Celebrity Endorsement - Sort Of

Joss Weldon

3 [NOT] for Encinitas City Council

Ideal campaign buttons for Stocks, Muir and Forrester

Update below
The UT article with the same similar title above seemed to have some glaring errors.  Let us fix that for them. Text in brackets is provided for more accurate accounting.

In the interest of fair use rulings, only excerpts of the whole article will be used.  Feel free to play along at home with your own proofreading.  Better yet, share these missing fixes in the comments section of the posted article.

"In the crowded and hotly contested race for three seats on the Encinitas City Council, we endorse incumbent Jerome Stocks, appointed incumbent Mark Muir and candidate Kevin Forrester [because retrograde policies boost profits for an important few and these gentleman accept this without question].

• path of fiscal responsibility [based on concepts from a bygone era] and economic development [that sacrifices local resilience and strength].  
• economic vibrancy [for distant multinationals and select backers in favor of a strong economic investment locally].
• path of improved quality of life and fiscal responsibility [for a special few who he serves and who donate to his campaign]. 
• Mark Muir is a former fire chief of Encinitas and was appointed to fill the vacancy left by the death of Maggie Houlihan in late 2011 [to choose a super majority voting block over public good will].
• form the solid, pro-[big]-business majority.

Forrester would be the newcomer. He is a real-estate broker and lawyer [ubiquitous roles for retainers to the 1%] who once served on the Olivenhain Town Council and has been on several city task forces, including the Encinitas Ranch Specific Plan Task Force [the ERGA project besieged with financial land mines and shortfalls]. 

• Such planning by strangulation is anathema to improving the quality of life in Encinitas [for the overlords who direct current development goals].
• The [purposeful mislabeling as the] anti-business side of the ballot is represented by Shaffer, a business ethics lecturer at UC San Diego, and Kranz, a printing company executive who ran unsuccessfully in 2010.[Both are emphatically supportive of a strong business environment where profits, people and place are developed in Encintias]. 
• is unwelcome in a sputtering economy [according to the trickle down economics boys].  

They also oppose Proposition K, the Encinitas ballot measure that would make the city’s mayoral spot an elected one rather than an appointed one. [Well, actually rotating from member to member rather than appointing by a majority is the preference to keep with original Encinitas pattern]. 

We believe that voters have the right to choose who sits in their top city job – in the same fashion as most cities, including Oceanside, Carlsbad, Escondido and San Diego. [Ignore this statement as it is proof positive that the UT and it's writing staff are without any sense of irony. They're praising the electorate being allowed to vote choice for an undefined, unfunded new city position, but not be allowed to vote about community development]." 

Update 24 hours later:  Very pathetic that Jerome Stocks comments on the online UT post and his is the only one in agreement with UT.

Jerome Stocks · Top Commenter (what we all want to see, our mayor on lots comment threads)
It is an honor to be again endorsed by San Diego County's only daily papers. "The proof is in the pudding" as they say, and Encinitas has not been overrun by development. For the past 20 years our residential unit growth rate is 1/2 of 1% per year! Comments to the contrary are "sky is falling" boogieman bunk.

I look forward to continuing to serve the people of Encinitas and making Encinitas even better than it is.

20:1 comments articulately refuting this and the fictional achievements cited in the post. There's a good chance even more will comment.  Check back to the original post if you're curious and one yourself.

Saw a quote yesterday that seems fitting for the mayor whose ego soars despite all evidence of failure.

"Egotism is the anesthetic that dulls the pain of Stupidity" - Frank Leahy

Henri 4, L'Haunting

An interlude from the Eastern Seacoast (still not linked very little linking by leading candidates or MSM to climate change) and Politics in general.  A moment's respite.  

Why I Voted No on Proposition K

Patch Letter to the Editor / OpEd
by Councilwoman Teresa Barth

Dear Editor,

Many people have asked me about Proposition K: "Shall the electors of the City of Encinitas elect a mayor and four city council members?"

They are often surprised when I tell them I voted No on K.

As many of you know, I have experienced the petty partisanship that has occurred under the current council selected process. Yet I still believe that an annual rotation among the council members is a good system that only needs to be better defined.

By codifying the rotation, there will be certainty in the process not only for the council members but for the public and the city staff as well. I believe this will set a positive tone sending a clear message that the council is working together in the best interest of the city not their own personal agendas.

One of the arguments for Prop K is to let the voters decide. Yet we have seen in recent campaigns the strong influence of special interest money from direct contributions to slate mailers and smear campaigns. This would only intensify in a mayoral election.

Also not defined in this ballot initiative is the actual duties of an elected Mayor. The impartial analysis describes the duties as established by “custom and practice” and the performance of certain ceremonial functions. It makes the position sound almost unimportant. Not included was the very important duty of setting the meeting agenda in coordination with the city manager. Nor was there any reference to additional salary or compensation.

