READER’S EDITORIAL: WE MUST REFORM OUR LAWS TO REVIVE THE AMERICAN DREAM, ECONOMY AND MIDDLE-CLASS
“The most perfect political community is one in which the middle class is in control, and outnumbers both of the other classes.”– Aristotle (384 BCE – 322 BCE) By Pat Zaharopoulos February 28, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) — A healthy democracy must have a strong middle class because the middle class stabilizes a nation and also helps its economy by buying the products made by those with capital. But in today’s America, the rich are getting richer, the middle class is shrinking, poverty is raising and young Americans can no longer attain the American Dream. We need a taxpayer-middle class revolt to restore a better balance of income, benefits and taxation. The gulf between the richest 1% and the rest of the USA is the widest it has ever been in our history (with the top 1% getting 86% of the real income growth during recent periods while, the earnings of the 99% rose 6.6%). The top 1% has a mean income of $1,318,200 and a net worth of $16,439,400. At the height of the stock market bubble in 2000, executives made 531 times what the average factory worker did (in U.K., the ratio is 22; in France, it’s 15; and in Germany it’s 12 and it was 42 times in the USA in 1960). Why are our rich gaining faster than those of other nations? They get government assistance, pay lower taxes on income, lay off employees at will and CEO salaries are enourmous and secret. Taxpayers not only bailed out big banks and corporations after they sunk the economy, the government routinely gives them loop-holes and subsidies. If you made $50,000 last year, your taxes paid $4,000 in corporate subsidies, compared to $246.75 for defense and $6.36 for welfare. Unless ordinary Americans demand reforms such as transaction taxes on Wall Street, higher minimum wages tied to cost of living, the same tax rate on capital gains as on wages and social security deducted from all income without a lid–the rich will continue to get richer and the rest will continue to get poorer. By voting based on whatever the big contributors tell us in their TV ads and by not demanding reform from our representatives, we have forfeited our power and left government to lobbyists and campaign contributors. It’s no wonder the system is stacked against us and the middle class is shrinking. It is vital to both our democracy and economy that we restore a large middle-class and upward social mobility so Americans can work themselves out of poverty. In “Two American Families,” Bill Moyers documents the 21 year struggle of two hard working middle class families to make ends meet during a period of record profits. As the middle class shrank, Moyers opined, Americans’ no longer believe that their elected officials are on their side because the shrinking is due to the “engineered inequality” of the last 30 years. That inequality was created when the owners of capital decided to reduce labor costs and destroy unions– with the help of our elected officials from both parties. As Americans lost manufacturing jobs that paid about $20 an hour, they retrained for jobs paying $7 or $8 an hour and both parents had to work. Sometimes, one parent worked days and the other nights to reduce child care costs. They worked overtime and some got second jobs. Despite all their efforts, they barely survived during the prosperity of or the 1980s. Lay offs, closures, a constant hunt for permanent higher paying jobs or more hours to get benefits –left workers changing jobs, without savings. This meant no retirement. By the 1990s, many lost their homes to foreclosure and the middle class was shrinking faster. Contributions and lobbying by financial services industry are in the billions and their people are appointed to cabinet positions to make policy. Between 1974 and 1990, the average cost of running for Congress went from $56,500 to $410,000; then, tripled to $1,250,000 from1990 to 2006. Huge contributions buy influence and access resulting in the power to control legislation. Consequently, the burden of income taxes has shifted from corporations to individuals. In 1952, 32% of federal revenue came from corporate America while today, less than 10% does and this is only one example.. Are both parties owned by the 1%? Yes–because one third of the $7.3 billion spent in the campaigns of 2012 came from only 138,000 people. That’s why ordinary citizens must become activists advocating for reform and making it socially unacceptable to have severe poverty, no healthcare coverage for millions of working Americans or wages so low that a family with two full time working parents cannot pay for housing, feed and educate its children and work its way out of poverty. We must raise middle class participation in government to overcome the influence of corporations and the wealthiest contributors. Pat Zaharopoulos, a retired attorney, is CEO of Middle-Class Taxpayers and volunteers at 3 other nonprofits. The opinions in this editorial reflect the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of East County Magazine. To submit an editorial for consideration, contact editor@eastcountymagazine.org.
PUPPY SOCIAL HOUR MARCH 3 AT CAMP BOW WOW
March 1, 2014 (El Cajon) – Bring your new puppy to Camp Bow Wow in El Cajon on Monday, March 3rd for a puppy socialization hour. Puppies from 10 weeks to 4 months old can romp around with each other in an indoor play yard. The puppy social starts at 7 pm and ends at 8 pm. You will have a chance to meet Behavior Buddies trainer. RSVP is required Call or email Nikki to register today! (619) 448-WOOF (9663) nikki.shegogue@campbowwow.com Next Puppy Basic Obedience class will be starting on Monday, March 10th from 7:00-8:00pm at Camp Bow Wow. Get a head start on good doggie manners, help socialize your puppy, and gain valuable information to help with all of those fun puppy issues!.Information will be available at the Puppy Social Hour or you may contact Nikki anytime.
