Monthly Archives: October 2014

Oakland Mayoral Candidate Proposes Homelessness Policy That Makes Sense

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NORSE’S NOTES:  Though not a fan of everything Siegel of Oakland does, what he presents below is miles ahead of Smart Solutions, 180/180, the Downtown Accountability Project, or any of the other “rush -em out of sight/drive ’em out of town” policies adopted here in Santa Cruz–from high-frequency noise generators to “security” gates to ID cards to stay-way-from-the-park-even-if-you-haven’t-been-convicted-of-anything orders, to little colored dots on Pacific Avenue setting up the invisble cages in which street performers, vendors, and tablers must confine themselves.
> Dan Siegel Releases Homelessness Policy Paper
>
> ————————————————————
>
>
> September 25, 2014
> Contact: April Thomas, media@siegelforoakland.org, 206.321.3850
> Mayoral candidate Dan Siegel commits to doubling Housing First Investments
>
> Siegel outlines his innovative and compassionate approach to homelessness (Oakland, CA) – Today, Oakland mayoral candidate Dan Siegel released his 8th policy paper, detailing his agenda on homelessness in Oakland. The paper lays out four areas that Siegel will innovate in his approach to both increasing access to permanent housing and supporting people without shelter in their daily lives:
>
> Housing First: The simplest strategy is also proven the most effective: give chronically homeless people a home with no strings attached. Siegel
will double Oakland’s current investment in the Permanent Access to Housing program in order to serve twice as many chronically homeless individuals.
>
> Tiny Houses: The potential of the “Tiny House” movement to address homelessness has been recognized nationwide. These houses, costing as little as $5,000 to build, require minimal amounts of land and need not be connected to the power grid.
>
> Homelessness is not a Crime: Siegel supports legislative approaches such as California’s Homeless Bill of Rights proposed by Senator Tom Ammiano. If the state is unwilling to outlaw discrimination against homelessness (Ammiano’s most recent attempt died in the legislature in January, 2014), the Siegel administration will propose a similar bill at the city level.   “Oakland must also eliminate any ˜quality of life” laws that make life on the streets more challenging than it already is,” said Siegel.
>
> Shower Access: The City of Oakland, through its shelters and other facilities, should also ensure that shower and bathroom facilities are available for the homeless during the day, even if it is impossible to provide beds for all each night.
>
> The full paper can be accessed at http://siegelforoakland.org/policy_papers/DanSiegelHomelessnessPolicy.pdf
> .

> ============================================================
> Paid for by Dan Siegel for Mayor, 2014
> 499 14th Street, Suite 300
> Oakland, CA 94612
> (510) 839-1200

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Back for Real This Time: Candidate Bush on Free Radio 9:30 AM -11 AM Sunday October 12th

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Norse’s Note:   My apologies to Candidate Bush, HUFFsters here and elsewhere, as well as the public generally for missing my appointment with Craig Bush last Sunday.  This Sunday will be different.   Though Bush has not been on my radar as a homeless civil rights activist, I was impressed enough with the platform on his website to feel motivated to encourage him to come on the air (though an invitation has been extended to the dreary list of candidates).   From his website, I gather that his major interests and issues are around opposing desal, new economic stimulus ideas, and environmental concerns.  However his positions against downtown repression of performers and city repression of the homeless seem clearer and more specific to me than that of any other of the candidates.
Title: Santa Cruz City Council Candidate Craig Bush on Free Radio
START DATE: Sunday October 12
TIME: 9:30 AM – 11:00 AM
Location Details:
On the stream of Free Radio Santa Cruz at http://tunein.com/radio/FRSC-s47254/ . 

Call-in numbers are 831-427-3772 and 831-469-3119. 

The show will archive at http://www.radiolibre.org/brb/brb141005.mp3 . 

Earlier shows can be found at http://radiolibre.org/brb/ . Some of these are described at http://huffsantacruz.org/radio.html .
Event Type: Radio Broadcast
Last week, due to mental mixup by the talk show host, Candidate Bush didn’t make it on the stream. This Sunday will hopefully be different. 