Even if I supported the idea of an elected Mayor, I could not support such a poorly crafted, open ended proposal.

Encinitas is a unique city formed as a collaboration of five distinct communities. I believe its council should also be a collaboration of the five distinct members.

Vote No on Propositions K.

Thank you,

Teresa Barth

Encinitas City Councilwoman

Guest Post: Olivier Canler

The official series at EYNU, Tuesday is Dues-Day is over but the habit lingers.  This still feels like a good day to dig into an issue with some depth and we've chosen to let this increasingly well known New Encinitas neighbor share his point of view.  So, today there is a guest post from Olivier Canler reprinted in it's entirety from the Patch.  Do go to the original article for the additional images posted there.

Encinitas General Plan Update and Council Election

Much has happened since the March 7 reboot of the General Plan Update. The Element Review Advisory Committee (ERAC), the General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC), the planning commission and the public workshop have been working on alternative plans. The public workshop results were presented in front of City Council. 

What we can expect from all these exercises is that the growth of high-density units will be more spread out with some "hot zones" for growth such as El Camino Real (yes it's back), Encinitas Blvd, the four corners area in Olivenhain, the strawberry fields off the I-5 Manchester Exit, various empty lots in Old Encinitas and Leucadia and what the planners call "underutilized lots" meaning agricultural or low density residential areas currently occupied by our dying agriculture and flower industry in Encinitas. One of the recommendation from the ERAC should be of concerns to all of us: This committee reached a concensus to allow zoning up to 45 units per acre (read 5 story tall buildings in Encinitas). They do add that such development would have to be context-sensitive -meaning fitting with their immediate environment—but it hard to believe that such density could not affect our community characters. 

Residents from all areas of Encinitas have started the Encinitas-Right-To-Vote Initiative which, if successful, will close a loophole in our current General Plan. This flaw allows a 4/5th majority of our council to approve density increases, and you the residents and voters of Encinitas, can't vote on this. We think that the voters in Encinitas should be allowed to vote on major up-zoning changes, typically dictated by the General plan Update. More about this initiative can be found at www.EncinitasRightToVote.com. There you'll find information about when and where you can sign this initiative. If you had enough with traffic, pollution and are concerned about the stress that added density brings to our daily lives, you need to sign the initiative. Would you rather live in Encinitas or UTC or Newport Beach? In fact 98 percent of residents according to a recent city survey like Encinitas just the way it is. 

With our council elections right around the corner, we strongly urge all residents to consider the candidates very carefully and pay attention to their views on future development in Encinitas. This is critical for the future of our town and probably the most important issue during this election. 

I attended all three forums for council candidates, and here are my recommendations: 

-Lisa Shaffer and Tony Kranz are the preferred candidates. They will listen to the residents, are concerned how the General Plan Update can change our communities, and are supporting the idea of having the community being engaged in a meaningful way in future land-use changes. They both want to maintain our beach-town character, and want to preserve open spaces and our precious natural resources. Beyond the General Plan they are very familiar with issues facing our city. They will bring fiscal responsibility to our council. 

In contrast, Jerome Stocks and Kevin Forrester are pro-growth and are backed by special interests made of developers (most are out-of-town). They have very little regards for what residents want when it comes to growth. Mr. Stocks has been quoted saying things like, "This is just a planning exercise, none of these units have to be built", or "I'll try to respect community character". Mr. Forrester, a realtor and attorney, specialized in mitigating land-use disputes, is more blunt: He does not believe the public should be involved in zoning exercises adding that these exercises are best left to the "professional planners". He wants to expedite the planning process. Here is what Mr. Forrester said to the Union-Tribune: "The biggest challenge facing the city of Encinitas is re-establishing the policy-setting role of the City Council in land-use planning, and avoiding the takeover of planning by a vocal minority of Encinitas citizens". Characterizing the people behind the Right-To-Vote Initiative as a vocal minority is offensive and a gross distorsion of the facts. In reality, most Encinitans are deeply concerned about further developments in our town. 

Both Mr. Stocks and Mr. Forrester strongly oppose the Right-To-vote initiative.
Mark Muir is all over the map when it comes to zoning changes. He takes credit for the reboot of the GPU (when the vote was unanimous and it did not take a genius to understand that this plan was vastly unpopular). He is not in favor of density bonus but does not support the Right-To-Vote Initiative. He is also aligned politically with Jerome Stocks and Kevin Forrester. We can't trust Mark Muir. 

The other candidates, Barb Yost, Brian Ziegler, Thomas Brophy, are all concerned about zoning changes. Their hearts are in the right places. All three support the Right-To-Vote initiative but are newcomers on the Encinitas public scene. I would encourage everybody to visit each of these 3 candidates website and decide for yourself. 

Peter Schuh, the ninth candidate, is a complete unknown and has not shown up to any of the candidate's forum. 

