San Jose Inside (https://www.sanjoseinside.com)
Well although tonight is the last Presidential debate, I won’t pay much attention. This one is over except for the huffing and puffing of the talking heads, the excuses of the consultants, and the dearly needed change in this country. Even Tina Fey has had enough, vowing to go to outer space if Palin wins.
But there is one Presidential event worthy of comment that occurred 96 years ago yesterday: Teddy Roosevelt was shot.
Law enforcement uses the state’s gang-enhancement law to crack down on violence, but a judge’s ruling in the Joshua Herrera case raises questions about its reach
THE moment before Rebecca Rivera entered the courtroom to hear whether or not her son Joshua Herrera was going to face a life sentence in prison, she gathered with 40 or so supporters, who were bustling around with nervous tension. “I talked to Joshua last night, and he wanted us all to know that whatever happens in there—he is coming home.” She began to weep, then collected herself and walked into court. The potentially devastating question that was left in her wake, the one no one dared ask, was: When? Rivera had already consoled the mother of another young man involved in the case, Alex Samarro, who had been given 23-to-life the day prior, and knew the pain she saw yesterday could be hers today.
Over a year ago, an ABC 7 News I-Team report exposed San José’s failure to protect children from pornography and those who would openly view pornographic material in their presence. The investigation revealed that there have been a number of individuals arrested for viewing child pornography in libraries, and still others have been arrested for performing lewd acts such as masturbating in public while viewing pornographic material. Please take the time to see the reports here and here.
Probably like most of you, I have one of the popular antivirus programs on my computer. Every once in a while when I am online, I get a message that the antivirus has stopped a Trojan horse worm from secretly infiltrating my computer and killing off my data, leaving nothing but itself. If only we had a similar program to detect and foil political Trojan horse worms from squeaking through the vote and becoming law. One such worm, a classic of bait-and-switch techniques, is Proposition 90.
I do like give and take; it’s healthy, it’s in my nature, and I believe that is the tradition of San Jose—a hallowed one. But if our next mayor’s race becomes the traditional American election, one full of personalities but short of vision, replete with attacks, more thunder than light, then we all lose. Our city needs the next campaign to be about ideas and issues rather than platitudes and endorsements and who is the “nicest.” With that goal in mind, I’d like to speak about issues and an idea or two—those things that we need to be the focal points of the next mayoral election, namely growth, a big park, safety and ethics.
For those of you who rely on San Jose Inside as your primary news source (who doesn’t?), here’s some interesting stories from other publications.
In the recurring legislative fight between affordable housing advocates and defenders of California’s signature environmental law, one bill could be a final legislative showdown.
While it’s always been more expensive to be a homeowner in California, the gap between the rest of the country has widened into a chasm.
The Hollister Democrat unveiled the California Retail Theft Reduction Act, which he described as critical legislation to address a serious crime that’s hurting businesses and impacting communities.
Newsom’s absence was “strange,” say political observers, given the tradition that the governor will see the president when he visits.
With few exceptions, the grand jury report’s observations, conclusions and recommendations landed squarely on one side of the city’s political divide–led by Mayor Lisa Gillmor–that was on the losing end of the 2020 council elections, promping the 49ers to call for an investigation of the grand jury for conflicts of interest.
Gov. Gavin Newsom reveals his revised May budget, including his inflation relief plan and spending priorities on education, the environment.
Council members Raul Peralez and Magdalena Carrasco opted to withdraw their proposal to instead pursue a citywide rent freeze.
A powerful union leader violated agency policies by failing to report hate speech—and the former undersheriff leapt to his defense.
A state lawmaker thinks there should be a warning label for potentially unconstitutional citizen initiatives, like the infamous "kill the gays" bill.
Thousands of people packed the SAP Center on Thursday to mourn the death of Officer Michael Johnson, who on March 24 became the 12th officer in San Jose's 166-year history to be killed in the line of duty.
