Comment Archives: stories: Columns & Blogs: Open Mic
Re: “Raising My Hand”
The mentally ill are the cause of all this carnage in this country. Do you know how long it would take to kill 20 school children and 6 adults with a semi-auto gun or a semi-auto pistol? This killer had to have help,Vice President Joe Biden said,one little girl was shot 11 ,eleven times. How could this be and what was he using besides the guns he had? Look at the time line and when the police were called and who was there besides this killer? Where were the children,in a classroom,hallway,where,we haven't been told by anyone. Where were the adults when he was killing them,all standing in line for him,remember,one shot,one trigger pull,how many magazines did he have and how could he have had the cold bloodiness to reload and still kill these people. Were these children just sitting there or were they running or in a locked room? Do you know what it takes for even the most hardened criminal to kill this many people at one time. The killers mother made a grave mistake in training this young man with mental problems about how to shoot these weapons and then not keeping them in a Gun-Safe and not giving him access to it.You blame the NRA for this carnage and you should be looking at the real problem,not treating the mentally ill and not putting them where they can't harm anyone. This killer tried to buy a weapon from a dealer and couldn't pass a background check,don't you think the police or the FBI should have followed up on this? The NRA and the law abiding are not to blame for this heinous crime no more than you are.
Re: “Hail Traffic Control”
Roundabouts are more complicated to use. Having grown up in England and learned to drive there, I can tell you that RoundAbouts are far more effective than traffic signals for most situations but the general population HAS to know how to drive through them.
This is not something we should do on a city by city basis.
Re: “Hail Traffic Control”
I really do not understand this nostalgia (pre-nostalgia, actually) for standard intersections controlled by traffic signals. They are far more dangerous than roundabouts. Studies show that roundabouts reduce injury accidents by 75%. Vehicle through-put is improved, too.
http://www.economist.com/node/21538779?frs…
Re: “Quad City DJs”
Of course a male would have something to say. And of course it's someone who doesn't go to SSU. did you know there have been multiple sexual assualts and rapes on campus? Did you know that a male referring to a woman as a bitch, then that person being praised and paid mulitiple millions of dollars is setting the example that if you treat women like property, they will believe they are property? Your argument would be valid if the media didn't constantly degrade women. But the proof that something needs to change lies in the sheer number of girls and women with eating disorders, or women who think they need to get surgery to live up to someone else's standards. If we're playing this garbage on college campuses, a supposed safe place for students, then where do we females have to go so we're not surrounded by loud speakers, images, and even the opposite sex either blanantly or figuratively disrespecting us because of our gender?I did contact the group that played the music, and of course, I never got a response. I, for one Alex hope that you never have kids. Especially a girl because you have very little respect for women.
Re: “I Lost My Son That Night”
May the Federal Grand Jury indicted the shooters with live rounds for murder one.
They destroyed my life with falsehoods from a sick relative, and paralyzed me.
I knew too much because my father trained me. He was A. T. and F. and Explosives, and I.R.S..40 years plus...
Re: “Say It Ain't So, Joe”
I'm sorry to break it to you, but TJ's hasn't been as honest about their "story" as you think they have. In fact It's quite the opposite.
Fortune Magazine reports "'Fortune obtained a copy of a standard vendor agreement, which states, "Vendor shall not publicize its business relationship with TJ's in any manner.'
Why the lockdown? Former executives say that Trader Joe's wants neither its shoppers nor its competitors to know who's making its products."
Here's the link: http://money.cnn.com/2010/08/20/news/companies/inside_trader_joes_full_version.fortune/index.htm?source=yahoo_quote
Not supporting the GMO Initative isn't surprising considering that one of their chip vendors is Lays (owned by PepsiCO).
Re: “Say It Ain't So, Joe”
I love TJ so it's painful to read this- but thanks for forcing us to look clearly at our stores and force them to be accountable.
Re: “Bad Bus Business”
The checkpoints were established by a treaty- Oslo- and are in compliance with International law. (A treaty is the highest level of international law, until it is superceeded by another treaty) Before the checkpoints, over 10,000 Israelis were maimed and killed in an outbreak of violence known as the second intifada. Before the onset of suicide bombings directed towards Israeli civilians, the borders were wide open. Want them open again? Encourage the Palestinians to sit down and negotate with the Israelis, with no pre-conditions. As inconvienent as the checkpoints are, attacks against Israelis have decreased by over 90% since they were instituted. They are a non-violent way to save lives until there is a real and lasting peace. It is an extremely hard thing to balance- protecting the lives and security of one group of people and the freedom of another. The answer is peace- and peace will not come with finger pointing and pressure on one side alone. Both sides must work together to accomplish this goal. That is why I, as a progressive activist stand firmly against this one sided pressure campaign . Peace is a two way street, and the Palestinians (and their Sonoma County enablers) MUST take responsibilities for their side in this equation.
Re: “Bad Bus Business”
Veolia's busses aren't for "Jews only", however, they are instrumental and complicent in Israel's system of apartheid and segregation. It's system of permits, checkpoints, walls, barriers and transportation of settlers (that is against article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention) onto settlements that are considered illegal internationally and within the United States. Veolia obviously does not care about the welfare of a people under a MILITARY occupation who have little rights to exercise and no freedom of movement (one of many "freedoms" not had). It is insulting to hear that many believe signs in three languages is enough to prove that a country is morally competant and does no harm. The fact that there were signs in English and Xhosa did not prove my experience with residents of Khaylitsha Camp, South Africa (2008) to be a joyous and celebrated occation. Veolia runs its busses on roads that cut into the occupied territories and cater to Israeli settlers and certain Arabs who may be lucky enough to attain the proper permit that is made most difficult in order to keep them oppressed (http://www.btselem.org/press_releases/2004…). You, Robin Cantor, can also take a look at a Wall Street Journal article this year that focuses on the resistance of women in Israel who have been forced to the back of the bus (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405…). Your statement that public transportation is Israel is not segregated...think again. In Veolia's case, however, although they may not directly segregate their own buses, they run their business that is supports a racist, heinous, disgusting, unfathomable system oppressing the native Palestinian population.