Vote for Shaffer and Kranz for sure! Pick your third wisely. It's time to change our council so that a meaningful dialogue can take place between the residents of Encinitas and their representatives.

Stolen Moments: Spotted at Cafe Ipe

Teresa Barth takes a coffee break during campaign. 

We Write Letters, We Blog, We Publish

Signs on steroids

Rachelle Collier, Leucadia

Each election cycle, our candidates put up signs to indicate endorsements. I would like to call attention to the fact that some candidates have what I call signs on steroids. 

But what is more telling than the size of the signs is their location. I have noticed that they are mostly on nursery land and empty lots. Now, anyone can put signs up to endorse their candidate. Tony Kranz and Lisa Shaffer signs are up throughout many neighborhoods in people’s yards. 

This tells me that the community of Encinitas endorses Tony and Lisa. The signs on steroids are on locations with the potential to develop. Anyone who pays attention to local politics knows that there is a disconnect with what neighborhoods want and what is being built in our fair city. No one can stop development and everyone wants business to thrive. 

We live in a very special place and development should fit the community character. We should not change our character to suit the development. There is a reason that most of us moved to this incredible place. If you value this unique area, please vote for Tony Kranz and Lisa Shaffer. 

We Blog

Around the same time this letter to the Coast News editor was posted, blogger Encinitas Undercover printed this picture that perfectly illustrated Rachelle's point with another version of this same essential story captured in a headline.  

Very good stuff.  The first comment was from a well informed local describing some history of this location.

"This property was owned by the Browns, who always supported Stocks, Bond, and Dalager. The property was sold to City Ventures and is zoned RR-1 (Rural Residential 1 house per acre). A call was made to City Ventures, who responded that the Browns still have the right to give permission for the signage."

For more go here . 

Wave signs, read blogs, write letters and talk to friends, because we are all educating our community one step at a time and bringing change. And, in the in-box we received the plea by the North Coast Current Online Publisher Roman S. Koenig via his point of view editorial at his own paper. Read the whole thing by all means.  The following is just a taste. We disagree strongly only with his recommendation on Encinitas Proposal K.  Please vote no.

We Publish News

Leave Jim Kydd alone. 

Some of you might find this statement surprising coming from the editorial director of the North Coast Current, especially those of you who have chosen to use recent coverage in this publication as a passive endorsement of typical Encinitas-style “hate politics.” I found it fascinating in the past couple of weeks how the Current, in its work to cover news and provide civil discourse, had cuffs and chains thrown at it for this town’s mud pit of rhetorical nonsense. 

[. . . ] 

This whole rhetorical battle over encinitaselection.com certainly has its amusing moments. The most amusing comes from an exchange in comments Oct. 27 between posters Jack Lane and Vikki St. Mary. 

Lane accused the “blog” North Coast Current of being part of a leftist conspiracy against Jim Kydd: “This latestest (sic) critique of Jim as a person and his publication is typical of the vitriol that come from the Left and its need to smear and define others.” To which St. Mary replied: “So there is a liberal media conspiracy against the liberal media?? You are confusing please explain.” 

St. Mary’s call is right on, although I would say our publications are ultimately more centrist (not to speak for Jim Kydd, though). 

The Coast News and North Coast Current are on the same page when it comes to Encinitas City Council endorsements. The Current, like Coast News, supports Lisa Shaffer and Tony Kranz, and does not support conservative incumbents Jerome Stocks and Mark Muir. However, the Current supports Propositions K and L, largely attributed to the council’s conservative majority. Much of the “vitriol,” as Lane puts it, is in the comment sections of the Current, Patch and blogs from supporters of conservative candidates such as Stocks. 

All of this goes right to St. Mary’s reply to Lane’s cliché interpretation of recent events. 

A leftist plot by one centrist publication against another? I think not. 

Roman S. Koenig is editorial director and publisher of the North Coast Current. Columns are the opinions of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of North Coast Current ownership.

Quote of the Day - Candidate Lisa Shaffer

"If you want to replace campaign yard signs that have "disappeared" overnight, consider making your own on poster board or foam core, saying "Someone took my sign for SHAFFER FOR COUNCIL" or for KRANZ FOR COUNCIL". I have foam core that I'm happy to provide. Email me at Lisa@Shaffer4Council.com if you want some."

Update 

The original quote should have by this note from Shaffer: 

More reports this morning of my campaign signs being stolen out of people's front yards where they were placed with permission. This is a sign of desperation - some folks must think that if they try to hide the extent of support for Tony Kranz and me, it will help their candidates. But it doesn't work. We are running a grassroots campaign with real people supporting us because we work hard, we tell the truth, and we play by the rules. Too bad all the candidates can't say that. If you vote by mail, please send in your ballots soon so they will be counted in the early returns.

