Harry Sidhu poses with a near life-size dummy of Arnold
We haven’t posted anything on Anaheim’s Harry Sidhu and his bid for the 4th District County Supe race in some time. And we have been negligent in not passing along news of his upcoming fundraiser on June 20th. His “host committee” (remember – the guys who get in free) include a roster of current and former Anaheim politicos.
Looks like Tom Daly's got problems in Anaheim. But Stanton, Cypress and Brea aren't even in the district...
This is surely bad news for the other Anaheim candidate, Tom Daly who must be chaffing at the thought of Harry grabbing the support of Anaheim’s old guard both Republican and Democrat. That may actually be a reflection of Tom’s real popularity south of the 91. His campaign mastermind, John Lewis, must be plenty pissed off about it, too.
But back to Harry. He has a wee bit of a problem. Harry does not live in the 4th District, but in the posh precincts of Anaheim Hills, in the 3rd. He has stated that he will buy an address in the 4th, for appearances and legal requirements, presumably, because nobody expects him to move out of his cozy compound in the hills. None of this reflects well on Harry who can be seen as a perennial office seeker with more money than sense.
...and Harry isn't part of it either!
In the meantime Fullerton’s Shawn Nelson has already launched his campaign for the 4th and has a website under construction.
As another school year comes to an end, the Fullerton School District is telling parents that it’s time to pay $1,500 for a brand new laptop for each of their children. Included in the presentation is a reminder that if they don’t get a laptop, the school district will ship their children off to a lesser school under the premise that they must have 100% participation to continue the laptop program.
First, a little background — this little shakedown started as the brainchild of Fullerton School District Superintendent Cameron McCune, with the assistance of board member Hilda Sugarman. McCune had grandiose visions for his future career as an educational consultant, and he figured the best way to make himself popular was to manufacture a “digital revolution” and give away computers to every child in Fullerton.
Hey kids, everybody bought a laptop right?
Predictably, there was no money in the district budget for thousands of new computers, so McCune and Sugarman led the school board to ask the parents to pay for new computers themselves. At $1,500 a piece, that wasn’t going to be an easy sell. Just as they were about to give up, the perennial big-government solution presented itself – COERCION. The board decided that they could help Apple extort $1,500 from every parent using the threat of forced student relocation for non-participating parents.
There was a mother in Fullerton named Sandy Dingess with four children who now “needed” laptops to attend school. Being wary of disclosing private financial details in the required paperwork, Sandy called the ACLU, who then sued the school board. In the ACLU’s words “the Program plainly violates the free school guarantee under the California Constitution”. A lengthy battle of legal letters ensued, with school board caving in and allowing a small number of parents to opt for a $65/yr insurance premium instead of an outright purchase. Obviously the Constitution was still being violated, but it was enough of a victory for the ACLU to back down.
In the end, three of Sandy’s children were forced to move to another school because they could not afford laptops.
For those of you who don’t believe that the school district would participate in such thuggery, here is a clip of this year’s presentation from the District’s technology director:
So what can the victims do today to stop this expensive charade? When the 1:1 Laptop Program survey comes to your school, you will be presented with four options…. the first two leave you with a hefty bill. The opt-out choice will allow the school to ship your kid off to a location of their choosing. The “insurance only” option is obviously the way to go, as it forces the school to procure a laptop for your child even though they still take $65 from you. Remember that this will be a high-pressure sale, as the district can only afford to purchase laptops for 10% of the students. If there are more requests for laptops, the 1:1 program could be in jeopardy at that school, which cuts into Apple’s bottom line. But do not be swayed – let the school know that you will not be forced into participating in this high-tech boondoggle.
As Fullerton teachers and parents are losing their jobs, the district is attempting to expand this expensive program into new grade levels. It’s time to let them know that we cannot afford it.
The Orange County Vector Control Board meets monthly with all its 3 dozen Board Members, and Vector staff. Our own Dick Jones represents Fullerton on the Vector board where he now has the reputation of being a nut. Sound familiar?
During a staff presentation at the May 21, 2009 meeting, Jones had a typical Jones moment. First he pops up out of his seat waving hand in the air, screaming “enough…enough for God’s sake,” then minutes later he compliments staff for baffling him. We’re not sure how to read this other than we think Dick Jones had some sort of a mental snap, and then he flew the coop. We’re used to this sort of things, but apparently it shocked some of his Vector colleagues.
You may have trouble sorting through the man’s mangled syntax so we are providing a transcript of his remarks:
“I would like to compliment you all on the extensive report you gave, however when I get on an airplane I’d like to think that some agency says it’s air worthy, I don’t want to know the percentage of the materials that make up the wing spars, your intentions are laudible and so forth. I think this was over done, when people come to me for an operation I did not give them 4 years of surgical information during my residency, this was excellent. It’s nice to be baffled by brilliance, and it was baffling”.
We would like to think that’s it’s not asking too much of our elected officials to act like adults, not spoiled children used to getting their own way. If Jones can’t control himself in public perhaps he could just limit his idiotic outbursts to Fullerton rather than make the city a laughingstock when he takes his show on the road.
We spend a lot of time criticizing the self-styled leaders of Fullerton that we decided to post once in a while about the postitive things done by Fullerton’s true leaders.
A few days ago The Harpoon floated a trial balloon: Jane Reifer For City Council in 2010? We got several comments, pro and con, and so we thought we would share some more information on Jane and her participation in Fullerton activities.