Craig Bush is running for one of the three vacancies on the Santa Cruz City Council with voting due to start within a week. He is one of seven candidates running and the only one so far who has replied to an invitation to come on Free Radio. 

His website is at http://www.bushforsccouncil.comxa.com/mypolitics.html 

Bush’s platform extensive and specific. You can find it athttp://www.bushforsccouncil.comxa.com/local.html . 

For a summary of his positions on Social Services, the Santa Cruz Eleven, and Law Enforcement go to http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/09/30/18762275.php 

I will specifically be asking Bush to answer questions for the HUFF questionaire that other candidates (other than Leonie Sherman) have ignored. Seehttp://www.indybay.org/uploads/2014/08/18/mid-august_flyer.pdf 

Bush tells me he has lived in Santa Cruz since the 70’s, so I’ll be asking him some “then and now” questions as well as my usual “what will you do the day after the election results show you’ve lost?”–which I’ve asked of every candidate. I”m more interested in activism all the rest of the days of the year, than election results. 

Tune in and call in. Or e-mail your questions to me at rnorse3 [at] hotmail.com 
I also received a more recent e-mail from Craig Bush which included the following: 

“I have a candidate forum at Calvary Episcopal church downtown. [7 PM Thursday 10-9]” 

“I would like to bring music that pays tribute to the street performing artists and musicians of SC. Move the story around the repression, bullying. ticketing that is forcing them out. I have stories of performing artists that have performed on our streets. Artists, dancers and musicians who sprung forth dance, music and theatre that has been performed on our stages here. When we crush the seeds of creativity we destroy our cultural heritage. I have a green light program that fosters creativity among our aspiring street performers. I have several specific solutions to improve social services here. I hope to get in some time to discuss them all.” 

“I also have an economic stimulus plan that includes the organic permaculture corridor running on both sides of the rr track from Davenport to Watsonville. City formulated worker co-ops to manufacture hemp shopping bags with city logo. Provides long term unemployed 55 and over full time good paying jobs in a safe green working environment. A sustainable water system that will put us in a position to export water and lower our water bills. A system that produces the purest naturally alkaline water in CA. A water system that will enable the return of the salmon. This is what I bring to the table.’  

 

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Lowest Enforcement Priority for Marijuana in Santa Cruz? Don’t Rely on the Measure K Committee

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Measure K Committee Craps Out Again–Another Free Ride for the SCPD
by Robert Norse
Monday Oct 6th, 2014 11:06 PM

The Measure K Committee, created by voter initiative in 2006 here in Santa Cruz, in Santa Monica, and in Santa Barbara was supposed to be the first step in holding the local PD and similar agencies accountable and moving to end Marijuana Prohibition. I detailed the agenda and some preliminary concerns about the Committee pro-police bias at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/10/05/18762458.php .   Marijuana enforcement was supposed to become the lowest enforcement priority for adults on private property–whether the marijuana was being used, bought, sold, transported, or simply possessed.  The Measure K Committee was supposed to ensure that police were laying off.  Instead it’s acting as a rubberstamp.

There was no public present for much of the meeting other than me; I was the only speaker. The chair was Deborah Ellston, an organizer in the Santa Cruz Neighbors, the right-wing NIMBY group which elected Lynn Robinson Mayor. There was also no armed officer present. Perhaps that was why my tiny tape recorder was for the first time in six months left unmolested as it sat recording the meeting. (See “Video of the False Arrest at Santa Cruz City Council ” at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/05/03/18755258.php )