This idea can be found in other election places and races. Although Lisa Shaffer's idea isn't fraught with scolding or accusation like the sign below.  (We all know the toxic thinking supported by the opposition in this town.)

Looks like this kind of bad behavior is shared by Republicans in Atlanta (and in cities across the country).

Ocean Beach Crowds, Green Event, Support for Change

Great Weekend of Citizen Participation

Waving

Waving because they want to not because they were hired to do it.  Come join in.

Follow the Money

Forms 460 are the official method for candidates to document contributions to their campaigns. Found here, with the final figures (labeled 2nd pre-election filing) not yet included below.

Dennis Lees has tracked candidate donations for all candidates some years in Encinitas.

This year he writes,

"The following timeline [illustrated at opening] provides an example strongly suggesting that Councilman Stocks may have engaged in “quid pro quo” or “tit-for-tat” activities during his tenure in office.

• 1st Date: 4 November 2008 - 2008 Election Campaign Ended. 

• 2nd Date: 9 September 2009 – Award of $77,100 contract to O’Day Consultants for preparation of plans and specifications for the Melba St. Sidewalk project, in Encinitas (see attachment).

• 3rd Date: 6 November 2009 (1 full year after 2008 election!) – Contributions totaling $2,000 from O’Day Consultants, its president, and six employees including office, business, and project managers, received by Mr. Stocks (see attachment).

Another questionable aspect of this contribution is that it is illegal for an employer to ask his employees to donate or to reimburse them for their donation. I have observed similar donation patterns in Stocks' campaign records (e.g., Barratt American in 2004). It really stretches one's imagination to suggest that all of these managers, in Carlsbad, would be interested in contributing $250 each to a city councilman in Encinitas, a full year after he was elected in 2008.

He also had donations in excess of the $250 allowed by city code in at least three instances (Kevin Allin, Don Hansen, and The Sands Encinitas, LLC, and possibly Peter Zarcades, a developer with the Midtown Nikki Group from La Jolla, which could just be sloppy bookkeeping), and probably more if some cases where the likely owner of a company donated in both his and his/her company's name. I can document all of these very quickly from the Form 460s that I have in my possession."

The following clip was from the Oct. 24 council meeting, the last before the election, where Dennis presented at Oral Communications.



You can also read Mr. Lees' analysis at the Patch version of this information and make comments.

According to Mary: Politics Like Nature

Great News! Collection Available - See Below

“The Less You Know, The Better You Feel” by Mary Fleener
40 pgs/ digest size/ a collection of comic strips from The Coast News

1st printing Oct 2012

To order send $6.00 (postage paid). Cash or check only to:

M. Fleener
c/o Mailbox Station
POB 713
1106 2nd Street
Encinitas CA 92024

Tell-A-Vision: Encinitas Sees Us

Here is a vision for tomorrow.  No, really, tomorrow as in Wednesday, October 24th, the last Encinitas City Council Meeting before the election for a new city council.  Even though activists are usually working on researching the agenda packet to be prepared to speak, another approach just might be timely.

What about our preferred council candidates Lisa Shaffer and Tony Kranz speaking at Oral Communications about the overwhelming support for change in the council members?  After more than a year of meet-ups, events, canvassing, flyer handouts and campaign writing, filming and every day spontaneous testimonials from voters - they have so many stories to tell.  Picture council commissions filled with some of the best-qualified and most council interactive dialogs.

Similarly, our regular council-viewing community have their own stories from others to share.  In three minutes each can give the idea of the sheer numbers of people contacted listened to, written about and befriended during this election year.

See, the council majority has proven over the last 12 years that Jerome Stocks is not only immune to fact-based criticism, he thrives on retaliation and revenge. Muir is the weighted right hand and Bond is over.  Without these players, Gaspar is . . . alone and pettiness or petulance won't be indulged.

What about describing the long silenced minority running the show? Give examples of innovative ideas - like bioremediation of the contaminated soils - and how a transparent, interested council might treat the subject.  Share your daydream of how the city manager might be effective in removing obstacles and challenging the staff to provide more and better support.

How would a council without fear of public discussion of financial strategies and risks envisioned to move back room, highly complex subjects into a series of intelligible forums. There are so many business friendly ideas and insights Lisa and Tony have to share.

All kinds of people have stories they've gathered of an active general population craving more support for walkable streets, more open space enhancement, community gardens, healthy air / oceans / wetlands and our urban forest.  Just standing and reciting lists of things like this - with a big broad smile (and maybe even a blub or two) would bring a glad hearted feeling to the many, many people who are watching from home.

Oh, and what fantastic clips my dears.

Young Women Will Change the Planet

If you haven't registered, go online today and get it done. Contact every friend you have to remind them too.