Jane Reifer is one of the founders of Friends for a Livable Fullerton, an organization formed to influence development decisions in order to promote and preserve Fullerton’s uniqueness and livability. For many years Reifer has provided crucial leadership to the community by advocating small business, responsible development, and transparent government process.
Jane Reifer is also one of the most outspoken and influential transit advocates in Orange County. She currently serves on the Orange County Transportation Agency’s Citizens Advisory Committee where she advocates for increased and improved bus service as well as for better conditions for pedestrians, bicyclists.
She is well known for her successful fundraising efforts to Save the Fox, culminating in a partnership with the City of Fullerton that saved the historic theater from demolition.
Jane Reifer is a small business owner and operator of the Fullerton-based Clutter Control.
Tonight the City has its first of two annual budget review special meetings. Have you ever known a government agency that proposed cutbacks during tough economic times? Of course not. And it really helps when you can incorporate “revenue enhancements” with out raising taxes. It’s called fee increases. And that’s what the Fullerton city staff is proposing:
The department heads will stand up, hats in hand, and request that the City Council increase fees that the public has to pay for certain services. Did you really expect any of these people would suggest budget cuts for their departments?
Jack's musicians waiting for the amplifiers to arrive...
For some strange reason, the surrounding business owners and/or residents of properties within proximity of Roscoe’s were NOT notified to allow input at the Planning Commissions recent Public Hearing. A violation of the law (Sec 15.58.060).
Is an on going ’special event’ spanning 3 months the intent of this section? Obviously not. (Sec 15.58.020)
Was the application filed 90 days prior to June 14th? N0. (Sec 15.58.040)
Here’s the relevant section of the Fullerton Municipal Code:
15.58.010. Intent and purpose.
The intent of this chapter is to identify special events and to specify the requirements and provisions for their approval regardless of the proposed location or zone classification. The requirements and provisions established for each special event are intended to ensure the general safety, health, and welfare of the community and to ensure that the temporary operation of the special event will be a compatible activity for the neighborhood in which it is located. (Ord. 2982, 2001)
15.58.020. Definitions.
A “special event” is an event that will be conducted outdoors to which the general public is admitted or invited. Such an event includes a carnival, festival, tent or car show, circus, parade, auction, rally, or a similar kind of temporary outdoor exhibition or performance. A temporary commercial activity, such as a “sidewalk” or parking lot sale, which is intended to promote the sale of merchandise from on-site businesses, shall not be considered a “special event.” (Ord. 2982, 2001)
15.58.040. Application for permit and fees.
A. An application for a special event permit must be on file with the Director of Development Services at least 90 days before the scheduled special event. The City Council may, by resolution, set appropriate fees for the filing of the application.
15.58.060. Procedure for review of application.
B. A permit for a special event proposed on all other types of private property shall not be issued without a review and approval of the application by the Planning Commission. Prior to the Planning Commission reviewing the application, the Director of Development Services shall do the following:
1. Consult with other departments of the city on the request.
2. Notify business owners and/or residents of properties within proximity of the proposed venue, stating the nature of the request, the date, time and location where the Planning Commission will review the request, and the opportunity for the public to comment on the request during that review.
3. State all reasonable concerns and issues identified by city staff and the general public when the Planning Commission reviews the request. (Ord. 2982, 2001)
All this begs the very obvious question: why is the City bending its own laws past the breaking point to accommodate Jack Franklyn and his outdoor nuisance? The City Manager and his planning staff are obviously doing this for a reason. What could it be?
New Fullerton resident Marco Torres is a young self taught photographer whose work can be described as the fifth and final stage of sleep where the mind produces its most lucid hallucinations, confusing a dream with life, the ambiguity of tragedy or triumph engages the audience through out the entirety of each piece; a keen eye for bizarre locations both extraordinary and mundane is what sets this young up and coming artist apart from the rest. Click here to see more of Marco’s work.
A couple of days ago we shared this post about our favorite punching bag, Dick Jones. We pointed out that we had been criticized during last year’s campaign for producing a creative version of this classic moment; so we shared the original, unedited film.
And now we would like to present, once again, our original art film version that was nominated in 2008 for the prestigious Orson Welles Award for Excellence in Political Satire from the Teddy J. Brinkerhof Multi-media Institute in Nanty Glo, Pennsylvania . We didn’t win, but we have high hopes for 2009.
We have to admit it was tough competing with the real McCoy, but we did our best! Decide for youself which version is more entertaining.
A few months ago we posted on the remodeling underway at the Rosecrans/Euclid shopping center. We shared information that a city planner had insinuated himself into the design process; we opined that government and good design rarely mix; and we promised periodic visual updates.
Is that a caretakers unit above retail?
On that last point we have been remiss, and so we now share some images. They don’t seem to have made a lot of progress, but as you can see all that wasted space has been wrapped in lath and stuccoed – all wasted materials, too.
Are those multi-units above retail, or, perhaps it's a mixed use project? We will soon find out.
We’ve been hearing now for several days that Fullerton’s own volcanic phenomenon, Dick Jones, really lost it at a recent OC Vector Control District Board meeting, blown head gasket-wise.
The OC Vector Control District Board gets down to work...
We’re not clear on what happened, precisely, but according to reliable sources (several council members from neighboring cities) Jones experienced some sort of cataclysmic melt-down. More than this we cannot say. However, we have ordered a copy of the the audio tape of the meeting to figure out exactly what happened. When we get this record we will be sure to share it with you, our Faithful Friends. Then you can judge for yourselves.
