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Cory Briggs runs for mayor of San Diego
Yes, this announcement is great news. He's not one of the local political hacks who says one thing and does another. Cory is remarkably consistent in his criticism of the slobberin' city council and government. But, Cassander, surely you know that city office is non-partisan, and has been for a century. What he calls himself is irrelevant, whether Dem, GOP, AIP, P&F, Green or independent.— January 30, 2019 1:35 p.m.
Cory Briggs runs for mayor of San Diego
The tourists don't get treated any better; they pay high rates for rooms in old and run-down motels in Mission Valley, or even higher rates for the fancy new hotels downtown. You gotta want to see San Diego to pay those rates, yet what do many get? Overpriced Zoo, Safari Park, and Sea World tickets, and streets full of homeless.— January 30, 2019 7:43 a.m.
Vista child grabber gets four years prison
This offense was far more serious than those he pleaded on. We must wonder why the DA didn't go for all the charges originally charged and take it to trial. Too much work and too hard to refute the insanity defense I suppose. But this four year term will result in no more than half of it being served, and then he'll be baaaack in Vista, ready to re-offend. Ain't this criminal justice system great?— January 27, 2019 7:28 p.m.
Scooter riders flooding emergency rooms
I love it the way that researchers phrase their reports. ". . . current self-enforced regulations imposed by private electric scooter companies 'may' be inadequate." No it suggests they ARE inadequate, and that's by design. If the rental operations insisted that all the rules be obeyed and that the scooters be operated as safely as possible, they would rent only a tiny fraction of the scooters they now rent. And that would kill the whole concept, wouldn't it? It seems hard to believe that these operators are allowed to introduce an obvious hazard into the city, and not find it outlawed. Ahh, but the tourists love them, I'm sure, and we mustn't inconvenience them, even if we facilitate their putting themselves in harm's way. Yet, the slobberin' city and its photogenic, empty-suit mayor can't figure out how to regulate the scooters. (Or more likely, do not want to deal with the mess at all.)— January 27, 2019 8:26 a.m.
Miranda Escoto tried to report abuse of students
Alex, I'm not sure that Sweetwater is the only district needing a purge. For too long the San Diego Unified district has had its scandals and massive breakdowns. Maybe it is just too large, but while some large districts seem to stay clean, some of the smaller ones have their repeated messes.— January 24, 2019 8:18 p.m.
Miranda Escoto tried to report abuse of students
This story of hers, even if only a small part is true, is appalling. Back in the early 90's, when I was studying for my teaching credential, we were extensively informed about the reporting requirements in California. Woe to any teacher or other mandated reporter who didn't make a report and was found guilty of neglect! We were told that while it was a good thing to make the report to the school's administration, every mandated reporter was required to make his/her own report within a tight deadline. Afterward, during my years of teaching service, we were repeatedly reminded, often at the start of the school year, of the requirement. Note that the abuse of a kid that needed reporting was not limited to things at school; home and other areas that gave evidence of abuse were also to be reported. While I spent time at some shaky schools with weak administrators, I can honestly say that I never saw abuse such as she describes. And never was there cause for me to report suspected abuse. So, what was going on in Sweetwater? Well, let's go back a few years and look at the corruption and maladministration of the operation. We experienced the sequence of poorly-to-criminally inclined superintendents, Brand, then Gandara and then Brand again. Principals came and went, while the staffs pulled their heads in and waited it out. Finally there were a batch of criminal convictions, removal of district trustees, and a new broom seemed to sweep clean. But in recent years since those events there's been a news blackout on the crooks in So County. This sounds as if not much changed, and the bad guys are still in charge of the Sweetwater district. There was no need for Stephan and Gothold and Carter to make up a training video. There are scads of those circulating within the school districts, along with many other training support materials and on-line instruction. The need is for each district to insure that the training is given and given again and again. The need is also for everyone involved to play the game according to the rules. So now we have Sweetwater and also San Diego Unified impugned for failure to handle these reports in the manner outlined in well-established laws. Anyone really surprised?— January 23, 2019 8:42 p.m.
Tri-City nurse stabs boyfriend with butter knife, then steak knife
While she may lay off the boozing while on duty and would never think of harming a patient, co-worker, or family member visiting the hospital, there's a risk there. I doubt that she ever imagined attacking the boyfriend with knives, but even her attorney admits she did it. Far too risky, I'd say, to be allowed to work. That is, unless she can prove she has her act together.— January 20, 2019 8:41 a.m.
Guns aimed at Solana Beach cheap housing
Agreed. As to whether affordable housing "belongs" on the coast, it should be remembered that all of the beach communities along the San Diego County coast once had such housing, often in abundance. Funky little beach cottages were the rule, not the exception, even in Del Mar. As time passed and more people located in the county, along with beach living being seen as desirable, those cottages and other modest housing were displaced by bigger, fancier homes. Prior to regulation, such gentrification was generally seen as a positive trend, and only price kept it in check. With the passage of enough time, such housing it a rarity now. In Solana Beach, would these same people truly be willing to see such homes built east if I-5? Or is that just a way of putting it off until there is no chance of any being built in proximity of the beach? No, they don't want to see or hear anything from those they see as the unwashed. Those beach areas need people to work as cooks and wait staff, babysitters, retail clerks, firefighters and cops, auto repair techs, and, well, the list is endless. Those occupations don't pay enough for such workers to live where or near where they work. They are forced to live elsewhere, far inland in many cases, and commute whether they like it or not. Look at Santa Barbara if you want to see how such trends play out. Ordinary wage earners and even those in middle management cannot afford to own homes in that city now, and reside many miles away. That brings some social ills to the area in that those fortunate to reside in Santa Barbara, or even Goleta now, see themselves as elites, and look down on those who serve them. Not healthy, and not the sort of civil society we should want.— January 19, 2019 10:15 a.m.
L.A. Times writing more of Union-Tribune stories
monaghan, I wish that I could see the U-T as "my" local newspaper. I don't and never did. But giving this billionaire credit for "want[ing] good journalism for SoCal" is premature at best. Current trends in the news reporting business will lead to no printed papers at all within less than a generation. If he rebuilds something, it will have to be some sort of electronic reporting. As to the old days, when the Copley organization put its own particular spin on reporting and editorializing, the U-T now has its own LAT-style censorship and spouts the DNC playbook for running California (and the nation, too.) That's progress?— January 18, 2019 9:22 a.m.
Sunset Cliffs Not So Natural Park
The process reminds me of a quote that came out of the Vietnam War. A commander said that, "We had to destroy the village to save it." The (il)logic used to justify some actions can be over-the-top. Disclosure: I am a Vietnam veteran.— January 16, 2019 5:05 p.m.