Online Voter Registration Form 

Scientists! Not Just FIRE (Financial, Insurance, Real Estate)

Our community is filled with scientists, with many being internationally recognized leaders in their respective fields.  Most often this rich resource is not utilized by the Encinitas council majority, city manager, city attorney and city staff.  Councilwoman Teresa Barth has long made this point.  This is all going to change with a new city council made up of curious, engaging and open minds.

During this campaign, both Lisa Shaffer and Tony Kranz have made it a priority to engage this resource of expertise and international experience for the benefit of the community. Having the benefit of Shaffer's own credentials in the scientific community are part of this opportunity. Of course, simply having scientific knowledge doesn't necessarily ensure there is no controversy.  In fact, the scientific method demands testing, challenging and pushing the limits.  Our city government is not so fragile it cannot tolerate pushing the boundaries of the status quo and the outdated or no longer valid assumptions.

At the last city council meeting, Oct. 10 the agenda held the long awaited visitation by the San Diego Department of Environmental Health.  One of the key issues requested by Russell Levan and Teresa Barth 10 months ago was a full staff report on bioremediation of contaminated florist nursery soils so prevalent in Encinitas.  

Sadly, the presentation, council deliberations and vote were tightly bound to the Hall Property timeline and budget questions.   

Nonetheless, Councilwoman Barth tenaciously confronted all of the negatives, stressed the continuous improvement and the future freedom of healthy soils demanding no monitoring or maintenance.  She needs to be supported by more voices and votes on the dais with reality of nature as a focus rather than simply Realty®.

Month after month Russell Levan spoke up to the council and asked that this environmentally friendly approach to cleaning the soils of corrupted agricultural land be agendized and discussed openly.  He got part of his request. 

For those interested - Paul Stamets' TEDtalk on 6 ways mushrooms can save the world.

Diversity in our community's makeup could stand this healthy, real attention.  The scientists are just one group that have as much value as the short term thinking and fixation on risk, fiscal outcomes through commercial, insurance, development and real estate.  This latter group and financial criteria, risk factors have been the only framework to judge any and all deliberations.  Don't take our word for it, watch clips and check out the posts.  

Perception Is Key

The science/art video below showing artist Juilian Hoeber's installation is a treat in its own right besides offering an apt metaphor for politics according to  Nicole Bell.

"Perception is key. And most humans walk around with skewed perceptions that actively reject evidence, just like walking through the tilted house. This, my friends, is a non-partisan issue. I'd like to be smug enough to believe that liberals are more open to revising our opinions in the face of new information, but sadly, I don't think it's so.

But I'm also keenly aware that many of our perceptions are colored by the way that the media frames issues for us. The country is in crisis...we're going to go off the fiscal cliff...entitlements are bankrupting us. None of those are the entire truth, just perceptions that color the truth." 

We are in the last two weeks and a couple days until this campaign season is over. How the media frames anything becomes critically important. How the city manager, the mayor and city staff frame issues become important. Perception is key.

Encinitas is home to so many talented individual in science and art. We'd like to explore this being used to shape our community in the years to come.

SANDAG Workshop

Shaffer snapshot of Barth by the flag.

Councilwoman Teresa Barth and Lisa Shaffer attended SANDAG's event on Friday. There were 6 people from Encinitas total. Mayor Stocks (SANDAG chairman) was a no-show, as was the rest of the Encinitas city council or any other city council candidate in the upcoming election.

Barth was promoting participation and linking to the story in her newsletter, Facebook and emails. The themes are those of highest interest to Encinitas citizens.

"SANDAG is seeking the public’s input on everything from affordable housing to public health, transportation, economic prosperity, social equity and environmental sustainability as it combines two large regional blueprints into one. 

Those two documents are the Regional Comprehensive Plan and the Regional Transportation Plan. The first provides incentives to steer growth toward areas with existing roads, transit and other infrastructure. 

The second outlines more than $200 billion of mass transit, road and freeway improvements scheduled over the next four decades."

Scheduling a meeting for public feedback on a Friday morning is typical of big expensive projects that require public input by law.  Working people will not be there.  Period. At least we can count on Lisa Shaffer and Teresa Barth freely sharing what they learned, what they contributed at this event.

Updated at 11:40 am to acknowlege the other Encinitas participants.

$36 Million to Fight Yes on Prop 37

"The $36 million No on 37 campaign, bankrolled by $20 million from the world's six largest pesticide companies, has been caught in yet another lie, this time possibly criminal.

These companies and their allies in the junk food industry know that their profit margins may suffer if consumers have a choice whether to purchase genetically engineered foods or not. And that's why opponents are spending nearly a million dollars per day trying to make Prop 37 complicated. But really it's simple - we have the right to know what's in our food."

The evidence of new crime in California is in the news today.

This photo capturing the commercials featuring Henry Miller covers just the first offense with Miller's growing rap sheet:

• On Oct. 4 the No on 37 campaign was forced to pull its first ad off the air and re-shoot it after they were caught misrepresenting Miller as a doctor at Stanford University when he is actually a researcher at the Hoover Institute on Stanford's campus, as the Los Angeles Times reported.

