Last fall, more than 200 residents from the four neighborhoods that comprise the Washington community—Goodyear/Mastic, Tamien, Guadalupe/Washington, and Alma—assembled at the corner of South First/Monterey and Oak to fight back against the increase of prostitution in our community.
Your search for santa clara county returned 3,886 results
Making Politics Work for Public Education
Someone asked me last week if there are underreported stories about public education in the Bay Area. Absolutely there are. People and ideas are converging in Silicon Valley, and they have the potential to alter the landscape of schools and learning.
President Obama Can Help Middle Class by Focusing on Education in Second Term
President Obama’s State of the Union address will reportedly focus on growing the economy and jobs while shrinking the deficit. There are several ways these goals can be achieved, but in the long term the goal of growing the middle class must include strengthening publicly funded education.
Increased Doctor Pay Cuts into VMC Budget
In the first five months of the fiscal year, Santa Clara Valley Medical Center’s on-call and overtime pay for doctors took a staggering leap, going from an average of less than $20,000 a month in 2011-12 to $967,000 this fiscal year. The Board of Supervisors will discuss the $1 billion health agency’s drastic uptick in costs—4,835-percent increase in per-month, on-call wages— as well as other issues at Tuesday’s meeting.
Chuck Reed: Our Republican Mayor
Mayor Reed should come out of the closet. No, not that closet. I’m talking about the closet inhabited by local politicos who call themselves Democrats, because it suits their electoral ambitions despite plainly conservative fiscal—and social—values.
Who Wasted the Most Campaign Money in 2012? Well, a Lot of People
The deadline for semi-annual campaign disclosure forms covering the last half of 2012 came due last week. The documents provide a clearer picture of how winning and losing candidates raised money and how they spent it—or misspent it—in the final weeks of the campaign. We also tracked a number of political action committees (PACs). The most interesting findings: How much money was wasted in trying to defeat Councilmember Rose Herrera, a potential quid pro quo between the ChamberPAC and a person quoted in its ballot statement against minimum wage, and hangover debt for losing candidates Jimmy Nguyen and Robert Braunstein.
Let’s Focus on Community over Politics
Omar Torres, executive director of the local nonprofit Santa Maria Urban Ministry (SMUM), joins San Jose Inside as a new columnist. In addition to writing about his work as a community organizer, Torres, who is an elected member of the Democratic Central Committee, will break down how politics work behind the scenes in San Jose and Santa Clara County.
Expertise vs. Geography on City Commissions
A curious coupling of councilmembers issued a 4:59pm memo last Friday recommending the City Council adopt what sounds at first like a reasonable idea. Unfortunately, the path to bad policy is often paved with reasonable ideas.
Rules to Discuss Election Recalls, Proposal to Fund Gun Buy-Back Program
Councilman Don Rocha wants to explore the idea of imposing a standard for automatic recounts in event of a very close election in San Jose. Other items going before the Rules and Open Governemnt Committee on Wednesday include an amnesty offer to businesses behind on their taxes, study sessions and Councilmember Kansen Chu attempting to direct funds to libraries and a gun buy-back program.
Breaking Down Local Legislators’ 2012 Work
When the calendar ticked over to 2013, a slew of bills authored last year by our local state senators and assembly members became actual law. Moving forward, those lawmakers have until late February to introduce bills, which means they’re in the middle of planning a legislative agenda for the coming year. We compiled a list of their just-enacted bills and called up those same representatives to ask them what they have planned for the upcoming year.
Investor Groups with Cash Pushing Middle-Class Homebuyers out of the Market
A trend has emerged in the Silicon Valley real estate market, where middle-class homebuyers are losing out to cash buyers—often investment groups from overseas—who convert owner-occupied homes into rentals. The natural tendency of sellers to choose quick, guaranteed sales over offers with financing contingencies is a new assault on middle-class home ownership, a shift likely to expand the ranks of landlords and tenants and make home ownership an increasingly elusive American dream.
Retired Attorney Asks San Jose to Consider New Rules on Assault Weapons
A semi-retired employment law and civil rights attorney thinks anyone in San Jose who wants to own an assault weapon should be required to pass a mental health check and hand over their gun to police for safekeeping. San Jose resident Maurits Van Smith, 77, drafted a proposed city ordinance, which he submitted to the police chief, the mayor and a handful of other public officials in the hopes that they’ll support his idea. Other topics going before the Rules and Open Government Committee meeting Wednesday include child obesity and how police interact with senior citizens.
Board of Supervisors to Discuss P-Card Audits at First Meeting of the Year
In a bid to move on from the scandal ignited by county Supervisor George Shirakawa abusing his taxpayer-funded credit card, the Board of Supervisors will discuss P-Card audits Tuesday morning instead of later this month. Also on the agenda for the first meeting of the year, the supervisors will discuss $15 million in bonds for YMCA, low-income childcare, a new farmers market, ridding the county of illegal pot and a commendation for outgoing San Jose Police Chief Chris Moore.
Political Predictions a Tricky Game
Predicting the future of politics is a tricky proposition, as Nate Silver pointed out in his NY Times blog and book during the election season. But taking a closer look at local issues, there are a few predictions you can, or can’t, count on in the future.
Newtown Requires a ‘Call to Action’
The Newtown tragedy is more about the resources we need as a nation to care for our fellow citizens who are mentally ill than gun control. And yet, we will not advance the cause of decreasing violent incidents until we discuss both issues openly and honestly with a subsequent call to action.
California Students Face Cliff of Their Own
We can argue over whether it is a fiscal cliff or slope, but the real challenge for America in the coming decades is improving the mediocre results of public education. The facts show that we are in a precarious position as a nation and as the largest state—11 percent of America’s children are enrolled in California schools.
