Here's something you might be interested in.
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed
Big Screen — Movie commentary
Blurt — Music's inside track
Booze News — San Diego spirits
Classical Music — Immortal beauty
Classifieds — Free and easy
Cover Stories — Front-page features
Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes
Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts
Feast! — Food & drink reviews
Feature Stories — Local news & stories
Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore
From the Archives — Spotlight on the past
Golden Dreams — Talk of the town
The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it
Letters — Our inbox
Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites
Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans
Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists
Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news
News Ticker — News & politics
Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated
Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna
Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated
Poetry — The old and the new
Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers
Reading — The hunt for intellectuals
Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails
San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds
SD on the QT — Almost factual news
Sheep and Goats — Places of worship
Special Issues — The best of
Street Style — San Diego streets have style
Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves
Theater — On stage in San Diego this week
Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative
Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work
Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego
Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads
Your Week — Daily event picks
Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire
On October 8, the Oceanside City Council meeting got off to a fiery start. The first speaker, Ray Melendrez, president of the Oceanside Firefighters Association, accused Councilman (and mayoral candidate) Rocky Chavez and Councilman Jerry Kern of holding a clandestine meeting to look into privatizing the city’s ambulance services without the knowledge of fellow councilmembers and current mayor Jim Wood.
According to Melendrez, the meeting took place between Chavez and Kern and consultants working with groups affiliated with private emergency services company American Medical Response. “Councilmen Chavez and Kern unilaterally and independently initiated discussions with a consultant and a marketing firm,” says Melendrez. “This is unethical, illegal, and incredibly irresponsible behavior in advancing their privatization agenda and breaching the sanctity of the public’s trust. This community deserves better, and the community deserves the truth. I am requesting an immediate internal investigation into this matter.”
Not a second after Melendrez stopped speaking, Councilman Kern responded to the allegation. “American Medical Response approached us, and we had a meeting with the police chief and the division chief. We will meet with anybody at anytime. So, Mr. Melendrez basically told you a bunch of lies. I welcome the investigation. There’s no other way to say it. Everything is on the table all of the time. We work for the taxpayer and our doors are always open,” said Kern.
He then went on to address the audience and television cameras and implied the allegation was politically motivated, that it was an example of “silly season” (election time) antics.
“Mr. Melendrez told you a bunch of lies. To have a public employee come and basically lie to the public is very disturbing to me.”
For Kern, a little insult to injury was added when fellow councilmember, Esther Sanchez stuck up for the firefighter. "I did not know about this meeting. I've known Mr. Melendrez now for eight years, and I know him to be a man of integrity, and I don't like calling people liars on the dais. I am concerned this is a possible violation of the Brown Act."
Councilmember Chavez did not respond to the allegations.
To find out how hot Oceanside’s City Council can get, download the meeting at ci.oceanside.ca.us.
Here's something you might be interested in.
Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire
Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire
On October 8, the Oceanside City Council meeting got off to a fiery start. The first speaker, Ray Melendrez, president of the Oceanside Firefighters Association, accused Councilman (and mayoral candidate) Rocky Chavez and Councilman Jerry Kern of holding a clandestine meeting to look into privatizing the city’s ambulance services without the knowledge of fellow councilmembers and current mayor Jim Wood.
According to Melendrez, the meeting took place between Chavez and Kern and consultants working with groups affiliated with private emergency services company American Medical Response. “Councilmen Chavez and Kern unilaterally and independently initiated discussions with a consultant and a marketing firm,” says Melendrez. “This is unethical, illegal, and incredibly irresponsible behavior in advancing their privatization agenda and breaching the sanctity of the public’s trust. This community deserves better, and the community deserves the truth. I am requesting an immediate internal investigation into this matter.”
Not a second after Melendrez stopped speaking, Councilman Kern responded to the allegation. “American Medical Response approached us, and we had a meeting with the police chief and the division chief. We will meet with anybody at anytime. So, Mr. Melendrez basically told you a bunch of lies. I welcome the investigation. There’s no other way to say it. Everything is on the table all of the time. We work for the taxpayer and our doors are always open,” said Kern.
He then went on to address the audience and television cameras and implied the allegation was politically motivated, that it was an example of “silly season” (election time) antics.
“Mr. Melendrez told you a bunch of lies. To have a public employee come and basically lie to the public is very disturbing to me.”
For Kern, a little insult to injury was added when fellow councilmember, Esther Sanchez stuck up for the firefighter. "I did not know about this meeting. I've known Mr. Melendrez now for eight years, and I know him to be a man of integrity, and I don't like calling people liars on the dais. I am concerned this is a possible violation of the Brown Act."
Councilmember Chavez did not respond to the allegations.
To find out how hot Oceanside’s City Council can get, download the meeting at ci.oceanside.ca.us.
Comments