• Last week, the campaign was reprimanded by Stanford again for misrepresenting the university in a mailer that went out to millions of voters. And this week, the campaign was caught sending out yet another deceptive mailer involving the University.

In addition to allowing his university affiliation to be repeatedly overblown, Miller has a sordid history of parroting the talking points of some of the world's most notorious corporate bad actors: he's a founding member of a now defunct tobacco front group that tried to discredit the links between cigarettes and cancer, he's repeatedly called for the reintroduction of DDT - known to cause premature birth, fronted for an oil industry funded climate change denial group for Exxon, claimed that people exposed to radiation from the Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster "may have benefited from it", and attacked the US Food and Drug Administration's efforts to ensure proper vetting and testing of new drugs safety while urging it to outsource more of its functions to private industries. 

This is the man the No on 37 campaign has portrayed to voters as an arbiter of good science and promoted as an expert worthy of our trust. In reality, Miller is nothing more than a corporate shill that will say whatever his paymasters ask him to, be it Exxon, Phillip Morris, Monsanto, or DuPont. 

Does the No on 37 campaign stand behind Miller's fringe views on tobacco, climate change, nuclear radiation and DDT?

The latest is the criminal use of the FDA seal in mailers and fabricating FDA statements. Just making things up. This is a federal offense.

So who should we trust?

Who should we trust when it comes to our right to know what's in the food we eat: Monsanto, DuPont, and Henry Miller or the millions of California consumers and leading consumer, health, women's, faith-based, labor and other groups; 61 countries that already require GMO labeling; and a growing stack of peer-reviewed research linking genetically engineered foods to health and environmental problems?

Who has our best interests at heart, the pesticide and junk food industry, or Prop 37 supporters like Consumers Union, California Nurses Association, California Democratic Party, California Labor Federation, United Farm Workers, American Public Health Association, Consumers Union, Sierra Club, Whole Foods Market, California Council of Churches, Organic Consumers Association, Center for Food Safety, Consumer Federation of America, Public Citizen, and Food Democracy Now!?

And another article debunking the lies against the Yes on Prop 37 campaign, shared from Teresa Barth's Facebook page.

Excitement Builds

Call the campaigns of Lisa Shaffer and Tony Kranz to be a part of it. Swinging or waving signs, knocking on doors and more - old fashioned face-to-face appeals to your neighbors to vote for change. See website links for both candidates in the column at the right.

Agenda Tyranny

"It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds." ~ Samuel Adams

When the city manager cancelled this week's regularly scheduled city council meeting, it created ripples throughout the community of involved citizens.  As the election approaches a growing number of voters are becoming attuned to what is going on at city hall.  They want to witness how this council majority and the mayor behave as public servants.

The reason given by Gus Vina, city manager, through his secretary/ personal assistant, was that there weren't agenda items.  What a coincidence that city council candidate Lisa Shaffer had just 3 weeks prior recommended that each agenda should contain a running list of requested agenda items that hadn't yet been scheduled. Of course her request was ignored. She'll need to get elected to incorporate this good suggestion.

This means the community must cull through the records to figure out what is being ignored.

Agenda Tyranny is the name given the great struggle citizens took on as the council majority re-wrote the council policies over time to require a 3 person vote to place something on the agenda. Over a series of meetings, public speakers rose to protest and question during oral communications and in January 2011 when this was placed on the agenda. What follows are some of the key arguments that shouldn't be lost amongst the 400 video clips or hundreds of hours of video archives on the city website.

First Jerome Stocks sneers at the notion of a minority request with a sarcastic motion. Bond is amused.

Teresa Barth not only clarifies the isssue of marginalizing the public, she adds an important time limit (that got cut), makes agenda requests on the spot, gives substantive answers to Jim Bond's grilling just before he cuts her off for responding too completly (?), correcting more Bond misrepresentation and more.

There are so many good public speakers, but this personal favorite is a man new to council meetings who called Jim Bond on his deliberate obfuscations. He spouts Brown Act and his all time favorite revisionist history anecdotes to wear down opposition. It just didn't work and he just keeps digging - as is his habit.



The council majority really seems to believe that if they are okay with a decision they don't have any obligation to listen to or acknowledge another perspective. Jim Bond only has 3 more meetings regardless of this election's outcome, so there's something this writer will celebrate.

Check It Out!

At long last, details of Romney's tax plan.  Go here.

How to Vote

From Lisa Shaffer . . .
You get three votes for City Council. You don't have to use them all. I ask for your votes for Tony Kranz and me. If there is not a third candidate that you strongly support, please leave the third slot blank. Here's the reasoning:

The three candidates with the highest vote totals win the three seats. Any vote you cast for a third candidate makes that person's total one vote higher. That means that Tony and I need to have one vote more than that to be at the top. So please don't use your vote just because it's there, if you don't really support the person you're voting for. The most important outcome of this election could be a different majority on the Council, and that requires both Tony Kranz and Lisa Shaffer to win.