Re: “Bad Bus Business”
It wasn't just that Arabs and Jews rode the buses together- half the engineers employed by Veolia were Palestinians- and half their bus stops were in palestinian areas. I can't imagine anything less segregated. A heavily edited an biased video is meaningless- can you show me a sign that says "Jews only"? I have not seen a single sign like this anywhere on line- if there were one, surely some one would have photographed it by now. If these facilities were Jews only, are you saying all the photos of a fully integrated system al over the web are fake? At the hearing, they showed exactly the opposite of what you claim- a company and a country going out of their way to provide essential transportion to all segments of the society.
There is no segregation on public transportation in Israel, and Veolia is simply be using as a pawn to give you a venue to bash on Israel. I cant believe youd be willing to have 80 neighboors lose their jobs to push your bigoted one sided agenda
Re: “Bad Bus Business”
If you'd like to see what I saw you can see the video I shot here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pbEN6lNkZ0… .
To learn more about the segregated roads you can read from Israeli Human Rights group B'Tselem here: http://www.btselem.org/maps
Re: “Bad Bus Business”
I was at the hearing. Photos were shown of Jews and Muslims crowded together on public transportation. Photos were shown of signs and schedules in English Arabic and Hebrew. Frankly, its hard to pretend that these facilities are segregated when all the evidence indicated that they weren't.
Re: “A Stained Degree”
http://shameonssu.org
There is much more regarding this to be learned here. Spread the word... there will be a Day of Shame on SSU on May 12th.
Re: “Quad City DJs”
I don't think it's fair or logical to even suggest that rape and sexual assault has any connection with the word bitch in a rap song. Whats next a ban from playing Katy Perrys Last Friday Night because the drinking theme in her lyrics are going to cause drinking and driving deaths? If people rape or drink and drive their not doing it because a song told them its o.k. A college campus shouldn't be a place that buries its head in the sand and trys to be void of pop culture. If a couple of songs have references to drugs, liquor, weed or even drop the word bitch a few times it isn't a time to go running to the president of the college and asking him to intervene, its time for you to get more involved with whatever group is responsible. Or at least walk up to the DJ or some other person with that group and let him or her know how you feel about certain songs before you go running to the president. And what if it was a female DJ playing songs with the word bitch in it, or a female artist like Alanis Morissette singing "Im a Bitch" what then? Are they inciting rape?
Alex-SRJC student
Re: “Final Frontier”
It was love at first sight according to Ranger Rick, who I called Richard. Over time, I felt the same way as I noticed he always brought a smile to my face, even the one night I talked him out of the idea of me holding a ladder while he climbed up on a rooftop. His life ceremony was filled with tears, laughter and wonderful stories that lightened our hearts. Thank you Frank, for the best salute to this quirky man we will all miss,
Re: “Protecting Their Own Power”
My American Government teacher (Rabinowitsh) was just telling us about this on Tuesday (the rich guys from the East taking over City Council)! He said that it's also partially because City Council members make about $800 per month, so it's always folks who can afford to deal with that reality.
Re: “Protecting Their Own Power”
I don't know, Gabe... as a proud average citizen myself, I lost you at "Last week". Of course, I'm known to have a very short attention spa
Re: “Final Frontier”
I sailed into Bodega bay in '91 from my home port of point Pleasant NJ, took my '58 Harley off the boat and commenced to explore Western Sonoma county. The first locals that I met were Evelyn at the Casino in Bodega and then Rick at the Union Hotel. My meeting him was very much like your description. After living for awhile on the river in Forestville then Santa Rosa, with many encounters with this rascal, I finally moved to the Bay Area, losing touch with my favorite magical place, Occidental. I moved back to Santa Rosa a couple years ago, and was pleasantly surprised to see Ranger Rick directing traffic in 'downtown' Occidental. I hadn't seen Rick in like 15 years, and dammit if he not only recognized me, but shared a lot of the conversations we had long before. Since then I've moved back to the Jersey Shore, and wish I could make the memorial, but can't. The last tome I saw Rick, I was hanging out at Terry Anne's shop The Flying Turtle, Ranger Rick says to me, "Hey, here comes 'the man,'" just as Tom Waits was walking by with his family....How appropriate!
Richard DeAngelis, Spring Lake Heights NJ
Re: “Final Frontier”
As a former Camp Meekerite and long-time acquaintance and fan of Ranger Rick, I couldn't have possibly said it better myself. Thank you for this eloquent and highly accurate picture of the man so many of us loved.
This Week's Issue
Re: “Spying on Occupy”
Few of us recognize the true security threat to the USA; consider:
trust in gov:
http://www.newciv.org/nl/newslog.php/_v194…
The 'boast of heraldry, the pomp of power' don't address/solve the deadly problems created globally by this God forsaken war waging nation.
http://barcelona.indymedia.org/newswire/di…
CJIS USED BY fbi AS A TOOL TO INSTILL F E A R:
http://www.newciv.org/nl/newslog.php/_v194…
Now meet the fbi in the person of homicidal sociopath David Jenkins, aka, J. Robert Upton:
http://la.indymedia.org/news/2013/01/25794…