TICKETS OUTNUMBER COMPLAINTS 8-1 BUT COMMITTEE NOT INTERESTED IN SEEING THE CITATIONS
None of the Committee was interested in actually looking at the statistic around marijuana arrests. Why were the police doing 8 times more ticketing/arresting for marijuana than there were calls for service around that issue? Member Coral Brune couldn’t get a second for her motion to ask to see the actual fifty marijuana citations and arrest reports. Before rubberstamping the summary and conclusions of Assistant to the Assistant City Manager Scott Collins that the SCPD were “in compliance”. In essence they took the SCPD’s word for it.
However, MC 9.84.060(1)(e) actually reads: “Responsibilities of the committee shall include: submitting written reports semi-annually to the Santa Cruz City Council on the implementation of this ordinance, … These reports shall include but not necessarily be limited to: the number of all arrests, citations, property seizures, and prosecutions for marijuana offenses in the city of Santa Cruz; the breakdown of all marijuana arrests and citations by race, age, specific charge, and classification as infraction, misdemeanor, or felony; the percentage of all arrests in the city of Santa Cruz that are for adult marijuana offenses.”
The only provision that was actually followed was the final section which requires the reports to include “any instances of law enforcement activity that the committee believes violated the lowest law enforcement priority policy”–where everyone took the SCPD’s word that that number was zero.
I couldn’t figure out whether most of the Committee members were being cagey, cowardly or just clueless in willfully ignoring the requirements of the law (passed by the voters after being rejected by City Council back in 2006).  I suspect that exaggerated respect for and/or apprehension of the police played its usual role.

VICTIMS OF POLICE ABUSE CAN CONTACT THE COMMITTEE IN SIX MONTHS
One member afterwards–the only one who actually stopped to talk with me–actually told me that he didn’t want to examine police records unless he received credible reports of violations. When I told him that as a radio broadcaster I’d received such reports of homeless people being ticketed for marijuana on private property (though admittedly outdoors), he suggested they “come to the next meeting” That would be in six months, I told him. No, he insisted, we meet ever three months. I showed him the minutes of the last meeting–since the Committee meets twice yearly. On several occasions the members don’t bother to show up or City Council members left their seats vacant.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY
To his credit, at Coral’s request Collins arranged to have a recording of the meeting–something David Terrazas–head of the Public Safety Committee twice refused to do. Terazzas’s committee excreted one anti-homeless law after another last year.
To his discredit, Collins suggested that getting the police to release the 50 marijuana citations from the last six months would be “burdensome” and “costly” and “time-consuming”. The Committee ignored my testimony that I regularly got such information from the police department–which didn’t seem to bankrupt them or prompt wails of dismay.

HOW MUCH MONEY IS THE SCPD USING FOR MARIJUANA ENFORCEMENT? DON’T ASK!
Other motions presented by Brune were dismissed as “beyond the purview” of the Committee that “might require an opinion of the City Attorney.” These included  a request to find out what grants or funding sources the SCPD gets that are used for any kind of marijuana enforcement. This is actually explicitly authorized if not required by MC 9.84.050(2) (e) of Measure K which states: “Responsibilities of the committee shall include…the estimated time and money spent by the city on law enforcement and punishment for adult marijuana offenses.”
Another one turned down without a second or a vote was “how much is spent for marijuana arrest and citations?” Another action authorized by the law.

ARRESTING HOMELESS PEOPLE? NOT INTERESTED.
Brune also asked that Collins provide a breakdown of arrests that include marijuana as an additional offense and the number of citations given homeless people in their campers (private property which the SCPD is supposed to give lowest enforcement priority to.
Brune also called for researching the proportion of service calls (i.e. marijuana complaints) to marijuana citations. The latter outnumber the former by a factor of 8 to 1, indicating that the SCPD is doing such citing without a complaint in most of the cases. This was ignored.

A PRIVATE PERSON HAS TO DO WHAT A CITY-FUNDED COMMITTEE REFUSES TO DO
Brune noted she’d filed her own Public Records Act request to get the stats, which I’ll ask her to post publicly so the community can do the job that the Measure K Committee declines to do.
Collins and other Committee members hastily moved to distance themselves from her action–suggesting that any criticism of our armed Drug War Enforcers was just not cricket.