Change is VERY possible if we get out the vote and use our votes well. Thanks.

Don't Be Fooled By Deceptive Slate Mailers

"Thought You Might Like To Know" newsletter by Teresa Barth held the following today. (To get a newsletter each week, click here.)

By now your mail box has already been flooded with campaign literature. Mixed in with the glossy flyers are slate mailers.

Slate mailers are for-profit state-wide businesses with no official association with political parties or interest groups. They are regulated by the California Fair Political Practices Commission and must disclose payments made and received in connection with the production of slate mailers.

These businesses operate under trustworthy sounding names such as Voter Education Group, California Public Safety, COPS Voter Guide, Save Prop 13, Democratic Voters Choice, Continuing the Republican Revolution, Budget Watchdog, California Vote Green or Woman's Voice.

The names are chosen specifically to imply affiliation with or endorsement by established organizations. A number of slate mailer companies use the same return address. California Voter Guide and Budget Watchdog use the same Torrance address. Save Prop 13, California Public Safety and Woman's Voice use the same address in Laguna Niguel.

Legitimate political parties and organizations do send out slate mailers. The candidates listed on these mailers are vetted through an interview process and have earned the endorsement.

So how do you tell the difference? Like everything else....read the fine print. In the smallest print size allowed, you will see a disclaimer statement that "Appearance is paid for and authorized by each candidate and ballot measure which is designated by an *" (asterisk). Those candidates without an asterisk didn't pay to be listed and probably didn't even authorize the use of their name and photo. They were included to give the mailer a look of legitimacy.

Slate mailer companies are also used by various individuals to send out last minute "hit pieces" on candidates. By using a slate mailer the actual contributors can remain unknown until after the election when the contribution reports are filed with the FPPC. These companies also provide a means for contributors to, legally and illegally, circumvent local campaign contribution limits.

In the 2010 election, the Voter Education Group sent out a mailer endorsing candidates Kristin Gaspar and Dan Dalager and blasting me. The group was later fined more than $110,000 by the FPPC for various state-wide financial reporting violations.

It's not illegal to pay for a slate mailer endorsement but is it ethical?

Don't be fooled. Do what I do...toss them in the recycle bin.

Shaffer Quote of the Day

Tony & Lisa at 5K run - One of dozens of events with community.

The quality of a campaign and the likelihood of winning an election, in my view, is not judged by how many large signs one can afford to post. It's by how much of the community is engaged and supportive of the candidates values and positions.

Misinformation seems to be increasing as the election nears. For the record: I have not asked anyone to approach business owners about whose signs they do or do not have on their property. I have consistently told my supporters that I will not put signs where we do not have permission. If folks who have asked for signs for their property I have tried to provide signs for them.

Lie Spotting

Update at the end. 

"A lie has no power whatsoever by its mere utterance; its power emerges when someone else agrees to believe the lie.” ~ Pamela Meyer 

"On any given day we're lied to from 10 to 200 times, and the clues to detect those lie can be subtle and counter-intuitive. Pamela Meyer, author of Liespotting, shows the manners and "hotspots" used by those trained to recognize deception -- and she argues honesty is a value worth preserving. 

Pamela Meyer thinks we’re facing a pandemic of deception, but she’s arming people with tools that can help take back the truth."

Just in time for tonight's Vice Presidential debate and to cap off the past week of local lies.

Update: if you watched the Vice Presidential debate you got to see massive lying and lie spotting played out. Favorite body language of the night is here and also this comment.

According to Mary - Hand in the Cookie Jar

Word for the Day: Grunch

Grunch
The term grunch means the sensation a woman has when she was for a time free of conscious awareness of the male gaze and did not feel othered, but is then reminded in some way that she is a woman first and a geek (or colleague, or writer, etc) a distant second. That is, being grunched is the sensation of being firmly and unexpectedly othered. Emphasis on unexpected . . .

This happens in every setting and is a big issue in politics.  This election year has been terrible for women on the national stage and in treatment by both parties in platforms, policies, statements, actions, support and overwhelming abandonment of reproductive justice and women's health. Wage inequalities and the poorest USians are women and children. Yet these things are not in the 2012 election coverage.  Not a whisper in local politics . . .

Local politics treats women's rights like Kryptonite. Like this week's behavior by the mayor and even the press, something of importance (breaking the rules) is being treated like a joke.  The dismissal through claiming It was just a joke. Where is your sense of humor?"  This really can make the "othered" the marginalized angry.

Please watch how the Prime Minister of Australia, Julia Gillard, dealt with the opposition's lies, sexism and patronizing lectures.  Wow, just wow. Here's some background.

