Prop 30 Panel Discussion this Thursday: Barrera and Rider

Thor's AssistantPress Releases / Media Advisories Leave a Comment

Thanks to Jeff Marston for sending this to us… The SDSU Arts & Letters Alumni Chapter invites you to a Proposition 30 Panel Discussion Join us for a very lively panel discussion about Governor Brown’s Proposition 30 tax initiative benefiting education and local public safety. Thursday, September 20, 2012 7:00 – 9:00 a.m. SDSU Parma Payne Goodall Alumni Center Ballroom …

Most Charger fans not SD city residents

Richard Rider, Chairman, San Diego Tax FightersUndesignated 9 Comments

Chargers rule!  What a whupping.  Battle on! I sure enjoyed the Titans game. One interesting aspect struck me in the U-T reader letters (“Voices”) on the game.  There were six letters published.  NONE were from San Diego city residents.  BTW, all were from north of I-8, except perhaps the one from El Cajon. The point is, a very large number …

Ballotpedia.org screws up Prop 30 facts. Intentional? Sure looks like it.

Richard Rider, Chairman, San Diego Tax FightersRichard Rider, Chairman, San Diego Tax Fighters 1 Comment

www.ballotpedia.org can be an extremely useful source on elections — especially on propositions.  It includes the backers and opponents, and the big contributors.  But Ballotpedia “edit trolls” can alter or omit facts to suit their purposes.  I just got involed in one such Ballotpedia situation on a California proposition. Ballotpedia is very similar to Wikipedia in operation.  Hence caution is advised. …

Occupy Sweetwater Jeers Pledge of Allegiance and Moment of Silence for 9-11 Victims

Steve GrammSteve Gramm 21 Comments

The “Occupy Sweetwater” group, most likely acting as a political front for Sweetwater Union High School District Board Member Bertha Lopez, hit a new low this week by disrespecting the Pledge of Allegiance and victims of 9-11. Listen to Occupy jeering the request that the Pledge of Allegiance take place. Intent on disrupting the Sweetwater School Board meeting on Monday …

DeMaio Finds His Groove, and the U-T’s Radio Problem

Tony ManolatosTony Manolatos 1 Comment

[captionpix imgsrc=”http://sdrostra.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/demaio-sdcaa-pic.jpg” captiontext=”L to R: John Modlin, SDCAA Board President, Carl DeMaio, Alan Pentico, SDCAA Executive Director”] San Diego Politics & Media Mashup Cross-posted at FlashReport At a fundraiser for Carl DeMaio on Wednesday I heard the mayoral candidate make some points I hadn’t heard him make before. Speaking to members of the San Diego County Apartment Association, for whom I …

George Plescia For Senate Goes On Offensive

George PlesciaGeorge Plescia, Undesignated Leave a Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                   CONTACT:  Clinton Soffer September 13, 2012                                                  858-254-9179 George Plescia for State Senate Goes On Offensive Launches New Ad on Marty Block’s vote to Kill Child Safety Reform SAN DIEGO –  Coming on the heels of a scathing editorial by the San Diego Union Tribune, protests from parents, endless questions from talk radio, and an explosive story by …

From a Local School Board Trustee: NO on 30 & 38

Guest ColumnGuest Column Leave a Comment

Guest Commentary by Rick Winet Let me begin with a question: Do you believe that greater funding for public schools equates to greater student achievement? While all parents, public school employees, and taxpayers would hope that the answer is “yes” — sadly, this is not the case. In the La Mesa-Spring Valley School District, we began significant budget reductions three …

Why San Diego Unified needs reform now

Guest ColumnGuest Column Leave a Comment

Guest Commentary by Bill Ponder As we head into the fall election, what has become clear is that the San Diego Unified School District is an organization with lots of issues which need to be addressed.  The district is entering the third year of program improvement under NCLB (no child left behind).  There are schools within the district entering Program …

Teacher’s Union Schooled by Judge: Battle over candidate names and titles plays out in court