HASSLED IN CONNECTION WITH MARIJUANA ON PRIVATE PROPERTY IF YOU’RE OVER 21?
Please contact me with any instances of harassment for marijuana use, possession, transportation, sales, or purchase on private property. That means on any piece of private property whether open to the public or not, as far as I know. E-mail rnorse3 [at] hotmail.com or call me at 831-423-4833. I will pass on these concerns to the Committee (via Brune) as well as make them public on Free Radio Santa Cruz.
The “Semi-Annual” Report which the Committee approved can be found at http://www.indybay.org/uploads/2014/10/05/semiannualreport_draft_june14_for_october_meetring.pdf

To read further critical background on the Measure K Committee, follow the links at http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/10/05/18762458.php

 

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Marijuana Enforcement in Santa Cruz: What’s Going On?

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NOTES BY NORSE:  Homeless people are on the front-lines of the “War on Marijuana’ which is actually a war on people, often poor people, who use it for medication and recreation.   Over the last few years marijuana arrests have been increasing nationwide.  It’s not clear what’s happening in Santa Cruz.  But with the hyped up Needlemania that’s the favorite sport and sellingpoint for right-wing politicians and activists, it’s important that those who want to put in a bid for sanity speak up.
                        The local Measure K Commission was created as part of a push to legalize marijuana statewide back in 2006.  It has historically been stacked with pro-police Commissioners or left without a quorum and its reports have essentially been rubberstamps of the police department’s own claims with no closer scrutiny.  It’s not likely tomorrow’s meeting will be much different.
                         However, Commissioner Coral Brune apparently has different ideas. Come tomorrow at 5:30 PM to City Hall and find out.
Title: Measure K Commission Meets
START DATE: Monday October 06
TIME: 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM
Location Details:
809 Center St. in City Council Chambers in Santa Cruz
Event Type: Meeting
Contact Name Robert Norse
Email Address RNORSE3 [at] HOTMAiL.COM
Phone Number 831-423-4833
Address 309 Cedar PMB 14B Santa Cruz CA 95060
The Measure K Commission was created by voter initiative in 2006 to ensure that the Santa Cruz Police Department make Enforcement of the Drug War laws against Marijuana the lowest priority for adults on public property not involved in driving a motor vehicle. 

A dirty deal done by the SCPD and City Attorney’s Office six months after the measure was voted in de-fanged the Measure, but it can still be a sounding board for those fighting to stop Marijuana Prohibition madness. 

Measure K Commissioner Coral Brune has asked members of the public to support her in uncovering more fully how the SCPD has been operating around marijuana enforcement. 

She also would like those who have been harassed, hassled, ticketed, arrested, or otherwise accosted by police around marijuana in the last year to come to the meeting to tell their story to the Commission. 

If you can’t make it, leave a message with contact information at 423-4833, and I”ll convey it to Coral. 

Earlier stories on the Measure K Commission’s decline into senility can be found athttp://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/10/08/18452900.php [“Gutted and Depleted Measure K Commission Meets Tonight 6 PM (10/8)] 
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/11/14/18461217.php [“Crippled Measure K (“Lowest Priority Enforcement Marijuana by SCPD”) meets 6 PM today“] 
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2009/01/19/18564535.php [“Rump Measure K Committee Excludes Public Comment, Loses Audio Tape”] 
http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2009/06/16/18601993.php?show_comments=1#18618768 
[“The Measure K Oversight Committee Meeting of June 15, 2009”] 