Misogyny is at a worldwide crisis level. Said it before, democracy is a raucus, passionate affair. What a contrast to our meetings where a clap, a call out, an interruption or ill-timed objection is gaveled and threatened. Call the police! Somehow parliments in many countries are able to survive a lack of decorum and call for respect, for justice and freedom for all. Enjoy

Quote of the Day

Encinitas is a great place. We deserve a City Council we can be proud of. And we can have one. We can elect council members who will respect each other, the community and uphold our municipal code and city policies. We can elect council members who listen to diverse opinions, and who trust the community to make good decisions about whether to change zoning density or borrow millions of dollars, council members who will serve your interests, not their own. I ask for your vote so I can be one of those council members. Thank you.

Lisa Shaffer's closing statement at last night's Leucadia Candidate Forum. For the third time, the strongest candidate in preparation, clarity of position, respect for forum rules and audience favorite. More on Tony Kranz outstanding job and forum highlights to follow. Real life intercedes occasionally.

Free Speech - Stocks and Gaspar

Encinitas Blvd. by El Camino Real

Rancho Santa Fe Road

Leucadia - Encinitas Candidate Forum - Oct. 9

Reconsider the Story of Columbus

Produced in 2009 when Oct. 12 was the designated Columbus Day, but relevant today.

What do Mary Fleener & Big Bird Have in Common?

What do Mary Fleener, local hit this campaign season with her political cartoon series, The Less You Know the Better You Feel, and Big Bird?  That's easy - PBS.

Mary is going to be on the radio KPBS Midday Edition today!

Noon - 1 pm.  

One of her questions will be, "You are now doing political cartoons.  Are you enjoying that format?"

I'm betting she will have some fun with Stocks and Muir getting caught red handed if there is time. 

That's NPR, 89.5 on the dial.   (Or Nice Polite Republicans as some of us think of NPR and how it has changed. *sigh*)

Intrusion, Invasion

Here's San Diego County native peoples  link for a bit of perspective on a historic timeline.  

Archeological evidence shows at least 10,000 years of habitation in San Diego County.

10,000 years to a few hundred.  That is all.

California State Propositions

Beginning with Proposition #40 each ballot initiative is addressed from the vantage point of the common good and value of humanity against profits at the cost of life and dignity. Videos, endorsements are included in EYNU's posts.  League of Women Voters is recommended to anyone wanting to verify facts or learn more, so links are provided.  Scroll back through all 11 working backwards 40-30.

Sneak Peak: For me the most crucial are YES on 30, NO on 32, YES on 34 and YES on 37 - but all have value.

YES on PROP 40

This about redistricting. It is somewhat confusing.

• A YES vote means no change -- keep the redistricting already done by the Citizens Redistricting Commission.
• A NO vote means abandon the work of the Citizens and give the redistricting back to the politicians.

A giant sucking sound is what we will hear if the general electorate votes NO.

The story is that in 2008 voters approved an independent Citizens Redistricting Commission. Then when the work was done . . .

The California Republican Party last year qualified a referendum on the new state Senate districts, hoping to block the use of those districts this year. But the state Supreme Court ruled in January that the new Senate boundaries would apply for this year’s election regardless of the referendumRepublicans in July stopped campaigning for the measure and said they were no longer asking voters to overturn the new Senate districts.

The reason for Prop. 40 may no longer exist, but the measure remains on the ballot. Voters, however, should have no trouble casting a yes vote. The state Supreme Court said new Senate districts fit all constitutional and legal requirements — and in fact, said that the new citizen-drawn map was preferable to any of the alternatives that opponents proposed.

also . . .

League of Women Voters of California Education Fund Website

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For complete listing of all California Propositions and review.

YES on PROP 39

This requires businesses to determine their tax liability for sales in California by a calculation, rather than the current practice of choosing (the cheaper of) two methods. This Proposition permanently closes that corporate tax loophole.

An outrageous tax loophole allows out-of-state corporations to pay lower taxes in California, costing our state a billion dollars a year. This loophole actually rewards companies for creating jobs outside of California. Proposition 39 closes this loophole by forcing out-of-state corporations to pay their fair share, bringing in much-needed state revenue that will be invested in clean energy and energy efficiency projects, create good-paying jobs, and help fund our schools. Join us. Let’s close this corporate tax loophole and create new clean energy jobs in California!

California Clean Energy Jobs Act

also . . .

League of Women Voters of California Education Fund Website

For complete listing of all California Propositions and review.

NO on PROP 38

This is the alternative to Prop 30. It is being pushed by Molly Munger.

The biggest criticism of this proposition is that the consequences may be completely unappreciated this many years out.  To lock in funds without knowing the potential nature and degree of change in our future institutions is dangerous guesswork.

It sounds good, but from our reading - Proposition 30 is better balanced.

also . . .
 League of Women Voters of California Education Fund Website