GRANITE HILLS HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER UNDER INVESTIGATION
February 28, 2014 (El Cajon) – El Cajon Police Department has confirmed that it is investigating allegations of potentially inappropriate behavior by a Granite Hills High School teacher involving students. The behavior is alleged to have occurred the previous school year. “This is an on-going investigation to determine if any criminal activity has occurred. In order to protect the integrity of the investigation, details about the allegations will not be released at this time,” said Lt. Mike Moulton. The Granite Hills High School employee involved in the investigation is not currently working at the school.
STORM CAUSES COLLISIONS, DOWNED TREES, AND POWER OUTAGES
March 1, 2014 (San Diego) — The storm that surged across our region Friday resulted in many accidents. California Highway Patrol reports 514 collisions during just 24 hours on Friday, far more than the normal 50 to 75 crashes on good weather days. Those statistics include San Diego County and Temecula to the north. That included a multi-car crash on I-8 near Lake Jennings and a serious crash that briefly blocked Highway 67 near Slaughterhouse Canyon in Lakeside. Across the county there were numerous reports of trees down and debris and flooding obstructing roadways, adding to motorists’ woes. Basketball-sized boulders were reported on Skyline Truck Trail near Lyons Valley Road yesterday. SDG&E also kept busy dealing with multiple power outages including one in Ramona, where several power poles were knocked down. DPW crews have also been working long hours clearing blocked roads and ploughing snow. Outages were reported across the county, including these East County communities: Borrego Springs, Shelter Valley, Canebrake, Julian, Kentwood In The Pines and Banner. Power is expected to be restored by Sunday in these areas. In some areas, several inches of rain fell in a brief period, with more expected today. If traveling in mountain areas at higher elevations, be prepared for the possibility of chains required on snowy roads. The County posts requirements for chains and other helpful information for drivers at www.Facebook.com/SDCountyDPW.
SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT TO UPGRADE AERIAL FLEET
County News Service February 28, 2014 (San Diego) — A new Sheriff’s Department helicopter could serve double duty, helping both law enforcement and firefighters. The Bell 407 GX helicopter the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department wants to add to its aerial fleet could also support local fire departments with fire suppression efforts. Tuesday, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors approved a request by the department’s Aerial Support to Regional Enforcement Agencies (ASTREA) unit to purchase a Bell 407 GX. The department identified a need for another helicopter in 2010 due to increased calls for aerial support, and began setting money aside In 2011, the unit had 1,988 calls for service. By last year, those calls had increased notably to 2,425, according to Sheriff’s staff. The new helicopter will increase the department’s aerial fleet to eight helicopters, and improve its ability to assist with firefighting. Currently, ASTREA has two Bell 205 helicopters primarily used for firefighting, a Bell 407 helicopter which can be used for both firefighting and law enforcement operations, and four smaller MD helicopters for law enforcement support which includes search and rescue operations.
BODY OF KAYAKER MISSING ON LAKE SUTHERLAND FOUND
Update March 2, 2014: The body of the missing fisherman has been found, ECM has learned. March 1, 2014 (Ramona) – A search and rescue effort is underway at Lake Sutherland, where a kayar was found floating upside down at 5:20 p.m. in the Ramona lake. According to Lt. Dave Schaller with the Sheriff’s office, the kayak is believed to be owned by a 55-year-old man who frequents the lake for fishing and is known to employees at the lake. Deputies check the shoreline areas and requested help from th e Sheriff’s ASTREA helicopters. When the man was still not located, Sheriff’s Search and Rescue and San Diego City Life Guards were called into the lake, which is a City of San Diego Reservoir. “This is an active search, which is expected to continue through the night,” Lt. Schaller said.