Monterey Sitting Ban Denies Homeless The Right to Rest During Business Hours

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NORSE’S NOTES:  Following in the pawprints of its elder bigoted brother Santa Cruz to the North, Monterey has reversed itself from a similar proposal a year ago and passed a Sitting Ban that is somewhat less stringent.  In 2013, a big turnout of homeless activists, housed supporters, and social service providers sent a similar Ban back to the staff, from which it has emerged zombie-like to stalk the homeless community.
                    The Monterey law, unlike the Santa Cruz law applies only from 7 AM to 9 PM, mirroring a similar law proposed (but defeated) in Berkeley. Santa Cruz’s Sitting Ban is 24-hours long (MC 9.50.012).  Like the Monterey law, Santa Cruz’s was passed with no stats proving any kind of meaningful business concerns other than the anxieties of post-earthquake Santa Cruz and the special interests of merchants, then lead by Bookshop Santa Cruz owner Neal Coonerty.
                      The sitting ban and the smoking ban are the primarily weapon used by Officer Barnett against homeless people downtown (See “Report from SCPD Corner” and the Barnett ticket citation record at https://www.indybay.org/uploads/2014/09/18/barnett_cites.pdf ).

On Monday in Monterey, sitting on the sidewalk was still OK but by Wednesday, you could be facing a citation from police for doing the same.

“They are interfering with my business,” said Joseph Aiello of people who he says are often sitting around outside his jewelry store.

The idea of a sit-lie ordinance has been a long time coming for Aiello and his business. He says that people loitering outside his shop deters potential customers.

“When they see panhandlers out on the street, they feel uncomfortable and therefore, they walk by real fast to get to where they are going,” said Aiello.

Starting Wednesday, between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m., officers have the authority to tell people to get up from the sidewalk in downtown, Cannery Row and along Fremont Street.

The first offense is a warning.

“For the next 30 days, that warning stays in effect and if you are found doing it again you get a citation,” Monterey police said.

Officers insist they won’t just be targeting homeless individuals.

“If this is something that is applied and and targets a specific group of people, we’re gonna catch a lot of flack for that,” said Monterey Police Chief Phil Penko.  “The application is the key.”

Penko say he hopes his department doesn’t have to write a single ticket even though Aiello says his business, a staple on Alvarado Street for the last 30 years, is in trouble and the loitering isn’t helping.

“The downtown businesses are struggling, struggling to stay in business and it does not help or improve having them always on the street,” said Aiello. “

There are exceptions to this rule -you may sit on the sidewalk if you have a medical emergency, are attending a parade or festival, or you’re in a wheel chair or baby stroller.

Here is the full text of the ordinance:

In response to increased complaints regarding safety concerns created by obstructed sidewalks, the Monterey City Council adopted Monterey City Code §32-6.2. This ordinance, which goes into effect October 1, 2014, prohibits sitting or lying down on the sidewalk in front of property designated on the General Plan map for mixed use areas (see map) between 7:00 a.m.  and 9:00 pm.

The ordinance contains exceptions for people: (1) experiencing a medical emergency, (2) using a wheelchair or other device for mobility; (3) for people sitting on a public bench or bus stop; (4) operating or patronizing a commercial establishment conducted on the public sidewalk pursuant to an encroachment permit (e.g., a sidewalk café); (5) participating in or attending a parade, etc. with an event permit or other applicable permit; and (6) a child seated in a stroller. It also requires that no person will be cited without first being given a warning by a peace officer that he/she is violating this section. One warning given by a peace officer is sufficient for a 30 day period for subsequent violations.

Police officers have been actively working to inform people in the designated business districts.

 

On Monday in Monterey, sitting on the sidewalk was still OK but by Wednesday, you could befacing a citation from police for doing the same.

“They are interfering with my business,” said Joseph Aiello of people who he says are often sitting around outside his jewelry store.

The idea of a sit-lie ordinance has been a longtime coming for Aiello and his business. He says that people loitering outside his shop deters potential customers.

“When they see panhandlers out on the street, they feel uncomfortable and therefore, they walk by real fast to get to where they are going,” said Aiello.

Starting Wednesday, between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m., officers have the authority to tell people to get up from the sidewalk in downtown, Cannery Row and along Fremont Street.

The first offense is a warning.

“For the next 30 days, that warning stays in effect and if you are found doing it again you get a citation,” Monterey police said.

Officers insist they won’t just be targeting homeless individuals.

