Court. Some excerpts from a press release:
The Court today (11/28/07) denied City Attorney Mike Aguirre’s petition to review the unanimous ruling of all previous courts to restore the contaminated La Jolla Children’s Pool for human use.
This order requires the City to: restore the Children’s Pool to its 1941 condition and reduce the level of water contamination to levels safe for humans within six months; (and) file a report within sixty days to demonstrate compliance with the order.
It is now clear that the City must act to remedy the situation caused by the large number of seals at Childrens Pool. Keeping the Children’s Pool as a seal reserve is no longer an option.
In case you’re missing the meaning of "water contamination," that means seal poop. Any humans that risk their health in the contaminants have also risked the scourge of seal-only activists that have done just about anything to keep children away from the Childrens Pool, figuring I assume that it’s a crappy job but someone has to do it. I swam here as a kid, with seals around, and we all got along fine. Only when the activists got involved, allowing an imbalance between humans and seals (read: no humans), did the ocean pool become unsafe for either species.
Somehow, I’m no longer hungry for breakfast…and it’s too cold for a swim.
Have a great week!
December 3rd, 2007 at 12:00 am
In between the SB 777 referendum and the lawsuit, you’d think the Governor might get a clue, albeit too late. Kudos to those willing to put up a fight on this.