SAN DIEGO’S FIRST SCHOOL TEACHER “LIVE” IN THE H. LEE HOUSE MARCH 6
February 28, 2014 (Lemon Grove)–“History Alive” will continue on Mar. 6 at 7 p.m. in the H. Lee House Cultural Center, 3205 Olive, Lemon Grove, when Vanessa Jones in period attire presents the remarkable story of Mary Chase Walker, the Massachusetts school teacher who moved to San Diego in the summer of 1865 as the Civil War was ending to helm the city’s first school in Old Town. Fresh from the horrors of the war that divided the nation, Chase Walker brought an Eastern sensibility and an eagerness to carve out a new life. She came west by ship around the Horn (no Panama Canal). En route she and an African American woman passenger became seasick. She helped her new friend recover, but lost track of her after disembarking at San Francisco. Later, they were reunited in San Diego, but when Chase Walker took her friend to lunch in a public place, scandal ensued. Parents removed their children from the Old Town school and Chase Walker had to resign. After facing dire straits as a single, jobless woman, she was hired by the school board president Ephraim Morse as a nanny-governess for his motherless children. They married some months later. Vanessa Jones will detail Chase Walker’s many adventures and interests, her cultural breadth and her observations of life in early San Diego society. The “History Alive” series is made possible in part by the Mary England Endowment for Education. Videotaping the series’ lectures is made possible by a Community Enhancement Grant from the San Diego Board of Supervisors on the recommendation of Supervisor Dianne Jacob. The “History Alive” is free and suitable for ages 13 and over. Refreshments will follow the presentation. For more information, call 619-460-4353.
PREPARE FOR POTENTIAL FLOODING
Photo credit: Tom Lemon Safety tips from the nonprofit FLASH March 1, 2014 (San Diego)–With much needed rain expected over the next few days, residents should take precautions to protect their home and family from the possibility of flooding. Eighteen to 24 inches of moving water can wash an SUV off of the road. In fact, according to the National Weather Service, more than half of all flood-related deaths are people driving through flooded roads. The nonprofit Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) reminds residents to “Turn Around, Don’t Drown!” and offers the following safety tips to protect your home from costly flood damage. Before the Flood All it takes is a few inches of water to cause major damage to your home and its contents. Clear yard of any debris, plant material or items (garden décor, foliage, or garbage cans) that can block water flow and storm drains. If time permits, secure and/or elevate outdoor appliances, AC units or storage tanks. Place important papers (birth/marriage certificates, passports, bank and insurance information) in a watertight container. Take photographs or videos to create an inventory of your personal possessions and keep the camera card handy in case of evacuation. Identify and move electronics and other expensive items (computers, televisions, phone systems, area rugs, expensive furniture) on lower levels of the home and elevate if possible to keep them dry. When using sandbags be sure to fill one-half full, fold the top of sandbag down and rest bag on its folded top. Limit sandbag placement to three layers, unless stacked up against a building or sandbags are placed in a pyramid. Tamp each sandbag into place, completing each layer prior to starting the next layer. Clear a path between buildings for debris flow and lay a plastic sheet in between the building and the bags to control the flow and prevent water from seeping into sliding glass doors. During the Flood Avoid flooded areas or those with rapid water flow. Do not attempt to cross a flowing stream. It takes only six inches of fast flowing water to sweep you off your feet. Don’t allow children to play near high water, storm drains or ditches. Hidden dangers could lie beneath the water. Flooded roads could have significant damage hidden by floodwaters. Never drive through floodwaters or on flooded roads. Water only one foot deep can float most automobiles. Be especially cautious at night when it is harder to see flooded roads. After the Flood Take photographs of damage throughout the building and around the property. Assess stability of plaster and drywall. Bulging or swelling ceilings indicate damage. Press upward on drywall ceilings. If nail heads appear, drywall will need to be re-nailed but can be saved. Check foundation for any loose or missing blocks, bricks, stones or mortar. Empty basement water at a rate of about one-third per day to avoid structural damage to foundation by rapid pressure change. Clean and disinfect heating, air conditioning and ventilation ducts before use to avoid spread of airborne germs and mold spores. Use fans and sunlight to dry out interior spaces. Remove all wet carpets, curtains and fabrics. Allow to air dry completely. To learn more about how much flooding can cost you check out this cost of flooding tool provided by FloodSmart. For more home and family safety tips visit www.protect-your-home.org or www.flash.org. About FLASH Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH)®, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, is the country’s leading consumer advocate for strengthening homes and safeguarding families from natural and manmade disasters. FLASH collaborates with more than 100 innovative and diverse partners that share its vision of making America a more disaster‐resistant nation including: BASF, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Florida Division of Emergency Management, The Home Depot®, International Code Council, Kohler® Generators, National Weather Service, Portland Cement Association, RenaissanceRe, Simpson Strong-Tie®, State Farm™, USAA® and WeatherPredict Consulting Inc. In 2008, FLASH opened the interactive weather experience StormStruck: A Tale of Two Homes® in Lake Buena Vista, FL. Learn more about FLASH and gain access to its free consumer resources by visiting www.flash.org or calling (877) 221- SAFE (7233). Also, get timely safety tips to ensure that you and your family are protected from natural and manmade disasters by subscribing to the FLASH blog – Protect Your Home in a FLASH.