“If this is something that is applied and and targets a specific group of people, we’re gonna catch a lot of flack for that,” said Monterey Police Chief Phil Penko.  “The application is the key.”

Penko say he hopes his department doesn’t have to write a single ticket even though Aiello says his business, a staple on Alvarado Street for the last 30 years, is in trouble and the loitering isn’t helping.

“The downtown businesses are struggling, struggling to stay in business and it does not help or improve having them always on the street,” said Aiello. “

There are exceptions to this rule -you may sit on the sidewalk if you have a medical emergency, are attending a parade or festival, or you’re in a wheel chair or baby stroller.

Here is the full text of the ordinance:

 

In response to increased complaints regarding safety concerns created by obstructed sidewalks, the Monterey City Council adopted Monterey City Code §32-6.2. This ordinance, which goes into effect October 1, 2014, prohibits sitting or lying down on the sidewalk in front of property designated on the General Plan map for mixed use areas (between 7:00 a.m.  and 9:00 pm.

 

The ordinance contains exceptions for people: (1) experiencing a medical emergency, (2) using a wheelchair or other device for mobility; (3) for people sitting on a public bench or bus stop; (4) operating or patronizing a commercial establishment conducted on the public sidewalk pursuant to an encroachment permit (e.g., a sidewalk café); (5) participating in or attending a parade, etc. with an event permit or other applicable permit; and (6) a child seated in a stroller. It also requires that no person will be cited without first being given a warning by a peace officer that he/she is violating this section. One warning given by a peace officer is sufficient for a 30 day period for subsequent violations.

Police officers have been actively working to inform people in the designated business districts.

 

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Candidate Craig Bush Faces HUFF on FRSC Sunday 10-5 at 9:30 AM

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Title: Craig Bush–Santa Cruz City Council Candidate on Free Radio Santa Cruz
START DATE: Sunday October 05
TIME: 9:30 AM – 11:00 AM
Location Details:
On the stream of Free Radio Santa Cruz at http://tunein.com/radio/FRSC-s47254/ .

Call-in numbers are 831-427-3772 and 831-469-3119.

The show will archive at http://www.radiolibre.org/brb/brb141005.mp3 .

Earlier shows can be found at http://radiolibre.org/brb/ . Some of these are described at http://huffsantacruz.org/radio.html .
Event Type: Radio Broadcast
Contact Name Robert Norse
Email Address rnorse3 [at] hotmail.com
Phone Number 831-423-4833
Address 309 Cedar PMB 14B Santa Cruz CA 95060
Craig Bush is running for one of the three vacancies on the Santa Cruz City Council with voting due to start within a week. He is one of seven candidates running and the only one so far who has replied to an invitation to come on Free Radio.

His website is at http://www.bushforsccouncil.comxa.com/mypolitics.html

Bush’s platform extensive and specific. You can find it athttp://www.bushforsccouncil.comxa.com/local.html .

On Social Services, he writes:

Here in Santa Cruz we do not refer to “homeless” but rather those who are environmentally challenged in between places. At any given time there are 8000 people in this area to fit that description. There is no sense in labels to group people. There are no “those” people being referred by our council. Stereotyping, profiling,and prejudice creates an atmosphere of fear that diminishes all of our rights and liberties. It robs us of our human dignity. Everyone has a face, a name and a story. There are homeless teachers here.

Our city council has proposed a registration system for all “indigents” in Santa Cruz. How much would that program cost? Doesn’t the council understand all indigents on social services are already registered? Are we going to require a homeless logo patch to wear on their arm sleeve? What if an indigent comes here planning to commit crime and just decides they’re not going to register first? How are we going to be safer with this program?

This sounds like more fear mongering, hate baiting bigotry to get a politician elected. Ask ourselves, “who is more dangerous to this community”? Is it a homeless old man sitting on a bench on west cliff? Or, a politician planning to build a desal water treatment plant in your backyard?