Guest ColumnGuest Column 4 Comments

An ongoing school board turf battle between two powerful labor unions, the California Teachers Association (CTA) and American Federation of Teachers (AFT), has partially played out on the legal front in recent weeks, with the AFT’s lawsuits to benefit its candidates being slapped down in court. The legal maneuvers by AFT have moved into the realm of the absurd.  It …

The Republicans Have Yet To Make Their Case On Taxes

Guest ColumnGuest Column Leave a Comment

Guest Commentary by Thomas Del Beccaro Obama Campaign Co-Chair Eva Longoria speaks to the audience at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, on September 6, 2012 on the final day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC). Is Eva Longoria right on tax policy? The very fact that she was given a prime time speaking slot at the …

Texas counties’ “SS” substitute plan more than DOUBLES SS payout

Richard Rider, Chairman, San Diego Tax FightersRichard Rider, Chairman, San Diego Tax Fighters Leave a Comment

CA State Assemblyman Ben Hueso and other liberal state legislators want to impose a social security requirement on any California city that establishes a “defined contribution” (a 401k-type) plan for new hires.  Such a mandate will greatly reduce the money available for the employees’ retirement fund. In San Diego, that would mean that instead of having 9.2% of pay of …

Fitting Tribute for a Giant of Journalism

Tony ManolatosTony Manolatos Leave a Comment

San Diego Politics & Media Mashup Cross-posted at FlashReport Logan Jenkins blew Neil Morgan a big fat kiss in today’s U-T San Diego and I enjoyed every word. Jenkins, a longtime columnist at the paper, starts by telling us the venerable Morgan, at 88, isn’t doing well. He then goes on to write an inspirational and moving tribute (In postwar San Diego, Neil …

MSNBC finds racism and birtherism at the RNC in Tampa

Bob SiegelBob Siegel Leave a Comment

Originally published by Communities @ Washington Times SAN DIEGO, September 1, 2012 — “President Obama’s version of America is a divided one — pitting us against each other based on our income level, gender, and social status. His policies have failed. Mr. President, I am here to tell you we are not buying what you are selling in 2012.” To …

Restoring Neighborhood Services Must Include Investments in Public Safety

Carl DeMaioCarl DeMaio 2 Comments

It’s no secret that the last decade has forced all city departments to make cuts in order to balance our city budget.  In many cases the cuts did not impact core services – in fact they highlighted how bloated some city departments had become. But when it comes to our communities, the impacts of these service cuts can be clearly …

San Diego Unified is Poway By The Sea

Tony ManolatosTony Manolatos Leave a Comment

San Diego Politics & Media Mashup Cross-posted at FlashReport I want to highlight a story in Thursday’s U-T San Diego: “Tax Group to Oppose San Diego School Bonds” It’s worth your attention because it does a nice job of laying out a financial crisis similar to the one in Poway that has received national attention. In short, the San Diego Unified School District is Poway …

City Attorney Jan Goldsmith Endorses DeMaio for San Diego Mayor

Carl DeMaioCarl DeMaio 2 Comments

Former Judge and Assemblyman says DeMaio is “Willing to Roll up his Sleeves and Work with Others to Ensure the City is Properly Managed on a Day to Day Basis” With the fall campaign moving full-steam ahead, San Diego Mayoral candidate Carl DeMaio picked up an important, citywide endorsement today from San Diego City Attorney Jan Goldsmith who touted DeMaio’s …

Do Sun Glasses “Sit on your Face”?

Jerome StocksJerome Stocks Leave a Comment

A recently placed, then fairly quickly removed, “SPY” sunglass company billboard in Encinitas caused some buzz this week. Some thought it was funny or clever, others not so much. The Outdoor Advertizing Company which owns the billboard claims to have received complaints, but my office did not. So, does this fall under the 1st Amendment, or is it prurient in …

Villaraigosa Presides over DNC Platform Trainwreck

Steve RiderSteve Rider Leave a Comment

If you’re like me, you haven’t been watching the DNC at all. However, I did come across some news and was surprised it hadn’t hit Rostra yet. Quite the controversy and is certain to make strong Isreal supporters think twice about their party affiliation. Former CA Republican Chair Ron Nehring summarizes it well, complete with video: From San Diego Republican …