Single income families no longer qualify for home ownership in CA. They can rent for more but cannot own for less? The same homes my grandfather built here 80 years ago for single income families now 2 incomes are required to own. Two incomes for the same shelter? Our money is not worth as much anymore. For those who bought homes here in the last 8 years the value of their home could be less then when they bought. They are paying taxes on a liability. This is not the American dream. This is an American nightmare. Where would you go if you lost your home?

Regarding the Santa Cruz Eleven, Bush writes:

Our DA decided to pick eleven out of hundreds to prosecute as felons. This is frivolous prosecution for personal gain. The prosecution will cost this community a staggering amount. Fallen sheet rock does not compare to what the banks have done to this community. This heavy hand approach will not crush dissent here.

Compare this prosecution action to the recent bank money laundering trials. Big banks guilty of criminal drug money laundering get off with a ticket or fine. Which in the end the consumer ends up paying. No time served at all for anyone. We have a two-tiered justice system. Where is the real justice in our society?

How did the DA pick the ones chosen for prosecution? Did they hold their hands up to their eyes raising a finger a little and scan the area, picking the ones they saw? In our free society we elect the office of district attorney and our judges. We choose the ones who swear to uphold the constitution and protect our rights. Freedom of speech and right to assemble are important rights. We will not forget.

On Law Enforcement:

In recent years law enforcement has carved out 60% of our budget. It has been historically at 40%. Other cities are asking the questions about the real cost of law enforcement to our society? We must do the same. Some proposals include cost sharing between communities. We do not need overlapping services in every area of law enforcement. The service of Police Chief, SWAT teams, Police Psychology, and specialized detective work can be shared on a regional arrangement. The city saves money. Law enforcement is more efficient.

Ask yourself the question. Why are we paying city police chiefs more money then the president of the United States? How could their service be more valuable then the president? There are prison guards making more on retirement then working teachers. There are new programs that include gps tracking on our license plates. There is money for a new fleet of drones for domestic spying.

A senior was tased not long ago walking his small pooch dog for not having him on the leash. He was in the park in the woods. No one else was around except the county ranger. The senior was hard of hearing and didn’t hear the command to stop. He was tased in the back. If the officer had tased the dog, the officer would have lost their job. It is illegal to tase animals in CA by civilians. It is considered cruel. It might get you a visit from animal control. Who approved this “Frankenstein” technology to be used on American citizens?

More people die in the U.S. from tasers then any other country. We lost a young man by taser here while incarcerated in our jail. There must be a better way to deal with claustrophobic anxiety then a taser? With the use of baton the man would be alive today. The young man had a mom and dad just like you and I. To process the tragedy for them and the officers will be most difficult. We prevent that from happening again by making SC a taser free community.

Bush tells me he has lived in Santa Cruz since the 70’s, so I’ll be asking him some “then and now” questions as well as my usual “what will you do the day after the election results show you’ve lost?”–which I’ve asked of every candidate. I”m more interested in activism all the rest of the days of the year, than election results.

Tune in and call in.

Or e-mail your questions to me at rnorse3 [at] hotmail.com

Once More—HUFFsters Assemble! 11 AM 703 Pacific Wednesday Oct. 1 Sub Rosa

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Among the HUFF stuff to be discussed, I’m suggesting

Needlemania—ignore it or confront it?…Circles Church and Red Church restrictions: implications for us?  Clock Ticking on Public Records at

Police Department and City Hall… Greg Bush: the Undiscovered City Council Candidate?…. 10-10 World Homeless Day 10-24 National Anti-

Police Brutality Rally Student Organizing.    Possible Protest/Tabling:  Empty Buildings Are the Crime! …   Organizing for 10-24….   

Encampment Protection Now!–Raising a Ruckus Against the Repression…  Safe Spaces for Homeless Dialogue ….   

BRING YOUR OWN PLANS, IDEAS, SCHEMES, SIGNS, AND ASSOCIATES!   DRINK, DEBATE…THEN DO!